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Board recommends non‑condemnation redevelopment study for 23 Orchard after finding sustained vacancies
Summary
The Planning Board recommended the governing body designate 23 Orchard (Block 28001 Lot 5.02) a non‑condemnation 'area in need of redevelopment' after consultant evidence showed vacancy rates exceeding 75% in recent years; the recommendation enables redevelopment planning and fiscal tools.
The Montgomery Township Planning Board on March 23 voted to recommend that the township governing body designate the 44‑acre 23 Orchard parcel as an area in need of redevelopment (non‑condemnation), concluding that the property meets statutory Criterion B because of sustained, significant vacancy.
Consulting planner Michael Sullivan (Clarke, Caton & Hintz) summarized a preliminary investigation showing a long period of vacancy and underutilization in the large office building on the site. Sullivan cited documented vacancy rates supplied by the owner and his team: roughly 88–89% vacancy in 2023, just over 85% in 2024 and about 75.6% in 2025. “Vacancy rates over the last 3 years have exceeded 75%,” he said, adding that the building’s gross floor area (over 220,000 square feet) is largely unoccupied and that interior amenity and common spaces are not in active use.
Sullivan told the board the designation would be limited to the single block and lot studied and noted the governing body had asked for a non‑condemnation designation, meaning the township would not use eminent domain as part of any redevelopment process. He said designation can unlock fiscal tools — such as redevelopment area bonding and payments‑in‑lieu‑of‑taxes (PILOTs) — that could help fund large‑scale upgrades to make the property viable for uses the township hopes to attract, including a proposed Montgomery Innovation Hub.
Board members asked whether the solar field, parking and stream corridor areas would be affected. Sullivan said the solar array (a field south of the building) is part of the parcel and therefore in play for redevelopment, but protected stream corridors and conservation easements would constrain what could change along the stream corridor.
The board voted to recommend designation and will forward its finding to the township committee for final action and for any future redevelopment‑plan work.
What happens next: the governing body will consider the Planning Board’s recommendation; if the township committee designates the area, a redevelopment plan that spells out allowed uses, public benefits and any fiscal tools would be the next step.
