The Sussex County Chamber of Commerce will once again exhibit at the NJ State Fair/SC Farm & Horse Show.

Read on for a special Members-Only Opportunity!

Each evening and weekend, we will offer a business spotlight at the Chamber booth. A promo table will be available for those members who volunteer to help man the booth. All you need to do while promoting your business is to promote the Chamber too! This is an outstanding opportunity for members who would otherwise find the time and cost of exhibiting their product or service to be prohibitive. Complete the sign up sheet below and fax directly to the Chamber office ASAP. Shifts are assigned on a first-come, first served basis, so we encourage you to respond quickly. Once your spotlight time is assigned, we will send you a confirmation letter with further instructions.

PLEASE REVIEW THE AVAILABLE TIMES BELOW AND MAKE A 1ST, 2ND AND 3RD CHOICE OF PREFERRED TIME.

Download the sign up form to fax back here.

Download the sign up form to fax back here.

ANDOVER TOWNSHIP — A township-wide change to industrial zones is likely to be introduced by ordinance Monday night.

But there is some opposition to the change, which has been called “illegal spot zoning” by a planner hired by a local objector.

The ordinance would redefine up to 1,100 acres, or 9 percent, of township land currently zoned as industrial. The new designations would split up that land to reflect its current uses, including public land, mixed-use, two separate industrial zones, and low-density residential.

The wholesale master plan amendment was proposed (and funded through an escrow account) by Cambridge Pavers Inc. and Limecrest Quarry Developers, who have proposed a $30-million, 24-hour, 160,000-square-foot, self-contained concrete paving stone plant for one of the industrial zones in the northeast section of the township. The facility would be supplied by rock from the nearby Limecrest Quarry, a site originally founded by Thomas Edison more than a century ago.

The zoning change, recommended by a 6-2 vote of the township Land Use Board last week, would make the application consistent with its new zoning — and would remove the series of variances Cambridge and Limecrest sought from the board late last year, before pulling the plans.

Objection surfaced at those Land Use Board meetings last year from residents who said the frequent truck traffic would be a disruption to nearby homes.

But the zoning change has also unearthed some official legal opposition. Resident Ronald Krueger, who lives near the site but just over the border in Sparta, has hired both an attorney and a planner to oppose the application. The planner’s report strenuously objects to the application, citing the township’s existing regulations on concrete paver plants and some sensitive environmental factors in the area.

“Without doubt, this draft document and the two recommendations for amendments to the zoning ordinance contained within it are designed to benefit solely the private interests of Andrew Mulvihill, an owner of Limecrest Quarry Developers LLC, and Charles Gamarekian, owner of Cambridge, without regard not only to the historic impacts such a use has had on the surrounding community, but without regard to the foreseeable impacts,” said the report, prepared by Burgis Associates, Inc.

Mayor Tom Walsh disagrees. He said Friday that the usage of the property — described regularly as a “moonscape” in hearings so far — would be ideally suited to the Cambridge Pavers proposal. He said Krueger’s objection stems from Krueger’s ownership of a competitor in the local paving stone business.

“We pay a planner to do what’s best for the township, they pay a planner to do what’s best for one entrepreneur,” Walsh said Friday. “You’ve got enough money, you can pay somebody to say what you want them to say.”

More than 400 of the 1,100 industrial acres are owned by the state’s Department of Environmental Protection, as well as the Nature Conservancy. However, among seven areas identified are about 244 acres that could be rezoned as one of two new industrial designations allowing further development. The remaining industrial land would be split up into new zones reflecting what the current status: the open space would become “public use,” and other areas would become either mixed-use, or low-density residential.

Officials said the township planner was working on drafting the ordinance Friday afternoon, but it would likely be ready for Monday night’s Township Committee meeting.

Note: View the article here.

ANDOVER TWP. — If in wine comes truth, so do the business opportunities.

Vintner’s Circle, a winemaking franchise, opened a spacious store in the heart of the township in early February, and immediately welcomed a Valentine’s Day run of people who wanted to make their own personalized bottles of vino for loved ones.

Owner Todd Billingsley said the store represents an atavistic get-together for families, the curious and connoisseurs alike.

“We tell them to bring as many people as (they) want,” he said.

“They can bring cheese and food,” his wife, Janine, added.

“Make it a celebration,” Todd said.

Photo by Amy Paterson/New Jersey Herald

Vintner’s Circle is a business customized for each budding vintner who walks under the trellis at the front of the store. The four-step process allows customers to make their own wine on the premises, but the customers can also purchase kits and try their fermenting hand at home, learning how to make the blends themselves. Classes are also offered.

“There’s something for everyone,” Todd Billingsley said.

