January 28, 2026, Planning Board Special Meeting - WEHI Transcript

02/26/2026 05:17:42 PM Page 109 to 112 of 155 28 of 66 sheets 109 fear many of you will take the man who wrote the book on1 traffic engineering seriously. You would not have known2 his medical device had failed, but that does not excuse3 how many on this board spoke to him and treated him, as4 if he were not an expert in a field he had been in since5 many of you were still in school. Read his work, view6 his decks, if they are not in the record I implore you7 to admit them. The developer's traffic engineer left8 much to be desired, but I will get to that later.9 I'm a life long resident of West Orange,10 specifically of the Pleasantdale section, the section11 that has been the most impacted by developments since12 the 1980's and the section that will bear the brunt of13 impact in West Orange from this proposed development.14 Through the years I have seen what happens when a15 development is pushed through without concern or indeed16 planning for possible future issues. One example is the17 old library. TC meeting after meeting the residents of18 this new building come to town hall to demand a fix to19 what was a foreseeable and preventable issue.20 Eventually the TC and administration will have to21 correct the error, whatever that correction may be, to22 appease the real residents standing before them night23 after night. What does that have to do with WEH? The24 proposed traffic light on Oval Road at Eagle Rock will25 110 solve the dangerous left turn onto Eagle Rock, there is1 not doubt about that, but it will not solve the volume2 issue you are introducing by adding 500 more homes to3 where 370 already meet at one intersection. I'm not4 sure how you can propose an off-site improvement and5 then tell us you do not have to review the issues as the6 location is outside the development, when this seem to7 be an integral part of said development. Once a8 thousand new drivers realize they cannot leave their9 cul-de-sac and are stuck behind ten cycles of a traffic10 light, they will come to town hall every other week11 demanding a solution. That solution can never be Howell12 Drive. Howell Drive is too narrow, there are multiple13 blind curves and it is exceptionally steep. I watched14 two plows get stuck trying climb Howell just this past15 Sunday. I have a video of one if you are interested.16 While this is all theoretical, we can use our judgement17 to

tionally steep. I watched14 two plows get stuck trying climb Howell just this past15 Sunday. I have a video of one if you are interested.16 While this is all theoretical, we can use our judgement17 to prevent what will have real world implications should18 we not look at the reality of this land and the19 surrounding topography. Also, don't forget the20 developers traffic engineer told this board that nothing21 in this plan will change that day in April where the22 residents of the Highlands were stuck behind Oval Road.23 The only thing I would change is the adding 500 more24 homes.25 111 I'd also like to remind the Planning Board1 that some of us live daily with the consequences of this2 developer's apathy for projects he has already3 completed. You would actually consider allowing this4 developer to build retention basins that will hold5 thousands of gallons of water perched above homes in the6 Highlands and elsewhere. Basins that need constant7 monitoring and maintenance. I live next door to his8 sewer line for the Highlands condos. My backyard often9 and even my basement stink of raw sewage. I have no10 bathroom in my basement. The DEP rep for the county11 walked through my basement to see if he could find an12 excuse for the stench, in the end he conceded it was the13 sewer line that runs between my property and my14 neighbor's property. The town health department has15 been involved with this issue since early 2020 but the16 issue persists as this is privately owned and we are17 left to the magnanimity of this very developer. I stand18 here as someone directly affected by this developer,19 maybe you are less concerned as it is my home and not20 yours, but it is a canary in a coal mine as far as my21 neighbors and I are concerned, do not approve anything22 that need any long term maintenance as it will23 inevitably not be done.24 The final point I would like to make is25 112 about the slope which is above my home. Yes, we concede1 we live in an area that would not be developed by2 today's standards, as Mr. Plocker has pointed out more3 than once, but we are here, and it is too late to take4 back what was done to build our homes, it is almost5 laughable to say that since our homes are on the slope6 no one should question this plan. Should we return to7 the 1980's in all things? Should we pretend we have no8 greater knowledge than we did before the

le to say that since our homes are on the slope6 no one should question this plan. Should we return to7 the 1980's in all things? Should we pretend we have no8 greater knowledge than we did before the internet? Gene9 Therapy? We learn from the past and improve on it, what10 was built in 1986 should have no bearing on this11 development. My property and my neighbors' properties12 are full of retaining walls, it does not take a13 geotechncial expert to understand that we live on and up14 against an extremely steep slope. We can see the rocky15 outcrops from our backyards, so to be constantly16 gaslighted by your experts has been nothing short of17 offensive. You discuss the Army Corps of Engineers18 safety ratings as it relates to catastrophic events. A19 dam bursting killing hundreds would be a catastrophic20 event, but I stand here, in front of you, many of you21 have met my family, should one of the rocks I have22 pictures of, but you tell me don't exist, were to be23 disturbed, roll down our steep backyard which is a 6024 degree slope, and hit my two year old, that would be a25