Pine Barrens Tribune April 22, 2023-April 28, 2023

‘FIRE SEASON IS NOW’

to Lower Required Acreage for ‘Buildable Lot’ in Village in Hopes to Gain Ratables

Mayor Says Pinelands Commission

Proposed Idea After Town Desired to Get Out from Under Its Control Due to Financial Hardships from Rules

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

BASS RIVER—It has been a “long time coming,” as both Bass River Township Mayor Deborah Buzby-Cope and Township Solicitor JoAnne I. O’Connor put it, as the Bass River Township Planning Board has conducted its re-examination of the township Master Plan, and the Board of Commissioners adopted significant new updates to what essentially amounts to the town’s “zoning ordinance” last month in response to the re-examination report, marking the first updates of its kind in more than 10 years, local officials reported.

Amid Low Humidity, Strong Winds and Periods of Unseasonably Warm Weather, in Combination with Abnormally Dry Conditions, 3 Major Wildfires in the Pines Consume Thousands of Acres, With One Having ‘Exhibited Extreme Fire Behavior’

By Douglas D. Melegari

Staff Writer

LAKEHURST—The combination of low humidity, strong winds and unseasonably to record warm temperatures last week, in conjunction with “abnormally dry conditions” and the forest floor “currently in the leaf off season,” led to a several day stretch of high fire danger last week into this past weekend, and fueled what turned into

two major wildfires in the Pines along the Route 539 corridor, one on the northern end in Manchester Township, and another on the southern end in Little Egg Harbor Township.

Another stretch of low humidity and windy conditions, though with somewhat cooler temperatures, caused a second round of high fire danger during Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, with a third major wildfire having developed in the Lower Bank

section of Washington Township.

“This is essentially our Super Bowl –April,” declared New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) Assistant Division Fire Warden Bill Love during an April 18 conference call with the media.

Jimmy’s

Waterhole Wildfire

The first major wildfire over the past two

See WILDFIRES Page 5

The mayor’s comments and interactions with residents that are featured in this story about the changes, have occurred over the course of several township Board of Commissioners and Planning Board meetings since October.

She explained that “how this all came into play” is that the township wanted to originally remove itself from the Pinelands Commission’s jurisdiction so that the agency’s longtime restrictions on development here, particularly in the township’s downtown area of New Gretna, would no longer apply. Most of the township west of the Garden State Parkway, she pointed out, falls under the state agency’s jurisdiction.

See ZONING/ Page 9

Photo By New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Red hot flames shoot an estimated 200 feet into the air, as seen behind a church during the Jimmy’s Waterhole Fire.

Plan to Build 5 Additional Warehouses in Birmingham

Gets Pushback as Residents Detail Alleged Issues with New Warehouse Already Built Locals Slam ‘Overdevelopment’ of Pemberton Township and Demand Answers as to Why Developers Can’t Be Stopped, Their Phone Calls Are Still Being Taken, in Addition to Inquiring What Took So Long for an AG Committee to Be Formed

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

PEMBERTON—Notification received by residents of the Birmingham community in Pemberton Township that a developer is proposing to build as many as five new warehouses there led to yet another tense, four-hour long Pemberton Township Council meeting on April 5 in which both the governing body (narrowly controlled by Democrats, 3-2) and township administration (controlled by the GOP) heard pleas from locals to please “put a stop to this overdevelopment in this town,” with one woman declaring of the latest application for development, “I don’t understand why you can’t just say ‘no!’” Republican Mayor Jack Tompkins, who ran last year on a platform with GOP Councilmen Joshua Ward and Dan Dewey to “advocate for residents by stopping warehouse encroachments,” ultimately responded that his team has only been in office for 90 days, “people think that when we are in office, we can waive a magic wand and make things happen,” but that there are rules and regulations that have to be followed and by deciding to make any change in the zoning, “we could be opening ourselves up to liability.”

The Democratic members of council, meanwhile, were questioned pointedly by one Birmingham resident, Perry Doyle, Jr., as to why it is only now that residents of the township are finding out that there was a 2009 recommendation to establish an Agricultural Advisory Committee in the township Master Plan, and that the recommendation is only now being acted

on some 14 years later.

Seldat Distribution, Inc., was granted approval in August 2019 to erect a 509,038 square-foot warehouse on an approximately 30-acre lot at 200 Birmingham Road in Pemberton. The warehouse has since been built and is now operational, with residents describing during the April 5 council session that it has purportedly led to previously predicted adverse effects on their quality of life and problems, among them traffic safety issues, poor drainage and wildlife habitat pattern changes.

After Tompkins told Doyle that “if we have a development coming in, and it meets all the requirements of the Master Plan, as well as the redevelopment and zoning, the Planning Board has no teeth –they can’t do anything,” Doyle responded, “Unfortunately, sir, we would have had more teeth had an Agricultural Advisory Committee been there to guide us along the way on what we could be doing detrimental to the farmers’ ground.”

But Doyle’s main beef, however, appeared to be with the three Democratic councilmembers, Donovan Gardner (council president), Elisabeth McCartney and Paul Detrick, pointing out the “three of you have been up here” at the dais for quite some time, asking if it is part of council’s responsibility to be on top of what is contained in the Master Plan.

“Everything I hear (justifying the recent development) is, ‘It’s on the Master Plan,’” Doyle declared. “Why was this not brought up until now? Why are we just finding out now, now that we have a

of Pemberton Township.

Bass River Officials Slam Updated Stormwater Management Regulations, Saying Rural Town Now Subject to Rules Better Suited for Urban Areas

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

BASS RIVER—Purported orders issued by inspectors with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) directing that Bass River Township remove certain items from the township Convenience Center with charges that the agency is “giving us no resources” to do so in a town already strapped for revenue, as well as new state stormwater management regulations, some of which have been reportedly cited, in part, as the reasons behind the directives, has incensed the three members of the Bass River Board of Commissioners, with the township’s deputy mayor declaring April 3 he has “had it up to here with it!”

While an NJDEP spokeswoman, meanwhile, in response to a query for this story, merely sent this newspaper a previous press release issued by the agency, that release does mention that grant funding is available for a township such as Bass River, with grants being accepted on a rolling basis through the end of this year.

According to remarks by Bass River Mayor Deborah Buzby-Cope, Deputy Mayor Louis Bourguignon and Commissioner Nicholas Capriglione during March 6 and April 3 governing body meetings, the township has recently been ordered by the inspectors to remove piles of leaves, mulch and woodchips from the center, also known as the township “dump,” as well as chunks of concrete, stumps and an estimated 10ton pile of road salt. That is in addition to another order they say was handed down to “fence in” the facility and install a gate.

Township Solicitor JoAnne O’Connor later explained to this newspaper that the inspections of the Convenience Center were required as a result of a road being fixed that leads into the center, and that the orders pertaining to the cement and mulch have to do with the stormwater management regulations. However, in an earlier phone interview, she told this newspaper that she believed that there might have also been some complaints factoring into the inspections from people wanting to “stir the pot.”

As for the changes to the state stormwater management regulations, according to Buzby-Cope, Bass River had always been considered a Tier B community under the state stormwater management rules, “which required us to do less things,” but after changes “in the works since 2018” were instituted not too long ago, “the entire state is now Tier A” and state officials “are just

constantly adding more and more to this” and “every time we turn around they are doing inspections on us like crazy here, on all our locations, constantly saying, ‘You need to get rid of this, you need to get rid of that.’”

She said “we do it,” and then “they come back, don’t like what we do, and they give us a certain amount of time to get things done” and “if you don’t do it in a certain timeframe, you get fined and then you can appeal.”

“There is money that the (local) taxpayers are funding, such as for Lake Absegami (a state park controlled by the NJDEP) for services and we provide this and get nothing for it in return!” Bourguignon declared. “Then we have the Pinelands Commission, which puts rules on us, which also costs the taxpayers money! Now, we have the NJDEP putting demands on us, which are costly, and now, they are saying they will fine us if we don’t do certain things with the dump! These materials have been in there for 40 years! Now, they are saying we can’t have leaves in the dump, we can’t have woodchips in the dump, and concrete!”

Bourguignon, visibly livid and even blasting the state at one point for apparently using funds to pay the inspectors, continued that the state “wants us to maintain everything in New Gretna” including the local waterways and Pine Barrens so “people can use it,” yet they “don’t supply us with anything,” pointing out that the municipality has been unable to replace its fleet of Public Works vehicles which are now some 25 years old, and instead “keep putting threats and fines on us.”

