The South Brunswick Township Council made a good move by not approving a rezoning ordinance.
The zone, which lies on the town’s border with East Brunswick, would have allowed the construction of warehouses.
While K&K Developers has received a use variance from the South Brunswick Zoning Board to allow the warehouses, the firm may now decide not to build there at all.
According to South Brunswick Mayor Frank Gambatese, the developer requested the change in zoning at the intersection of Cranbury-South River Road and Dunhams Corner Road to guarantee approvals from the state Department of Environmental Protection to run a sewer line to the area.
Without the zoning change, the DEP may not guarantee those approvals, making it harder for the developer to attract businesses to the site.
Gambatese said Wednesday that he fears that the township will lose about $2 million in taxable assets if the firm does not build there under the terms of the use variance granted by the zoning board.
While that loss is significant to the township, it is also a gain for the many residents living near the site.
Many of those residents have attended meetings in both municipalities to object to the plan.
Two residents have even filed suit to overturn the zoning board’s decision.
The East Brunswick Township Council passed a resolution to oppose the proposed development in May, and even South Brunswick’s own Planning Board rejected the need to change the zoning on the land.
By killing the ordinance, South Brunswick has proved that it is responsive to the concerns of the residents and neighboring towns that it borders.
Now the question is whether East Brunswick will return the favor and consider the impact of a planned sports complex across the street from the intersection.
The 147-acre Heavenly Farms purchase for $12 million may be funded through the state Green Acres program.
If the site is used for some kind of sports complex, we hope the township will also look at the traffic and other problems that may bring even more congestion to Cranbury-South River Road.
It is hard for any town in the state to develop within its borders without taking into account how it will affect its neighbors.
East Brunswick should keep South Brunswick officials up to speed with how it plans to develop that area.
South Brunswick should do the same with any future planned development in that area as well.
After all, we are all in this together and must find a way to work together to solve problems throughout the region.