MORRIS TOWNSHIP, N.J. — On June 2 the Morris Township Planning Board recommended that the township committee declare portions of county‑owned Lots 1 and 1.01 near Ketch Road a non‑condemnation area in need of redevelopment to enable an affordable‑housing project.

Planner John Phillips (testifying in a consulting capacity) told the board the study area totals about 3.5 acres of undeveloped land within larger county holdings and lacks direct street frontage or roadway access. Quoting the statute, Phillips read the c‑criteria of the Local Redevelopment and Housing Law: "Land that is owned by the municipality, the county, a local housing authority, redevelopment agency or redevelopment entity or unimproved vacant land that has remained so for a period of 10 years prior to adoption of the resolution...and that by reason of its location, remoteness, lack of means of access to develop sections or portions of the municipality...is not likely to be developed through the instrumentality of private capital." He told the board the site meets that criterion.

Why it matters: the township is seeking sites to meet a court‑settlement‑related obligation (the board referenced an agreement tied to prior litigation involving the Red Bulls) that would yield about 50 affordable units. Phillips said the parcel’s constraints — public ownership, adjacency to existing county facilities (including a leased township soccer field), wetlands and limited access — make private‑only development unlikely, and that designation as a redevelopment area would give developers access to tax credits, long‑term tax abatement and other financing tools required to deliver 100% affordable housing.

Site specifics and stakeholders: the portion of Lot 1 identified in the study is cut off from the balance of its larger parcel by existing county facilities and by a solar installation; Lot 1.01 (about 3 acres) includes a 10‑bedroom supportive housing facility operated by ARC Morris with an adjoining undeveloped rear area of roughly 1.7 acres. Phillips said access to the developable acreage would likely require an easement through the township‑leased Ketch Road Field parking/driving area, and that county and township staff and the prospective developer have been discussing parcel assembly and access arrangements. Phillips also said the county is amenable to donating the parcel to support affordable‑housing financing, with a reverter clause that would return the land to the county if it is not used for affordable housing.

Board action: Planning Board member motioned to recommend that the governing body adopt the resolution circulated with findings that the site meets the c‑criteria; the motion was amended to include the circulated resolution and was seconded. The transcript records a roll call in which members answered "yes"; the board clerk read several board members’ recorded affirmative votes in public (e.g., Dan Otter, Mr. Nunn, Mr. Flowers, Mr. Benoit, Mr. Quellen, Mr. Radian and others recorded as voting yes). The board therefore forwarded a recommendation that the township committee designate the area as an area in need of redevelopment (non‑condemnation).

Next steps: the planning board’s action is a recommendation. The governing body (township committee) must consider and adopt the redevelopment determination and any redevelopment plan. If the governing body concurs, the municipality would finalize a redevelopment plan (which can function as a zoning change), solicit a developer or finalize an agreement with a nonprofit or developer, and the planning board would review site‑plan and consistency issues under the redevelopment plan.

Ending: The board’s recommendation puts the parcels into the next phase of the township’s affordable‑housing strategy; the transcript shows the consultants and municipal staff anticipate further negotiations over access easements, county‑to‑municipal conveyance terms and the developer selection and financing steps to deliver the affordable units.