“I don’t know what the answer is, but we can’t keep spending taxpayer’s money and get nothing in return!” Bourguignon declared. “I don’t know who to go to, because if we go above them, they just ignore you!”

Bourguignon, in seemingly questioning the environmental logic behind the purported order pertaining to the woodchips, called them “biodegradable” and pointed out “we chip them ourselves with our chipper,” while Buzby-Cope contended “they are always chipping along roads, and that is OK, but for some reason we are not allowed to have it” at the Convenience Center.

As for what the mayor described as “loose chunks of concrete” at the site, Bourguignon maintained, “I have papers from the state stating we are allowed to recycle concrete,” and that “you can ride down Route 9 and see anywhere that there is concrete.”

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

WASHINGTON—A family from Washington Township, the target last year of several instances of politically-motivated graffiti appearing on township and county roads in both Bass River and Washington townships, is reporting that despite a purported arrest in the matter, more graffiti has recently appeared on a local roadway containing an “insult aimed towards somebody,” and is again pleading with local officials to have the writing promptly covered.

Three members of the Keating family made the pleas to the Washington Township Committee during an April 7 governing body meeting, and excoriated local officials for what they view as a slow response.

“We want a simple and quick reaction when it happens to try to deter it from happening anymore,” declared Ben Keating, whose mother, Sue, has apparently been referenced in at least some of the roadway writings after having been politically active on social media in the past, reportedly outspoken against Republicans and former President Donald Trump, while apparently displaying a photoshopped Biden-Harris sign in her Facebook profile picture. “The graffiti has been down for four months now, and it is not simple graffiti, as it seems to be an insult aimed towards somebody.”

Prior to the Keatings taking to the microphone before the all-Republican township committee, GOP Committeeman

C. Leigh Gadd, Jr., also the township public safety director and a former police detective, in his committee report, reported that “he just found out in the past couple days that more graffiti was painted on Turtle Creek Road.”

“So, I will get with the road department to

make sure we get that scheduled to get that taken care of down there,” Gadd said.

However, Ben Keating retorted “the graffiti has been there and visible for over four months now,” and that he “can’t believe there wasn’t time for someone to cover it up.”

Sue Keating then spoke, contending her surveillance camera recorded the moment in which “town trucks” traveled Turtle Creek Road, before declaring, “This isn’t being addressed.” She then maintained that she spoke to her attorney and was advised “our best course of action for us, since the governing body doesn’t seem to be taking care of this request,” is to “request information in writing about our road crew and full-time employees.”

Mayor Daniel James, also a Republican, replied that the township doesn’t have fulltime employees and “that is why taxes are low as they are” in Washington Township. But Keating retorted that there “has to be reports” for the part-time workers, with her son adding there should be “logs of what is getting done” detailing the “work they accomplish each day.”

Because “nothing is being addressed” to remove the writings, Sue Keating contended, “it is perpetuating the actions” of the person(s) behind the graffiti.

“This is ridiculous,” she declared. “I call the cops every single time, and they come down and ask me why the township isn’t more interested in the vandalism and graffiti.”

Gadd, in response, revealed that he had text messaged Ben Keating that “we want the stuff to stick, per the instructions,” and don’t want to have a situation in which colder and rainy weather cause the material to fail.

“Every time something has been added to the road, it has been covered and recovered,” Gadd maintained. “But we have to do it in a

See GRAFFITI/ Page 11

Probe of Former Coach at Southampton Cheerleading Facility Culminates in 5 Counts of Sexual Misconduct, While Mother Charged with Tampering Studio No Longer a ‘Rockstar Cheer’ Licensee, But Now Renamed ‘Access Cheerleading’ After S.C. Scandal Involving Suicide, Lawsuits and Closing Leads to Collapse of Network

By Bill B onvie

Staff Writer

SOUTHAMPTON—As an eight-monthlong probe by the New Jersey State Police and several area police departments that ultimately led to a series of charges being lodged this month against a 25-year-old former coach at a Southampton Township cheerleading and tumbling studio gathered steam, a much larger and more shocking scandal involving similar accusations of sexual abuse – this one on the Piedmont of South Carolina – was causing the entire network of cheerleading, tumbling and dance studios to which that facility formerly belonged to literally come apart.

One result, according to Kim Brubeck, compliance administrator for the Eayrestown Road business where the suspect worked, is that the company, which is independently owned and operated, is no longer known as Rockstar Cheer, but changed its name to Access Cheerleading, having removed the “Rockstar” affiliation after the filing of lawsuits against another entity using that name in South Carolina was made public.

“For several years Access Cheerleading was a licensee of Rockstar Cheer,” Brubeck told the Pine Barrens Tribune in an April 18 phone interview. “Access Cheerleading left the Rockstar brand after the licensor was named in multiple lawsuits that alleged misconduct with minor athletes. Those civil lawsuits are in process.”

The cheerleading facility, which Brubeck stated serves hundreds of aspiring cheerleaders in the area, works

with the United States Allstar Federation (USASF) that oversees screening, training and credentialing of employees, coaches, administrators and volunteers. She noted that “there are many cheerleading gyms that are not members of the USASF and are not required to follow the same duty of care that USASF-sanctioned facilities do.”

Such vigilance is especially called for, she acknowledged, because the sort of misconduct by authority figures alleged to have occurred in both cases can be “common in sports, with an estimated two to eight percent of athletes affected by abuse, according to ChildHelp.com.

“What matters is how you respond to it,” she declared.

Most important, she maintained, is reporting any such allegations immediately to law enforcement and the sport federation and speedily removing anyone so accused from their position while the validity of the allegations is determined – which was exactly the course of action followed by the facility’s administration once complaints about the employee in question were brought to its attention.

“We’ve spent a tremendous amount of time making sure that victims’ identities were protected,” Brubeck added.

The suspect in the case, Jonathan Ryker, 25, of Hammonton, a one-time Hammonton High School football player, was charged earlier this month with a total of five counts in Southampton, Medford, Westampton and Lumberton townships that include

Authorities Determine Early-Morning Fire in Vacant Building on Former Campus of County College Was Intentionally Set

Staff Writer

PEMBERTON—A fire that broke out last week at the vacant, former Burlington County College (also known as Rowan College at Burlington County [RCBC]) campus in Pemberton Township on April 12 was intentionally set, this newspaper has learned.

The former college campus, with once usable facilities enjoyed by thousands of students, has reportedly been subject to vandalism and neglect since its May 2018 closure, when the college’s operations relocated to a new Mount Laurel Township campus.

The fire at 601 Pemberton-Browns Mills

Road broke out, according to Pemberton Township Police and Fire Director Daniel Hornickel, sometime around 6 a.m. in the former academic building next to the Parker Center.

“It appears that fires were set in two rooms in the academic building,” he told this newspaper.

Multiple area fire departments responded to the scene, according to Hornickel, who is also the township business administrator, “and were able to control the fire from the outside.”

The blaze, he reported, was detected by a township employee and one of the town’s volunteer firefighters, who works for the

Photo By Nicholas Weissmann

A view from the exterior of one of several vacant buildings at the former campus of RCBC.

By D ouglas D. M elegari

WILDFIRES

weeks, which broke out in the afternoon of April 11, actually jumped County Route 539 in Manchester Township, and is one that NJFFS Chief Greg McLaughlin recognized during an earlier press briefing “definitely had high potential to be extremely catastrophic.”

But it wasn’t, various local stakeholders maintained, because of a quick, collaborative, and “unified” effort amongst the NJFFS and multiple local, county, state and federal agencies, as well as over 32 local career and volunteer fire departments that provided structural protection during the height of the fire as it threatened structures in both Manchester Township and the Borough of Lakehurst.

As the blaze approached the threatened structures – with eyewitness pictures taken around 11 p.m. showing intense red-hot flames in the forest exceeding the height of the tree canopy, closest buildings, telephone poles and even a nearby cell tower, according to Manchester Township Police Chief Robert Dolan, evacuations were ordered by the NJFFS.

He described that police officers “went house-to-house very quickly,” evacuating about 70 homes in Manchester Township and another 100 homes in Lakehurst Borough. Manchester Township High School was established as a shelter, where he noted 60 people stayed until the mandatory evacuation orders were lifted sometime after 3 a.m.

