Hopewell Borough residents will have a chance to weigh in on a redevelopment plan for the J.C. Van Doren and Sons lumber yard property on Model Avenue at the Borough Council’s Sept. 6 meeting.
The council meeting will start at 7 p.m., and will be held in the council meeting room on the lower level of the municipal building.
Council members opened the public hearing on an ordinance that proposes to create a Townhouse Residential zone on the 1-acre lumber yard property on Model Avenue at their Aug. 2 meeting, but decided to hold off on final action to allow for more public comment.
The redevelopment plan, which has been in the works since 2015, would create a new zone on the property and allow for the construction of up to 13 townhouses. Two of the townhouses would be set aside for low- and moderate-income households.
Municipal officials pointed out that a redevelopment plan is a planning tool and said no one has filed an application with the Planning Board to redevelop the Model Avenue property.
The New Jersey Local Redevelopment and Housing Law allows municipal officials to look at properties that are underused or out of sync with the community’s goals and to rezone the land for another use.
The redevelopment law allows for changes in zoning, but it is a lengthy process that would require the approval of the Borough Council and the Planning Board.
