for proposals before
making decisions
Candidate says absence of
age-restricting is trouble
Others argue to wait
for proposals before
making decisions
By tara petersen
Staff Writer
HELMETTA — Some of those who say yes to the idea of redeveloping the snuff mill property still say no to the current redevelopment plan.
Many residents feel that the redevelopment plan submitted recently to the borough’s Planning Board should stipulate that any future housing there be age-restricted. Otherwise, they say, taxes likely would go up because of the costs associated with educating schoolchildren.
The current proposal is to allow mixed-use development with commercial and residential in the high-rise brick buildings, and commercial, retail and open space in the other areas. The plan was expected to be discussed by the Planning Board after press time last night.
Some fear that the Matrix Development Group, which has proposed a plan to build 294 luxury apartments in the snuff mill, is still the front-runner for a redevelopment project.
Six-year resident Vincent Asciolla, who is running for the Borough Council as an independent, is part of the fight against the current proposal.
"If on one hand you had no chance of taxes going up, and on the other you had even a 25-percent chance of them going up, why wouldn’t you go with no taxes?" he asked.
Keeping the zoning as light industrial and age-restricted, he said, would only help the borough by supplying revenue without burdening the schools.
"Why consider a plan that isn’t age-restricted?" Asciolla asked.
Asciolla has in the past circulated a petition against Matrix’s plan that he said has 600 signatures.
Last year, Matrix provided a newsletter to the community outlining its plans and providing the results of a fiscal impact analysis. The study concluded that the project could expect only around 17 school-age children per year, since the luxury rentals would likely appeal to young professionals and smaller families.
Matrix further estimated that the revenue generated from the site would be $426,000, while projected municipal and school costs related to the new residents would be around $265,830 — leaving a $160,710 annual profit for the borough.
Asciolla said that there is no way to know how many children there would be, nor could it be known whether there will be any special needs children. He said it costs around $10,000 to $12,000 to educate just one child, and considerably more if that child has special needs.
School costs in Helmetta have caused school taxes to increase by more than 50 percent in the last three years. Asciolla said many residents have written him letters expressing their fear that taxes would go up further.
The redevelopment plan does not make mention of the Matrix proposal.
Asciolla said he believes that the council should keep residents better informed and involve them in the decision making.
"The only thing the people of the town have seen is the Matrix newsletter," Asciolla said.
"We wanted to put (a question) on the (general election) ballot and let residents choose between age-restricted and non-age-restricted," he said.
Mayor Frank Hague cautioned that some of those vocalizing their feelings on the snuff mill issue are doing so to advance their political agendas.
"There’s a certain group of people using the mill for political reasons," he said. "It’s irresponsible. People don’t have all the facts."
Asciolla disagreed with Hague.
"It’s not political. I started this way before I even thought about running for office," he said.
The redevelopment plan leaves open the possibility for a variety of uses, including age-restricted housing, so that the borough can solicit proposals from developers and see what their options are, the borough’s planning consultant has said.
"We do not know what proposals will come in," Hague said. "(When proposals are submitted), we will make a decision of what is best for our community."
The mayor said one needs only to look at the process that Milltown has followed for the redevelopment of a factory site on Ford Avenue. The borough solicited proposals from developers based on a redevelopment plan and last week selected a concept plan from one of nine developers who responded.
"In Milltown, the residents supported the development of their factory area after the proposals came in, and they now have a great plan," Hague said.
The plan selected by Milltown calls for 220 age-restricted residential homes along with commercial, retail and office components.
Barbara Raczynski, the current Board of Education president who is running for mayor as a Democrat, also feels that the process being used by Milltown is a good one.
"Milltown should be our role model," she said.
Raczynski said that residents need to know that the council, as well as the Helmetta Leadership Committee, is carefully examining the impact that any proposal would have on education costs, and the potential for revenue.
"I am acutely aware of the cost of education and transportation for both regular and special education needs," she said.
According to Raczynski, the committee is made up of representatives of the "historical society, school board, senior citizens, council, Planning Board, fire department and residents at large."
She emphasized that it is important to keep a very open mind with such a large, important project.
"Don’t presume ahead of time that ‘A’ or ‘B’ won’t work. As soon as we focus on one plan, there is no latitude to discuss any other options," Raczynski said. "I don’t want to limit any developers from coming in and presenting a proposal. Let’s look at multiple plans and make an intelligent decision."
She said that Matrix is by no means the only contender for redeveloping the snuff mill property. She said that the Payments In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) program proposed by Matrix would be a concern because "if you have 20 students, (costing) $10,000 per student (on average), you have already expended half of your (PILOT) revenue, and you haven’t paid one nickel for transportation, or one penny for any special education."
"I was never convinced that the Matrix plan was the most financially beneficial (option) to Helmetta," Raczynski added.
If the Planning Board recommends the current plan, the next step would be for the council to consider it for adoption by ordinance. The borough would then initiate a request for proposals (RFP) where it invites developers to submit proposals for the site, said the borough’s redevelopment planner, Stuart Wiser.
Hague has said that he has faith in the process.
"We don’t have to make any decisions as to what goes there," he said. "There’s no reason to stall at this juncture. Wait for the RFP and the plans to come in, and let’s see what they are."
Hague also said that eight to 10 developers have expressed interest in the site, further allowing for a variety of plans.
"I think age-restricting is certainly one of the options," Raczynski said. "Whatever the final plan is, it needs to be financially beneficial, not just immediately, but 30 to 40 years down the road."