JACKSON TOWNSHIP, NJ – Residents concerned with overdevelopment in Jackson Township raised their concern to mayoral candidate Marty Flemming at a campaign meet and greet this week and the candidate’s response was a shock to many.
Flemming, who was publicly defending overdevelopment for its ability to bring more tax revenue into the town, was confronted by a member of the audience. The woman was upset over the sheer volume of new warehouses being built across the township, including a planned two million square foot warehouse project in the works by Cardinale Enterprises on Whitesville Road, dubbed “Whitesville Crossing”.
Shore News Network reported on Whitesville Crossing last week. Flemming and his running mate Samara Porter-Oneill brushed the article off to constituents as ‘fake news‘. You can see the plans for Whitesville Crossing here.
“Well, you’re building enough houses, so you got lots more property taxes,” the woman replied to Flemming. “So why are we doing this again?”
“Busineses are a plus,” Flemming told the audience. “The office buildings you see going up are a plus. The warehouses you see going up are a plus.”
When confronted about the two million square foot project on Whitesville Road on a property adorned with Flemming for Mayor signs, Flemming said he did not know about the project.
A man in the audience asked Flemming about building the two million-square-foot project in the middle of a residential neighborhood.
“How is that going to happen?” he asked Flemming.
“I haven’t seen a plan yet that shows me that,” he responded.
When Porter-Oneill heard it was published in JTOWN Magazine, she told the audience, “Keep in mind that not everything you read is factual. There are publications out there that don’t put out the full information.”
“We haven’t seen anything like that yet,” Flemming adding that a preliminary plan doesn’t mean it’s going to be built. However, Cardinale Enterprises is actively marketing the project on its corporate website.
“I’ll usually see things six months ahead of the planning board,” Flemming said. “It hasn’t come through anything official yet.”
Last week, at the township meeting, Flemming denied saying that he was going to stop overdevelopment in Jackson. This week at his meet and greet, he appeared to champion warehouse projects. Flemming has also declared that COAH and state-mandated high-density housing, “Is not as bad as you think.“