New Developments Bring Boost To Morristown, Mayor Says (2024)

Morristown expects to collect over $2 million in PILOT payments by 2023, saving the average taxpayer nearly $4,000 over the next ten years.

Posted Mon, May 22, 2023 at 5:19 pm ET|Updated Mon, May 22, 2023 at 5:22 pm ET

The budget for this year includes a $105 increase in annual municipal taxes for someone with a home valued at the town average of $358,393.

The overall tax increase, however, would balance out at $66 per year due to a reduction in county and school taxes for Morristown residents.

New developments are among the most important revenue generators in Morristown's proposed budget.

In 2023, the town expects to collect more than $2.0 million in PILOT payments, saving the average taxpayer nearly $4,000 over the next ten years.

"The development that has happened here in the last dozen years is a remarkable change over the stagnation of the past, and it has resulted in investment in every corner of our town." I am proud of what we’ve accomplished together so far," Dougherty said.

The mayor cited the first phase of M-Station, a cutting-edge structure built by SJP Properties in collaboration with Scotto Properties to bridge the gap between Morristown's train station and the Morristown Green, as one of the town's most significant accomplishments.

As a result of this success, more companies have decided to relocate their headquarters to Morristown.

Sanofi, a French healthcare company, is preparing its nearly 2,000 employees for a facility relocation to Morristown next winter.

Sanofi currently occupies 675K square feet in Bridgewater. With the new move, Sanofi will lease approximately 260K square feet in Morristown, with an additional 17K square feet for consumer healthcare, Sanofi told Patch.

According to a Sanofi spokesperson, the transition to Morristown will take place in two stages, the first in the fourth quarter of 2024 and the second in the first quarter of 2025.

This project complements the revitalization taking place across the street at Headquarters Plaza. Multiple restaurateurs are now working to activate the area in storefronts that have been vacant for well over a decade, aided by the renovation of the Hyatt and Pioneers Plaza, Dougherty said.

"I’m hopeful that this breath of life will encourage continued investment throughout the corridor. This is the kind of energy we were hoping for in this area," Dougherty said.

Moving forward, Morristown officials have stated that they will continue to put pressure on other property owners in the town who have allowed their property to deteriorate.

"Our community deserves better than to see properties languish for years and years," Dougherty said.

That is why, according to the mayor, he will ask the town council to collaborate with him this year to move a number of projects forward, including the old hotel site on Market Street and the properties on North Park Place, which include the now-vacant Century 21 building.

In March, the council voted unanimously to investigate alternatives to the Cambria Hotel and Suites project, which was approved nearly six years ago as the town's first new hotel in decades.

The hotel was slated to open on a site located between Market and Bank streets, one block from the historic Morristown Green, but construction never materialized.

"Our town continues to flourish because we collectively know that evolution benefits us all. We will see to it that our whole town thrives with us," Dougherty said.