BY TALI ISRAELI
Staff Writer
MARLBORO – A judge has ruled that a trio of indicted developers are allowed to begin construction on a residential development on Route 9.
On Jan. 16 state Superior Court Judge Lawrence Lawson, sitting in Freehold, lifted a temporary order staying the construction of the Marlboro Grande, a 90-unit age-restricted rental apartment complex on Route 9 north, just south of Union Hill Road.
The judge permitted developers Steven Meiterman, Bernard Meiterman and Edward Kay to continue construction on a 7-acre parcel owned by Meiterman Holdings.
The developers were granted a use variance and a density variance for the project by the Zoning Board of Adjustment in December 2004; they received preliminary and final site plan approval for the project from the board in August 2005.
The zoning board’s approval permitted the developers to construct a residential development on a commercial property.
In September 2005 Mayor Robert Kleinberg and the Township Council filed a complaint challenging the use variance and site plan approval granted by the zoning board. The complaint claimed the board usurped the council’s exclusive authority to zone and rezone properties within the township.
State Superior Court Judge Alexander D. Lehrer, sitting in Freehold, dismissed the complaint because the township failed to challenge the decision within 45 days of the zoning board’s use variance approval.
Township officials continued the matter by filing a motion to vacate the dismissal of the complaint. Lehrer denied that motion but stayed any construction on the project until Sept. 1, 2006.
Since the stay on the project was lifted last year, the Meitermans have been attempting to go forward with the project by drafting a developer’s agreement.
However, Kleinberg refused to sign the document because he believed an investigation into the Meitermans was going to come to a conclusion soon and he said it would be prudent to see if the two men would be indicted before allowing the development to go further.
As a result of the mayor’s refusal to sign the developer’s agreement the Meiter-mans’ application for building permits was denied and work on the project ceased once again.
The developers then filed an order compelling the mayor to perform the ministerial act of signing the document.
On Nov. 30 the court determined that without any more than the suspicion of criminal activity, Kleinberg would have no choice but to sign the developer’s agreement and permit the continuation of development on the property.
The court did allow Marlboro officials the option of returning to court if the principals of Meiterman Holdings were indicted.
On Dec. 6, Kay and the Meiterman brothers were indicted on federal charges that they bribed the executive director of the Western Monmouth Utilities Authority (WMUA) to gain favor in getting sewer service to their projects in Marlboro.
The WMUA provides sewer services to residents in Marlboro, Manalapan, Freehold Township and Englishtown.
The Meitermans were also accused of obstructing the grand jury investigation into their dealings with Frank Abate, the WMUA’s executive director. Abate has been indicted on a separate federal indictment and is no longer the executive director of the WMUA.
Representatives of Meiterman Hold-ings and Marlboro officials returned to court on Dec. 8 for an initial appearance in which the township was seeking to stay the construction of the Marlboro Grande.
The court granted a temporary restraining order and set a return date for both parties in order to determine whether the temporary restraints could be converted to an injunction until the criminal proceedings involving Kay and the Meitermans were completed.
Lawson’s written opinion on the case stated that the WMUA is conducting its own investigation into the approvals granted to the Meitermans and will make a determination as to whether the authority may need to rescind those ap-provals due to impropriety.
According to Lawson’s opinion, the court made clear that an indictment is not considered evidence of an individual’s guilt.
“An indictment is evidence only of the fact that a charge has been made; it in no way establishes the truth of the charge or the presence of sufficient legal proof thereof,” Lawson wrote.
It is because of this that Marlboro officials were required to show a connection between the indictment alleging improper influence by Kay and the Meitermans to the approvals granted by the WMUA for the Marlboro Grande.
The judge said Marlboro officials failed to make that connection and therefore the stay on the apartment complex project was lifted.
“It is the criminal proceedings that will determine whether any impropriety existed by the WMUA granting approvals for the Marlboro Grande. It is not for this court to make such determinations and the evidence presented is not enough to establish a nexus that would require this court to shut down the project until the criminal proceedings are completed,” Lawson said.
In comments to the News Transcript on Jan. 26, Kleinberg said he has the utmost respect for Lawson but respectfully disagrees with the judge’s decision.
The mayor noted that because the Meitermans and Kay are under federal indictment they have a constitutional right to invoke the Fifth Amendment, which he believes gives them an advantage in the civil matter regarding the Marlboro Grande.
“In any other civil lawsuit the township would have the right to depose the people suing us. Why should the fact that they’re under indictment give them an advantage in this lawsuit? The only way to prove the nexus in the short time we were allotted was to ask the (Meitermans) directly about the bribes named in the federal indictment,” Kleinberg said.
Township Attorney Andrew Bayer said Marlboro officials are considering appealing the Superior Court decision to the New Jersey Appellate Division.
“If we’re going to do it, we’re going to do it quickly,” Bayer added.