Press
WeCare President & A West Orange Resident Talk About West Essex Highlands’ Developer Changing the Original Plans
South Orange Environmental Commission Formally Recommends that West Orange Reject Essex Highlands Application
WEST ORANGE, NJ – The South Orange Environmental Commission (SOEC) sent a letter to Mayor Susan McCartney, the West Orange Town Council and the planning board warning that the proposed development of West Essex Highlands housing will be harmful to adjacent towns and recommending that West Orange does not approve it.
Read MoreWest Orange Environmental Commission Sends Letter to Planning Board Opposing Proposed West Essex Highlands Development
WEST ORANGE, NJ – The West Orange Environmental Commission (WOEC) wrote a letter to the West Orange Planning Board explaining why the proposed West Essex Highlands development “will impact ecological integrity, regional open space and quality of life for residents.” They strongly opposed the proposed destruction of a watershed and forest to allow for development of almost 500 apartments on the West Essex Highlands/Watchung mountain.
Read MoreBillionaire sparks backlash with controversial proposal for mountain forest area: ‘Tremendous amount of concern’
Critics said that, in addition to bulldozing one of the last remaining forests in the area, the plans are dangerous because they will increase the risk of flooding in the heavily populated West Orange area, which surrounds the proposed development.
Joe Krakoviak, president of the West Orange Township Council, expressed a “tremendous amount of concern” about putting lower-income residents so far away from vital amenities, along with environmental concerns.
“The township of West Orange has spent literally millions of dollars trying to better handle the stormwater runoff from the top of the mountain,” he said. “And that’s where they want to put the project.”
Read MoreSierra Club Urges West Orange Planning Board to Reject Billionaire’s Harmful Housing Development in the Watchung Mountains
NJ Sierra Club has issued the following statement:
“Affordable housing, land conservation, and sustainability can all coexist, but not like this.
This proposed project … threatens up to 30 acres of deforestation in an already overdeveloped part of the state, increases risk of flooding and does not comply with stormwater rules, which threatens public safety, and will isolate the residents who need the affordable housing literally on top of a mountain – no where near … schools, grocery stores, or public transit.
Read MoreThe Water Has to Go Somewhere
WEST ORANGE — About 30 people turned out for a Planning Board meeting last week to hear a consultant talk about the stormwater plan for a nearly 500 unit residential development proposed for land on the Second Watchung Mountain Ridge.
A presentation was given by Mark Gallagher of Princeton Hydro on the Wetlands Impact of the project, known as West Essex Highlands.
The plan calls for water to move uphill to the wetland, he said. “If the seasonal high water table is above the basin, that is a problem,” Gallagher said.
“If the storm water plan doesn’t meet the requirements of New Jersey DEP, the water will be going towards their homes, downhill,” he said.
Read MorePresident of WeCare NJ Tells Town Council That His Organization Is Commissioning a Floodplain Study
During the recent meeting, WeCare president Joe Pannullo provided the town council meeting with an update on his organization’s activities. “WeCare will commission its own floodplain study. The reason is to demonstrate on record that downhill areas known to flood present a great risk to public safety, as already expressed by concerned citizens living outside the site plan under consideration at the West Orange Planning Board,” reported Pannullo.
Read MoreRED ZONE My Billionaire NFL owner neighbor is putting our lives at risk – decades long battle just keeps getting worse
AN NFL owner is spearheading a move to build a new apartment complex nestled within the mountains – but it has proved controversial.
The property plans first surfaced around two decades ago but they were put on the backburner.
Read MoreBillionaire NFL owner wants to build affordable housing on a pristine NJ hilltop — and locals are mad as hell
Locals in West Orange, NJ aren’t just shouting from the rooftops — they’re shouting about what might be built above them.
A billionaire’s bid to transform a pristine hilltop with Manhattan skyline views into a nearly 500-unit apartment complex is the latest drama in a decades-old land use battle in the tony town — and this time, the argument involves affordable housing.
Read MoreResidents ask NJ to suspend wealthy family’s permit for mountaintop development
Residents of West Orange, New Jersey and other surrounding towns who have been fighting a wealthy developer are now in a battle over competing environmental reviews.
Read More