But before then, according to John Cecil, assistant commissioner of State Parks and Forests and Historic Sites for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), which has oversight over the NJFFS, “this fire exhibited extreme fire behavior.”

“We saw a wall of fire, with 200 foot flames, and raining fire embers,” said Cecil of what was dubbed by the NJFFS as the Jimmy’s Waterhole Fire. “I don’t mean to be dramatic,

but this was a severe situation that these guys and gals managed to keep in place and protect lives and property. For that, we cannot thank them enough.”

As a weather front moved through around the time that the fire approached Lakehurst, the combination of mostly cloudy skies and intense flames led to a red glow that could be seen for miles just before 11 p.m.

A final incident briefing package posted to the NJFFS social media pages noted that at 10 a.m. on April 13, the state agency achieved 100 percent containment of a 3,859-acre wildfire that spanned federal (the Lakehurst side of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst), state and private property (with the forestland here not officially named).

“The initial strategy was to hold the wildfire west of Route 539,” said Assistant Division Fire Warden Trevor Raynor. “Due to the weather conditions, we were unsuccessful in that and it jumped east of Route 539 and headed towards Lakehurst.”

Initial tactics, he said, to “check the fire before it got to Lakehurst” proved to be “unsuccessful” due to “some of those high flame fronts, a lot of embers, and a lot of spot fires ahead of the main fire.”

“The fire weather conditions were severe due to low humidity, strong winds and high temperatures,” he explained. “And we are currently in the leaf off season, so warm sun penetrates the open canopy of the trees right now, and since we haven’t greened up, the forest floor is very dry. Should there be an ignition source, wildfires spread very quickly.”

McLaughlin later explained to reporters in a conference call that “Route 539 is a pretty significant firebreak” and that when he was first notified that there was a fire in this particular area “which has very volatile fuels and numerous residential developments,” he came to the conclusion those “two ingredients are recipe for a disaster, or catastrophe.”

“The potential here was real,” he declared.

Then, when the forest fire service chief got a second call that the fire had crossed Route

539, “I knew there was going to be a significant problem because Route 539 is a significant firebreak and the fire was traveling very rapidly.”

“We were looking at the fire moving at 4.5 miles an hour, which is extreme fire behavior,” McLaughlin reported. “We were looking at a flaming front and flame lengths – not to exaggerate – pushing 200 feet in the air.”

A lot of times, the NJFFS will use sand roads as a control line, it was explained. But here, according to earlier remarks by Raynor, “the interior sand roads that exist in the forest weren’t a suitable control line, so we had to use something more substantial.” Fire crews, he said, ended up having to use “hard pavement and hard roads” to “check-up that fire.”

He estimated over 75 NJFFS personnel “were out there,” and among the apparatus brought to the scene were 15 Type 6 engines, brush trucks, tractor plows, UTVS, and two helicopters.

But the structural protection offered by local firefighters that did a “leapfrog from house-

to-house” and “stayed with the fire,” Raynor noted, is what “ultimately saved a lot of homes.”

As the flame front moved toward homes, Cecil and McLaughlin were said to have made a decision to “look at our frontline Containment Strategy A.” McLaughlin would later reveal “we were cut off by a fast moving wall of fire that was spreading very rapidly,” prompting the agency to “regroup and drop back and go to Plan B.”

“Thankfully, Plan B was effective because the next stop for the fire was going to be into some homes in Lakehurst,” McLaughlin recounted. Mandatory evacuations had been ordered in Lakehurst from Division Street to Route 70 in Lakehurst, as well as on Horicon Avenue and Beckerville Road in Manchester. Numerous local streets were closed in the area up until the fire was brought under control, as well as Route 70 and County Route 539.

A spokeswoman for the military installation described the night of April 11 as a “difficult

(Continued from Page 1)

Photo By New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

An aerial view of the Jimmy’s Waterhole “wall of fire, with 200-foot flames, and raining fire embers.”

Photo By New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Firefighters as they dealt with a “severe situation” of a rapidly progressing wildfire in Manchester Township and Lakehurst Borough.

See WILDFIRES/ Page 8

WAREHOUSE

marijuana facility proposed to wipe out a farm (on nearby North Pemberton Road, close to Birmingham, which residents protested at the prior council session), and a 5,000 square-foot warehouses proposed?” Doyle demanded to know after Ward and Dewey – who proposed the creation of the Agriculture Advisory Committee on March 15 immediately following the cannabis cultivation facility proposal –reaffirmed to the former township cop that it was back in 2009 that the committee was first recommended. “I guess with all the impervious surfaces, water is going to run off on the farms across the street … and five years from now the farmers there will see a decline in their crops.”

While council later unanimously voted to create the committee, despite a current party split on council, Doyle called its creation “too little, too late.”

“Only now you are going to form the Agricultural Advisory Committee after the roots have already been established for one warehouse and it has been built, and with five more proposed?” Doyle asked. “And God only knows what is in the works for North Pemberton Road. Every resident that comes up here always talks about how they love Pemberton Township because it is rural. And we are just slowly wiping it out. And until the last 90 days and changes in office, all this has been ignored. It hasn’t even been attended to.

“ … It is time to get moving with the program and start thinking about 10 years down the road and not the fast buck,” he warned the Democratic councilmembers, and in seemingly making a reference to nowformer 16-year Democratic Mayor David Patriarca now being “gone,” asserted, “it’s time to move on.”

A required notice was reportedly mailed to residents living within 200 feet of 316 Birmingham Road, sometime recently, letting them know there was an application filed with the township Planning Board for “Preliminary and Final Major Site Plan and Subdivision Approval” for five warehouses there. The notice also appeared in a regional daily newspaper on Feb. 17.

According to that notice, Pemberton-2, LLC, in order to advance the project, has requested of the township Planning Board to permit the subdivision of an approximately 23.5-acre tract into “five newly subdivided lots” and the subsequent development of each of those “newly subdivided parcels” with a “one-story building located on each subdivided lot,” for a “total of five buildings, ranging in size and configuration from a 20,460 square-foot footprint up to a 34,245 square-foot footprint.”

The request also includes “associated site improvements such as stormwater management, ingress and egress driveways, internal roadways, parking, lighting and landscaping.”

It is noted in the application that the property in question is “located to the north of South Pemberton Road, to the south of Center Road, and to the west of Birmingham Road” and that “existing improvements on the property will be demolished and the property shall be subdivided into five new lots.”

Each of those new lots, according to the application, would be just over 4 acres in size and then be “individually developed with a one-story building.”

“Proposed Warehouse 1,” as the applicant put it, would “measure an aggregate of 32,578 square-feet, inclusive of 29,578 square-feet of warehousing space and 3,000 square-feet of office space, and will include 63 parking spaces, and 8 truck loading/docking spaces.”

The second proposed warehouse,

according to the application, would “measure an aggregate of 33,000 square-feet, inclusive of 30,000 square-feet of warehousing space and 3,000 square-feet of office space, and will include 58 parking spaces, and nine truck loading/docking spaces.”

It is continued in the application that “Proposed Warehouse 3” would “measure an aggregate of 34,245 square-feet, inclusive of 31,245 square-feet of warehousing space and 3,000 square-feet of office space, and will include 65 parking spaces, and six truck loading/docking spaces.”

Proposed Warehouse 4, according to the application, would “measure an aggregate of 33,200 square-feet, inclusive of 30,200 square-feet of warehousing space and 3,000 square-feet of office space, and will include 80 parking spaces, and seven truck loading/ docking spaces.”

The final proposed warehouse, it is noted in the application, would “measure an aggregate of 20,460 square-feet, inclusive of 17,460 square-feet of warehousing space and 3,000 square-feet of office space, and will include 56 parking spaces, and seven truck loading/docking spaces.”

The published notice notes the 23.5acre property in question is subject to the township’s General Commercial/ Light Industrial District (“GCLI”) zoning ordinance.

“The buildings constructed on the property shall be for the principal use of light-industrial and office use, consistent with the GCLI standards, specifically, Sections 190-24(B)(6), (11) and (12), and are intended to be occupied by companies which are affiliated with applicant,” it is stated in the notice.

