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Planner urges quick reexamination, proposes new comprehensive master plan for Rochelle Park
Summary
At the Dec. 11 Rochelle Park Land Use Board meeting, planner Michael Burgess proposed a statutory reexamination report to bridge to a full comprehensive master plan, recommending environmental mapping, a vulnerability/sustainability element, updated tax-map-based land-use analysis and strong public engagement; a public commenter estimated the cost 'under a million.'
Michael Burgess, a planning consultant, told the Rochelle Park Land Use Board on Dec. 11 that the township should start with a statutory reexamination report and follow with a comprehensive master plan to modernize zoning and growth policies.
Burgess said the reexamination is an expedited, statute-driven exercise that requires the board to identify major problems and objectives from the prior plan, report on the extent to which those items have been addressed, note significant changes in the community, and recommend whether to amend the current plan or prepare a new one. He urged the board to use updated tax maps and a lot-line-based existing land-use analysis to make recommendations that zoning and variance decisions can follow more consistently.
He proposed several optional but recommended elements for the full plan: an environmental-features analysis (steep slopes, wetlands and 100- and 500-year floodplain mapping), a combined sustainability and climate-vulnerability assessment, and a community-facilities element that inventories police, fire and school capacity. Burgess explained that demographic trends — especially age cohorts — inform housing and recreation needs and that the plan would include goal statements with explanatory policy language so zoning boards can apply the plan consistently.
Asked by a resident for a ballpark cost, Burgess replied, "Under a million," and the board asked members to read his written summary and bring questions to the reorganization meeting scheduled for Jan. 15, 2026. Chair and members emphasized the town’s need for a new master plan — the current one dates from 1991 — while noting budgetary constraints in the coming year.
Burgess described technical steps: reconcile tax-record land-use classifications with in-person field checks, create new townwide mapping layers for the plan, and produce policy recommendations tied to measurable goals. He also noted the reexamination must compare the town plan with county and state plans and said the resultant material would feed into the comprehensive plan rather than be discarded.
The board did not take a formal vote on the master-plan work plan on Dec. 11 but directed members and staff to review Burgess’s materials and return with questions at the next meeting. The reorganization meeting on Jan. 15 is the earliest planned forum to discuss the draft in detail.
