NFL Billionaire Plans To Build Apartments In NJ Forest, Public Hearing This Week

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Another public hearing on a controversial plan to build housing on a large portion of forest in North Jersey is scheduled for later this week – with a decision looming in the future.

The West Orange Planning Board will hold a hearing for the proposed West Essex Highlands development on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at the council chambers at Town Hall, 66 Main Street. Public comment will take place in person only. See details and meeting information here.

Zygmunt Wilf, a billionaire developer and co-owner of the Minnesota Vikings, owns the tract of land with his family through their Short Hills-based firm, West Essex Highlands Inc.

Developers are proposing to build a 496-unit apartment complex at a 120-acre tract of land on the western ridgeline of the Watchung Mountains, which borders West Orange, Essex Fells, Verona and Roseland. Nearly 30 acres of forest would be cleared under the plan.

Critics say the current proposal has grown even denser since the turn of the millennium, when the idea of developing in the area raised similar complaints: too many houses, construction on steep slopes, the potential endangering of wetlands, and more traffic on local roadways.

Over the past year, advocates in the area have renewed their calls for a halt to the project. They include members of We Care NJ, which is encouraging people to “pack the room” on Wednesday.

Previous versions of the project have been rejected by the West Orange Planning Board. However, the current plan is to make 100 of the units “affordable” – a major selling point from developers.

West Orange has a deficit of hundreds of affordable housing units that will need to be fulfilled by 2025. The town has recently seen multiple “builder’s remedy” lawsuits from developers.

In 2020, the Township of West Orange reached a settlement with West Essex Highlands Inc. and the West Essex Highlands Condominium Association Inc. about the project, which can be seen online here. West Orange was obligated to move the project forward under the agreement.

The township has held nearly two dozen public meetings about the latest proposal.

• See Related: Critics Oppose ‘Mega-Development’ Plans For Essex County Forest
• See Related: Housing Proposed Near Forest In West Orange, Verona, Essex Fells

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