Our Town letter

Our Town
58 West Pleasant Avenue
Maywood, NJ 07607

Dear Camille & Jim,

We wanted to update you on the progress being made by area residents opposed to the “big box” stores Vornado Realty proposes to build on the eastside of the Bergen Mall. There have been significant steps taken by those who favor renovation of the Bergen Mall without expansion into the wooded area.

First, Maywood residents have formed the Maywood Lawns Homeowners Association (MLHA) to oppose Bergen Mall expansion in our neighborhood. Many will recall that in 2001 Maywood officials opposed the Mall’s plan to construct a Sears Great Indoors store east of Forest Avenue. When it became clear that Maywood officials would not oppose the much larger expansion now proposed, we formed the MLHA and retained the law firm of Uscher, Quiat, Uscher & Russo to represent our interests using private funds.

Secondly, Hackensack has joined the fight. The proposed Mall expansion borders the City of Hackensack as well as Maywood. The Hackensack Mayor and Council have retained Richard Salkin, Esq. to represent residents. Mr. Salkin represented Hackensack in 2001 against Sears.

Finally, on August 26th, the Paramus Mayor and Council unanimously approved an ordinance which limits the development of “big box” stores larger than 130,000 square feet. Vornado has requested additional variances to sidestep this ordinance. One of the requirements of the ordinance is a 150 foot setback between commercial buildings and residential properties. Currently Vornado plans call for a 60 foot setback and therefore a 90 foot variance is being requested.

The next public hearing on the Bergen Mall proposal is scheduled for October 27th in Paramus. A large turnout of Maywood, Hackensack and Paramus residents will demonstrate our concern about the negative impact of Mall expansion on the eastside. Please attend this meeting if you can. We will provide another update shortly before the October meeting.

In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about how you can help oppose Mall expansion, please contact one of us.

Sincerely,


Maywood Lawns Homeowners Association
maywood.lawns@earthlink.net