Immediate Action Needed By Phillipsburg Residents!
(Update July 24, 2025): On July 25, 2024, the Phillipsburg Land Use Board will be taking action regarding a "referral to the Land Use Board to direct Van Cleef Engineering to conduct Amendment to Riverfront Redevelopment Plan". This means that the Land Use Board is being directed to prepare and amendment to the Riverfront Development Plan that will indicate that rezoning the Peron Howard Street property from Riverside Residential to Industrial is consistent with the Master Plan. We believe that changing the Peron Howard Streeet property from Riverside Residential to Industrial is not consistent with the 2013 Master Plan Revision Report, and additionally this rezoning, which will open the way for a warehouse to be built on the Peron Howard Street property, will hurt the residential areas that will suffer the effects of the warehouse on this property. Come to the Land Use Board meeting and let the Land Use Board know that you do not want the property to be rezoned from Riverside Residential to Industrial.
On August 22, 2024, it expected the Consistency Report will be presented, and there will be a public hearing on this topic. However, once the process reaches the stage of a public hearing, the abiliy to present information and get it on the record is limited. Attending the Thursday, July 25, 2024 meeting and making statements and presenting your information is very important.
If you care about the future of Phillipsburg, please come to the 7:00 p.m., July 25, 2024 Phillipsburg Land Use Board meeting at the Phillipsburg Senior Center, located at 310 Firth Street.
The Consistency Plan is a report that will be prepared by a "planner". The "planner" is an individual that is paid by the town to prepare the Consistency Report for the town. The Consistency Report will provide background information and justification, from the planner's perspective, as to whether rezoning the Peron Howard Street property from Rivreside Residential to Industrial is consistent with the Master Plan. There will be discussion and input from the public.
Once all input is provided, the members of the Phillipsburg Land Use Board will take a vote to determine if changing the zoning of the Peron Howard Street property from Riverside Residential to Industrial is consistent with the Master Plan. Changing the zoning of this property to Industrial opens the way for a warehouse to be built.
We believe there is no way that it can be argued successfully that changing the zoning to Industrial is consistent with the latest Master Plan, the 2013 Master Plan Revision Report.
We need residents to turn out for the Land Use Board Meeting and let the Land Use Board members know that they do not believe it is consistent with the town Master Plan, and also present their opinion of the negative impacts making the property Industrial will present.
Our goal is to convince the Land Use Board to pass a recommendation back to the Town Council that the rezoning of Riverside Residential to Industrial is not consistent with the town's master plan.
Information for Review Below:
Consistency Plan that pertains to Ordinance 2024-14 is not yet available
2013 Master Plan Revision Report
06/26/2024 - Short Town Council Agenda06/26/2024 - District 5 Amendment Changing Riverside Residential to Industrial - Ordinance 2024 with modified Rivrside Redevelopment Plan
Click on the image to the right to download the 2013 Msster Plan Revision Report.
In the 2013 Master Plan Revision Report the town wanted to move away from industrial in the exact area that Ordinance 2024-14 is referring to. The 2013 Master Plan discusses moving the small light industrial strip of property out of the area and relocating it to make the Flats a better community. The town and Peron Construction want to do the exact opposite from the intent of the 2013 Master Plan Revision Report with Ordinance 2024-14.
Residents Feel Government Of Town Of Phillipsburg Violated Their Trust
Click on the image to the right to see the video of the Council and Mayor receiving 174 letters from the residents of Phillpsburg who do not want a warehouse built on the Peron Howard Street Property, in downtown Phillipsburg next to the Delaware River.
Updated June 20, 2024
The residents of Phillipsburg and the grassroot organizaton Phillipsburg Environmental Watch have won a significant lawsuit against the Town of Phillipsburg. The Town of Phillipsburg has withdrawn their pursuit of defending the lawsuit against Ordinance 2022-30, and as per a consent order signed June 17, 2024, by the Judge presiding over the case, the Town of Phillipsburg will vacate the latest "warehouse ordinance", Ordinance 2022-30.
However, we can't stop now. We have a second lawsuit against a previous "warehouse ordinance", Ordinance 2021-14. We also expect that the devloper may try to have the Council vote for yet another ordinance that will be contrary to the 2013 Master Plan Revision Report and make the Peron Howard Street Property Industrial. We will continue to challenge any ordinances that violate the town's Master Plan and hurts the residents of Phillipsburg.
Please email
420 letters signed by 70 Phillipsburg residents have now been delivered to Council members and the Mayor during the April 24, 2024, May 8, 2024 and June 12, 2024 Phillipsburg Town Council Meetings.
The residents wanted the members of the Phillipsburg town government to know that the rezoning of the Peron Howard Street Property to industrial and the proposed construction of a warehouse is a total violation of our trust in the government of Phillipsburg, due to the town government totally ignoring the town’s most recent 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report. These residents clearly indicated that they do not want a warehouse in downtown Phillipsburg near the residental area of the Flats, along the Delaware River.
The picture to the left shows some of the letters that signed by the residents and delivered to the members of the Phillipsburg Council and the Mayor.
There are links to two documeents that will be of interest directly below:
- 2013 Master Plan Reexaminaton Report - Link to 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report
- Ordinance 2022-30, the ordinance that rezones the Peron Howard Street propertiy from Riverside Residential to Industrial - Link to Ordinance 2022-30
The residents are requesting that the government of the Town of Phillipsburg rescind Ordinance 2022-30, the ordinance that rezones he Peron Howard Street Property from Riverside Residential to Industrial. Additionally, the residents are requesting that the Town of Phillipsburg stop wasting taxpayer dollars funding the fight against the lawsuit that is trying to overturn Ordinance 2022-30.
