August 13 2025, Planning Board Special Meeting Transcript - WEHI

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1 TOWNSHIP OF WEST ORANGE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 2025 6:30 P.M. RE; PB-24-01 WEST ESSEX HIGHLANDS, INC. BOARD MEMBERS: ROBERT BAGOFF, Chairman JERRY GUARINO, Vice Chairman KEN ALPER LORI KAPFERER SUSAN SCARPA, Council Person RYAN MacNEILL, Engineer GERARD HAIZEL, Planner JAMILET BAQUERIZO VITE, Board Secretary GENIECE GARY-ADAMS, Zoning Official JOSEPH FAGAN, Zoom Moderator WITNESSES: GEOFFREY GOLL FISHMAN COURT REPORTING AGENCY 89 HEADQUARTERS PLAZA NORTH 4 SPEEDWELL AVENUE, SUITE 1440 MORRISTOWN, NEW JERSEY 07960 (973) 285-5331 - FAX - (732) 605-9391

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 2 A P P E A R A N C E S: HUTT, SHIMANOWITZ & PLOCKER, ESQS. BY BRYAN D. PLOCKER, ESQ. Bplocker@huttshim.com 459 AMBOY AVENUE WOODBRIDGE, NEW JERSEY 07095 Appearing on behalf of the Applicant GACCIONE & POMACO, ESQS. BY DIANA P. McGOVERN, ESQ. ONE BOLAND DRIVE, SUITE 102 WEST ORANGE, NEW JERSEY 07052 Appearing on behalf of the Board BRUCE I. AFRAN, ESQ. 10 BRAEBRUN DRIVE PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY 08540 Appearing on behalf of the Objector, We Care NJ Corp.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 3 I N D E X O F E X H I B I T S EXHIBIT DESCRIPTION 0-21 GOLL REPORT

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 4 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: PB-24-01 West Essex Highlands, Incorporated. Block 179 Lot 32 Zone IH-1, Warner Road. The applicant is proposing to develop a 496 unit inclusionary multifamily residential development on a vacant 120 acre property in the northwest corner of the Township. Mr. Plocker, for the applicant. MR. PLOCKER: Hi. Good evening. Bryan Plocker from Hutt, Shimanowitz & Plocker on behalf of the applicant, West Essex Highlands, Inc. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Mr. Afran. MR. AFRAN: Good evening, Mr. Chairman. Bruce Afran for the Objector, We Care. I heard just a moment ago that you indicated there's an ordinance review you moved to the end of the meeting. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Yes. MR. AFRAN: If it's a separate matter, I assume it is, Mr. Goll is on the parkway in a deluge and he asked me to tell you that climate change is delaying him. He had an estimated time of arrival of 6:53, but he says it keeps getting longer. So if you had another matter, you might want to turn to that. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Thank you for that information.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 5 Mr. Afran, I just want to share this with you and the public. We had seven meetings, this will be the eighth meeting of the objectors. The reason for having information on both sides is that the Planning Board has the understanding of information in relation to the zone plan and what our obligation is to weigh the application. The information that we have reviewed, I believe, and I'm going to ask the Planning Board, I will poll the members, do you, from the seven meetings that we have, have almost enough information to make a decision based on the IH-1 zone plan. MR. AFRAN: Mr. Chairman, may I point out -- CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: I'm talking to the board now. MR. AFRAN: Well, before you ask such a question the board needs to know what other witnesses are coming. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Well, we're going to get there. We're going to get there. I didn't say we're making the decision tonight. MR. AFRAN: Well, I know you didn't. But nevertheless, the board doesn't know who's coming. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Well, the board will know who's coming very shortly when I ask. Okay. MR. AFRAN: Okay.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 6 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: So we want to try to give everybody time to say their peace, which apparently we don't have all the people that we want to get to us. So I want to -- MR. AFRAN: Not today. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Not today, but we're going to get there. Okay. So we have had seven meetings, tonight would be the eighth, and we have heard many objectors and applicants and the information in the zone plan is there's been back and forth. We have our experts and Mr. MacNeill will share certain information with us on a report that he has reviewed after I question the board looking at a number of things. Okay. So what I'm going to suggest is, Mr. Afran, tonight and your next meeting, which will be on the 25th, that's going to be the last meeting, unless there's something that is unable to happen at that night, we ask the objector to finish up with whoever we haven't heard from. Okay. Use the entire meeting because as we have looked at, most of the meetings have not been used for the entire evening, for whatever reason. However, we also know that the applicant has the right to have a reasonable application going forward and we are trying to be reasonable to both sides. We want to hear from the people -- we want to

