MONTVALE—The Borough Council unanimously approved a bond ordinance Aug. 30 to purchase a 28-acre tract at 127 Summit Ave. for approximately $4.6 million, following a closed session meeting where they agreed to make revisions in their letter of intent to purchase the property.
Mayor Michael Ghassali and borough attorney Joseph Voytus declined to provide any details on what concerns motivated the revisions to their intent to purchase the tract, citing ongoing confidential negotiations.
Before the vote, the governing body met privately for some 20 minutes with Planning Board chair John DePinto and engineer Andrew Hipolit.
Although three residents attended the 6 p.m. special meeting, no public comment was received. Neither the mayor nor council members offered public comment on the ordinances.
Ghassali also said it was unclear what property tax impacts would be to an average homeowner for $4.6 million in bonding. However, he cautioned, “we don’t have to spend it (bond)” if the negotiations are not successful.
On the $29.4 million school bond issue passed in late 2021, an average Montvale household will see an estimated $325 annual increase over the bond’s 25-year term, likely commencing in 2024.
Moreover, Ghassali said the proposed community pool and community center might cost $15 million to $20 million, and so both projects added together could total $25 million, or more.
A committee appointed by Ghassali is working on tentative plans for a community center and pool, with a future completion date by the end of 2024. The mayor has said the community would bond for its future pool/community center, but costs have not been finalized.
The bond ordinance notes the $4.6 million bond will be financed over a 40-year term and that the borough Master Plan identifies 13.2 of its 28.4 acres as “prospective public parkland, recreation and open space purposes.”
The ordinance also specifies, “the property and the building located thereon have significant value to the borough for both development of an inclusionary age-restricted development as well as for environmentally-sensitive land to be reserved for open space purposes”
The ordinance to purchase a 28.4-acre tract at 127 Summit Avenue and an ordinance to finance its purchase for $4.5 million were both introduced at the Aug. 9 meeting. Although neither was formally on the agenda, the council briefly discussed both and residents at the meeting appeared to favor the purchase.
Within a day, Ghassali had posted a video to his Facebook page promoting the property’s purchase. During the brief video, Ghassali walks in a forested “serene” woodland, marveling it is Montvale and swatting away gnats as he talks about the property’s 28 acres, “17 of which are buildable,” about 10 acres of wetlands and maybe a few acres of flatlands.
“This came on the market last week and the town decided we’d buy this and keep it as an asset for the town for $4.5 million…I think this would be a great lot for recreational use or just keep it as an asset for the town,” he said.
Swatting at the insects buzzing by, he said, “How much do we pay for the bugs? I don’t know, maybe they’re free.”
At the Aug. 9 meeting, Ghassali said the property came on the market in early August, and he immediately consulted with the borough’s financial officer and bond counsel, before calling the owner to make an offer.
The property is zoned for multi-family, 55+ senior housing (AH-6 AR) with six single family homes per acre, and a 20% set aside for affordable housing.
Previously, Waypoint Residential had proposed a 170-unit “active-adult” senior complex on the site, then reduced its density to 157 units. However, in spring 2021 after a year of Planning Board hearings, Waypoint Residential withdrew its proposal.