Legislative panel delays review of NPDC sale

Montgomery officials see setback as temporary

By: Jake Uitti
   MONTGOMERY — The memorandum of agreement on the sale of the state-owned North Princeton Developmental Center property to the township was unexpectedly tabled during a state Senate committee meeting Monday.
   The document will be discussed again Monday at another session of the Senate State Government Committee and it may be moved then, officials said.
   "There were some questions about the finances of the transfer," said state Sen. Walter Kavanaugh (R-Somerville), sponsor of the Senate bill authorizing the sale of the property to Montgomery. "No one from the (state Department of the) Treasury was there to explain about the negotiations that have been had over three administrations. The people that have the answers at how we arrived at the sale price weren’t there," he said.
   "So we asked people from the Treasury to appear Monday," Sen. Kavanaugh added. "I am hoping it’s going to go through. I am anxious to get it over with so the township’s citizens will have the advantages of (the property)."
   The obstacle is not one that is not out of the ordinary, a Senate official said, although it delays the process for the township.
   Mayor Louise Wilson downplayed the delay.
   "We are making sure that the individual members of the (Senate) committee are more familiar with the details of the agreement, and the length of time and nature of the painstaking measures that went into it," she said. "I’m feeling pretty good about the whole thing, and am trying to make sure that any questions people have are addressed."
   According to the mayor, the committee staff said it would be unusual for a sale approved by the State House Commission, which has already given the green light to the NPDC deal, not to be approved by the State Government Committee.
   "But in this budget environment, everything is getting close scrutiny," Mayor Wilson said. "I think we need to make sure that the legislators know that these are very fair terms and that the interest of the state and the state taxpayers are being thoroughly protected. The reason it did not move forward was because there were no representatives from the Treasury Department there who were available to say the memorandum of agreement is fair. That probably would have made a difference."
   The mayor said that another reason the memorandum of agreement wasn’t moved was that "a couple of legislators felt that the time frame for shared proceeds should be extended" longer than the 10 years specified in the agreement. Under the pact, once certain costs — such as those involved with remediation, insurance and building demolition — are recouped, the township and state will split any net profits over a 10-year time span.
   The mayor explained, "This deal was struck over a very long period of time. And in the end, both sides made compromises that were difficult to make. And in the end, both sides thought it was fair."
   Township Committeeman John Warms, who has been involved with the NPDC negotiations for many years, said, "We’re doing what we have to do. We’re talking to folks who voted no.
   "I gather that the issue is the 10-year concept," he continued, "and we’ll have to deal with that. A lot of trading went on that involved give and take. We agreed to assume soft costs (of remediation and demolition), that’s part of the trade."
   On Jan. 5, the State House Commission, which governs the sale and leasing of state-owned property, approved the sale of the 256.5-acre NPDC site to Montgomery Township for $5.95 million.
   The township is in the midst of its "due diligence period," which, according to the memorandum of agreement, stipulates that the township must survey the property and see what needs to be done regarding remediation and demolition.
   The township is also in the process of contracting with a private firm to ensure the remediation is done properly. It is anticipated that Weston Solutions, the company presently conducting the surveys, will be selected.
   The memorandum of agreement also requires remediation insurance to be in place before closing of the sale between the state and township.