Bridgewater Mayor-Elect Files Lawsuit Against Planning Board

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Matthew Moench, the Bridgewater mayor-elect and current council president, filed a lawsuit against the township planning board on Thursday, saying a special meeting scheduled for the Center of Excellence project was "not properly called."

Moench claims that the special meeting's scheduling didn't give residents enough time to prepare.

"The residents of Bridgewater deserve to know there is a fair process and procedure with the planning board," Moench said. "The board continues to use these special meetings to undermine the process that residents are entitled to."

"Residents shouldn't leave meeting to meeting guessing when the application will come back on the agenda in a short time frame," Moench continued.

In the suit, Moench points out that at the end of the meeting on Tuesday, planning board members did not take a call to vote for the special meeting set for Monday, Nov. 18.

"Because the Monday, Nov. 18 meeting was not properly called for in accordance with the MLUL[New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law], the Board should be enjoined from continuing the application that evening," the suit says.

The suit also refers to NJ statute 40:55D-12 which requires that the public have at least 10 days of time to prepare for a hearing.

"A time frame of at least 10 days of time would allow residents sufficient opportunity make adjustments to their schedules to attend the meetings, and to prepare to ask questions, present witnesses, or testify at these meetings," according to the suit.

It goes on to note that Moench will be out of town on Monday and had he known about the special meeting ahead of time he would have changed plans.

"Now, because of an unexpected special meeting it is unclear whether [Moench] will be able to attend the meeting — thus depriving him of an opportunity to participate in the public hearing on this matter," according to the suit.

The special meeting is currently posted on the Bridgewater Township's website but it is unclear if the meeting will still be held following this lawsuit.

Bridgewater's Planning Board Attorney Tom Collins and Moench both did not immediately respond to Patch for comment.

Read the entire lawsuit below:

The development was first proposed in January 2016 and has since received mixed reviews from residents and officials in town.

Concerns include traffic, overpopulating the school system, and strain on volunteer emergency services.

Residents opposed to the project have created a group, called Preserve Bridgewater.

The applicant has plans of building a hotel, supermarket, fitness/wellness center, restaurants with outdoor dining, around 400 luxury apartment units and boutiques. This has been called one of the largest developments in township's history since the Bridgewater Commons mall.

• See Related: Largest Development in Bridgewater's History Proposed
• Related: Bridgewater Approves Plan For Possibly Largest Redevelopment Plan in Township's History
• Related: Bridgewater Officials Argue Over Center Of Excellence Project
• Related: No Vote On Center Of Excellence Project, Rescheduled To Oct. 28
• Related: Controversial Video Unveiled On Bridgewater's Rt. 202/206 Project
• Related: Still No Vote On Center Of Excellence Project, Drags To Nov. 18

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