Morris County Master Plan: Open Space Element
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Morris County Master Plan
OPEN SPACE ELEMENT
Prepared by:
Morris County Planning Board
Adopted: .
October 6, 1988
Cover Photo Courtesy of:
JamesDel Giudice
SpecializedPhotodesign
Convent Station, NewJersey
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Morris County Board ofChosen Freeholders
Michael Dedio, Director
John C. O'Keeffe
AnthonyR. Bucco
PatricJ. Hyland
CarolJ. Murphy
Peter J. O'Hagan, Jr .
JohnR. Sette
Morris County Planning Board
.. William J. Mathews, Chairman
Me1veme E. Cooke,
Vice-Chairman
James Nelson,
Secretary
John Kuhnast,
Acting CountyEngineer
Michael Dedio .
John C. O'Keeffe
Vincent Fox
BarryMarell
DonaldF. Roos
Morris County Department ofPlanning and Development
Walter P. Krich, Jr.
Director of Planning and Development
DudleyWoodbridge,PlanningDirector
* RaymondZabihach,
Assistant PlanningDirector
James Woodruff,Assistant Planning Director
Heywood Sommers
Christine Fuertges
Renee Raffetto
Linda Levinson
Carol Simmons
Marta Milos
Gene Cass
*Project Director
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Table ofContents
Table of Contents Private Open Space 32
List of Figures, Charts, Tables 11 Commercial Recreational Facilities 32
Preface il l Not-for-Profit Recreational Lands 32
CHAPTER ONENon-Profit Conservation Organizations 32
Non-Profit Camps 34Historical Perspective, Principles, Goals
Property Owners and Homeownersand Objectives Associations 34
HistoI}cal Perspective 1 Outdoor Clubs 34
Principles, Goals and Objectives 4
Principals 4 CHAPTER FOUR
Goals 4 Open Space Needs Determination
Objectives 5 Recreational Carrying Capacity 93Open Space Standards 95
CHAPTER TWO Acres Pe r Population Standards 96Environmentally SensitiveAreas Balanced Land Use Standards 98
INTRODUCTION 7
Aquifers and Recharge Zones 7 CHAPTER FIVE
FreshwaterWetlands 8 Methods of Open Space Acquisition
StreamCorridors 9 DirectAcquisition 101
SteepSlopes 11 OtherMeans of Obtaining Open Space 102
Agricultural Lands 11CHAPTER SIX
Habitat for Endangered andMethods of FinancingOpen Space
Threatened Species 12 Federal Funding 107
CHAPTER THREE State Programs 108
Open Space Inventory CountyPrograms 109
FederalOpen Space 15 Municipal Financing 109
State Open Space 18 Private Sources 109
CountyOpen Space 22 Open Space:What It'sWorth 110
Municipal Open Space 29
CHAPTER SEVENQuasi-Public Open Space 31
SchoolRecreational Lands 31Summary and Recommendations
Watershed Lands 31Summary 111
Recommendations 114
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Figures
Figure
1-12-1
2-2
2-3
2-4
7-1
ChartsChart
3-1
4-1
4-2
TablesTable
3-1
3-2
3-3
3-4
4-1
4-2
4-3
1972 Open SpaceWetlands
Flood Plains
Slope 15% or More
Rare Species and Natural Communities
1987 Open Space
Morris County Park Commission Acreage Totals
Acres Pe r Population Open Space Standards
Adequacy of Open Space in Morris County
Federal Open Space in Morris County
State Open Space in Morris County
County Open Space Trends
MunicipallyOwned Open Space
Balanced Land Use Standards
Adequacy of Open Space in Morris County
Municipal Open Space Deficits
11
Following Page
69
10
11
14
116
Page
23
95
98
Page
16
18
22
30
96
97
97
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Preface
OpenSpace is undeveloped land that serves a
varietyof functions and that provides essential
character to a particular region. Open spacecanprotect the quality and quantityof surfaceand groundwater resources, preserve distinctive natural, cultural and historic resources,
and provide space for developing facilities tosatisfy the recreation needs of citizens. Openspace can also provide visual relief in densely
populated areas and preserve natural beauty.Because,open space nearly a l w a ~ performsmore than one function, it is:difficult to calculate exact figures for future need.
The 1988 Morris County "Open Space Ele
ment" is intended to provide a framework forcounty and municipal planning efforts so thatopen spacecanbe preserved for an increasingpopulation. This element containsbasicinfor-
ii i
mation that should be used to facilitate coordination of recreation and open space plan
ningwith other planning programs to achievemutual goals. County and local governments
should ensure, through open space planning,a proper balance between natural resourceprotections, adequate recreation space, and
other competing land uses.
Planning for future open space is urgent be
cause the county remains one of the dynamicgrowth counties in New Jersey, and development inMorris County is taking place rapidly.
Lands assumed to be forever open have beensold and developed. Examples includewater
shed lands, golf courses andprivate recreationclubs. Opportunities to preserve open spaceare rapidly being lost.
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CHAPfERONE
Historical Perspective, Principles,
Goals and ObjectivesThe open space planning process in Morris
County began in 1956 when the Board of
Chosen Freeholders created the Morris
County Park Commission. Within one year,the commission prepared a report entitled,
"Master Plan and Program for a County Park
System." The acquisition program initiated bythat plan accounted for approximately 4,200
acres of countyowned parkland by 1966,when
the first "Open Space Element" of the Morris
County Master Plan was adopted. The 1966"Open Space Element" was the result of acooperative effort of theMorris CountyPlan-ning Board and theMorris CountyParkCom-
mission. In the sixyear span following the 1966
element, an additional 1,250 acres of open
space were acquired by the Morris County
Park Commission. Furthermore, during that
period, other levels of government, from
municipal to federal, effected increases in
their open space. These acquisition activities
will be discussed further in Chapter Three.The cooperation between the two agencies
was so successful that both county agenciescombined their efforts and resources in
preparing the 1972 "Open Space Element".
Three additional master plan elementsrelevant to open space planning, the "Future
Land Use Element," "Historic Preservation"and "Bikeways", were adopted in 1975, 1976
and 1977 respectively.
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Open spaceefforts in th e county are guided
by those principles established in 1957 by th e
Morris County Park Commission. Four dis
tinct categories ofpublic parkland continue to
be recommended.
I. GENERAL PURPOSE PARK
This is th e basic unit which forms th e back
bone of th e park system. General purpose
parks will usually contain places of scenic
beautysuited to familyrecreation.While there
may be limited space for active sports within
such a park, i t is primarily an area for simpler
forms o f o.utdoor recreatio.n as opposed to
those found in Special Purpose Parks.
II. SPECIAL PURPOSE PARK
Some park sites must be acquired to serve a
special purpose or meet a specific need, such
as awater area, a golfcourseor a zoo.Without
such facilities, th e system is no t complete and
they must be provided for. These parks are
usually expensive to develop, bu t in returncan
provide a source of revenue. Some may be
come self-supporting. Due to cost, however,
their development should be deferred until
th e acquisition program is substantially com
pleted.
III. CONSERVATIONAREA
Certain portions of th e county ar e particular
1y suitable to th e preservation and conserva
tion of animal and plant life in its natural state
as a living museum for th e study of nature
first-hand. Such areas are to be found in th e
large swamps in th e easternthird of th e county
or th e wooded mountain sides of Jefferson
Township and would require a minimum of
development.
IV. LINEAR PARKThese parks consist of elongated lands fol
lowing a stream, ridge line or similar natural
feature and, wherever possible, planned to
link together other park sites. Such a facility,
by controlling th e use of river frontage, could
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 2
serve to reduce pollution, p ro te ct f ut ur e
watersheds an d provide flood protection.
Linear parks along existing or proposed high
ways (parkways) should be used wherever
suitable. Th e acquisition of properties alongc e rt a in c ou nt y r oa ds c ou ld re sul t i n th e
development o f scenic drives, preserving
smaller areas of natural beauty or scenic views
otherwise lost forever.
The following ar e descriptions o f an d
abstracts from six earlier open space plans:
1957Park Plan
Th e 1957 "Master Plan and Program for a
County Park System" remains th e guiding
force behind the open space activities under;.
takenbyMorris County an d its various depart
ments, especially th e countypark commission.
Th e plan advocated an aggressive program of
land acquisition by th e newly created county
park commission to compensate for its late
start in th e creation of a county parks system.
I t shouldbe noted that counties to th e east and
south ha d created extensive park systemsmany years earlier. Within 10 years of im
plementing this plan, th e Morris County park
system was becoming th e largest an d best
managed in th e state. By th e mid 1970's, it was
th e largest in New Jersey.
Th e report behind this extraordinary ac
complishment expressly stated that "Land for
county park sites should be acquired' or
reserved for future acquisition by every avail
able method, in all sections of the county, bu t
primarily in those areaswhere open land is fast
vanishing before th e developer."l
1966 Open Space Plan
Th e1966"Open SpaceElement"was th e first
adopted element ofthe Morris CountyMaster
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Plan. I t represented a comprehensive revision
of the 1957 park plan in recognition of the
needtomakenewopenspaceproposals predi-
cated by changing conditions.Themain thrustof the 1966 elementwas the
expansion of existing county facilities by ac-quiring land adjacent to those facilities. The
plan also encouraged the coordination of the
dedicated open space around the proposed
Morris County Municipal Utility Authorityreservoir sites.
In the interim between the 1957 and the
1966 Open Space Elements, open space
standardS were developed independently, in
separate studies, by the State of New Jersey
and jointly by the Metropolitan Regional
Council and the Regional Plan Association.Both studies recommended a standard of 12acres of county park land per 1,000 countypopulation. Each was described in the ele-
ment. The 1957 plan had used a 15 acre per
1,000 population standard for computing fu-
ture park land needs of the Morris County
ParkCommission. The 1966"OpenSpaceEle-ment" recommended utilizing the 12 acre
standard which reduced the 1957 plan's goal
of 10,000 acres to 7,500 acres of county
parkland. Since the county park system now
contained 13 facilities, totaling 4,200 acres,most of the open space recommendations ad-
vocated expanding existing facilities. Nine
county parks were designated to be enlargedatotal of 2,528 acres. In addition, countyparks
were proposed fo r the Pulask i and
WashingtonValley Reservoir sites.
Another important change included in the1966Planwas the conceptof "OtherProspec-
tive Public Lands". This categorywas included
to emphasize the importance of future reser-
vationofland along selected rivers and stream
valleys.These linear parkswould serve as linksbetween various open space facilities in addi-tion to preserving the integrity of the rivers atthese locations.
Morris County Open Space Element 3
1972Open Space Element
In 1972, the Morris County Planning Board
adopted an updated"OpenSpaceElement" of
the Morris County Master Plan. It basicallyreinforced the principles and policies of the
two previous openspaceplans.As in 1966, the
elementwas ajoint cooperativeeffortwith the
Morris County Park Commission.A major feature of the 1972 elementwas the
recommendation to expand the linear park
system. In the 1966 plan, linear parks were
delineated for sections of the Passaic River
and Whippany Rivers. In the 1972 "Open
Space Element", all major rivers and streams
were given a proposed linear designation as
"landwith recreational potential". Additional-ly, linear strips of land, identified from aerialphotographs as undeveloped,were designated
as connectors between various open space
facilities without regard to the governmental
level of ownership, whether federal, state or
county.
1975Future Land Use Element
The Morris County master plan elements
prior to 1975 culminated in the "Future Land
Use Element". Open space recommendationsfrom the 1972 "OpenSpaceElement"were animportant component of this plan. Additional
environmental constraints (such as wetlands
and steep slopes) not included in the 1972"Open Space Element", were also utilized in
development of the "Future Land Use Ele-
ment". In addition, many goals and objectives
from the "Future Land Use Element" rein-
forced the specific open space goals and ob-jectives in the 1972 "Open Space Element".
1976Historic Preservation Element
This element complements the open spaceplanningprocess. The goals of historic preser-vation as defined in the 1976"Historic Preser-vationElement"were to develop a recognition
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of the county's historic and architecturalheritage and to establish a system to protectand preserve it. Historic preservation is intended to not only save buildings but also to
adapt significant buildings and their groundsand incorporate them into the environment.
The results range from individual buildings tohistoric districts with tree lined streets as wellas individual sites primarily identified by thepublic as parks which link history with openspace.Therefore, when actions are taken towardshistoric preservation, open space may veryoften besaved as a result. The Moms County
park system has five park facilities which in
volve historic or architectural preservation.
1977Bikeway Element
TheMorris CountyPlanningBoard adoptedthe "Bikeway Element" with the intention ofpromoting bikeways for recreation and
transportation purposes. The plan recognizedthat in order for bicycles to be a viable modeof transportation, an extensive recreationalbikeway networkwould first have to be estab
lished. While a number ofmunicipalities haveimplemented local recreational bikepaths, the
Morris County Park Commission has doneextensive work in developing a recreationalbike path system. The park commission is the
lead coordinating agency with participatingmunicipalities in developing Patriots Path, alinear park which unites major park facilitiesthroughout the county. This recreational trailand bikeway will eventually cross MorrisCounty from East Hanover to WashingtonTownship, and tie in with areas within theWhippany and Rockaway watersheds
throughout the county.
PRINCIPLES, GOALS AND
OBJECTIVES
TheMorris CountyPlanning Board and theMorrisCountyPark Commissionshare a com-
Morris County Open Space Element 4
mon goal, the conservation of open space forfuture generationswhileproviding recreational opportunities for present generations.This element encompasses all levels of
government. While each has its own openspace jurisdiction, there is a need for greater
regional coordination among governmentalentities. This need underscores the importance of a coordinated open space preservation process. It is hoped that the 1988 "OpenSpace Element"will assist in fulfilling this objective. The purpose of the 1988 "OpenSpaceElement" can be identified with the followingthree principles:
Principles:
1) Enhancement of the quality of life inMorris County
2) Protection of the environment
3) Expansion of recreational opportunity
These principles are supported by the follow
ing goals and objectives:
Goals:
1) To preserve unique natural features andto protect natural resources, especiallywater supply sources.
2) To provide adequate recreational
facilities to all Morris COunty residentsthrough both public and private sectors.
3) To provide open space in balance;with.other land uses throughout the county.
4) To maintain and protect dedicated open
space in perpetuity so that its value as aresource is not diminished for the use offuture generations
5) To encourage a balance of open spacefacilities as provided by the various levelsof government and the private sector.
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6) To establishattractive communitydesign,consistingofavisually pleasant landscapewith environmental amenity.
7) To continue maintaining a comrehensive and responsive county park system.
Objectives:
A. Broad-based objectives
1) Governmental regulation and activityshould incorporate concerns for open
space as an important decision makingconsideration.
2) All newdevelopmentand redevelopment
efforts shouldbe designed to enhance th e
existing environmental amenities which
abound in th e county.
3) All unique and important natural resour
c e ~ t a n d features should be identifieda n ~ e l i n e a t e d for protection and preservation.
4) Futurewatersupply, in th e formofwater
sheds, prime a qu if er r ec ha rg e areas,reservoir or well field areas, headwaters
of major streams, steep slopes, wetlandsand major wild life habitats should be
preserved an d protected from disturbance and pollution.
5) Recreational facilities an d programs
shouldbe accessible to allMorris County
residents within a reasonable travel distance.
6) Recreational facilities of both th e public
a nd p ri va te sectors should have th e
flexibility to respond to changing recreational needs.
7) Open space facilities shouldbewell diversified to provide an optimum variety of
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 5
recreational opportunity throughout thecounty.
8) It is imperative that a balance o f o pe n
space facilities be achieved and main
tained among all levels of government.
9) Existing conditions around parks and
dedi cat ed o p e n space s hou ld be
monitored so that any adverse impacts
can be mitigated.
10)Direct and indirect acquisition techni
ques should be used to maximize:. th e
amount of open space preserved in per
petuity.
11 :Open space facilities should have a complementary relationship with surrounding land uses.
12)Open space facilities should be available
throughout th e county based on uniformcriteria of population and land use.
B. Specific Objectives for theCounty Park System
13)The park system must serve all county
residents. Parks must be located so all
sections of th e county have equal opportunities to share in their recreational
facilities.
14)The goal in park acreage should be
reviewed periodically in terms of chang
ing population trends. Adjustments t o t he
long range program should attempt tomeet greatest needs first, being flexible·
enough to cope with sudden changes in
conditions.
15)Th e total complexofparks and recreation
areas within th e county should reflect abalance among municipal, county, state
and federal systems. Th e facilities within
countyparks shouldsupplement, not sup-
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plant, those developed inmunicipal, stateor federal parks.
16)County parklands should be located inrelation to other land uses appropriate to
the area andshouldbe integratedwith the
CountyMasterPlan, as well as the master
plans of individual municipalities.
17)Land for county park sites should be ac
quired or reserved for acquisition in allsections of the county, but primarily in
those areas where open land is fast beingconverted to other uses.
The Morris County Park Commission hasactively implemented and pursued actions
which reinforce the above principles, goalsand objectives. Morris County's park facilities
offer a wide range of recreational oppor
tunities, protect substantial areas of environ
mental concern and are conveniently located
throughout the county. The park commission,
as will be discussed in greater detail in sub
sequent chapters, has pursued acommendableacquisition program.
TheMorris County Planning Board has vir-tually no implementation power with respect
to preservingopen space. However, the county planning board, through its staff, has incor
porated the recommendations of its 1972
"Open Space Element" into the site plan and
1. Master Plan and Program for a County ParkSystem. 1957. p. 157
subdivision review process wherever ap
plicable. Between 1972 and 1986, 108 open
space recommendations were made as part of
the county site plan and subdivision review
process. Recommendations were made onlywhen the application interfaced with areas
designated as having "recreational potential"
in the 1972 plan (See Figure 1-1).To date, the response to these comments and
recommendations has not been overwhelming
and only 21 applications have been imple
mented. Nonetheless, these have resulted inthe dedication of 198 acres of open space.andthe creation of conservation easements rang
ing in width from 30 to 300 feet. Currently, 16
of the 108 applications are active and may yet
result in additional open space dedicationand/or easement. These efforts represent asmall portion of the overall open space ac
quisition and protection process described in
this element.Additionally the Morris County Park Com
mission will continue to pursue an active ac
quisition program for open space thatw.ill ~ o only complement and protect eXIstmgparkland and facilities, but also protect environmentally sensitive areas and preserveremarkable natural and historical sites. The
commission will also continue to cooperatewith municipalities to achieve mutual goals.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 6
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CHAPTERlWO
Environmentally Sensitive Areas
Environmentally sensitive areas are thoseareas of land and water, which due to their
particular physical characteristics (i.e. hydrol-·.;.;·
ogy, geology, soils, vegetation) are greatly im-
paired by the modifications of development
activities. The loss or disturbance of environ-
menta lly sensi tive areas may result in
detrimental impacts not only to the environ-
ment, but economically and socially as well.
The destruction of these areas may immedi-
ately impact surrounding communities in a
number of ways: flood hazards, surface and
groundwater supply contamination, or the lossof productive lands and renewable resources.
In Morris County, environmentally sensitive
areas include steep slopes, stream corridors,
wetlands, sole source aquifers and their
recharge zones, agricultural lands, threatened
Morris County Open Space Element 7
and endangered flora and fauna. Some ofthese, such as stream corridors, wetlands and
steep slopes, demonstrate significant develop-
ment constraints because of their physical and
hydrological factors. Environmentally sensi-
tive areas are important natural resources be-
causeof the ecological, historical, recreational
and aesthetic values they provide to com-
munities.
Aquifers and Recharge Zones
An aquifer may be defined as a geological
formation that contains sufficient saturatedpermeable material to yield significant quan-
tities ofwater towells and springs.The storage
and movement of water in aquifers are con-
trolled largelyby the porosity and permeability
of the consolidated and unconsolidated rock
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and soil formations through which the water
flows. An aquifer recharge area can be
described as porous soil or rock formations
where water can percolate from the earth's
surfaceinto the aquifer. I t is inthese areas thatprecipitation replenishes our groundwater
supply. Each aquifer type has unique charac
teristics, based onthe surficial topography and
bedrock conditions, that determines its
productivity and susceptibility to contamination.
While Morris County's water supplies are
derived from both surface and groundwater
sources," groundwater accounts for a far
greater percentage ofwater' consumed within
the county. In Morris County nearly all the
groundwater originates from local precipitation. When rainfall is low, groundwater helps
to maintain streamflow. And, conversely,
during periods of high precipitation, surface
waters recharge depleted aquifers.
While encroachment on aquifer recharge
areas or the improper management of land
could contaminate both ground and surface
water resources, the longterm implications for
groundwater are far more serious. Once con
taminated, an aquifer cannotflush itselfclean.
Sources of contamination include leakage
from underground storageor septic tanks, surface runoff, pesticides and other sources. The
contamination of an aquifer can resul t in
higher water treatment costs or even the ir
retrievable loss of a water supply.
In recognition of the sensitivity of Morris
County's groundwater aquifers and their im
portance as drinking water sources, the U.S.
Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) has
declared three aquifer systems underlying
Morris County to be "Sole Source Aquifers."
These are the Buried Valley System of the
Central Passaic Basin of Eastern Morris
County and Western Essex County, the Un
consolidatedQuaternaryAquifer in theRock
away River Area; and the Highlands Aquifer
inNorthwesternMorris and Passaic Counties.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 8
As detailed in the "WATERSUPPLY ELE-
MENT', the implications of growth require
that both county and municipal officials take
steps to preserve and protect ground water
resources. Open space and low density zoningare among the primary measures that should
be used to protect aquifer recharge areas.
FreshwaterWetlands
A freshwater wetland is defined by the newly
enacted state law as "... an area that is inun
dated or saturated by surface or groundwater
at a frequency and duration sufficient to sup
port, and that under normal circumstances
does support, a prevalence ofvegetation typi
cally adapted for life in saturated soil condi
tions..."1
Common types of freshwater wetlands include swamps, bogs, and marshes,
usually located in upland depressions or in
periodically flooded areas next to lakes and
rivers.
Freshwater wetlands have always been an
integral, hydrological part of the natural
landscape in Morris County. However, their
ecological significance and functions have
only recently been recognized. Wetlands left
as open space resources are nowrecognized as
valuable, irreplaceable water resources that
benefit both the natural environment andman.Theyhave great value to manin that they
protect and preserve drinking water supplies,
provide a natural means of flood and storm
damage protection, serve to bufferwaterways
from sedimentation, provide essential habitat
for a major portion of the state 's fish and
wildlife, and maintain critical base flow to sur
face waters.
Wetlands are also considered significant in
their role as a productive environment for fish
and wildlife resources. They provide per
manent and temporary habitat such as breeding, feeding and nursery areas for bird and
other animal species. These populations are
supported by the tremendous capacity ofwet
lands to produce basic plant materials and
nutrients. Wetlands also serve to control or-
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ganic and inorganic polluting substances
through oxidation, respiration and metabolic
processes, which are their self-cleaning func
tions.
As wetlands perform these functions, theyalsoserve as open space resourceswhichoffer
recreational opportunities as well as scenic
views and vistas. Wetland-related recreation
and education opportunities available inMor
ris County include hunting, fishing, naturestudy, photography and scientific research.
Wetlands also provide attractive settings for
hiking, picnicking, camping and horseback
riding fromthe adjacent u p l ~ n d areas. Duringthe winter seasons, wetlands also provide ice
skating and cross countryskiingopportunities.
In Morris County, freshwater wetlands account for approximately 40,264 acres or 13
percent of the county.2 Figure 2-1 shows the
wetlands of Morris County. The largest wetlands complex in Morris County is associated
with the PassaicRiver. Thesewetlands include
BlackMeadows, Troy Meadows, Bog andVly
Meadows, Hatfield Swamp, Lee Meadows,Washington Valley Meadows and the Great
Swamp which lie in the Central Passaic Basin
in the eastern part ofMorris County. Othersubstantialwetlands in the county include the
Budd Lake Bog in the Raritan watershed,MountHope Swamp in the Upper RockawayRiver watershed, a rare, black spruce-
tamarack bog, and two large wetland areas
adjacent to Burnt Brook in Rockaway
Township. Morris County contains numerousother, smaller wetlands areas integral to the
hydrology of each watershed.
The recently enactedNewJerseyFreshwater
Wetlands Protection Act will now assurestatewide protection of freshwater wetlands.The Act, effective on July 1, 1988, is intended
to preserve the integrity of freshwater wetlands through the use of a regulatory permit
program. Preservation of freshwaterwetlandsas open space at the local and county levelwill
enhance substantially the effectiveness of the
new state regulatory program. Wetlands in
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 9
Morris County provide important ecologicalfunctions to both the environment and man.
As many competing uses continue to threaten
wetlands, the preservation of them as open
space areas ensures the perpetuation of theirspecial ecological functions and recreational
opportunities.
Stream Corridors
A stream corridor is awatercourse (i.e. river,
stream, or tributary) and the adjoining natural
border area that is ecologically and hydrologi
cally related. This adjacent border area is the
flood plain, which can be a meadow, marsh,swamp, steep slope or a strip of grass, bushesor trees that serve to protect the waterway.
