Welcome

Also, the PJNC meeting schedule for 2006 was announced, for the FIRST THURSDAY of each month, 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the West Windsor Township Senior Center beginning January 2006. Meeting agendas and speakers will be announced.

The next meeting of the West Windsor Township Council was also mentioned, nothing that the council will hear testimony, public comments and possibly take action on the Redevelopment Area designation for the 350 site in Princeton Junction. (The 32-page draft Princeton Junction Redevelopment Study is linked from the PJNC website.)

Speaker: Bill Potter

Mr. Potter began by describing some of the history of the 1992 Local Redevelopment and Housing Law (LHRL) under which areas can be designated for redevelopment. LRHL adopted the euphemism "redevelopment area" for what had previously, in the state constitution and in a 1949 law, been called "blighted area". While this euphemism and exchange of terms has created confusion, the terms mean the same thing. Courts have made clear that redevelopment area means blighted area – and that there must be "blight in fact".

By designating a redevelopment area, a municipality assumes for itself several powers:

• the power of eminent domain, allowing private property to be taken for public use with just compensation

• the power to select a master developer, involving negotiations carried out in executive session (i.e., away from public view)

• the power to waive competitive bidding in selecting development contractors

• the power to adopt a redevelopment plan that supersedes existing zoning within the redevelopment area

• the power to issue bonds to pay for the redevelopment project, while at the same time being immune from any petition for a referendum on the bond issue

• the power to grant long-term tax abatements to project developers, consequently denying tax revenue to a school board and county government

Mr. Potter pointed out that these powers are granted not only to whomever is currently in office, but their successors, and because redevelopment project can take many years to complete that these powers would endure for some time, perhaps through several administrations, and that concentrating them in the hands of any municipal government may be an invitation to abuse of power.

Mr. Potter went on to enumerate the conditions set forth in the LHRL for declaring an area in need of redevelopment. (These are listed in Mr. Madden's Report and thus are not repeated here.)

Mr. Potter stated that the courts evaluate eight conditions that need to be meet in determining whether a designated area is "blighted."

1. Unsafe
2. Unsanitary (these two comprise the "slum provision")
3. Lack of access
4. Obsolete buildings
5. Lack of utilization / stagnant unproductive land
6. 5 or more acres destroyed
7. Urban Enterprise Zones
8. Smart Growth - the designated development is consistent with smart growth principles

Mr. Potter stated that, based on case law, there were two ways to interpret the conditions.

• Traditional approach: one asks whether the area suffers conditions of blight, and, importantly, whether those conditions threaten the surrounding community (going back to the original definition of blight, as an infectious disease capable of spreading.)

• Recent approach: This is one that a number of municipalities have tried to follow and that Mr. Potter's law partner calls the "circular reasoning school", one defines an area as blighted because it is not serving the function the town wants it to. Mr. Potter pointed out that this was the approach taken in Mr. Madden's report.

Mr. Potter suggested completely decoupling the redevelopment area designation from redevelopment planning. At least, he said, make no decision on a redevelopment area designation until planning is well advanced, so that planning can determine whether the municipality indeed needs any of the special powers granted by the designation. Finally, he suggested that it might want to be considered to forma separate redevelopment agency rather than handling redevelopment issues by the local governing body, as it would be a conflict of interest for the governing body to both be managing redevelopment and providing oversight of it. He posed the question that how can local officials have a fiduciary responsibility with a partner (i.e. outside agency or redeveloper) and with the citizens of the township at the same time?

Discussion

• Drive-by determinations of blight have not stood up in court. One cannot declare something to be blighted simply because it is fifty years old.

• One should ask, "If this redevelopment is so attractive for this area, why hasn't it occurred already? Why aren't developers working now to put up a transit village?"

• Once council approves a redevelopment area, there is a 45-day judicial appeal period. Then council can adopt a redevelopment plan and issue bonds, obligating taxpayers to repay those bonds. Unless the amount of the bonds exceeds the municipality's authorization (not likely), the electorate is not entitled to a referendum on whether to issue the bonds.

• Conditions placed in the resolution at the time the council votes on the redevelopment area (RA) designation may later be removed by the existing or future councils by another resolution.

• The attraction of a redevelopment area designation for a municipality is that it gives greater control over redevelopment, as compared to private redevelopment, and it suppresses “pesky” citizen groups.

• The Madden report doesn't come close to showing that the area is blighted. Council should not proceed on it.

• Why can't redevelopment goals be achieved by simple rezoning?

• Everyone in a redevelopment area who has commented on the designation at the time it was considered has standing to later challenge the redevelopment in court. Those in the area who did not comment on it will probably have standing, but it is not certain.

• Try attracting private redevelopment before resorting to a redevelopment area designation.

• The question of state funding was brought up to gage how significant it was to support reason for seeking designation; the state “is broke” according to Governor Codey, money that is available is mainly for purposes of planning, and with other cities and municipalities in great economic need requesting funding it is unlikely to think that an affluent township like West Windsor would receive consideration over the them.

• Property owners in the redevelopment area (RA) who want to make improvements might be constricted, or “frozen” from proceeding with improvements by the master redeveloper.

• Two residents, from neighboring Hamilton Township, attended the meeting and expressed concern and warned of moving ahead with designation in terms of what is exchanged in sacrificing civil rights.

• Residents expressed strong concerns that issuing the RA designation is issuing a blank check for ill-defined goals and objectives. Mr. Potter suggested that the public should be informed of the following before council grants the redevelopment area designation, including:
  • cost
  • potential tax burden of the redevelopment
  • expectation of how much disruption it will mean for the surrounding community
  • who will be developer or redevelopment agency be and how will they be selected
  • what powers will they and local government have
  • conduct environmental, fiscal and traffic impacts studies

• Many residents of Princeton Junction spoke up in favor of making improvements to the area that has been defined in the RA but clearly expressed concern with going ahead without details, without defined standards, and in being asked to surrender civil rights in exchange for seeking these benefits.

Statutory Authority

• Art. 8, Sec. 3, Para. 1 of the New Jersey Constitution

  1. The clearance, re-planning, development or redevelopment of blighted areas shall be a public purpose and public use, for which private property may be taken or acquired. Municipal, public or private corporations may be authorized by law to undertake such clearance, re-planning, development or redevelopment; and improvements made for these purposes and uses, or for any of them, may be exempted from taxation, in whole or in part, for a limited period of time during which the profits of and dividends payable by any private corporation enjoying such tax exemption shall be limited by law. The conditions of use, ownership, management and control of such improvements shall be regulated by law.

• TITLE 40 - MUNICIPALITIES AND COUNTIES,Section 37A-45(t) Statutory Definition of "Blighted"

  "Blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating area" may include an area determined heretofore by the municipality to be blighted in accordance with the provisions of P.L.1949, c.187, repealed by P.L.1992, c.79 (C.40:55-21.1 et seq.) and, in addition, areas which are determined by the municipality, pursuant to the same procedures as provided in said law, to be blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating because of structures or improvements which are dilapidated or characterized by disrepair, lack of ventilation or light or sanitary facilities, faulty arrangement, location, or design, or other unhealthful or unsafe conditions;

• P.L.1992, c.79 C. 40A:12A-1 seq.