For those who choose to create one of the 80 varieties at the store, the process involves four, 30-minute guided sessions going through the gradual steps of fermentation, clearing and bottling. Roughly seven weeks of waiting and know-how results in 28 bottles, complete with personalized labels. The price starts at $279, with rarer and choicer grapes and blends costing more.

“When you walk out, you have an excellent quality of wines,” Billingsley said.

When the batches of Malbec, Merlot, Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon are finished, the vintners can exchange some of theirs for samples of what other customers have created.

The Andover location is the sixth in the franchise, which has stores in Hackettstown, Middletown and Whippany, as well as Dickson City and Easton in Pennsylvania. The Hacketts-town store opened in 2006, and four of the locations sprung up in the last year.

For the owners, the vintages have replaced the voltages. Todd Billingsley was a lineman for Jersey Central Power and Light for years, before being seriously injured in an accident several years ago. Eventually, he walked into the Vintner’s Circle in Hackettstown, and made a batch of his own wine at home. His next career choice had been decided.

The Billingsleys are also hoping to be part of a new Andover “hub” envisioned by local officials for the Newton-Sparta Road corridor. A new business opening at the former D’Angelos property across Newton-Sparta Road has been the buzz around town, and reportedly could open soon. The Billingsleys hope it could complement their cultural,
and delicious, addition to Andover’s biggest accumulation of businesses.

Todd Billingsley feels the comfort of the store and the winemaking process itself will soon draw in the aspiring vintners of the area.

“You want to see the person behind the business,” he said. “Small business is the way to go.”

Note: View the article here.

4:00 PM – Opening Ceremonies – Mayor and Township Committee

Recreation Committee – Economic Development Committee

Andover Scouts – Flag Raising Ceremony

NASCAR Race Track – Donated by towing companies under township contract

Dunking Booth – Donated by Deacon Homes

Alcatraz Obstacle Course and Police Car Moonwalk – Donated by F.O.P. Lodge 177

Fire truck Slide – Donated by Farmstead Golf and Country Club

World Sports Game 5 in 1 – Donated by Recreation Committee

Hi Strikers – Donated by All American Tree Experts & Metzgar Excavating

Macaroni the Clown – Donated by Golden & Moran Engineering

DJ Scott Both – Donated by First Hope Bank

Sweet As Honey Band – Donated by Morel Builders

Skee Ball – Morville, LLC

Petting Zoo & Pony Rides with Photos – ADD YOUR NAME HERE FOR A $750.00 DONATION!

GARDEN STATE FIREWORKS
THE GRAND FINALE OF ANDOVER TOWNSHIP DAY
“INTENSE AND INITMATE FIREWORKS DISPLAY”
ADD YOUR NAME HERE BY MAKING DONATIONS OF
$1,000 – PLATINUM /$500 – GOLD /$300 – SILVER /$100 – BRONZE

Food grilled by Andover Twp. Fire Department – to benefit Andover Cub Scouts

Funnel Cakes – Bagel Bistro

OTHER ACTIVITIES/FOOD PROVIDED BY TOWNSHIP NON-PROFITS

Face Painting – Hair Braiding – Girl Scouts

Bake Sale – White Elephant Sale – Andover Seniors

Pop Corn – Cotton Candy – Zip Line – Rope Bridge – Andover Boy Scouts

Spin Art – Snow Cones Andover Cub Scouts

Schwan’s Ice Cream – Recreation Committee

Public Service Activities to include Child Safety Seat Inspections and Child ID’s (FOP);
Blue Reflective Address Signs (ATVFD) Blood Pressure Screenings (Lakeland Emergency Squad)

Craft Vendors and Area Merchants Welcome – $20.00 per table

OUR GOAL IS TO COVER 100% OF THE COST OF ANDOVER TOWNSHIP DAY WITH DONATIONS. ANY SIZE DONATION IS APPRECIATED. PLEASE CONTACT THE RECREATION OFFICE AT 383-4280, EXT. 234 FOR INFO.

The EDAC will be inviting many local Andover Township business owners and some Movers and Shakers in our community to the breakfast meeting.

We hope to help network the non-member business in our town with the County Chamber of Commerce.

We will also be inviting our local township committee members, our mayor and key personnel from our township staff, such as our Administrator, Our Land Use Board Administrator and our Building Official, for people to meet.

So come out and see what Andover Township is talking about. We are Open for Business!

ANDOVER TOWNSHIP — Industrial areas throughout the township could be rezoned as part of bringing in a new concrete paving plant, according to a report compiled last week by the township’s planner.