Stream corridors serve many valuable functions. In their natural state, they protectwater
supply quality and quantity, contribute to the
stability of the ecological community, helpcontrol erosion, and provide potential recrea
tional areas. Stream corridors are regional
natural resources, not confined by political
boundaries. Vegetated buffers help maintainhigh water quality by filtering pollutants, in
much the same way that wetlands filter out
pollutants. Vegetation also controls soil
erosion by preventing siltation which helps to
maintain the integrity of a streams banks.These buffers also provide habitats for fish,
plants and other wildlife.
Undeveloped lands adjacent to trout produc
tion waters are especially important bufferareas. Trout require high quality water and
habitat for spawning, nursery purposes, or for
survival throughout the year. The New Jersey
DepartmentofEnvironmental Protection(NJ
DEP) identifies trout waters and recognizesthem in the State Surface Water QualityStandards.3 Because th e quality of trout
productionwater is sohigh and the availabilityof thesewaters is limited, adequate protection
should be provided to help maintain the in
tegrity of these waters.Stream corridors also provide open space
and recreational areas. They provide visually
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attractive and healthy waterways for recreational activities, such as fishing and hiking andother passive recreational activities. The loss
of stream corridors in developing areas has
contributed to the inability of watercourses,th e rivers and streams, to carry ou t their
natural functions as mentioned above. Th e
result is poorwater quality, increased erosion,
the destruction of habitats for vegetation, fish
and other wildlife and the potential loss of
recreational areas.
Developed areas adjacent to streams andrivers which are subject to periodic flooding
pose a serious threat to t h public's health,safety and general welfare. Development
within a flood plain often results in a decrease
in the natural flood storage capacity and increased flood heights. Degradation to the
qualityof the stream alsooccurs iffloodwatersmixwith sanitarysewage. Increased local, state
and federal costs result when it becomes
necessary to remedy th e above problems.
In M or ri s C ou nt y, flood problems are
caused, in part, by development in the floodplain, which is particularly evident in the Pas
saic River Basin where development has
encroached upon th e floodway, (the channel
of a stream and portions of the adjacent flood
plain), and in th e flood hazard areas (thefloodway and additional portions of the flood
plain for a designated frequency of flood).Figure 2-2 shows th e 100-year flood plains in
Morris County. Flood hazard areas have beendelineated by NJ DE P and regulations have
been adopted which regulate construction
within th e 100 year flood plain of non
delineated streams and rivers and also within
the flood hazard area of delineated streams.4
However, strategies to reduce flood damage
must be considered over much broader areasthan justwithin flood hazard limits.
Some county parks have suffered severe
damage caused by the lack of stream corridorprotection in areas upstream. Fo r example,
development on Jackson Brook has caused
thousands of dollars of damage to Hedden
Morris County Open Space Element 10
Park; heavy sedimentation of Lake George inSchooley's Mtn. Park has required costly restoration.
Other efforts to control flooding are th e
utilization of wetland and flood plains as openspaceareas, land acquisition andhomebuyout
programs, and th e dredging and cleaning of
streams to improve their flow. In the low lying
areas of Lincoln Park andPequannock, severe
periodic flooding has occurred along th e
Pompton River. In Lincoln Park, efforts arebeing made to convert a stretch of th e MorrisCanal into a detention basin that could helpcontrol flooding. At the same time, an ad
jacent land area would be managed as a park,
preserving the area for both public recreation
and water conservation.A keymanagement strategy for flood control
involves th e purchase and removal of fre
quently flooded housing within th e flood
plain. In Morris County, federal and state
buyout programs focus on the communities
whose homes are on or near th e floodwayandsuffering from repeated flooding. These
programs are the National Flood Insurance
Program (NFIP) under the Federal Emergen
cy Management Agency (FEMA) and the NJ
DEP's Flood PlainManagement Program. The
objectives of these programs are to provide 1)natural open space areas for floodwaters, 2) aninsurance breakand lower costs for the govern
ments involved and 3) a new beginning for the
floodprone home owners.
Under these programs the homes would be
demolished and the area restored to its natural
conditions and used as a flood storage area
The preservation of streams and rivers along
with their adjacent, undeveloped flood plains
wouldhelp reduce increases inflooding, aswellas enhance and perpetuate the environmental
integrity of the flood plains. Stream corridors
would then retain their usefulness as naturalwater storage areas with the added potential
of serving as recreational open space.
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Steep Slopes
Natural slope represents the result of mil
lions ofyearsof geologicevents and the effects
ofweatheringand erosion caused by ice,water
and wind. Slope is defined as the verticalchange in elevation per horizontal distance,
usually expressed in percent.In this report, slopes are categorized based
on percent of slope: 0-7 percent, 8-15 percentand 16 percent or greater. Figure 2-3 is ageneralized representation of the slopes in
~ o . r r i s County. Lands with 0-7 percent slopem ~ l c a t e level to gently sloping land, generallySUItable for all land use categories, assuming
acceptable soil conditions. The eastern part of
the county is characterized by areas with
slopes of 7 percent or less and are often wetlands and/or flood plains.
Lands w ith 8-15 percent slope show
moderately sloping topography, acceptablefor residential development at the lower end
of this category, and becoming more difficult
at the upper end. However, slopes ofless than16 percent may still pose significant constraints to development, especiallywhen soils
have a high erosion potential or the soil,
bedrock and vegetation complex is unstable.
Development on these slopes presents the
potential for negative environmental andeconomic impacts. A 16 percent or greater
slope is considered steep. Approximately
~ , O O O acres, or 15 percent of the county, fallmto the 16 percent and greater category. Thepotential disruption of steep slopes fromdevelopment justifies categorizing steep
slopes as sensitive areas.
According to the Soil Conservation Service,U.S. Department of Agriculture, soils with aslopeof 15 percent or greater invariablyentail
s e ~ e r ~ limitations to development, includingbuIldmg and road construction and septic effluent disposal. In addition, the removal of
vegetation and disturbance of soils on steep
slopes by excavation and fill will increase
runoff, resulting in soil erosion, siltation,
Morris County Open Space Element 11
stream pollution and the resultant danger offlooding. .
Steep slopes playa vital role in the function
of local natural systems. Slopes of 12 percent
or greater normally are covered with
vegetated growth which hold the soils on the
steep slopes. The roots and thick humic layer
provide important runoff and erosion protection. Vegetated steep slopes also provide cool
and usually clean water to a watershed river
system. Areas along the top of slopes oftenoffer scenic vistas and opportunities for pas
sive recreation. In addition, vegetated steepslopes provide many indigenous wildlifespecies a natural habitat with a food supply
and nesting and resting areas.
InMorris County, development is encroaching on sensitive steep slopes and, due to the
various constraintsof these lands, steep slopes
merit consideration for open space preservation.
Agricultural Lands
Agricultural lands constitute a threatenedcritical resource throughout New Jersey. In
Morris County, agriculture, threatened bydevelopment pressure, is characterized by full
time and part-time farms and country estates.
Large, contiguous agricultural operationsare distributed in the southwestern portion of
the county in the Chesters, Mendhams and
Washington Township, with small pockets of
agricultural lands in Randolph, Harding, Pas
saic, Boonton and Montville Townships andother farms located throughout the county. In1987, Morris County had 356 farms where
agricultural products are raised for profit. Thisaccounts for about 38,000 acres of land. Since1982, county farmland has decreased by fivepercent, according to the Morris County
. Agricultural Extension Service.The Soil Conservation Service of the U.S.Department of Agriculture maintains an in
ventoryof environmentallysignificant agricul
tural lands based on those factors which
produce the best conditions for crop produc-
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tivity. Environmentally significant lands in
clude th e following types: prime farmland,
unique farmland, additional farmland ofstate
-wide and local importance, farmlands in or
contiguous with environmentally sensitiveareas, farmlands of waste utilization impor
tance and farmlands with significant capitalinvestments in best management practices.
The first four agricultural land types are based
on their capacityfor production aswell astheir
value as an environmental resource. The
remaining agricultural land types are those
identified for their specific environmental
value. Under these definitions, prime farm
lands are considered to have the greatest en
vironmental significance.
At the state and county level, efforts topreserve farmland are channeled through
county agricultural development boards. The
Morris County Agricultural Development
Board's Farmland Preservat ion Program
enables qualifying farmers to obtain a variety
of zoning protections and farm improvement
aid in return for a pledge to continue using theland for agricultural purposes for eight years.
In addition, farmers have the option of selling
a development easement on their property to
the state, which preserves the land from being
developed.The landcan still be farmed or soldfor farm use. As of August, 1987, eight farms
were in the municipally approved eight year
program accounting for almost 604 acres. Anadditional five applications, totaling 140acres,
were pending at that time. Most of the farms
are in the Long Valley area of Washington
Township, and in Chester, Boonton, Hardingand Passaic Townships.5 Preservation of the
remaining agricultural lands inMorris County
would help retain the active production of
farmland for food and crop production and
protect the historic, open space and scenicvalues of farmland.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 12
Habitat for Endangered andThreatened Species
Endangered and threatened plants and
animals are species whose continued survival
is in jeopardy. These species are generallythreatened by loss or change of habitat, over
exploitation, predation, competition or dis
ease. Federal and state governments and
quasi-public organizations have programs
which recognize and manage individual plant
and animal species.
The p rotection of end ang ered and
threatened plants and animals is a crucial issue
today because of the importanceof preserving
the diversity of our natural species, th e ecosys
tems inwhich theysurvive, and the values they
serve to both man and the environment. Rareplan t and animal species provide certain
ecological, educational, cultural, economic
and scientificvalues, such as the uses of plants
in medicine, industry and agriculture. The
presence and variety ofwildlife and plants are
excellent indicators ofthe overall health of the
environment. Endangered plants and animals
serve as indicators of habitat loss and the in
stability of the environment.
An increasing awareness about our environ
ment has been accompanied by a great con
cern for the protection of plant and wildlifespecies whose outlook for survival is uncer
tain. At the federal level, this interest has
manifested itself in legislation and manage
ment programs.6 The NJ DEP's Endangered
and Nongame Species Program is responsible
for protecting and managin¥ endangered and
threatened wildlife species. In Morris Coun
ty, state endangered and threatened species
include the Brook Trout, Blue-spotted Sal
amander and Great Blue Heron. The NJ
Natural Heritage Program, a joint effort of
theNJ DEPOffice ofNatural LandsManage
ment and The Nature Conservancy, a non-
profit conservation organization, has been
developing an extensive database on rare
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plants, animals an d natural communitiesthroughout New Jersey.The Natural Heritage Program has estab
lished a more comprehensive and extensive
listing and definition of rare species and areas
of important natural diversity throughout the
state. Figure 2-4 indicates th e general areas
where these species may occur in Morris
County. Because of the nature and impor
tance of these areas, th e map only gives a
general indication ofwhere these species may
be found. The map's informationwas generalized to maintain confidentiality and is only to
be used .as a guide. Open space preservationand planning can offer these rare plant and
animal species and natural communities of
Morris County the protection they need.In summary, an evaluation of the sensitive
land and water features of Morris County
clearlyshows a rationalframework for anopenspace protection plan. Th e physical features
and sensitive areas of the county are a fun
damental structure ar ound which
municipalities in Morris County can plan for
open space protection and wise land usedevelopment.
Generally, these areas include the county'snatural stream corridors, wetlands, floodplains, aquifer recharge areas, farmlands,
steep slopes and undeveloped forest lands,
which also add to the scenic and rural charm
of the county. As such, these natural resource
elements have contributed greatly to th e
desirability ofMorris County.
Most of th e sensitive natural resources
described are connected to th e hydrologic
cycle and ar e critical to both surface andgroundwater supply. The management andpreservation of our water resources is o ne o f
a series of actions that can be taken to achieve
environmentally sound land use. A more ra
tional, environmentally oriented use of sensi
tive a re as h el ps to p ro te ct t he natural
hydrologicprocesses and the overall quality of
the environment itself.Therefore, th e preservation of sensitiveareas necessitates both open space protectionan d environmentally sound development
standards and land use decisions to secure a
high quality environment for thosewho reside
andwork inMorris County.
lNJSA 13:9B
2Tiner,R , Wetlands of NewJersey,u.s. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Wetlands Inventory, 1985, p.26.3 NJ DE P SurfaceWater QualityStandards, NJAC 7:9-4, 1985
4Th e 100-yearflood plain is the area inundated by a 100-yearfloodwhich is estimated to have a one percent chance, or one chance in100of being equalled or exceeded in anyone year. (NJAC 7:13:-1.1 et seq., 1985)
5 Jennifer Johnson, Morris CountyAgricultural Development Board Farmland Preservation Coordinator
6 Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. secs. 1531-1543, 1973
7 Endangered and Nongame Species ConservationAct, NJSA23:2A-1 et seq., 1973
Morris County Open Space Element 13
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Rare Species and Natural CommunitiesMorris County .
(Shaded areas Indicate at Least OneOccurrence)
For an Occurrence, the Location is...
• Known Precisely
~ r 1 ~ ; { ~ i t ~ I ~ ~ l Known Generally
_.--'---'..... -..... .""..
. -'.............
./.
io
t i l I2 3 4 5 Miles Adapted by MCPB from NJDEP Natural Heritage Program I
Geographical Information System .. June 1987
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 14Figure 2-4
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CHAPTER THREE
Open Space Inventory
In orderto assess th e current andfuture openspace needsof th e county, an extensive inven
tory of both public and privateopen space and
recreational lands was undertaken. As with
th e 1972"Open SpaceElement", each level of
governmentwas contacted for its most recent
open space figures. However, more detailed
information was collected on private and
quasi-public open space for this update d u e t o
th e expanding role of the private sector in
providingopen space, and th e important func
tion of th e county in supplying potable water.
Th e data for this update is divided into threemain categories (public, quasi-public and
private,) and eight sub-categories (federal,
state, county, municipal, school parks, water
sheds, commercial recreation and not-for
profit). This data wa s compiled at th e
municipal level so th e total open space foreach municipality could be calculated as well
as for th e county. I t should be noted that
several sources were used to calculate and
verify th e total acreage of th e existing open
spacewithin th e county, and discrepancies be
tween th e various sources appeared in a few
cases. Since th e t i me c o nst ra i nt s in th e
preparation of this element did no t permit th e
full resolution of these inconsistencies, a com
bination of data sources were used to estimate
th e most representative acreage figure.
FEDERAL OPEN SPACE
National parks serve a regional population
and protect and maintain areas of national
Morris County Open Space Element 15
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significance. The federal government,
through the National Park Service and the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, owns and
manages two major open space parcels in
Morris County, the Great Swamp NationalWildlife Refuge and theMorristown National
Historical Park.
GreatSwampNationalWJldlifeRefuge (NWR)
Location: Chatham,Harding and PassaicTownships
Area: 6,833, acres
DateEstablished: 1960
Division Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish and
Wildlife ServiceThe Great Swamp NWR encompasses a
large portion of Passaic, Harding and
Chatham Townships.An international jetportwas proposed for the site in 1959; however,
following a successful public campaign to
protect this significant wildlife habitat, the
Great Swamp NWRwas established. In 1966,
the Great Swamp NWR was registered as a
national natural landmark as an "exceptional
example of the natural history of the UnitedStates."l
The purpose of the Great Swamp NWR is
"to maintain a natural habitat for all types of
flora and fauna, especiallymigratorybirds, and
to provide nature-oriented recreation, en
vironmental education, and an outdoor lab
oratory for the serious nature student andbiologist."z
Facilities at the Great Swamp NWR include
a wildlife observation center, 10 miles of
unimproved trails, two photo observation
blinds, one information booth and two self
guided interpreted boardwalk trails.Within the Great Swamp, 3,660 acres have
been designated as a Wilderness Area. Underthe Wilderness Act of 1964 the Fish and
Wildlife Service is mandated to protect the
wilderness character of this area. Current
Morris County Open Space Element 16
managementpracticeswhich prohibit the construction of facilities such as improved trails
limit public access to the Wilderness Area.
The popularity of the Great Swamp as a
recreational facility is reflected in the increasein the numberofvisitors from 187,515 in 1972
to 304,000 in 1984, an average annual increase
of 5.2%.3
Commonpublic use activities includewildlife
viewing, birding, horseback riding and fruit
picking in the summer and snow shoeing andcross country skiing in thewinter. Deer hunting is allowed by permit only, during a desig-:
nated period in the late fall.
TABLE 3-1Federal Open Space in Morris County
(Acres)
ACl'UALAdditionalProposed
1966 1972 1986 1986
Grea tSwamp (NWR) 3,470 4,800 6,833 2,157*
Morristown (NHP) 1,175 1,339 1,373 0**'
TOTAL 4,645 6,139 8,206 2,157
* Based on "'The Proposed Action A l t e m a t i v e " ~ FinalEnvironmental Impact Statement Master Plan, Great
Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Morris Newton Comer,Mass. 1987,pg.53** The National Park Service has completed its land
acquisition for theMorristownNHP. However, two parcelswillbe accepted i fdonated; the MorrisAreaCouncilofGirlScout camp (213Ac) and the Town of Morristown parcel(0.37 Ac)
The size of the Great Swamp has increased
from4,800 acres in 1972 to 6,833 acres in 1986
(SeeTable 3-1). Under current Service policy,
the Great Swamp can only be expanded byobtaining landfromwilling sellers and throughdonations from adjacent land owners.
Presently, only 397 acres are planned to be
acquired; most ofwhich are private landhold
ings within the boundaries of the refuge.
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tact station, soldiers huts and trails. TheMorristown National Historical Park is a well
known historica11andmark in the country. I t
continues to attract an increasingly large num
ber of visitors, as evidenced by a 2.9 percentannual increase since 1972.8 Recreational ac
tivities include picnicking, hiking, 1imited
camping, sledding, sight-seeing, cross countryskiingand photography.The Park Service also
offers films on theRevolutionaryWar period,guided tours and special events such as mock
military encampments. The Morristown National Historical Park has acquired an addi
tional33'4 acres since 1972, raising its total to1,673 acres. There are no' plans for future
acquisitions since the parkhas reached its land
acquisition limit.
STATE OPEN SPACE
The state's open space role is to preservelarge tracts of environmentally sensitive andculturally significant lands and to provideregional recreational areas. This involvement
in open spacepreservation ensures that parks
are available for the public's enjoyment and
that New Jersey's wildlife habitats are pre
served for the protection of the state's in
digenous species. The state's parks, forests,recreational areas and historic sites are ad
ministered by several divisions of NJDEP. In
Morris County, the Division of Fish, Game
and Wildlife and the Division of Parks andForestryown andmanage the state's parkland
and open space. The Office of Green Acres
assists these divisions in obtaining additional
land.
Eachdivisiondiffers in its purposeanduseofthe lands it administers. TheDivision of Parks
and Forestry provides active recreational
facilities such as beaches, ballfie1ds and camp
sites, and preserves state forests and naturalareas. The Division of Fish, Game and
Wildlife maintains wildlife habitats, designated asWildlifeManagementAreas (WMA),
Morris County Open Space Element 18
for fish and wildlife production. In certainWMA's passive recreational activities are per
mitted as secondary uses. Located in Morris
County are the Black River and Berkshire
ValleyWMA's.In addition to state parks, forests, recreational areas, historic sites and wildlife management areas, state land can also be designated
as a Natural Area. A natural area is "an area
of land or water which has retained its
primeval character (although not necessarilypristine and undisturbed) and an area having
rare or vanishing species of plant and animal.
life or similar features of interestwhichqualifyfor special preservation.,,9The Natural Areas
in Morris County include portions of Farney
State Park, Hacklebarney State Park, BlackRiverWMA, and all of TroyMeadows.
TABLE 3-2State Open Space in Morris County
(Acres)
AC11JAL 1 1966 1972 1986 1986
Allamuchy StatePark 175 1,D05 1,083 412
BerkshireValleyWMA 1,140 1,140 1,781
BlackRiverWMA 0 2,217, 3,002
Farney State Park 803 803 803
Great PieceMeadows 0 79 230 761
Hacldebarney 433 550 873
Hopatcong StatePark 108 98 98
Jefferson/Sparta Preserve 0 0 155
McEvoy 0 0 95
Musconetcong 135 97 83
TroyMeadows 0 243 334 2,048
TOTAL 2,794 6,232 8,537 3,221
Since1972, the state has added approximate
ly 2,305 acres ofopen space inMorris County,raising its Total to 8,537 acres in 1986 (See
Table 3-2).
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State open space represents th e largest
amount ofland owned by a single government.
entity inMorris County. Approximately 8,537
acres of state parklands are in 13 munici
palities in the county. However, only three of
the 11 sites are improved with active recrea
tional facilities.
AllamuchyMountain Park
(Including Stephen's Section)
Location: Mt. Olive
Area In Morris County: 1,083 non-contiguous acres
Total Area: 7,268 acres
Date Established: 1966Division Jurisdiction: Parks and Forestry
Allamuchy Mountain Park is undeveloped
except for the Stephen's Section. A portion of
the Stephen's Section is located along the
MusconetongRiver. Facilities at this area con
sist of picnic shelters, playgrounds, hiking
trails and campsites. Recreational activities
permitted in the undeveloped portion of Al
lamuchy include hunting and fishing. The un
developed portion of Allamuchy Mountain
Park inMt.Olive is partiallycomprisedof land
obtained for the Hackettstown Reservoir. Al
though the reservoir project has been aban
doned, someof the property remaining under
the jurisdiction of the Division of Water Re-
sources could be added to the state's open
space inventory.
AllamuchyMountain Park and the lands that
had been set aside for the Hackettstown Re-
servoir inMorris County help preserve a large
section of the Musconetcong River and the
Morris Canal.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 19
Berkshire ValleyWildlifeManagement
Area
Location: Roxbury, Jefferson andMt.Arlington
Area: 1,781 acres
Date Established: 1940
Division Jurisdiction: Fish, Game and
Wildlife
The Berkshire ValleyWMA is located just
west of a densely populated area ofWharton,
Dover andMine Hill, and abuts the north side
of 1-80. I t is in a major growth corridor and
protects a portion of the Rockaway River and
its tributary, Stephen's Brook, and associatedwetlands.
No active recreational facilities are available
at Berkshire Valley, but hunting, trapping,
fishing hiking, cross country skiing and horse
back riding are permitted.
Black RiverWildlifeManagementArea
Location: ChesterTownship
Area: 3,002 acres
Date Established: 1964
Division Jurisdiction: Fish, Game
andWildlife
The Black River WMA is the largest state
owned open space parcel in Morris County.
This WMA forms the beginning of an open
space corridor of state and county parkland
that almost completelyencompasses theBlack
River as it flows through Chester Township.
Active recreation facilities have not been
developed at theBlackRiverWMA; however,
trails for hiking and horseback riding are available. An abandoned railroad bed serves as the
major trail. Other activities are bird watching,
fishing and hunting.
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Farney State Park
Location: RockawayTownship
Area: 803 acres in two non-contiguous par-
cels
Date Established: 1943
Division jurisdiction: Parks and Forestry
Farney State Park is adjacent to Split Rock
ReselVoir in northern Rockaway Township.
The area is undeveloped and the land sur
rounding the park consists of 3,701 acres of
watershed property and 1,900 acres of non
profit conSelVation lands which include a Boy
Scout Camp and theNewJerseyCamp for the
Blind.The park consists of two parcels of 200 and
600 acres in size, situated approximately 1/3
mile apart. They are relatively isolated com
pared to otherstateparks and access is severe
ly limited since the roads are unimproved. Far
ney State Park remains undeveloped as an
active recreation area and there are no plans
to build facilities.
Because this area has remained undisturbed
by development and has retained significant
natural features, the 600 acre parcelof Farney
is designated a Natural Area. The topography
is mountainous with steep slopes and rock
outcroppings. The valleys are usually bisected
by a stream and in some low lying flat areas
contain wetlands.
Great Piece Meadows
Location: Lincoln Park and Montville
Area In Morris County: 230 acres in non
contiguous parcels
Total Area: 370 acres
Date Established: 1965
Division jurisdiction: Parks and Forestry
The state has obtained only a few scattered
parcels in theMorris County portion ofGreat
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 20
PieceMeadows, one of the largestwetlands in
the Passaic Basin. Of the 4,275 acres compris
ing Great Piece Meadows, the state owns only
8.6% of this wetland.
The land has not been developed as a park.Someof the parcels are adjacent to the Passaic
River and are prone to flooding. Access is
limited and parcels are landlocked by private
ly-owned property.
Hacklebarney State Park
Location: Chester andWashington
Townships
Area In Morris County: 873 acres
Total Area: 892 acresDate Established: 1924
Division jurisdiction: Parks and Forestry
Hacklebarney State Park was the first state
park established in Morris County. This park
forms the southern portion of the open space
corridor along the Black River at the border
. of Chester and Washington Townships.
Located in a predominantlyagriculturalarea,
Hacklebarney complements the rural setting
by preserving the scenicBlack River corridor.
A 275 acre portion ofHacklebarney hasbeendesignated as a Natural Area. The Lamington
River Natural Area includes a section of the
Black River which flows through a hemlock
forested ravine. Two tributary streams of the
Black River, Rinehart and Trout Brooks, also
flow through the park.
