Court order sought to make Wayne reserve water
By: Philip DeVencentis
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
WAYNE - A developer hat wants to build hundreds of apartment on Hamburg Turnpike has lodged a new petition in state court, asking to order the township to save its "precious water resources" for the construction of affordable housing.
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The local builder, a limited liability company tied to March Associates Constructions Incorporated, asked the court to block the township form allowing connections to tis water system, except under extraordinary circumstances and to appoint a special master to prioritize water use. Judge Darren Del Sardo siting in state Superior Court in Paterson, is due to rule on the July 31 [2025] motion by the end of August. [2025]
..... The water shortage is an ongoing problem that officials have acknowledged.
..... In March, [2025] the Township council hired a civil engineer to assess the capacity of the water system in Wayne and to suggest upgrades.
..... Later that month, the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission, which provides water to the township, increased its daily share from 9.5 million gallons to 9.75 million gallons. The supply is piped from Wanaque reservoir, a 29.6 billion-gallon artificial lake that also serves Bayonne, Newark and Nutley, among other municipalities.
..... Matthew Cavaliere, an attorney, for the Planning Board,s aid on behalf of the township on August 4 [2025] that the developer's attempt to cap water used "does not have merit" because the commission approved a daily increase.
..... The developer, Cavaliere said, is "well aware of the application for increased water allocation" and the "status of the application."
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But the developer contends that the issue is unresolved.
..... "Nothing confirmed hat any of this allocation is being reserved for exclusionary housing projects in the township," Thomas Scrivo, an attorney for the developer, wrote in a six-page brief filed in support of the motion. "Rather, the township continues to lack sufficient long-term capacity to accommodate the sum total of illusionary housing projects," including development of the 16.6-acre site eyed by March Associates at 1970 Hamburg Turnpike and 1982 Hamburg Turnpike.
..... Without sufficient water resources, Scrivo wrote, the ability for March Associates to go ahead with its project is "functionally barred," creating a "de facto moratorium on development."
..... There is no mechanism in place, Scrivo wrote, to conserve the township's "precious water resources for exclusionary housing projects."
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March Associates applied to the Zoning Board of Adjustment to build a 285-unit apartment complex at the property, zoned only for single-family homes.
..... The age-restricted project would have included 57 units for low-income households, but the zoning board unanimously rejected the plan on July 21 [2025] after listening to expert testimony and residents' objections for six months.
..... Meanwhile, the developer sued the Planning Board and township seeking to construct substantially more apartments at the same site. The builder;s remedy lawsuit claims hat officials improperly notified the public of a hearing on a fair share plan. under amendments to the Fair Housing Act, municipalities in New Jersey had to adopt one by June 30. [2025]