Here is more of the same from our 'favorite' developer...
New Bruns. development is delayed
Loews' parent company sues city, Planning Board
Home News Tribune Online 09/27/07

By RICHARD KHAVKINE: STAFF WRITER rkhavkine@thnt.co

NEW BRUNSWICK — A solitary jogger ran the length of the Loews parking lot off Route 1 under Thursday's afternoon sun.

But for a thick canopy of trees hard by the theater complex's westernmost boundary, he would have had a clear view of the Raritan River below.

And, according to redevelopment plans for the sprawling 23-acre site unveiled two years ago this week, the jogger should by now have had an unobstructed sightline to the river, Donaldson Park across the river in Highland Park, and beyond.

But the timeline for Raritan Heights, a proposed development of more than 400 luxury condominium units and about 40,000 square feet of retail space, was set askew by a lawsuit initiated 14 months ago by the theater's parent company, AMC Entertainment.

The suit seeks to invalidate the city's June 2006 designation of the site, excluding the theater and a parking lot overlooking Route 1, as an area in need of redevelopment.

The suit names 19 US Highway 1 LLC, which is associated with Piscataway-based Edgewood Properties; the New Brunswick City Council; and the city's Planning Board as defendants.

According to initial plans, made public in 2005 by Mayor Jim Cahill and Edgewood's principal owner, Jack Morris, Raritan Heights would have welcomed its first tenants this past summer.

But the theater company, claiming that its business interests and property rights were infringed by the designation, sued, putting the project on hold.

The theater opened in 1996, having secured a 20-year lease and five 5-year options from the site's previous owner, Sheldon Elizabeth & Co, whose plans for additional retail nearby never materialized. The theater pays an annual rent of about $1 million.

Included in the lease was a provision that precluded the site's owner from building north of a so-called "no-build line," which extends from just south of the 18-screen theater complex, without the theater's approval. The theater's parent company considered that restriction "an important bargained-for consideration" when it signed the lease, the suit contends.

But, according to conceptual drawings, some portions of Raritan Heights, including condominiums and a five-deck residential garage, would extend north of the line and into the theater's rear parking lot. The developer, though, would replace those lost parking spaces with a 302-space, three-deck garage on the slice of property nearest the Donald Goodkind Bridge.

Petition urges new boundaries for building near Lawrence Brook
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
BY NAWAL QAROONI Star-Ledger Staff
A group of Milltown activists are petitioning state environmental protection officials to reclassify the Lawrence Brook as a Category One waterway, which would provide further safeguards for the Raritan River tributary.

Milltowners for a Sensible Ford Avenue Redevelopment collected signatures of nearly 700 people who hope to change the brook's classification, forcing all development to move between 150 to 300 feet away from the water line instead of the usual 50 foot buffer.

The petition is slated to be sent to the state Department of Environmental Protection by the end of the month.

"Almost everyone we talked to say they want to protect the drinking water and the fish," said Charles Jegou, president of the group. "The residents of central New Jersey are surprised this already hasn't happened."

The tributary, which runs about 20 miles long, is a public water supply for the residents of Milltown, New Brunswick, North Brunswick, and Franklin Township in Somerset County through the New Brunswick Water Utility. It has been used as drinking water since the 1860s.

Signers of the petition-- largely Milltown residents-- say development near the water would cause harmful substances to seep in from parked cars or excess construction. A variety of animals depend on the water for survival, and fishermen frequent it throughout the year.

There's a better way to save farmland
Home News Tribune Online 05/6/07
An Appellate Court gave the state an important tool for preserving the state's farming industry last week when it unanimously ruled that New Jersey need not match developers dollar for dollar when it tries to buy temporarily protected farmland. The court said farmers in the state's temporary protection program — which gives farmers access to state grants in return for voluntarily agreeing not to sell their farm for development for eight years, and which gives the state the right of first refusal if the farmer does sell within that time frame — must sell his land to the state if the state's offer is "substantially similar" to the developers'.
Click here for Home News editorial

