WEST ORANGE, NJ — An NFL-billionaire-backed plan to build hundreds of apartments over a large patch of forest in North Jersey has been sacked in West Orange.
The West Orange Planning Board voted 4-4 on the West Essex Highlands Inc. proposal at their meeting on Wednesday evening. The tie vote prevents the application from moving forward –leaving it dead in the water.
Developers want to build a 496-unit, four-building residential complex at a 120-acre tract of land on the western ridgeline of the Watchung Mountains, which borders West Orange, Essex Fells and Verona. Nearly 30 acres of forest would be cleared under the plan.
The property is owned by the Wilf family, who own the Minnesota Vikings football team. The development is being proposed by West Essex Highlands Inc., an affiliate of Short Hills-based real estate firm Garden Homes.
Previous versions of the project have been rejected by the West Orange Planning Board. However, the new plan is to make 100 of the units “affordable” – a major selling point from developers.
West Orange has a deficit of hundreds of affordable housing units that will need to be fulfilled by 2035. The town has recently seen multiple “builder’s remedy” lawsuits from developers, who say the town should let them move forward with plans to create more housing.
Wednesday’s vote potentially ends a development fight that has lasted more than two years, spanned over 25 planning board hearings and drawn testimony from dozens of expert witnesses.
Garden Homes declined to comment on the planning board’s ruling and any potential appeal.
'THERE'S NOTHING WE CAN'T DO'
Critics say the current proposal has grown even denser since the turn of the millennium, when the idea of developing in the area raised similar complaints: too many houses, construction on steep slopes, the potential endangering of wetlands, and more traffic on local roadways.
In 2020, the Township of West Orange reached a settlement with West Essex Highlands Inc. and the West Essex Highlands Condominium Association Inc. about the project, which can be seen online here. West Orange was obligated to move the project forward under the agreement.
Over the past few years, the project has seen renewed pushback from residents and elected officials, who have argued that while there is a genuine need for affordable housing, it shouldn’t come at the expense of public safety or the preservation of green space.
Opponents include We Care NJ, whose members helped to spearhead opposition to West Essex Highlands during its last incarnation. The group has shared project documents and updates on their website, and spearheaded a press conference to oppose the project last year (watch video footage here).
The organization, originally founded in 2000 as the West Essex Committee Against Rezoning Excesses, won a similar battle against development at the same property before the West Orange Planning Board in 2006.
“The developer can still appeal and there is a lot more work to do – but this is a good result and we are one step closer to the end goal of the preservation of the Second Watchung Forest as open space,” WeCare NJ commented.
In 2024, the Verona Town Council passed a resolution requesting that the West Orange Planning Board deny the application. Similar resolutions have since been passed by the environmental commissions of Essex County, Caldwell, South Orange, West Orange, Verona, Montclair, Livingston and Millburn.
Last year, 39 environmental organizations including the New Jersey Sierra Club, sent a letter to West Orange’s mayor, town council and planning board, urging them to deny the application.
Another show of opposition came during a planning board meeting in January. Nearly 100 residents, environmental advocates, community members and municipal leaders showed up to voice their opposition to the project.
Advocates continued to bash the plan in the weeks leading up to Wednesday’s planning board meeting.
Our Green West Orange – which has criticized the proposal in the past – encouraged residents to attend Wednesday’s meeting, calling it a “critical night for West Orange.”
Maegan Kuhlmann, an organizer with the New Jersey Sierra Club, said the housing proposal would have caused “irreparable environmental damage,” more flooding for nearby residents and increased costs for both residents and the township during heavy storms.
“Affordable housing, land conservation and sustainability can all coexist – but not like this,” Kuhlmann said Thursday.
Ben Dziobek, executive director of the Climate Revolution Action Network, said this week’s planning board vote shows that people power can beat back billionaires.
“This should give everyone in New Jersey hope that when we come together, there’s nothing we can’t do,” Dziobek said.
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