COURIER-POST REPORTS RE:Frank Donio Memorial Park, and AST Development Corp.

Mayor: 'Magnificent win-win-win' reached in development deal

Thursday, March 23, 2006


WINSLOW - The township won't use eminent domain to acquire one of the last remaining farms in Sicklerville.

The township has reached a deal with a developer the mayor had called "greedy" for proposing 504 housing units on the 64-acre Jennings farm -- triple what zoning would allow.

Under the agreement, Winslow will get as a donation 20 acres, valued at about $1.6 million, to expand the adjacent Frank Donio Memorial Park, and AST Development Corp. will advance a plan, which still needs zoning approval, to build fewer units -- about 200 homes for people 55 and older -- along with retail and office space.

"It's a magnificent win-win-win, in my mind, for Winslow," said Mayor Sue Ann Metzner. "We had some real, serious concerns about what AST was originally proposing, and AST has worked with us in a way I never thought possible ... to bring this to resolution."

"It's a home run," said Sicklerville resident Greg Butarri, a leading opponent of AST's original plan. "I hope the rest of the community feels that way ... I'm not going to go out and lobby against them. I think it's a good deal for the community, and I think we ought to go with it."

AST vice president Edward L. Stutz said township officials "exhibited a tremendous amount of professionalism" in finding a solution to what began as a heated dispute.

AST, based in Lavallette, Ocean County, has had a deal with the Jennings family to buy the farm since 2003 and last summer proposed its over-55 development. In August, after residents expressed opposition to the plan, the Winslow Township Committee voted unanimously to acquire the property, using eminent domain if necessary.

Stutz, who publicly threatened to sue the township over its attempted acquisition, credited an editorial in the Courier-Post with prompting the two sides to start negotiations.

"The editorial in the paper was instrumental in kind of straightening everybody out as far as how this should move forward, rather than looking at it from a litigious standpoint," he said.

If it gets approval to build slightly more than the three units per acre allowed under current zoning, AST will develop a mix of townhouses and single-family homes priced from about $275,000 to about $350,000, Stutz said.

About 100,000 square feet of commercial space would be accessible from Berlin-Cross Keys and Sicklerville roads. Access to the housing would come from Chews Landing and Sicklerville roads, he said.

"I think anything to expand that park to provide additional outlets for the youth of Sicklerville would be a great thing to do," said Calvin L. Cass, president of the Winslow Maullers, a youth football club based in Donio Park.

A new recreational facility or additional fields or lighting "would just make it an even safer environment for our kids to express their athletic endeavors," he said.

When elected officials asserted they wanted the farm to expand the 50-acre Donio Park, Stutz pointed out that the Winslow had no written plan for parkland acquisitions. Since then the township has drafted a six-year plan for capital improvement projects for parks.

Buying the farm could have cost the township more than $5.6 million, the value determined by an appraiser, Metzner said. And preventing the construction of more housing for families with school-age children will save taxpayers millions more in future years.

"It's just a wonderful end to what started out as a very testy matter," the mayor said.

She added: "I apologize for calling AST greedy because they have proven otherwise."

Reach Erik Schwartz at (856) 486-2904 or eschwartz@courierpostonline.com