residents may fight
development in court
Warehouse plan on U.F. border receives approval
Lynwood Estates
residents may fight
development in court
By jane meggitt
Staff Writer
UPPER FREEHOLD — After a series of public hearings, the Washington Township Planning Board approved a proposal to build 5.85 million square feet of warehouse space on the Upper Freehold border last week.
The complex will be located between Old York Road, Gordon Road and Exit 7A of the New Jersey Turnpike. It is slated to house seven warehouse buildings and one office building.
The application was filed by Matrix, a national commercial developer.
Residents of Lynwood Estates, a development directly across the street from the planned entrance to the complex, which will be known as Northeast Business Park, have vehemently opposed the application, claiming it did not conform to Washington Township’s own ordinances regarding planned communities.
The residents cite a Washington ordinance, which states that developments are supposed to be a "reasonable mix" of uses. The nearby residents intend to fight it because the approved plan consists of 99 percent warehouses.
Excessive traffic, noise, pollution and a complete change in the rural area were additional reasons given by Lynwood residents for opposing the approval.
Central Jersey Residents Against Matrix (CJRAM), a grassroots citizens group, was formed to oppose the project.
Lynwood Estates resident Maureen Novozinsky said that neighbors were in the process of forming a nonprofit organization called Residents for Smart Growth and were dropping the CJRAM designation because "it was too negative."
Novozinsky said, "We’re not against Matrix. We want [the development] to conform to the zoning."
According to Novozinsky, they are now researching their options, and intend to fight the approval in court.
According to a statement by a Matrix spokeswoman, "Matrix Development Group is pleased to have received approvals for Northeast Business Park. For more than 20 years we have been building responsibly in the central New Jersey area, helping towns build ratables, while at the same time developing in a smart, well-planned manner.
"This project has been zoned for industrial development for approximately 12 years, and will not only attract world-class companies, jobs and ratables to the local area, but will be built in such a way that respects its neighbors’ needs. It is an example of smart growth at work, and is for the greater good of the community at large," she added.
The development is expected to bring in approximately $3 million annually in tax revenue for Washington Township.
CJRAM members had contended that Washington would reap the benefits in the form of tax relief while Upper Freehold and Allentown residents would feel the most negative impact from the development, through increased traffic, especially from tractor-trailers bound for the warehouses.