Upper Pittsgrove backs preservation bond

Friday, September 21, 2007 By Robert Linnehan blinnehan@sjnewsco.com

UPPER PITTSGROVE TWP. Members of the township committee here continue to devote themselves to farmland preservation.

Committee members recently unanimously passed a resolution to support the Green Acres, Farmland, Blue Acres, Historic Preservation Bond of 2007.

The preservation bond's fate will be decided in the Nov. 6 General Election.

Approval of the statewide ballot question would authorize the state to issue bonds in the amount of $200 million to provide funds for the acquisition and development of lands for recreation and conservation purposes, farmland preservation, and funding historic preservation projects.

"The $200 million would hopefully keep the New Jersey Keep it Green' program running for one more additional year," Mayor Jack Cimprich said. "The program has benefited the people of Upper Pittsgrove greatly since its inception. To find one day that the state has too many residents and not enough natural resources, that would be a disaster."

Upper Pittsgrove has long been a leader in farmland preservation in the state of New Jersey, Cimprich said. About 7,250 acres are preserved out of the 25,000 total acres in township, which makes Upper Pittsgrove as number one in the state for total acres of farmland preservation.

The township also leads New Jersey in total number of active agricultural acres with 17,569.

"We're firm believers in this bond and the good it will do for the state," Cimprich said. "Our actions certainly speak much louder then our words. We're a prime agricultural area and we want to keep it this way."

In other township news, Cimprich announced the township is close to selling its first Council on Affordable Housing house to a pre-qualified buyer.

The existing house, located in Monroeville, will give Upper Pittsgrove its first COAH credit. The township, Cimprich said, needs to have 21 COAH credits in the next four years to reach COAH standards.

"We're pleased that we're staying on top of our obligations. We've met everything we need to do so far," he said. "This eliminates the potential of unwanted development in our township from an outside source."

An additional two COAH houses were approved several months back as part of a small development and will give the township an additional two COAH credits, Cimprich said.

The township has yet to begin construction on the two COAH houses.

"If you look at other township in Salem County, many of them are being sued or are facing lawsuits due to COAH," he said.

We're very happy we've been able to stay on top of this."

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