Planning board finds two office properties eligible for non-condemnation redevelopment studies

The Parsippany-Troy Hills Planning Board on Feb. 10 voted to recommend that the township council initiate redevelopment investigations for two underused office properties: 4 Gate Hall Drive (Block 175, Lot 52) and 2 Sylvan Way (Block 202, Lot 1.1). Both recommendations are non-condemnation findings that allow the municipality to begin a formal redevelopment planning process but do not authorize eminent-domain acquisition.

Planning staff presented site visits and a conditions report for both parcels. The 4 Gate Hall property, a roughly 13.67-acre site containing a 268,584-square-foot commercial building constructed in 1988, was described as showing extensive physical deterioration: interior water infiltration and mold, a nonfunctional indoor water feature, multiple broken elevators, cracked exterior paving and other deferred maintenance. The report says the building has averaged about 30% occupancy for the past three years and will drop to about 8% when the largest tenant vacates in 2025. Staff recommended the site meets four of the eight statutory redevelopment criteria under the Local Redevelopment and Housing Law, including that structures are substandard/obsolescent and that prolonged vacancy indicates lack of productive use.

The 2 Sylvan Way property, a three-story, roughly 54,000-square-foot building constructed in 1977 with a split-level design and accessibility limitations, likewise was presented as functionally obsolete with evidence of water damage, mold and mechanical systems nearing the end of their useful life. The site’s occupancy has been 35% or less for the last 15 years; staff reported projected occupancy near 18% before year’s end. Planning staff recommended that 2 Sylvan Way meets the same four statutory criteria as 4 Gate Hall.

Board members discussed procedure and the practical effects of non-condemnation redevelopment designation. Several members voiced reluctance about “rewarding bad behavior” by property owners who allowed large buildings to fall into disrepair but concluded that market conditions—especially long-term declines in office demand—leave rehabilitation unlikely and that redevelopment tools are the practical option for repurposing obsolete space. The board recorded motions recommending that the council declare each study area eligible for redevelopment; those recommendations will be forwarded to the council, which must make the legal determination before redevelopment planning can proceed.

The board emphasized the non-condemnation nature of these recommendations: a council determination of an area in need of redevelopment does not itself transfer property to the municipality or authorize eminent domain. If the council declares an area in need, the next steps are preparation of a redevelopment plan and, later, review of any private redevelopment proposals.