Morristown council approves SJP for redevelopment around Green; moves forward with pickleball courts

By Kathy Shwiff

The Morristown council unanimously appointed SJP Morristown Green LLC as redeveloper of two parcels of properties along and near the Morristown Green on Tuesday.

The company is associated with SJP Properties, builder of Morristown’s M Station.

It has contracts with the owner of the properties, which include the long-vacant Century 21 department store, town administrator Jillian Barrick said at the meeting.

“They have a successful track record of successfully completing developments in town, and we are optimistic to move forward with both of these properties to reinvigorate an area of the Green and an area of our downtown that has been vacant for way too long,” she said.

SJP has proposed mixed-use buildings with about 160 residential units, 100,000 to 120,000 square feet of office space with ground floor retail, and parking on nine storefront lots along North Park Place and Washington Street.

It plans a mixed-use building with about 54 residential units and ground floor retail as well as parking to replace the former Schenck Price law offices at 2-10 Washington St.

Those areas earlier were designated as areas in need of redevelopment; that designation allows towns more flexibility with zoning and tax laws to encourage economic development.

The Century 21 store, which previously housed Macy’s, has been closed since the pandemic in 2020, and the law offices have been vacant since 2010.

“This is an important step forward for a part of downtown that has been waiting for new life,” Mayor Tim Dougherty said in a statement on Wednesday.

“These properties occupy a highly visible location in the heart of Morristown, and their redevelopment will have a tremendous impact on our downtown. This proposal gives us an opportunity to bring new housing, commercial activity and retail to the area while creating a more vibrant and connected downtown for residents, businesses and visitors.”

Steven Pozycki, founder and chief executive of SJP Properties, said, “M Station has been a transformative development for Morristown, and the redevelopment of North Park will advance our longstanding vision for a more vibrant and elevated Morristown Green. Through the arrival of a skilled workforce, high-quality retail and premier housing, we’ll reactivate this area and restore its place at the center of the town.”

SJP Morristown Green has 90 days to reach redevelopment agreements with the town for both areas. The mayor or business administrator may extend that deadline for another two months.

The council previously designated North Park Place Holdings and its affiliate, TAG Redevelopment LLC, as redevelopers of those areas but they did not complete redevelopment agreements.

NEW ORDINANCES

The council unanimously approved ordinances that prohibit feeding wildlife and amend town law to permit instructional kitchens for cooking classes.

Under the ordinance, feeding wildlife on public or private property is forbidden except for feeding birds on private property as long as “feeding does not create an accumulation of droppings on the neighboring properties or on the feeder’s property such that the accumulation of droppings is discernible by sight and/or smell from a neighboring property.”

Birdfeeders must be at least five feet above the ground with a capacity for seed of no more than five pounds.

Violators may be fined from $500 to $2,500.

Council members introduced a proposed ordinance that would appropriate $100,000 from the Sewer Capital Reserve for sewer connection fees related to installation of sewer laterals. A public hearing is set for Sept. 8.

PICKLEBALL COURTS

The council also approved resolutions awarding contracts for construction of pickleball courts and for playground improvements at Jacob Ford and Budd Street parks.

Z-Tech Contracting of Mountainside, deemed the lowest responsible bidder, was awarded a $477,393 contract to build four pickleball courts.

Ben Shaffer Recreation received a contract not to exceed $181,372 for new playground equipment and swings at Budd Street Park and a contract not to exceed $202,242 for the same at Jacob Ford Park. They will be paid with a state grant of $87,000 and the town’s existing capital funds.

Council members voted to reject all bids for the Jacob Ford tennis court reconstruction project because they were more than the available funds. The town plans to seek new bids.

Other resolutions approved by the council:

–         Designate census tracts 435 and 438.02, near Speedwell Avenue, as “opportunity zones.” That federal program offers tax incentives for investments in low- and moderate-income residential areas.

–         Award contracts totaling $310,839 for resurfacing Cory Road, Hillairy Avenue and Hillairy Court. Morristown received $277,978 from the state for the project.

LIQUOR LICENSE EXTENSIONS

Council members voted to table until Sept. 8 a request to permit a liquor license extension for the Homestead Bar & Kitchen’s Octoberfest on Oct. 3, 2026

Council president Steve Pylypchuk appointed a committee of three council members to review when liquor license extensions should be approved on property not owned by the license holder. The committee is to report its recommendations Sept. 8.

The council also denied a request for a liquor license extension for The DeHart Street bar to host outdoor football watch parties Sept. 13, 20 and 27, in the backyard of 37-39 South St., site of a podiatry office bought last year by the bar’s owners. Homestead was permitted to host similar events for two World Cup matches this summer.

Robert C. Williams, attorney for the Homestead, withdrew the Oct. 3 request, saying a delay until Sept. 8 would not allow enough time to arrange for entertainment.

He urged the council to reconsider the requests for football watch parties, pointing out that the Homestead has hosted many events there in the past three years with no complaints.

Kristin Ace, chair of the Morristown Shade Tree Commission, reported that Morristown received a $758,735 state grant to increase its tree canopy.

“It’s a huge grant. It’s a huge opportunity for our town,” she said.

The grant will pay for planting hundreds of trees in neighborhoods and Burnham Park and invasive-species remediation and reforestation of natural areas at Burnham.

Volunteers are needed for the Jacob Ford reforestation project Oct. 10-12, she added.

Council member David Silva was absent from the meeting.