The northernmost portionofHacklebarney
has been developed for active recreational
use. Picnic tables, a playground and a refresh
ment stand are available. Other activities such
as fishing, hiking, cross-country skiing and
sledding are permitted.
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CHART 3-1
Morris CountyPark CommissionAcreage
and Land Donations
Morris County Parks_ Total Acreage
8,391
_ Total Donated
3,1.17
Bamboo Brook OEC
Black River Park
Flanders Valley GC
Fosterf ields
Frel inghuysen Arbor.
Great Swamp OEC 1
Hedden Par k j @ ~ ~ j_._
_ _.
_~ · _ · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · _ · · · · · T - - · · _ · · · · · · _ .. _._ _ ] __--I
James Andrews MP
Lewis Morr is Park
Loantaka Brook Res
Mahlon Dickerson Res 2
Mount Paul Memorial
Old Troy Pa rk
Passa ic River Park
Patriot's Path
Pinch Brook GC
Schooley's Mtn. Park
Silas Condict Park
Sunset Valley GC
Tourne Park
Traction Line 3
Will iam G. Mennen SA
Wi I lowwood Arboretum
o 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
1 Agreement with u.s. Fish and WildlifeSeIVice Acres2 572 Acres· Leased from NJ DEP
3 Not Available
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 23
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The sizeof the county's parks range from the
35 acres of Mennen Sports Arena to 2,156acres of the Mahlon Dickerson Reservation.
More than half of the parks are greater than
250 acres in size.Sixteen of the county's parks are locatedsouth of Route 10. Those in the southeastern
section of the county include Loantaka BrookReservation, Frelinghuysen Arboretum,
Fosterfields, Great Swamp Outdoor Educa
tion Center, Passaic River Park, Mennen
Sports Arena, Pinch Brook Golf Course,Lewis Morris Park and Patriots Path. In thecentral southern section is. James Andrews
Park, as yetundeveloped, and another portion
of Patriot's Path.
Bamboo Brook Outdoor Education Center,Willowwood Arboretum, Schooley's Moun
tain Park and Flanders Valley Golf Course
serve the recreational needs of the south
western portion of the county. Black RiverPark and Mt. PaulMemorial Park, also in this
area, are undeveloped.
To the north ofRoute 10, MorrisCountyhassix county parks. Hedden Park, Tourne Park
and Old Troy Park serve the municipalitiesalong the 1-80 and Route 46 corridor, whileSilas Condict Park and Sunset Valley Golf
Course are more accessible to thosemunicipalities along Route 23. Mahlon-
DickersonReservation, situatedon thenorthwesternboundaryof JeffersonTownship, ser
ves a countywide population.Nine of the county's parks can be classified
as natural area-general purpose parks and
contain active recreational facilities such as
ballfields,playgrounds, picnic areas, swimming
areas, pedestrian paths and bikeways. LewisMorris Park, Silas Condict Park and
Schooley's Mountain Park are examples of
Morris County's general purpose parks.The remaining parks, excluding the threewhich are undeveloped, can be classified as
special purpose parks. Facilities at these parks
are oriented toward specific recreational, cul
tural, and/or educational activities. Examples
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 24
of specific recreational parks include three
golf courses (Flanders Valley, Pinch Brookand Sunset Valley), an ice skating and hockey
arena (Mennen Sports Arena), and a riding
stable (SeatonHackney). Specificcultural andeducational facilities include a historical farm
(Fosterfields), two outdoor educational centers (Great Swamp and Bamboo Brook), and
two arboretums (Frelinghuysen and Willow
wood). Also, at the northern end of Black
River Park, is Cooper Mill, a renovated and
operating grist mill. The unique facilities at
these special purpose parks attract visitorsfrom outside of the county as well.Additionally, the Morris County Park Com
mission has constructed the Traction Line
Bikeway extending along the New JerseyTransit rail line fromMorris Avenue in Mor
ristown to Convent Road at Convent Station.The park commission is also continuing the
acquisition of land for Patriots Path, a major
trail which will link parks across the southern
portion of the county.In addition, the Morris County Park Com
mission is considering the acquisition of anadditional 1,162 acres, as indicated in Table3-3. Areas under consideration for the expansion of Patriots Path have not been included
in the 1,162 acre figure. Several commissionproposals represent land acquisition necessary
for buffer protection in order to mitigate ad
verse impacts from development beyond park
boundaries.The county parks are described below in al
phabetical order.
BambooBrookOutdoor Education Center
Location: Chester Township
Area: 101 AcresA formal garden and education area, Bam
boo Brook was designed by Martha BrooksHutcheson, one of the first female landscape
architects in the nation.Dedicated in 1974, the
center has exotic and native plants, and trails
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that wind through the grounds, including aself-guiding trail with 24 stations. Programs
held here include Summer Music Festival
Concert performances, school programs forchildren, and horticultural workshops and
demonstrations for adults.
BlackRiver Park
Location: Chester Township
Area: 488 acres
This park includes Cooper Mill and an un
developed area adjacent to the ~ l a c k River.The area .protects the river from encroach
ment and is available only for day hiking andfishing. At Cooper Mill, which was built in
1826 and dedicated in 1978, visitors can ob
serve an operating grist mill. Programs held
here include folklore, school programs and
related historic and cultural demonstrations.
Future plans include making the facility moreaccessible to the mobility-impaired.
Flanders Valley GolfCourse
Location: Mt. Olive and Roxbury
Area: 409 acres
One of three park commission golf course
sites, Flanders Valley with 36 holes is fre
quently acclaimed by GolfDigest to be one ofthe top 50 public courses in the nation. Sup
port facilities include a clubhouse, pro shop,
snack bar, locker rooms and a golf cart build
ing. Ice skating, conditions permitting, is per
mitted in winter. A non-recreational asset of
this site is that it is a very productivesource of
water for the Morris County Municipal
Utilities Authority, having a well that delivers
over 2,000 gallons perminute.
Morris County Open Space Element 25
Fosterfields
Location: Morris Township
Area: 225 acresDesignateda LivingHistorical Farm, Foster
fields is going through a continuous process of
redevelopment. The park commission is re
creating the turn of the century, 1890-1910, by
rebuilding the barns, reconstructing the main
house "The Willows", and preserving a work
ing farm for the enjoyment of visitors.
Weekend programs and activities of farm-related and historic topics are scheduled from
May through October. A Harvest Festival is
heldin the fall, and children's schoolprograms
are popular during the schoolyear.A Visitors'
Center provides information, exhibits, a meet
ing room and slide and film presentations.
FrelinghuysenArboretum
Location: Hanover andMorris Townships
.Area: 128 acres
Fre1inghuysen Arboretum is the administrative headquarters of the park commission. Ac
quired in 1%9, the FrelinghuysenArboretum
is maintained as an ecological haven of native
and exotic plants. The terrain varies from
woodland to swamp to open fields. In themainbuilding, classes and workshops for school
children and adul ts are p resen ted . The
grounds are a principal site for concertsduring
the Summer Music Festival, and are also
popular for weddings. Two self-guiding trails
and a Braille Trail provide insights into the
beauty of nature, for all, throughout the year.
Future plans are to build an educational com
plex with home demonstration gardens,providing an enhanced opportunity for public
education and enjoyment. Continued use of
the community gardens area may also require
the expansion of this activity.
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Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center
Location: Chatham Township
Area: 41 acres
The Outdoor Education Center, located at
the eastern end of the Great Swamp,operates
in agreementwith theU.S. Department of the
Interior, and provides extensive programs for
school children as well as for the public on
weekends. It containsa comprehensivenature
resource library, exhibits and hands-on learn
ing resources. A recently c o m p l e t e ~ birdblind,adjacent to a boardwalk and handicapped
parking spaces, makes it accessible to the
mobility-disabled. Future changes for greateraccessibility ar e p lanned and funded. A
boardwalk trail extends approximately one
mile into the Great Swamp through areas rich
with flora and fauna. School classes and family
programs range from maple sugaring and In-
dian Lore to ecology and owl walks.
Hedden Park
Location: Dover, Randolph and Mine Hill
Area: 285 acresA multi-purpose park, Hedden offers both
active and leisure opportunities. The original
40acres ofHeddenParkwere donated in 1963
by Mr. and Mrs. Willard Hedden of Dover.
The park provides green space in a heavily
populated area. Located along Jackson
Brook, the park's six acre lake provides boat
ing and fishing and a place to ice skate in
winter. Trails wind through the park for hik
ing, biking and cross country skiing. A picnic
shelter, family picnic sites and two ballfields
are also available. In 1986, itwas the sitewherethe first concert was interpreted for the deaf.
I t also hosts two concerts during the Summer
Music Festival.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 26
James AndrewMemorial Park
Location: Randolph
Area: 581 acres
An undeveloped area, James Andrews con
tains undisturbed forests and wetlands, mak
ing it a valuable habitat for wildlife. Currently
it is set aside for preservation. .
LewisMorris Park
Location: Mendham, Harding and
Morris Townships
Area: 1,154acres
One of the more heavily used parks, Lewis
Morris was the first county park. A lake re-
creat ion area provides swimming, fishing,
boating and ice skating. These activities are
supportedbya bath and boathousewithsnack
bar, locker rooms and first aid room. Four
ballfields, numerous family picnic sites and
severalgroup areas are connectedbyfivemiles
of trails within the park. There is also a Par-
course Exercise Circuit, and at the Tempe
Wick Road Entrance there is an overnight
camping area for organized groups and a daycamp area.
Loantaka BrookReservation
Location: Chatham, Harding and Morris
Townships
Area: 574 acres
Thislinearparkhelps provide additional pro
tection to Loantaka Brook and th e Great
Swamp. Three ballfields, two picnic areas, a
recreational trail and bridle trail at th e SeatonHackney Stable Complex, and a pond area
offer opportunities for ballgames, picnicking,
jogging, biking, horseback r id ing, c ross
country skiing and ice-skating. Future plans
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call for the construction of a group shelter at
the South Street Recreation Area.
Mahlon Dickerson Reservation
Location: Jefferson
Area: 2,155 acres
MaWonDickersonwith its mountainous ter
rain and extensivewetlandsoffers awilderness
experience unmatched anywhere else in Mor
ris County.Approximatelyeightmiles of trails
lead through thick stands of rhododendrons
and mountain laurels. One of the ~ a n y e x c e l -lentfeatures is theHeadleyOverlook, at 1,300
feet elevation, one of the highest points in
Morris County. The northern section of Lake
Hopatcong may be viewed from this vantage
point. The recent addition of Saffin-RockRill
Reservation and the former "SnowBowl"pro
pertyhave opened up a myriadof recreational
considerations for both programs and
facilities. Existing facilities, in addition to the
trails, include adirondack shelters, a tent and
trailercamping area, picnic area, ballfields and
fishing at Saffin Pond. Educational activities
for both school groups and families are held in
the main Saffin Complex.
Mount PaulMemorial Park
Location: Chester Township
Area: 283 acres
This is an undeveloped park being preserved
for future use.
Old TroyPark
Location: Parsippany-Troy Hills
Area: 96 acres
Old Troy Park, formerly an undeveloped
municipal park, has family picnic sites,
children's playforms, horseshoe pits, a ball
field, a hiking trails, and a pond for fishing.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element27
Two streams join at the pond and then flow
through the park into nearby TroyMeadows,
a state Green Acres project. The park's na
tural features of woods, water and wetlands
make it a favorite spot for birdwatching. The
park is being considered for further develop
ment of picnic areas and ballfield facilities.
Passaic River Park ..
Location: Passaic and ChathamTownships
Area: 264 acres
Passaic River Park protects portions of the
Passaic River in Passaic and Chatham Town
ships, and provides for fishing and ice skating
along the river as well as a ballfield and picnic
area. A hiking trail winds along the shoreline
for about one mile. A major addition of land
along the river is being donated by a local
developer.
Patriots Path
Location:Morris Township
Area: 37 acres
Patriots Path is designed as a linear recrea
tionalpark andto protect theWhippanyRiver
from further encroachment. The establish
ment and development of this park is also an
outstandingexampleof county, municipal and
private sector cooperation. Paved sections of
the path are heavily used as biking, jogging and
walkingtrails.The unpaved sections, including
several that run through parkland, are used by
hikers. Administration and maintenance of
the path is the responsibility of the abutting
land owners. When completed, the primary
path is expected to run through the county
from East Hanover to Washington Township,with secondary trails along the Upper Raritan
and Rockaway rivers to link existing local,
county and national parks and historic sites.
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Pinch BrookGolfCourse
Location: Florham Park and East Hanover
Area: 102 acres
Pinch Brook is the newest golf course in the
county system. It is an 18 hole, par 65 course
popularwith senior citizens. A new clubhouse
was completed in 1987. Formerly a privategolf
club, a portion was sold for residential con
struction and most of the rest was transferred
to theBoroughofFlorhamPark,which in tum
transferred-it to the county park ~ m m i s s i o n .The area -includes a feeder stream of Black
Meadows, a largewetland in thePassaicBasin.
Schooley's Mountain Park
Location:Washington
Area: 394 acres
Amulti-servicepark, Schooley's has areas for
picnicking, swimming, boating, fishing and ice
skating. Concerts of the Annual Summer
Music Festival are held at the open air naturalamphitheater. Two ballfields, horseshoe pits
and two miles of hiking trails complete the
recreational opportunities available. A hikedeeper into the park reveals waterfalls, fast
moving streams and lush woodland. An infor
mation center is staffed during the summer
monthswhen nature programs, films and trailwalks are scheduled. The park was originally
contributed to theMorristown YMCA by the
Morristown Rotary Club in 1923, andwas ac
quired by the park commission in 1968. It protects environmentally sensitive areas in the
South Branch Raritan Riverwatershed.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 28
Silas Condict Park
Location: Kinnelon
Area: 266 acres
Named for a Revolutionary War patriot,
Silas Condict Park has winding hiking trailsconnecting several scenic overlooks. A pic
turesque seven acre lake offers boating, fish
ing and ice skating. opportunities. Sheer rock
outcroppings challenge -novice rock climbers.
Because of its proximity to Route 23, the park
is extremely busy on Sundays during the sum
mermonths. Families and groups from out-of
county frequently fill the park to capacity.
Sunset Valley Golf Course
Location: Pequannock and Kinnelon
Area: 144 acres
Dedicated in 1974, Sunset Valley Park is an
18 hole golf course of outstanding scenic
beautywith the mountains ofKinnelon form
ing a dramatic backdrop. The serenity of this
popular golf course may be severely impactedbyconstruction ofI-287. Construction is plan
ned for the hillside above the course, part of iton park property. These activitieswill need to
be closely supervised to limit avoidable en-
vironmental degradation.
TournePark
Location: Boonton Township, Denville and
Mountain Lakes
Area: 496 acres
Toume Park is a natural areas park with a
mature forest of giant beech and hemlock.From the top of the Toume, at 895 feet eleva
tion, visitors can see breathtaking views of the
surrounding area. The Emilie K -Hammond
Wildflower Trail is a treasure trove of wood
land wildflowers.Other trails, frequently used
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by joggers and cross country skiers, wind
through a bird sanctuary and link with the
Mountain Lakes trails to Birchwood Lake.
Future acquisition plans include land to con
nect the park to the Rockaway River as well
as forprotectionagainst encroachingdevelop
ment.
Traction Line Bikeway
Location: Morris Township and Morristown
Length: Twomiles
The Tract ion Line Bikeway i th e most
recent addition to thethree bikeways that cur
rently run through portions of the county.
Dedicated on June 5, 1986, the Traction Line
was a cooperative effort between the Morris
County Park Commission, Jersey Central
PowerandLight Companyand th e NewJersey
Department of Transportation. The bikeway,
adjacent to New Jersey Transit rail line, is the
only path separated from the county's parks.
I t is a fine example of adaptive re-useofquasi
public land.
William G. Mennen Sports Arena
Location: Morris Township and Morristown
Area: 35 acres
Donated byThe Mennen Company, the cor
porate headquarters ofwhich are adjacent to
the Arena. Supported bybonds issuedin 1975,
the MennenArena hasgrown from a single ice
skating surface to a duplex of two multi-pur
pose rinks. Skatingcontinues here throughout
th e year. It is also used for other events such
as tennis tournaments, concerts and circuses.
Morris County Open Space Element29
WillowwoodArboretum
Location: Chester Township
Area: 131 acres
Located in a shallow valley, Willowwood is a
remarkable mosaic of formal gardens, brook
sidetrails, rolling fields and undisturbedwood
lands. Almost 3,500 kinds of native and cul
tivated plants are available for study. The
estate, dating from 1792, was established as a
private arboretum in 1950, and from 1967until
1980 it was under th e proprietorship of Rut
gers University. In 1980it became a unit of th e
Morris CountyPark system. Geologically, Wil
lowwood and its neighboring park, Bamboo
Brook, are ofparticular interest sinceWillow
wood is in th e Piedmont Province of New
Jersey, while much of Bamboo Brook lies in
the Highlands Province.
MUNICIPAL OPEN SPACE
One of th e roles of municipal government in
providing park land is to supply active recrea
t ion areas easily accessible from residential
neighborhoods. These parks are usually
smaller in size than county parks. Facilities atmunicipal parks include playground equip
ment, picnic areas, ballfields, tennis courts,
basketball courts and swimming pools.
In order to update themunicipal open space
acreages and to determine the type of recrea
tional facilities available at the local level, an
open space questionnaire was sent ou t to
every municipality in the county. Municipal
officials were asked to identify their existing
parks and open space areas by tax block and
lot and street address, and to list the area and
facilities available at each park.According to the responses, a majorityof the
municipalities provide the traditional town
park, playground and/or ballfield. A few mun
icipalities, in addition to providing active
recreational facilities, have obtained parkland
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that because of its use and size is not usuallyassociated with this level of government.
Chester Township, for example, obtained the
former Peapack-Gladstone Reservoir and
turned the 315 acre parcel into a primitivecamping area now called Tiger Brook Park.
Also, some municipalities inMorris County
haveenacted clusterdevelopment regulations
which require that environmentally sensitiveareas be dedicated to the municipality as open
space.At "Sherbrooke at Gillette", a develop
ment in Passaic Township, approximately 71
acres of environmentally sensitive land were.dedicated to the township. .
Presently there are 325municipaJ recreation
and open spaceareas inMorris County. These
parks account for 7,605 acres or 23% of thetotal government-owned open space. (See
Table 3-4). The amount and proportion of
land dedicated to municipally-owned open
spacevariesgreatlyfrommunicipality to muni
cipality.RoxburyTownshipwith 704acres, has
themost municipal open space, while Victory
Gardens. has none. Mountain Lakes, one ofthe county's smallest municipalities at 3.2
squaremiles,has the largest proportion (20%)of its total area inmunicipal open space.
Due to the different methodologies used in
the 1972 "Open Space Element" in determining the amount of municipally-owned openspace, a comparison of the 1972 and 1986
figures would be misleading. The 1972 figuresare comprised ofdeveloped and undeveloped
recreational areas and school recreational
areas. The 1986 f igures include both
developed and undeveloped recreational
areas and conservationor criticalenvironmen
tal areas, but not school recreational areas.
A detailed description of open space and
recreation for each municipality can be found
beginning on page 35.
TABLE 3-4Municipally-Owned Open Space
(Acres)
1986
BoontonTown 160
BoontonTownship 78
Butler ·10
ChathamBorough 181
ChathamTownship 156
Chester Borough 57
Chester Township 461
Denville 130
Dover 49
East Hanover 106
Florham Park 117
Hanover 242
Harding 38
Jefferson 69
Kinnelon 18
Lincoln Park 92
Madison 178
MendhamBorough 173
Mendham Township 384
Mine Hill 73
Montville 327
Morris Township 203
Morris plains 77
Morristown 163
Mountain Lakes 358
Mt. Arlington 96
Mt. Olive 412
Netcong 22
Parsippany-TroyHills 449
Passaic 256
Pequannock 429
Randolph 300
Riverdale 8RockawayBorough 23
RockawayTownship 610
Roxbury 704
Victory Gardens 0Washington 342
Wharton 54
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 30
TOTAL 7,605
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QUASI-PUBLIC OPEN SPACE
School Recreational Lands
School facilities in Morris County providehalf the amount of total recreation area that
municipal parks provide. School recreational
areas account for almost 6% (3,557 acres) of
the tota l open space in the county. The
acreage of land dedicated to school parks in
each municipality ranges from 519 acres in
Morris Township to none in Victory Gardens.
Both publicand private school parks comple
mentmunicipal parks in providing'recreatlOn
al facilities such as ballfields, tennis courts,
track and playground equipment . These
facilities are usually available to residentsduring off-school hours. As mentioned pre
viously, one school-owned property is a nature
preserve and is owned by a school si tuated
outside of the county. The property, known as
"TheGlen", is a 30 acrenature preserveowned
by Montclair State College and located in
Montville. As in the case of other school re
creationallands, township residents are per
mitted to use the tract for passive recreation.
Watershed Lands
Of the eight open space categories, the13,776 acres ofwatershed lands constitute the
largest amount of open space inMorris County
(see Figure 7-1). These lands no t only protect
ground and surface water supplies, but also
maintainwildlife habitats and provide oppor
tunit ies for passive recreation. Although
numerous municipal utility authorities, water
departments, and water companies are si
tuated in the county, only six own significant
parcels of open space to provide and protecttheir water supplies. Three out-of-county
municipalities, Newark, Jersey City, and EastOrange own large tracts of land in Morris
County. Newark's Pequannock Watershed
lands located in Rockaway Township, Jeffer
son Township and Kinnelon Borough, to-
Morris County Open Space Element 31
gether total 6,484 acres and contain the Oak
Ridge and Charlotteburg Reservoirs. Jersey
City Watershed lands located in R o c k a ~ a y ,Jefferson, and Parsippany TownshIps
comprise 4,100 acres and contain the Split
Rock and Jersey City Reservoirs. Together,Newark's Pequannock Watershed and th e
portionof the Jersey CityWatershed property
located along the northern edge of the county
form a contiguous open space area of 8,106
acres, an areawhich is over 1,000 acres larger
than the Great Swamp NWR. Actually, onlya
portion, 19%, of Newark's Pequannock's
Watershed is situated within Morris County.
The total area of the Watershed, which ex
tends into Passaic and Sussex Counties, is
25,000 acres. The MCMUA and the
SMCMUA are the two major regional water
purveyors in Morris County. The MCMUA
owns theAlamatongWellField, a majorwater
supply facility located on the border of Ran
dolph and Roxbury townships. In protecting
the water supply, Alamatong provides ap
proximately 460 acres of open space. The
MCMUA also owns two areas that are pro
posed reservoir sites. The 327 acre site of the
Pulaski Reservoir is located in northern Mt.
Olive Township . No plans are currently
proposed for the reservoirs construction.
However, feasibility studies are underway on
the proposedWashingtonValleyReservoir in
Morris Township.Of the total 735 acresof the
Washington Valley Reservoir, presently 564
acres are in open space, the remaining lands
are still occupied by residences. In the mean
time, public ownership is protecting the ap
proximately 400 acres ofwetlands in the pro
posed reservoir area. The SMCMUA's major
landholding is the 900 acre Clyde PottsReser
voir site in Randolph and Mendham Town
ships.The SMCMUA
has also smaller openspaceparcels totalling84acres inHanover and
Morris Townships. The only inter-county
private water purveyor owning a substantial
amount ofopen space inMorris County is the
Commonwealth Water Company, which sup-
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is a 1,722 acre tract of Troy Meadows, a large
wetland area in Parsippany-Troy Hills and
East Hanover.
The Trust For Public Land(SchiffNatura! Land Trust)
LANDHOLDINGS:Mendham Borough
andMendham Township
AREA: 401 acres
The Trust for Public Land (TPL) acquires
land throughdonationor at lower thanmarket
value and then conveys the lan<;i to public
agencies or non-profit conmlUnity' groups for
recreational and environmental purposes.
TPL itself does not hold or maintain open
space for a long time period. TPL's only acquisition in Morris County is a former Boy
Scoutcenter, theMortimer L. SchiffReserva
tion, in the Mendhams. The Schiff Reserva
tion was firs t purchased by AT&T to be
developed as a conference center. However,
because of strong local opposition to the
project, AT&T sold it to the TPL for below
market value. In order to finance the main
tenance of the property, approximately 140
acres are slated for a residential development
of 76 single family houses. Also, as part of
Mendham Township's Mt. Laurel obligation,
an existing building will be renovated for 12
condominium units for low and moderate in
come families. Not only was Mendham
Township able to preserve a substantial
amount of open space, bu t i t was also able to
provide lower income housing on the same
property. Some of the profi ts f rom the
. residential development will be used to help
area residents set up the SchiffNatural Lands
Trust for the upkeep ofthe Reservation.TPL
has also applied to the state's Open Lands
Management Program which provides funds
to private property owners to improve their
land for public access.
