Resident asks for clarity on downtown village redevelopment timeline and permits

Resident Delia Collins Clark asked the Planning Board for clarity on the non-condemnation report and the back-and-forth between council and the board for the downtown village rezoning and redevelopment. Clark said she wanted to know whether responses to property owners have time limits and whether work on sites (including the Knights of Columbus lot and the former Acme/A&P/Foodtown site) could begin soon.

"So what I'm trying to figure out, will this all come in a month, 6 months?" Clark asked. Counsel and the chair replied that the planning board does not control the issuance of building permits or when construction begins: "The this board does not have any jurisdiction over approving permits," counsel said, and recommended checking with the building department for permit issuance or status. The board also clarified the downtown village project boundaries when asked: "It's from the Exxon CVS building all the way to Rahway," the chair said during the exchange.

Clark also asked whether two applications for the A&P/bank properties were separate; the board clarified that a second application subsequently included the bank property and superseded the first application.