JACKSON TOWNSHIP, NJ—The Jackson Township Council has announced it will vote on an ordinance on Tuesday to close a loophole that would allow potentially thousands of housing units at the Adventure Crossing entertainment and warehouse center.
A township council agenda was published on Friday showing Ordinance 33-24, which changes the land use regulations to revise residential density standards in the highway commercial mixed-use zone. The meeting will be held at 6:30 pm at the Jackson Township Municipal Building on Tuesday.
Adventure Crossing, once envisioned as a major entertainment district featuring sports fields, hotels, a convention center, restaurants, and other high-end attractions, has yet to meet those expectations. Instead, vacant warehouses dominate the site, and aside from a sports field complex and an indoor golf center, most of the planned amenities remain unfulfilled.
There have been rumors that a group of investors are considering a new plan involving a high-density affordable housing project at the site instead of the initial commercial and entertainment plan presented to the township years ago. Although no formal application has been submitted to the township, concerns are growing about the potential for large-scale housing development on the remaining undeveloped land using a high-density loophole that was created during a zoning change several years ago.
In response, the Jackson Township Council is taking steps to close a loophole that could allow thousands of housing units to be built instead of the planned twenty or so mix-used commercial and residential building units.
Council President Jennifer Kuhn has introduced an ordinance to prevent developers from using the overall size of the Adventure Crossing project to calculate housing density. Under the current ordinance, developers could build four units per acre based on the entire project site, which includes sports fields, commercial areas, and undeveloped land.
Kuhn’s proposed ordinance would limit housing density calculations to the actual portion of the land designated for residential development. This change would prevent developers from including non-residential areas in their density calculations, reducing the number of housing units that can be built.
“This is a win for Jackson,” said Councilman Mordy Burnstein. “This ordinance was approved years ago by council members who no longer serve. Through the work of Ms. Kuhn, myself, and township officials, we are presenting this ordinance to prevent a North Jersey urban-style development in a spot where the builder promised a future filled with commercial and entertainment opportunities.”
Council President Kuhn added, “We need to protect our town from out-of-control developers who want see this turned into a small city at that site. The current ordinance could allow a city to be built in an area where we already face too much traffic and congestion. This loophole must be closed before someone tries to exploit it and worsen the situation.”
The ordinance is expected to be introduced by the council next week. Township officials aim to preserve Jackson’s suburban character amidst growing development pressures.
Kuhn and Burnstein confirmed that no applications have been filed with the township planning or zoning board for the high-density housing project at this time.
“This is a proactive measure to fix an error that was made years ago,” Burnstein added.
“By introducing this ordinance, we’re not only trying to protect the quality of life for Jackson residents, but addressing a real public and traffic safety issue on the surrounding roads for residents and visitors alike,” Kuhn said.