Morris County Open Space Element 33
Nature Conservancy/Conservation Fund
LANDHOLDINGS: Jefferson
AREA: 380 acresThe purpose of the Nature Conservancy is
to preserve and maintain critical wildlife
habitats throughout the nation for rare and
endangered plants and animals. Recently, ap
proximately 300 acres of open space contain
ing steep slopes and rock outcroppings were
donated to Nature Conservancy by a private
landholder. However, an ecological surveydid
not indicate the existence of any rare and/or
endangered wildlife and the tract was trans
ferred to the Conservation Fund. TheMorris
CountyParkCommission is nowin theprocessof acquiring this land.
TheNew JerseyConservation Foundation
LANDHOLDINGS: Hanover, Mendham
Township, Morristown, Passaic and
Washington
AREA: 308 acres
Similar to TPL's intermediary role in acquir
ing open space, the NewJersey Conservation
Foundation also obtains recreational land tobe passed on at costto a governmentor quasi
public agency. The Conservation Foundation
acquires all types of open space and recrea
tionalland in urban, suburban and rural areas.
The NJ. Conservation Foundation's holding
in Morris County will be eventually turned
over to the county park commission or the
respective municipality if the government
agencies are able and willing to accept them.
Most of the landholdings are unimproved and
consist of environmentally sensitive areas ad
jacent to streams. The exception is a lifeestatewith a residencewhichwasdonated to theN.J.
Jersey Conservation Foundation. No plans
have been made at this time regarding the
future management of the estate. The New
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JerseyConservation Foundation also acquiresland in less than fee simple in the form of .conservation easements. In Morris County,
the Foundation has acquired conservationeasements primarily along streams.
New JerseyAudubon Society
LANDHOLDINGS: Harding
AREA: 76 acres
TheNewJerseyAudubon Society has established five Audubon Centers throughout thestate. In Morris County, a 76 acre:portion ofthe 260 acre Scherman-Hoffman Sanctuary is
located in Hard ing , with the remaindersituated in Bernardsville, Somerset County.The tract is wooded and contains streams andwetland areas. The Scherman-Hoffman
Sanctuary and the four other Audubon
Centers stressenvironmentaleducation andindoing so, maintain and manage wildlifehabitats at the centers. Only activities such as
birding, photography and nature walks arepermitted on their properties. Fishing, camping, picnics and hunting are excluded.
Non-Profit Camps
Presently, 13 non-profit camps, with landtotalling 1,771 acres, are in Morris County.
Sevencamps affiliatedwith the Girl Scouts orBoy Scouts, presently provide approximately
1,362 acres of open space. The remainingcamps are owned and run by either religiousorganizations or non-profit handicapped organizations.
Property Owners and Homeowners Associations
Both property owners associations and
homeowners associations own and maintainopen space and recreational facilities for theexclusive use of their members. In Morris
County, 36 property owners and homeowners
associations provide approximately 2,285
acres of open space. This acreage includes
Morris County Open Space Element 34
waterarea aswell as landarea. Presently, theseassociations are situated in 17 municipalitiesthroughout the county. The associations however differ in their creation and orientation.
A property owners association is an organization consistingof property owners in a specificgeographical area of a municipality. The association mayor may not require mandatorymembership for which a fee is assessed from
property owners. Most of the 21 propertyowners associations in Morris County aresituated around lakes. The lakes and the related recreational facilities, including beachesand playgrounds, are maintained by the associations for the sole use of their members.The property owners associations lands are
distinct and separate from individual propertyowners lands. A homeowners association is anorganization consisting of homeowner's in acluster subdivision, a planned unit develop
ment, or a planned residential development.The developer is responsible for creating the
homeowner's association in accordance withthe municipality's land use regulations. Thepurpose of the association is to maintain openspace and recreational facilities as well as anyother commonly owned areas related to thedevelopment. Membership in the home
owners association is usually automatic withthe purchase of a home in the development.As in the case of a property owners associa
tion, a membership fee is assessed for each
home for the maintenance of the property.
Outdoor Clubs
A not-for-profit outdoor club consists of agroup of individualswho ownandmanagelandfor the enjoyment of open space and associated recreational activities. Presently,eight outdoor clubs provide approximately .
433 acres ofopen space inMorrisCounty.Themost common not-for-profit outdoor clubs in
the countyare ownedor leased by sportsmen's
clubs, such as The Shongum Sportsmen's As-sociation, which use the open space for hunting and fishing. The remaining clubs are
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owned by ethnic or other types of social as-
sociations and are geared toward more active
recreational activities such as picnicking and
sporting events. Approximately 948 acres of
open space are owned by not-for-profit com-
munity clubs, service organizations and
religious organizations. The largest parcel of
open space, 871 acres, is ownedby theMission
Society of St. Paul the Apostle in Jefferson
Township.
-
Morris County Open Space Element 35
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BOONfON
Approximately7% or 113 acres of the Townof Boonton is town-owned open space. Thetown owns 12 parks. Two of the larger parks,Sheep Hill Park and Veteran's MemorialPark, are partially within adjacent
municipalities, so the total of town-ownedopen space is 159 acres. Of SheepHill Park's43 acres, 38 acres are inneighboring Boonton
Township. Located in the northeast comer ofthe town, it is developed for passive recreationsuch as picnicking and hiking. The park alsohas an unique feature, an astronomical observatory. About e ight of the 50 acres ofVeteran's Memorial Park extend into Montville. This park accounts for almosthalfof the
town's park acreage and is presently undeveloped.Nine of the open space parcels are lessthan five acres in size and four of these aredeveloped as tot lots. The main recreationarea is along both sides of the Rockaway
River, with Canalside Park on the east bankand Grace Lord Park on the west bank. Dueto the deterioration inwater quality, however,Parkview Beach, adjacent to Canalside Park
has been closed for health and safety reasons.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 36
Recently renovated, Canalside Park includescourts, children's play areas and picnic tables.A scenic walking path in the Boonton gorge,offers spectacular view ofwaterfalls and rockformations. Grace Lord Park also has playareas andpicnic tables aswell as a gazebo. Theclosing of the municipal beach is only one ofthe problems affecting Boonton Town's park
system. Pepe Fieldwas closed because ofcontaminatedsoils, andVeteran'sMemorial Parkwhile a natural areawithwooded trails, is unsuitable for active recreation because of steepslopes. This problem was addressed in the1982 "Reexamination Report of the BoontonPlan" which recommends expansion of the
park by acquiring an adjacent six acre lotsuitable for active recreation. The largestopen space parcel in the Town of Boonton is
the 134 acre portion of the JerseyCityReservoir situated at the southern border of the
municipality. Public access is prohibited inorder to protect the potablewatersupply.Thetotal open space for the town is 326 acres or
20% of its area.
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BOONTONTOWNSIllP
BoontonTownship presentlyowns six parks
whose combined areas total approximately78
acres or 1.4% of its area. The township also
owns a 30 foot easement along the Morris
Canal. Four of the parks are under five acresin size. Leonard Park, approximately fouracres, is the only park in Boonton Township
developed for active recreation. The park, lo
cated offValleyRoad, has playground equip
ment, courts, picnic areas and fishing areas
along a tributaryof theRockawayRiver.Grif-
fith Park, three-quarters of an acre, has only
park benches; however, fishing in the Rock
away River is permitted here. Two parks areunnamed and undeveloped. The two largest
parks, Tumble-In Park (24 Ac) and ForestPark (46 Ac) were created and dedicated to
the township for passive recreation as a result
of clusterdevelopments. Tumble-InPark con
sists of environmentally sensitive areas alongthe southern portion ofBeaver Brook. Trails
and access to the brookfor fishing and boating
Morris County Open Space Element 37
are available at the park. Only trails exist at
ForestPark situated at the northern borderof
the township off Hillcrest Road. It too has
open space areas which are environmentally
sensitive.An easement along theMorris Canalwas also dedicated to Boonton Township as aresult of a development. The easement is lo
cated along the rear property lines of residen
ces along Pond HillDrive and provides access
to theRockawayRiver. The township also has
one county park, the Tourne (250 Ac), which
has active recreational facilities available to
Boonton Township residents. In addition to
publiclyowned open space, four not-for-profitassociations, two property owners associa
tions, a sportsmen's club, and a Boy Scout
Camp provide approximately 514 acres of
privately-owned open space. Public, quasipublic and private open space constitute 899
acres or 16% of the township's area.
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BUlLER
Butler has four parks with a combined
acreage of under 10 acres, which is less than
1% of the borough's area. This places Butler
third behind Riverdale and Victory Gardens
as having th e least amount of municipally
owned open space. Stony Brook Swim Club,
located in th e south-central portion of Butler,is th e borough's largest park (6 Ac). Recrea
tional facilities at th e swim club includeballfields,playground equipment, picnicareas,and an outdoor swimmingarea.Th eonlyother
parkwith recreational facilities is th e Western
Avenue Park (1 Ac) which contains tennis
courts and picnic areas. Th e remaining two
parks,ArchStreetPark (3 Ac)which abuts th e
Pequannock River and Terrace Avenue Park
ar e presently undeveloped. Three school
Morris County Open Space Element 38
parks provide recreational facilities which are
availableto borough residents. Facilities at th e
two elementary schools include ballfields,
playground equipment, courts and track. Th e
high school also provides ballfields and courts.
In addition to public facilities, two privately
owned r ecr eat i onal areas provide ap -
proximately 31 acres of open space. Terrace
Lake, owned by a religious organization, hasminiaturegolf, and swimmingand picnic areas.
Lake Edenwold Association, a property
owners association, owns and maintains Lake
Edenwold and a few adjacent land parcels.
T he total open space fo r Butler is ap
proximately 76 acres, or almost 6% of th e
borough's area.
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CHATHAM
ChathamBorough currentlyowns nineopenspace areas which total approximately 178
acres. The municipal open space constitutes
almost 12% of the total land area of the
borough, placing it second behind MountainLakes in having the largest percentageof land
devoted to municipal open space. Only fourparks have been developed for active recrea
tion. Facilities at Memorial Park (7 Ac), Gar
den Park (4 Ac), Sheppard-Kollack Park (14Ac), and StanleyPark (2 Ac) include ballfield,
playground equipment, tennis and basketball
courts, picnic areas, trails, and swimming and
boatingareas.WahulaWoods (36Ac), Brookside Grove (7 Ac), as well as two parcels (11
Ac, 13 Ac,& 84Ac), situatedalong the PassaicRiver have been designated as conservation
areas. At the northwestern border of the
borough, Brookside Grove and the 84 acre
Conservation parcel were acquired primarily
Morris County Open Space Element 39
to protect the watershed area. Only passiverecreational activities such as hiking and fish
ing are permitted in this area. WahulaWoods,
situated in the northern section of the
borough, has only nature trails. The two otherconservation areas serve to protect the floodplain of the Passaic River and form two un
linkedsections of a proposed linearpark along
the river. Five school facilities including a
private school are available for use by thegeneral public. These facilities include
ballfields, playgrounds, and track. Two private
outdoor tennis andswimmingfacilities are also
located in Chatham Borough. The total open
space provided by these private recreationalareas is approximately 16acres.The totalopen
space in Chatham Borough provided bypublic, quasi-public, and private entities is
about300 acresor almost20%of the total area
of the borough.
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CHATHAMTOWNSHIP
Ten municipal parks comprising approximately 156 acres, nearly 3% of the
township's area, are distributed throughoutChatham Township. The parks range in sizefrom the 0.2 acre Green Village Park, aplayground, to the 76 acre Tanglewood Lane
Park, a summer recreation and conservationarea. All of the parks except for Tanglewood
Laneand asmall conservationarea haveactiverecreational facilities. Facilities at the various
parks include ballfields, playground equipment, courts, picnic areas and trails. Commercial recreation facilities and non-profit organizations within Chatham Township
provide209acres of open space.A private golfcourse and a private swimming club are the
two major commercial recreational facilities.Thenon-profit organizations' open spacecon-
Morris County Open Space Element 40
sists of ballfields and an ice rink associatedwith two fire departments, and an outdoorswimming facility. Chatham Township rankssecond in the percentage of governmentowned open space with 32% of its total landarea dedicated to federal, county and
municipal open space.The largest landholderis the federal government with 22% of the
totallandarea (1,333Ac. comprisinga portionof the Great Swamp NWR). The township
also has a substantial amount of countyparkland (475Ac) withthe GreatSwampOutdoor Education Center and portions of theLoantaka Brook Reservation and the PassaicRiver Park located within its borders. Thetotal open space for Chatham is 2,240 acres or37% of the township's a r e a ~
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CHESTER
Public open space in Chester Borough is
comprised of three municipal parks: Chubb
Park, GroveStreetPark, andMunicipal Field.
In total, the borough's open space is 57 acres,or 6% of its land area. Chubb Park is locatednear the western border of Chester Boroughand extends into Chester Township. It is the
only municipal park in the county which is
co-owned by two municipalities. Approx
imately42 acresof the 188acreparkarewithinthe borough, making Chubb Park the largestopen space area within the municipality.
Facilit ies at the park include ballfields,
Morris County Open Space Element 41
playground equipment, courts, picnic areasand trails. Grove Street Park and Municipal
Field are smaller parks but are more centrally
located to serve the entiremunicipality. Grove
Street Park (9Ac) has playground equipment,courtsand picnic areas;MunicipalField (5Ac)
has a ballfield and a tire playground. The onlyquasi-publicopen space inChester Borough is
a school park associated with a church. The
recreational facilities available at this site include a ballfield and picnic grove. Public and
quasi-public open space comprises 76 acres or
8% of the borough's area.
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CHESTERTOWNSHIP
Chester Township, basically a rural
municipality, contains a significant amount ofpublic open space. Municipal, county andstate park lands comprise 27%, or 5,099 acres,of the township's total land area. Township
park land totals 462 acres, and consists of twopark sites: Chubb Park (146 Ac) and TigerBrook (316 Ac). Chubb Park, situated on
Route 24, extends into the borough, and is theonly park in the county co-owned by twomunicipalities. The recreational facilitiesavailable in the Chester Township portion areballfields, riding rings, an ice skating pond anda par course.Tiger Brook Parkwas the formerPeapack-Gladstone Reservoir. I t is now used
as a primitive camping area. No other
municipal recreational areas exist within thetownship. Four county parks and two stateparks are also situated in the township and
Morris County Open Space Element 42
make up the bulkof its open space. Two contiguous countyparks,BambooBrookOutdoorEducation Center (101 Ac) and Willowwood
Arboretum (131 Ac), located in the southernpart of township, preserve former private estate landholdings. Mt. Paul Memorial Park(283 Ac), on the eastern boundary and BlackRiver Park (488 Ac), in the south western
sectionof the township, are undeveloped.TheBlackRiver CountyPark and two state parks,
Hacklebarney State Park (640 Ac) and BlackRiver Fish and Game Preserve (3,002 Ac),form an extensive 4,130 acre open space corridor along the Black River from the southwest comer to the northern border of the
township.The total open space for th e
township comprises 5,360 acres or 28% of
Chester Township's area.
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DENVllLE
Eight municipal parks totalling 130 acres, or
almost 2% of the township's area, are dispersed throughout Denville. The largest park,
Muriel Hepner Park (32 Ac), is a nature parkpreserving a wetlands area. Gardner Field (14
Ac) and Zeek Road Park (24 Ac) are
developed for active recreation. Gardner
Field is the most intensely developed with
ballfields, basketbal l and tennis courts,
playground equipmentand a pavilion. A swim-ming areaalong theRockawayRiver has beenclosed for health reasons. The land for Zeek
Road Park was recently obtained from the
state. Presently only a soccer field has beenconstructed. Birch Run (24 Ac), Den Brook
(23 Ac) and Toft Hill (8 Ac) parks in thesouthern portion have all been dedicated to
Denville Township from the development of
residential subdivisions. These parks are un
developed. BeaconHill Park (5 Ac) is a smallneighborhood park in a residential area in thesoutheastern section of the township. A
playground has been developed at this park.Partofonecountypark is situatedwithinDenville, approximately 216 acres of the Tourne
County Park is located at the boundary of
Morris County Open Space Element 43
Denville, Boonton Township and MountainLakes. The Tourne protects a wooded hilltopand provides a scenic overlook of th e
farmlands and rolling hills of northern and
centralMorris County. In addition to government-owned open space, Denville contains asubstantial number of private recreational
areas. Five private community clubs or
property owners associations are situated
around lakes. These lakecommunities includeCook's Pond, Rock Ridge Community Club,Cedar Lake Property Owners Association,LakeArrowhead Club and Indian Lake Com
munity Club. The use of the lakes and theassociated recreational facilities are restricted
to the resident members of the lake com
munity.
Approximately 300 acres of open space, in
cluding water area, are provided by property
owners associations. Two private golf coursestotalling 199 acres border on the "Valley", aprimarily agricultural lowland area bisected bythe Rockaway River and bordered by two
parallel ridges, in the northeastern section of
the township. Besides providing recreation,
the golf courses act as buffers between
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DOVER
TheTown ofDover contains nine parkswith
a total of approximately 49 acres or 3% of the
area of the town. Dover's largest open spaceparcel, comprising almost half of its park
acreage, is an unnamed andundevelopedtract
which covers just over 21 acres on the west
bank of the Rockaway River near theWharton border. The largest improvedpark isHurd
Park, nine acresinsize. Jackson Brook and apond are the predominant features of this pas
sive park which is improved with only
walkways, benches, a foot bridge and agazebo.
Each of the remaining parks is under five acresin size. Across the Rockaway River from the
large open space parcel is Water Works Park
(4.5 Ac). Water Works Park has a ballfield,basketball courts, playground, picnic areasand
a covered pavilion. Fishing is also permitted inthe Rockaway River. Situated in the south
centralportionof town is CrescentFieldwhich
is equal in size to Water Works Park but withfewer facilities. Crescent Field has a ballfield,basketball courts, a playground and a running
track. TheSecondStreet Playground (2Ac) is
directly across the street from Crescent Field.
Morris County Open Space Element 45
Two smaller parks, Salem Village and Over
look, are also located in the southern portion
ofDover. Although each park is less than twoacres in size, each has developed recreational
facilities such as ballfields and playground
equipment. In the center of Dover is J.F.K
CommonsPark, less than two acres insizewithplayground equipment and a bandstand. The
remaining municipal park is the King FieldComplex (2.5 Ac) on the northern Dover
Rockaway Township border. The field has
been developedforbaseball andsoftball. Four
school parks contributing 30 acres of recreationallandare also available to town residents.
Permits are required to use the recreational
facilities at the high school and HamiltonField. Facilities available at the schools in
clude ballfields, tennis and basketball courts,playground equipment and track. Additionally, an 18 acre portion of the county's Hedden
Park is situated on the southwest comer ofDover. Public and quasi-public open space
constitutes 97 acres or 6% of the area of
Dover.
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EASTHANOVER
The Township of East Hanover presently
owns and maintains five open space parcelswith a combined area of approximately 106
acres, or 2% of the township's area. Only
Lurker Park and Sommer's Park have been
developed for active recreation. These parks
makeup overhalfof the township's totalopenspace acreage.
LurkerPark, situated in the northern sectionof the township and abutting thePassaicRiveris the major recreational area. The 59 acrepark has been developed with ballfields, basketball courts, picnic areas and playground
equipment. Also bordering the Passaic River,
south of Lurker Park is Sommer's Park. Facil
ities at this eight-acre park include a ballfield
and a playground.
The three undeveloped parks for a contig
uous open space areaofalmost39 acres at the
southern EastHanover-FlorhamParkborder.
These parcels, Fairview1, Fairview2, and Gifford Heights, resulted from the development
Morris County Open Space Element 46
of residential subdivisions and are set aside forfloodwater storage.In addition to municipally owned park, five
school parks provide recreational facilities..
The use of these parks by the public, however,is restricted to the playground facilities.The county and a commercial recreational
facility provide areas for specific recreational
activities. Adjacent to the three municipalopen space areas is a portion of the county'snew golf course, Pinch Brook. The commercial recreation area is a pitch and putt andbatting cage facility which provides almost 14
acres of private open space.
Two non-profit organizations protect a sig
nificantportion of the flood plain andwetland
areas inEast Hanover. Wildlife PreserVes and
theNewJerseyConservationFoundationpro
tect approximately362acresofopen spacefor
wildlife. The total open space in the township
is 667 acres, or almost 13% of East Hanover'sarea.
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FLORHAM PARKOf the 594 acres of open space in Florham
Park, over 19%or 116 acres is municipal park
land. Presently, there are 10 municipal parks
ranging from less than a quarter of an acre
(Campfield Gardens) to 71 acres (EmmettPark). All of-the parks are developed and
provide facilities such as ballfields, playgroundequipment, tennis courts, basketball courts,
picnic areas, swimming, fishing areas, trailsand ice rinks. Except for Emmett Park and
CampfieldGardens, all of the municipal parks
are in residential areas east ofRidgedaleAve
nue. Emmett Park, the largest and most
developed park, is located on thewestern side
of Ridgedale Avenue behind the municipal
complex. Campfield Gardens is located at the
intersection ofRidgedaleAvenue andColumbia Turnpike, and diagonally across fromColumbia Gardens is Prudden Park (0.3 Ac),a picnic area. Mini-Park, Patriot Park, Public
Plaza, and Baldwin Parkare less than one-halfacre in size and centrally located within the
borough. East of these parks is a ballfield,
Stobeaus Field (3 Ac). The remaining two
municipal parks are in the southern areaof the
Morris County Open Space Element 47
borough.SpringGardenLakePark is a26acre
linear park along the banks of Spring Garden
Brookbetween a residential development and
the proposed Route 24 right-of-way. The
Beech-crest Recreational Area (14 Ac), theonly park south of proposed Route 24, is dev
elopedwith ballfields, playground equipment,tennis and basketball courts and picnic areas.
In addition to municipally-owned open space,twoschool parks contribute almost 46 acres of
recreational area to Florham Park. The
schoolsofferballfields for usebyborough resi
dents. A portion of the Pinch Brook Golf
Course, a county facility, is also in Florham
Park. Approximately 50 acres of the 101 acre
golf course are in the northern section of the
borough. Private commercial recreationalfacilities account for the largest amount ofopen space in the borough a private golfcourse and a private swim club comprise al
most 279 acres of recreational land. Additionally the City of East Orange Water Depart
ment owns approximately 104 acres of
watershed land adjacent to the Passaic River
to protect its water supply.
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HANOVER
Of the total open space and recreationalareas in Hanover Township, 53%, or 260acres, consistofmunicipally-owned park land.
Five of thirteen municipal parks are developed for recreational use. Bee Meadow Park is
the largest developed park. The 93 acre park,situated in the northeastern section of thetownship, surrounds Bee Meadow Pond.
Facilities include tennis andbasketball courts,playgroundequipment, trails anda picnicarea.Fishing andswimmingare also permitted. Thesecond largest park is Central Park (40 Ac),located along the Whippany River on SouthJefferson Road. Only trails and a portion ofPatriots Path run through this park. The two
other developed parks, Malapardis Park (20Ac) and Black Brook Park (18 Ac) each havethe same recreational facilities which includebasketball and tennis courts, ballfields andplayground equipment. Malapardis Park is
near thewestern borderof the townshipwhileBlackBrook Park is near the eastern border.The smallest improved park is Momoe Park,
located on Whippany Road adjacent to theHanover-Morris Township border. This two
acre park primarily serves senior citizens. The
Morris County Open Space Element 48
recreational facilities at the park consist ofbocci, horseshoepits and tennis courts.The sixopen space parcels were dedicated to the
township as a result of residential subdivision.Knollwood Estates (5 Ac), Trailwood (9 Ac),Forest Way (19 Ac), and Hanover Green (8Ac) open space parcels are situated in thewestern residential area. Runnymede open
space (27Ac) is adjacent to BeeMeadowParkand Hansch open space (12 Ac) is situatednorthwest of the Morristown Airport. Twoother undeveloped parks are SummitAvenuePark (4 Ac) which is next to Hanover Green
and Reynolds Avenue Park (3 Ac) which is
adjacent to Runnymede. Four school parks
complement theHanover's parks in providingactive recreational facilities such as ballfieIdsand playground equipment. These schools arelocated in each of the residential areas of thetownship. A 49 acre portion of the Frelin
ghuysen Arboretum, a county park, is locatedon the southwest border of the township onEast Hanover Avenue. In addition to government-owned open space, private organiza
tions andbusinesses provide approximately38
acres of open space and recreational area.
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Two commercial recreational facilities in the
township are a swim club and a miniature golf
course and driving range.The non-profit New
Jersey Conservation Foundation is currently
holding a seven acre parcel along the banks of
Whippany River. The total open space is 495
acres, or 7% ofHanover's area.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 49
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HARDlNG
Harding Township maintains five parks
whose combined areas total approximately 38
acres, less than 1% of the township's area.
