BRICK TOWNSHIP, NJ – Officials in Brick Township are ready to approve the purchase of a 31-acre piece of land slated for development to preserve it as public park space.
The Township Council unanimously approved a bond ordinance at its February 14 meeting for the purchase of a 31-acre property under threat of residential development. To save it from development, the Township is partnering with the Ocean County Natural Lands Trust to purchase it.
The Township will contribute $1,710,000 and the County will contribute $6,840,000. The Township will also maintain the property.
““We are beyond excited that we were able to work with the County and preserve this property from residential development. From the moment that the development plan was announced, we worked to find a way to stop it,” Brick Township Mayor John Ducey said. “Purchasing the property was the only realistic option and we couldn’t have done it without the County.”
As part of the agreement, the property will be subdivided with the Township receiving an apportionment of roughly 6.33 acres – or 20% of the total property. It is the Township’s intention to build a playground on this portion and a parking lot. As part of the playground construction, the Township has communicated with the Trust for Public Land.
As the contract purchaser, the Township and County negotiated with D.R. Horton, a Texas-based home construction company. D.R. Horton was seeking approval to construct as many as 59 properties on the property.
An ordinance authorizing the Township to seek Green Acres funding for the project will also be considered by the Council. In order to offset the cost of its portion of the purchase, the Township will request $1.2 million in funding from Green Acres. Township officials are confident that the request will be approved.
At their meeting on February 28, the Council will vote on the bond ordinance.