Friday, May 9, 2014

American Properties Sues Middletown To Overturn Taylor Lane Denial

Interesting article in this week's Independent concerning the proposed Taylor Lane housing development that was turned down by the Middletown Planning Boarda few months ago.  The developer American Properties, is suing Middletown in Superior Court to overturn the ruling by the Planning Board.

After reading the article, a portion of which is printed below, I don't see how legally, Middletown has much of a leg to stand on and will surely lose in court.  Middletown's zoning process seems to be hap-hazard at times without a lot of thought placed into it.  The deficiency in the process then leads to court cases like this one which Middletown has a history of losing.

MIDDLETOWN — Iselin-based developer American Properties has sued the township of Middletown and the township Planning Board over the unanimous denial of the company’s plan to build 245 town homes on a 31-acre site. 
Citing “arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable” regulations and rulings by both bodies, American Properties is asking a state Superior Court judge to overturn the denial of its application and strike down a local ordinance cited in the decision.
The developer is also seeking a ruling on whether Taylor Lane is a public or private roadway, which could require the township to forcibly acquire any private ownership rights to the road that bisects the development site. 
Attorneys for the township and the Planning Board said no court hearings had taken place as of May 5. 
Ronald Shimanowitz, the attorney for the American Properties application and the appeal, did not return a call seeking comment. 
In the appeal, filed on Feb. 28, the developer states that the proposed development of 196 market-rate town homes and 49 affordable housing units fully complies with the township’s zoning for the vacant site. 
The Planning Board’s unanimous resolution of denial, which came after 11 lengthy Planning Board hearings spanning all of 2013, stated that Taylor Lane is a “collector road” according to local and state regulations. 
As a result, the board said the proposed development must be set back 50 feet from Taylor Lane, a two-lane road that runs south from Route 35 past a residential community. 
“The applicant’s plan is too crowded, too tight to a busy road,” read the resolution of denial. “Locating homes within 25 feet of a busy collector road is just not good planning. “
Professionals for American Properties testified that Taylor Lane is actually a local road that would require a setback of only 10 feet. The application called for a 25-foot setback. 
In the suit, American Properties officials say the Planning Board did not decide that Taylor Lane was a collector road until the 11th and final hearing for the application, and did not mention the need for a variance prior to that night.
The board’s determination was also partly based on a Middletown road ordinance that is “arbitrary, capricious, unreasonable and ambiguous” and needs to be voided, the complaint alleges. 
The ordinance, cited in the board’s denial, lays out specific criteria for a collector road, including the number of vehicles it carries, the number of lots it provides access to and whether it is “utilized by traffic other than residential in nature.” 
However, the board also recognized that the road ordinance “is not crystal clear,” referring at points to the township master plan, which does not designate Taylor Lane as either a local or collector road.
 Continue reading

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Keep this high density housing out of Middletown. That is the LAST thing this town needs!

Anonymous said...

Any update on the lawsuit?

MiddletownMike said...

I hear that the plans are going through

Anonymous said...

No alterations? I haven't seen anything public yet.