Below is a letter that was published in the Bernardsville News on April 20. It identifies an error in a news article on April 6 and outlines a plan for acquiring the land for Quarry Park. It refers to a letter I submitted to the Planning Board on March 16 relating to the township master plan. To see it click letter.
EDITOR:
An article on April 6 reported comments at the public hearing for the Bernards Township master plan on March 16. Your reporter usually does an excellent job. But he got a critical fact wrong when he wrote that I recommended that the township purchase the quarry land for a park.
I produced a detailed concept plan entitled “Quarry Park and Lakeview Village” in 2004 and have promoted it many times. It does not require purchase of any land with public funds.
When I analyzed the rehabilitation plan submitted by MQI and Tilcon in 2003, I concluded that the best outcomes on the land would be townhouses on the buildable south slope and township ownership of the balance of the tract. The latter would contain a lake and perimeter land with a few acres in a flat-bottomed canyon on the east side suitable for a park, bathing beach, and boat ramp.
I submitted the plan cited above to the Planning Board in 2004 and to the Township Committee in 2005. Township officials have never engaged in any public discussion of this plan. An updated version is on the website BernardsVoices.org.
The public hearing on March 16 wrapped up a process that began in 2008. Planning Board members discussed the township master plan in great detail during many work sessions in 2009 and early this year. On advice of their attorney and his concern for ongoing litigation, they skipped over the quarry land.
This was a mistake. The quarry litigation deals with imported fill, not future land use. There is no land in the township for which there is greater need for full review and discussion. The master planning process was the right place for this.
I was blocked last September when I tried to submit a master plan proposal for the quarry land. I was allowed on March 16 to submit a 2-page letter to the board and to read it into the record. There was no comment from the board.
In my letter I argue:
- The most likely outcome for the quarry pit is a lake.
- Because people will live near the lake and some lake water will percolate to groundwater, township government has a responsibility to work to assure good water quality over the long term.
- This will be easiest if the township owns the lake and the perimeter land, and manages the property for the benefit of all.
I have believed for many years that good-faith negotiation between township and quarry representatives can lead to a win-win-win outcome. For the quarry owner, for the township, and for those who will live on what is now quarry land.
If the owner receives a fair quantity of development rights that he can exercise on the south slopes, then he can transfer the rest of the land to the township at no loss.
The township will acquire land for a public park with a lake and bathing beach at no cost.
The homeowners will be relieved of the burden of managing a large tract with a lake. Because they will benefit from the lake over the long term, it will be fair to have them share in the costs of maintaining it.
I believe this plan will produce good outcomes for all and I strongly recommend it.
Bill Allen