Poll: What is Your Opinion On What Should Happen to the 13.6-acre United Water Property?

Over the course of the last two weeks, Patch has presented residents with digestible breakdowns of the site plan and traffic study as filed by S. Hekemian for the proposed development of the United Water property.

The application for preliminary and final site plan of the 13.6 acres that was recently filed by Hekemian differs dramatically from the presentation made by the developer in April. Part of the April presentation included the transfer of one-third of the property to the borough for a municipal recreation component and a 65-space parking component. There was no mention of a residential housing component. 

The recently filed application was formally denied since the application is not for single family homes, as the land is currently zoned. This denial does not mean that the project is stopped; it only triggers an application to the Zoning Board where the applicant will request all of the variances needed to complete the project as designed in the plans. 

Although the land is currently zoned residential, the Borough's 2004 Master Plan explicitly deems the property "currently underutilized" and recommends mixed-use development. (See pages 56 and 57.) Any Zoning Board of Adjustment application must refer to the borough's Master Plan recommendations.  

If the application is denied by the Zoning Board the developer can go before the Mayor and Council to ask for a zoning change from its current residential status to mixed-use.

Take our poll and tell us, what do you think the most viable option for the 13.6-acre United Water property is?