The Highlands municipal land use board will hold a public hearing on Thursday, December 12, at 7 p.m. to consider whether to recommend that the Mayor and Council designate the marina between Huddy and Washington Avenues as a condemnation area in need of redevelopment.
Officially, the property is bounded by Cheerful Place and Marine Place on both Washington Ave and Marine Place and includes a sidewalk-wide paper street on Huddy Avenue, as well as underneath the water in the Marina between Huddy and Washington that was first constructed in the 1940s.
Action comes after the governing body has been attempting for several years to have the property properly maintained, and proper bulkheads constructed without success.
The property is owned by Geoff Pierini.
If approved upon recommendation after the public hearing, the mayor and council will have the right to acquire the property through eminent domain should it not meet the standards of municipal codes within a specified time.
Once the board makes it recommendation, the Council will consider whether the area should be designated as a Study Area as a condemnation area in need of redevelopment under the Redevelopment Law. That law authorizes the borough to exercise all power to condemn the site. If designated as such, the Council can then notify the owner he will have 45 days from the date of the designation notice to challenge the designation by filing action in Superior Court.
The public has the right at the public hearing to present any objections or support along with general comments on the proposal.
The area and a map depicting its boundaries in the proposed condemnation area are on file at borough hall and available for inspection during normal business hours. Scheduling an appointment with the borough clerk’s office is recommended for review of these documents and the investigation report prepared by Heyer, Gruel & Associates.
Members of the Land Use Board are Mayor Carolyn Broullon, Dean Cramer, Robert Knox, Bruce Kutosh, Frank Montecalvo, and Brian O’Callahan, Zoning Officer, Stacey Vickery, and Mark Zill.
