For those of you with more than a passing interest in the issues being addressed by your local government, you may have come across the term “redevelopment.” It is most often in addressing areas within the town that are distressed or failing and require some form of rehabilitation or repurposing.
Again, this is one of those subject matters that entire books (and laws) are written to describe and explain, but I thought it a good idea to provide you with a basic understanding and a good starting point should you want to explore it more thoroughly. Here it goes…
The type of redevelopment in this article involves private property owners and developers (known as “redevelopers”) entering into an agreement and working with local government under a set of laws known as the state’s “Local Redevelopment and Housing Law” to redevelop or rehabilitate an area in need of redevelopment.
The best way I can explain this topic is to provide you with a real-life example of an area within our community that is in the latter stages of redevelopment under the law: 40 Enterprise Ave. (a commercial property situated in the southern portion of the town bordering Hamilton and Trenton).
For decades this property languished with a series of significantly deteriorated buildings (some vacant and some occupied) that proved to be a severe fire hazard and a dangerous situation for first responders frequently called to the site for various reasons.
Simply put, it was an eyesore of epic proportions and fell well short of what we would want for our community, and, as a result, it was something we needed to address in some significant way.
Under the law, a “redeveloper” is defined as any person, firm, corporation, or public body that enters into a contract with a municipality to develop or rehabilitate an area in need. To determine whether an area is “in need,” an investigation is conducted by a qualified professional (i.e., municipal planner), a properly noticed public hearing is held, and the governing body must determine that one of the criteria established by state law is met.
In the case of 40 Enterprise Ave., the governing body found criteria (a) of the statute had been met; the “generality of the buildings are substandard, unsafe, unsanitary, dilapidated, or obsolete, or possess any such characteristics, or are so lacking in light, air, or space as to be conducive to unwholesome living or working conditions.
Notably, one of the seven criteria must be met for an area to be “in need of redevelopment.” It is not an easy burden to meet, and such projects happen, if at all, only occasionally within a community.
You may be wondering why the governing body gets involved in a private issue involving private property owned by a private person or entity. The simple answer is that without local government involvement, there is no financial pathway for a land owner or developer to redevelop the property.
As a result, the property languishes and deteriorates—to the detriment of the community and, most significantly, those residents and businesses nearer to the property. The local government can work with and provide incentives to the redeveloper by entering into agreements to reduce property taxes for a specified period of time.
Local government must address these problem areas, and the law gives the municipality the responsibility for implementing the redevelopment plans and projects. The result is that the local government has a significant say (and unique opportunity) in the planning and details of the project to ensure that the community’s goals are met.
For 40 Enterprise Ave., the project involved demolishing existing buildings and structures, remediating existing environmental conditions, developing a warehouse/distribution center, and related improvements that included parking, stormwater management, lighting, and landscaping improvements.
The project dramatically changes the character and property for the better, and its location is warehouse appropriate.
In a community like ours that is essentially built out, the redevelopment law is an essential tool for the local government to use to fight blight, increase property values, and return languishing commercial properties to the tax rolls.
By doing so, the local government can also better maintain the type and level of municipal services it provides to the community without turning automatically to increasing taxes to accomplish that goal.
Kevin Nerwinski serves as Lawrence Township’s municipal manager. He is a long-time resident of Lawrence.
I know….. some of you will say, “We don’t need more warehouses.” But the reality is that local government can’t force redevelopment upon a person or entity. It requires an agreement of the parties (redeveloper and local government) and always includes the incentive for realizing a profit for the redeveloper. That is just how it is, and we must navigate the process within those foundational elements for the greater good to our maximum benefit.
Kevin Nerwinski,