An online search of Pemberton-2, LLC, brings one to a website for DD1 Development, or the developer of the Seldat warehouse. When clicking on the “values” link of the DD1 Development website, it is stated toward the bottom “200 S. Pemberton Urban Renewal Now Hiring” and that “our newly constructed warehouse located on 200 S. Pemberton Road, Pemberton, New Jersey, is now looking for qualified candidates to come join our team.”

Another link on that website, copyrighted and registered with DD1 Real Estate Holding, LLC, posted nearly a year ago, comes with a headline of “Pemberton 2 Being Designed,” noting the “project is going through the design process, in parallel with the Study for the Area in Need of Redevelopment, initiated by the municipality.” Readers of the site are then directed to view “our completed site fill and cut balance drawing.”

Initially, Doyle had approached the council in January 2022 about rumors of an additional large warehouse being proposed in the area, but township officials at the time denied having any concrete knowledge of such a plan.

“We have not had any meetings or formal discussions about a second warehouse on Birmingham Road, though we are aware of the scuttlebutt,” Business Administrator Daniel Hornickel responded to this newspaper at the time when asked about Doyle’s then-comments.

But after that scuttlebutt apparently turned out to be true, and led to an outcry from Birmingham residents at a council meeting later last year, that plan had been suddenly dropped in favor of five warehouses being proposed for development in the area.

Hornickel, in another email to this newspaper, explained that a “prospective developer shared preliminary engineering plans with the township in August to develop five smaller warehouses on the parcels (across the entire breadth of overall tract) ranging from 21,000 to 35,000 square-feet.”

“It is my understanding that the developer can develop those buildings by right, meaning that the smaller warehouses are a permitted principal use for which no zoning

variances are needed,” he told this newspaper late last year in response to an inquiry. “The developer indicated an intention to file an application to construct those five smaller warehouses with the Planning Board by the end of this year.”

The applicant, according to the published notice, was supposed to appear before the Planning Board on March 2. Then, according to residents attending the April 5 council meeting, the applicant was supposed to be appear at an April 6 Planning Board session.

But according to Tompkins, in a later interview with this newspaper, the applicant asked for another postponement at around 3:30 p.m. on April 6. He said he was not informed why such a request had been made.

The postponement, however, followed loud objections by locals heard the night before at the April 5 council meeting.

“Redevelopment and excessive overdevelopment concerns me,” declared resident Michelle Forman during the April 5 council meeting.

She then pointed out that council previously “voted to designate 65 acres of land” in need of redevelopment “and a year later I see a big warehouse” has been built in Birmingham.

“I don’t live near there, but this is disturbing to me,” Forman asserted. “Everybody here needs to care about the residents. There is suffering. There are no words to describe this, and I am very upset about it.”

Forman, after listing various redevelopment projects currently either under consideration or now in progress in Pemberton, pointed out that she has taken note of the “people who are going to these

STORMWATER

(Continued from Page 3)

But under the new rules, what it comes down to, according to the mayor, is that it “seems like the Convenience Center is basically holding place” versus being eligible to serve as a long-term storage site, and “you can’t have it (materials) there for a certain amount of time.”

“So, if anyone needs any mulch down there, we have to get rid of that,” BuzbyCope declared. “We can’t house that. … As for collecting recyclables, clothes, electronics and brush, as soon as it comes in, we have to turn around and send it back out. They only give you a certain amount of time to basically hold it (the materials).”

The mayor revealed that inspectors with the NJDEP, in visiting the township’s Convenience Center, expressed to officials that “they don’t want anything up on our hill, which used to be the old dump,” and have ordered local officials to “get rid of the stumps up there.”

“A lot of stuff has been up there for 20 years or more, and there is a habitat up there for a lot of animals,” she said, noting that local officials are not quite sure of all the kinds of wildlife habitats there, but that she has observed coyotes and foxes in that area, and pointed out that the department previously advised that they didn’t want any traffic there being that it was a former dumping ground. She also speculated there could be rattlesnakes in the area that the state would purportedly like for the town to now disturb.

O’Connor later told this newspaper that if the town follows that particular directive, it is “a Catch-22,” because on one hand the state says to not disturb areas with rattlesnakes and coyotes, but then is ordering them to

remove stuff from there that has been there for a very longtime. When queried as to how officials know rattlesnakes exist in this area, the township solicitor replied a study would have to be performed for confirmation purposes, which would cost the township thousands of dollars, and that it probably still wouldn’t be conclusive.

A container, Buzby-Cope said, was due to be brought in as early as the day following the April 3 meeting for crews to clean up the concrete. But “once we get the concrete out,” she maintained local officials intend to “bring the NJDEP back there with the engineer, walk through it again, and say, ‘Hey, listen – what is going to happen is we have to get containers, and we have 75 to 100 containers’ worth of stumps up there that have to be taken to a landfill in Burlington County.’”

“The county is going to be nice enough to take tractor trailers down to us, but of course, it is going to cost us to have them transported up there (to the landfill in Mansfield),” Buzby-Cope said. “They will work with us best they can, but we have to pay for fuel, or a driver. It is – I don’t know – I know I am constantly in meetings with stormwater management. Every time I turn around, they want to go look through stuff.”

Bourguignon asked Township Solicitor JoAnne O’Connor, “Do we have any recourse?” The attorney responded, “legislative,” but warned that the Burlington County Joint Insurance Fund (JIF) would meanwhile drop the town’s insurance coverage if it didn’t follow the rules and orders, because of the risk that would be involved if you “didn’t do it, and someone gets injured.”

And while the town could appeal any fines in court, “the problem is, ‘Do you have the money to fight the fight?’”

“If you fight with an appeal, it is going to cost you money,” declared O’Connor, to

which Bourguignon quipped, “I hate giving into the state!”

“How are we going to afford this?” Bourguignon asked. “When I first met with the gentleman (initial inspector), he said to do this and that. We did this and that, and then he came back with his boss and he said need we need to do this and that. Where does it stop?”

O’Connor’s advice to the commissioners is to “get it in writing” of any directive from the state, with Bourguignon maintaining that after following the directives of the inspector, then it was “said we had to do 10 other things,” to which O’Connor responded, “if you get different inspectors coming down, each one of them is going to say different things.”

“We’ve run this town for a longtime without this stuff!” Bourguignon declared. “They are enforcing things again on us and giving us no resources! That is why I have had it up to here with it!”

Capriglione maintained it is “one thing to ‘fight’ it,” but another to have the township’s insurance carrier pull out, because in the event that it does do so, “the township is really in a lot of trouble.”

After Bourguignon pointed out that the township saved a lot of money due to the mild winter by not having to use its road salt resources, Capriglione revealed that inspectors came through the Convenience Center and “didn’t like the pile of salt we had there” and told officials “we have to get rid of the salt because the tarp had a hole in it.”

“You just mentioned we saved money, because we had a fantastic season, and now, we have salt we didn’t have to use, but we are now in trouble for having salt,” said Capriglione, with Bourguignon estimating there is about a 10-ton salt pile stored at the convenience center.

That revelation led one man to ask, “Where does it go now?”, to which Buzby-

Cope replied, “Not at the Convenience Center,” and that, “We have to talk to the county about it” and ask whether the county would “take it back.”

Capriglione maintained that the requirements of Tier A under the stormwater management rules are “like for urban areas,” with a lot of what is expected of such towns following in that tier “very costly.”

“We are concerned with how we are going to finance the new rules, so we don’t end up getting fined,” Capriglione said. “There is no reason at all why a small community like Bass River Township should have to go from a Stormwater B community, with less regulations and rules, to a Stormwater A community, in which there are all kinds of sewer and drainage systems, which we don’t have here. … But we have to meet their regulations.”

According to a video about the new rules on the NJDEP’s website, they were adopted at the state level back on March 20, 2020 (or when the Coronavirus pandemic got underway and most weren’t paying attention to regular affairs), and that they were ultimately delayed by one year to March 2, 2021. But that video talks mostly about how the regulations will affect land development practices within the state, proposed developments, and how changes should be incorporated into each municipality’s stormwater management plans. A summary of the new rules state “green Infrastructure is now a requirement.”

In the press release forwarded to this newspaper by NJDEP Spokeswoman Caryn Shinske, Shawn M. LaTourette, the commissioner of the agency, is quoted as saying “much of our stormwater infrastructure is woefully out of date and no longer up to handling increasing volumes of stormwater” and that “we need to do a better job, including properly sizing our

See STORMWATER/ Page 11

WILDFIRES

night for on base housing” as well.

