Tension and frustration filled the air at the June 4 Hopewell Borough Planning Board meeting, as residents voiced concerns over borough processes, inefficiencies, and a lack of communication from officials.
Among the most emotional testimony came from Dr. Jill Farmer, a local neurologist and owner of 45 West Broad Street—located at the corner of Broad and Princeton Avenue. Farmer’s application, Resolution PB #2025-01, was on the agenda that night as a Use Variance with Site Plan Waiver Request. Her goal since 2022 has been to renovate the property to open a multi-disciplinary clinic anchored by her neurology practice—plans that now appear to be in jeopardy.
“At this point I have lost hope,” Farmer said. “I honestly don’t know when I will ever be in this building.
“My husband and I have lost parents during this process, and I morbidly joked that you shouldn’t need an inheritance to fund a project in the borough. But you do.”
Farmer testified about the challenges of navigating the borough’s commercial renovation process, which she described as financially draining and disorganized. Though she and her husband have renovated residential properties during their 13 years living in the borough, Farmer said they were unprepared for the complexity and opacity of the commercial permitting and approval process.
“You’ve heard from my husband, our attorney, our city planner, our architect, our engineer… and in all that cacophony, you may have lost sight that there is a person, a doctor, a local resident, behind this application which has been woefully mismanaged,” she said.
Farmer reflected on the strong sense of community she’s felt in the past—especially when their home on Hart Avenue caught fire during renovations. The fire department, she said, acted with care to preserve the historic character of the home, and neighbors brought food and offered help.
“This community was awesome during that struggle. That’s why we love it here. That’s the point. We are locals. But that hasn’t mattered at all in this process,” she said. “We’re not that hard to find around town. No one has initiated conversation, no one has asked: Why is this taking so long? What can I do to help?”
She described a process plagued by miscommunication, delays, and bureaucratic red tape involving multiple borough departments, including zoning, planning, construction, and legal offices. One particularly contentious issue was a Stop Work order that brought the project to a halt. Farmer noted that even members of the Planning Board were surprised by the order at the board’s May 2025 meeting. Despite assurances that the matter would be addressed, the order remains in effect.
It took several minutes of discussion at the meeting to determine who holds responsibility for issuing a Stop Work order and what accountability exists when commercial development projects stall.
Mayor Ryan Kennedy ultimately took responsibility, calling the situation unfortunate and acknowledging that it could have been handled differently. However, he also noted that many of the procedural and systemic issues are beyond the Planning Board’s scope.
Several other residents also spoke, echoing Farmer’s frustrations and raising broader concerns about the borough’s permitting process. They cited the number of vacant storefronts, buildings mid-construction, and underutilized properties as signs that the borough’s inefficiencies may be discouraging investment and hurting the local economy.
The Hopewell Borough Planning Board’s next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, June 18, at 7:00 p.m. at Borough Hall, 88 East Broad Street.
