Voters will decide whether Readington Township moves forward with a proposed $22 million bond ordinance to buy Solberg Airport or its development rights, officials announced Monday.

Mayor Gerard Shamey confirmed that Solberg Aviation has submitted a petition with the necessary number of signatures to force a public vote on the bond ordinance, which the committee approved on Feb. 21. The date of the referendum will be announced in April, the mayor said. It could be done in a special election or in the November general election.

Meanwhile, Ed Dudzinski, a candidate for Township Committee, recently met with Federal Aviation Administration and state Department of Transportation officials to find out whether Solberg Aviation would be able to bypass the township Board of Adjustment if it were to receive federal Airport Improvement Program funding.

On Monday, he showed correspondence from both agencies claming that the township’s local land-use powers wouldn’t be usurped if Solberg Aviation were to seek an expansion.

In a March 9 e-mail to Dudzinski, William Flanagan, FFA airports division manager, wrote that if the Solbergs were to request federal funds, “they would be required to comply with any local town zoning board approvals to be eligible to receive this type of grant.” If they were unable to gain such approvals, “they would not be deemed eligible to receive a Development Grant.”

Tom Thatcher, director of the state DOT Division of Aeronautics, wrote in a March 10 e-mail that “there would be no FAA preemption of local land use and zoning controls” if the airport owners accepted FAA funds. “The expenditure of federal funds on privately owned property does not create any exceptions or immunity from municipal regulation or control” under the municipal land use law.

However, township officials say it would be a mistake to delay action until an expansion is pending. “Tom Thatcher told me that the FAA, in his view, has two big ticket items in New Jersey regarding general aviation, one of which would be Solberg Airport,” Mayor Shamey said. “All he has confirmed to me is that nothing is pending. We’ve been to the point that something was pending, and to wait for that point is a mistake.”

Of Dudzinski’s involvement, Shamey said, “I find it somewhat bothersome that we’ve been working so hard on this for so long and then he comes along and has all the answers. He’s a pretty amazing guy, apparently. Mr. Dudzinski appears to be making a case that a do-nothing approach is a good approach, which is very dangerous if he’s concerned about maintaining the quality of life.”

According to Shamey, a major factor in local control is the Airport Safety and Zoning Act, which requires municipalities to make all existing airports a conforming use. Because Readington has never adopted this ordinance, Solberg Airport is a non-conforming use, meaning Zoning Board of Approval permission would be needed to expand.

However, the mayor is convinced that if Solberg Aviation were to push this issue, a court would likely rule in the airport’s favor and force the township to pass the ordinance. If that were to happen, Solberg Aviation would only need site-plan approval from the Planning Board to expand. Provided that their proposal met township requirements, the board wouldn’t have any recourse to deny the proposal, the mayor said.

Dudzinski is urging residents and the committee to research this issue so that a full understanding of the facts is reached before any action is taken. “I would like members of the committee to meet directly with the FAA and DOT to hear for themselves what they have to say,” he said Tuesday.

He also is calling for the township to hire attorneys with expertise in municipal land use law, the FAA, the state DOT and the interstate commerce clause of the Constitution to issue a joint letter interpreting the ability of Solberg Aviation to expand. “We need to find that information out, and it needs to be shared with the residents,” he said.

Copyright © 2006 NJ.com

Date: March 23, 2006 Source: NJ.com
URL: http://www.nj.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1143146044236680.xml?hunterdon?news&coll=12