Meanwhile, the bakery itself hopes to hold a meeting on July 31 to talk to residents about the proposed move.
Damascus Bakeries, a pita bread company in Brooklyn, wants to renovate a warehouse on Enterprise Avenue and move its headquarters there. They have already gotten permission from the state-run New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, which oversees zoning in 80 percent of Secaucus.
But some residents don't want the bakery in their neighborhood. And the town of Secaucus wants more of a license to make its own zoning decisions.
So the Town Council voted Wednesday night to hire lawyers to fight the NJMC's approval.
"We feel we have grounds to go into the appellate court to overturn the Meadowland's decision to allow [Damascus Bakery] to function at this location," said Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell. "If we're going to go into the state, we need someone well-versed in land use law."
The council voted to hire John Johnson, a Harrison judge, as the town's attorney against the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC), who agreed on May 15 to grant zoning permits to Damascus for use of the site.
Pita please?
David Mafoud, co-owner of Damascus Bakeries, said that he was aware of Wednesday's meeting prior to the event.
Mafoud said that he understands that there are concerns among the residents.
"People are free to do what they feel they should," said Mafoud about the town's hiring of outside legal counsel. Mafoud also said the bakery wants to host a meeting at the Secaucus site on Enterprise Avenue on July 31 and has gone so far as to take out ads to promote the event.
"It's in our advantage to get to know the people of Secaucus, so that hopefully they'll come to the understanding that we're good for community, not bad," said Mafoud.
The meeting may not go as planned for Damascus. As of Wednesday, the location on Enterprise Avenue had yet to receive a certificate of occupancy. If people are allowed inside the building for the meeting, Damascus will be issued a fine.
Also, several residents who voiced their concerns said they found the ad "arrogant."
The NJMC oversees zoning within 80 percent of Secaucus, taking away some of the control from the town on what is developed inside its own borders.
At Wednesday's meeting, Elwell said that there was no problem with Damascus in particular. It is more a question of the quality of life in general, and that the NJMC are the ones whom the council deemed to overstep their boundaries.
General feelings
Elwell said that he has "yet to hear one resident who is in favor of the bakery," but Mafoud said that Damascus has been sending its own people to the town to discuss with residents closest to the site. Mafoud said he has found no true hostility toward the move.
Among the litany of fears that residents brought up at the council's caucus Wednesday were pollution, rodent infestation, truck traffic, a decrease in property values, and several other complaints.
Mafoud said that one of the major worries he has heard is the fact that Clarendon No. 4 Elementary School is in close proximity to the site. At the meeting, 1st Ward Councilman Gary Jeffas said that he worried for his children who currently attend the school, and was met with a resounding applause by the attendees.
Mafoud said the bakery would not be any more harmful than a working, 24-hour operation warehouse, like the one that is there now.
"Why are we more dangerous for the kids in school than a warehouse?" asked Mafoud. "Certainly kids are not going to be inside the bakery."
The council made it clear that one of their major worries is that they simply don't have answers to a lot of the questions being posed by the residents.
Finding those answers is what the next few weeks will be about.
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