N.J. Highlands Coal. v. N.J. Dep't of Envtl. Prot., 236 N.J. 208

Summary

The New Jersey Supreme Court reviewed whether a development project qualified for the Highlands Act's affordable-housing exemption. The court held that the exemption's three-year expiration period is triggered only after all final approvals required under the Highlands Act have been obtained, and that the statute does not incorporate the Municipal Land Use Law's defined term "final approval." The court affirmed the Appellate Division's judgment while clarifying the limited, statute-specific nature of its interpretation.

Holdings

1. The phrase “all final approvals” in N.J.S.A. 13:20-28(a)(17) is distinct from and does not incorporate the Municipal Land Use Law's defined term “final approval.”
2. The DEP was within its authority to conclude that Bi-County had not secured all final approvals; consequently, the three-year period for expiration of Exemption 17 had not been triggered.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Highlands Act's Exemption 17 requires construction beyond site preparation to commence within three years after receiving all final approvals required pursuant to the Municipal Land Use Law.
2. Whether the phrase “all final approvals” in Exemption 17 incorporates the Municipal Land Use Law's defined term “final approval.”
3. Whether the DEP correctly determined that Bi-County had not obtained all final approvals and that the exemption therefore had not expired.

Disposition

affirmed