Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Work done to the Pascack Road site in Washington Township violated the state Flood Hazard Area Control Act.
The owner of a Washington Township property being considered for use as a CVS violated New Jersey's Flood Hazard Area Control Act, according to officials from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). In a February 4 letter to 660 Pascack Realty, LLC, the owner of the properties, Bureau of Coastal and Land Use Compliance and Enforcement Regional Supervisor Armand Perez wrote that the violations included the removal of vegetation, placement of fill and construction of a retaining wall. The DEP previously found that the stream which passes behind the site is a Category One waterway, meaning that any major developments to the site require their permission. The letter gave the property owner 15 days to submit a plan to correct the …
Monday, March 11, 2013
The state Department of Environmental Protection has given United Water until April 1 to outline their schedule for the project.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is requiring United Water to start work to upgrade the dam at the Woodcliff Lake Reservoir "as soon as possible" in a letter dated March 1. The DEP is requiring United Water to approximately double the rate at which water can flow out of the reservoir so that the dam would not break in a 1,000-year storm. United Water has until April 1 to submit a schedule for the project. Steven Goudsmith, a company rep, told Patch that the schedule is still being developed. United Water's plan was approved by the DEP in late 2011, but work has not yet started. Hillsdale officials have insisted the borough's Planning Board should review the effects the project could have on downstream flooding along …
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Parks to be shut down by noon on Sunday, officials say.
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Saturday, October 27, 2012
All state parks and historic sites are scheduled to be shut down at noon on Sunday in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Sandy, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin announced today. According to Martin, safety concerns are forcing the closure and those who are camping now at state facilities across the state are being advised to prepare to leave those sites by mid-day Sunday. Martin also said those with reservations for next week are advised that parks may be closed through the entire week. Persons with reservations will be called by DEP personnel to reschedule their visits to state parks. After the storm passes through the state, the parks and historic sites will be assessed and re-opened on a case-by-case …
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Borough officials said they hope to receive relief on school and county taxes for flood-prone homes being purchased with grants.
Westwood officials are hoping to convince the state to create tax relief legislation which will release the borough, and other New Jersey towns, from having to pay county and school taxes for properties purchased with flood relief grant money. The borough received more than $2 million in aid from FEMA and the state Department of Environmental Protection to buy and demolish flood-prone homes. The grants cannot be used to pay school and county taxes for the properties, but Westwood is responsible for paying the taxes in the year the homes are purchased, officials said during their meeting this week. Mayor John Birkner said Westwood is further along in the process than many towns, but he was not sure that the sales would be closed before the …
Thursday, July 19, 2012
CVS may be able to get a permit from the DEP to allow them to build a new store on the corner of Pascack Road and Washington Avenue despite a required buffer area around a nearby stream.
The Washington Township Zoning Board resumed hearing testimony about the application for a proposed CVS on the corner of Pascack Road and Washington Avenue during their meeting Tuesday. The fate of the project may still be determined by the state Department of Environmental Protection. The DEP decided in April that the stream behind the site is a Category One waterway, which means all major developments — those on an acre or more of land — require a 300-foot buffer from the stream. Tendai Richards, an attorney objecting to the plan on behalf of the Northgate Condominium Association, said the board should not continue hearing the project as long as the DEP has not given its approval. "As things stand today, nothing can be done on this …
The Westwood Council approved the funding during their meeting this week. The money was supplied by FEMA and the DEP.
As many as nine flood-prone homes in Westwood may be knocked down. The Westwood Council approved an ordinance appropriating more than $2 million to buy and demolish homes that have repeatedly been damaged by flooding during their meeting Tuesday. "Hopefully some people will be able to put their lives back together," Mayor John Birkner said. How many of the nine homes will actually purchased is still undecided. During their meeting, the council awarded a contract to Miller, Rinaldi & Co. to appraise the homes at a cost of $350 per property and $175 per hour if any additional work is required. The borough received a total of five bids for the project. Once the appraisals are done, officials will determine how many of the homes they can …
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
A United Water representative says the planning board is not qualified to approve a dam.
A group of Hillsdale and Westwood residents want more input on United Water's plan to upgrade the dam at the Woodcliff Lake Reservoir, according to Don MacLachlan, an attorney hired by the residents. MacLachlan said he believes that an attorney for United Water, who wrote earlier this year that the utility does not need to appear before the Hillsdale Planning Board, is incorrect because some aspects of the plan violate Hillsdale's land use, soil movement and tree removal ordinances. "What we're asking for is not simple opposition," MacLachlan said. "What's critical here is that Hillsdale continue to take the lead in requiring that any citizen, be they the most humble individual or the most humble trillion-dollar multinational water company…
Sunday, February 26, 2012
A weekly look at news in New Jersey
As Department of Environmental Protection officials continued to downplay health risks, and PBF Energy revised down the initial spill size estimates, environmentalists on Friday slammed both the state and company's response to more than 6 million gallons of crude oil that leaked into a containment area at the Paulsboro refinery Thursday. *** During a speech Thursday night, Newark Councilman Ras Baraka issued a call to action to his constituents and also laid out an ambitious agenda that includes having the city take over control of Newark Liberty International Airport from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. *** Four children and their grandmother perished in a raging house fire in South Plainfield early Thursday morning that …
B@B
10:37 am on Wednesday, March 20, 2013
kdkins: WT is doing a revaluation this year, but don't think it will reduce your taxes. When they do a revaluation, your assessment may be reduced, but the tax rate will go up to offset the difference. If you had a successful appeal in the last few years, your assessment will in all likelihood not be reduced, and may be raised because of a slight recovery in the housing market. So those of us who… more ›