Four parks, Bayne Park (14 Ac), Kirby Hall
Park (7 Ac), Equestrian Park (8 Ac) and
Memorial Park (1 Ac) are all within a short
distance of each other in the center of the
township. Facilities at these parks, except
Memorial Park, include picnic areas, a fishingand ice skating pond, ballfields, tennis courts
and an equestrian riding ring. Memorial Park
contains only a monument and is primarily
used for ceremonies. The remaining park,
Barrett Park, is a ballfield and is situated offof
Bailey'sMillRoad adjacent to 1-287.Although
Harding has a small amount of municipally
owned parkland, it has both the greatest per
centage of area and the largest number of
acres dedicated to government-owned parks
and open space in the county. Two federal
parks and two county parks account for 40%or 5,240acresof the total area of the township.
The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
covers the ent ire southern quarter of the
Morris County Open Space Element 50
township while the Jockey Hollow section of
th e Morristown National Historical Park
covers most of the north-western corner. Inaddition, portions of two county parks, 1.oan
taka Brook Reservation in the northeast
corner, and Lewis Morris Park adjacent to
Jockey Hollow, contribute 283 acres of open
space. Not only does Harding have a tremen
dous amount of public open space, but it alsohas 225 acres of privately- owned open space.
Three conservation organizations, Wildlife
Preserves, New Jersey ConservationFounda
t ion and the New Jersey Audubon Society,
preserve approximately 163 acres of open
space for wildlife habitats. A 47 acre portion
of the Morris Area Council of Girl Scouts
camp also extends into Harding Township.
The remainder of the private open space is
maintained by three property owners associa
tions, Lakeshore Properties, Harding Green
Associates and ShadowbrookAssociation.Altogether, 5,541 acres or 42% of Harding is
presently dedicated to recreation land and
open space.
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JEFFERSON
Although Jefferson Township is the secondlargest municipality inMorris County, encom
passing 42.9 square miles, relative to its size it
has a small number of acres in municipally
owned open space. Presently, eight parks tot
aling 69 acres are available to the township'sresidents. Three of the parks, Prospect PointPark, Longwood Lake Park and East Shore
Park, are under an acre in size. Prospect PointPark in the Lake Hopatcong area and Long
woodLakePark just northofLongwoodLakearepocket playground parks.EastShorePark,
also in the Lake Hopatcong area, is presently
under development as a pocketpark. Threeof
the remaining five parks are developed for
active recreation. The seven acre Janel Tract
Park, in the northeast section of the township,
has tennis courts, while three acre BradyPark,
in the Lake Hopatcong area, has both tennis
and basketball courts. White Rock Park,
which is two acres in size and is in the WhiteRock Lake area, has only ballfields. The two
largest municipal parks, 713 County Park (30Ac) and Ridge Road Park (26 Ac), are pre
sently undeveloped. The 713 County Park is
located in the Shawnee Lake area in the
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 51
southern sectionwhile the Ridge Road Parkis located west of White Rock Lake in the
northernsectionof the township.What Jeffer
son lacks in municipal open space is partially
compensated for by the vast landholdings of
the county, state, quasi-public andprivate sec
tors. The township contains the largest countypark, the 2,156 acreMahlonDickersonReser
vation situated along Weldon Road on thewestern border. In the southeastern comer of
the township is a 563acre sectionoftheState'sBerkshireValleyWildlifeManagementArea.
The quasi-public and privatesectors comprise
approximately 6,695 acres ofopen space and
recreational area, which is twice the amount
of the total government open space containedwithin Jefferson. Of the 6,695 acres, 4,809
acres are owned and managed by Jersey City
and Newark for their water supply. The 704
acre Jersey City Watershed property extends
from the eastern boundary of the MahlonDickerson Reservation to the eastern borderof the township. A 4,105 acre portion of
Newark's Pequannock Watershed, including
the Oak Ridge Reservoir, covers the entire
northern sectionof the township. Commercial
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recreational facilities andnon-profit organiza
tions constitute 1,310 acres and 1,406 acres,
respectively, of open space and recreational
land. Commercial recreational facilities in
clude a golfcourse, asportsmen's club and twocamps. Non-profit open space consists of acamp, a conservation fund property, two out-
door clubs and a religious retreat. Although
the township owns a relatively small amount
of open space it has the largest number of
acres currently designated as open space and
recreational land. Public, quasi-public, andprivate open space presently encompass 9,482
acres, or 34% of the totalland areaof Jefferson.
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KINNELON
Kinnelon Borough has five municipally
owned parks whose combined acreages total
only 18 acres, which is less than 1% of the
borough's area. Only two parks have beendeveloped for active recreation. The BoontonAvenueField (8Ac) just north of theBoonton
Reservoir and theMunicipal Field (2Ac) behind 'the municipal building off Kinnelon
Road have been developed as ballfields.Pleasant Run Park (3 Ac) south of the
municipal field and two unnamed parks (3 Ac,
2.5 Ac) in the eastern portion of the borough
are undeveloped. Two county parks con
tribute approximately 297 acresofopen space.
Silas Condict Park is located on the northern
border of the borough and a portion of Sunset
ValleyGolfCourse is situated at the southeastborder. Quasi-public and private organiza
tions own and maintain the largest amount of
open space in the borough. Both Butler and
the TownofBoontonhave their surfacewatersupplies situated in Kinnelon. The 670 acre
Butler Reservoir property is situated in the
Morris County Open Space Element 53
middleof the borough andfishing is permitted
from the water's edge. Fishing in the same
manner is also permitted at the249 acreBoon
ton Reservoir located at the southern border.
Jersey City has 157 acres and Newark has 143
acres of their watershed properties extending
along the western border of Kinnelon. Al
together, 1,230 acres of open space in the
borough protect surface water supplies. Notfor-profit organizations contribute 690 acresof open space and recreational land. Four
property owners associations, Smoke
RiseClub, FaysonLakesAssoc., Lake Reality
Assoc. and Stonybrook Highland Assoc., ownandmaintain390 acres for theirmembers. The
Lenni Lenape Girl Scouts also operate a 300
acre camp in the southwest portion of theborough.Four schoolparksare situatedwithin
Kinnelon; however, the recreational facilitiesare not available for use by the public. The
total open space is 2,310 acres, almost 19% ofthe borough's area.
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LINCOLN PARK
Lincoln Park presently owns and maintains
12 parks whose combined acreages total approximately 92 acres, or 2% of the area of the
borough. The sizes of the municipal parks
range from less than a tenth of an acre (Public
Park), to over 37 acres (Wildan Park). Activerecreational facilities such as ballfields,
playground equipment, and swimming facil
ities are available at 10 parks. The two undeveloped parks are EvergreenPark (4Ac) in
the northern residential area, and Aqueduct
Park (9 Ac) adjacent to the Passaic River in
the southeastern portion of the borough. Pas
sive recreation such as fishing and picnicking
is permitted at Aqueduct Park. Most of the
parks are situated in or near the residentially
developed areas of the borough. Five parks;
Wildan Park, Evergreen Park, John Street
Park (2 Ac), Ryerson Road Park (4 Ac) and
Lyn Park Playground (8 Ac), are all located
northof theErie-LackawannaRailroadwhichdivides the borough in half. South of the rail
road is the Municipal Complex Park (12 Ac),
Beavertown Park (14 Ac), Hilltop Park (0.7
Ac),PublicPark (.04Ac), AqueductPark,ElmStreetPark (0.2Ac), and WillowAvenuePark
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 54
(0.5 Ac). In addition to municipal parks, four
school parks also provide recreational areas.Facilities available at the schools include ball
fields, playground equipment and tennis andbasketball courts. Lincoln Park's Recreation
Department leases and maintains the ballfields at the high school on Ryerson Road.
Private organizations provide approximately
354acres of recreational area and open space.The only commercial recreation facilities in
the borough consist of a 108 acre golf course
and a 27 acre outdoor swim club. Non-profit
organizations providing open space consist of
a fire department, the Scottish Rite Associa
tion, a conservation organization and a home
owners association. The conservation organ
izat ion, Wildlife Preserves, Inc. owns
scattered parcels in the flood plain and wet
lands associated with the Passaic River. This
area, known as the Great Piece Meadows, is
also partly protected by the State Division ofParks andForestrywhichowns38acres ofland
in this area. The total open space acreage inLincoln Park is approximately528 acres which
constitutes almost 14% of its area.
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MADISON
Even thoughit is one of the smallestmunici
palities in the county, Madison owns 15 parks
whose combined acreage is 178 acres,which is
almost 7% of the borough's area. The parksrange from less than half an acre, Fen Court,to over 64 acres, Memorial Park. Nine parksare under five acres in size.
Presently, onlyfour parks,whichcomprise 87
acres or 49% of the total municipal open
space, have recreational facilities. MemorialPark has ballfields, playground equipment,
picnic areas and trails. RosedaleAvenue Field
(11 Ac) is a ballfield. Dodge Field (5 Ac),
situated on Central Avenue, has ballfields,
courts, playground equipment, picnic areas
and a swimmingfacility. LucyD. AnthonyPark
(7 Ac) on Myrtle Avenue, has ballfields,
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 55
courts, playground equipment and picnic
areas.Each undeveloped park is less then seven
acres in size, except for the area known as
Wetlands and Delbarton. This 39 acre parcel
adjacent to Memorial Park is composedprimarily ofwetlands and canonlybe used for
limited recreation.1o
Complementing public facilities are two
private recreational facilities. The MadisonGolf Club, a commercial recreational facility,
.consists of a 20 acre golfcourse. TheYMCA,
a six acre non-profit recreational facility, has
ballfields. The total open space is 301 acres,which constitutes nearly 12% of Madison's
area.
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MENDHAM BOROUGH
Municipally-owned open space inMendhamBorough consists of nine parks whose combined acreage totals 171 acres. Seven parks
comprising 157 acres or 91% of the totalmunicipal open space are situated north of
Route 24 where the more densely populatedneighborhoods exist.Three parks, Borough Park (14 Ac), Moun
tain Valley Park (34 Ac) and West Field (10Ac), are developed with active recreationalfacilities. BoroughPark is centrallylocated offof Route 24 and Mountain Road and hasballfields, playground equipment, courts andpicnic areas. North ofBoroughPark isMountainValleyPark which offers fishing, ballfields
and picnic areas. Playground equipment andballfields are also available at West Fieldsituated off ofRoute 24.Almost 93 acres, over 50% of the municipally-owned open space, are used for passive
recreation. Hiking and/or picnics are theprimary recreational activities at Dean Road
Park (47 Ac) and PatriotsWay (19Ac). DeanRoad Park, adjacent to the Mendham Commons development, is the borough's largestpark and includes an arboretum. India Brook
Morris County Open Space Element 56
Park in the northwest corner permits fishing.Adjacent to India Brook Park to the south is
Patriots Way, part of a major trail networkextending across the county. The remainingthree parks, Barnside (7 Ac), Franklin RoadTract (9Ac), andHeatherWay Tract (4.5Ac),are undeveloped.The ballfields, track and playground equip
ment of one private and three public schoolsare available for the recreational use of
borough residents.Private outdoor recreational organizations
provide approximately 167 acres of open
space. The Roxiticus Golf Club, on 118 acres,is a commercial recreational facility. Two
property owners associations, Mendham
Commons and the Cosma Lake Association,maintain22acres andone acre respectivelyfortheenjoymentof their members.TheTrustfor
Public land, a non-profit organization,
protects approximately26 acres ofopen spaceinthe boroughwith themajorityof its 500 acre
landholding in Mendham Township.
The total open space comprises 526acres, oralmost 14% of the borough's area.
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l\1ENDHAM TOWNSHIP
MendhamTownship has 384 acres, over 3%
of its land, dedicated to open spaceand recrea
tion. In comparison to other municipal parks
in Morris County, the sizes of the township's
parks are large - five of the seven parks are
over 45 acres. Only theMunicipal Pool (4Ac)
and Patriots Path Park (6Ac) are the size of a
neighborhood park. Patriots Path, off West
Main Street,ispart of a major trail systemthrough the southern portion of the county.
The larger municipal parks have no t been
developed for active recreation. The largest,
Dismal Harmony Park (146 Ac), abuts the
northernsection ofLewisMorris Park, a coun
ty facility. As a nature preserve, activities per
mitted at Dismal Harmony include hiking,
bicycling and fishing. Similaractivities and fea
tures exist at most of the other parks. The
Buck Hill Tract (74 Ac) in the southeastern
section, India Brook (58 Ac) and Meadow
wood Parks (49 Ac) in the western section ofthe township are, for the most part, nature
preserves where trails have been developed
and activitiessuch as fishing, picnics and hiking
are permitted. In addition to these features,
theRalstonOpenArea (48Ac) offWestMain
Morris County Open Space Element 57
Street is the only large park with ballfields.
Most of these parks also protect stream cor
ridors andwetland areas.
Facilities at the Middle School and the
Elementary School which include ballfields,
playground equipment and basketball courts
are available to township residents.
As mentioned previously, part of a county
parkissituated in Mendham Township. Twosections ofLewis Morris Park, one adjacent to
DismalHarmonyPark and the other adjacent
to the eastern Mendham Township-Morris
Townshipborder, total almost 800 acres. Also
on the eastern border of the township, south
of Lewis Morris Park, is a 13 acre section of
theMorristown National Historical Park.
The Southeast Morris Municipal Utilities
Authority's Clyde Potts Reservoir property
preserves approximately 570 acres of open
space north ofMendhamBorough, bordering
Randolph Township.Thewatershed propertynot only protects the reservoir but also the
streams that feed directly into the surface
water supply.The private sector provides a large amount,
approximately725 acres, of open spacewithin
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the township. The most significant parcel ofopen space, the Schiff Reservation, was ob
tained from the BoyScouts ofAmericabyThe
Trust for Public Land (TPL), a non-profit land
trust organization. A portion of the 568 acrepropertywill be developed and sold to finance
the Schiff Natural Lands Trust, an organiza
tion made up of local residents who will
manage the375 acres oflandwhichwill remainas open space.
Two other non-profit organizations
preserve open spacewithin the township: theNew Jersey Conservation Foundation cur
rently owns 85 acres of land in the eastern
section of the township and the Morris AreaCouncil of Girl Scouts has 136 acres of their
campsituated betweenLewis Morris Park and
Morristown National Historical Park.
Only one not-for-profit community club,Brookside Community Club, exists within the
township and provides multi-purpose athletic
fields, trails and a nature preserve on 33 acres
of land. The Mendham Golf and Tennis Club
is the onlyprivateoutdoor commercial facility,consisting of 182 acres of recreational land.
Altogether, 2,645 acres or 23% of the land
area of Mendham Township is currently inopen space or recreational land.
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MINEHILL
Mine Hill Township presently owns fourmunicipal parks whose combined areas total73 acres which is almost 4% of its area. The
largest park is known as the Rutgers Tract and
is located in the southwest section of the
township adjacent to the RandolphTownshipborder. This 33 acre park is awildlife preserve
and a bird-watching area. Abutting the north
ern boundary of the park is the Municipal
Beach (26 Ac), a lake recreational areawhich
was converted from a sand and gravel pit. In
addition to the swimming facilities, th e
Municipal Beach has picnic areas.
More accessible to the majorityof townshipresidents are the ballfield at Firemen's Field
and the undeveloped Recreational CenterArea which are situated in the center of the
municipality next to the Municipal Complex.
Morris County Open Space Element 59
The recreational areas are adjacent to eachother and each is approximately seven acres in
size.
Township residents are permitted to use the
recreational facilities at the Cranfield School.
Adjacent to the Municipal Complex, this
school park has ballfields, playground equipment and basketball courts.
The only other open space parcel in Mine
Hill is a 132 acre portion of Hedden Park, a
countyparklocated on theeasternborderwith
Dover and Randolph. Hedden Park protectsthe east bank of Jackson Brook as it flows
through the township.
Public and quasi-public open space com
prises 222 acres, or nearly 12% ofMine Hill's
area.
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MON1VIILE
Montville Township owns and maintains 16
parks and open space parcels. The combined
parks and open space parcels areas total 332
acres, almost 3% of the township's area. The
size of th e parksvary greatly, ranging from two
andahalfacres (EttaKonnerPark) to 86 acres
(The Community Center). Only six parks are
developed for active recreation.
Most of the parks are situated south ofRoute 202. The Morris Canal/Dorsey Pond
linear park (18 Ac) almost extends the width
of the township parallel to Route 202. The
pond is only used for ice skating. Just below
DorseyPond and east ofPineBrookRoad are
Reilly Field (7 Ac) and the Howard Tract (14
Ac). Reilly Field has tennis and basketball
courts, playground equipment and a ballfield.
The Howard Tract is presently undeveloped.
TheCommunityCenter offofChangebridge
Road is almost at the geographical center of
the township. The Community Center is themost intensely developed parkwith ballfields,
playground equipment, picnic areas, fitness
trails, bocci courts, a skatingpond andsledding
hilland communitygardens. Westof theCom
munity Center adjacent to the Parsippany-
Morris County Open Space Element 60
TroyHills Township border isMunicipal Field
which also has recreational facilities such as
ballfields, playground equipment, picnic areas
and trails. East of the Community Center on
Passaic Valley Road is a recently acquired
seven acre open space parcelwhich was dedi
cated to th e township as a result of a cluster
subdivision.
Sixparksare
situatedinthesouthern portion
of Montville below Horseneck Road. E tta
Konner Park (2.5Ac) andManchesterPark (8
Ac) are the only two developed parks in this
area. Facilities available at the two parks are
ballfields, playground equipment and courts.
The four remaining parks are open space
areas. Tristam Place (8Ac)was recently dedi
cated t o the township as part of a cluster sub
division. The township also recently acquired
two parcels of flood hazard land in this area.
The Sharett Tract, (36 Ac) off of Chan-
gebridge Road adjacent to the RockawayRiver, and the John Street Tract (15 Ac), ad
jacent to the Passaic River are to be kept in
their naturalstate as flood plains. The remain
ing parcel, Hilldale Park, (20 Ac) is un-
developed.
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There are four municipally-owned parksnorth of Route 202 . Masar Park, adjacent tothe border of Boonton is the only park in this
area developedfor activerecreation. Facilities
at this park include playground equipment,
ballfields, picnic areas, trails, a sledding hilland a pond for fishing and ice skating. Two
other open space areas have been acquired in
this vicinity, one ofwhich, theMars Tract (11
Ac), was dedicated to the township as a result
of an industrial park subdivision.Approximately 51 acres ofopen space in theCritical Water Resources district on Indian
Lane East were also dedicated by:a development. The remaining park In thiS section is
StoneyBrookPark, directlynortheast ofLakeValhalla, which at this time is undeveloped.
Seven school parks also provide active
recreational facilities such as ballfields, tennis
and basketball courts, playground equipment
and trackfor use by the township residents.Six
of these schools are located south of Route
202, and five of them abut municipal parks.An unusual school park utilized by townshipresidents, known as "The Glen", is owned by
Montclair State College. "The Glen" is a 30
acre nature preserve directly north of LakeValhalla adjacent to the StoneyBrook Park.
Other public and quasi-public open spacelandholdings in Montville consist of scattered
parcels in the Great Piece Meadows, owned
Morris
County Open Space Element 61
by the State Division of Parks and Forestry,
and a portion of the Taylortown Reservoir
owned by the Town ofBoonton. The state has
obtained approximately 191 acres ofwetlandsandflood-plains adjacent to the PassaicRiver.
A33 acresection ofBoonton Town's reservoiris located on thewest sideofBoontonAvenue
at the Montville andKinnelon border.
Not-for-profit organizations also provide a
large amount, 251 acres, of open space andrecreational land. Wildlife Preserves, a non
profit organization, owns approximately 50acres of land in the Great Piece Meadows.These parcels are undeveloped and are main
tained forwildlife. One camp, Camp Dawson,
in the northern section of the townshipprovides 77 acres ofopen space. CampAheka,
formerly owned by the Boy Scouts, has been
sold and the land is proposed fordevelopment.
Croation Club, a private club situated below
theBoontonReservoir, maintains 41 acres for
picnicking and recreational activities. Lake
Valhalla Club, a property owners association,owns the largest amount of private openspace, approximately 119 acres, which includes Lake Valhalla and portions of the adjoining land which are maintained for the useby the associationmembers.
The total open space forthe
township is1,022 acres, or 8% of its area.
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MORRISPlAINS
Morris Plains maintains five borough parkswhich total 77 acres, almost 5% of its area, tomeet the recreational needs of its population.
Community Park on Jim Fear Drive is about50 acres in size, and has ballfields, tenniscourts, a playgrounda picnicarea, a swimmingpool and a fishing pond. Other parks withactive recreational facilities are Memorial
Park, (4 Ac) and"Cornfield", (9Ac).MemorialPark, on Tabor Road south of Warner Lam-bert, has a ballfield, a running track and a parcourse; and "Cornfield" has ballfields, courtsand a playground. "Cornfield" is actuallyowned by the state but is maintained by the
borough for recreation. Two passive parkscomplete the Morris Plains system. North of
Morris County Open Space Element 62
"Cornfield" Park is Roberts Garden Park, ad-jacentto the borough's library. Essentiallyjusta "greenspace", Roberts Garden, which was
originally a private residence, has walkways,gardens, parkbenches anda small pondwherefishing is permitted. Three school parks alsohaverecreational facilities available for use by
borough residents. Mountain Way School,
west ofWatnong Park, has playground equip-ment. Borough School on Speedwell Avenuehas ballfields and playground equipment.CommunityParkSchool, surroundedon threesides by Community Park, shares its recrea-tional facilities. The total public and quasi-public open space comprises 100 acres, or 6%
of the area ofMorris Plains.
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MORRIS TOWNSHIP
Morris Township maintains an extensivepark system totalling 203 acres, which con
stitutes 2% of its area. The township encircles
the Town of Morristown, thus making anycentrally-located parks impossible. Instead, 27parks and open space areas are scattered
throughout the township, 16 of which are
developed for active recreation. Six of the
developed parks are in the area bordered bySpeedwell Avenue to the east and Mendham
Road to the south. The largest park in the
township, andmost intenselydeveloped in this
sector, is Streeter Recreation Area, (15 Ac)
with swimming and wading pools, tennis andbasketball courts. Four other parks, Kiwanis
Field (8 Ac), Veterans Field (3 Ac), La Rue
Field (7 Ac) and Butterworth Field (13 Ac)
have only softball fields. The remaining
developed park in this sector is Children'sParkwhere playground equipmenthas recent
ly been installed.In
addition to the parks inthis area, seven open space areas, totalling 52
acres, have been dedicated to the township as
a result of newly constructed subdivisions.
Five of the open space areas buffer streamcorridors. The area south ofMendham Road
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 63
and west ofMt.Kemble Avenue contains two
developed parks and two open space areas.
Saunders Field (6 Ac) has a softball field and
basketball courts. Hayward Playground, (1
Ac) has a playground and basketball courts.There is a six acre open space parcel in the
area known as Burnham Park, and another six
acre areawas dedicated as apartof the Rolling
Hilldevelopment. Three parks andthree open
space areas are in the sector bordered by Mt.Kemble Avenue to the west and Madison
Avenue to the northeast. Delpho Field (14
Ac) on Harter Road has a softball field andbasketball courts. South of Harter Road, twoopen space parcels totalling 16 acres were
dedicated to the township as partof theAspen
development, and approximately 19 acres
were dedicated as part of the Blackberry
development. The two remaining parks,
Woodland Pool (8Ac) and GintyField (9Ac),
are adjacent to each other on Dwyer Road.Facilities at these parks include tennis courts,
a softball field, swimming and wading pools
and a tot lot. In the final area, north of
Madison Avenue and east of Speedwell
Avenue, there are four developed parks.
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Morristown. The most prominent of these is
the Green, a three acre passive park situatedin the heart of the central business district,owned by the First Presbyterian Church. The
Green, designed with a figure eight path-way,is landscapedwith avarietyof trees, shrubsandflowers. Lawn areas and park benches are
provided for relaxing and people watching.The New Jersey Conservation Foundationowns a nine acre tract on Wetmore Avenue,and adjacent to this is an eight acre portion ofthe
Spring Brook Community Club, a privategolf course. The total open space for Morristown totals 293 acres, over 15% of its area.
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MOUNTAINIAKES
Of all the municipalities in Morris County,
Mountain Lakes has the largest percentage of
its land area inmunicipally-ownedopen space.
20%, or 401 acres, of Mountain Lakes has
been set aside by the borough for recreationalandconservation purposes. This acreage con
sists of58parcels ranging in sizefromless than
an acre to 185 acres. There are also two non
municipally-owned tracts, totalling26 acres. Inaddition to its 2.9 square miles of land, the
borough has a large number of lakes, nine in
all, totalling 162 acres, providing recreational
activities which include swimming, boating
and fishing. BirchwoodLake is situated in the
Richard M. Wilcox Park, a 185-acre open
space area in the northern corner of the
borough. In addition to water-oriented activ
ities, picnic areas and hiking trails are pro
vided. The borough has five other parks for
active and passive recreation. The Halsey A
FrederickMemorialPark is the
largest (61 Ac)and is situated in the northeast corner of the
borough. Facilities include tennis courts and
ballfields. Romaine Court, which is less than
an acre, is adjacent to the railroad and can be
used for either basketball or volleyball. Mid-
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 67
vale Field (20 Ac) , north of Midvale Road
adjacent to the Parsippany-TroyHills border,
and William N. Taft Memorial Field (6 Ac),
locatedon North PoconoRoad near theDen-
ville Township border, both have playfields.