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 7 hear from the people in the community. We want to hear from the objectors and we also want to deliver a fair application to the applicant. So I will say next meeting please let us know who's coming, what they're talking about, so we can all understand. If we have questions we can get reasonable questions based on who's coming. MR. AFRAN: I can tell you now who's scheduled right now just so you know. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Okay. If you can -- if you would, e-mail that to the board attorney, that would be fantastic. MR. AFRAN: That's already been done. The difference is Mr. Hasse, Professor Hasse can't be here tonight and the board doesn't wish to zoom, so he will be on the 25th as well. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Okay. MR. AFRAN: And Michele Beyer's, whose testimony is brief, but follows Dr. -- Professor Hasse's will have to be on the 25th as well. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Okay. MR. AFRAN: We may be able to make it, depending of course how many questions there are from the board. Mr. Plocker typically does not do a lot of cross, I don't think that takes a lot of time, but the

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 8 board may have a lot of questions. There's traffic planning and -- CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: That may be and we'll expand as we need to, but we're going to try and get as much as we can done this meeting and the next meeting -- MR. AFRAN: We certainly endeavor to do that. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: -- and then we will try to have public comment after that and then we will go for -- both sides can sum up and then the board will have time to review. MR. AFRAN: I imagine we'll be using literally the entire night no matter what at the next meeting. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: I'm sorry. MR. AFRAN: The objectors case will take the whole night, I'm sure. I would just note for the record that Professor Hasse was not available because of a family medical problem, which I indicated generally in my letters to counsel and board counsel. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Right. For this evening. MR. AFRAN: Right. He was willing, I'm not suggesting you have to do it, but I want to put it on the record --

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 9 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Put it on the record. I understand. MR. AFRAN: He was willing to do it by zoom -- CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Right. MR. AFRAN: -- so we could speed along the process, but the boards preference, and I understand that entirely, the boards preference is live witnesses, but he was available in that way. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: That's the way it's been published. MR. AFRAN: No, I just want to make sure it was clear. He wasn't available, but I understand the boards preference. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: I understand that, but it was also published in person. MR. AFRAN: I understand. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: So we will follow the rules, but I appreciate that and we're going to work towards this. Thank you. MR. AFRAN: Can I have one moment. (Whereupon, a short recess is taken.) MR. AFRAN: Thank you. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Is he here? MR. AFRAN: He is here.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 10 CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Okay. Great. Application PB-24-01 West Essex Highlands, Incorporated. Block 179 Lot 32 Zone IH-1, Warner Road. The applicant is proposing to develop a 496 unit inclusionary multifamily residential development on a vacant 120 acre property in the northwest corner of the Township. For the objector, Mr. Afran. MR. AFRAN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Our witness, Jeff Goll of Princeton Hydro is here. I also want to advise the board, all though it's not my witness, I was advised the representative of the West Orange Environmental Commission was going to be present tonight to present the resolution. I don't know as a curtesy whether the board would like to hear from them first. They're not my witness but I was advised they were here. I believe that they're here tonight. CHAIRMAN BAGOFF: Yes. So the resolution has been presented to the Planning Board, we're going to send the question to the township attorney. There are some other legal issues that have to be addressed, so we're not going to hear that this evening. MR. AFRAN: Fair enough and if Ms. McGovern could send me a copy of the resolution, I've never seen it.