Broad St. West Redevelopment Process Stalled By Summit City Council

SUMMIT, NJ — Summit Common Council held a special meeting Monday night and voted to rescind a resolution that was recently passed to make a series of amendments to the Broad Street West redevelopment plan.

Although the entire council, except for member Lisa Allen, voted "yes" last week to approve the proposed amendments to the redevelopment plan, the council unanimously voted to rescind the ordinance on Monday.

Last week, Council President Marjorie Fox said they would not conduct a final vote on the redevelopment plan until September. They originally planned to vote on July 19.

Read more: Summit Council Delays Vote On Broad St. West Redevelopment Plan

Council member Danny O'Sullivan introduced the resolution to reconsider the ordinance they passed last week at the top of the meeting.

"To say the least Broad Street West is a very complex issue," O'Sullivan said. "If it was easy, it would have been done a long time ago."

He said this decision to reevaluate the Broad Street West redevelopment plan comes as the council has received a lot of pushback from the community.

"We understand there is a call for more changes, a clearer communication, and more detail on the financial aspects of the project," O'Sullivan said. "This is a highly charged and emotional issue, but what's clear about the back and forth is that we all want what's best for the future of Summit."

Council member Greg Vartan joined O'Sullivan in reiterating his support for redeveloping this area of Summit. Vartan said he liked the revisions that were made to the redevelopment, as he believes they limited the scope of the project.

Vartan argued that he believes it is the city's responsibility to move forward with this project.

"As we move forward, I will be strongly advocating that this project includes as much affordable housing as possible, maximizes the purchase price and annual income to the city, includes environmentally sustainable features, pedestrian and traffic safety measures and a robust parking plan," Vartan said.

Councilwoman Allen reminded the community that she stands by her vote last week to vote against the amendments to the redevelopment plan.

"I'm thrilled that we are reversing course and setting a new direction for Broad St. West redirection," Allen said.

The document that fully outlines all the revisions that were proposed for Broad Street West can be viewed here on the city's website.

Now that the council decided to reject the developer's proposed revisions, O'Sullivan said meetings will continue over the summer to come up with a revised proposal for the redevelopment plan.

The Steering Committee will also regroup and utilize "talent from the community," according to O'Sullivan.

O'Sullivan added that the council is also continuing "other important work" for the community, including planning events for the Village Green this summer and providing new basketball courts at Memorial Park.

To view the entirety of Monday night's meeting, check out the YouTube recording below: