State Opts for New Development/Redevelopment Process

State officials quickly admitted it was an environmental map and not a definitive plan, tinkered with it, then removed it from the NJ Department of Environmental Protection's website entirely, promising a new version to be unveiled later. Now, the BIG Map is history, canned by top state officials. In its place will apparently evolve a kinder, gentler multi-pronged approach to reining in sprawl in the country's most densely populated state.

From the beginning, according to insiders, the matter became a turf battle of sorts between NJDEP and the Department of Community Affairs, and the two departments will apparently share the onus going forward. According to a DCA spokesperson, the department is targeting next March for issuance of a preliminary State Development and Redevelopment Plan along with a new map that's expected to more closely resemble the existing state growth management map, which itself dates back close to a decade.

According to the DCA spokesperson, the new plan will then undergo a cross-acceptance process, which involves overlaying the new plan with existing local, county and regional plans and zoning for consistency. One of the biggest gripes of the BIG Map was that ignored existing conditions, putting numerous locally generated redevelopment plans in the so-called red zones.

For its part, DEP is expected to introduce, before the end of the year, a new regulatory approach to development approvals tied to containing sprawl. According to Commissioner Brad Campbell, the package will include "a more streamlined approval process for areas appropriate for growth. It will also set tougher standards and protections for environmentally sensitive areas."

While not strictly enforced by something like the now-departed BIG Map, DEP's new package will still be designed to steer growth to certain areas over others. "It just won't come across as being so heavy-handed," according to one administration official.