Challenge to Pulte Homes’ 34-unit project slated to be heard in July
By: Greg Forester
ROCKY HILL Rocky Hill Citizens for Responsible Growth will get its day in court this summer.
The organization has filed a lawsuit against a planned development by Pulte Homes which is now scheduled to be heard in Superior Court in Somerville on July 27.
Judge Allison Accurso will preside in the challenge to decisions made by the Rocky Hill Planning Board to allow the construction of 34 age-restricted duplex-style single-family homes that the citizens’ group says are out of scale with the historic character of the rest of the borough.
The lawsuit moves ahead despite Judge Accurso throwing out the portion of the case brought by the group against the Borough Council and an ordinance it passed, because of the time elapsed between the passing of the ordinance and the filing of the suit.
The citizens group has asked for an extension on the normal time allowed to legally challenge an ordinance, but the judge sided with the borough, removing the portion of the suit pertaining to council
The ordinance allowed Pulte Homes to construct the development, situated on the Schafer Tract, without the usual constraints that determine the look and size of construction within the borough.
Judge Accurso did uphold the remainder of the lawsuit, against the Rocky Hill Planning Board, Pulte Homes, and David and Barbara Schafer, the owners of the land the senior housing would be built upon.
The lawsuit had also survived attempts by the various defendants to have the case thrown out on the basis that the group had no real standing within the community, an assertion that Judge Accurso rejected.
Had the challenge succeeded, the organization would have had to bring the lawsuit as individual citizens rather than as a group.
Members of the Citizens for Responsible Growth had previously called the planned development named Rocky Hill Estates "out of character" with regard to size, scale and configuration of other buildings in the borough.
Pulte Homes seemed to receive special treatment for its planned project, according to the citizens’ group.
Members of the group previously told The Packet they believe the ordinance allowing the development to be built without the standard historic standards still represents a threat to the borough, in the form of future development.
Group representatives said they believe they could challenge the ordinance at a future time through an appeals process despite Judge Accurso throwing out the portion of the current lawsuit regarding the ordinance.
The Citizens for Responsible Growth plans to meet 7:30 p.m. June 6 at Mary Jacobs Library on Washington Street in Rocky Hill.
The group plans to show a documentary film, "Save Our Land, Save Our Towns," hosted and produced by Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Hylton.
The group will also provide an update on the lawsuit.
Residents interested in joining the group or making a donation to the Legal Fund for the lawsuit can send an e-mail with a name and contact information to: R.H. Citizens for Responsible Growth, P.O. Box 814 Rocky Hill NJ 08553, or call (609) 924-7989.