The lines have been drawn, and the battle has apparently just begun. And the anticipated fight over the redevelopment of Helmetta’s snuff mill could be enough to delay any such project from taking shape, regardless of who emerges victorious.
The borough’s choice of Kaplan Cos. as the redeveloper apparently did not sit well with the owner of the mill, Helmetta Lenape, who is now expected to pursue litigation against the town. Helmetta Lenape, also known as Pizzo & Pizzo, has for years proposed its own version of the redevelopment and was even selected by the borough for such a task last year. Failed negotiations led the borough to a new round of talks with builders, and despite making another bid to win the project, Helmetta Lenape was overlooked in favor of Kaplan.
Kaplan’s project is to include 233 age-restricted housing units, along with open space, and tennis and basketball courts. The housing will include 190 multifamily units and 43 townhouses. The multifamily buildings will be three stories high, and the townhouses will be no higher than 2 1/2 stories.
Borough officials said Kaplan stood out among the four builders considered this year, with Mayor Nancy Martin making note of their “creativity, cooperative spirit, high level of experience and professionalism.” But Kaplan doesn’t own the mill, and Helmetta Lenape is expected to challenge the constitutionality of one developer condemning land from another for its own gain.
The bitterness of the situation was evident on Friday when the borough suddenly declared the buildings, which have been vacant since 1993, unsafe for entry. A day earlier, a newspaper crew toured the mill with a local historian, courtesy of Helmetta Lenape, which had sought to save the buildings by renovating them for housing.
It appears evident that anyone looking forward to the redevelopment that officials have been championing may have to wait a bit longer, and anyone looking to stop the current proposal and save the historical buildings may at least have a fighting chance of seeing that happen.