I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

(Adopted 11/13/00)

COMMUNITY VISION

STATEMENT

The Township of Mendham is a residential community with a traditional character based upon its rural and historic past and high-quality natural resources. It has a number of attributes of particular value that give it its distinct traditional character:

· Extensive woodlands and often steeply sloping terrain

· Pristine streams

· Narrow curving historic roadways

· Existing and proposed State and National Register Historic Districts.

These attributes are legacies of great value to current and future Township residents and to the State as a whole. The overall goal of planning and zoning in Mendham Township should be to appropriately balance property rights, preservation of community character, providing for the needs of Township residents in the 21st Century and fulfilling the State’s regional planning goals. The overall planning objective should be to cooperate with the State Planning Commission in promoting the concept of Communities of Place, resisting the encroachments of urban sprawl and promoting future land use in balance with a limited infrastructure base. The Township should continue to look to the Borough as its "village center" consistent with its designation in the New Jersey State Plan.

LEGAL BASIS AND CONTENTS

OF THE MASTER PLAN

The Municipal Land Use Law (MLUL), the legal basis for municipal planning in New Jersey, requires that every municipal zoning ordinance must be based on a Master Plan. In compliance with the MLUL, this Master Plan is intended to provide a clear description of the rational basis for the Township's zone plan and development regulations and to coordinate their goals. This Master Plan is an evolutionary result of previous Mendham Township Master Plans, firmly rooted in and building upon those plans. Two major themes, however, distinguish this plan from previous Master Plans:

· Goals and policies to preserve the traditional rural/historic character of the Township which is the most often and strongly expressed planning goal of Township residents.

· A special emphasis on the protection of the quality and quantity of water resources in the Township especially groundwater resources upon which the public health of Township residents depends.

This Master Plan consists of all the elements required by the Municipal Land Use Law for a Master Plan: a Community Characteristics section; a Statement of Objectives, Principles, Assumptions, and Policies Underlying the Master Plan; a Land Use Plan element; a Housing Plan element; and a Relationship to Other Plans element. Each element includes a review of existing characteristics, analysis of trends and needs, statement of goals and objectives, and a proposed plan.

BACKGROUND AND HISTORY

OF THE MASTER PLAN

In 1936 the Township Committee appointed a Zoning Commission for the purpose of developing a Zoning Ordinance for the Township under the leadership of William Alderson. The first Zoning Ordinance was a very basic set of standards that was adopted the following year together with the appointment of a Township Board of Adjustment. World War II delayed the implementation of real planning in the Township until 1947 with the appointment of the Township’s first Planning Board. The first Mendham Township Master Plan was prepared by Morrow Planning Associates, consultants in 1958, and adopted by the Planning Board in 1960 under the Municipal Planning Act of 1953. In 1979 a new Master Plan was prepared by John Rakos, P.P., in accordance with the Municipal Land Use Law of 1976. A major revision to that plan was adopted in 1983, although it was based upon and included the earlier 1979 Master Plan. In 1991 a Master Plan Reexamination and Revision was completed by the Planning Board. An updated Circulation Plan element was included in 1997 and a Community Facilities Plan and Housing Plan elements in 1998. In the spring of 1999, the Planning Board undertook a reexamination of the Master Plan as periodically required by the MLUL. The Board concluded that there was a need for substantial revision and updating of the Master Plan. This conclusion was based upon recognition of the important changes significant to land use planning that have occurred since 1983. The end of this section contains a summary of those important changes. The same year, the Planning Board appointed a Master Plan Committee to draft a new plan with the assistance of the Township Planners Kimball & Kimball, Professional Planners. The first priority for the Master Plan Committee was the preparation of the core mandatory elements of a new master plan. These were prepared with the professional assistance of Kimball & Kimball, Professional Planners, Charles Balut, professional engineer and John Aubin professional environmental consultant. This core Township Master Plan was adopted in 2000. It supersedes and replaces all previous Mendham Township Master Plan documents. Although firmly rooted in previous Master Plans, especially the 1983 plan, this Master Plan reflects the major development-related changes that have occurred in the Township since that time and attempts to anticipate future needs.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

