By Kevin Coughlin
Morristown is pursuing the purchase of 11 wooded acres adjoining the town’s Foote’s Pond recreation area.
“This is a great opportunity for the town to acquire open space,” Mayor Tim Dougherty said at Tuesday’s council meeting.
Partnering with the Trust for Public Land, the town will apply for $2 million in grants to buy the property from the Loyola Jesuit Center, said Town Administrator Jillian Barrick.
Separately, the council on Tuesday said it will ask the state to reimpose alcohol curfews on the Revolution bar on South Street. More on that long-running battle below.
For the land acquisition, the town will seek $500,000 from the state Green Acres program, and the remainder from the Morris County Open Space & Farmland Preservation Trust Fund, Barrick said.
Last month, the Morris County Freeholders approved a grant of nearly $133,000 to the town to construct and upgrade trails around the 2.9-acre Foote’s Pond, which was gifted to Morristown in 1939 by the Robert Foote Estate for passive recreational use.
The town has agreed to put up $33,200 in matching funds for the trails.
At the suggestion of the town Environmental Commission, Morristown’s council also has earmarked $30,000 for a hydrology study, to help determine whether to dredge the pond, which is off of James Street. The pond has been filling with silt for years.
Councilwoman Alison Deeb, whose Fourth Ward includes the site, asked if the Jesuits’ property is deed-restricted for passive recreation. The Mayor said he wasn’t sure; applying for the grants is the first priority.
The 11 acres are zoned R-1, which means homes could be built there if the town does not buy the land, said Council President Stefan Armington.
Armington said he favors the acquisition if the town secures the grants. “As long as we get the Open Space money, it’s a win for the town,” he said.
Either way, Loyola will continue operating as a center for religious retreats, Barrick said.
IN OTHER BUSINESS
The council plans to continue its battle with Iron Bar owner Jimmy Cavanaugh over alcohol curfews imposed in 2014 as approval conditions for the Iron Bistro, which Cavanaugh renamed Revolution and opened last October next to the Iron Bar.
Cavanaugh got a stay of those conditions from the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, enabling him to serve alcohol at Revolution until the town-wide closing time of 2 am.
On Tuesday, the council indicated it will appear before the state ABC in April to argue for reinstating the curfews.
The council had imposed shutdowns of alcohol sales at 11:30 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and at 11 pm on other nights, in response to complaints from residents about problems caused by patrons of downtown bars.
Without those conditions, Armington said on Tuesday, the council probably would not have approved Cavanaugh’s liquor license expansion. Revolution shares the Iron Bar’s license.
Further complicating matters, Cavanaugh seeks permission to extend that same license into another adjoining storefront on South Street, for a new Mexican restaurant tentatively called the Gran Cantina.
The town council is scheduled to hear that application at 7 pm on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017, in town hall. Armington declined to speculate whether the council will impose an alcohol curfew on the Gran Cantina.
Separately, the council voted 5-1 on Tuesday to re-introduce an ordinance defining bars/taverns, nightclubs and restaurants that was discussed last summer and introduced last fall.
Councilman Michael Elms was absent on Tuesday and Councilwoman Michelle Dupree Harris voted no. She declined to say why when asked about it afterward.
The ordinance might have proven useful for defining the Gran Cantina, had the measure been adopted last year, Armington said.
But it fell through the cracks at the town clerk’s office, he said, and never got forwarded to the planning board for its review.
So the ordinance received minor tweaks and was reintroduced on Tuesday.
There should be no holdup this time. Town Clerk Kevin Harris told the council he will send the ordinance to the planning board immediately.
The board has 35 days to review it and make recommendations to the council, said town Assistant Attorney Joni Noble McDonnell.
I am not sure as to why the town is viewing restaurants and bars that people are flocking to as hostile and disruptive businesses to the town. The late night food and bar scene is one of the reasons I have moved to this town, along with many other younger professionals, and would like to see more bars and pubs continue to be opened. It is also the reason for the renaissance and property value increase over the past 10 years. If 11:30 curfews are continually implemented and new bars prevented from opening, Morristown will not continue to attract the people and liveliness it has been. Do it responsibly, keep expanding the green area out as to not congest, and continue to allow new bars and restaurants to open.
Stacy. Expansion both horizontally or verticle is permitted under state ABC law. Examples are roots and urban table, the stirling tavern which is 2 separate properties, the gran cafe and grasshopper which are 3 stories verticle. We provide quality food and drink in a beautyful environment that’s why we are successful. It baffles the mind as to why the mayor and council would prefer empty storefronts. This issue is highly political, no council member has reached out to us to discuss anything. We also employ 2 off duty police officers on weekends and have never been cited with a single violation.
As a member of the council, I would be more inclined to allow Revolution to stay open until 2, and grant the Gran Cantina the extentsion but limit them to serving alcohol until 11 weekdays, 12 weekends. Revolution and Iron Bar took over vacant store fronts and brought thriving restaurants and bars to our downtown. Gran Cantina will be a nice extension, but it does not need to be a club. I fully support Jimmy Cavanaugh and his efforts into making Morristown a destination.
For the people who who live near South Street and the Green, just know your property values have skyrocketed ever since these new developments came to fruition. People enjoy walking these neighborhoods because this town is has progressed and grown.
I am fully considering a run to be on the council and would run on a platform of pro smart development and pro business for Morristown.
I laud the Council’s efforts to incorporate some civilized sense into the “Bar Scene” in Morristown. As a retired citizen living on Maple Ave one block off of South Street, I have become increasingly concerned at the “uncomfortable” volume of Friday and Saturday night revelers as they “struggle” to find their cars and just create an annoying ruckus in the neighborhood. This is occurring between the hours of 1 am to 2 am, sometimes beginning as “early” as 11 or 12 midnight. I am a daily “senior walker” for exercise and to just enjoy wandering our beautiful neighborhoods, and I have been noticing more and more debris on the blocks off of South Street that is nothing less than amazing: shoes, bottles, cans, prophylactics, umbrellas, socks, and even pantyhose. The Council’s efforts are greatly appreciated not only for the aesthetics of our homes but also and more importantly for the safety of the young revelers in terms of driving safety for themselves and anyone else who happens to be on the roads.
Explanation: It’s allowed by ABC law.
Somebody please explain how you can use one liquor license for three businesses, that are not actually connected. There is a limit on the number of licenses and they are expensive. It creates a terrible precedent and created an unfair business advantage.