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Mayor urges residents to oppose state bills he says would override local zoning
Summary
Mayor Carlos Rendo told the Woodcliff Lake Borough Council three bills moving through the New Jersey Senate would curtail local zoning control and urged residents to contact sponsoring senators; he described proposals that, if enacted as described at the meeting, could permit tiers of dense development on religious and nonprofit sites.
Mayor Carlos Rendo used his monthly report to warn residents that legislation in Trenton could limit municipal zoning authority and increase allowed housing density. "This bill will override zoning ordinances, giving the developers the right to build high-density, multi-family, mixed-use for any corporate office building, strip mall, or shopping center," he said, asking viewers to contact senators sponsoring the measures.
Rendo summarized three bills by number as presented to the council and said the measures would change how towns regulate housing. He said one proposal (identified in the meeting as bill 1836) would allow nonprofits and religious institutions to develop sites they own "as of right," with tiered incentives that the mayor described on the record: projects with 20% affordable housing could be permitted at 40 units per acre; 35% affordable at 60 units per acre; and 50% affordable at 80 units per acre, along with increases in permitted building height. "So basically this destroys the concept of suburban living," Rendo said.
Council members and staff emphasized that the mayor asked residents to contact the offices of the senators he named and to follow League of Municipalities guidance. Rendo said the Pascack Valley mayors and other suburban officials were organizing outreach and that the borough would include a letter in tax bills asking residents to weigh in.
The mayor identified the sponsoring senators at the meeting by name and district. He framed the matter as a policy fight over local control, saying it was bipartisan among affected suburban towns and urging civic engagement. The council did not take a formal vote at the meeting on a municipal position; the mayor said he would circulate a draft letter to council before any mass mailing.
Next steps: the mayor urged residents to contact the listed senators and watch for the mailed letter; the council did not adopt a formal municipal resolution during the meeting.