Home News Tribune Online 12/9/06
By DAVID STEGON STAFF WRITER
dstegon@thnt.com
FRANKLIN — The Democratic members of the Township Council and the "former head of a local political party" are accused of colluding with developer Jack Morris on the affordable housing plan to build 600 homes and a Home Depot on Bennetts Lane in a complaint filed in New Jersey Superior Court.
The complaint accuses the former party head, who is not named in the suit, of holding secret meetings late last year with the Township Council and Morris, violating the New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act, to persuade the council to approve Morris, a contributor to the party, as the developer for Bennetts Lane.
" I think that I can prove that the council violated the Open Public Meetings Act and therefore this project should be voided," said Stuart Lieberman of Princeton-based Lieberman & Blecher P.C., who is representing Franklin Residents Against Improper Development, a nonprofit organization against the development. "I believe very strongly that we can prove there was a conflict."
Louis Rainone, the township's attorney, said the suit, which is the third amendment to an original lawsuit brought almost a year ago, gives no factual evidence backing the claims.
" The first two amendments were thrown out by a judge, and this one will (be) as well," Rainone said. "Each time they presented their case, there has been no facts but just rumors, and they are looking for anything they can to get this project to go away."
The second amended complaint was thrown out two months ago but is under appeal. Lieberman said the third amended complaint, which was filed last week, is beginning the legal process, but it may have to wait for the other appeal to run its course.
" Each time we go to court, the judge throws out only some of our complaint, so we are going forward with the parts that the judge has yet to decline," said Doris Bennett, a member of FRAID. "We just want people to know that this fight is not over, and this project has not yet been approved."
The suit claims that on July 1, 2005, the former head of one of the political parties ordered members of the Township Council and Planning Board to act for the benefit of Morris. The party head ordered that two Planning Board members not be reappointed to the board and be blacklisted for not going along with the project, the suit alleges.
One of the council members, who was not named but running for office, was intimidated and pressured to vote in support of Morris to repay a political friend, the suit said.
On Dec. 5, 2005, all but one member of the council attended a meeting at someone's house, and the business of both the council and Planning Board were discussed, specifically the affordable housing plan, the suit said.
Mayor Brian Levine, a Republican, said he was the one member of the council not at the meeting. Levine is the only Republican in an otherwise all-Democratic council.
" This concerns me a lot that there was a meeting to discuss who would be the beneficiary of a project worth tens of millions of dollars, and it was not in a public forum," Levine said yesterday, "especially with a person who has given money to their party. It's bothersome, and it violates the Open Public Meetings Act, and these meetings should have been aired publicly."
The suit also claims Deputy Mayor Ellen Ritchie, then a councilwoman, met in secret with Morris on Dec. 5, 2005 to discuss the project. Ritchie said yesterday she did meet with Morris, but she did not keep it a secret and was doing so on behalf of the people of Bennetts Lane.
" I was there for them to request the project be lower density and try to work with him for the best thing for the community," Ritchie said. "There was no secret meeting or anything like that. This group is grasping at straws and frankly this suit has been going on for more than a year. I just wish it would go away."
Bill Grippo, a former head of the Democratic Party, declined to comment on the suit, saying he is retired from local politics and focusing on his role as a middle school principal.
David Stegon:
(732) 565-7251

The 05/31/05 home news article is just another example of the political manipulation and trickery that is prevalent with the Pulda Farm topic. No where does the article mention the NBRAHDH lawsuit, which is still in effect. Both the township and the builder want you to believe that we have gone away. Sorry to disappoint them. WE ARE STILL HERE! No decision or settlement of concessions has occurred. We are about 6 months away from going to trial. The builder has every right to build if he wants. Only thing is, If we win our case, he has to tear it all down! Note the back peddling of our administration on the cost of these units!

There are other interesting articles related to this issue. What amazes all of us is the blatant efforts to manipulate the political field in this town. It's out in the open, there is no effort to even try to hid it anymore. What is even more amazing is so many of the citizens of North Brunswick do not seem to care?? Read some of these articles. This is all real, we could not make up this stuff even if we tried:

Lets spend our taxpayers money for polluted property that we cannot use:
http://nbs.gmnews.com/news/20
05/0317/Front_page/017.html

Womack is using his 'own money' to pay for a trip for our seniors. Sound like trying to buy votes to us!:


How about this letter mailed to everyone's home? Remember to ask where does the money for this mailing come from??? We especially like the line "By controlling the party, a small group of men were able to control our town government". Pulda Farm -We rest our case....
Democrats in Support of Open Government

Letter from: Mayor Francis "Mac" Womack Council President Carlo Socio Council Vice-President Bob Davis Councilman Ralph Andrews Councilperson Rhonda Lyles

Dear Fellow Democrat:
There is an important election for control of the Democratic Party in North Brunswick on June 7, 2005. Since there are no presidential, gubernatorial, mayoral, or other "glamour" races on the ballot, the turnout will be small and every vote will carry great weight.
Why is it important that you vote on June 7th? Because this election will select committee members to the North Brunswick Democratic Organization (NBDO), and it is the NBDO that controls selection of candidates for mayor and township council. Through this process old­fashioned party bosses controlled North Brunswick's government for years. Two years ago we led a movement to reform the North Brunswick Democratic Organization and make it an "open" organization where candidates are selected in an open, public process based on their ability and their character. We believe that for too long the North Brunswick Democratic Organization had been a political machine. By controlling the party, a small group of men were able to control our town government. They collected favors from friends while excluding all voices of dissent.

For the two last years, we have been true to our promise to make government in North Brunswick an open, transparent process. We believe that our Democratic Party should be no less open and no less responsive to residents. ANTHONY DIDOMENICO & CAROL WOMACK stand with us in promising a political process that remains open to all people, not just the select few. They will work with you, and with us - your elected officials - to put in place procedures and policies ensuring that your Democratic Party, and your elected Democratic officials, are responsive, professional, and accountable. Gone are the days when you have to know a politician to get something accomplished in North Brunswick! Thank you for your continued support.

Womack, Mayor Carlo Socio, Council President
ELECT ANTHONY DI DOMENICO & CAROL WOMACK

DISTRICT 7 DEMOCRATIC COMMITEE PERSONS, COLUMN' A' FOR AN OPEN DEMOCRATIC PARTY IN NORTH BRUNSWICK POLLS ARE OPEN TUESDAY. JUNE 7m FROM 6 AM TO 8 PM

Paid for By Dems. For Coot. Refonn, C. Zangara, Treasur e