Morris Township planning board finds Catch Road redevelopment plan "not inconsistent" with master plan; refers ordinance to township committee

The Morris Township Planning Board on July 7, 2025, voted to find that the Catch Road Redevelopment Plan is “not inconsistent” with the township master plan and referred the ordinance to the Township Committee for further action.

The board’s acting chair, George Quillen, led the meeting after the regular chair and vice chair were absent. Elizabeth Lainey, the board planner, told members the ordinance (referred to in the meeting as Ordinance 23-25) concerns county-owned property identified on the tax map as portions of Block 1901, Block 1540 (West Hanover Avenue) and a portion of Block 10181, and that the board’s task under the Municipal Land Use Law (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-26) was narrowly focused: to report any provisions of the redevelopment plan that are inconsistent with the master plan.

“Lainey said the redevelopment plan contemplates about 50 units of affordable housing and is consistent with the master plan’s goals to preserve residential character while permitting multifamily development in selected locations,” Lainey said. “The redevelopment plan is not inconsistent with the master plan, and it is substantially consistent.”

The planner noted the…