By BILL BARLOW/Special to the Sentinel
UPPER TOWNSHIP — In a unanimous vote Monday, Jan. 25, Upper Township Committee approved an ordinance declaring the site of the former BL England Generating Station an “area in need of redevelopment.”
The area includes more than 300 acres, dominated by the power generating plant, smokestack and cooling tower near Great Egg Harbor Bay that can be seen for miles. The plant ended operations in May 2009, with cleanup of the coal-fired plant still under way.
“Just in a nutshell, this is a redevelopment plan for the former BL England site. It does nothing but incorporate your underlying zoning,” said James Maley, an attorney hired to advise the township on the matter. “There’s no change in your zoning whatsoever. You just went through that last year.”
The ordinance is required by statute to empower the township with the redevelopment authority for the site. The declaration allows the township broad powers to encourage development, including expanding the power to take property under eminent domain, better known as condemnation.
“The Planning Board found that it was consistent with the master plan at their last meeting and recommended it back to you for public hearing,” said Tiffany Cuviello, Upper Township’s planner.
A public hearing is the last step before the final vote on an ordinance. The decision comes after a lengthy process, including a detailed review by the Planning Board last year.
Representatives of the plant’s owner, RC Cape May Holdings LLC, argued against the inclusion of condemnation powers in the declaration of the area in need of redevelopment when the matter was discussed by the Planning Board in November. Attorney Jennifer Porter told the board that the current owner is in the best position to continue ongoing cleanup at the site.
There are plans for the site, including the potential for its use as part of a multimillion-dollar offshore wind energy project.
Porter addressed Township Committee during the public hearing but did not ask committee members to vote no on the ordinance. Instead, she raised specific zoning issues connected to the redevelopment process.
“We fully understand that the current plan only seeks to incorporate the underlying zoning exactly as it exists today, so our comments are merely offered for future consideration,” she said.
Porter also discussed issues with conditional uses and lot sizes withing the zoning area. She suggested the township consider residential uses or mixed uses for the site, a possibility she said was discussed by the Planning Board at the most recent meeting.
Remediation work continues at the site, she said, to the standards set out by the state Department of Environmental Protection, but further remediation may be needed for the site to be used for residential development.
She also suggested light industrial and energy uses be considered for the property. She cited renewable energy, offshore and onshore wind power and other uses to be considered.
“That ties in directly not just with the existing capabilities of the area but also some of the existing agreements that are in place,” she said.
Porter also asked the township to include additional properties owned by RC Cape May Holdings within the redevelopment area.
“We believe it makes more sense to be fully inclusive of the entirety of their holdings,” she said, citing future prospects for development of the area.
Resident Joe Halpin spoke during the public hearing. Township attorney Dan Young told him he would not be allowed to question Porter but could ask questions of committee members.
“Did the township condemn the property?” Halpin asked.
“The township has not taken any steps to condemn it,” Young responded.
At the close of the meeting Monday, Township Committee met behind closed doors to discuss both potential litigation and contract negotiations with RC Cape May Holdings. Most meetings of public bodies such as Township Committee must be held in public under state law, but there are exceptions, including both contract negotiations and litigation.
The meeting Monday was held remotely, with committee members and the public participating by phone or through the internet, as restrictions on public gatherings remain in place.