New Jersey township, land owner negotiate over demolition of abandoned project

A special meeting will be held on the evening of May 22 with the Wanaque, New Jersey, mayor and council to discuss the demolition of an abandoned, dilapidated townhouse project, a report by NorthJersey.com says. The project, known as Lakeside Manor, was a 47-unit residential townhouse project that was abandoned in 2002.

Area residents claim the structure, which has discolored brick, boarded doors and broken or missing windows, are decreasing property values. 

The property owner, JS Group Principal Jacinto Rodrigues, walked away from the project 15 years ago when a state Appellate Court overturned a decision by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection that denied the owner a Highlands Act exemption to complete the project, the report says.

Negotiations between Rodrigues and the township to allow Rodrigues to demolish the structures and sell the project to another developer. Township officials approved an ordinance to allow the township to tear down the structures, but the report says they want to reach an agreement with the property owner for him to do it.

The township can start demolition in early June if an agreement is not reached, the report says. Rodrigues also abandoned the Mountain Lakes Estates project, a nearby development designed for 128 homes that never moved beyond its first phase. Three of the 12 single family homes were constructed and are currently abandoned. Township officials are expected to address those properties as well.