The report outlines the logistics of redefining up to 1,100 acres — or about 9 percent of township land — currently designated as Andover’s industrial zone. Much of that land is owned by the state Department of Environmental Protection, as well as the Nature Conservancy. However, among seven areas identified, there are some tracts of land that could be rezoned as one of two new industrial designations allowing further development.

One of the recommended areas is the northeast section of the township, nearest Sparta’s Limecrest Quarry. Cambridge Pavers Inc. and Limecrest Quarry Devel-opers have a pending $30-million, 24-hour, 160,000-square-foot, self-contained concrete paving stone plant proposed for the site. The two companies’ request for a zoning change on their property prompted the planner’s township-wide, industrial-zone report.

On Monday night, the Township Committee unanimously consented to send the planner’s report to the Land Use Board for its consideration and recommendations.

The Land Use Board had already wrestled with the application over several meetings last year. The Cambridge Pavers plan was withdrawn in December after several hearings. The plant had required several variances, including a use variance from a township ordinance that specifically prohibits “concrete product plants” throughout the
township.

The developer presented the plans as being a productive way of redeveloping an already-blighted “moonscape” of quarry property into a valuable rateable.

Opponents have lobbied against the industrial noise, truck traffic, and other activity that the plant could bring to the mostly-residential neighborhood at the corner of three municipalities: Andover, Sparta and Lafayette.

Cambridge and Limecrest approached the Township Committee directly with its zoning request after the local government reorganized in January.

If the committee eventually approves the zoning request, then no further variances will be required.

Other industrial parcels included in the report allowed for rezoning for public spaces, mixed-use, and low-density residential areas for development.

Committeeman Bob Smith said the zoning process before the Land Use Board and Township Committee should be thorough, because of the extent of some changes.

“It really bears some serious study,” Smith said.

Note: View the article here.

TRENTON — The first bill in the state Senate’s new session targets the Council on Affordable Housing.

The state Senate’s Economic Growth Committee will soon hear testimony on the bill dismantling COAH’s controversial structure and function — instead placing affordable housing obligations in the hands of the State Planning Commission.

Municipalities could also have more responsibilities to integrate low- and moderate-income housing into their communities.

The bill is a bipartisan one, co-sponsored by state Sen. Raymond Lesniak, D-Union, and state Sen. Christopher Bateman, R-Somerset. They have lost no time stating their objective.

“The purpose of this bill is to repeal COAH’s top down, micro-managed, and complex bureaucracy,” Lesniak said.

The bill, echoing these sentiments, has wasted no time in targeting the council. It’s marked S-1, and even though it hasn’t hit its first subcommittee, it’s already generating some buzz.
“You don’t get any earlier than that,” said State Sen. Steven Oroho, pointing out it’s the first numbered bill of the new, two-year session.

What could soon kick up the discussion is the proposals within the bill. The law would outright abolish COAH, and move many of its functions to the State Planning Commission. But a great deal more would also be left to the towns themselves. Each municipality can decide whether it has met its affordable housing needs as described by the New Jersey Supreme Court, towns would include future planning for affordable units in their master plans done every six years (instead of the previous three), and municipalities would be allowed to pass “inclusionary zoning” ordinances requiring developers to set aside low- and moderate-income dwellings within any residential developments.

Oroho said he was in favor of the bill, as far as he had reviewed it so far. But he’s still anticipating getting into the specifics of the proposed changes.

“The devil’s in the details,” he said. “But I do like the tone… On the surface, I was very pleased.”

Regardless of the bill’s future, affordable housing will remain a requirement in New Jersey. The controversial Mount Laurel decisions were handed down by the state Supreme Court in the 1970s and 1980s. Their combined legacy established that zoning cannot exclude people from living in towns based on their income. Because of the court rulings, the state Legislature was compelled to pass the Fair Housing Act in 1985; that law created COAH, which was the framework to guide the placement of affordable units in communities  across the Garden State. Municipalities since have sought the protection of COAH from so-called “builder’s remedy” lawsuits, which often result in denser residential developments where they do not want it; even so, affluent municipalities like those in Sussex County often bemoan the requirements COAH imposes upon them.

Over the nearly 25 years of COAH’s mandates, it issued three-plus ongoing rounds of obligations that each municipality had to build or make available to poorer peoples in the state. However, even within those three rounds, the rules constantly changed. In fact, many statewide COAH experts and local officials are still unaware of the latest Lesniak-Bateman bill which would undo the council.

The new state Senate bill, as proposed, also “forgives unmet housing need” from previous COAH mandates.

The first Economic Growth Committee hearing is scheduled for Feb. 1.

ANDOVER TWP. — Redevelopment of a blighted lot at the Limecrest Quarry could pave the way for huge tax ratables — and for round-the-clock industrial operations at the corner of three towns.

