Mahwah August 17, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 3 Council to rescind Crossroads rezoning ordinances by Frank J. McMahon The Mahwah Township Council has changed its position on the rezoning of the 140-acre International Crossroads property and has directed Township Attorney John Conte to draft the appropriate paperwork to rescind the three ordinances relating to the rezoning. The council also scheduled a special meeting on Aug. 18 to consider that action. On March 31, the township council adopted three ordinances changing the zoning of the Crossroads property from office park to a mixed retail, office space, hotel, theater, and recreational use. There were over 400 people at that meeting, and many of them voiced their objections to the ordinances and their support for a non-binding referendum on the issue. In a 3-3 tie vote, the council defeated a motion to hold a referendum on the matter, however, and voted 4-2 to adopt the ordinances. Last week, at a regularly scheduled public meeting of the township council, the governing body approved a motion by Councilman John Spiech to direct the township attorney to draw up the necessary papers to rescind the three ordinances. His motion passed by a 5-2 vote, with Spiech, Lisa DiGiulio, Chuck Jandris, Roy Larson, and Harry Williams voting for the motion, and Samuel Alderisio and Council President John Roth voting against it. DiGiulio then moved to introduce an ordinance to repeal the ordinances at that meeting, and the council voted 4-3 to do so, with DiGiulio, Jandris, Spiech, and Williams voting for the motion, and Alderisio, Roth, and Larson voting against the motion. Larson joined Alderisio and Roth in voting against the motion to introduce an ordinance to repeal the rezoning measures even though he had voted to have the township attorney draft the paperwork to do just that. Larson explained that, while it was appropriate to vote on a rescinding resolution that is properly drawn, he wanted to wait until the special meeting to do so. DiGiulio said it was important to introduce the ordinance that night, before the developer of the Crossroads property submitted any plans to the planning board. At the beginning of last week’s public meeting, the governing body went into closed session to hear Conte explain why the recent petition filed by a group of residents opposed to the rezoning ordinances was not valid according to the statute covering public referendums. When the council returned to the public meeting, Conte advised that the petition was not valid because, under the state statute, the municipal government must first adopt an ordinance or resolution to take some action, such as adopting an ordinance or resolution relating to a particular question or policy, before residents can file a petition requesting the governing body to ascertain the sentiment of the voters. After Conte rendered his opinion, Spiech and DiGiulio made their motions, which seemed to catch many of the more than 100 residents who attended the meeting by surprise. They had come to the meeting to press the council to pass a resolution requesting the Bergen County Board of Elections to place a non-binding referendum concerning the Crossroads rezoning on the November election ballot. Conte’s opinion seemed to dash that hope, until those present heard the motions to repeal the ordinances. “I’m very pleased that the council listened to the residents of Mahwah,” said Susan Chin, one of the organizers of the residents opposing the rezoning. She also thanked the residents of the township for flooding the council with letters and e-mails in opposition to the rezoning ordinances and for posting their comments on the Stop the Mahwah Mall website. DiGiulio confirmed that the council has received many letters, e-mails, and phone calls from residents who opposed the rezoning. She said that convinced the council that they had to listen to the people. At the March 31 council meeting, Williams opposed holding a referendum on the rezoning. He said the council had done a lot of research on the issue and was trying to do the right thing for the township. He said he changed his mind when he saw that over 2,000 residents had signed the petition. “The petition proved that this was a much larger issue than I thought it was at the time,” Williams said last week. “Now the people have proven that’s what they want and we have an obligation to listen to the people. We have to respond to overwhelming public opinion.” Seniors invited to poolside picnic Mahwah seniors are invited to the free annual picnic at the Mahwah Municipal Pool on Thursday, Aug. 18 at noon. (Rain date: Aug. 19.) Lunch will be served by lifeguards and support staff and will include hot dogs, chips, ice cream, fruit, and soda. Seniors are encouraged to bring their bathing suits. Entertainment will include dancing. Call (201) 529-4949.