Haddonfield residents will have the opportunity to weigh in on a new master plan for the borough at a public meeting led by the Haddonfield Planning Board and consulting firm Pennoni Associates on Wednesday, June 7.
“Master planning in New Jersey is governed by a statute, and there’s a process under which, every 10 years, you’re supposed to reexamine your plan for your community,” Mayor Colleen Bianco Bezich explained.
“When we talk about the plan in its most basic form, you can look at our zoning code or our borough zoning ordinance online. and that is a result of … looking at the master plan nearly 40 years ago,” she added.
The current master plan was formulated in 1984, and while it was updated in 2009, a lot has changed, according to the mayor.
“We want anyone and everyone who cares about the future of Haddonfield to attend,” Bianco Bezich said. “And also those who care about the history, because master planning is all about looking at and inventorying what exists in your community now and what you hope for in the future.”
Some of the focus areas for a master plan will include housing diversity; downtown economic viability; climate change-related resilience; and circulation, which covers accessibility, traffic and safety.
“In 2024, when we are finished with this whole process, which is going to take us the full year to get through, what comes out of it is not this feel-good, philosophical concept plan, but it’s actually going to amend or introduce new zoning ordinances,” the mayor added. “And that tells people how they can develop their lots, how they can plan for property in the future.”
The master plan project was officially launched on May 6, with a number of ways for residents to get involved, including online surveys; a pop-up at the farmers market; and the June 7 public planning board meeting. Survey topics are Understanding Haddonfield, Refining Priorities and Confirming Recommendations.
“We will be asking people what they want to see where, and then the goal is, with having the planners and our land use attorneys for our planning and zoning boards, we’re able to take their technical expertise and say, ‘Oh wow, if 70% of respondents want to see x, this is how we make that happen with our ordinance changes,” Bianco Bezich explained.
Complaints about what is currently allowed under the zoning or planning ordinances can be addressed at the June meeting, at 6:30 p.m. in the borough hall auditorium.
To learn more about the master plan or participate in the live surveys, visit https://publicinput.com/haddonfield#4.
