To the Editor:
It will be known as “The Great Hopewell Giveaway.” With the Affordable Housing settlement having been approved in court, approximately 3,000 new homes are coming to Hopewell Township.
Approximately 95% are slated for the southern tier, with over 2,000 new homes coming to both sides of Scotch Road. That’s about twice the number of homes as Brandon Farms.
It took Hopewell Township 200 years to become home to approximately 6,000 residences. In the next 8 years, the number of Township residences is now scheduled to increase by 50% to 9,000 residences.
Massive development requires massive services paid for by massive tax hikes, but don’t blame the coming 653 affordable housing units. Blame the failed negotiating ability of our Township Committee.
Scotch Road landowner C. F. Hopewell, LLC, sometimes called SansonePacific, sometimes called Fortress Investment Group, was said to have made a tidy profit when they bought the Merrill Lynch properties from Bank of America and sold off pieces to current owners. Now, they can make another tidy profit when their currently-zoned office space on both the east side and west side of Scotch Road is re-zoned for commercial and residential uses. 80% of those residences will be market-rate with only 20% designated for affordable housing.
The public has asked repeatedly that, by satisfying C. F. Hopewell/SansonePacific/Fortress Investment Group’s insatiable corporate greed, there should be linkage to a substantial benefit for the Township. 80% for them and 20% for us does not fit the bill.
That’s why the affordable housing settlement will and should be known as The Great Hopewell Giveaway. Hello 3,000 new residences, goodbye Hopewell Township as we know it.
Harvey Lester, Titusville, N.J. 08560