According to Raynor, the area of forest burned by the fire is north of Horicon Avenue and Beckerville Road and Route 70, south of Broome Road and east of an unimproved road on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and west of Division Street.

The blaze, prior to jumping Route 539, broke out in close proximity to Cousins Paintball NJ, a popular paintball center in the Pines.

“Cousins Paintball is so very grateful for the quick response from Whiting Fire Company Sta. 33,” wrote Cousins Paintball in a statement. “In addition to our excessive gratitude for the action taken by all local fire departments in their response to this disaster, we want to extend our deepest sympathy for those who have been impacted by this fire. Fortunately, we are still able to operate normally and have no interruptions with our upcoming schedule. Cousins Paintball is proud to be a part of this community and we will rebuild together!”

Dolan, during the press briefing, described that “there is no structure damage we are aware of at this time,” and the NJFFS reported no injuries. In addition to the mandatory evacuations ordered for the local citizenry, according to Dolan, a local horse farm voluntarily evacuated, with him believing about 30 horses were taken offsite.

Log Swamp Wildfire

The second major wildfire, dubbed the Log Swamp Wildfire, broke out in the late morning of April 15, scorching sections of the Bass River State Forest, the Stafford Forge Wildlife Management Area and the Warren Grove Bombing Range.

That fire, initially spotted by a Cedar Bridge fire tower observer, was reported by the NJFFS to be officially located in Little Egg Harbor

Township, and Route 539 there was closed for a time this past Saturday due to the conditions.

Another briefing package issued by the NJFFS reported that at 8 a.m. April 16, the agency achieved 100 percent containment of what turned into a 1,607-acre wildfire in Little Egg Harbor. It was said that a prescribed burn at the Warren Grove Bombing Range completed Feb. 27 by the NJFFS was “key to both stopping the fire’s progress and containing it.”

Cecil, in the conference call with reporters, described the Log Swamp Wildfire as having occurred in the “very volatile fuels of pygmy pines.”

“One of the things that helped us contain that fire is the prescribed burn that we did in March of this year – about 2,000 acres we burned across Warren Grove and Stafford Forge,” he said. “And, generally, in the Route 539 corridor we have put a lot of attention into conducting prescribed burns over the last few years and we believe that has reduced the amount of fuels in those spaces, and certainly in the Log Swamp Wildfire we saw that effectively form a barrier to the spread of that fire.”

No residential structures, it was reported by the NJFFS, were threatened by this particular wildfire and there were no evacuations.

Love described the Log Swamp Wildfire as having occurred in the “most fire dependent ecosystem and most volatile fuels we have.”

“We had some major access problems getting in there initially,” he revealed. “A decision was made to do an indirect attack. Fire is going to burn with the bend. That day we had a southeast wind. So we knew the fire was going to burn in a northwest fashion, and we knew that we had that control burn we just accomplished early in the season protecting us, so the decision was made to do an indirect attack for the safety of firefighters, instead of doing a direct attack.”

River Road Wildfire

A third major wildfire to occur in the Pinelands, named the River Road Wildfire, developed in the Lower Bank section of

Washington Township on April 18. During a more than 12-hour stretch, some 30 structures were identified by the NJFFS as having been “threatened,” but no mandatory evacuations were reportedly ordered.

The blaze, which has been “burning in pine, oak and mountain laurel fuels,” reportedly consumed forestland in an area south of County Route 542/Pleasant Mill Road, north and east of Old Church Road and west of River Road, with these roads having to be closed at the height of the blaze.

Given the wildfire’s close proximity to the famed Lower Bank Tavern, and first responders using the establishment’s parking lot as a positioning point, the restaurant closed early on April 18.

“I want to thank everyone who was involved

with putting out the River Road Forest Fire,” said the establishment’s ownership in a later statement. “It was impressive to see all of the different companies working together to battle the fire.”

It is expected the Washington Township fire will top out at around 257 acres when it is fully contained.

Chief Mike Alexander, of the Lower Bank Volunteer Fire Company, in an April 19 statement, wrote that “the fire is mostly contained, but will continue to smolder for a few days.” No injuries were reported in this wildfire, either.

All three fires are under investigation, with McLaughlin noting that for the Route 539 blazes, the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department

(Continued from Page 5)

Photo By New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

The Log Swamp Wildfire as it burned in the “most fire dependent ecosystem and most volatile fuels we have.”

Photo By New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

A smoke plume generated by the Log Swamp Wildfire in Little Egg Harbor Township.

See WILDFIRES/ Page 15

Preliminary new zoning map for the Township of Bass River.

(Continued from Page 1)

It has often been brought to the boards that the Pinelands Commission’s development regulations, enacted through its Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP), present financial hardships for those wanting to build or expand in town, and thus the township loses the opportunity for much needed ratables.

The mayor said that after the township expressed its desire to “pull out of Pinelands,” however, it learned the only way to do that is “legislatively” down in Washington, D.C., and therefore, came to the realization “that is going to be impossible to do.”

What came next, Buzby-Cope explained,

is that staffers from the Pinelands Commission came down to Bass River and met with local officials.

“They sat down with us several times and they decided they would go through the whole entire town and see where the possibilities are to put in any type of ratables, because with any type of preservation properties, even if you have 1,000 acres, you can’t build, unless you have an existing dwelling,” Buzby-Cope said.

The Pinelands Commission’s review, according to the mayor, “found enough places high enough,” or not in wetlands, in which the agency thought the buildable lot sizes could be reduced “to put ratables in there.”

According to recent Planning Board meeting minutes, John Hess, an engineering representative for that board, explained that there are “five requirements addressed”

in the re-examination report, with state Municipal Land Use Law requiring a “periodic re-examination of the township Master Plan.”

One of the changes entails changing Village Commercial buildable lot sizes from 3.2 acres to one acre. Buzby-Cope pointed out it is the only township zone in this update of the Master Plan in which the buildable lot size has been reduced.

“What is the impact to the town?” asked resident Raymond Risden at one point. “Is this going to make for 10 lots available, or 100 lots? What type of development would come out of this change?”

Buzby-Cope responded, “what it does is increase the ratables in the town” and that “when you are doing that, it affects the taxes.”

“The more ratables you have in town, the less taxes you are going to pay,” the mayor maintained.

Risden, however, raised concern that if “you are talking about 100 new homes,” more services could have to be provided, which could result in increased taxes, asking if “anyone is looking at the impact” on things such as the Convenience Center, school taxes and the police.

“The Convenience Center is at its maximum already,” he contended. “Every time I go there, everything is stuffed.”

Buzby-Cope responded that there is “not a lot of land to be able to do that,” or build 100 homes, “because the reduction to one acre is only for the village.”

“This has been going on for a long time with Pinelands,” Buzby-Cope added. “The town wanted to basically leave it because basically our hands are tied here, and this is where one acre came into play – because there is not much building room here at this time. This has been a long time coming in the town for them to try to ease up some of the regulations in order to get some homes in here, and in order to increase ratables.”

Buzby-Cope pointed out that the township’s population over the years has decreased by 200 people and maintained “it is not expected that many new people will move here solely because we are changing the zoning ordinance to one acre.”

Hess pointed out that from 2010 to 2020, in Bass River, there was a reduction of 42 housing units. Chris Norman, solicitor of the Planning Board, recounted that “having to purchase Pinelands credits in order to build on some of these properties has proved to be a financial hardship on families.”

Buzby-Cope noted that under the reduction, a one-acre lot will be buildable “only if the owner installs an innovated septic system that minimizes septic waste,” and that the prior ordinance “for a buildable lot size in Village Commercial was 3.2 acres for a standard septic system and 2 acres with innovated septic systems only.”

“We will still be requiring the innovated septic systems for the one-acre sites,” the mayor emphasized.

Hess explained that the “groundwater quality is the main issue as to why the buildable lot sizes have been restricted,” but that “the Pinelands Commission has closely monitored the newer septic systems that have become available, and based on their findings, the Pinelands Commission has reduced its allowance to one acre.”

“Our proposed change is simply to match that,” he declared.

Risden also expressed concern that “if you have a large property, and are not subdividing it, all of a sudden you become poor because the taxes go up,” suggesting that the township would look at a 5-acre parcel and assess that “you can have five lots there.”

