March 1, 2017

The Board briefing discussed the process involved in adopting the Master Plan Update, including holding public hearings on the matter. Mr. Grygiel clarified it was the Board, not the Town Council that voted on the adoption of the Township Master Plan. Mr. Weston asked for clarification regarding the scope of the project; was it going to be an entire re-write of the Township Master Plan or update of the 2010 Reexamination. Mr. Dwyer said the Township was required to compare prior Master Plans when doing a reexamination. Mr. Grygiel stated there was no funding at present to embark on a multi-year, multi-thousand dollar project. Mr. Eben stated that he was on the Downtown Alliance during the reexamination in 2010; he opined that many of the goals discussed then did not happen. He noted that many members of the Public were present in Chamber tonight. He asked if they would have the opportunity to address the Board. Councilwoman McCartney acknowledged the Public were stakeholders and since there were many members present, the meeting should be used as an opportunity for them to be heard and start the discussion. Public Advocate: Harvey Grossman, Esq, opined the project was massive; the public must be drawn into the project ona massive scale. He voiced concern about affordable housing — the Township had many older properties that would probably qualify as affordable housing that might give the Township some relief in terms of its COAH obligation. He opined the Township must give a great deal of attention to streets and sidewalks. There have been some dangerous, catastrophic situations in the Township. The transportation aspect must be incorporated from the beginning, and must be tied in with other surrounding communities. He commended the Board for being pro-active on the project. Public Comment: Roz Moskovitz Bielski, 11 Wedgewood Drive. She stated she was a member of the Pedestrian Safety Advisory Board and the Pleasant Valley Civic Association. She opined we must continue discussing our relationship with the County; it was a very tenuous relationship. The Board hears Courtesy Review applications, but what does that really mean — how do we leverage our Open Space Trust Fund dollars with getting the things we need, such as sidewalks that connect all of us, especially the JCC area to the reservoir area of the zoo. How are we protecting our most vulnerable

Space Trust Fund dollars with getting the things we need, such as sidewalks that connect all of us, especially the JCC area to the reservoir area of the zoo. How are we protecting our most vulnerable pedestrian population? There have been three recent fatalities. Our Complete Streets Plan must be tied in with the County Complete Streets Plan and we must make the County accountable. Councilman Joe Krakoviak, 20 Grandview Avenue. He requested the Board consider some additional topics when reviewing the Master Plan update. How affordable housing gets tied in to traffic. He said that any time we build additional housing we have to take into account the traffic; he noted the Edison Lofts would create a huge increase in traffic primarily because there is no public transportation in the form of nearby trains. He mentioned that the West Essex Highlands could potentially bring several hundred new living units, all contributing to traffic problems. He hoped that traffic would be a central focus of the reexamination. He noted that St. Mark’s Church was undergoing renovation, albeit slowly. He suggested that another item to look at would be the evolution of houses of worship that are suffering from declining membership and may become developable properties in the future. Lastly, trying to make West Orange a livable community for our senior citizens, i.e. walkability, transportation.