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Hopes of saving open space hinge on housing plan
(by Maggie Fazeli Fard - April 29, 2008)
River Vale’s bid to purchase a swathe of green space near Poplar Road is now contingent on approval by the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH), Mayor Joseph Blundo reported Monday.
Called Tract I6A, the 5.2-acre parcel that the township hopes to save is one of three pieces of land that were slated for development by River Vale Developers. As part of a tentative agreement unanimously approved by the township council last September, River Vale Developers will sell I6A. In exchange, River Vale will drop litigation against the developer to save all three pieces. If the township is successful, I6A will be renamed Cherry Brook Greenway.
The township had planned on purchasing the land, valued at $3.4 million, using a $1.1 million Green Acres grant from the state and money from its own open space trust. To round out the cost, the township applied for a $1.5 million Open Space grant from the county last fall.
Little did officials know, however, that the funding in jeopardy was the previously approved Green Acres grant. According to Blundo, Green Acres won’t fund the purchase unless the township’s affordable housing plan is given a thumbs-up by COAH. Throwing a wrench in the mix is the fact that COAH announced a new set of rules last December, rules that, if approved in June as planned, would require the township to have a brand-new growth share plan in place.
“We are vigorously working on a plan,” said Blundo, who recently met with representatives from the Green Acres program in Trenton.
“They did not give us a commitment nor did they turn us down,” continued Blundo optimistically, adding that a follow-up meeting has been schedule for May 12 at the behest of Green Acres.
“We are optimistic, but we still have some hills to climb.”
Maggie Fazeli Fard's e-mail address is fazelifard@northjersey.com.
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