The nonprofit has collected nearly 14,000 signatures in a drive to preserve the forest. People wearing Friends of the Drew Forest t-shirts observed Friday’s proceedings in the historic 1827 courtroom of the Morris County Courthouse. Madison’s affordable housing obligation of 500 units was pared to 147 units in the settlement because of scarce open land, Lokken said after Friday’s hearing. Young Friends of the Drew Forest watch hearing in Morristown, Aug 19, 2022. The center advocates for people who cannot afford New Jersey’s high rents and real estate prices.ĭrew’s acreage could be “really meaningful for our clients,” Lokken told the judge. That recalculation pitch was supported Friday by the Fair Share Housing Center, which negotiated the 2020 settlement with Madison.Ĭenter attorney Rachel Lokken said the center had been unaware of Madison’s overtures to Drew. The judge will issue a written decision on Drew’s other request, for appointment of a special master to recalculate Madison’s RDP to reflect the availability of university land. Hansbury declined to overturn Madison’s settlement to do so might jeopardize scheduled construction of 43 affordable units, he said. Moreover, the university rejected borough offers of a conservation easement, and of a $3 million purchase of 9.6 Drew acres for affordable housing, he said. labeled Drew’s claims “malarkey.” The borough housing settlement was an open process, it was approved, and it confers immunity, he said. “You’re saying it doesn’t matter if the borough under-represented its RDP?” Inglesino pointedly asked the judge, referring to Madison’s Realistic Development Potential. Drew is a university, he said.ĭisputing immunity arguments, he called the settlement “a classic garbage in, garbage out situation” based on incomplete information that should be corrected. and Ed Lloyd, attorney for The Friends of the Drew Forest, Aug. “You might as well be a builder standing in front of me.” Drew University Attorney John Inglesino addresses Judge Stephan Hansbury to his right is Madison counsel Greg Costano Jr. “What’s the point of immunity, if there’s no immunity?” Hansbury said to Drew’s lawyer, John Inglesino. Repeatedly, he inquired how the university can challenge a court-approved agreement that appears to grant Madison a decade of immunity from lawsuits. The judge questioned why Drew never spoke up when the borough’s housing settlement was being hashed out. Friends of the Drew Forest watch hearing in Morristown, Aug 19, 2022. The university says it wants to sell a portion of its 168-acre campus, known as the Drew Forest, to shore up its endowment against pandemic losses and declining enrollment.īut during a two-hour hearing attended by about 30 members of a nonprofit devoted to conserving the forest, Superior Court Judge Stephan Hansbury left the settlement intact. A judge in Morristown had questions about immunity on Friday, but he wasn’t talking vaccines.ĭrew University is suing Madison to vacate its 2020 affordable housing settlement, contending the borough should have included 63 acres of Drew property as available for development.

Madison university