Thomas Edison Battery Building Moving Towards Redevelopment

The Thomas Edison Battery Building in downtown West Orange is moving closer to being redeveloped.  According to Karen Yi of the West Orange Patch, the Council passed two ordinances on first reading and a resolution authorizing issuance of bonds to pay for the municipality’s share of the development costs.

Some residents voiced concerned about the Township getting repaid, but members of the Council were apparently not as concerned as the citizens.  The governing body also granted the developer a 30-year tax exemption, and established a payment in lieu of taxes for the property.

It appears that many people agree that redevelopment is a good thing for this particular piece of property, but some question the wisdom of the use of municipal funds to finance the project.

We’ll see how it works out.

Photo courtesy www.nps.gov.