Gloucester Township Considers Overhaul Of Blackwood West Plan

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township is reassessing a plan designed to revitalize the Blackwood West area, 18 years after it was initially adopted.

This comes after the initial plan, adopted in 2003, saw several amendments over the years, including one that was given final approval this week.

Township Council introduced a proposed ordinance to amend the Blackwood West Redevelopment Plan at its meeting Monday night.

Specifically, the township sees a need to “adopt a new redevelopment plan to reassess compliance with local redevelopment and housing law,” and to “restate and refocus the vision, core strategies and specific objectives of the redevelopment plan.”

“For example, box stores and those types of businesses in 2004 were all the rage. Now, we’ve gone to e-commerce, and purchasing things online,” Council President Orlando Mercado said. “So one of the things that’s being taken into consideration is the type of businesses that could be permitted and work in Downtown Blackwood.”

Mercado called that a summary of the plan that was submitted by consulting firm T&M Associates and distributed to members of the township council.

He urged members of council to continue to look at it, and said the public would have a chance to weigh in during the public hearing on the ordinance, which will take place after the matter is referred to the planning board. The public can also comment at the public meetings of the planning board.

In the proposed ordinance, officials also say the “public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the community” will benefit from revisions to the plan.

Officials said the need to reassess comes after several amendments were made to the plan over the past several years, after it was initially approved in 2003.

The most recent amendment, approved in a separate vote Monday night, calls for the office use and accessory vehicles of an electrician, painter, plumber, and similar establishments at 534 North Black Horse Pike.

The reassessment plan that was unanimously approved on introduction will replace any existing redevelopment plan for the redevelopment area, with the goal of “facilitating economic growth and development.”

The Blackwood West Redevelopment Plan focuses on revitalizing this traditional commercial center and its nearby neighborhoods in west central Gloucester Township, according to the township's website.

Some of the plan's objectives include:

• Removing deteriorated and obsolete structures that are having an adverse impact on the business climate and neighborhood vitality in Blackwood West;
• Bringing in new customers to existing businesses;
• Stimulating new business;
• Encouraging investment in existing key commercial buildings that form the basis for the Blackwood West Historic District;
• Developing "high quality housing types" not presently offered in Gloucester Township; and
• Expanding the use of Blackwood Lake as an amenity for the community, among other goals.

The township's strategy is to attract "empty nesters" and "young professionals" through appealingly designed housing, and to use mixed-use buildings and mixed site development to accomplish this plan. Read more about the plan at glotwp.com.

The plan was developed after the mayor, police officer, code enforcement officials and other officials inspected the area near the Black Horse Pike on June 28, 2010. They noted what improvements were needed, and developed a plan to reach those goals, according to the township's website.

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