“Now you have something worth a lot more money, so your taxes are going to go up,” Risden contended.

Resident Patrick Spagnola, meanwhile, expressed concern that “property owners will start subdividing and create a lot more buildings in our village.” Norman, in response, said “just because someone wants to subdivide, that still has to come before the Planning Board for approvals and it will continue to be subject to all applicable ordinances.”

Bass River recently elected to participate in the state’s cannabis initiative, allowing all five classes of the state commercial cannabis industry in the township. According to Hess, the Pinelands Commission, however, recently “stated that they will not support any ordinances allowing cannabis in their zones,” though O’Connor noted, “My understanding from Pinelands is that cultivating doesn’t matter, whether it is in a Pinelands jurisdiction or not.”

An original ask of the Pinelands Commission, according to the solicitor, was to “get the zoning ordinance in order, and then come back in and propose areas where we want cannabis,” and “that is why we left it out of Master Plan.”

Now that the new zoning has been adopted by the Bass River Board of Commissioners (by a 3-0 vote on March 6), she said during an April 3 meeting of the local governing body, “now we are at the point that we have to go back in and overlay areas we want to permit cultivation, processing and retail.”

While there is still some uncertainty as to whether the Pinelands Commission had “made up their mind as to what they want,” it was reported at the April 3 meeting of the township Board of Commissioners, “for a dispensary, if Pinelands isn’t going to allow it in their jurisdiction, it has to be on other side of the Parkway.”

O’Connor pointed out that the township cannabis ordinance only allows for one

See ZONING/ Page 11

meetings,” or council sessions, “and I have not seen one person in the audience come up here and say, ‘Yes, this is a good idea.’”

“If we don’t put a stop to this overdevelopment in this town, the sky is going to be the limit,” Forman declared.

After pointing to a recent housing development boom in both Mount Laurel and Lumberton townships, she pointed to the Pemberton council and asserted, “You all live ‘here.’”

“Do you really want this for us, yourselves, or your families?” she asked. “Do you really want this – several more warehouses? Cut me a break! Somebody has to stand up to these developers.”

Forman then questioned how the township was “getting the developers who are calling all the time,” asking, “Do you have to let them all come in here and talk about developing this town?”

“We are counting on you, we voted for you to keep it rural!” she exclaimed. “Voting for solar panels in the middle of a state park (a separate action that was taken), and certainly, five warehouses is not. I have no words to talk about that.”

Forman received thunderous applause from the audience, with Ward later pointing out the session was “well-attended.”

Patriarca, who set the redevelopment in motion during his tenure, previously explained that it was a bid to get more ratables in town, and that the town desires such things as bringing a new supermarket and jobs to town, which won’t happen without such development.

Birmingham residents Desiree Dumm and Patricia Guthrie, who followed Forman, stated that they “agreed” with everything said by Forman, with Dumm asking council to “please come out and take a look at our neighborhood, and consider the wildlife, nature and trees that are going to come down” as a result of the proposed warehouses, as well as the “way this is going to affect 30 homes.”

“It is hard to describe what this feels like with this going in our backyard,” Dumm declared. “Please put yourselves in our shoes. Would you want this in your backyard? Do you want someone digging up to your property line?”

Dumm added that she “doesn’t even live all that close” to the initial warehouse erected in Birmingham, but that she “already deals” with it, including “dealing with light pollution, a wildlife influx, and water issues,” maintaining that since the initial warehouse was built, “our water pressure has gone down significantly” despite assurances from the developer that “this was not going to happen” and it would be “safe.”

“We have a lot of concerns,” Dumm asserted. “We voted you in to support us, and be our voice. … Help us, help you … and if there is a way to prevent this, such as signing petitions … let us know and we will get it done.”

Gutherie, who pointed out she “lives right across the street” from “where they are talking about doing a complex,” recounted how she was told that the developer had “standards that needed to be met,” but “they went ahead and did not meet the standards.” She further recounted having showed local officials how there was already a stream in her backyard, but now, as a result of the initial project, “I have a running river that goes through my backyard.”

“It is almost three to four times worse than what I had to deal with before,” she maintained.

Gutherie, in describing the change in wildlife patterns, asserted she “misses hearing the owls that used to nest where the warehouse is now” and that tree frogs

that used to be on her windshield have disappeared, while brown bats “that used to be everywhere” have been reduced to the point that “I barely see two or three a year anymore.” Additionally, she maintained, “turkeys have moved into my yard,” as well as deer, and have “wiped out” her grape vineyards.

“With them ripping out another 26 acres of forest out across the street from my house, where is the wildlife going to go?” Gutherie asked.

Richard Knapp, who also lives in the Birmingham neighborhood and is a retired police chief, attested to “traffic increasing” and “speed limits being ignored.” He was one of several residents who claimed that “truck traffic has increased” on Brandywine Road, which intersects with Birmingham and North Pemberton roads, since the initial warehouse was built. The residents pointed to a dangerous situation being created on Brandywine Road due to it being narrow and having a one-lane bridge.

“And you haven’t even started with this new project with the five warehouses,” declared Knapp, while resident Catherine Pennino, who lives in a cabin by the bridge, asserted, “I am waiting for the day there is going to be an accident there – someone is going to be killed there.”

“There is no way any truck traffic should be going through there at all,” she added.

When an application for the initial warehouse was heard by the Planning Board back in 2019, the project planners testified that as a condition, an access point would not be created off Birmingham Road. The project planners described the county was giving them pushback on the decision, which they claimed had wanted an access point on Birmingham Road, or the primary access route for the Birmingham neighborhood.

“Originally, we were told, when the first warehouse was going in, that it is not going to affect Birmingham at all,” Pennino pointed out, before asking the crowd at the April 5 council meeting, “Does everyone remember that?”

Numerous attendees at the latest council session shouted “yes” in response from their seats.

“Now, all of a sudden, they have an entrance going in on Birmingham Road, on the side of a person’s property,” continued Pennino, pointing to a copy of the proposed site plan she had received. “Really? What are we thinking about here? We are taxpayers! We are residents! And we moved here because it is rural!”

Pennino, in pointing to the rural character of Birmingham, demanded to know, “When did they change the zoning?” and “What does that mean to our property values?”

“People live here, and people have children,” she declared. “People don’t want to go in their backyard with stinking diesel all over the place. … I moved here from Bergen and Monmouth counties not to have warehouses and apartments anywhere near me! And I can’t tell you how many trucks go right over the bridge.”

Shannon Shadman, another Birmingham resident, described trucks reaching speeds as high as 80 mph on Brandywine Road, and described having to already “make adjustments for our children” when at play in the neighborhood, which she maintained is the result of the initial warehouse.

Tompkins, in describing that the property for the five proposed warehouses is designated a redevelopment zone, and it is zoned accordingly, and that the Planning Board therefore cannot legally “deny their claim to develop that property,” faced pressure to do just that.

And after facing that pressure, the mayor described “there are certain things you can and can’t do.”

“That developer has potentially millions of dollars into acquiring a property and engineering and all the other good things,”

the mayor said. “If they (the Planning Board) do change it from a redevelopment zone to a non-redevelopment zone, then we could be opening ourselves up to liability.”

It is noted on the DD1 Development website that the firm, as of April 2022, had a reported budget of $60 million.

However, in the wake of a recent solicitor showdown, in which the end result was Pemberton adding several lawyers to its special counsel pool, one woman quipped, “you have three lawyers here!”

“I am just trying to explain to folks that it seems very simple: you go to the Planning Board, like you do council, and voice your opinions and the Planning Board says, ‘No, you can’t do it,’ and it happens where you actually can do it. It is not that simple. I really wish it was. But there are rules and regulations they have to follow. As a new member of the Planning Board, I am finding this out more than I want to, unfortunately.”

Tompkins, at one point, pointed out that he had appointed Doyle as an alternate to the Planning Board, but that seemingly did little to satisfy the crowd, nor did a suggestion that adding a “possible Environmental Commission” would further give the Planning Board “teeth” to contend with the concerns.

“I don’t understand why you just can’t say, ‘No!’ that you don’t want something in your area,’” said Valerie Roohr, who lives close to the Pemberton Township border in neighboring Southampton Township, but has farmland in Pemberton, of which she previously claimed would be possibly adversely affected by the planned cannabis cultivation operation. “Why can’t you say ‘no,’ regardless if it all has the logistics? If we don’t want it, why do we have to have it?