The remainingpark is theTowerHillSledRun
(22 Ac) adjacent to the Richard M. Wilcox
Park.Of theother50borough-ownedparcels,
25 are dedicated to conservation and passive
recreation, and 23 carry conservation ease
ments. Theyvary in size from less than an acre
to about 39 acres. These parcels, totalling 107
acres (62 dedicated and 43 with easements),
are scattered throughout the borough and
protect areas which are environmentally sen
sitivebecause ofwetlands and/or steep slopes.
One of the dedicated parcels is a 2.5 acre park
adjacent to Mountain Lake and has been des
ignated the Thorleif Fliflet Bird Sanctuary.
Four public schools totalling 70 acres provide
recreational facilities available foruse
byborough residents. The recreational facilities
include ballfields, playground equipment and
basketball and tennis courts. Other public
open space consists of an isolated parcel of
land belonging to the Tourne, a county park.
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The 19 acre parcel, near th e Boonton
Township border, is surrounded on three
sidedbythe RichardM.WilcoxPark. Onlyoneprivate recreation facility existing within the
borough, an outdoor tennis clubwith almost 7
acres of land. The total open space comprises
401 acres, or over 20% of the area ofMoun-
tain Lakes.
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MOUNfARLINGTON
A Green Acres acquisition in 1986 tripled
Mt. Arlington's open space to almost 100acres, over 5% of its area. The yet unnamed
and undeveloped 73 acre park is located near
the northern border of the borough. The fourolder parks are much smaller. Municipal
Beach andSummitAvenueField are two acres
in size, Memorial Field is four acres and Ar-lington Glen is 16 acres. Facilities at these
parks include a ballfield at Summit Avenue
field, a playground atMemorial Park and ten-
nis courts at ArlingtonGlen. Municipal Beach
is the only public municipal beach on LakeHopatcong available to Mt. Arlington resi-dents. Four of the parks are situated in the
northern half of the borough with Arlington
Glen in the southernhalf. Complementing the
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 69
municipal parks are two elementary school
parks,where onlyequipment is available. Theremaining public land in Mt. Arlington con-
sists of approximately six acres of the state-owned Berkshire Valley Wildlife Mana-
gementArea situatedon the easternborderof
the borough. According to the "Revised
Master Plan, 1977", private recreation
facilities in Mt. Arlington consist of private
beaches and boat docking facilities on Lake
Hopatcong. However, specific information
regarding the number and sizeof these recrea-
tional areas relating to open space is presentlyunavailable. The total open space for Mt. Ar-lington is approximately 131 acreswhich com-
prises 7% of its area.
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MOUNT OIlVE
Mt. Olive Township offers a variety of .
recreational areas and open space at the
municipal level; six municipal parks, totalling
412 acres, comprise 2% of the township's area.
The largest open space area is the BuddLake
Bog. This area consists of approximately 315acres and includes most of Budd Lake itself.Recreational activities such as swimming,boa
ting and fishing are permittedon the lake, andthe bog is undeveloped since it is an environ
mentally sensitive area.
Other parks developed for active recreation
are Dan Jordan Park (20 Ac), Lion's Park (13
Ac) and Lou Nelson Park (20 Ac). Thefacilities available at these parks include ball
fields, playground equipment and courts. Mt.
Olive also maintains a beach (12 Ac) adjacent
to the municipal complex on BuddLake. Only
Camelot Park (31 Ac) is undeveloped.
Four municipal parks , Budd Lake Bog,
Camelot Park, theMunicipal Beach and LouNelson Park, are located in the western sec
tion of BuddLakewhere most of the residen
tial development is concentrated. The tworemaining parks, Dan Jordan Park and Lion's
Park, are situatedin a residential development
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 70
in the Bartley area of the township at the
southern border.Board of Education lands also provide re
creational facilities within Mt. Olive. Seven
schools allow public access to ballfields, play
ground equipment, courts and track. Theschool parks are morewidely distributed thanthemunicipal parks andare moreaccessible to
the less densely populated areas of th etownship.
County and state parks are also situated in
Mt. Olive. Approximately three-quarters of
Flanders's Valley Golf Course, a county
facility, is located in the southeast corner of
the township. The largest open space acreage
inMt. Olive consists of a 1,083 acre portionofAllamuchy State Park. The state park is com
prised of several parcels situated next to the.
MusconetcongRiver onthewestern border of
the township. Except forwhat is known as the
Stephen's Section, the portion of AllamuchyState Park in the township has not been dev
eloped for recreational purposes.Most of thisparkwas acquired by the state in the 1960's for
construction of the Hackettstown Reservoir;
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however, subsurface conditions have
precluded construction of this facility.
In addition, the county had proposed con
structingPulaskiReservoir,whichwouldhavepurchasedwater from the state-owned reser
voir. The Morris County Municipal Utility
Authority (MCMUA) owns approximately
327 acres of land at the Pulaski site, however,
no further planning or development has oc
curred.
Additionally, two private facilities provideoutdoor recreational opportunities for Mt.
Olive residents. The Solar Sun Club, a com
mercial recreational facility, is an outdoorswim club with a pool, basketball and tennis
courts and a playground. The only non-profit
outdoor facility is a YMHA camp owned by
the Jewish CommunitySynagogue. These two
facilities comprise 34 acres of open space.
The combined private and public open spacein Mt. Olive amounts "to 2,233 acres, or 12%
of its area.
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NEfCONG
Netcong Borough presently owns and main
tains two municipal parks whose combined
area total 22 acres. However, only one park is
situated within the borough. Arbolino
Memorial Park (7Ac) is located on LakeMus
conetcong in the northeastern section of the
borough. Facilities at this park include a
ballfield, tennis and basketball courts, picnic
area anda playground. Fishing andboating arealso permitted on the lake. Playground equip
ment is also available for residents' useat Net
cong Elementary School. The only other
public open space in the borough is a 56 acre
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 72
portion of Musconetcong State Park located
in the northeast coiner. Most of this acreage
consists of Lake'Musconetcong. No recrea
tional facilities are developed at this park.
Netcong's largest park is the oldNetcongHigh
SchoolAtWeticField (15 Ac) which is actually
situated in Roxbury Township about one-half
mile south of the Netcong Borough border.
Primary access to th e park for NetcongBorough residents is from Route 206 south.
Facilities at the field consist of a football field
and a baseball diamond. Open space within
Netcong totals 63 acres, over 13% of its area.
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PARSIPPANY -TROY IDLLS
Parsippany-Troy Hills present ly has 10municipal parks whose combined areas totalapproximately 449 acres, which constitutes al-
most 3% of the township's area. The mostdevelopedpark is SmithFieldwhich is centrally located between 1-80 and Route 46.Facilities at the 21 acre park includebaseball,football and soccer fields, basketball, tennis
and handball courts, and a playground. Thelargest park is Knoll Park (338 Ac) which ac-
counts for three-quarters of the township'spark acreage. A public golf course, picnicareas, playgrounds, ballfield and skating rinkare available to township residents. In addition, a semi-public golf course and country
club exist on the site.Parsippany-Troy Hills also has seven smallneighborhood parks located to serve its manyresidents. Manor Park (6.5 Ac), Hills of Troy(6.5 Ac), Rockaway Neck (9 Ac), Rainbow
Lakes (6Ac), Lake Parsippany (15 Ac), Powder Mill (9 Ac), and the most recent addition,
Volunteers Park (25 Ac), have been
developedwith ballfields, courts, playgroundsandpicnic areas. In addition to these parks, 13school parks are distributed throughout the
Morris County Open Space Element 73
township which provide similar recreationalfacilities.County andstateopen ~ p a c e also exists in thetownship. A former municipal park, Old TroyPark, is now owned and maintained by the
county. Old Troy Park, one of the. smallercounty parks at 96 acres, is situated offReynolds Road at the southern border of the
township.The state owns approximately 309 acres ofTroyMeadows.The state land consists of undeveloped scattered parcels throughout themajorwetland area. Adding to the state's landholdings in Troy Meadows is a 1,404 area nature preserve, the largest single open space
area in the township. Wildlife Preserves, anon-profit conservation organization, ownsand maintains this tract. Other private openspace and recreational areas in the townshipconsist of a golfcourse, a swim and tennis club
and trap range. These facilities comprise approximately 115 acres of open space.
Another major open space area is the parcelwhich constitutes the Jersey City Reservoirproperty.The 1,175 acre reservoir is located inthenorthern portion of the township adjacent
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to the Boonton Town border. Public access is
not permitted since the open space serves toprotect the water supply for Jersey City.
The total public, quasi-public and private
recreational and open space in ParsippanyTroy Hills totals approximately 3,774 acres,
over 23% of its area.
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PASSAIC
Passaic Township is the only municipality in
Morris County where all four levels of gov
ernment, federal, state, countyandmunicipal,
own open space. Presently, 2,583 acres, orabout 33% ofthe total areaof the township, is
publicly owned open space.
Approximately 256 acres, 3% of PassaicTownship, is in municipal open space. Of the12 municipally owned areas, only three parks
are developed for active recreation. Meyersville Field (2Ac), in the easternportion of thetownship, and Little League Field (14 Ac),
adjacent to the Passaic River, have ballfields,
courts and playgrounds. Stirling Lake (9 Ac),
situated in the central residential area, is a
swimming facility owned by the township.
Nine municipal open space areas are undeveloped. With the exception of Hicks Park(59 Ac), the open space parcels have beendedicated as a result of the cluster provisions
in the townships subdivisionordinance. Theseopen space areas currently total approximate
ly 133 acres.
In addition to municipal open space, theBoard of Education offers its recreationalfacilities to township residents during non-
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 75
school hours. Facilities available at the Gil
lette School, Millington School and Central
School include ballfields and playground
equipment. There is also a playground at the
St.. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church. The
school parks are distributed throughout most
of the residential neighborhoods of PassaicTownship.Private facilities also provide 196 acres of
open space. The Copper Spring Beach and
Tennis Club offers outdoor swimming andother active recreational facilities such as ten
nis courts.The only non-profit open space in Passaic is
ownedbythe NewJerseyConservation Foun
dation. This 128 acre natural area is located in
the southwest corner of the township in the
flood plain of the Passaic River.Most of the federal, state and county openspace is situated in low-lying wetland areas of
the township. By far the largest landholder inthe township is the federal governmentwhich
owns 2,085 acres of open space. The Great
Swamp NWR covers the entire northern sec
tion of Passaic and protects most of the wet
lands in that area.
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Partially implementing the stream corridor
linkage system proposed in the 1972 "OpenSpace Element" is the Passaic River Park, a
147 acre portion ofwhich is located in Passaic
Township. Only trails have been developed inthe park.
Also situated in a low flood-prone area, but
at the southwestern border of the township, isMcEvoy State Park, adjacent to the New Jer
sey Conservation Foundation lands. This 95
acre tract is currently undeveloped.The total open space comprises 2,830 acres,
or 36% of Passaic Township.
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PEQUANNOCK
Pequannock Township has 14 municipal
parks which account for 444 acres, or 10% of
the total area. The parks range from the 190
acres ofMountainside Park to less than twoacres for Lyman Avenue Park. Only three
parks, Twin Brooks Park, Hidden Cove and
Rockledge Park, are undeveloped. Lyman
Avenue Park is currently being developed.
Six parks, Woodland Lake (40 Ac), Pequan
nockValley (27 Ac), Town Hall (7 Ac), Twin
Brooks (17 Ac), Hillview Field (9 Ac), andWashington (14 Ac), are grouped together
justeast of thecenterof the townshipbetweenthe Newark-Pompton Turnpike and Route23. A full range of recreation facilities from
ballfields to swimming areas are available at
the parks in this area.
In the southern portion of the township four
parks are more dispersed. The three parks,
Lyman Avenue Park (14 Ac), Cherry Street
Park (3 Ac), and Riverside Park (2 Ac), arenear the eastern border, while Hidden Cove
(21 Ac), is on the southern border and Greenview Park (31 Ac), is on the western border.
Presently, Greenview Park is the only park in
the areawhich is fully developedwith avariety
Morris County Open Space Element 77
of recreational facilities. Riverside Park has
only a playground.Outside of the residential section of the
township are Rockledge Park (19 Ac), in thewestern portion, MountainsidePark (190Ac)
in the northwest corner and Aquatic Park (50
Ac) in the northeast corner. As mentioned
previously, Rockledge Park is undeveloped.
Mountainside Park, the township's largest
open space area, covers a rugged hillside and
is used primarily for passive recreational ac-tivities such as picnics, horseback riding and
camping. Also used for passive recreation is
Aquatic Park situated in the flood plain of thePequannock River. This park is also a wildlife
preserve.
In addition, to municipal open space, four
school parks also offer recreational facilities
such as ballfields, playground equipment,courts and track to township residents. These
school facilities are situated off the Boulevardand the Newark-Pompton Turnpike in th e
northern, central and southern sections of the
township.Three private commercial recreational
facilities contribute approximately66 acres of
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open space to Pequannock. Two swimming
areas associated with lakes and a horsebackridingstable are available for recreational use.
The only regional public open space area in
the townshipis
the SunsetValleyGolfCourse.
A 112 acre portion of this county owned
facility is situated on the western border of
Pequannock.
The total open space acreage for Pequan-
nockis
703 acres, or 15% of its area.
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RANDOLPH
RandolphTownship has fivemunicipal parks
whose combined areas total 299 acres, less
than 3% of themunicipality's area.The largest
park, BrundagePark, accounts for 71% or 212acres of the total municipal parkland. Geo-
graphically, the park is centrally located and is
surrounded by residential neighborhoods. A
variety of recreational facilities such as ball-fields, picnic areas and an indoor theater have
been developed at Brundage.
Two other relatively large parks have also
been developed with a variety of recreational
facilities. Heisteins Park (44Ac) southwest of
Brundage Park, and Randolph Park (41 Ac),
at the northwest border of the township offer
swimming facilities as well as ballfields and
playground equipment. In addition, activitiessuch as picnics, boating and fishing are per-
mitted at each of the parks. Neither parkhow-ever,is situated in an existing residential dev-
elopment. Randolph Park is surrounded bylandwhich is currently zoned for industry and
commerciallbusiness uses and Heisteins Park
is in an undeveloped residential zone.
The two remaining parks are small in com-parison to the three parks described above.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 79
Kiwanis Park, situated in a residential dev-
elopment adjacent to theMineHill Townshipborder, is less than two acres in size. The only
facilities available at this park are playgroundequipment and a picnic area. Farmstead Court
Park, located between Brundage Park andHeisteins Park, is less than one acre in sizeand
has the same facilities as Kiwanis Park.Six school parks provide recreational facil-
ities. Ballfields, playground equipment, tennis
and basketball courts are available for use by
township residents.
Although the eastern portion of Randolph
Township lacks municipal open space, this
section has approximately 581 acres of county
parkland. James Andrews Memorial Park, an
undeveloped park, borders the western andnorthern edge of the Shongum Lake residen-
tial development. Another county park, Hed-den Park, is partially in the township. Appro-
ximately 135 acres of the 285 acre park issituated on the township's border with Dover
andMineHill. In total, the county is the largestcontributor of openspace in Randolph,
providing approximately 716 acres.
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The second largest open space landholdingin the township is watershed land whichprovides 664 acres of open space. TheMorrisCounty Municipal Utili ty Authority's
AlamatongWellfield on thewesternborderofRandolph is protected by 333 acres of openspace. Over330 acresofpropertybelongingtothe Southeast Morris County MunicipalUtilities Authority (SMCMUA), along the
Mendham Township border, protect the
streamswhich feed into theClydePottsReservoir located inMendham Township.
Additionally, 173 acres of recreational land.and open space is provided by the private
sector. Four commercial recreational facilitiesprovideapproximately92 acres ofopen space.These facilities include a golf course, a golf
driving range and two camps. Shongum LakeProperty Owners Association is the only notfor-profit organization providing open spacein Randolph. This organization owns andmaintains Shongum Lake which is about 81
acres in size.
In total, 1,984 acres of open space, almost15% of the township's area, currently exist inRandolph.
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RIVERDAIE
Riverdale Borough's area is two squaremiles, and it has only eight acres ofmunicipalopen space. The boroughrankssecondbehind
VictoryGardens as having the least amountofmunicipal open space. The park acreage is
divided between Independence Park (7 Ac)
and Freedom Park (1 Ac). The two parks are
contiguous and are located in the eastern res-
identially developed portion of the borough.
Facilities at the two parks include ballfields,
playground equipment, basketball courts andpicnic areas.
In the same area, directly west of Freedom
and Independence parks, is the Board of Ed-ucations' recreation area. The school park (7
Ac) has baseball fields and tennis and basket-
ball courts which are available for public use.
Morris County Open Space Element 81
Two outdoor commercial recreation
facilities, both swim clubs, constitute the larg-est amount of recreational land and open
space to the borough, over 120 acres. Each
club is oriented on a lake, Valley Spring Lake
and Sun Tan Lake. These areas, however,
havebeen rezoned for townhouses.According
to its 1985 Master Plan Revision, continued
commercial recreationaluseof theselandswill
cease due to the residential development
potential. The plan recommends however,
that the viability of preserving Sun Tan Lakeshould be assessed.
The current total open space acreage for
Riverdale is 136 acres, comprising over 10%
of the borough's area.
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ROCKAWAY
Rockaway Borough's area is two square
miles, and it has almost 23 acres of municipal
open space, comprising less than 2% of its
area. The borough's four municipal parks con-stitute the municipality's only public open
space.ParkLakes (12Ac) is thenorthernmostpark, adjacent to the border of Rockaway
Township. The borough's largest park, it has a
pond where swimming and fishing are theprimary recreational activities. Playground
equipment is also available at the park.
Twoparks near the center ofRockawayBor-
0ugh are Memorial Park (4 Ac), which has
ballfields, playground equipment, basketballcourts and picnic areas; and Jackson Avenue
RiverPark,which has a picnicarea.Near these
two parks is the Lincoln Ballfield (3 Ac).Four schools in theboroughhave recreation-
al facilities such as ballfields, basketball and
Morris CountyOpen SpaceElement 82
tennis courts, playground equipment and
track; however, the use ofthe facilities at three
of the schools is by permit only. Only play-
ground and basketball equipment at the Fair-view Playground is open to the borough resi-
dents.This playground,situated in thewesternportion of the borough, is on a 14 acre un-
developed school park site.In
addition to municipal and school parks,the fire department has a 4 acre recreational
field abutting the eastern boundaryof the bor-
0ugh. Jersey City also owns two parcels of
open space totalling 24 acres along the Rock-
away River as part of its watershed. One par-cel, adjacent to the Jackson Avenue River
Park, is a proposed park, according to the
borough master plan.There are 91 acres of open space in Rock-
awayBorough, comprising 7% of its area.
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ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP
Rockaway Township has the second largest
area of land dedicated to municipal openspace in the county. The township owns nine
parks whose areas total approximately 610
acres. Municipal open space, however, con-stitutes less than three percent the total area
of the township.
Almost 90% of the open space is contained
within two parks, Lake Ames and the Cop-
peras Tract. Lake Ames, the township's larg-est park (286 Ac), is adjacent to the Lake
Telemark residential area, located in the
geographic c en ter o f the municipality.
Facilities such as playground equipment, bas-ketball courts, picnic areas and trails are avail-
able. Activities permitted on the lake areswimming, boating and fishing.
The Copperas Tract (256 Ac) in the
northwest section of the township is undev-
eloped. The townships' 1983 "Master Plan
Reexamination and Revision" recommendsthat this park be developed for passive recrea-
tion because of the steep slopes that exist onthe site.
The seven remaining parks range from fouracres to 23 acres. Peterson Field (23 Ac),
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 83
Route 80 Park (8 Ac), Fleetwood Park (16
Ac), Sherbrook (8Ac) and Willow Neighbor-hoodPark (0.7Ac) are located in the southern
moredensely populated area ofthe township.
All of the parks except for Willow Parkwere
dedicated to Rockaway Township as part of
residential developments. Only PetersonField has been fully developed with ballfields,
basketball courts, playground equipment and
picnic areas. Willow Neighborhood Park has
only a playground.
Adjacent to Lake Telemark isValhalla WayPark, an eight acre undeveloped parcel. The1983 "Master Plan Reexamination and Revi-sion" proposes to develop Valhalla WayPark
as a neighborhood park. The only developedpark in the northern section of township is
Marcella Park, a four acre ballfield.In addition to municipal parks, seven school
parks provide facilities such as ballfields, ten-
nis and basketball courts and playgroundequipment. Five of the school parks are lo-
cated in the southern section of the township.
The two remaining schools, Hibernia and
Katherine D. Malone, are located near the
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center of the municipality in the area of LakeTelemark.Privateorganizations provide approximately
2,142 acres of open space. Non-profit or
ganizations account for 2,018 acres or 94% ofthe total private open space. The non-profitfacilities include four camps and four propertyowners associations. Three camps are ad
jacent to the northern boundary of th e
township. The other camp abuts the northernend of the Lake Telemark residential area.The four property owners associations areoriented around three water bodies. The associations include White Meadow Lake
property owners association, Lake Telemark
CountryClub, the LakeEnd Corporation, and
the Green Pond Corporation. Recreation activities permitted at the lakes includes tennis,swimming and boating.
Morris County Open Space Element 84
Private commercial recreation facilities include a ski resort area, a golfclub and a lake.The open space provided by these facilities
totals approximately 124 acres.
The two largest open space landholdings inRockaway Township are th e watershed
properties of Jersey City (1,465 Ac), andNewark (2,236Ac). Together these areas constitute 13% or 3,701 acres of the township.Thewatersheds extend along almost the entirenorthern municipal boundary. Jersey City'sSplitrock Reservoir and Newark's Charlotteburg Reservoir are within these watershed
areas.Open space in Rockaway Township totals
7,335 acres or 25% of the township. Ap
proximately 73% of the total open space iscontained in a contiguous area of 5,359 acresconsisting ofFarneyStatePark, thewatershedlands and three of the four camps.
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ROXBURY
Although Roxbury Township has a large
amount of state and countyopen space (1,680
Ac), its municipal parkland constitutes 5% of
the municipality's area, and provides most ofthe active and passive recreational needs of its
residents. Roxbury ranks first, with 704 acres,
in the amount of land dedicated to municipalopen space.
Presently, there are 20 municipal parks in
Roxbury. Most of the parks are located in the
southern residential portion of the township.
The sizes of the individual parks range from
the 243 acres of theMorris Canal Park to the1.7 acres of the Kings Store and Home Park.
Onlyninemunicipal parks are developed for
active recreation. Facilities at these parks in
clude ballfields, tennis and basketball courts,
playground equipment, swimming facilities,fishing and picnic areas.
The residential area south of the central
railroad andRoute
10 has 12municipal openspace areas which total about 272 acres. Only
four of these parks, Meeker (19 Ac),Midland
(16Ac),Horseshoe Lake (74Ac) andKiwanisPark (71 Ac) have recreational facilities.
Morris CountyOpen SpaceElement 8S
Six parks are located northwest of the
southern residential area and south of 1-80.
The largest municipal park in this area is the
Morris Canal Parkwith 243 acres. This passivearea offerswalking trails for recreation. Other
parks in this section of Roxbury include EmmansRoadPark (71 Ac),LedgewoodPark (35
Ac), and Conkling Park (44 Ac). EmmansRoad Park offers a large open area and walk
ing trails. Ledgewood Park and Conkling
Road Park have playground equipment, ten
nis and basketball courts, picnic areas, swim
ming and ice skating facilities. A 14 acre undeveloped and unnamed park and the King
House Store and Home Park are also in this
area.
The remaining two parks are the only parks
located north ofI-80. PortMorris Park (5 Ac)adjacent to LakeMusconetcong on the northwest border of the township has picnic and
play areas. Near the eastern boundaryis the
Berkshire Valley Recreational Area (4 Ac).
This park offers tennis and basketball courts,ballfields, playground equipment and picnicareas.
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In addition to municipal open space, fiveschool parks exist within the township.
Together· the schools provide 130 acres of
recreational area.
One private recreational facility, a countryclub, and a portion of the Alamatong
Wellfield, lie within Roxbury Township. The
Shore Hills Country Club near Lake Hopat
congcontributes less than five acres of recrea
tional land. A 12 acre portion of the MorrisCounty Municipal Utilities Authority's
Alamatong Wellfield is situated on the
southeast boundaryof Roxbury Township.
Two regional open space and recreational
facilities are situated within Roxbury. A 188
acre portion of the county's Flanders ValleyGolf Course is situated in the southwest
comer ofthe township abuttingMt. Olive andChester Townships. Approximately 1,492
acres of the state's Berkshire Valley Wildlife
Management Area are located in the north
east comer of Roxbury.
Together, public, quasi-public and privateopen space and recreational land comprise2646 acres or 19% of the total area of Rox
bury.
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VICfORY GARDENS
The Borough of Victory Gardens, the
county's smallest municipality (0.2 sq. mi.) hasno lands devoted to open space or recreation.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 87
TheBoroughhas no significantvacant parcels
remaining.
