Articles Land use and development
The Sunnymead Landfill Plan, Explained: From Township Dump to Solar Site
A former municipal landfill on Sunnymead Road was handed to a private company in exchange for closing it, and in 2026 the township expanded the redevelopment area and adopted a plan that allows solar and light industrial uses. What a redevelopment area is, how this one got here, what the plan allows and what happens next.
What it is
The site is a former municipal landfill on Sunnymead Road (Block 182, Lot 7.02, about 10.71 acres). It sits in the I-1 light industrial district; the area north of it is residential. A Planning Board member said at the June 11, 2026 meeting that the landfill opened in 1961. The township planner told the Board in January 2026 that it ceased operations in 1985, and said in June that the state had put the township on notice that it needed to deal with it. The township’s resolutions say only that the site “requires closure in accordance with applicable law”.
How it got here
- September 25, 2007. The Township Committee designated the landfill an area in need of redevelopment under the state’s Local Redevelopment and Housing Law. The designation lets a town adopt a redevelopment plan that replaces the ordinary zoning for the site.
- September 2009. The township asked for statements of interest in closing and redeveloping the landfill. Sunnymeade Ventures, LLC offered to take on the closure and monitoring in return for title to the property and a redevelopment plan both sides could accept.
- 2009 onward. The township and the company worked with the state Department of Environmental Protection on a closure and monitoring plan. The township installed a passive methane mitigation system and monitored gas; the company added to that system and also monitored.
- June 27, 2023. The township and Sunnymeade Ventures signed a Redevelopment and Property Sale Agreement, and title later passed to the company. The agreement anticipated that the company would also acquire the neighbouring lot.
- August 13, 2024. The Committee asked the Planning Board (R-255-2024) to study whether that neighbouring lot, Block 182, Lot 6 (about 4.37 acres, in a residential zone), should be added.
What changed in 2026
- January 22. The Planning Board held a public hearing on the amended investigation report and voted 9–0 to recommend the designation. The township planner said the hearing was limited to the statutory findings: the Board was not approving a project, choosing a developer, changing zoning or authorizing eminent domain. He said adding Lot 6 gives the owner the chance to use as much of the property as possible while it fully closes the landfill, which he confirmed still needs to be cleaned up. The township later found that the lot had been “vacant and underutilized for more than fifty (50) years”, which meets criterion “e” of the state law (land that is not being properly used and is stagnant or unproductive).
- February 5. The Board adopted its written resolution of recommendation, 7–0.
- March 24. The Committee designated Lot 6 a non-condemnation area in need of redevelopment, added it to the Sunnymead Landfill Redevelopment Area, and directed the planning director to write a redevelopment plan. It passed on a consent agenda recorded as unanimous. “Non-condemnation” means the township cannot use eminent domain to take the property. The township attorney said the owner “wants to acquire more acreage to make the solar project financially feasible.”
- May 26. The Committee introduced Ordinance 2026-07, adopting the Sunnymead Landfill Redevelopment Plan for Lots 6 and 7.02 and creating a new “Sunnymead Landfill Redevelopment District”. The introduction vote was unanimous.
- June 11. The Planning Board found the plan consistent with the master plan, 7–0. No member of the public commented.
- June 23. The Committee held the second reading and public hearing. The township’s master plan page lists the plan as adopted on June 23, 2026. The minutes of that meeting had not been posted as of October 29, so the vote is not yet in the public record.
What the plan allows
The township planner described the plan as “a hybrid of one of our industrial districts”. The adopted plan, posted on the township’s master plan page, lists the permitted principal uses as solar energy systems, Class B recycling facilities (subject to state DEP approvals), offices, self-storage, small-scale storage and distribution, manufacturing inside an enclosed building, research and development, lumberyards and building-material storage, contractor facilities, indoor and outdoor recreation, personal services such as salons, and vehicle service. It covers about 14.83 acres and sets a 35-foot height limit and an 80% cap on impervious surface.
What happens next
The plan is now the zoning for the site. As the township planner told the Board, this “would enable the owner/developer to apply to the Planning Board for a site plan application pursuant to the permitted uses and standards within the redevelopment plan.” No site plan for the site appears on Planning Board agendas through December 10, 2026.
What is not known
- The size of the planned solar project and who would build it.
- Whether Class B recycling is actually proposed.
- How much closure work remains. The township planner confirmed in January 2026 that the landfill still needs to be cleaned up, and the township’s resolutions say the site “requires closure”.
- Whether any financial agreement, such as a payment in lieu of taxes, is planned beyond the 2023 sale agreement, and what the township received in that sale.
- The Committee’s vote on the plan.
What residents can do
- Watch Planning Board agendas for a site plan application. A site plan requires public notice, and neighbours can testify at the hearing.
- Ask at the hearing what landfill closure and methane-monitoring obligations the site plan has to meet, and what truck traffic any recycling use would bring.