What information were Teaneck residents given when seeking information about a proposed amendment to the Windsor Road (World of Wings) project where Avalon Bay wants to create a 248 unit apartment complex just yards from the CSX “Bakken Oil” line”?
Here is what they were told on the Township website:
Go look up this “notice” – the words in this image (click here) is the only thing you will find on the website even a full week AFTER the Township planning board met. Remember, it then held a public hearing for which no member of the public had access to a single copy of the amendment until AFTER the public hearing – So the planning board met its statutory requirement of holding a public hearing but when it invited the public “to comment ” the topics were limited to commentary on an amendment to which NOT ONE OF THEM HAD had ACCESS. (Or yes, the Planning Board chairman Bodner pointed out, they could have read the public notice in the Record that said they could go to the Municipal Bldg to get a copy from the Board secretary – thank you very much. When a resident asking about the missing amendment asked the Planning Board how many of them – finally on a website somewhere is the Amendment Here it is – click below
Draft MasPlanAmendment – WindsorRd
But why didn’t Teaneck officials want you to see the Master Plan AMENDMENT – now being sent to Council?
This is the amendment that would permit zoning changes that allow Avalon Bay to build 248 units on the World of Wings property several yards from the CSX switch where Bakken Oil train tanks get switched from 1 to 3 tracks?
Note: Despite protestations of their commitment to transparency, no member of the Teaneck Planning Board made it their business to make this Master Plan Amendment available to Teaneck residents on the website. It has now been 7 days since the Planning Board’s Thursday (10/29) meeting. (Note: Avalon Bay’s representatives all had their copy BEFORE the meeting!!!)
There was, to be sure, discussion of the fact that allowing a developer to provide $30,000 in exchange for NOT meeting affordable housing requirements was not wise. (This is an issue certain to impact Teaneck but in ways not currently clear because the number of the Township’s affordable housing unit requirements have not been set.) Is 10% of the 248 proposed Avalon amendments adequate? Note there was one change to this amendment as proposed: After significant Planning Board discussion, advocated most strongly by Planning Board member Kimberly Jones. the following sentences on page 13 of the Amendments were changed:
“Alternatively, a payment in lieu of providing affordable housing may also be utilized. A figure of $30,000 per low and moderate income housing unit, based upon 10% of the total units provided is recommended for this option.” – this entire section was struck and instead the following sentence was inserted: “The Township may give consideration to allowing a payment in lieu of providing affordable housing”
Stay tuned – TTT is editing sections of the Planning Board meeting it video taped and they will soon be included on this page
Want to see what happened in October on an Englewood spur from our Teaneck CSX tracks? Take a look!
