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Council authorizes developer’s agreement for 27‑unit Omega Drive project; six units set as affordable
Summary
The Vernon Township Council on Feb. 9 authorized a developer’s agreement with Red Hand LLC for a four‑story, 27‑unit rental building at 19–21 Omega Drive, six of the units designated affordable. The resolution passed 3–0 with two abstentions and follows prior Land Use Board approval and related easement actions.
The Vernon Township Council voted to authorize a developer’s agreement with Red Hand LLC for the redevelopment of Block 402, Lots 2 and 3 (commonly known as 19–21 Omega Drive), approving terms tied to a Land Use Board final site‑plan for a four‑story, 27‑unit rental building that includes six affordable units.
Council President William Higgins presided over the Feb. 9 meeting at the Vernon Municipal Center. The council authorized the mayor to execute the developer’s agreement substantially in the form prepared by counsel; the resolution passed with Council Members Patrick Rizzuto, Bradley Sparta and William Higgins voting in favor and Carl Contino and Sandra Ooms recorded as abstentions.
Township documents in the meeting packet and the Land Use Board’s earlier final approval require the developer to grant permanent sewer and drainage easements and permit the vacation of some existing easements so new mains can be located and maintained. Township Engineer and development counsel presented the draft agreement terms and said the mayor and township counsel may make non‑substantive edits in consultation with the developer’s attorney.
The action follows prior redevelopment steps cited by the council: a 2018 resolution designating the area as a redevelopment zone and the 2021 adoption of the Town Center Redevelopment Plan. The council also adopted related resolutions at the same meeting, including Resolution 26‑89 concerning easement and vacation authority and later Ratification of the Rehabilitation Plan and the Fourth‑Round Affordable Housing Trust Fund Spending Plan.
Council members and several public commenters discussed affordable‑housing policy and PILOT concerns during the meeting’s public‑comment period. The council did not vote on any PILOT agreement at the Feb. 9 session; the developer’s agreement itself sets terms the township said are required by the land‑use approval.
Next steps: the mayor is authorized to execute the agreement, and the township clerk will forward the recorded agreement to the township attorney for recording with the Sussex County Clerk as part of the project’s finalization process.