Read more: Residents trust in Town of Phillipsburg government violated
Rezoning The Peron Howard Street Property To Industrial Violates Town Master Plan
Ordinance 2022-30 rezones the Peron Howard Street Property from Riverside Residential to Industrial, thereby potentially paving the way for a warehouse to be built in downtown Phillipsburg along the Delaware River. Peron Constructions has already presented several warehouse configurations to the Phillipsburg Land Use Board to be constructed on the Peron Howard Street Property. Making the Peron Howard Street Property industrial zoning and building a warehouse on this property violates the Town of Phillipsburg Master Plan..
You can download Ordinance 2022-30 and the 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report by clicking on the document titles in his sentence.
The map above is for referene related to the documentation below. The three color bounded areas in the map refer to:
- Green - The section bounded by green is currently zoned residental area in the Flats of Phillipsburg. In the 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report, this section is also referred to as the old residential area. This consist of residential development between South Main Street and Cheery Alley/Mercer Street.
- Red - The section bounded by red is currently zoned light industrial area in the Flats of Phillipsburg. This was a residential area until 1961, at which time it was demolished and this strip was changed to light industrial. As can be seen in review below, the 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report recommends rezoning this property to somethng that will better compliment the existing and new residential area.
- Blue - The section bounded by blue is the area know as the Peron Howard Street Property. This property was zoned residential and Ordinance 2022-30 proposes to rezone this property to Industrial for the purpose of building a warehouse. The 2013 Master Plan Reexamination Report specifically mentions this plan as being residential and being part of the plan to enhance the residential area of town by extending the current residential and recreationaly zoning from South Main Street down to Howard Street.
Read more: Rezoning Peron Howard Street Property To Industrial Violates Town Master Plan
Who Supports A Warehouse In Downtown Phillipsburg Along The Delaware River
The residents of Phillipsburg have a right to know who supports, and does not support, a warehouse on Phillipsburg's last 32 acres of undeveloped land along the Delaware River. Below is some information regarding public comments at Phillipsburg Town Council meetings and votes taken by elected and appointed Phillipsburg town officials.
The table directly below shows, as a summary level, which Phillipsburg government officials have shown support for a warehouse in downtown Phillipsburg along the Delaware River on the Peron Howard Street property.
Total Support - voted in favor of every piece of legislation presented to move the warehouse forward | Mixed - voted in favor of some pieces of legislation to move the warehouse forward, and did not vote in favor of moving the warehouse forwared on other pieces of legislation. | Does Not Support - has consistently voted against every piece of legislation presented to move the warehouse forward | Abstain or Recusal |
David Brand |
Keith Kennedy Todd Tersigni |
Lee Clark Danielle DeGerolamo Bernard Rooney Harry Wyant (recused once properties on South Main Street became part of the site plan, voted no previously) |
William Duffy (recusal) Meliss Paulus (abstain) |
Read more: Who Supports A Warehouse In Downtown Phillipsburg Along The Delaware River
Michael Perrucci wants a warehouse because he believes nobody wants to live in the Flats of Phillipsburg
Michael Perrucci is the 100% owner of Peron Construction. Peron Construction owns 32 acres of undeveloped land along the Delaware River in the Flats of Phillipsburg.
Michael Perrucci's reasoning for building a warehouse on the last 32 acres of undeveloped land along the Delaware River is that nobody wants to live there, so he believes the best thing for Phillipsburg is to build warehouse.
Michael Perrucci reasons for believing that nobody would buy a property in the Flats is that there is a gun range at one end of Howard Street and a junk yard (small) at the other end of Howard Street. The junk yard and the gun range make the Flats of Phillipsburg an undesirable place to live. So, Michael Perrucci wants to build a warehouse nearby the residental community in the Flats of Phillipsburg.
We, the residents of Phillipsburg against a warehouse in downtown Phillipsburg along the Delaware River do not believe degradating the Flats of Phillipsburg by building a warehouse near the residental area of the Flats is a good thing for Phillipsburg, nor the Town of Phillipsburg as a whole.
Welcome to the No Warehouse In Downtown Phillipsburg, NJ website. The purpose of this website is to inform the citizens of Phillipsburg, NJ, and other concerned citizens about a warehouse that the Peron Construction company wants to build in downtown Phillipsburg, NJ along the last 32 acres along the river in Phillipsburg, NJ.
in the picture above, you can see a number of areas encircled with various colored lines:
- Encircled in RED: This is the area where Peron Construction wants to build a warehouse in downtown Phillipsburg next to the Delaware River.
- Encircled in GREEN: This is the area that is NJ State funded and encumbered Green Acres Open Space property. In Peron Constructions initial proposal, supported by Council members Robert Fulper, Frank McVey and Mark Lutz, Peron Constructions wanted to take this Green Acres land and use this land for part of a 500,000 plus square foot warehouse. The NJ State Green Acres division said that the town could not provide this land to Peron Construction.
- Encircled in BLUE: This area is a residential area known as the Flats of Phillipsburg. This residental area would be severly negatively impacted by the construction of a warehouse on the Peron Construction property, encircled in RED.
- ORANGE line: This line represents the route trucks will take to enter and exit the Peron warehouse. The trucks will travel through the residential area of the Flats of Phillipsburg. The trucks will also travel on South Main Street between the free bridge and McKeen Street. Additionally, there will be truck traffic from McKeen street along New Brunsick Avenue through Pohatcong.