FIRM ON TRACK FOR MAMMOTH MAPLEWOOD HOUSING PROJECT BUILT EDGEWATER COMPLEX THAT BURNED

As the Township Committee this week moves ahead with progress on the mammoth 235-unit housing complex at the former PSE&G site on Boyden Avene, the developers are under scrutiny for their connection to the devastating fire in Edgewater that left hundreds homeless and is being investigated for using cheap materials that burned easily.

Township Attorney Roger Desiderio on Tuesday updated the TC on the Boyden Avenue project that is being developed by Avalon Bay, the same group that built the Avalon at Edgewater complex where a five-alarm fire struck last month and left hundreds homeless.

"We are very close and we hope to have on the agenda for Feb. 17 the financial agreement for the site with Avalon Bay," Desiderio said at Tuesday's meeting, but he stressed the Planning Board would have to review the project again due to expected minor changes.

He said the destruction of the former PSE&G building and construction of the new building is on a quick track.

The project will include six affordable housing units, a $340,000 contribution to the Township affordable housing fund, $100,000 to the Maplewood Pool, and a $10,000 contribution for Boyden Avenue improvements.


It has been revealed that the Edgewater fire was started by unlicensed maintenance workers who used a blowtorch during plumbing repairs and waited 15 minutes to call 911.

A lawsuit filed on behalf of one group of Edgewater tenants claims that Avalon Bay was negligent "on multiple levels."

The fire has also raised concerns about the use of lightweight wood and truss-style roof frames that are faster and cheaper to build and, although legal, can allow material to burn more quickly and increase the potential for collapse, according to NorthJersey.com, which reported on a statewide review of construction codes in the wake of the fire.