IN THE MASTER PLAN

Mendham Township has traditionally relied upon citizen volunteers in all aspects of local public policy. From the beginning of the required periodic reexamination of the previous Master Plan in 1999, and the drafting of this Master Plan in 1999 and 2000, it was the intention of the Planning Board to encourage involvement of as many Township organizations and citizens as possible. Public involvement in the reexamination of the Master Plan included circulation of the draft document to Township boards, committees, organizations and interested citizens and a well attended public meeting held on June 16, 1999. The findings of the Reexamination Report received virtual unanimous support from the public that attended the hearing. Once the decision was made to draft a new Master Plan it was the Board’s goal to adopt a new Master Plan that represented a broad community-wide consensus about the future of the Township. To undertake the drafting of a new Master Plan, the Planning Board appointed a Master Plan Drafting Committee that included representatives of a wide spectrum of Township organizations. The Committee was instructed to address the concerns expressed in the Reexamination Report and to solicit the involvement of other Township organizations and the public in the drafting process. To accomplish the task set forth for it by the Planning Board, the Committee held regularly scheduled bi-monthly meetings that were for the most part open to, and attended by, interested citizens. Closed sessions were limited to discussions of issues related to ongoing and potential litigation. The work of the Committee was featured in an article in the Township Newsletter distributed to every Township residence. In addition, at intervals in the drafting process, the Committee held public meetings designed to elicit original ideas from the public for a future vision of the Township and then to review drafts of various elements. The Committee attempted to encourage wide attendance by means of press releases, notices at the post office and municipal building and calls to Boards, Committees and other Township-based organizations. The contents of this Master Plan have been fundamentally influenced by comments and recommendations from citizens and organizations, too numerous to reference.  

Major Planning

Issues Since 1983

The major events and changes significant to planning that have occurred in Mendham Township since the adoption of the previous Master Plan in 1983 are as follows:

· Development Pressures. A real estate development boom in the 1980's and 1990’s resulted in substantial residential development in the Township. The increasing value of the remaining property has generated pressure to subdivide even the smallest parcels although the remaining vacant land is characterized as having substantial amounts of environmentally sensitive characteristics such as steep slopes, wetlands, surface waters, limited groundwater aquifers and aquifer recharge areas. These characteristics make development more costly and potentially harmful to environmental resources.

· Larger Homes. There has been a trend toward much larger new homes with substantial site improvements. This trend has led to an increased concern about environmental impact from the construction of individual homes.

· Environmental Impact of Development. For the reasons described above, there is concern that development in recent years is having a substantial and increasingly detrimental effect on environmental resources in the Township, especially: soil erosion, increased stormwater runoff, decreased surface water quality, and increased level and frequency of flooding.

· Regulatory Controls. A lot development plan ordinance and other development regulation amendments designed to protect environmental resources were adopted to limit the potential impact of development on environmental quality.

· Township Character. The traditionally open landscape and rural setting has been diminished for many areas of the Township in recent years as a result of development, especially due to the construction of very large homes which are often out of scale with the traditional established development pattern.

· Regional Responsibilities. The need to address the Township's constitutional "fair share" housing obligation, protection of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and participation in the regional Whippany River Watershed Project became the focuses of planning efforts.

· Water Supply. Concern has increased about the impact of existing and future development on the water supply resources. A study of surface water and groundwater resources in the Township was completed in 1994 documenting evidence that continued development at existing permitted zoning densities may be harmful to surface and ground water resources over the long term.

· State Involvement in Planning. More active State involvement in land use planning went into effect, including state regulation of wetlands, Residential Site Improvement Standards, and the adoption of the State Development and Redevelopment Plan.

· The State Development and Redevelopment Plan adopted in 1992 designated the entire Township as PA-5 (Environmentally Sensitive). The protection of environmental resources is a major goal of the State Plan underscoring the need to protect environmentally sensitive resources in the Township. Another overriding goal is to protect and promote "Communities of Place" and discourage "sprawl."

· Traffic Congestion. Traffic congestion on Mendham Road (NJ Route 24) has increased largely as a result of new development in the Township and the surrounding region. Traffic on this important roadway is nearing capacity at peak hours.

· Historic Preservation. There has been an increased appreciation of the important historic heritage and resources in Mendham Township and surrounding area and the desire to preserve it.

· Historic Roadways. Within Mendham Township’s region there has been increased appreciation of the importance of preserving the character of historic roadways, many of which are associated with the American Revolution.

· Community Facilities. New development in recent years has created the need for improvements to community facilities including schools, library, fire, public works and recreation.

· Right to Farm Act. In 1998, the State Legislature amended the Right To Farm Act in a manner that supercedes municipal zoning controls in regard to limits on commercial farming activities in residential zones.

· Residential Site Improvement Standards. In 1998 the State of New Jersey adopted uniform standards that in most circumstances reduce the cost of construction of new public streets. At the same time, land values in Mendham Township have increased dramatically making it financially feasible for developers to construct public streets in order to create even only one new lot for development. This has undermined the Township’s ability to reasonably control the extension of public infrastructure and future public maintenance expenditures.

 

Master plan

reexamination

In 1999 the Planning Board adopted a Reexamination Report addressing the requirements of NJSA 40:55D-89. That Reexamination Report set forth significant changes that had occurred in the Township since the formulation of the previous Master Plan and recommended the need for a new plan addressing those changes. This Master Plan is a direct result of the findings, conclusions and recommendations set forth in that Reexamination Report.

Introduction.doc