We are a grass roots organization with a membership of almost 1000 Cresskill residents. The members of CCSG would like to see Cresskill's government take a sensible approach to growth and development within our town to insure that the small town character of Cresskill is preserved.
CCSG was initially formed in response to the proposed development of the18 acre "Hoke" site. Residents who joined were united by the belief that the Hoke development, as originally proposed, would have had a significant, negative impacted on our town. The initial proposal for the development would have instantly added hundreds of apartments and townhouses to Cresskill, and would have overburdened our schools, roads and municipal services.
We believed that once united we could find a way to influence the negotiation process, so that the concerns of so many of Cresskill's residents would have to be addressed. By communicating Cresskill's opposition to the proposed development, we hoped to convince the developer to reduce the total number of units built and to alter the type of housing constructed so as to lessen the overall impact on our town, schools and public services.
By uniting almost 1000 concerned citizens, CCSG was able to
have a real and significant impact on the Hoke development. After successfully
raising funds, CCSG was able to hire an attorney and file an objection to Cresskill's
Fair Share Plan. CCSG objected to the town's Fair Share Plan based on the excessive
density of the proposed development. Our goal in filing the objection with the
Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) was to force the town and the developer
back to the negotiating table so that a new, less dense, proposal could be obtained.
Our strategy was successful and ultimately a new plan, which decreased the total
number of units by 25%, was proposed by the developer.
The new plan:
In addition to decreasing the impact to our town, the new plan also brings some upside to our town. The new plan for the site includes re-claiming the banks of the Tenakill River. This work, paid for by the developer, will restore this portion of the Tenakill to an ecologically sound environment, as well as create a lighted walkway along the entire length of the property which will be available for use by all residents. The Hoke development will provide Cresskill seniors with a variety of housing choices should they decide to move out of their current residences. The developer has also agreed to petition the appropriate authority and pay for the installation of railroad gates at the Madison Ave. crossings. Extra seats, on a bus used by the Congregate Care facility for daily activities, will be offered to local seniors wishing to participate in these scheduled trips.
CCSG was also successful in negotiating a donation from the developer of $144,000 to the Cresskill Education Foundation. This money will be paid in installments over the next 2 years until the project is completed.
Please feel free to e-mail us directly with any comments that you have about events occurring in our town. You may reach us at ccsg@cresskill.com