Hillcrest Avenue Property Eyed for Open Space Preservation

In a town as densely-populated as Morristown, it can be difficult to find new pieces of property for open space acquisition.

But now the town is moving forward with applying for grants to purchase 20 Hillcrest Ave. after the town council voted unanimously last week to go ahead with the process.

The two-acre property, just up the road from Washington Street, has been unoccupied for a couple years, said Samantha Rothman of the Morristown Environmental Commission at the Aug. 10 council meeting. The owner of the property had the house, which has fallen into disrepair, on sale for some time and has since pulled it off the market "because they are interested in working with us," she said. "This is a really great opportunity."

The property, which is a steep slope, has "really nice views," Rothman said, of both the downtown and Fort Nonsense. She added the property would serve as groundwater recharge for the area.

Phil Abramson, a consulting planner for Morristown, said at the council meeting the property was suitable for development, "which is why this is important."

Morristown Business Administrator Michael Rogers said the site, which has steep slopes behind the house that lead to other properties, is in an environmentally sensitive area and said the town is eyeing the property for possible passive recreation. "We feel it's a very good piece of land to acquire for open space," he said. "We looked at it and said it might be a good opportunity, for the neighborhood and town."

The town is seeking to apply for both a Morris County Open Space grant as well as a Green Acres grant, totaling $350,000, Rogers said.