After two years of planning, lawsuits, endless hearings involving squabbling, and controversy about illegal rezoning, the proposal to turn the old Sier-Bath gear factory located on 92nd Street and Kennedy Boulevard into a 273-unit housing development has been turned down by the township’s Planning Board.
The Planning Board ruled last week that it would not approve an ordinance that would give approval to rezone the neighborhood, originally restricted to one and two-family homes. It was an obstacle that had to be cleared in order to allow developers Orleans Associates and Sackman Associates to build three seven-story apartment complexes at the site of the old factory.
The factory has since been razed in preparation for development.
Local residents were adamantly against the development, stating that it would eventually lead to overcrowding, traffic and parking problems and that it would change the character of a strictly residential area.
In fact, some residents went to court to block the development. Eugene McCrohan filed a lawsuit against the township, citing that the ordinance to rezone the area was reached illegally, because residents were not given sufficient notice about the public hearing regarding the change in the ordinance.
Last January, State Superior Court Judge Jose Fuentes ruled in favor of McCrohan, and ordered the process to begin all over again.
The township was in the beginning stages of taking all the proper steps in order to secure approval to the development, but the Planning Board decided otherwise last week, giving a gigantic victory to the local residents.
“I would have to say that the plan is not going to go at this point,” Township Administrator Joseph Auriemma said.
“We’re back to square one. I honestly believe that the Planning Board was not comfortable with it, that the zoning change was not in the best interest of the residents. That’s their prerogative. I can’t fault them for that. Had they approved it, we would have been able to move forward. Right now, it appears to be dead.”
Township attorney Herb Klitzner agreed.
“There’s nothing pending anymore,” Klitzner said. “The Planning Board recommended that we not adopt the ordinance to rezone and without that ordinance, we can’t move forward. They didn’t feel that it was an appropriate time to rezone one part of the town, when the entire town is up for review in the upcoming months. It’s better to wait and put the entire town into perspective. That’s what appeared to be the feeling.”
Auriemma said that members of the Planning Board wanted to see a master plan of the entire township before committing to a particular area.
“I believe they wanted to see an overall growth program for the entire township, not one just based on that area,” Auriemma said. “I have to respect the Planning Board for that. We are required to do an update on the master plan every six years and that is coming up for review very shortly.”
What now?
Auriemma said that he did not know what the owners of the property now planned to do, but that the original “Orleans” luxury apartment complex is officially dead in the water.
“There’s nothing we can do,” Auriemma said.
Although the ruling by the Planning Board appears to be a victory for the local residents, one of the most vocal residents believes it’s only temporary.
“It’s a partial victory,” said Rocco Arciola, who has led the fight against development at the site. “Believe me, they are not finished. They will revise the master plan and they slip the development in with the high rises somehow. These people have lied out of both sides of their mouths for too long. I’m certain that this is far from over.”
Added Arciola, “It’s a temporary thing. As far as the project at the site is concerned, I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. We can’t be too happy with this.”