Clark Approves Redevelopment Plan For 4 Westfield Avenue Properties

CLARK, NJ — Clark has approved a redevelopment plan governing four neighboring properties along Westfield Avenue.

The Township Council adopted Ordinance 26-26 during its meeting Tuesday, approving the plan for 191, 195, 199 and 205 Westfield Avenue. The properties are identified on the township tax map as Block 77, Lots 6 through 9.

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No residents spoke during the ordinance's public hearing, according to the township's meeting recording. The council subsequently approved the measure without opposition.

The ordinance amends Clark's zoning map and zoning ordinance to incorporate the new plan. Where its provisions differ from the township's existing zoning rules, the redevelopment plan takes precedence, according to the ordinance.

The action does not itself approve a construction or site-plan application. Instead, it establishes the land-use framework governing what may eventually be proposed for the four properties. A future development application would still require any applicable municipal reviews and approvals.

For residents, the decision matters because it establishes the rules that could shape new development along a prominent Clark corridor.

The process began in April, when the council directed the Planning Board to investigate whether the properties qualified as an area in need of redevelopment.

The Planning Board held a public hearing in July and determined that the area met at least one criterion under New Jersey's redevelopment law. The council subsequently designated it as a non-condemnation redevelopment area, meaning the designation does not authorize the township to acquire the properties through eminent domain.

Ricci Planning LLC of Atlantic Highlands prepared the redevelopment plan for the township.

During an earlier discussion, officials said the person who requested the study owned all four properties but did not have a development plan at that time, according to Planning Board minutes. The minutes later reference "four homes proposed for redevelopment" but provide no accompanying plans or details.

The adopted plan is available for public inspection at the township clerk's office, 430 Westfield Avenue. The ordinance does not provide a construction schedule or indicate when a development application might be submitted.

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