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BARNEGAT OKS CONSERVATION ZONE Date: 040608 From: http://www.app.com/ By Gregory J. Volpe, Asbury Park Press Manahawkin Bureau, 6/08/04 Barnegat - The Township Committee has adopted an ordinance creating a 267-acre conservation zone in Ocean Acres despite the protests of landowners who packed town hall to say that the measure would prevent some of them from building on property they have owned for years. The vote last night was 5 to 0. The ordinance would require anyone who wants to build on less than 10,000 square feet in the Ocean Acres development zone to purchase two lots in the conservation zone or buy a quarter Pinelands credit, valued at $20,000 to $30,000. That would decrease the number of developable lots from 2,000 to about 1,250, officials said. They said there are 560 lots under 10,000 square feet in the development zone. "If I vote against this ordinance, I do not give you any protection. If I vote no, your land is totally worthless. So with that, I can only vote yes," said Committeeman Al Cirulli. But during a hearing on the ordinance earlier last night, many speakers said it was unfair for the township to give them three weeks notice on zoning changes affecting property they have had for years. "It's inconsiderate, it's not thoughtful, it's just not right," said Tammy Spiliotis of Tinton Falls. "For you to take our land away in just three weeks is just wrong." Robert Wernoch of Elizabeth bought one of those lots 17 years ago from the township. "It wasn't purchased from a family that wanted to run away, it was purchased from the governing body that was in power at the time," Wernoch said. "All of this may be legal but it is not ethical." Pinelands Commission Executive Director John Stokes said the commission began looking at the area a year ago, needing to protect areas for the endangered pine snake and two types of plants. If the township and the commission do not create the conservation zone, no building would be allowed in Ocean Acres, he said. "This is better than the alternative," Stokes said. "The alternative would be that the Pinelands Commission would not be in a position to approve any building in the area, and there would be no financial compensation." There was some discussion about delaying the vote to include stronger language, forcing the purchase of lots in the zone without the option of buying Pinelands credits. Committeeman Thomas Hart asked the township attorney to rework the ordinance so that developers would have to buy the conservation zone lots before purchasing Pinelands credits. Harold N. Hensel, a lawyer representing a small builder who owns seven lots in the conservation zone, said if developers are not forced to buy in the zone there is no guarantee lot owners there would receive the same amount as a quarter Pinelands credit. The Pinelands credit program allows purchasers to build on land they would not normally be able to develop in exchange for buying a credit.