JACKSON – A permit to make sure soil is clean is being challenged by two builder associations, but members of the governing body have said the ordinance reflects a State Department of Environmental Protection request.
Jackson Trails LLC joined forces with the New Jersey Builders Association and the Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey in a civil action against the township shortly after the ordinance was adopted on April 28.
Township Planning Board members turned down an application submitted by Jackson Trails late last year. The applicant sought township approval to construct 459 residential units (367 market rate homes and 92 affordable housing units in multiple buildings) plus a house of worship that would have been located on South Hope Chapel Road.
A complaint was filed on June 11 in state Superior Court by the New Jersey Builders Association and the Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey. That complaint targets the new Soil/Fill Importation permit that was added into Jackson’s municipal codebook.
While the ordinance is said to “manage the importation and deposition of soil/fill to protect the safety, public health and general welfare of the community and the environment” the challenge against it alleges that council members didn’t adhere to the New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act when the ordinance was passed.
The April 28 council meeting was done by means of Zoom and held in a virtual fashion due to the ongoing conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The complaint alleges that the public notice in advance of the meeting was not sufficient and the governing body’s adoption of the ordinance was an “arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable action that violates the Municipal Land Use Law.”
The challenge also accuses officials of violating the township’s “constitutional affordable housing obligation, unauthorized and excessive fee provisions, and baseless and unauthorized bond requirements.”
Jackson Trails LLC signed on to the lawsuit a day later.
Jackson Council President Alex Sauickie has pointed to this ordinance as an example of the council’s commitment to preserving Jackson’s environment. The ordinance mandates that developers provide proof that all soil or soil mixed with other additives used in a project is environmentally safe and free of contaminants.
Supporting documentation are required by the ordinance and must include the hours of operation, haul routes for transporting material and interim traffic and safety measures.
When the ordinance was first proposed, Sauickie said he was surprised that such a provision was not already in place for developers to show that the material they were providing for a project was completely clean.
During a prior meeting, Sauickie, who was instrumental in drafting the ordinance, said “we have taken direction on this ordinance from the DEP.” He said it was that agency that presented the model for the ordinance during a meeting of the League of Municipalities.
Attorney Steven Dalton, representing the NJ Builders Association and Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey that became plaintiffs in the lawsuit, spoke during the April 28 hearing.
Dalton asked the council to hold up on adopting the ordinance so that members of both associations could work with the council “to address concerns and provide their input toward the proposed ordinance.”
It was also stated for the record that the associations’ union was working with the DEP to make changes to the ordinance model.
Sauickie noted that other towns had also adopted similar ordinances adopting that model. “They also reviewed our particular ordinance.” He added there was no reason to delay the adoption of the ordinance but was open to communicating with the associations about any changes that might occur with the DEP model ordinance.
“No longer will we just trust developers who want to bring in hundreds of truckloads of what we refer to as ‘dirty dirt.’ The whole point of the ordinance is to apply through our forms that need to be filled out in advance,” he said.