The land use board spent hours analyzing a concrete paver manufacturing plant Tuesday night, and after several hours voted, 5-1, to treat the application as a “light industrial,” permitted usage. The decision could significantly smooth out the progress of the proposal in the two future December meetings.

The self-contained plant would produce no dust and no pollution, presents no fire and explosive hazards, and would generate only modest amounts of noise well within legal guidelines, according to testimony Tuesday night.

The applicants, Cambridge Pavers Inc. and landowners Limecrest Quarry Developers, tout they’re taking a “moonscape” of an abandoned lot and turning it into a productive use bringing 100 jobs and $700,000 in taxes into the community. The majority of the raw materials for the concrete paving stones would come from the Sparta portion of the quarry right across Limecrest Road. What’s more, they say the project would have only slight disturbance on the neighborhood surrounding, making it a “win-win” for Andover.

“That’s the beauty of it — that we’re not developing green space,” said Bernd Hefele, the lawyer for Cambridge and Limecrest.

A handful of neighbors disagreed. They said the 24-hour operations of the plant, along with the possibility of ambient noise and activity including more than 100 daily truck deliveries, would adversely affect them.

“It’s a win-win for the community — as long as you don’t live here,” said Sean Maroney, who lives next door to the site.

There still are hurdles to the plans. A height variance for the plant would be required for eventual approval. Andover’s town code specifically prohibits “concrete product plants” throughout the town. Cambridge and Limecrest have not sought a variance on that issue — but is likely to be part of the future hearings
in town.

Andrew Mulvihill, the prominent Sussex County developer, is a principal in Limecrest Quarry Developers. He said the investment in the facility would be roughly $30 million. Mulvihill and his father Eugene were part of the recently-abandoned $2 billion Riverbank underground hydroelectric plans on the Sparta portion of the quarry.

When that deal fell through, a renewed lease agreement guaranteeing increased rock tonnages kicked in.

Hefele lobbied the board to schedule the next meetings as early as possible, due to “time constraints” he later mentioned as “business reasons.” However, the earliest the board could fit the hearings in would be Dec. 1 and Dec. 8.

Statewide water planning changes will push ahead, after outgoing Gov. Jon Corzine pocket-vetoed a bill that would have delayed some far-reaching new requirements for another two years.

Corzine, on his last night in office, opted against signing the bill putting off the deadline for water quality management plans until 2011.

The bill was partly a product of local minds. State Sen. Steven Oroho, R- Morris, Sussex and Hunterdon, is its primary sponsor, and Sussex County Planner Eric Snyder also provided favorable testimony to the state legislature at end of 2009.

Oroho was frustrated that the bill, which drew support “from both sides of the aisle,” was killed with a pocket veto.

Both he and Snyder had advocated for the extension as opening economic possibilities to Sussex County and the rest of the state — particularly in opening a window for sewer systems to be built before the new water rules would take effect in 2011.

Snyder said the two extra years might translate into responsible, orchestrated growth.
“It gives people some breathing room,” he said. “In these economic times, it’s a good idea … I think it made a lot of sense.”

Officials have mentioned the benefits of allowing additional sewer permitting to increase development potential.

Marianne Smith, the township manager of Hardyston, said her town would have benefited from ensuring the sewer service areas would be available to development when and if the economy turns around.

“Maintaining approvals of existing sewer service areas during these difficult economic times is critical to preserving the future of developing and maintaining jobs in New Jersey,” she said.

Also of particular interest to rural Sussex County residents are the septic rules. The water plans will decrease the number of septics that can be built in water-sensitive areas — and the systems already in use would need to be inspected and permitted every three years.

Earlier this year, officials used an Andover example, estimating one septic tank per 4.5 acres under the DEP’s regulations.

Not everyone was dismayed by the veto. Environmentalists have consistently opposed the bill; the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club called the enforcement of the law “critical.” Other environmental groups warned that years of planning could have been washed away by one day’s work from a subcommittee.

“The bill should not be considered,” said Abbie Fair, the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commission’s project director for water resources.

“It will continue the destructive, extensive pattern of sprawl in New Jersey,” she added.

Oroho says the bill could reappear after the state legislature gets moving again. He’s already spoken with several of his colleagues, including Senate President Steve
Sweeney, about trying the law once again, this time with a different governor.

“It’s going to come back,” Oroho said.

On his last night, Corzine did sign another economic-related extension bill, known as the Permit Extension Act. The law will extend the 2008 version of the bill another two-plus years, to the end of 2012. Environmental advocates had argued against the bill, but before Corzine signed it, the law passed by strong majorities in both the assembly and state senate.