Sale Of Old Summit Firehouse Land To Go To Auction

SUMMIT, NJ — Summit leaders approved a real estate firm to handle an auction of the land where the old Summit firehouse once stood.

On Monday night, Common Council unanimously approved Resolution 12199 that authorizes Jones Lang La Salle, Inc. to oversee the sale of the land at 396 Broad St. The firm will be paid on a sliding scale of four percent on the first $5 million, three percent on the next $5 million, and two percent on any sale price that reaches about $10 million.

The City said they received an appraisal that the property should sell for a minimum of $4.6 million.

The old firehouse site is within the Morris Broad Crossroads Overlay Zone which also includes the Chestnut parking area, an office building, and a privately-owned parking lot.

"This is a big day for the community," said Councilwoman Delia Hamlet on Monday night. "I ran on this the first time when 22- or 2,300 residents were packing meetings until 2 a.m."

The City says the will use the funds from the sale to service debt that includes $16 million for the new firehouse that was constructed. Proceeds from the sale will also go toward deferred maintenance and other operations of municipal property.

Concil President Mike McTernan told the room on Monday night that it was always the City's plan to use funding from the old site to take down the impact on the budget from the new firehouse.

Future Plans For Site Of Old Firehouse

On Oct. 7, Common Council unanimously voted to approve an ordinance repealing the Morris Broad Crossroads Overlay Zone.

City leaders agreed that a new zoning district maintained the intended use of the land while also simplifying regulations for its use.

The ordinance (25-3557) that was approved reverts the development of the site back to specifications originally desired by the city and an affordable housing developer. These include 48 residential units totaling 80,000 square feet of property, more flexible parking requirements, an adjusted three-story height requirement to accommodate an office building with 14-foot-high ceilings, and other terminology alterations.

The former ordinance outlined a mixed-use site comprised of market-rate and affordable housing options that would not grow beyond 20 total resident units.

Council President Mike McTernan says the affordable housing element will be a requirement for any developer who wins the bidding for the lot. He also adds that funds from the sale will be "for our schools...and the county... that can pay for the services we deem so important in town, including a price that maybe pays down some debt."

Councilmember Delia Hamlet says the decision to bundle things together, including the multiple parking lots, was to hopefully get a higher bid price and add to this monetary benefit.

The City said they were looking to accomplish two things with their repeal:

1. Adjust to account for certain dimensional requirements that would allow the city to take control of the whole lot
2. To modify the lot from an "overlay" zone to an "actual" zone, which would make this plan the only possible zoning framework that a prospective developer can utilize

In June 2024, the City created the Morris Broad Crossroads Overlay zone based on community input and the mission to achieve four goals:

1. To repurpose the site after the relocation of the firehouse
2. To generate revenue from the sale to a potential developer and annual tax revenue
3. To fulfill requirements to accommodate affordable housing in the area
4. To add public parking
5. To develop the site in a unified design theme that is consistent with Summit

A developer came to the City with their own plan for the site that would include multiple affordable housing units. Under the state's Fair Housing Act, Summit had to file a Declaratory Judgment Complaint by Jan. 31 in order to participate in the program.

Despite rumors that Summit was up against multiple lawsuits, the only one filed was this one that they themselves submitted.

According to Summit's Affordable Housing Attorney Nancy Holm, there were three challenges filed within the same docket, a routine for such projects throughout the state. This allows parties to dispute certain concerns over the plan, and brings the process into a mediation period with the City.

The Fair Share Housing Center, an affordable housing advocacy group, has filed challenges against the development plans of 16 communities around New Jersey, including Summit. The organization alleges that the actions do not align with the state's affordable housing law, and is looking to have the immunity to builder remedy lawsuits revoked. Read more from Patch.

"The residents spoke out, and they want character," Hamlet added on Monday. "They want things to be in the character of Summit."

Officials said they hope to have all mediation and questions on these plans resolved by the end of the year.

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