LONG VALLEY, NJ — The Washington Township Committee recently approved plans for a housing redevelopment project, including affordable housing units, on Kings Highway.The project comes from Ordinance #RO-05-25, which was approved by the committee in April. The ordinance essentially green-lit the redevelopment plan and will allow the Kings Highway property owner to build a 125-unit development on the property.The 42-acre, privately owned property was originally industrial-use land operated by USR Optonix, Inc., until the si...
LONG VALLEY, NJ — The Washington Township Committee recently approved plans for a housing redevelopment project, including affordable housing units, on Kings Highway.
The project comes from Ordinance #RO-05-25, which was approved by the committee in April. The ordinance essentially green-lit the redevelopment plan and will allow the Kings Highway property owner to build a 125-unit development on the property.
The 42-acre, privately owned property was originally industrial-use land operated by USR Optonix, Inc., until the site closed down in 2014. Since the site was razed, the property has been unused.
The redevelopment plan limits builders to “100 market-rate ‘for sale’ townhomes and 25 affordable units and restricts the building to only three acres of the total 42 acres.”
According to Washington Township Mayor Michael Marino, had the committee not passed the ordinance, the developer would “retain all legal rights to maximize the buildable capacity of the lot to as many as 250 or more units.”
Additionally, voting against the ordinance would force the township to look elsewhere to meet its affordable housing quota imposed by the state. Officials said that the only other option would be in the area of Long Valley Middle School on West Mill Road, where “the township could be forced to add over 100 units at that location.”
Officials emphasized that maintaining their commitment to avoiding overdevelopment was a prime factor in their decision-making regarding the development project.
“It is everyone’s shared goal to prevent the incompetent overdevelopment of our community at the expense of our open space and protected natural resources,” Marino said in a statement. “The township will continue to fight hard and plan intelligently for the future well-being of this community.”
The developer initially sought approval to build over 200 units on the property in 2013, according to officials. However, over the years, the developer and township agreed that 125 would be the maximum number of units permitted on the property, with a three-acre restriction.
Construction will not begin until the developer proves that the site meets all federal and state requirements, which is a process conducted by the Land Use Board. If the site does not meet the required guidelines, the development will not be built, according to officials.
Additionally, the developer is restricted from building or seeking approval to build any additional units other than the 125 agreed upon.
You can look at photos of the current site and concept drawings of the proposed development plan here.