Middletown will oppose COAH mandates
Iwould like to take this opportunity to clarify a few things about the recently adopted COAH amendment to the township master plan. First, I would like to make it abundantly clear that this housing plan was drafted against the will of the township and was forced upon Middletown and other suburban towns by the state.

We were ordered to do this by Dec. 31 or face the specter of "builder's remedy" lawsuits, which would allow courts to take away any say the township would have in development resulting from the COAH quota. Second, the mayor and I have been vocal opponents of the entire COAH program for two main reasons: it costs the taxpayers of New Jersey billions of tax dollars to subsidize this housing and it results in housing densities and the loss of open space that would negatively affect the township.

Finally, I want to reassure every resident that we are aggressively fighting this mandate and have pledged our support to numerous bills which are being introduced in the Legislature that would give the township relief by overturning the COAH mandate.

I believe it is imperative that we do everything in our power to protect the character and landscape that makes Middletown the special place it is, and resist the forced urbanization that would result from high-density COAH housing projects. Residents can also do their part by logging into the township Web site and forwarding the posted letter to their state legislators.

In the final analysis, the only way to make New Jersey affordable for all residents is to end costly taxpayer subsidies and wasteful programs, and allow municipalities to lower local property taxes.

Pam Brightbill

Mayor Middletown Township