“I don’t want Pemberton to look like Cherry Hill! If I wanted it to be Cherry Hill, I would have moved to Cherry Hill! I don’t mind driving to Lumberton to go to Walmart because I like to have space between people! I like to see what I see. … I don’t understand, we don’t want this … there has to be a loophole.”

Pemberton Township Council, while it still had been under absolute Democratic control, declared a portion of Birmingham a General Commercial/Light Industrial (GCLI) zone in 2017 and 2018 updates, despite it being mostly comprised of singlefamily-detached residential structures.

The change in zoning designation permits retail sales of goods and services, restaurants, bars, taverns, nightclubs, department stores, garden centers engaged in the retail sale of living plant material, banks —including drive-in facilities — offices and office buildings, theaters, bowling alleys, racquet clubs, swim clubs, skating rinks, pitch-and-putt golf courses and similar entertainment uses (except pinball or video arcades), automobile sales through franchised new car dealers, car washes, service stations, wholesale distribution

facilities, along with light industrial uses such as manufacturing, child-care centers, health clubs, fitness centers, funeral homes and taxicab operations, in a large part of Birmingham.

Additionally, in both 2017 and 2019, several lots in the neighborhood were designated “as an area in need of redevelopment” by Pemberton Township Council, only helping to further refine the zoning to spur economic development in the area.

Democratic Councilman Paul Detrick, seated on council in 2021, later responded to Roohr’s concerns that while he “can’t comment on the application and everything, as a general principle, we are a nation of laws and if an applicant comes in and meets all the laws, the Planning Board has a hard time turning them down.”

“One lady said she doesn’t understand why, if we don’t want it, we can’t say ‘no,’” Detrick said. “There is history behind that. It used to be all the good old boys got their stuff approved and anybody else couldn’t get it approved, so they said that is not fair, and let’s make rules, and if you make rules, you get approved.”

He advised that if there is an “objector,” that “what you got to do is “provide the board with evidence that the applicant is not meeting all the requirements.” He said that while a woman just told the council there is water now running across her property, “he is not an expert.” His recommendation is that “while, unfortunately, it can cost money” is for the residents of Birmingham to collectively get together and “get an expert” to testify “there is water running across the property and they haven’t taken care of it,” as well as to “species habitat” changes occurring in the area.

“You need someone to come go to the Planning Board and say, ‘Here is the evidence they haven’t done it right,’” Detrick said. “It can’t be me and you saying it. … You need an expert with degrees. If they have no basis to turn it down, (and they do so), they are going to get sued, it is going to cost the town money and they are going to lose anyway. It has to be based on solid evidence, not feelings and opinions.”

Meanwhile, McCartney said she wanted to know “why are there trucks going around that really tight curve” on Brandywine Road, while Gardner told the crowd to “get your evidence” together that “trucks are coming from the warehouse,” pointing out there is “another company in that area that has trucks that has nothing to do with warehouses,” but recognizing that “in the plan and agreement (with Seldat), no trucks from the warehouse are allowed in Birmingham.”

Following the kerfuffle, Hornickel maintained to this newspaper that there are “five commercial buildings” being proposed in Birmingham that “people are loosely referring to warehouses,” though the legal notice referred to each proposed building as warehouses.

ZONING

dispensary and, so far, of those who have asked for letters of support from the township to open a cannabis enterprise in town, except for one firm, “everyone else is cultivation.”

Meanwhile, in regard to the new zoning that has been adopted, Buzby-Cope noted that the Pinelands Commission did not approve expansion of the Village Commercial boundary toward Maple Avenue, “so we did not change it.”

However, according to officials, there are some properties that had been zoned Highway Commercial that “residents requested be removed and have been removed and will remain Forest Zone,” and that there were other properties zoned Highway Commercial that were not showing as such on the township zoning map that “will now show as Highway Commercial.”

Additionally, the re-examination created “new IRD (Infill Residential District) and IC (Infill Commercial) zones,” which O’Connor later told this newspaper was to “get more ratables and allow residents to do more with the properties that they have in these areas.”

Local officials explained that by adding the new zones, it allows the properties within them to have some new uses. The IC zone is located along a portion of Leektown-Chatsworth Road, while the IRD is in spots to the west-northwest of New Gretna, between Clubhouse Drive and Robinson Road.

Resident “Mr. Van Orden,” asked of the

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stormwater infrastructure and embracing new approaches that will reduce stormwater impacts to our waterways.”

The release in which he is quoted claims the state “stormwater infrastructure is inadequate to handle increasing precipitation” and that Democratic Governor Phil Murphy’s Administration has made $19 million in grants available to “help municipalities with the transition to new municipal stormwater permitting system requirements designed to better protect New Jersey’s waterways from pollutants in stormwater.”

It is eventually explained in the release that “in the past, the state used a two-tiered Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit system for nearly all of the state’s municipalities, with the exception of seven that do not have separate municipal stormwater-collection systems,” and that “this infrastructure is typically comprised of publicly owned storm drains, outfalls, basins and related infrastructure.”

Tier A permits, it is noted, “in the past” generally applied to municipalities in highly urbanized parts of the state or coastal watersheds, and Tier B municipalities generally included smaller and less developed communities and were largely clustered in western portions of the state.

“During a periodic review of the program, the NJDEP and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) agreed there were opportunities to better address loadings of nutrients that impact the quality of waterways in Tier B communities,” it is stated in the release. “As of result of this review, the NJDEP redesignated all 101 previous Tier B municipalities as Tier A in order to help better manage stormwater discharges and resulting pollutant and nutrient impacts to waterways. The re-designated communities were notified of the changes last year.”

After going on about how “the new MS4

changes recently, “Will it raise taxes on properties that are rezoned?”

Buzby-Cope called it a “good question,” and responded that she spoke with Tax Assessor Jay Renwick, who reportedly responded “‘it depends.’”

“The value of the property could increase because now it could be considered commercial and you can do more with it,” she said. “He also said it depends on the rate. In some cases, it could go up, and in other cases, it might not.”

With the Pinelands Commission having a reputation locally for setting “stringent rules,” Risden put a question to the mayor: “Why are they easing up when they are so stringent?”

Buzby-Cope replied that it is because “they realize that in a lot of the places there is not a lot of wetlands.”

“They know the different obstacles here of trying to build a home, so after sitting down with them, they went through whole perimeter here in town of where they thought it would be a good idea to change the zoning,” the mayor responded. “And we do this (examine the Master Plan) every 10 years. We are past the 10-year mark because of COVID, and have had backups going back and forth.

“So, this has been years in the making of trying to get where we are with the zoning changes, in order for people to do more with their properties and in order for people to come into this area. It is not much – very minimal. This has been a long time coming. Pinelands – this is their idea. We work with them the best that we can, and we expect that in return too. For us to make this change, it is huge.”

permit should be transformational for New Jersey’s waterways,” the release mentions that the “101 newly designated Tier A municipalities may apply for $75,000 in grants,” and that the “already existing Tier A municipalities may apply for $25,000 in aid to assist them with implementing enhanced requirements.” The grants will be awarded on a rolling basis through Dec. 31, 2023, it is noted, and municipalities are encouraged to submit grant applications as soon as possible to get an early award.

It is unclear, as of press time, whether Bass River has submitted a grant application.

Buzby-Cope, during the recent township Board of Commissioners meetings, noted that when the township switched to Tier A, the state even “wanted us to have streetsweepers come in to take care of cleaning all our roads,” but that state officials finally “realized we have some dirt roads.”

“We are trying to work with DEP best we can,” she said. “But it kind of makes you question some things, especially when some things have been up there (at the Convenience Center) for so long, especially the stumps on the top of the hill. We shut that down many years ago in the sense of taking things up there. So, we will just do the best we can with what we have to work with.”

Bourguignon, who abstained when it came time for a local vote on incorporating the updated stormwater management regulations into the local stormwater management plan, added that “my thing is it should not be on the taxpayers,” and that it is “just like with Superstorm Sandy,” when the state came down and promised, “We are not going to ever allow that to happen to you again,” after the town became “isolated,” but ended up giving the town “absolutely zero” in aid.

“You can’t just put a burden on taxpayers,” he said, as the local stormwater regulations were updated in a 2-0 vote. “The state has to come through with something!”

