Medford Crossings is an issue that just won’t go away.
Several people stood up and spoke against the planned development at a recent Medford Township Council meeting.
At a meeting over the summer, a special blue ribbon committee tasked with exploring the possibility of developing that area recommended the township not move forward.
One major determination was that the township should not float a $35 million bond to help pay for the development.
According to Lennar Corporation, the designated redeveloper of Medford Crossings, the site situated around the intersection of Route 70 and Eayrestown Road will be a mixed-use retail and residential project.
The plan includes 167 single-family homes, 260 apartments, 149 townhomes, 120 stacked townhomes, and 60 affordable housing units.
It also calls for about 600,000 square feet for commercial purposes.
The committee suggested the township not put out a bond for $35 million for project improvements. It said a more reasonable amount might be $10 million or nothing at all.
Council member David Brown, Jr. said the council is looking at all options regarding Medford Crossings.
He said they need to see revenue streams and stopping budgetary gaps as well as assess the potential impact it will have on the township.
“I’m not saying any of that is going to happen,” Brown said, noting it is too early in the process to determine a timeline.
Council member Dominic Grosso, whose term expires this year, has been living in Medford since 1983. He has been on council for eight years and on the planning board for eight years.
Grosso appeared annoyed by the suggestion from resident and candidate Chris Buoni that the lame-duck council defer deciding on the Medford Crossings project.
“I love this town,” Grosso said. “The fact is for somebody to come up and tell me that I shouldn’t take any action and I should let it sit, that’s not why I came up here.
“We need tax relief,” he said. “It’s tough economic times no matter who’s in office — you try to look for options to try and ease the pain as much as you can.”
Grosso said those residents who will serve on the council starting next January will better appreciate the work of the current council.
“They’re going to face the same issues we’re facing today,” he said. “They’re going to have to learn like I learned as a rookie councilman it isn’t that easy.”
Buoni, who is a Republican candidate running unopposed, said there are two council seats of five filled by people not elected to office. They are appointees Grosso and Deputy Mayor Mark Sander.
“We speak out against just about everything that they do when it pertains to how they’ve handled our money,” Buoni said, noting he and others attend every meeting to bring up Medford Crossings.
He said the issue is not so much about the development as it is about the finances, especially if the township floated a $35 million bond to help build development.
“We’re inheriting a complete mess,” Buoni said. “The current council has been unwilling to do what they need to do, unwilling to responsibly look at what economic resources are available to them and what services they want to provide and have to make responsible choices, where to cut and where to not cut.”
He also asserts the councils have been playing financial tricks for years and hiding money.
“They have used up every avenue of relief that we would possibly have,” Buoni said, noting the township will start off next year with a $5 million budget deficit.
“Why is it that we are still spending $22 million when we only have $18 million to spend?” he asked.
“If you are willing to do the right thing, the mess will get solved,” Buoni said. “We’re going to do the right thing.”
