Morristown Medical Center's 'huge' expansion plans spur questions at council meeting

MORRISTOWN — Morristown Medical Center is considering a major expansion on and around its campus that could include a new 11-story tower, a six-floor parking garage and the construction of several more buildings on adjacent property, Town Council members said on Tuesday.

The plans are still being shaped, and any project would require a lengthy review and approval process by town officials. But talk of the expansion was enough to bring dozens of residents to Tuesday night's council meeting, where they raised concerns about the potential impacts and complained that the initial discussions have been shrouded in secrecy.

"If this is what's being planned, it will have a huge impact on the character of Morristown and on the neighborhood," said Charlotte Gabriele, the co-op association president at Parsons Village, a townhouse community across the street from the medical center.

Many said they had been unaware or the potential expansion to the hospital, part of the Atlantic Health System, until an email last week from Council President Sandi Mayer, who lives in Parsons Village. Mayer and Vice President Nathan Umbriac also alleged that they have been kept out of discussions because they live within 200 feet of the hospital.

Morristown Medical Center's expansion

Mayer's email said the plans include an 11-story building on the hospital's current property along Route 124 and a six-deck parking garage on Franklin Street. She also said hospital officials want Morristown to change its zoning regulations, which would allow them to build larger and taller buildings as part of a lengthy expansion over the next 15 to 20 years.

Atlantic Health officials did not provide specifics on the project but confirmed in an email to the Daily Record that they have held discussions with the town.

"We are excited about a variety of plans currently under consideration for Morristown Medical Center, and have started preliminary conversations with external partners to refine our vision," said Luke Margolis, Atlantic Health's director of corporate communications. "We look forward to broadening the scope of these discussions with our community, with a hope to have more details to share in the early part of next year."

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Councilman Stefan Armington, who also sits on the town Planning Board, told the Daily Record Wednesday he and other council members viewed a "preliminary concept" of expansion plans last month. He believes the timeline has changed since then, based on the hospital's statement, and Atlantic Health officials "don't expect to move forward until the new year."

"There is no application filed," Armington said. "And I don’t know how such a zoning change allowing what they want would be presented."

Atlantic Health is Morris County’s largest employer, with almost 11,000 on staff at several medical facilities, according to county records. Morristown Medical Center has been ranked as the state’s best hospital in five of the last six years, according to an annual list compiled by U.S. News & World Report.

Were council members kept out of discussions?

Mayer represents the town's Fourth Ward where Morristown Medical Center is located. However, she said, town attorney David Minchello advised her over the summer that she should recuse herself from involvement in the project because she lives close to the hospital.

The council president said she wasn't happy about that. She also criticized Atlantic Health, saying the company should have been more forthcoming about its plans to its closest neighbors who would be most affected. The process has led the community to feel "disrespected," she said.

"Nobody's against (Morristown Medical Center) improving their property. We all know expansion has to happen," Mayer said. "It's the way they're going about it. It's the secrecy, it's the innuendo and gossip. Innuendo and gossip leads to dark thoughts, and everybody in this room that I represent − just about everybody − is having the same thought: what's going to happen?"

Minchello said that, contrary to some residents' claims, he did not remove Mayer or Umbriac from discussions on the project, as he has no authority to do so. Rather, he said, he simply provided legal advice to the affected council members to avoid a perceived conflict of interest.

"Ultimately, the decision is that of the council to what degree they want to participate in any vote or any process as it unfolds," Minchello said.

Councilman Robert Iannaccone said he has met with Atlantic Health to discuss preliminary plans for the project. He expects the hospital to do its "due diligence" and have community meetings when officials have more details to share.

"This process has a long way to go before any decision is made," Iannaccone said. "Our job, as council − and I think this is for all things − is to basically assure people that there is a process that allows all the wards to be heard."

Residents said they hope the council and Atlantic Health live up to that promise and consider their quality of life in any plans.

"Move forward, yes. Progress is necessary; progress happens," said Gabriele, the Parsons Village president. "But let's do it with thought, with care, with foresight. Please, please don't let the hospital dazzle you with their vision, a vision of tall buildings and concrete . . . Please remember to save the charm of Morristown."

Kyle Morel is a local reporter covering Morris and Sussex counties.

Email: kmorel@njherald.com; Twitter: @KMorelNJH

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Morristown NJ Medical Center expansion spurs backlash from neighbors