I would like to respond to some of the comments made in Managing Editor Mark Rosman’s Dec. 21 column concerning Ray Catena’s effort to change Manalapan’s master plan in order to open a car dealership in a prohibited zone.
Residents from Pride’s Walk and Monmouth Heights, those most immediately impacted by this proposal, have come out in force to protest and have been joined by residents from Taylors Mills Estates, Tepehemus Estates, Foxcroft, The Grand and others who also spoke against the amendment change.
Those who hear about the dealership recognize this is a nightmare for the entire community and understand that the amendment calls for multiple dealerships of which Catena could be the first of many. As a result, more people than ever before are attending Planning Board meetings to object.
The residents have two main objectives:
• We specifically do not want a Catena motorsAudi dealership to open at the Route 9 and Taylors Mills Road intersection. There are no circumstances where that is acceptable.
• We do not want the master plan amended at all and certainly not in a way that would allow car dealerships to open anywhere in Manalapan.
Route 33 was not introduced as a tradeoff. It entered the conversation as a quote from the master plan land use amendment for the Route 9 corridor dated June 26, 2003, signed by Richard Cramer, the township’s planner then and now: “The negative aspects of commercial development on Route 9 included traffic congestion and long stretches of road frontage characterized by a highway strip of poorly coordinated and unattractive development.” The report continues its negative description of Route 9 and discusses the township’s plan for Route 33. It was cited to show that even the township did not think additional development on Route 9 was a good idea.
The collateral damage philosophy that it is OK to destroy some lives for the profit of a specific business on the off chance that the township might collect additional tax revenue is wrong. The position of the residents is that not a single individual, anywhere in Manalapan, should have their quality of life or property value diminished for a shortsighted, knee-jerk reaction to a dubious request.
It is not a blessing to live in a home that cannot be resold, no matter how low the taxes. It is not a blessing to barbecue in your backyard overlooking 18 bays of oil changes and lube jobs. If the reason your home value is lowered is because you now live in an undesirable neighborhood, you are the victim of a curse. We will all be able to do the tax math while waiting for traffic to move on Route 9 and Taylors Mills Road.
Officials, please remember that just because you can do something does not mean you should. This is a bad idea for the whole community.
Please attend the next Planning Board meeting to voice your objection to the proposal. Visit stop07726dealership.com for details, information and ways you can participate with your neighbors.
David Finkelstein
Manalapan