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new Grainger distribution facility, Bordentown Township, NJ (11/14/16). Is this what they call “pedestrian friendly, compact, walkable development to local downtown markets”?

[Update: 4/25/23 – I got played by Highlands Council Ex. Director Spinelli (and simply stonewalled by Highlands Coalition Director Julia Somers). Not really. I knew the game that they played from the get go. It was merely confirmed today. Here’s the tale in a nutshell.

Yesterday afternoon, ED Spinelli finally sent me the “Policy Standards” document adopted by the Council last week. Apparently, that document was not available to the public BEFORE the Council deliberated on and adopted it. How do they get away with that?

Well, after reading NJ Spotlight reporter Jon Hurdle’s praiseworthy puff piece today,  I now understand.

The game is called shut out the critics and marginalize and keep the local activists – who face warehouse developments that the “Policy Standards” do nothing to stop – in the dark and under control. Control the message and manage the news. It’s an old and disgustingly maipulative and dishonest game they play. I sent Ben this “congratulatory” note:

Ben – touche! Excellent message control and news management!

After reading NJ Spoltight story today, I now understand why Julia at HiCo failed to alert all the local activists (including myself) and you provided the policy just yesterday, after Hurdle had written his story. So much for public participation and democracy.

Another low in NJ government (and I was occupied by the DEP budget hearing yesterday so didn’t even get a chance to review your “policy standards” yet).

Wolfe ~~~ end update]

Completely out of the blue, less than 24 hours before tomorrow’s Highlands Council meeting, via an email group of north jersey local activists, I just learned that the Council will consider “policy standards” for warehouses.

Item #8 on the meeting agenda vaguely provides:

a. Policy Standards for Warehousing in the New Jersey Highlands Region

The Highlands Council is an independent regional land use planning and regulatory agency that implements the Highlands Act through planning and regulatory powers.

So, despite having been involved in drafting that Act, I’m not sure just what “policy standards” are. Oh well.

If this is a serious planning initiative by the Council, given the Statewide prominence of the warehouse controversy, I’m surprised that there has not been some major heads up by the Highlands Coalition – you know, something like a press release, press event, action alert, and policy paper that such an important policy and Council agenda item deserves.

What the hell is the Highlands Coalition doing?

So, consider this a heads up I feel obligated to provide.

I sent this question to Executive Director Ben Spinelli and reporter Jon Hurdle at NJ Spotlight who has been covering the warehouse issue (the same question posed to Julia Somers and Elliott Ruga at the Highlands Coalition, who should be active and high profile organizing around this):

Ben – Question on agenda for tomorrow.

Where did this come from and where can I find the background documents? What kind of “standards” are under consideration?

Agenda item #8

a. Policy Standards for Warehousing in the New Jersey Highlands Region

https://www.nj.gov/njhighlands/about/calend/2023/apr20/agenda_apr20.pdf

Wolfe

[Update: 4/20/23 – Executive Director Ben Spinelli graciously provided this timely and helpful reply (a lot more info than the folks at the Highlands Coalition provided). We’ll get back after we digest the material, but be advised that the meeting is at 4 pm today at Council HQ in Chester (in person, no zoom):

We have prepared a Highlands supplement to the OPA warehouse guidelines. They are intended to provide guidance to both Highlands municipalities and state agencies when considering warehouse proposals in the region. They highlight the protection of Highlands resources and the various other planning elements that must be accounted for when there is an application anywhere in the Highlands. Our position is that warehousing in the Highlands needs to be addressed differently (or more thoroughly) than in other areas of the state and the priority of protecting the region’s resources needs to be paramount. We took this step because these resources are not adequately addressed in the state guidelines beyond a simple statement advising that the RMP should be considered.  The aim is to increase the influence of the Highlands RMP in the Planning Area-which we are actively engaged in pursuing in several different policy areas- with warehousing obviously being one of the issues that we needed to catch up to (and try to get ahead of ) when I walked in the door here at the Highlands. What stood out to me, and I’m sure you’re well aware of this too, is that the Planning Area along Route 78 is particularly vulnerable to inappropriately sited warehouse development, and this is our attempt to use whatever tools we can to remedy or reduce that vulnerability.  There will be a detailed presentation at today’s meeting.  If the council approves, (and I have no reason to believe that they won’t) the document will be available following the meeting today. I’ll have staff (Carole) send you a copy of the document when the meeting is over this afternoon-assuming its released.