TRENTON
-- Attorney General Anne Milgram and Department
of Environmental Protection (DEP) Acting Commissioner
Mark N. Mauriello announced today that the
State has entered into a settlement agreement
that will preserve most of an environmentally
important, 96-acre parcel of land near the
ocean in Cape May while allowing for limited
development on a portion of the tract.
The settlement resolves 17 years of litigation
involving the State and East Cape May Associates,
a Florida-based partnership that owns the
land and began seeking to build single-family
housing units on it in the early 1990s. East
Cape May Associates sued the State in 1992
after DEP declined to issue permits needed
to enable development to move forward.
Under
terms of the settlement, approximately 18
acres is set aside for development of 71 market
rate homes, along with 14 affordable housing
units. The remaining 78 acres will be purchased
jointly by DEP and the municipality of Cape
May and preserved as open space. Both DEP
and Cape May are contributing to the $7 million
purchase price. Along with DEP, Cape May is
party to the East Cape May Associates settlement.
“This
is an important settlement for our environment,
and for the people of New Jersey. Through
this agreement, we are preserving a vital
shore resource while also resolving long-standing
litigation -- litigation that, for many years,
held the future of this environmentally significant
land parcel in doubt,” said Attorney
General Milgram.
“Having
been involved in this case for many years,
I'm delighted that we are finally closing
the book on litigation and opening a wonderland
of undeveloped coastal property that serves
as a refuge for birds and many other species
of wildlife,” said Acting Commissioner
Mauriello.
Located
east of Pittsburgh Avenue in Cape May, in
an area known locally as “Sewell’s
Point,” the 96-acre parcel sits between
the Atlantic Ocean and Cape May Harbor. The
property at issue is a well-known stopover
for migratory birds – including some
threatened and endangered species –
that fly from the Arctic and Maine to South
America. The parcel is also the last remaining
undeveloped, privately-owned property of its
size in New Jersey that is within walking
distance of the ocean.
East
Cape May Associates originally announced a
plan to build 366 single-family homes on the
parcel, and gained municipal subdivision approval
for such a project.
DEP
subsequently rejected permit applications
required for the project, and the developer
filed suit claiming the State’s permit
denials were tantamount to improper “taking”
of its property.
Litigation throughout the years at both the
trial and appellate court levels failed to
resolve all issues. Ultimately, a settlement
was reached through mediation, which was presided
over by the late New Jersey Supreme Court
Justice Daniel O’Hern. The American
Littoral Society participated in the mediation
process.
Under terms of the settlement, DEP has committed
to issuing permits consistent with agreed-upon
parameters for the 18 acres set aside for
development, and Cape May has committed to
rezoning the designated development “footprint”
within the larger 96-acre tract.
The settlement also provides that DEP and
Cape May can jointly pursue passive recreation
projects on the land, subject to prior consultation
with East Cape May Associates and the American
Littoral Society. Such projects would also
be subject to any permits that may be required
from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The
$7 million purchase price for the land to
be preserved as open space is expected to
be funded through a $2.2 million grant to
Cape May from the Garden State Preservation
Trust local program, and a $2.2 million city
match. In addition, the state Green Acres
program is expected to fund $2.6 million of
the purchase.
The
settlement announced today is subject to applicable
regulations, including the submission of complete
permit applications by the developer, and
a public review and comment period. It is
also subject to review and approval by the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Deputy
Attorney General Rachel Horowitz and Deputy
Attorney General Lewin Weyl, assigned to the
Division of Law’s Environmental Permitting
and Counseling Section, handled the East Cape
May Associates matter on behalf of the State.
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