What should have been the final battle between some citizens of Haddonfield and Warwick Development LLC, instead turned out to be no more than a meet and greet at the June 3 Planning Board meeting.
Standing before the planning board and a packed auditorium of concerned citizens, Donald Cofsky, attorney for developer Mark DeFeo, asked the board to postpone their application until July.
“Our original plan was to keep 75 percent of the existing building,” Cofsky said. “ We have gone back to the drawing board and now wish to submit a revised plan.”
The redevelopment project has caused a stir to say the least, with “Say no to 605 Warwick Development” signs popping up on front lawns all over the borough.
“They’re trying to change Haddonfield,” Anne Tarbell, a member of the Haddonfield Neighborhood Association, said. “The people are really starting to get annoyed with what’s going on.”
The largest concern, residents say, is that the project will take away from the character of the town. Many residents feel the redevelopment is out of scale in the neighborhood, and that ranchers and cottages are being replaced by “McMansions.”
There are also issues of practice playing a part in the controversy, namely, teardowns. While the original plan would see 75 percent of the original building kept, the new plan may see the entire building torn down.
This is not a new issue in Haddonfield. In 2001, John Reisner made redevelopment a campaign issue. But, with the lull in construction in the mid-2000s, the issue seemed to fade away. Now, redevelopment is back and residents are trying to put a stop to it.
“We don’t want to see all of our old houses torn down,” Tarbell said. “If we continue to let it happen, there will be nothing left soon.”
The June 3 meeting was set to be the end of the issue once and for all, but now residents must wait another month for a decision.
“It’s a delay tactic,” Tarbell said. “The developers think that if they wait long enough, everyone will go on vacation and they will be able to slip it in unnoticed.”
With signs still adorning many lawns and the word spreading, Tarbell is hopeful that the issue will continue to grow.
“Their plan to delay this meeting may backfire on them,” Tarbell said. “I’m hoping there will be an even larger turnout for the July meeting.”
Cofsky and Warwick Development LLC made no further comments.
