TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON—The township plans to acquire the last of 16 property easements needed for Bergen County to undertake an intersection overhaul at the often-congested Pascack Road–Washington Avenue nexus.
That’s according to Township attorney Kenneth Poller, who told Pascack Press on Aug. 24 that he would file a declaration of taking following an Aug. 18 Superior Court hearing with a final property owner who declined to negotiate for an easement on two small pieces of property.
Poller said the court agreed with the township’s position that an easement should be granted to improve a public roadway and that the township’s filing of a declaration of taking was comparable to an easement.
Poller said the township deposited its estimated fair market value of $18,000 for the easements but a final determination of their value would be computed by a three-person panel of condemnation commissioners established by Superior Court.
Poller said they would evaluate appraisals and set a fair market value for the property by Nov. 17.
Meanwhile, Poller said, “the project can move forward.” He said he would contact Bergen County’s engineering and planning department to let them know all easements were in hand.
On Aug. 9, Mayor Peter Calamari told the Township Council that 15 of 16 easements needed for the long-awaited intersection improvement project had been acquired and the final one was in condemnation proceedings under eminent domain.
Overall, the Township was able to successfully negotiate nearly all needed easements with property owners, said Calamari.
A Pascack Press request for the cost of all easements needed for the project was not returned by press time.
A final condemnation court hearing to acquire easements affecting lands owned by SZ Realty Investment LLC,
Peter Covello, Tonya Covello and Pascack Auto Exchange Inc., was held Aug. 18 in Superior Court, said Poller.
The hearing public notice said the township planned to “exercise eminent domain” on Lots 1 and 7 of Block 3103.
The easements under condemnation included the Lot 1 road widening easement that comprises 1,679 square feet at 680 McKinley Avenue and the Lot 7 temporary construction easement that encompasses 432 square feet at 689 Pascack Road.
On Aug. 9, Calamari said that Township Administrator Robert Tovo and representatives from Boswell attended a preconstruction meeting in July with PSE&G regarding the new transmission line being installed at the western side of the intersection.
Calamari said recently he anticipated the intersection improvement project to begin in 2021.
A county planning and engineering official told Pascack Press that work on the project can be scheduled when all local easements required are received.
In June, Calamari said that Boswell Engineering of South Hackensack, the town engineer on the project, received a letter from Bergen County stating that the county would be funding the intersection in its 2021 budget.
Calamari said that on March 26 Boswell received final comments from the county planning and engineering department on its construction plans and specs for the improved intersection.
He said Boswell submitted its final intersection plans to the county May 27, including all required revisions.
Also on May 27, Calamari said the township received project certification from the county soil conservation district. He said Boswell had provided easement maps, and that new PSEG utility lines and poll relocations along Pascack Road were ongoing and new poles were anticipated to start this month along Washington Avenue.
The county required township officials to acquire all easements needed before it could begin the extensive improvement project, which was planned under a shared services agreement that officials signed in mid-2019.
However, the SSA’s authorization was delayed by the township until December 2019 due to a second engineer’s review and document edits.