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WASHINGTON
Municipal open space in Washington
Township consists of nine parks whose com-bined areas total 342 acres, comprising less
than 2% of the municipality. Eight parks aregreater than 24 acres in size; onlyPeter CarolField is less than 10 acres.The township's largest park is Rock Spring
Park (74Ac), located in the geographic center
of the township. Rock Spring Parkisalso oneof the only two parks developed for active
recreation. Facilities at the park includeballfields, playground equipment and picnic
areas. The only other active recreational parkis Peter Carol Field. This seven acre ballfieldis located on Fairmount Avenue in the
southern part of the township.The remaining parks are open space areas
which protect areas with steep slopes. ScottPark (39 Ac) and Parker Acres (33 Ac) aresituated in the southern halfof the township.
ScottPark, bisectedby the southbranchof theRaritan River, is one of the few parks not
contiguous to a residential development. It issurrounded by agricultural and vacant land.ParkerAcres is situated in a small residentialarea in the southeast corner of the township.
Morris County Open SpaceElement 88
The remaining five municipal parks areclustered together in a residential area
northwest of Rock SpringPark. WoodedVal-
ley East (47 Ac), Spring Acres (42 Ac) andQuailRun (24Ac) areall interconnectedopenspace parcels dedicated to the township as aresult of residential subdivisions. KoehlerPond (25 Ac) and Cataract Park (51 Ac) are
both natural open space areas. While all ofthese parks are undeveloped, fishing is per-mitted at Koehler Pond.Most of the active recreation facilities are
providedbyfour of the five schools within thetownship. The school parks provideballfieldsand playground equipment.In addition to local publicparks, eight private
outdoor recreation areas provide ap-
proximately372acres ofopen space. Fivenon-profit organizations, consisting of two camps,two sportsman's clubs and a conservation or-
ganization, protect 101 acres of open space.Commercial recreation facilities consisting of
two day camps and a golf course provide 271acres of recreational land and open space.Two regional public parks are situated in
Washington Township. Schooley's Mountain
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WHARTON·
Wharton Borough (2.2 sq.mi.) relies com-pletely on municipal parkland to meet the
recreational and open space needs of itS resi-
dents. Six parks, totaling approximately 54acres of open space, comprise almost 4% of
the borough's area.
The largest andmost developed park is Rob-
ert Street Park (31 Ac) located in the south
central portion of the borough. Robert StreetPark has three ballfields, tennis Courts and a
playground. In the large residential area in the
southeastern section is Columbia Street Park
(3 Ac). This park has playground equipmentand basketball courts.
TheHugh Force Park (6 Ac) is located near
thewesternborderof the borough. The Rock-
away River and Morris Canal both run
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 90
through this park. A swimmingfacility on thecanal is no longer in use. Alsooriented around
water eastofHugh ForcePark is theWashing-
ton Pond Park (13 Ac). Presently no recrea-
tion facilities exist at the park except for a 10
acre pond which is part of the Rockaway
River.The remaining two parks, Huff Street and
Langoon Avenue, are located in the northernhalf of the borough. Both parks are play-
grounds, each less than an acre in size.The only other recreational facility in Whar-
ton is a ballfieldwhich is part ofDuffy School.
Together the schoolpark andmunicipal parklands total 67 acres which constitute almost
5% of the borough's total area.
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1U.S. Fish an d Wildlife Service, Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Master Plan, Great SwampNWR, 1985, p. 6
2Morris CountyPlanningBoard, Open Space Element, 1972, p. 6
3U.S. Fish an d Wildlife Service, PreliminarySunrey of Contaminant Issues of Concern on NationalWildlife Refuges, 1986, p. 6
4 .
5 ibid p. A.104, A.105
6 U.S. Department of th e Interior, Morristown National Historical Park, Land Protection Plan, 1984, p. 1
7Morristown National Historical Park, Final Master Plan, 1975, p. 13
8 U.S. Fish an d Wildlife Service, Final EIS, Great Swamp NW R 1987, p. 14
9 N J D E P, Environmental Information Inventory, 1984
10 Madison Comprehensive Master Plan Revision, 1975, p.35
11 Town of ¥orristown, Master Plan, 1978,p. 7:8 to 7·10
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degradation, and loss of solitude for users.Proper care and management of recreational
areas is necessary so that the recreational car
rying capacity is maintained for present and
future generations.
Open Space Standards
In order to set aside an adequate amount of
land for open space, all levels of government
have specific responsibilities in the acquisi
tion process. The federal and state governments' roles are to acquire the largest landholdings encompassing natural, historical and
wilderness 'areas. Federal ~ e c r e a , t i o n a l areas
and state wilderness and natural areas should
be located where suitable natural characteristics are present. State recreational areas
should be within 30 to 45 minutes of concentrated urban areas.2
A county's role is to acquire large tracts
which accommodate facilities not normallyprovided by municipalities due to the nature
of the facility, such as arboretums, sports
arenas, golf courses and hiking trails, or areno t provided by the state within close
proximity. The local government's primaryresponsibility is to provide more intensive
uses, such as ballfields and playground equip
ment, which are usually situated on smallerparcels of landwithin walking distance of the
neighborhoods they serve.3 In the 1984 "Out
door Recreation Plan for NewJersey" (ORP),two sets of standards were utilized to quantify
the openspaceneeds for each levelofgovernmentfor recreational land. The first, the acres
per population open space standards, are used
to determine the amount of existing open
space needed to meet recreational demandbased on current and future population es
timates. Chart 4-1 shows these standards for
each level ofgovernment.The second, the balanced land use stand
ards, are used to determine ultimate public
open space goals as percentages of usableland. These standards set minimum amounts
oflandthatshould be preserved as openspace,
Morris County Open Space Element 95
CHART 4_14
AcresPerPopulationOpenSpace Standards
(per Thousand)
30- , - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,
Federal State County MuniCipal
Government Level
and identify the proportions of the total landarea of the state that should be reserved for
public open space (See Table 4-1). These
standards assume that munidpal and county
governments are responsible for providing ac
tive recreational facilities on land suitable forsuch development, and every effort should be
made by each level of government to attain at
least these standards. Since the demand for
recreation is derived from developed areas,
undevelopable areas which consist of federal
and state open space, wetlands, and areas ofslopes over 12 percent are deducted from the
total land areafor the determinationof county
and municipal open space. The standards assume the majority of wetlands and areas with
slopes of over 12 percent are ei ther safeguarded from development by state and
municipal regulations or will be acquired by
the federal and state governments as openspace.
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TABLE 4_15
BalancedLandUse Open Space Standards
FEDERAL 4% of the area of the state
STATE 10% of the area of the state
COUNTY 7% of the developed and
developable area of the state
MUNICIPAL 3% of the developed and
developable area of the state
The 1984 ORP divides the state into northern and southern regions and calculates a
federal and state open space goal for each
region. Morris County is in the northernregion.6Most of the state and federal parks in .
the northern region are situated in the central
and western portions where large un-
developed tracts still exist. Fewstate or federal
parks are situated in the eastern, more ur
banized counties.
While these standards establish a minimum
amount of open space to be acquired, they do
not determine the amount of open space thatshould be acquired in order to protect critical
areas such as watersheds, flood plains or
aquifer recharge areas. Ideally, the County
and each municipality should prepare a nat
ural resource inventory (NRI) to identify
those areas that should be acquired and pro
tected because of their vital natural resource
value.7
BecauseMorrisCountyandmanyof its mun
icipalities have not prepared NRI's at this
time, it is not possible to determine an ac
curateopen spacefigure for eachgovernmental level wi thin the county based on the
amount of critical areas that should be pro
tected. Therefore, the acres per population
and the balanced land use standards must suf
fice to indicate the minimum guidelines with
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 96
which to evaluate the existing open space inMorris County.
Acres Per Population Standards
In analyzingthe
present and proposed needfor recreational open space inMorris County,
the population estimate for 1985 and popula
tion projections for 1990 and 2000were used.
For each governmental level, the population
estimate and projections were multiplied by
the acres per population standard to deter
mine the minimum acreage needed to meet
the recreational demand of the estimated and
proposed populations. The surplus or deficit
ofeach level was calculated by subtracting the
minimum acreage from the current open
space acreage. The results shownin
Table 4-2include all developed and undeveloped parks
and lands dedicated to municipalities as a re
sultof clustersubdivisionand site plan activity.
According to the acres per populationstand
ards, the federal government and the countyhaveacquiredsufficientamount of open space
to meet the recreational needs of Morris
County residents through the year 2000.
Using this method, the county's current landholdings appear to be 2,427 acres more than
the minimum acreage required for the year
2000, and the federal government's landholdingsappear to exceed theminimumacreage by
241 acres.
Both the state and some municipal govern
ments fall short of the minimum acreages required to meet the current and proposed re
creational demands of the county's
population. Current state open space figures
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TABLE 4_28
Adequacy ofOpen Space in Morris County
Using theAcres Per Population
Methodology(Acres)
1985 Existing Open Space
I8,206 I 8,535 I 8,389 I 4,377 I
1985 Federal State County Munic.
NEED ·6,716 10,075 . 5 , 0 3 ~ : 3,358
Surplus 1,489 3,352 1,019*
Deficit -1,540
1990 Federal State County Munic.
NEED 7,038 10,556 5,278 3,519
Surplus 1,168 3,111 858*
Deficit -2,021
was evaluated using the acres per population
standard. Table 4-3 shows those municipalities
found to have deficits. While th e combined
1985 total municipal open space acreage ex
ceeded the minimum acres pe r population
standard by 4,377 acres, this figure is mislead-'ingsince it assumes that surplus open space in
one municipality will compensate for the
deficit in an other. Based on the 1985 popUla
tion estimates, eight municipalities have
deficits in municipal open space. I t should be
notedthat sixof these municipalities also have
small total areas and high populat ion den
sities. This indicates that a greater need for
recreational lands exists in municipalitieswith
higher population concentrations.
Using the 1990 and the 2000 population
projections, three additional municipalities,Lincoln Park, Parsippany-Troy Hills, and
Wharton, will have deficits in open space by
th eyear 2000, ifnone acquires additionalland.
Denville, Florham Park, Harding and Morris
Townshipwill have less than 10 acres over the
*However eleven municipalities showedindividual deficits, see Table 4-3.
NEED 7,949 11,923 5,962 3,974
Surplus 257 2,427 403*
Deficit -3,388
indicate a 1985 deficiency of 1,540 acres,
which, assuming the state fails to acquire addi
tional open space, is projected to increase to
3,388 acres in th e year 2000. In determining
municipal open space need, eachmunicipality
2000 Federal State County Munic.
TABLE 4_39
Municipal Open Space Deficits Using
the Acres Per Population Methodology
(Acres)
Municipality 1985 1990 2000
Butler 49 48 55
Dover 70 76 82
Jefferson 64 71 86
Kinnelon 45 47 55.
Lincoln Park 0 0 8
Netcong 5 4 9
Parsippany Troy-Hills 0 0 3
Riverdale 11 11 12
Rockaway Borough 31 31 37Victory Gardens 8 9 10
Wharton 0 0 5
Morris County Open Space Element 97
TOTAL 283 297 362
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50
_ Goal Exi8ting
CHART 4_210
Adequacy ofOpenSpace in Morris County
( using the Balanced Land Use Goals
Methodology )
(Acres)
bined their balanced land use goals into one
figure.As explained previously, the DEP divided
the stateinto a northernregion and a southern
region and calculated a combined balancedland usegoal for each. The goal for the north
ern region, ofwhich Morris County is a part,
is 299,983 acres of state and federal open
spaces, or 14 percent of the total area of the
region.According to the 1984ORP, the north
em region nowcontains only 193,179 acres of
state and federal open space, resulting in a
deficit of 106,804 acres.
I f the goal of 299,983 acres were distributed
proportionally to each county's total area,
then nearly 42,800 acres would be in Morris
County. Presently, Morris County has approximately16,725acres instate and federal open
space. Therefore a deficit of 26,075 acres of
state and federal open space can be said to
existwithin th e county.This analysis, however, is not entirely ac
curate since th e purpose of state and federal
open space is to serve an entire region, not just
one county. A state or federal park outside of
Morris Countybutwithin the northern region
will meet some of the recreational needs of
county residents. An example of such a re
gional park is the Delaware Water Gap National Recreational Area. Based on the same
reasoning, state and federal open space lo
cated in Morris County attracts visitors from
outside the county. For example, Morristown
National Historical Park attracts visitors
primarilt from the counties east of Morris
County. 1
Therefore, any open space acquired by the
federal or state government in the northern
region will reduce th e deficit of Morris
County's share of state and federal open
space. Based on present holdings, 27,935acres ofMorris County's share of federal and
stateopen space has been provided elsewhere
in the northern region. Morris County's cal
culatedportionof the northern region's short
age of 106,804 acres, is 14,865 acres. But since
Municipal
42.800
State & Federal County(Morr .. County ~ r t l o n )
minimum amount of municipal open space,
calculated by the acres per population standard by the year 2000.
Balanced Land Use Standards
While the acres per population standardsindicate th e intensity of open space and
recreational needs at a given time, the ba
lanced land use standards establish general
open space goals with no se t time frame.
Openspacegoals foreach level ofgovernment
were originally established in the 1977
SCORP and again in the 1984 ORP. To up
date the'-19.84 ORP analysis of open space in
Morris County, the current open space figureswerecompared to the balancedland usegoals,
and the deficits at each governmental levelwere determined (See Chart 4-2). Since the
federal and state governments are responsible
for acquiring significantnatural areas,we com-
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the county cannot control state or federal acquisitions, the 14,865 acres that needs to be
acquired to fulfill the county's calculated por
tion mayormay not be within Morris County.
The goal for county-owned open space is
13,715 acres according to the balanced landuse methodologyY Subtracting the county's
8,389 acres of existing parkland from the
balanced land use goal of 13,715 acres indi
cates a deficit of 5,326 acres. It should be
noted that this is a very different result fromthat reachedby using the acres per population
method. The balanced land use goal for
municipcH 0Een space in ¥orris· ; County is
5,878 acres. Based on the totai municipal
open space, 7,675 acres, in the county, a
surplus of 1,797 acres exists.
As in the case of the acres per populationstandard, however, each municipality should
be evaluated separately in order to determine
the individual open space deficits; otherwise,
open space surpluses in one municipality will
offset deficiencies in another. However, anaccurate determination of the balanced land
use goal for each municipality is no t possible
at this time since information onwetlands and
steep slopes for eachmunicipality is not readi
ly available.
The above standards at best serve as mini
mumguides formeasuring the effectiveness of
the open space programs being implementedby the public sector.
1Department of Interior, Bureau of OutdoorRecreation, OutdoorRecreation - A Legacy for America, 1973
2 19n StatewideComprehensiveOutdoor Recreation Plan, (SCORP), p. 172
3 Parks and Recreational Land Use in NewJersey, Dept. of Conservation and Recreational Development, June 1965
41m NJ. SCORP, p. 172
5 1984 ORP, p. 30
61m NJ . SCORP, p. 175
71m NJ . SCORP, p. 173
8 19n NJ . SCORP, p. 172
9 Calculated using 1986MCPB Questionnaire
10 1984 ORP, Table 10, p. 3211 FinalMasterPlan, Morristown National Historical Park, Nov, 1975, p. 1312 1984 ORP, Table 10,p. 32
13 1984 ORP, Table 10, p. 32
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CHAPfERFIVE
Methods ofOpen Space Acquisition
The importanceof open space has been presented in previous chapters. The purpose of
this chapter is to discuss themethodsof acquir
ing and/or preserving open space. Some met
hods of acquiring open space are direct ac
quisition, donation, low density zoning and
easements. These, among others, will be ex
plored in this chapter to permit evaluation of
themethodologies available.
DIRECTACQUISITION
Direct acquisition allows for the transfer of
property without restrictions or special conditions being placeupon the land.Direct acquisi
tion can take the form of purchase, donation,
bequest, and eminentdomain. Several typesof
purchase fee simple, fee simple instalhnent,
Morris CountyOpen Space Element101
less than-fair marke t value and lease backagreements are described below.
Fee Simple: In this type of purchase, the
buyerand selleragreeon thevalueof a tract of
land and a transfer of title is made when the
price (fee) is paid.The simplicity of this typeof
purchase is its major advantage, while its
greatest disadvantage is that it is very difficult
for agencies and environmental groups to fund
the full purchase price at a given time.
Fee Simple Installment Buying: This is a
variation of the above except that full title is
no t taken immediately. Rather, the land is obtained in blocks of pre-determined acreage
over a fixed number of years.
Less-Than-Fair-Market Value: Some land
owners arewilling to sell their landat less than
fair market value. The difference between an
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agreed-uponsales price and the higher market
value canbe deducted as a charitable contribu
tion on the seller's federal income tax. For the
purchaser, the advantage is the reducedcostof
acquiring land for open space. A variation ofthis technique would be the transfer of title
from one governmental agency to another.
Lease-Back Agreement: The lease-back
agreement can be an effective tool for land
acquisition when the land is not needed for
immediate use. An agency purchases a parcel
of land and then leases it to either the original
owner or someone else. Two benefits to the
public are the partial reimbursentent of the
purchase price through rental fees and the
reduction or elimination of maintenance costs,
since the renter takescareof the property.Thismethod has been used successfully with farm
lands acquisitionand alsoby theMorris County
Municipal Utilities Authority (MCMUA) at
the site of the proposed Washington Valley
Reservoir.
LeaselRental of Private Land: Government
agencies and private conservation groups maychoose to lease or rent private land. While this
maybe less desirable than ownership, depend
ing upon the circumstances, it may be benefi
cial. If an owner has agreed to sell, or donate,
land to an agency, a lease agreement can bearranged until the sale or donation is made.
Donation and Bequest: The donationofland
is another way that agencies or nonprofit
groups acquire open space. The most direct
type of donation occurs when the landowner
gives the land to an organization or agency.
The advantage to the recipient is the acquisi
tion of land without cost, while the benefit to
the donor is a charitable contribution deduc
tion from federal income taxes. Some land
owners may bequest property through their
wills.Eminent Domain: Eminent domain is the
power of government to acquire private pro
perty from a landowner who is unwilling to sell
his property. The property must be used in the
interest of the publichealth andwelfare.When
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 102
it is determined that propertyshould be taken,
the purchaser obtains appraisals of the fair
market valueof the propertyand anybuildings
involved in the taking. The costs involved in
eminent domain processare not
unlike thoseof outright purchase; however, substantial ad
ditional costs arise from the legal fees involved
in the process of condemnation. Care and
forethought should be used prior to invoking
eminent domain. It is ironic that while the
acquisition of the property through eminent
domain is for the benefitof the community, the
publicperceptionof the process remains nega
tive.
OTHER MEANS OF OBTAINING OPEN
SPACE
Landowners enjoy a wide range of rights
connected with their property; however, a
number of restrictions to ensure limited open
spacegoals maybe placed on the use of land by
either private individuals or public agencies.
Private limitations that have been utilized in
connection with open space purposes include
deed restrictions and easements, while public
restrictions on land include protective zoning,
permit regulatory systems, and other land use
strategies.
Deed Restrictions: A deed restriction is alimitationplaced in a deed concerning the per
mitted uses of property. Within the limits of
what is deemed constitutional, landownersmay
imposepracticallyany restriction theyconsider
necessary or significant to them. Such restric
tions when incorporated in the deed can be
made binding upon subsequent owners.
Restrictions which benefit the public can be
usedaspreservation techniques foropen space
or conservation purposes.
Easements: An easement is the right to use
another's property for a specific purpose.Generally, there are two categories of ease
ments, affirmative or negative.An affirmative
easement is an agreementbetween two parties
which gives the holder of the easement a
limited right to use landownedby the other. A
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public agency might obtain an easement for
access to a portion of land for a specific use
such as a bikeway or hiking trail. The affirm
ative easement may also allow the landowner
to maintaincontrol over access to the property
by limiting the time and degree of use by thepublic. A negative easement precludes the
landowner from doing what he would be en
titled to do i f the easement did not exist For
example, restrictions might prohibit the owner
of a property adjacent to a park from building
a type of structure that would reduce the aes
thetic quality of that park.
Easements are also distinguished as either
appurtenant or in gross.An appurtenantease
ment runs with the land and involves two or
more parcels. It benefits the owner of one
piece of property by permitting the use of the
other parcel. For example, the holder of an
appurtenant easement is granted a right-of
way across another's property. The right-of
way is permanent even should the owners of
the property change. An in gross easement is
not fixed to property; the privileges given by
this easement belong solely to an individual.
Should the property be sold, it would require
the renegotiation of the in gross easement to
obtain the rights that had been afforded to the
previous owner.There are several types of easements which
are useful in the preservation of open space.
One is a called a scenic easement, the purpose
of which is to limit development in order to
preserve a view or scenic area. Similarly, a
conservation easement precludes future or ad
ditional development of a tract in order to
preserve existing conditions. Other easements
are geared toward preserving specific land
uses. A farmland easement is used to protect
land for agricultural production, while a tim
berlandeasement protects land for timberproduction.
Onemajor advantage to an easement is pure
ly economic, it costs less than outright pur
chase. Additionally it is advantageous to land
owners, since the land is still owned and maybe
Morris County Open Space Element 103
used by them, and for the easement holder,
because the maintenance of the parcel is most
likely the responsibility of the propertyowner.
Adjacent landowners mayalsobenefitbecause
their propertyvalues might increase due to the
protectionofscenicor otherqualities.Another
advantage of an easement is that it can be
written to conform to virtually any situation.
Stream Encroachment: The NJ DEP has
developed a stream encroachment permitting
processwhich helps to control adverse impacts
to a stream from development. A consistent
effort to enforce compliance with this permit
ting process enhances a municipality's ability
to preserve open space along streams when
incorporated in a municipal ordinance requir
ing s tream cor ridor buf fe r zones along
municipal waterways. Municipalities can re
quire a minimum of at least a 50 foot buffer
from either side of the edge of a stream chan
nel. Where steep slopes are involved or the
stream is in a ravine, the corridorshould extend
to the top of the steep slope plus 20 feet of
moderate or lesser slope. In 1989,NJ DEPwillrequire buffer zones from wetlands occurring
adjacent to streams. Thesebuffers help reduce
the amount ofsediment, septic tankoverflows,
road drainage, fertilizers and pesticides enter
ing the stream.!Cluster Zoning: Ouster zoning allows the
same gross densityon a tractof land as conven
tionalzoning, but reduces the individual lot
area and bulk requirements so that remaining
land can be dedicated to open space. For ex
ample, if under conventional zoning 100 hous
ing units are permitted on a 1OO-acre tract,
using a cluster lot reduction of 30 percent, a
developer would still be able to construct 100
housing units but on 70 acres, and 30 acres
could then be set aside as open space.
This technique for preserving open spaceprovides an incentive to developers since it
reduces thecostofconstruction and infrastruc
ture; but more important, open space can be
provided at no cost to the municipality.
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Cluster zoning can' be used to protect the
environmentallysensitiveareasof a tract.Wet
lands and steep slopes, for example, could be
delineated and set aside for conservation and
the remaining developable land used for construction. Municipalities could also identifypotential recreation areas and have those set
aside when the tract encompassing the potential recreational area is developed. With
proper planning, these potential recreation
areas could be linked to create a recreation
field or a continuous linear park.
In Morris County, 33 municipalities have incorporat'ed' various forms of cluster zoningprovisioIl5 into their land uSe regulations. InWashington Township, for example, 146 acres
of open space has been dedicated to themunicipality as a resultof four cluster developments., Planned Unit Development (PUD): A PUD
is a flexible,mixed use development technique
whichcan be used ina similarmanner to cluster
zoning to preserve open space.Protective Zoning: By usingprotective zones
to control development in sensitive environ
mental areas, municipalities may reap a side
benefitofpreservingopen space. Environmen
tally sensitive features subject to protective
zoning include aquifer recharge zones, steepslopes, wetlands, stream corridors and natural
and historic areas.
Transfer OfDevelopmentRights: This relatively new concept (circa 1970) in land use
management is a viablemethod of open space
preservation. A municipality would select an
area of open space and prohibit developmenton that tract with the permission of the landowner. While the landowner loses the right to
develop, ownership of the land is retained.The
development rights of the landowner are then
treated as a commodity, permitting the ownerthe opportunity to profit from the saleofwhat
can be called the development potential of hisland.
This development potential is transferred toanother district in the municipalitywhere con-
Morris CountyOpen SpaceElement 104
struction at a higher density than would nor
mally be permitted can occur.
However, only the buyer ofthe development
rights can build at this higher density. The
buyer of development rights benefits from theincreased savings attnbutable to higher densitydevelopment. In this way, the total density of
the municipality is kept the same as planned,and environmentallysensitive areas, especially
agricultural lands, can be retained. However,
to date, the NJ Legislature has failed to enact
enabling legislation permitting municipalities
to adopt ordinances allowing transfer of
development rights.
