Groups rail at zoning changes

Written by Alex Davis Thursday, 14 July 2011 10:33

But how many locals are involved, asks one master plan supporter

MIDDLE TOWNSHIP – Environmental conservation groups aren’t backing down in their quest to make sure federal wildlife areas are better protected under the township’s proposed zoning changes.

But it looks like township committee members aren’t going to budge.

Not even after months of concerns being expressed over the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge.

And tensions remain heavy.

“When is it over?” township resident Bob Noel said at a July 6 township committee meeting, about attempts to change the master plan. He served as the master plan committee chairman.

He said he is tired of the continual “blocking” with the master plan. The proposed zoning changes come from the 2010 master plan.

A zoning ordinance introduced at the recent meeting would establish the use and size for construction throughout the township. The zoning proposal includes detailing the uses allowed in the business district, establishing town centers looking to create mixed-use areas of commercial and residential development that will be pedestrian friendly, and outlines rural conservation districts, which under the ordinance seek to “retain the essential rural character of the township” and encourage farming and natural area preservation, according to township documents.

The ordinance also includes standards for sidewalk cafés.

So far, however, many of the heated public comments have been from organizations who say the zoning ordinance is bad for Middle Township’s environment.

Some environmentalists say the changes would allow for high-density development around some refuge lands, which are home to many kinds of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, as well as fish, shellfish and other invertebrates.

Proposed zoning changes raise a red flag with the American Littoral Society, Friends of Cape May National Wildlife Refuge and the South Jersey Bayshore Coalition.

The refuge, administered by the federal Fish and Wildlife Service, includes thousands of acres throughout Cape May County, including a swath of Middle Township. Defenders of Wildlife, a national nonprofit environmental group, named the refuge in the country’s top 10 most endangered national wildlife refuges in 2007.

“In three instances, the new master plan (zoning changes) … would allow up to six units per acre adjacent to existing refuge lands, in environmentally sensitive areas long-ago approved for inclusion within the refuge,” said Barry Keefe of Ocean View in a letter to township committee. He represented the Friends of Cape May National Wildlife Refuge, a nonprofit organization that is an advocate of the refuge.

“It would also grandfather in lots as small as 12,000 square feet. We do not believe this is an appropriate level of density for the refuge acquisition lands and urge the Township Committee to instead place these areas within the more protective zoning of the rural conservation zone (3.5 acres per unit, or even better, five acres per unit).”

Among areas put at risk is at Railroad Avenue in Cape May Court House, part of the refuge acquisition boundaries and bordered on three sides by federal lands. Temporary puddles and state-endangered eastern tiger salamanders, listed as endangered in New Jersey, as well as other amphibians exist in these refuge lands.

“We don’t see how the town’s selection of this site to meet its affordable housing obligations implements these objectives and we strongly believe that all lands within the refuge boundaries should not be included in centers,” said Jessica Daher of Seaville, conservation coordinator of the Delaware Bayshore Program, American Littoral Society, as she read from a letter at the township meeting.

American Littoral Society is a nonprofit advocacy organization for coastal conservation. She also represented the South Jersey Bayshore Coalition, a cluster of nearly 20 nonprofit organizations that works to protect the Bayshore along the southwest coast of New Jersey, according to its website.

Other potential at-risk federal land acquisition sites include a triangular section between Goshen Road and Johnson Avenue in Cape May Court House and Secluded Acres, adjacent to Secluded Lane and Route 47 in Rio Grande.

Keefe said in the letter that suburban development puts in danger adjacent refuge lands because of associated deforestation and clearing destroys on-site natural resources, fragments refuge lands, and resultant lawns and residential use increases non-point source pollution runoff onto refuge lands.

Having development so close to the refuge is not the only concern of the American Littoral Society.

“According to the proposed master plan, over the past 10 years Middle Township lost 33 percent of its vacant, largely forested land to development as well as over half, or 77 of its remaining farms,” Daher said.

The 2010 master plan falls short, she said.

The plan fails to protect “what remains of these critical resources – especially since you’ve only got about 3,500 acres of it left.  Unfortunately, the proposed zoning will only result in the balance of your towns’ remaining farmland and forest being developed, and calls for over 5,000 new houses, plus over 2 million square feet of office and commercial space,” the letter reads.

She said the master plan also fails to meet a balance between the high-density center areas and the surrounding areas.

“We don’t see how this has been achieved when the town’s build-out calls for developing nearly as much land in the environs (over 950 acres) as it does in the growth centers (over 1,000 acres),” Daher said.

She also aired concerns over allowing single-family developments to be built on 1- and 3.5-acre lots in the environs. That could spur a disappearance of farmland and significant open space, Daher argued.

That’s “where the protection of such resources is fundamental to your resident’s quality of life and provides the basis for a county eco-tourism industry worth $522 million annually,” she said.

What’s more, 958 acres of remaining forest and farmland would become developed, she said.

“The proposed master plan could be significantly improved by simply increasing lot size acreage in the environs outside of the proposed growth centers,” the letter concludes. “What you’ve proposed only perpetuates suburban sprawl on remaining farmland and open space. By increasing buildable lot sizes beyond that currently proposed, and eliminating the grandfathered lot provision, the town will go a long way towards protecting its character, quality of life, prized open spaces, and sensitive freshwater resources so important to all life.”

Township Engineer Vince Orlando said he sees nothing wrong with the township's 2010 master plan. The plan is expected to get endorsed by the Office of Planning Advocacy next month. In fact, he said the plan contains zero cons, only pros.

Orlando also said Daher has made a “gross mischaracterization of the master plan.”

“OK, you’re entitled to your opinion,” Daher said.

Noel also questioned Daher. He asked her how many Cape May County residents are members of the American Littoral Society? Only one, Noel said.

Noel advised the 2010 master plan should be kept as-is.

The American Littoral Society mission is to promote the study and conservation of marine life and habitat, protects the coast from harm, and empowers others to do the same, she said.

“So we’re not an anti-growth group,” she said.

Daher said in an interview the American Littoral Society has followed, from the start, the effort to get the master plan state endorsed.

“We attended most of the now-dissolved master plan committee meetings and prior to that, the visioning workshops,” she said. “We have always provided thoughtful input to the master plan committee and township throughout this process.”

Before anyone could voice their opinions on the draft ordinance, the township committee unanimously approved the first reading of the zoning ordinance. Those who attended the meeting were told they would get the chance to have their say in the public comment portion of the July 6 meeting or at the Aug. 1 meeting.

The public hearing and consideration for a final vote is set for 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 1, at 33 Mechanic St. in Cape May Court House.

 

locals are involved, asks one master plan supporter

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