Montgomery Planning Board Adopts Farmland Preservation Plan, Reviews 2026 Master Plan Reexamination
Nicholas Mistretta
MONTGOMERY, NJ — The Montgomery Township Planning Board formally adopted the township’s updated Comprehensive Municipal Farmland Preservation Plan and received a detailed status report on the ongoing 2026 reexamination of the municipal Master Plan during its Oct. 12 meeting.
The board also approved a resolution related to the Montgomery Place Building final major site plan and reviewed several future agenda items expected to come before the board during the remaining months of the year.
Farmland Preservation Plan Formally Adopted
One of the evening’s first major actions was adoption of the Comprehensive Municipal Farmland Preservation Plan dated August 2026.
The board had postponed action on the plan at its previous meeting to give members additional time for review. Before the Oct. 12 vote, members were again given an opportunity to raise questions. With no additional questions offered, the board proceeded to adopt the resolution.
The farmland preservation plan is one of several components of Montgomery’s broader Master Plan and will now become part of the township’s long-range planning framework.
Master Plan Reexamination Moves Forward
Planning consultant Tara Kenyon, PP, AICP, of Kenyon Planning then presented an update on the township’s 2026 Periodic Reexamination of the Master Plan and Development Regulations.
Kenyon explained that municipal master plans are long-range planning documents adopted by the Planning Board to guide development and establish a municipality’s goals and vision. Montgomery’s first Master Plan was adopted in 1972, with the most recent reexamination completed in 2017. State law requires the reexamination to be completed at least once every 10 years.
The current update will review how conditions have changed since 2017, including whether previously identified planning objectives have been achieved, whether assumptions and policies have changed and whether modifications to development regulations or other planning policies should be considered.
The reexamination will also incorporate information gathered through the Plan4Health New Jersey initiative.
Public Health Becomes Part of Land-Use Planning
Kenyon said the Plan4Health project is intended to integrate public-health considerations into local land-use planning and decision-making.
Montgomery was one of the first five municipalities selected to participate and received a $50,000 grant. According to Kenyon, the funding is being used to prepare the Master Plan reexamination, update the Land Use Element and develop a climate-change-related hazard vulnerability assessment required in connection with updates to the Land Use Element.
The vulnerability assessment will examine where vulnerable populations, critical infrastructure and critical facilities are located and whether they are situated in areas susceptible to climate-related hazards.
The planning process has also included a demographic profile, community surveys, an interactive mapping survey and both virtual and in-person community engagement sessions. The most recent listening session was held Oct. 8.
Mobility Emerges as Leading Community Concern
Kenyon told the board that mobility was the leading concern identified through the community engagement process.
Residents participating in surveys and listening sessions frequently cited the difficulty of getting around Montgomery without access to a private vehicle, according to the presentation. Bicycle and pedestrian access, sidewalk and trail connections and opportunities to expand transportation alternatives are expected to receive significant attention in the new planning documents. Pasted markdown
Other issues raised through the process included housing affordability, the ability of residents to age in place and concerns related to air and water quality as development continues.
Working with Montgomery’s GIS staff, Kenyon said responses from the interactive mapping survey were overlaid with Census information to identify clusters where participants reported concerns involving housing, mobility and environmental conditions. Those areas are expected to help guide recommendations in the reexamination. Pasted markdown
Bike and Pedestrian Connections Among Proposed Recommendations
Among the recommendations being considered is development of a more interconnected bicycle and pedestrian network, including additional sidewalk and trail connections, bicycle lanes and coordination with Somerset County’s Bike, Hike and Walk Plan.
Other potential recommendations discussed during the presentation included reviewing zoning provisions governing impervious and lot coverage, adding additional green-development and green-infrastructure considerations to the township’s development review process, incorporating dark-sky guidance and evaluating safety improvements at specific intersections identified through public feedback.
The reexamination may also consider additional tree-canopy planning, implementation of goals established through the township’s Open Space and Farmland Preservation plans and creation of a database identifying vulnerable populations in flood-prone areas.
Another issue raised through the public-engagement process involved whether some existing neighborhoods could be connected to public water and sewer infrastructure rather than limiting those connections primarily to new development.
Housing, Aging and Transportation Also Under Review
The presentation also outlined several possible recommendations related to housing and community services.
Those include directing new development away from flood zones and environmentally constrained areas, examining whether residential zoning could allow greater access to community services and considering alternative uses of open-space set-asides, including community gardens or smaller neighborhood recreational areas.
Kenyon also discussed incorporating the findings of the township’s Age-Friendly Montgomery report and examining longer-term municipal service needs based on changing demographic trends.
One idea raised during the recent listening session was to investigate whether shuttle or bus service operating out of Mercer County could potentially be extended farther into Montgomery.
Board Raises Questions About Funding and Implementation
During the discussion that followed, board members asked whether the Master Plan reexamination could include potential funding sources and estimated implementation timelines for its recommendations.
Kenyon said those elements had not yet been included but could be added with assistance from township officials who have access to financial and operational information.
Members also asked how Master Plan recommendations interact with properties designated or being studied as areas in need of redevelopment, where redevelopment plans may establish different land-use controls.
Kenyon explained that the reexamination can identify whether existing zoning remains appropriate or whether amendments should be considered, and said she would work closely with township staff when addressing redevelopment activity in the report.
Draft Expected in Coming Weeks
Kenyon said the data collection and community-engagement portions of the project are largely complete and that work is now focused on writing the reexamination report.
The goal is to complete the draft by the beginning of November, with the possibility of bringing it before the Planning Board in early December.
The Master Plan-related work funded through the grant must be completed by March 2027.
Montgomery Place Resolution Approved
Earlier in the meeting, the board approved a resolution in Case PB-09-26 involving Montgomery Place Building and a final major site plan for Block 5023, Lot 2.01.
Officials noted that two minor corrections had been made to the resolution before the vote — one involving the date of a plan and the other correcting the spelling of the project architect’s name. The remainder of the resolution was unchanged from the version previously circulated to board members.
23 Orchard and 199 Grandview Among Future Agenda Items
Looking ahead, the board identified several matters expected to appear on upcoming agendas, including Springpoint at Montgomery, the Montgomery Promenade Phase Two subdivision, 23 Orchard Road redevelopment matters and 199 Grandview Road.
Photo Credit: Matthew Bocchi