Manville would have to rely on county open space trust fund
By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
Homeowners of flood-prone properties may have a slightly easier path to having their municipalities buy their homes.
Municipal officials are weighing the state Legislature’s unanimous passage of a bill that allows local and county open space funds to finance part of the acquisition of flood-prone property for conservation or recreational purposes only.
The law would allow Hillsborough to tap some of the $20 million it has in accounts funded by a tax on property assessments. A Hillsborough property owner pays $28 for each $100,000 of assessment into a fund to buy farms and open spaces, either outright or by purchasing the rights to develop.
The legislation may have more need in a flood-weary town like Manville — but the borough doesn’t have a local open space tax to tap. Its only hope might be to convince the county government to spend some of its open space fund, which is raised by its $30 per $100,000 assessment on all county property. That program brought in $17.7 million in 2011.
In Manville, as many as 300 homeowners are on a list of those interested in having some level of government buy their property, said Councilman Richard Onderko.
During Hurricane Irene, some residents in Hillsborough were forced to abandon their homes due to flooding. In Manville, hundreds of homeowners were forced to leave, and many have not as yet been able to return, said a press release from state Senator “Kip” Bateman and Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, both Republicans.
For many residents, it was the fourth time in the past 11 years they were forced to abandon their homes due to flooding, said the representatives.
”With two major flooding incidents, 2011 proved how important flood prevention is to our area,” said Mr. Bateman, a co-sponsor of the bill. “This law gives municipalities a convenient way to finance the purchase of properties that routinely flood or are needed for purposes of preventing flood damage to other areas. It is a win for taxpayers, as well as for owners of flood-prone properties desperate for a buyout.”
In October, Richard and Mary Courtier came to the Hillsborough Township Committee asking for help to apply to the federal government for a buyout of their property along the Millstone River in Hillsborough. At the time, Committeeman Frank DelCore said the local government would help in the process, but couldn’t guarantee it would agree to a future buyout because some of the money would have to come from general property taxes the township didn’t have at the moment.
The law would appear to give the township another revenue source to consider tapping.
Helen “Chickie” Haines, co-chair of the Hillsborough Open Space Committee, said she hadn’t seen the legislation, but suggested the local ordinance might have to be changed. She said the ordinance says money can’t be used on a property where the main value is in the structure, which would seem to be the case with “Blue Acres.”
She said the township maintains a list of “wish list” of properties totaling more than 2,000 acres it might like to preserve, but didn’t believe any were “Blue Acres” properties.
In most cases, when a local government buys rights or land outright, it pays a small percentage of the overall cost of a project, with state and county Green Acres and farmland funds paying the lion’s share.
Mr. Onderko said he was “all for buyouts,” but the comprehensive answer was to do something to stop the flooding in the first place.
He was frustrated by an ongoing Army Corps of Engineering study. “We’re in the 12th year of a three-year study,” he said.
A lifelong Manville resident Mr. Onderko, 51, said the Raritan and Millstone rivers react much more greatly to three inches of rain than they did years ago.
”You can’t tell me it’s not related to the mass development in Somerset County in the last 50 years,” he said.
A newly formed regional Raritan and Millstone Rivers Flood Control Commission of 12 municipalities is scheduled to meet for the first time on Feb. 1 in Manville, he said.
”The whole intent is that Manville can’t do it alone,” he said. “It’s a regional problem and we need the cooperation of surrounding communities to bring a spotlight on the issue.”
The funding bill, A-4267, had support from environmental groups and local governments. It passed unanimously in both the Senate and Assembly in its final form.
”By augmenting federal and state ‘Blue Acres’ programs in this way, this legislation allows local governments to now participate more fully and expeditiously in providing much needed relief to qualified homeowners,” said Mr. Ciattarelli.
New Jersey voters authorized $12 million for acquisition of lands in the floodways of the Delaware River, Passaic River or Raritan River, and their respective tributaries in a bond act in 2007. An additional $24 million was approved in a 2009 bond act.
Properties (including structures) that have been damaged by, or may be prone to, storms or storm-related flooding, or that may buffer or protect other lands from such damage, are eligible for acquisition. All Blue Acres acquisitions must be from willing sellers.