Howell OK's Fee Settlement With Monmouth Commerce Applicant

HOWELL, NJ — The Township Council has authorized the settlement of a lawsuit brought by a former warehouse developer in town to recoup its application fees.

Monmouth Commerce, LLC, sued Howell in Superior Court for the return of in excess of $425,000 in application fees paid to the township for two applications for site plan approvals submitted to the Howell Township Planning Board.

In July, the company pulled out of its proposed warehouse application for Randolph Road, and sold the property to Mid-Atlantic Offshore Development. That is the company involved in the state's offshore wind project, the township has said previously.

The warehouse application was for a five-building, 940,400-square-foot project that had already been rejected by the township once - a rejection upheld in court - in a previous larger plan.

After "lengthy negotiations, the parties have agreed that the litigation will be settled and dismissed with prejudice" after the township returns $187,500 to the developer, according to the resolution.

The remainder of the fees are kept by the township, an amount in excess of $237,500, according to the resolution.

The council approved the settlement, believing "that the settlement is in the long term best interest of the township, its residents and taxpayers," the resolution states.

The action took place at the Sept. 12 Township Council meeting and was approved by the four councilmembers present.

Before the vote, Township Manager Joseph Clark explained that the action would put the "Monmouth Commerce chapter behind us."

He said that the settlement was recommended by the township attorney rather than going through a lengthy trial.

"It's a good way to put an end to all of this," he said.