Dear Editor:
So, what good was the lawsuit that Barberio mentioned?
From a news article, Lawsuit
The mayor’s newsletter a few weeks ago
This is a critical step forward for the Township and a great result in combating the special interests of big developers. Accordingly, the Decision and Order fixes the Township’s “present need” obligation at 138 affordable housing units and its “prospective need” at 496 affordable housing units, which represents a 57-unit reduction in the DCA calculation of 553 affordable housing units.
* Note: Makes no mention of redevelopment.
The buildout number does not include what can be developed as redevelopment. A buildout looks at the maximum number that can be built on available land, considering the zoning (municipal, or Highlands, whatever the case), taking out the environmentally or otherwise constrained land. Redevelopment can’t be considered because it must first be determined whether it is commercial, residential, or mixed-use, and the density will be determined. None of these variables can be known before a redevelopment is proposed because an aspect of redevelopment is getting flexibility from the underlying zoning.
Because Parsippany is overdeveloped and needs redevelopment, we have made ourselves an outlier and are subject to corporate real estate property rights. This is where the corporate tax rateable chase has led Parsippany. Now, we hear PILOT deals for wealthy developers while our taxes, water, and sewer rates increase.
We lost the opportunity to save some of our environmentally sensitive areas during Barberio/Inglesino’s previous reign, when the Housing COAH was suspended under Governor Christie. Inglesino stopped our Highlands Conformance, which began in 2009, ending it completely in June 2014. Landscapes like Waterview, 700 Mountain Way, and Intrusions into Forge Pond surely affected our Groundwater Recharge and neighborhood character.
We were not in good hands
