Proposal would have created new Open Space Trust Fund.
By: Leon Tovey
MONROE The Township Council may hold off on an ordinance that would establish a Planned Retirement Community overlay zone, Township Engineer Ernie Feist said last week if it considers the issue again at all.
Mr. Feist, who helped create the proposed ordinance, said that while he still believes it would be a good thing for the township, he and other township officials think public concerns about the ordinance expressed at several council meetings last fall indicate that its time may not be right.
The ordinance, introduced Sept. 8 and tabled Oct. 4 amid concerns about its creation of an Open Space Trust Fund, would give the Planning Board discretion over the development of PRCs in the current R-3A residential agricultural district, R-30 residential district and R-60 residential district.
Currently, a developer wanting to build a PRC in those areas must seek a zoning change from the Township Council before approaching the board.
The ordinance would require developers to contribute land for open space or recreation areas outside of the development as a condition of approval. However, developers would have the option of paying into a new Open Space Trust Fund.
Mr. Feist estimated the fund would raise between $20 million and $30 million for open space acquisition over 10-years.
During public forums at the Sept. 27 and Oct. 4 council meetings, residents expressed concerns that rules governing the fund were not available for public comment.
On resident said the fund could become a "slush fund" unless strict guidelines for its administration were adopted. The resident said the fund should be used exclusively for the purchase of land for open space, rather than for acquisition and development.
"There were some legitimate concerns raised," Mr. Feist said last week.
For that reason, he said, the ordinance was tabled at the Oct. 4 meeting so he and other township officials could try to address those concerns.
Mr. Feist said he had expected to see the ordinance brought before the council after the first of this year. Now however, he said he doesn’t expect it to come up again any time soon.
"Public perception is not necessarily reality," Mr. Feist said. "But some people in the community are opposed to the ordinance and the feeling is that we have to be very cautious.
"Eventually, the ordinance may be discussed at a future council meeting and the decision made to either move forward or drop it," he said. "The best thing may be to do nothing at all."

