The Town Council will meet on Monday, February 24, at 7 p.m. and the agenda includes an ordinance related to the planned affordable housing project at Depot and Pine streets, as well as new rules on flood control and a continuation of the discussion around whether Verona should ban plastic bags.
On February 18, the Verona Planning Board approved what is known as a consistency review of an 85-unit rental complex to be built at the site of the former Cameco food factory that would be 100% affordable housing. The ordinance up for approval on Monday essentially memorializes that review and opens the way for the developer to begin work. Verona purchased the property in 2018 after the factory closed and has since selected PIRHL Developers to turn into affordable housing. In our area, a property designated as “affordable” needs to be within the budget of people earning between $47,250 and $75,360 a year–people like teachers and first responders. It is not the same as Section 8 housing,
The Town Council will also be introducing an ordinance on flood control. The new provisions, which would apply to both new construction and improvements to existing properties, are required by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and must be approved before April 1. The new ordinance is included in the agenda for Monday’s meeting. You can read Verona’s existing provisions on flood control here.
Finally, the Council will be continuing the discussion around banning single-use plastics that it began at its last meeting. You can watch the first round of the discussion here.
You can see the full agenda for February 24 here. The Council meets in the Council chambers on the second floor of the municipal building at 600 Bloomfield Avenue and the meeting is open to the public.