The grant program, the NJDEP release notes, is funded through the Corporate Business Tax.

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(Continued from Page 3)

fashion that gives us the best chance of not having to do it again.”

However, Ben Keating said he didn’t understand why the covering could not be done sooner considered it was an “extremely mild winter.”

“I just want it to be a deterrent,” he declared, with Gadd responding, “Apparently, whoever it is, nothing is going to deter them from keep on doing it.”

The public safety director added the situation is a “state police matter, but with respect to the stuff being covered, it has been covered.”

Sue Keating, in response, demanded to know if Gadd actually spoke to the New Jersey State Police about the matter, and after the township committeeman replied “no,” the victim asked, “Why not?”

“I don’t know every time when the state police are called in this township,” the public safety director replied, to which Sue Keating quipped, “I certainly told you the last time!”

Gadd noted he does not get any reports from the law enforcement agency, to which Sue Keating again reiterated that the responding

State Troopers have asked why the township isn’t contacting them to report the writings on the municipal road.

“Why would the state police ask you why we are not contacting them?” asked Gadd, to which Sue Keating responded, “Because you are the township and they are doing it to a township road.” That led Gadd to put another question to the resident, asking how the township would be able to stop the perpetrators if the state police have not yet been able to stop them. That is when Sue Keating proclaimed, “the state police did arrest somebody – somebody else.”

Sue Keating’s husband, Chris, then chastised officials for not acting sooner, claiming he observed one of the town trucks passing by the scene of the graffiti, declaring, “I’ve seen it with my own eyes! … You know! Don’t say you don’t know!”

“If they can’t see it, then they shouldn’t be driving down the road!” quipped Chris Keating, as local officials maintained they learned of the new writings just prior to the April 4 governing body meeting. “… Then don’t say you didn’t know about it! … Well then take care of it and do it promptly!”

As the governing body adjourned, James could be heard saying that he will call the state police and ask for a copy of the police report.

having allegedly committed sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual contact, and having endangered the welfare of a child. In addition, his mother, Angela Ryker, 51, also of Hammonton, was charged by Medford Township Police on a single count of witness tampering.

The charges against Jonathan Ryker range from having improper physical contact with one underage client to sending “sexually explicit photographs and images” to another, who was 17 at the time, then enticing her to go with him to a motel and have sexual intercourse with him, after which he was allegedly overheard on a court-ordered recorded telephone call instructing the unidentified victim to tell law enforcement “that she was 18 years old at the time of the incident.”

Angela Ryker is alleged to have knowingly attempted, while aware that an official procedure or investigation was pending,

to “induce or otherwise cause the victim to withhold testimony,” using the medium of TikTok, and to “recant her statement.”

For a time, the local studio was a member of a network of such training facilities with the name Rockstar Cheer in some 16 locales around the country that were included on a website listing each on the head of a guitar.

Southampton was one such locale, another being Greenville, S.C. the home of Rockstar Cheer and Dance that closed “indefinitely” last Sept. 7, shortly after its owner, Scott Foster, died from what was reported to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound and the facility, along with affiliated entities, was subsequently served with a lawsuit filed on behalf of some 100 unidentified young victims, which accused Foster of sexually abusing and transporting them across state lines for illegal sexual activity.

A second lawsuit alleged that he and his wife Kathy, who were identified as “the owners of a pre-eminent cheerleading gym and coaching empire” in upstate South Carolina, had hosted parties where drugs

and alcohol were served to minors. Also named in the suit were Varsity Spirit, LLC, its affiliated companies, its parent company, Bain Capital LP, and its governing body, the USASF.

A legal brief filed by the Strom Law Firm of Columbia, S.C., alleged that at the time of his suicide, Foster had become aware that he was being investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security “related to allegations that he was sexually abusing underage athletes and taking them across state lines for the purposes of engaging in sex.” Foster’s bio (at the Rockstar Cheer website) claimed he had a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice and that he had been preparing for a career as an FBI agent before opting instead to go onto the field of competitive cheerleading.

The effect of the suicide, lawsuits and closing on the industry was such that the South Carolina-based newsletter FITSNEWS referred to those events as the “spectacular implosion” of the Greenville Rockstar Cheer facility.

The defendants in the case have since asked a judge to dismiss it for failure to state a claim, which the judge has still not ruled on, according to Alexandra Benevento, an attorney with Strom Law who has been involved in representing all the plaintiffs.

In a statement posted to Facebook, Angela Ryker declared that “first and foremost, we care deeply about the safety and security of all the athletes within the Cheer community.”

“We have and will continue to fully cooperate with the authorities during this process,” she added. “We are confident that the legal process will bring to light the truth so that the cheer community can move forward.”

The posting concluded, “At this time, we ask that you respect our family’s privacy as the legal process takes shape.”

Neither Jonathan nor Angela Ryker could be reached for further comment. But they are reported to have filed papers in early March for a competitive operation, Rock Royalty Cheer LLC.

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Department of Public Works in its Streets and Roads Division.

“There were no reported injuries and the fire investigation is continuing,” Hornickel said.

This newspaper previously reported that the township designated the former college campus as an area in need of redevelopment and had even designated a developer last

year for the parcel to build townhomes, single-family homes and apartments. But that deal reportedly fell through, with RCBC reportedly continuing to own the parcel. A review of the RCBC Board of Trustees’ recent meeting minutes make no mention as to the status of the campus, or any plans for it. The now-dilapidated buildings are still standing as of press time.

The Pine Barrens Tribune also previously reported that the vacant facilities have been the subject to numerous instances of repeated vandalism and small fires.

(Continued from Page 8)

and Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office have deployed their Crime Scene units and officials believe they have pinpointed the origin of those two blazes.

Kanouse Wildfire

All three major wildfires to have occurred in the Pines recently, were in addition to another major one that broke out in North Jersey, dubbed the Kanouse Wildfire. It was reported that at 10 a.m. April 15, the NJFFS achieved 100 percent containment of that 972-acre wildfire in West Milford Township, which occurred on Newark Watershed property.

That one had prompted the evacuation of five structures with 10 structures having been originally threatened by the fire, the NJFFS reported. Cecil noted that dead ash trees, which dry out quickly, killed by the Emerald Ash Borer, posed challenges for firefighters battling that particular blaze.

“The support has been overwhelming from local residents in these communities where the fires occurred, from south to north,” McLaughlin said. “It has been overwhelming and just tremendous, and has made us feel special, important and proud to go the extra mile to work hard, work overnight, and work in extremely hot conditions, which I don’t think any of us were prepared for this early in the year. The outpouring of food, water, goodwill (was just incredible) – and people had even called me to offer their homes for us to take showers in because we were moving people and resources around from different parts of the state and they were traveling sometimes 2 to 3 hours – people were just

very supportive offering their homes, couches and beds.”

Now is Wildfire Season

As of April 18, prior to the wildfire in Lower Bank and additional fire weather days, 517 wildfires this year in New Jersey had burned 7,608 acres. That is compared to 327 wildfires having burned 471 acres at about this time last year, and 373 wildfires having burned 508 acres the year prior during the same time span. Officials said while 2023 is an above average season, it hasn’t approached historical levels, but the uptick follows a year and half of “abnormally dry conditions,” according to Love and Cecil, coming off a record wet year in 2019.

“A lot of places where we normally have a luxury to stop fires, we don’t have anymore because the swamps are dry,” said Love of the recent abnormally dry conditions. “So, that is adding to the issues we are having this year.”

Officials revealed the day of the major inferno in Manchester and Lakehurst, there had been 15 wildfires that day alone, with the others much smaller, though it was pointed out small sizes don’t necessarily mean no danger with one of the smaller ones having recently occurred in a neighborhood setting.

“Spring is peak wildfire season, and we need to recognize that, because I think there is a general sense amongst most people that fire season is in the summer because we hear about large fires in California and in the west, which are occurring in late summer and because it is hot,” McLaughlin said. “But it is not the case (here) – fire season is now.

“In the summertime it is hot, but it is also (normally) humid. Everything is green, everything is full of moisture. That is not to say a fire can’t occur in the summertime, as we saw fires last year because it was dry and hot with unprecedented low humidity during that time. But it is not our traditional season.”

Photos By Nicholas Weissmann

of the now-vacant facilities and grounds of the former Burlington County College (also known as Rowan College at Burlington County, or RCBC) in Pemberton Township.