State Meeting On Development Of Historic Property In Ridgewood Postponed. Here's Why.

RIDGEWOOD, NJ — A long-debated plan to put athletic fields on a historic part of Ridgewood will go to a state meeting, but not this month.

The state Historic Preservation Office originally expected to discuss plans for the Zabriskie-Schedler property on June 19. But because that's the federal Juneteenth holiday, the meeting has been postponed.

Viilage Manager Keith Kazmak said Wednesday that he has not yet gotten a new date, but expects a meeting in July.

Ridgewood spent much of last year grappling with the discovery of contamination at the Schedler historic property, where officials want to build athletic fields. READ MORE: Lead Contamination Latest Roadblock For Ridgewood Plan To Add Ballfield To Historic Land

On May 1, the town said that plans can move forward again and a cleanup will be conducted in the future. The updated plans were posted on the town website.

But late last week, the state's Historic Preservation Office, part of the Department of Environmental Protection, sent a letter to the town saying that the plans represent an "encroachment" on the 1825 Zabriskie house on the property.

"Based upon a review of the submitted documentation, HPO staff has determined that ... the proposed undertaking constitutes an encroachment upon the Zabriskie-Schedler House," says a May 29 letter. "The proposed park development involves the construction of a large turf field, parking areas, and associated amenities, which are incompatible with the size, scale, and materials of the historic property and therefore do not meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties."

The letter adds, "HPO staff determined that the Application was technically and professionally complete and sufficient pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:4-7.1(d), upon receipt on April 29, 2025, and the project has been placed on the June 19, 2025, agenda of the New Jersey Historic Sites Council (HSC). "

According to the letter, the HSC reviews projects of state, county, and municipal governments that affect properties listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places, to advise the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection.

The Village of Ridgewood or its consultants will get to present the application at the meeting, and members of the public may comment as well.

The HSC will then make a recommendation to the DEP Commissioner.

Kazmak said that the town had anticipated that the plans would be deemed an encroachment, and that they anticipate a positive resolution.

"It's sort of like going for a variance to the zoning board," he said. "It's like if you're working on your house, if you're going to go a foot into the setback area, and you have to make your case...Since I've come to Ridgewood, July of 2023, we always knew it would be deemed an encroachment."

He said that they may approve the project with or without conditions.

Background

The plans have been subject to debate for more than ten years, as preservationists want to protect the historic property.

(In fact, in March, historian George Wright received an award from the New Jersey Historical Commission for his attempts to preserve the Schedler house.)

The town completed a purchase of the property — including the 1825 Dutch home once owned by the farming Zabriskie family — in 2009.

Some historic preservation experts, neighbors, environmentalists, and sparred over whether the house should be moved as part of the project, and what kind of fields or recreational paths and park amenities should be placed on the property. (See a link to residents' petition here.)

Last year, to complicate matters, experts found contamination.

The town took public questions about the contamination this past March.

In April, the town budget included $1.5 million for cleanup of the soil.

In May, they sent a revised project to the state. The plans are posted here.

The town will now prepare to present at the next meeting. Patch will update this story when a new date is announced.