Editorial: Will Flood Safety Be Sacrificed for Scutari’s Pro-Development Machine?

Last year, NJ21st and residents impacted by the July storms pressed the Mayor and Berkeley Heights Town Council to address the increased flooding in our community. Our September 2025 reporting showed that the Township couldn’t produce any DEP-related records on stream, brook or river clearing and desnagging from 2020 on, undercutting its earlier “our hands are tied” stance.

As our coverage of the Berkeley Heights PILOT issue revealed, these problems are hitting working families from multiple angles as residents are already being asked to close a $1.7 million annual school funding gap, shifting yet another burden onto the same working families and seniors now facing rising flood-related costs with little help from the municipal side.

While the Town hasn’t been willing to share PILOT revenue with the schools, it approved a major rezoning ordinance that delivered big benefits to Connell, a major political donor in New Jersey. A $250,000 contribution toward the turf field may seem like a nice offset but that’s only a small fraction of the money pile the luxury housing component is expected to bring in.

Additionally, a large share of the donated money flowing to the Turf Field has so far gone to Harbor Consultants, also a major donor to county political organizations and benefactor of the development agenda.

All of this brings us back to the flooding issue.

Following sustained pressure from residents and NJ21st, the Township formed task forces at the local and regional level; and is now highlighting Congressman Kean’s $4M federal funding request for the Passaic River Regional Flooding Mitigation Project. If successful, Berkeley Heights would lead a coalition that includes Long Hill, New Providence, Summit and Chatham – with funds supporting debris removal, desnagging, disposal and some bank and vegetation restoration.

We’re glad our collective effort led to moving the Town in finally taking a tangible step forward.

That said, the money hasn’t been approved yet and even if it is approved, it’s a fraction of what’s needed across the five towns. The Township’s own marketing platform notes that Berkeley Heights alone sustained roughly $3M in damage from the July 2025 storms, while this $4M request spans the entire coalition. The work (if approved) wouldn’t begin until March ’28 at the earliest and might not finish until November ’28.

Four million dollars is a start but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to what’s needed and the profits being generated by new development.

The Township may also point to Ordinance 2025-35 (adopted before REAL took effect) as further progress, but it primarily deals with lot-level grading and drainage which is important but limited in scope. REAL calls for a broader municipal stormwater plan and ordinance updates aimed at long-term flood risk and climate resilience.

This brings us to the email we sent to Mayor Devanney and the Town Council urging support for REAL and to ask Senator Scutari to stop his efforts to roll it back.

As I wrote in my email:

“Individual members of your body often bemoan the mandates but seldom, if ever, take firm public stands against the positions of the very legislators who advance this harmful culture.”

In fact, as we have seen, they often benefit from and provide fuel to the very relationships and policies they say they are powerless to change or influence. This is an opportunity for our Mayor and Council to take a firm stand.

It’s also an opportunity for the two Mayoral candidates Susan Poage and John Foster to put action behind their words by refusing contributions from outside political interests -including dollars passed through the Berkeley Heights Republican and Democratic Committees – and campaigning the old-fashioned way: door to door, without high-end glossy mailers and funded by the very people they seek to represent.

No response has been received from the Mayor or Council members.

Email Sent to Mayor and Town Council