Our View

If it’s true that good things come to those who wait, then Jackson is certainly due the good news that the Township Committee delivered on Monday night.

At a special meeting of the governing body, municipal officials revealed that the township will purchase a 115-acre parcel of land and prevent the construction of 185 single-family homes and keep between 300 and 400 children from entering the community’s schools.

The development site is off Jackson Mills-Freehold Road, near Interstate 195 and Dublin Road.

In addition to the purchase of that land, the township will receive a parcel of land near Exit 21 on Interstate 195. That land will become the permanent site of a park-and-ride facility for commuters taking Academy Bus Lines into New York City. The service was introduced in Jackson last summer.

The $6.5 million purchase price for the 115-acre tract will come from dedicated funding collected by the township’s open space tax, and notes or bonds to be issued by Jackson.

Committee members also said an application would be made for state Green Acres funding that could pay as much as 50 percent of the purchase price. According to the members of the governing body, this will be Jackson’s first Green Acres funding application in more than 20 years.

Considering the fact that Jackson has been one of the region’s fastest growing municipalities, that is a shocking and almost unbelievable revelation.

We certainly hope the administrators of the Green Acres program will welcome Jackson back into the fold of New Jersey communities seeking a piece of the land preservation pie.

Congratulations are in order for the present committee members for bringing this initial purchase to fruition, but they should keep in mind all of the developable land in Jackson that might also warrant their attention and possible action to forestall additional residential development.