Family that’s owned NJ farm since 1850s oppose takeover for affordable housing

✅ Cranbury Township wants to use a 150 year old farm for affordable housing

✅ The town says state regulations have limited its options

✅ Residents have strongly supported the owners to not use the farm

CRANBURY — The clock is ticking for a Middlesex County town to comply with the state's new affordable housing rules as the plan to take a farm by eminent domain comes under intense public scrutiny.

Cranbury Township faces a June 30 deadline to come up with a plan to build 265 affordable housing units under its Mount Laurel affordable housing obligations. The state changed the requirements in terms of public sewer and water, proximity to mass transportation, and a 250 square foot warehouse/distribution center buffer zone that had limited the township's options, according to Mayor Lisa Knierim.

"When you combine all of these criteria, the Township Committee was left with a very short list of properties that met the requirements for public housing," the mayor said in an update on May 13.

Andy Henry, who owns a farm with his brother on South River Road, lives in New Mexico but currently leases the 20-acre property to farmers raising cows and sheep, received a letter informing them that the township was interested in the land and could take it by eminent domain.

He and his brother Christopher were forced to relocate to warmer climates due to health concerns. A caretaker lives on the property, but they regularly return to check on it.

While much of Cranbury retains its small-town charm with a quiet downtown, a population of just over 4,000 people across 13 square miles and large swaths of open space, the Henry property is a patch of green in a commercial and warehouse expanse in the municipality's northeast corner.

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Other offers rejected

Andy attended the council meeting on April 28 and gave the council a brief history of the farm that's been in his family since the 1850s.

"It was my great-grandparents' farm. My grandfather and my mother were both born in this farmhouse and three generations of my family are buried here. My parents were both World War II veterans. My mother's name is inscribed on the memorial near the firehouse," Henry told the meeting. "About the farmhouse, it's almost 150 years old, has a new roof and we put in a new well for the animals."

Henry said he has turned down other offers to turn the property off Exit 8A of the New Jersey Turnpike into a warehouse development. He plans on turning down this offer, too, which could turn into a drawn-out process.

Former Cranbury Mayor Jay Taylor is helping the family bring attention to the situation and says the property is not ideal for affordable housing.

"It's 2 miles away from the nearest neighbor, 2 miles away from transportation. You have to go past the New Jersey Turnpike to get that transportation. So people that need that transportation have to walk past the New Jersey Turnpike to get that transportation. It's not building communities. It's basically dumping people," Taylor said.

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Overwhelmed by support

Henry said that ever since he spoke at the meeting, he has been overwhelmed by the reaction of the community.

"I was aware that people love driving by because I see people stopping just to look at animals. It's just something you don't see in that area anymore. You know you're passing by a bunch of work. Houses. So I didn't realize how many people would rally to this cause. So I've really been overwhelmed," Henry said.

A GoFundMe page has been created to help with legal expenses. The controversy also has drawn attention from gubernatorial candidates.

The township committee's next meeting is Monday.

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