The Jackson Township Council has approved the final reading of a land swap between the township and a developer that will have multiple schools built on an area of land off of Cross Street and preserve the land where they were originally slated for on Leesville Road.
The developer, Bellevue Estates LLC, had plans to erect four private school buildings on a tract of land on Leesville Road between W. Veterans and Freehold Road. However, residents in the area weren’t thrilled with the idea of schools being placed there, prompting Mayor Reina to hatch a plan that could be palatable to all.
Reina suggested that Jackson Township initiate a land swap with the developer, in which Bellevue Estates LLC would receive a 42-acre Jackson-owned piece of land off White Road near Cross Street, and the developer would give Jackson Township the property he owns on Leesville.
Just before the council’s Tuesday night meeting, residents of the neighborhood where the schools are now slated to be built filed a lawsuit claiming that the land swap discriminates against their Jewish neighborhood.
