The plan coalesced after "several developers offered to buy the land for 'big box' or strip commercial development," according to Azzolina, whose father is a long-time member of the state assembly, and whose family owns a chain of supermarkets in the region. The Azzolina and Scaduto families want to use 77 acres of the 132-acre site (the rest would be open space) to develop 740,000 sf of retail space, 250,000 sf of offices, 220 residential units, a 58,000-sf theater, a 60,000-sf wellness center and a new elementary school.

Since proposed last fall, the project has been the subject of a series of township meetings, and opposition has been substantial. Now, the two sides have taken to arguing their cases online. Mountain Hill's Web site is devoted to defending it, including providing detailed answers to over 90 questions that have been posed.

The primary opposition, Concerned Citizens of Middletown, has unveiled a Web site of its own. Chief concerns include traffic, increased pressure on parking facilities of the nearby commuter train station, pressure on the school system and development of "one of the last major open areas within Middletown," according to the group's site.

The developer's site counters that the "project…implements the New Jersey State Master Plan (which calls for a new town center in Middletown) and the vision of the Middletown Township Master Plan (which calls for a town center on this site). Both plans advocate new town centers as the solution to suburban sprawl."

Mountain Hill reiterates that it will leave substantial open areas and plans to build a new school. The principals assert they will spend "millions of dollars" for roadway and access improvements, and that the project will create 2,900 permanent jobs and generate over $2.5 million in surplus tax revenues per year.

Other issues include density (Mountain Hill says its density is less than the zoning allows), and a lawsuit by Mountain Hill against Middletown, seeking to overturn some "more restrictive" changes the township committee made to its open-space plan last February. The Web site battle is ongoing; the next public exchange is expected at a township committee meeting in late May.