Cigna Property Update - Mayor and Council Approve Settlement Agreement - updated 3/30/2023
- 250 multi-family rental units of which 15% to 20% shall be affordable (depending on whether they are rental or sale units) – substantially less than the 2,500 units the developer has suggested is the development capacity of the Property;
- No Payment In Lieu of Taxes (“PILOT”) of any kind;
- A retail component, consisting of a retail stores of approximately 50,000 square feet;
- Two warehouse structures with a total footprint of 495,000 square feet, replacing the current office building of nearly 700,000 square feet in floor area;
- 3.5 acres of property to be donated to the Borough for construction by the Borough of 55 units of affordable housing; and
- A contribution of up to $500,000 towards on and offsite infrastructure improvements.
The developer at the March 29 meeting presented a concept plan which illustrates the potential development of the site based on the zoning standards in the proposed Settlement Agreement. You can listen to the audio recording of the meeting (note that the last few minutes of the meeting did not record because of issues with the storage capacity of the recorder).
The next step in the process will be the consideration by the Mayor and Council of a zoning ordinance consistent with the Settlement Agreement. The public would be afforded an opportunity to provide their comments and input at the public hearing on the adoption of the zoning ordinance. There will be additional opportunities for public input as the settlement contemplates an amendment to the Housing Element and Fair Share Plan by the Planning Board, a “fairness hearing” before the Superior Court, and a site plan application before the Planning Board – all of which provide for an opportunity for the public to be heard. The Borough will assure that, in addition to any required notices, the public will be notified by eblast of all such public hearings and the meeting information will be prominently displayed on the News and Events page of the Borough website at www.franklinlakes.org/news.
The settlement is the culmination of over a year of negotiations on the proposed development of the site between The S. Hekemian Group, the contract purchaser of the site, and the Borough. A prior proposal by the developer would have included an additional 335 multi-family residential units in lieu of the warehouse structures that are part of the approved settlement.
Mayor Charles J.X. Kahwaty further explains, “Given the constraints imposed by the Mt. Laurel court decisions, this is a good deal for Franklin Lakes. No one wants the Cigna property developed in a manner that will have a significant impact on surrounding households or the services and infrastructure of our town. But the threat of a court-imposed ‘builders remedy,’ which could effectively preempt our zoning authority on this property, is real and cannot be ignored. We listened to the people of Franklin Lakes, which is reflected in our final negotiations with the developer. These final negotiations resulted in a significant reduction of the number of units to be built, eliminated the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT), and provided for the developer to make a contribution to improve related infrastructure. I think we realized that ‘perfect is the enemy of the good’ and that this proposal would have the least damaging impact on our town. But it bears repeating that I believe that the Mt. Laurel doctrine is profoundly unconstitutional and does not address the real need for affordable housing in this state.”