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Saddle Brook Township Council reviews redevelopment plan for 93 Market Street as resident voices opposition
Summary
Council discussed a resolution to designate a developer for 93 Market Street; township attorney outlined project terms (underground parking, landscaping buffer, nine affordable units credited as 12), while resident John Manzo warned the project would depress local property values. No formal council vote on the resolution was recorded.
A resolution to designate a developer for 93 Market Street was discussed at a Saddle Brook Township Council meeting, where the township attorney described the proposed project and a resident criticized the plan.
Township attorney John Scatino summarized the item as a resolution on the council agenda and said the selected developer had been vetted. Scatino said the proposal eliminates retail at the site, places the building closer to Market Street, and moves all parking underground rather than in surface lots. "All parking will be underground and contained within the building," Scatino said, and he added the developer is required to provide a total of 214 underground parking spaces for the project. He also said the developer will install a digital communications board and a flagpole and will relocate the police monument at the developer’s expense.
Scatino told the council the project will include nine affordable housing units but—because the site is in a designated redevelopment area—state rules allow the township to claim credit for 12 affordable units. He said the sale closing is hoped for in January and estimated that, when completed and occupied, the development could produce roughly $300,000 to $350,000 a year in ratables to the municipality.
Resident John Manzo (179 Market Street) spoke during the public comment period and urged the council to reject further multifamily development in town. "We do not need another apartment complex in this town," Manzo said, arguing the town is already saturated with apartments and that homeowners on Harrison Avenue will see property values and quality of life decline.
Council discussion and Scatino’s summary addressed several of those concerns: Scatino said there will be no access to Harrison Avenue from the site, a substantial landscaping buffer (evergreen plantings) will screen views toward the houses, and the project will provide underground parking spaces beyond what standard rules require. A council member reiterated that the planning board will review site-specific details and invited residents to attend planning-board hearings expected to begin in January or February.
A member of the public asked whether parking commitments run with the property if the owner later sells; Scatino said the agreement is perpetual: "The agreement is forever," he said.
The council did not record a formal vote on the developer-designation resolution in the meeting transcript. The attorney described the developer selection and project parameters and public comment concluded with the planning board and subsequent approvals identified as the next steps.
What happens next: the planning board is expected to review site plans; additional public hearings are likely there. The council’s resolution to designate a developer was on the agenda and was discussed, but no adoption vote is recorded in the transcript.
