CAPE MAY – The Concerned Citizens for Sewell Tract Preservation announced a settlement in what many believe is New Jersey’s longest-running civil suit.
The settlement’s terms preserve the Sewell Tract, a 100-acre parcel of land adjacent to the Coast Guard base, from any future development. Concerned Citizens is a non-profit entity that acted as a plaintiff-intervenor in the long-standing litigation to preserve the tract.
A press release from the Concerned Citizens noted that “the settlement terms did not require any monetary or other contribution by the City of Cape May to finalize the deal.”
In the end, the potential developer and owner of the tract will be paid $19 million by the state “for conveyance of all its property in Sewell Tract.” The land is conveyed to the state Department of Environmental Protection “for purposes under various state preservation statutes and rules that would not include residential development.”
The press release called the settlement “a total win for preservation.”
