Thursday, June 3, 2004

By CHARLES AUSTIN
STAFF WRITER
NORTH JERSEY NEWS

FAIR LAWN - Three properties, including a portion of the Radburn section under consideration as the site of town houses, meet the criteria to be declared "in need of redevelopment," says a report from an engineering firm retained by the Planning Board.

The study also looked at the Nabisco plant on Route 208 and concluded that the facility was approaching "functional obsolescence." The report urged the town to work with Nabisco to consider a "mutually beneficial exit strategy" should the cookie-making plant close.

Two of the four sites studied are underutilized and in need of improvement, the report said. One is a 13.5-acre chemical plant, owned by Clariant Corp., at Third Street and Fair Lawn Avenue. The other is the KEM auto parts manufacturing company and an adjacent parking lot at Maple Avenue and River Road.

The plots in and near the Radburn neighborhood, a 75-year-old planned community, are not fully used because of the condition of the land, contamination, and diverse ownership of the properties, the report said. The sites have been unimproved for more than 10 years, the report noted.

Earlier this year, the Radburn board of trustees announced a plan to sell the sites to a developer intending to build town houses that would be part of the Radburn neighborhood. That announcement prompted an outcry from some Radburn residents who fear the development would lead to crowding, take away desirable park space, and change the nature of the community. Though the intended sale has been announced, no specific plans for the development have been presented to local officials.

There are no immediate plans to abandon the Nabisco site, said Cathy Pernu, a spokeswoman for Kraft Foods Inc., which owns the facility. Earlier this year, Kraft announced that it would close about 20 facilities nationwide, but nothing has been said about the Fair Lawn plant, which is the company's only producer of animal crackers.

Nabisco employs about 900 at the Fair Lawn plant but has cut back on operations there in recent years.

Barry Winston, chairman of the Planning Board, said the board would consider the report at its June 14 meeting, and seek public comment before passing the report on to the Borough Council. Any action designating the sites as in need of redevelopment would come from the council, Winston said.

The designation is usually given when a site has fallen into disuse to the point that it becomes a health or safety hazard. The designation can give borough officials extra leverage with the owners of the land, Winston said. Sometimes the designation means that the site is eligible for state or federal funds for redevelopment.

"It doesn't have to mean that the site looks like a bombed-out area," Winston said. "The whole idea is to bring the site into conformity with the state master plan and the borough's master plan for development.

"Nothing is going to be done without community support," Winston said, adding "comments from the public have an interesting way of getting absorbed into resolutions" approving or denying requests that come before the Planning Board.

The study was authorized earlier this year by the council at a cost of up to $50,000. It was conducted by Cheryl Bergailo of Schoor DePalma, an engineering firm in Manalapan, Monmouth County.

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Charles Austin's e-mail address is austin@northjersey.com