Township Committee — June 23, 2026
With McNally absent, the Committee adopted Ordinance #2599, as amended with the Planning Board's recommendations, prohibiting data centers in all zones, and #2598, a new construction fee schedule, both 4-0. It certified the 2025 audit, extended Ridge Oak's tax abatement 40 years, awarded Pleasant Valley Park court improvements and introduced salary Ordinance #2601. Thirteen entries naming 15 people commented on the former Lord Stirling School property.
- Data centers
- Development
- Taxes
- Housing
- Government
Meeting recording
Recording plays on the township archive
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What happened
What the record shows
Present: Asay, Hodges, Tompkins and Mayor Duarte McCarthy; McNally was absent. The meeting opened at 7:01 p.m. and went into executive session on “Personnel – Performance Evaluation – Township Administrator” (#2026-0302), resumed at 7:22 p.m. and adjourned at 9:42 p.m. Every vote below was 4-0 (aye Asay, Hodges, Tompkins, Duarte McCarthy) unless noted.
Resolutions recognized the Morocco national football team, which trained at The Pingry School during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the Brazil national team, which stayed at The Ridge Hotel, each with a key to the township; the Ridge High School Drama Club’s Theatre Night awards; and June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month.
Data center ban: Ordinance #2599
The Committee first voted to amend #2599 to include the Planning Board’s recommendations, with the hearing to be on the amended version (the printed roll call lists McNally, recorded absent, among the ayes). It then acknowledged the Planning Board’s report on the ordinance. The Board’s own minutes record that on June 16, 2026 it found the ordinance “not inconsistent” with the Master Plan; the Committee’s minutes describe the report as finding the ordinance “not consistent” and date it 06/17/2026.
At the hearing, Warren Township Committeeman Daniel Croson spoke in support. The amended ordinance was adopted, 4-0 (motion Tompkins, second Hodges). As printed, it:
- adds definitions of “Critical IT Electrical Load” and “Data Centers”, including colocation, cloud computing, server farms, cryptocurrency mining and wholesale digital infrastructure;
- excludes in-house server rooms and accessory data processing by institutions such as banks, utilities, hospitals, schools and government, within limits on floor area (20% of gross floor area or 10,000 square feet, whichever is less), critical IT load (2 megawatts) and standby generation (3 megawatts);
- rewrites § 21-10.3 so that all uses not expressly permitted are prohibited, and specifically prohibits smoke and vape shops and data centers in all districts (not applying to hospitals, public safety facilities or public utility infrastructure);
- deletes “data processing centers” from the uses permitted in the office zones.
See the data center ban.
Other ordinances
- #2598, the construction fee schedule in Chapter 12: adopted after a hearing with no comments. Among the changes, in-ground pools rise from $175 to $300 and above-ground pools from $90 to $125; certificates of continued occupancy from $350 to $500; solar and battery systems of 1 to 50 kilowatts from $150 to $400; and new fees are added for items such as private fire hydrants, emergency responder radio systems and battery storage.
- #2600, amending Salary Ordinance #2455: tabled, with no hearing or action.
- #2601, amending Salary Ordinance #2529 for compensation from July 1, 2026: introduced, hearing July 14. No salary figures are printed.
Resolutions
- #2026-0312, by separate vote, certified to the Local Finance Board that each member reviewed the 2025 annual audit, including its findings and recommendations. The minutes do not describe the findings. See budget and taxes.
The consent agenda included:
- #2026-0301, a second amendment to Ridge Oak, Inc.’s tax abatement agreement for 247 age-restricted units at 150 Manchester Drive, extending it 40 years; the existing abatement, under which Ridge Oak pays 6.28% of annual gross revenues in lieu of taxes, expires August 17, 2026. See Fourth Round housing.
- #2026-0310, resurfacing six pickleball and six tennis courts at Pleasant Valley Park by Keystone Sports Construction, not to exceed $166,791.69, and #2026-0309, playground equipment, not to exceed $25,137.73. See parks and recreation.
- Time extensions, with no added cost stated, for the pavement condition assessment (to November 9, 2026) and the Culberson Road storm sewer study (to November 27, 2026). See roads and paving and flooding and stormwater.
- 17 liquor license renewals for 2026-2027; release of Fellowship Village performance bonds; an updated employee handbook reflecting amendments to the New Jersey Family Leave Act; library HVAC consulting ($4,400.00); surveying at 518 Mine Brook Road ($3,595.00).
- Personnel: a Public Works supervisor and a laborer, retirement commendations for Thomas Nicoletti (Public Works, 37 years) and Lieutenant Brian Fallon (Police, more than 24 years), and vacation payouts.
- Lacrosse tournament permits at Mountain Park, a Grove Road block party, a surplus auction and the bill list.
The June 9 minutes were approved.
Public comment
No one spoke in the first period. In the second, the minutes list 13 entries naming 15 people who “commented on the property located at 99 Lord Stirling Rd (formerly Lord Stirling School)”: Alexis Soled; Mark, of Mine Brook Farm; Joanne Kleinle; Amanda Kaufman and Alan Kaufman; John Conlon; Nick Naturile; Brian and Brooke Krawitz; Cliff Cababe; Stephen Sullivan; John Rocker; Anita Gurnani; Dr. Walead Latif; and Todd Edelstein. The minutes record no positions. See the Lord Stirling School property.
Records
- Minutes (township document page)
- Agenda (township document page)
- Video on the township’s YouTube channel. This page follows the Committee’s minutes.