Trusts And Non-Profit Groups: Non-profit
groups and trusts, such as theNewJerseyCon
servation Foundation, the Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land, the AudubonSociety, and the SchiffNaturalLands Trustarealso interested in the preservation of open
space.A trust acquires landinmanyofthesame
ways that public agencies do; for example,
through donations and bequests, purchase,
deed restrictions, or easements. Since it is a
private group acquiring the land, no
governmentalagencyneeds tobe involvedwith
anyprocedures or expensesassociatedwith theacquisition. The citizens of the community
benefit from the preserved land with little orno cost to them.
Sometimes such organizations can act to
benefit public agencies by their ability to ac-quire a critical parceloflandmore quickly thana governmental agency. The non-profit or
ganization can then hold the land until the
public agency has had time to go through the
necessary procedures and obtain the fundingto acquire the parcel. Non-profitorganizations
can thus playa vital intermediary role in
preserving open space, as well as performing
their more usual role of being permanentowners and protectors of open space.
WILDAND SCENIC RIVER PROGRAMS
Two public programs currently exist which
recognize and protect the natural ecosystems,
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scenic beauty and historic and recreationalvalues ofour nation's river corridors.
Federal Programs
At the federal level, The Wild and Scenic
Rivers System was established in 1968 toprotect rivers or segments of rivers and theirproximate environswhichposses outstanding
ly remarkable scenic, recreational, geological,
historical, cultural or other similar value for
the benefit and enjoyment of present and fu
ture generations.
To qualify, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
requires 'that rivers must be: in a free flowing
natural condition. They must be long enoughto provide a meaningful wilderness, scenic or
recreational experience. There should be suf
ficientvolume ofwaterduringnormal years to
permit, during the recreation season, full en
joyment of water-related outdoor recreationactivities. The river should be of high qualityor capable of restoration to that condition.
In Morris County, two segments of the Pas
saic River have been nominated for inclusionon the final listof the FederalWild and Scenic
Rivers System. The first segment, nominated
for its botanical values, includes Great Piece
Meadows and the Passaic River segment fromthe
1-80bridge between Fairf ie ld and
Montville downstream to Two Bridges.
Montville and Lincoln Park are along thewestern and northern bank of this reach.
The second segment , nominated for its
recreationalvalues, extends from Route 24 inChatham Borough to Cook's Bridge in EastHanover.
The Lamington/Black River System, whose
headwaters originate in the area of Roxbury
and Randolph, has been declared eligIble for
study for inclusion in theWild and ScenicPro
gram by the National Rivers Inventory of theUnited States Department of Interior.
State Programs
In 1977, the New Jersey Legislature passedan act establishing the New Jersey Wild and
ScenicRivers System to preserve, protect and
enhance the natural and recreationalvalues ofNew Jersey rivers or segments of rivers and
their surrounding environments so that
present and future generations have the op
portunity to enjoy the ecological and recrea
tional values of such rivers.
River corridors designatedwithin the systemare protected by land and water use regula
tions. Preferably enacted at the local level,
these regulationsmay bemore restrictive than
other river-related programs such as stream
encroachment and soil erosion and sediment
control regulations.A request to designate a river, which in this
act is defined as the river channel and flood
hazard area corresponding to the 1oo-year
flood plain, may be initiated at the state or
local level. Local government and concerned
citizens or environmental organizations areencouraged to undertake studies with the
state providing guidance on meeting the
regulations of the state act.
In Morris County, the Lamington River is
being considered for designation into the
State WIld and Scenic River Program. TheUpper Raritan Watershed Association, a
private non-profit conservation organization
has prepared a series of maps detailing the
physical conditions along the river and has
agreed to act as a local coordinating a g e n ~for a designation study. Chester Township
has passed a resolution supporting the under
taking of such a study.I t can be seen that there is a wide variety of
procedures by which open space acquisitionand preservationcan be achieved andmanyof
these methods have been presented in thischapter. The list provided is not exhaustive;rather, it is intended that at least the mostviable options be listed and discussed.
1 Stream Corridor Protection Ordinance Provisions, Raritan RiverBasin Pilot Project, 1986
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CHAPTER SIX
Methods ofFinancing Open Space
In Chapter Five, different methods of openspace acquisition were described, but manyare very costly, making it difficult for munici-palities and other agencies to obtain addi-tional land for open space preservation or
parkland development.This chapter provides information about
ways to obtain the money necessary for openspace and parkland acquisition.
FEDERALFUNDING
In the past the federal government was the
primary source that local agencies and privategroups relied upon for the funding necessaryto obtain open space. The majority of federalprograms now have been eliminated or are oflimited value.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 107
TheDepartmentofAgriculture
Assistance availablefrom this agency for cer-tain specialized situations may come from theFarmers Home Administration or the SoilConservation Service. The Farmers Home
Administrationhasthree major loanprogramswhich aid in the acquisition of land for recrea-tion. These are the Consolidated Farm and
Rural DevelopmentAct, Resource Conserva-tion and Development Loans, and Com-munity Facility Loans.The first program provides loans to farmers
to convert all or part of their farms to recrea-tion areas. The second program providesloans of up to $250,000 to local agencies andnon-profit corporations in authorized
Resource Conservation and Development
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areaswhich maybe used for the developmentof facilities for rural community public-out- .door water-oriented recreation. The third
program provides loans to public or quasi
public and non-profit organizations to construct, enlarge, or improve community fac
ilities offering social, cultural, health, orrecreation benefits in rural areasor townswithpopulations of less than 10,000.
The Soil Conservation Service has threeprograms that providesmoney for recreation.The first is the Food and Agriculture Act,which authorizes theUSDAto aid farmers and
other land owners in developing,:recreation
areas. The second program assiSts projectsconcernedwith publicwater-oriented fish and
wildlife resources and public water-basedrecreation, for which grants up to 50% of the
cost of construction are available. The Soil
Conservation Service also has Resource Conservation and Development projects to assistinobtainingoutdoor recreation facilities. Pro
visions for technical and financial assistance isavailable for the development of reservoirs,recreationareas, and fish andwildlifedevelopmentwith grants to 50%.
Department of Housing and UrbanDevelopment (RUD)
HUD provides money for recreation pur
poses through Community Planning and
Development Block Grant Assistance
programswhich can cover up to 100% of pro
ject costs. These funds can be used for the
acquisition of land for uses including the con
servation of open space, development of
recreation areas, and the construction of
recreationcenters andfacilities. Thisprogramis discussed further under "County Programs.nThe Department of the Interior governs the
NationalPark Service which provides recreation planning and funds. The National Park
Service manages the federalWild and Scenic
Rivers Program and was inst rumental indeveloping the 1977 "Statewide Comprehen
siveOutdoorRecreation Plannwhich is partof
the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
New Jersey has received approximately $90million from this fund and has used it for the
development of recreation facilities, parks,
and open space acquisition for the preservation ofcertain free-flowing rivers or river seg
ments.
U.S. Fish andWildlife Service
This agency offers two grant programs for
land acquisition by states. One of these is forland in Wildlife Management Areas. Fundsare derived from an excise tax on hunting
equipment sold throughout the nation. The
distributionofthe funds to the states is contingent upon how many hunting licenses were
purchased in each state. The second programis used for the acquisition of habitats impor
tant to fishing resources and the federal funds
are obtained from an excise tax on fishinglicense sales.
STATEPROGRAMS
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Green Acres Bureau, has
had a tremendous impact on the acquisitionand developmentof parklands and open space
throughout NewJersey.
The Green Acres program began in 1961 inresponse to the state's citizens' awareness of
dwindling open space. Since that time several
bondissues have been approved by thevoters.In 1983, it became apparent that new bond
issueswouldbe necessaryevery fiveyears, and
the Green Trust was developed as part of the1983 bond issue in response to the increasing
number of applications. The Green Trust of
fers 20 year, 2% loans to municipalities andcounties for open space acquisition and thedevelopment of recreational facilities. I t also
provides incentive grants up to 25% for certain projects. TheTrust Fund offers five fund
ing categories for acquisition and develop
ment assistance. They are: Environmental
IncentivelPrivate Donation, Standard Ac
quisition, Urban Aid, StandardDevelopment,
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tion, while other organizations acquire land
which supports ecologically-fragile wildlifehabitats.
Suchorganizations usuallyconsistofa board
of directors, paid and/or volunteer staff, andmembers. The size and operation of the or
ganizations range from local to national in
scale. Land, as well as conservation ease
ments, is acquired throughpurchaseorby donation or bequest. Money to f inance an
organization's operating expense and land ac
quisition are obtained through grants, mem
bership dues, tax-deductible contributions, or
even the sale of land that has little or nop r e s e r v ~ t i t m value. Someo;ganizations act as
temporary owners of open space until a
government agency or a single-site trust, alocally-basedland holdingorganization, is ableto purchase and/or maintain the land. In this
case, th e land is usually purchased at belowmarketvalue and then sold to the public agen
cy at a slightly higher price to compensate the
organization for expenses incurred in the
transfer.Other conservation organizations, partic-
ularly those interested in preserving wildlife
habitats and unique natural features, retain
ownership andmaintenanceof the openspace
lands. In addition to open space acquisition,
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 110
some conservation organizations offer publicagencies and local interest groups technical
assistance and educational program.
OPEN SPACE: What It'sWorth
An assumptionthat manypeopleshare is that
developing land for any type of use will be
fmanciallymore beneficial thanpreserving thesameland for open space.This is an erroneoussuppositionbecauseseveral factors contribute
to the cost benefits of open space preserva
tion.The long range outlook for purchasing openspace should consider more then just initial
cost. In most cases, the municipality will lose
revenues that would be contributing to thetax
base i f the owner of the property were stillpaying taxes. However, in some cases it may
be beneficial for a municipality to preserveland rather than to allow it to be developed.
One formula proposes that a municipalitywillprofit from acquiring vacant lots rather than
having them developed when the provision of
public services is greater than th e tax lost by
municipal acquisition.Ifland is preserved, itmay provide an area or
neighborhood with pleasant open spaces,
which enhances an area, and property values
and their assessments may increase.
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CHAPIER SEVEN
Summary and Recommendations
SUMMARY
I t is clear from the content of this report thatthe process of obtaining and preserving openspace has been actively implemented within
Morris County and that efforts to acquire and
preserve additional open space havebeen ac-
tively pursued by all levels of government as
well as by the privatesector. A detailed inven
tory is presented concerning publicly-owned
openspace in the county, and the acreages of
publicopen space havebeen measuredagainsttwo sets of standards utilized by the state formeasuring the purelyquantitativeadequacyofopen space owned by each level of government.
Morris CountyOpen Space Element 111
Based on the population standards, which
compare open space to population, i t wasfound that the federal government presently
owns sufficient open space inMorris County,but that there is a significant deficit in open
space ownedby the state. This deficit, in state
lands,was estimated at 1,540 acres"in 1985 and
is projected to be 3,388 acres in the year 2000.
County-ownedopen space, as determined by
this method, appears to be more than adequate through the year 2000; but it must beemphasized that theopenspace to populationstandards do not take into account lands that
may be "needed for environmental reasons.The balanced land use method, on the other
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hand, indicates thatMorrisCountyhas ashortfall of over 5,300 acres in county-owned openspace.Eighty percent of Morris County's mun
icipalities currently meet or exceed the population-based standard for open space, theoverall total ofmunicipal open space exceeding the standard by more than 4,300 acres.However, as of 1985, eight municipalities had
open space deficits which totaled 283 acres,and this number will increase to 11 municipalitiesby the year 2000,with a total deficit of362 acres, unless those municipalities acquireadditional ()pen space in the .meantime. Manyof the municipalities with deficits ·may not be
able to meet even the current needs of their
residents. For example, Dover had a 1985open space deficit of 70 acres which is morethan one-third of its estimated 217 acres ofvacant land. For Victory Gardens, with onlyabout three acres ofvacant land, theeight acre
open space deficit probably cannot be metwithin its borders. The other municipalitieshavingcalculateddeficits are listed in ChapterFour, Table 4-4, page 146.
The second measure of sufficient openspace, the balanced land use standards, wasinconclusivewith respect to federal, state and
municipal holdings inMorris County. This isdue to its inappropriateness for reaching conclusions concerning acreages of federal andstate landswithin individual counties, and dueto the lack of measurements of environmentally sensitive land that are needed to determine the needs for municipal open space. I t
does, however, appear tobe avalidmethod forexamining the adequacy of county-ownedopen space, and indicates that the county hasa deficit of 5,326 acres.Throughout this element, open space has
been viewed from two perspectives: first, asland to be used for recreational purposes, andsecond as land that serves environmental purposes in the county. It should be made clear
that while this report concerns both perspectives it is not intended to be a recreational
Morris County Open Space Element 112
facilities plan. Each level of government hasagencies that are responsible for determiningandproviding for the recreational needs of thepeople they serve, and no attempt has been
.made in this report to relate the number ofbaseball, football or soccer fields, i.e. activerecreationalfacilities, to citizen needs, present
or future.Morris County is under constant and sub
stantial growth pressure. Until recently, amajorportion of itsdevelopment has occurredon land which had few environmental constraints; however, the remaining developablevacant land, especially in the eastern andcentral parts of the county, contains an ever
increasingproportionofenvironmentallycon
straining characteristics. Future developments will further encroach upon the
remainingsensitive, critical and scenicareas ofthe county. When added to negative environmental impacts from existing development, itmay be expected that the potential damage tothe protective characteristics of the remainingsensitiveareaswillexacerbatethe problems offlooding, erosion and sedimentation, waterquality andwater supply that exist today.Only 18of 39 Morris Countymunicipalities
have prepareda Natural Resources Inventory
(NRI), arid the county itselfhas not prepareda county-wide NRI. EssentiallyanNRIwouldcategorize, locate, and tabulate the environmental characteristics·and constraints of anarea which include, but are not limited to,scenic vistas or areas, tree cover, stream corridors, wetlands, flood hazard areas, steep
slopes, rock outcroppings, and areas of poorsoils. These environmental constraints arevital components in the planning process andneed to be considered when making projections and future land use policy recommenda
tions, including those for open space. Openspace has too frequently been relegated tobeing an afterthought in land use planning,rather than as one of the basic land uses of acommunityon a parwith residential, commercial and industrial uses.
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The locations and purposes of open space,existing and proposed, should be included inall re-evaluations of municipal master plansand land uses ordinances. Also, the zoning of
publicly and privately owned land which is
currentlyservingas open space (such aswatershed lands or private recreation areas) shouldreceive adequate attention so that the open
spacecharacter andprotectionbeing afforded
by the current use will continue, if such character and protection is deemed important,should the land change ownership an d
development be proposed.A major feature of the 1972 "Qpen SpaceElement" of the Morris County Master Plan
was the recommendation to expand the linear
park system. All major rivers and streamswere given a designation as "landwith recreational potential". Patriots Path is an exampleof utilizing open space to serve two purposes,as it protects the natural environmental characteristics of an area and provides a recreational facility. Since 1957,when it establishedthe goal ofhaving linear parks, the county hasencouragedmunicipalities to plan the landuse
of an inter-municipal corridor that needed attention. Patriots Path is also a positive ex
ample of county-municipal-private coopera
tion, and higWights th e fact that a strategyshould be planned to enable an expedient response to development proposals wherevertheymay affect an existing or proposed openspace tract.Inherent in the planning process is the evaluation of existing plans to determine theircontinuing viability based on changing conditions. In that light, th e previous "OPENSPACE ELEMENT' recommendations were
reviewed. Areas that were categorized in the1972Element as having "Recreational Poten
tial"were re-evaluated by asking the followingquestions regarding each proposal:*Has development negated th e viability of
the site?
Morris County Open SpaceElement 113
*Has the site been supported by themunicipal master plan and land use ordinance?
*Has the site already been incorporatedinto a municipal, county, state, or federal
open space system?*Does the site continue to enhance th e existing pattern of open space?
Figure 7-1 reflects the conclusions of this
review,with those proposedsiteswhIch passedthe above test being labeled as "Lands with
Open Space Potential". Several new siteswhichwere suggested bymunicipal officials intheir response to the Open Space Questionnaire, and met the above criteria are:
LOANTAKAMORAINE: This 50 acre
tract, offWoodland Road in ChathamTownship and extending intoMadison, is adjacent to the Loantaka Brook Reservation.
PIO COSTA lRACT: This 152 acre tract islocated in the southeast comerof Pequannock Township.
PYRAMID MOUNTAIN: This 450 acretract is located along th e northwest borderof Montville, th e southwest border of Kin-nelon and is also adjacent to the western
side of the Boonton Reservoir.
JERSEYCITYWA1ERSHEDPROPERlY:
Based on th e testimony received onthe
draft 1988 Open Space Element and th e
criteria outlined above, th e 415 acre formerJersey CityWatershed property, in northernDenville has also been included as "Landswith Open Space Potential." The site, however, is not delineated on Figure 7-1 since
the mapswere printed prior to the public
hearing date.
There may also be other sites just as desirablefor being included in the "Lands with OpenSpace Potential" category as those shown on
Figure 7-1, and th e recommended completionof natural resources inventories across the
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countycouldwell result in the identificationofsuch added locations. In any event, the completion of a county-wide set of NRI's shouldconstitute a major step toward the objectiveof
managing our growth so that preservation ofvalued environmental features can be maximized. As described in chapter four, the Morris CountyPark Commissionhas beguna buffer area acquisition program. Such action was
necessitated by the adverse impacts of nearbydevelopment on some of its facilities. As thecountycontinuesto develop andurbanize, thismay be the onlyviable alternative in responseto these' impacts. . The determination of
methods for protectingopen space facilities is
a step that should be implemented by all levels
of government, once the needs of its facilitieshave been determined. Federal and statefacilities, which are regional in nature,must beevaluatedfrom an area-wideperspective. Thestate "Outdoor Recreation Plan" indicates
that both the federal and state levels have asignificantdeficit ofopen spacefacilities in theurban areas of the state. In recognition of theneed for open space, expansion of existing
facilities and/or creation of new open spacefacilities is encouraged. However, since theanalysis of this need goes beyond the county'sboundaries, it is beyond the scope of thismaster plan element to make specific recom
mendations for these facilities. In light of thefindings of this element, the Morris CountyPlanning Board makes the following recommendations. While some are directed.to aspecific level ofgovernment, all are sufficiently generic to be incorporated by those con
cerned with the acquisition and protection of
one of our most important natural resources,open space.
R E C O ~ E N D A T I O N S1. As a vital part of the information needed
for a municipalityand for the county to determine whether additional open space is
needed, each of these entities should have anatural resources inventory (NRI). I f amuni
cipality already has an NRI, it should ensurethat its information is accurate, complete, in
tegrated, and reflects conditions as they nowexist. In those places where additional open
space is found to be needed, the NRI, by supplying detailed environmental information
about each individual area, would help inprioritizing future acquisitions. Regardless ofwhether additional open space is found to bedesirable or not, the findings and conclusions
Morris County Open Space Element 114
derived from the NRI shouldbe incorporated
into the master plan and land use ordinancesof the municipality, the county "Future Land
Use Plan" and the planning process of thecounty park commission.
2. The acquisition of open space to provideprotection for essential municipal and countyneeds such as water supply, flood control, and
stormwater management should be activelypursued. The locations of local aquifers,
recharge areas, well fields, flood areas andexcessive slopes should be major considerations in formulating open space acquisitionplans and revisions to land use plans, zoning
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ordinances and other development regulations. As a matter of policy, municipalitiesshould adopt stream protection measures anddevelop programs for protecting steep slopes,flood plains, wetlands and ground water
recharge areas.
3. Every municipality should have an environmental commission or committee. The
governing body should require that the commission or committee be actively involved inthe review of subdivisions, site plans and largepublic works projects.
4. In addition to considering its environmen
tal needs, each municipality should also re-examine its recreational needs for open space
each time a master plan review is made. Is
theresufficient open space to providefor eachkind of active outdoor re creationits residents
need? Ar e there sufficient passive recreationareas? In th e larger municipalities, are recrea
tion areas sufficiently distributed geographically to effectively serve the needs of all theresidents? In those municipalities with potential for substantial residential growth, are future needs being planned for into the nextcentury? Ar e changing demographics, andtherefore recreational interests, of the
municipality considered? These considerations should be incorporated into the masterplan and also into the land useordinances and
capi t al expenditure programs o f the
municipality. Th e opening of school playgrounds for public useoutsideof school hours
is another strategy, already used by a numberofMorris Countycommunities, to increase theavailability of active recreation areas to resi
dents of th e municipality. Th e county alsoshould periodically re-examine its functions in
providing for th e needs of its residents in termsof recreational facilities.
5. Municipalities should recognize that in
manycases open spaceobjectives can be realized through regulations designed to protect
Morris County Open Space Element 115
environmentally sensitive ares or through innovative designs of proposed subdivisions or
site plans. Acquisition of development rights,
obtaining open space through the subdivisionand site plan review process, and obtainingpedestrian a nd c on se rv at io n e a se m en ts
should all be considered as possiblemeans forobtaining th e benefits of additional open
space.
6. Privately-owned open space and evenpublicly-owned open space not controlled by
th e municipality (watershed lands for ex
ample) ca n suddenly disappear from amunicipality's open space inventory if the
owner decides to sell the land or putit to someother use. When such open space is considered to be an i mpor t ant part o f acommunity's open space plan, the community
should take whatever steps ar e available
toward assuring continuation of the open
space use.
7. I t is recommended that th e present effortstoward developing linear parks, open to pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles, be continued and expanded. Patriot's Path, acrossth e south-central part of th e county, is becom
ing a model of how municipal-county-privatesector cooperation, acquisition, easementsand state funding can be utilized over time toproduce a viable trail system, even in veryurbanizedareas. ThePassaicRiver flood plainand embankments, "TowpathTrail" along theRockaway and th e rivers in southwestern
Morris County offer prime opportunities foradditional trails. Other locationsalso exist (see"Landswith Open Space Potential" on Figure7-1).
8. Since both th e sta te a nd f ed er al
governments' responsibilities for providingopen space encompass considerations andareas much larger than Morris County, no
specific recommendations are made in thismaster plan for themother than th e following:
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I f Farny State Park is considered to have·a
potential as part of the state parksystem, evenif only as a wildlife preserve, steps should betaken to ensure that the state has a first right
of refusal to acquire the parcels between thetwo existing Farney tracts i f they come up forsale or change of ownership. This might apply
to other adjacent properties as well, and toundeveloped properties between or adjacent
to the BerkshireValleyWildlifeManagementarea tracts. However, in order to make such a
procedure effective, the state department
responsible would need to have funds that itcould drawupon fairly quickly i f andwhen theneed arises.
9. Municipalities and the county should examine their existing and potential sites to see
if they are vulnerable to damage from
upstream or adjacent landuses, and determinewhat measures (development standards,
mitigation measures or acquisition) are need
ed to prevent or minimize such damage. Thisprocedure should include examination forpossible damage from future development ofnow-vacant land upstream or adjacent to each
open space site. Proposed changes in zoningof such vacant tributary lands must also be
considered in light of possible damaging im-
pacts on existingor future open space parcels.
10. The county and those municipalities
having need to purchase additional open
space should take advantage of all existing
feral and state funding programs and monitorany changes in them.
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RESOLUTION
WHEREAS the Morris County Planning Board is charged with the responsibility
ofadopting a master
planfor the physical development
ofthe County; and
WHEREAS an updated draft "Open Space Element" of the Morris County Master
Planwas approved by the Planning Board for printing and distribution for reviewbymunicipalities on March 15, 1988; and .
WHEREAS a public hearing was held on the above draft on June 16, 1988, at
which several ad<li,tiono/ potential sites were recommended for inclusion; and
WHEREAS onOctober 6, 1988 the Morris County Planning Board approved the
draft "Open Space Element" as corrected and with the following changes:
1) Addition of the 415 acre former Jersey CityWatershedlands in Denville; and
2) Deletion of the proposed access parcel to a portion of
Lewis Morris Park in Mendham Township;
NOW THEREFORE BE ITRESOLVED that the Morris County Planning
Board hereby formally adopts the 1988 "Open Space Element" as corrected and
amended on October 6, 1988 as a part of the Morris CountyMaster Plan, with thestipulation that in any case in which the "1988 Open Space" map is inconsistent
with the text of the "Open Space Element," the text shall govern.
I hereby certify that this is a true copy ofa
Resolution unanimously approvedby the Morris
CountyPlanningBoard at its regular meeting
held on January 3, 1991.
(j};,. .,/L JJ. hi IJ ~ ..
DudleyH. w o o t r i d ~ , PlanningDirector7 -
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The County of Morris would like to express its appreciation to the following officials who were in office
when this Element was duly adopted:
Morris County Board ofChosen Freeholders
George J. Szatkowski, Jr., Director
FrederickW. Knox, Jr.
PatricJ. Hyland
CarolJ. Murphy
Alex DeCroce
CarolJ. Rufener
WalterJ. Luger
Morris County Planning Board
WilliamJ. Mathews, Chairman
Joyce Brown,
Vice-Chairman
Melveme E. Cooke,
Secretary
George E. Burke,County Engineer
George J. Szatkowski, Jr.
Patrie J. Hyland
James Nelson
Barry Marell
Donald F. Roos