John’s Notes on the 02/03/2026 Berkeley Heights Town Council Meeting
A resolution that initiates a redevelopment investigation for the Nokia Bell Labs property is on the agenda for the 02/03/2026 Town Council Meeting.
While a redevelopment designation hasn’t been made yet and no plan’s been approved- this isn’t a run of the mill agenda item. Residents should be clear that this is the first formal step required under state law for redevelopment to go forward.
The resolution authorizes the Planning Board to conduct a Preliminary Investigation to determine whether the Nokia Bell Labs site qualifies as an “Area in Need of Redevelopment” under New Jersey’s Local Redevelopment and Housing Law.
If adopted, the investigation would:
-Apply specific redevelopment criteria
-Define the boundaries
-Include a public hearing before recommendations go to Council
Because the resolution is going to study the property as a Non-Condemnation Area, eminent domain is off the table within this specific process.
This resolution is a clear signal that the Township is actively considering redevelopment of the site.
While the term “blight” is often used colloquially, the law uses the phrase “Area in Need of Redevelopment.” This agenda item begins the process to determine whether that designation should apply.
Next Steps
- The Planning Board will map the study area and apply redevelopment criteria
- A public hearing will be scheduled
- Residents will be able to submit comments and objections into the public record
- The Planning Board will make a recommendation to Council
- Council would then decide whether to designate all or part of the site as a redevelopment area
No redevelopment plan can be adopted unless and until those steps occur.
Residents should consider attending the meeting because by the time a redevelopment plan appears, a decision has already been made. This vote determines whether the Township enters that framework at all.
Other Items
– $16.69 million in emergency temporary appropriations to fund operations before the 2026 municipal budget is adopted. Legal but it locks in major spending ahead of public budget hearings. The temporary budget includes big chunks for legal services, engineering insurance and police salaries without explanation.
-Approval of a one-year shared services agreement with the Plainfield Area Regional Sewage Authority– $65,000, to clean, televise and GIS-map 20,000 feet of sewer lines. Reports generated may identify issues that could later drive capital projects or bonding decisions.
-Rescinding and re-awarding a $140,000 tree removal contract after determining a prior approval was made under the wrong cooperative pricing district. The contract is immediately reassigned to a different vendor at the same dollar amount.
-Ordinance that would increase the maximum permitted residential building height to 2.5 stories in several zoning districts.
–Change Order No. 21 on the nearly $4.9 million wastewater treatment plant upgrade project.
-A bill list totaling nearly $1.88 million,
Questions Residents Can Ask at the 02/03/2026 Town Council Meeting….
About Nokia
Who specifically asked for the redevelopment investigation to be placed on agenda – when was the request made?
What led the Town to conclude that an investigation under the Local Redevelopment Law was warranted right now?
Did the Town receive any written or verbal inquiries, plans, proposals or communications from the property owner, developers or anyone else regarding redevelopment of the site?
Will the Planning Board’s consultant’s full redevelopment investigation report, including data sources, criteria applied and underlying assumptions be released to the public before it’s hearing and before any recommendation is made to the Council?
If part or all of the site is designate as in need of redevelopment by the Planning Board, will the Council designation vote occur only after a separate, clearly noticed public discussion by Council?
About the Emergency Appropriation
What categories represent increases over last year’s temporary appropriations and what’s driving those increases?
How much of this represents money the Township is contractually obligated to spend right now versus what it expects to spend?
Will a written explanation of this temporary appropriation be provided for each line item before the full 2026 budget is introduced?
Sewer Shared Services Agreement
Will the inspection reports, GIS data and findings be made available to the public? When can we expect to see them?
If inspections find items in need of capital repair or replacement, will those findings come back to a council meeting for public discussion before any bond or capital auth.?
Tree Contract
How did the original award under the wrong cooperative pricing district occur?
Were any services performed under the rescinded contract before it was corrected?
Building Height
What analysis was performed to assess impacts on neighborhood character, drainage, traffic and emergency access?
How does this ordinance affect existing single-family neighborhoods compared to prior standards?
Change Order 21
How many total change orders have been approved on this project to date and what’s the cumulative dollar increase over the original contract?At what point, if any, do you consider scope or management practices in light of repeated change orders?
Read More on Town Council Meetings and Agendas
Image Credit: Ken Lund
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