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HILLSBOROUGH: State legislators to introduce bill giving approval power over off-track wagering sites back to municipality

Action follows news of proposal in Hillsborough

   Three state legislators who represent Hillsborough say they will immediately introduce a bill that reverses a section of law changed in 2011 that eliminates a municipality’s right to have the final say on whether an off-track wagering (OTW) business could operate within its borders.
   Though approval is still needed by the state Racing Commission, the state’s fifth OTW is proposed for the former Maestro 206 restaurant on southbound Route 206 in Hillsborough Township, near the Veterans Industrial Park. The Racing Commission will be scheduling a public hearing in the township.
   Hillsborough Township Committee on March 25 passed an ordinance agreeing to a $32,000 payment in lieu of property taxes for the restaurant site. At the hearing, citizens expressed outrage and concern that there was little the municipality could do to oppose the OTW site on Route 206.
     In an open letter to the community this week, Mayor Douglas Tomson said, “In short, the state took our home rule.”
   Mayor Douglas Tomson said in an open letter this week he would propose the township host a public forum prior to a state hearing on a proposed off-track wagering site in a restaurant on Route 206.
   A public information forum — not the official state hearing — will be hosted by the township from 7-9 p.m. Wednesday, April 16, in the municipal building.
   Sen. Kip Bateman, Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli and Assemblywoman Donna Simon, all Republicans, said they will sponsor the bill.
   ”Municipal officials are elected to give residents a voice in the decisions that shape the quality of life and future of their communities,” said Sen. Bateman. “Approval of an off-track wagering business is a decision that impacts the unique character of a municipality and it’s one that should be made by the local officials who understand and represent the best interests of those in the community. It’s time we give the authority to make this important decision back to those best suited to do so.”
   ”While the racing commission still needs to sign off on this plan, and not before a public hearing, the decision-making authority for an OTW facility should be the municipality, not by fiat,” said Mr. Ciattarelli, who lives in Hillsborough. “Home rule has its drawbacks, but local land use is not one of them.”
   Under current law, there is no requirement for notice to be given to a municipality, nor can a town disapprove of the wagering facility by resolution. Under that same law, an OTW operation is a permitted use in any commercial or industrial district and does not need to appear before the local planning board.
   ”This legislation will make a town the determining authority, as it was prior to 2011,” explained Mr. Ciattarelli. “It will empower a municipality to decide if it wants an off-track wagering facility. This bill will also repeal the abatement automatically granted to any commercial building housing an OTW operation, as I am personally opposed to incentive programs that relieve property owners of paying, at the very least, school taxes.”
   Ms. Simon said, “Municipalities and its taxpayers should have more than a say about whether they want OTW. Removing this responsibility from a town lets an important quality of life decision be made by outside interests. Residents can hold their elected officials accountable for the way they run their town, but who is answerable under this structure? A town’s local officials know the issues surrounding proposals such as this and they should have the final say.”
   ”We need to return to the fundamental fairness concept that a town should play an active role in its planning and zoning,” said Mr. Ciattarelli. “With that in mind, I ask Hillsborough citizens, once the date for the public hearing is set, to join me in attending and expressing our sentiments.”