{"id":8135,"date":"2026-01-28T18:40:05","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T23:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/?p=8135"},"modified":"2026-03-04T18:49:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T23:49:06","slug":"proposed-sale-of-deats-case-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/proposed-sale-of-deats-case-house\/","title":{"rendered":"Proposed Sale of NJDEP Property–Franklin Township, Hunterdon County–Historic Deats Case House (updated 3\/4\/26)"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/h3>\n

OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON <\/strong>PROPOSED SALE OF HISTORIC PROPERTY<\/strong><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

UPDATE–MARCH 4, 2026<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A document summarizing, and providing answers to, the public comments received by the Department
\nthrough March 4, 2026 has been posted below under “Additional Information”.<\/p>\n

The Q and A document will be updated to respond to any additional comments received through the close of the public comment period
\non March 6, 2026, but is being posted now to provide additional information to the public about the proposed sale.<\/p>\n

Two additional documents related to the comments have also been posted below.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PROPERTY INFORMATION<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Deats, Case & Co. Tenant House
\nCounty Route 615 (377 Pittstown Road)
\nFranklin Township, Hunterdon County
\nBlock 26, Lot 8 (part of), Block 27 lot 7.02 (part of)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

NJDEP MANAGING PROGRAM:<\/strong>\u00a0 Fish and Wildlife<\/p>\n

NJDEP FACILITY:<\/strong> Capoolong Creek Wildlife Management Area<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PROPOSED ACTION<\/strong><\/p>\n

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“NJDEP”) is proposing to sell the historic Deats, Case & Co. Tenant House in Franklin Township, Hunterdon County at public auction, subject to a historic preservation easement to be held by the New Jersey Historic Trust.<\/p>\n

The purpose of this notice is to solicit public comment on the proposed sale prior to approval of the sale by the NJDEP Commissioner and the State House Commission.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

SITE HISTORY<\/strong><\/p>\n

Block 26, Lot 8 is located in the Pittstown section of Franklin Township, Hunterdon County (\u201cthe Property\u201d).\u00a0 The Property has frontage on County Route 615 (Pittstown Road) and the Capoolong Creek.\u00a0 It is currently administered by the NJDEP\u2019s Fish and Wildlife program as part of the Capoolong Creek Wildlife Management Area (\u201cWMA\u201d).<\/p>\n

The Property is located in the Pittstown Historic District (\u201cDistrict\u201d).\u00a0 The District is listed on both the National and New Jersey Registers of Historic Places (collectively, \u201cthe Registers\u201d).\u00a0 The Property \u00a0contains a residential structure that is classified as a contributing building in the District.\u00a0 The residential structure was constructed in the 1850\u2019s and is listed on the Registers as the Deats, Case and Co. Tenant House (hereafter, the \u201cHouse\u201d).\u00a0 Additional information on the District and the House (Structure #46) may be found in the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form linked below.<\/p>\n

The Property was acquired by the NJDEP in 2003.\u00a0 The NJDEP acquired the Property to resolve the encroachment of the Property\u2019s septic system onto the WMA and to extend the WMA to and across the Capoolong Creek.\u00a0\u00a0 For several years after the acquisition, the House was used as employee housing by the Division of Fish and Wildlife.\u00a0 However, it is no longer needed for that purpose and the NJDEP does not have the financial resources to maintain it to appropriate historical standards for public use.<\/p>\n

Therefore, as it has done for other historic buildings on its lands, the NJDEP is considering selling the House, subject to a historic preservation easement, for private use.\u00a0 The House will be sold \u201cas is\u201d, and the NJDEP will not assume any responsibility for repairs to the House or any remediation on the Property.\u00a0 The proceeds of the sale will be returned to the Green Acres fund for use in a future State open space acquisition project.\u00a0 The historic preservation easement will be held, monitored and enforced by the New Jersey Historic Trust.<\/p>\n

The map linked below depicts the portion of the Property the NJDEP is considering selling (outlined in red). \u00a0The proposed sale would also include a small portion of Block 26, Lot 7.02 (outlined in green).<\/p>\n

The proposed lot lines are subject to adjustment.\u00a0 However, the NJDEP does not intend to enlarge the area proposed for sale.\u00a0 The area to be retained by the NJDEP includes a dilapidated garage that will be removed from the Property.\u00a0 This area will be used for public parking to provide fishing access to the Capoolong Creek.\u00a0 As noted on the map, the Capoolong Creek frontage will continue to be owned by the NJDEP.<\/p>\n

In addition to maintaining the structure to historic standards, as a condition of the sale the purchaser will be required to install, at its expense, a new septic system, including a retaining wall, and a new well on the Property.\u00a0 A septic system design for the House was commissioned by the NJDEP and received approval from Hunterdon County in 2019.\u00a0 A copy of this approval is linked below for informational purposes only.\u00a0 Potential purchasers should not assume this approval is still valid or that the plan upon which it was based meets current County code requirements and\/or NJDEP environmental permitting requirements.\u00a0 The purchaser will be responsible for obtaining all current permits and approvals that are needed for the required improvements.<\/p>\n

If the NJDEP proceeds with the sale, the purchaser would be allowed to use the property for any use consistent with its current NB (Neighborhood Business)\u00a0zoning (or any future zoning requirements imposed on the Property by Franklin Township) and the historic preservation easement.\u00a0 The Franklin Township zoning code may be found at Township of Franklin, NJ Zoning Code<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The selected purchaser will be responsible for all technical costs associated with the sale, including preparation of a survey to the NJDEP\u2019s specifications, any title and hazard reviews the purchaser wishes to undertake, and recording fees.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

SALE PROCESS<\/strong><\/p>\n

The NJDEP will not be conducting a formal public hearing on the proposed sale but is instead offering the public the opportunity to submit written comment on this matter in advance of seeking the necessary approvals for the sale.\u00a0 If the NJDEP decides to proceed with the proposed sale, it is subject to approval by the NJDEP Commissioner and the State House Commission.\u00a0 If approved, the proposed sale will then be subject to additional public notice as part of the public auction process.<\/p>\n

The opening bid for the proposed sale is not known as this time but will be determined based on an appraisal before the NJDEP seeks approval for the sale from the State House Commission.\u00a0 Due to the lead time involved with commissioning and reviewing the appraisal, the NJDEP anticipates that the earliest State House Commission approval could be obtained is in September 2026.<\/p>\n

If the sale is approved by the State House Commission, the NJDEP will sell the Property through an online auction with the assistance of the NJ Department of Treasury.\u00a0 Potential purchasers will be offered the opportunity to tour the House as part of the auction process.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION<\/strong><\/p>\n

National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for the Pittstown Historic District<\/a><\/p>\n

Aerial Map of the Property<\/a><\/p>\n

Photos of the House (2025)<\/a><\/p>\n

Deed for the NJDEP\u2019s Purchase of the Property<\/a><\/p>\n

Survey for the NJDEP\u2019s Purchase of the Property<\/a><\/p>\n

Map Showing Area Proposed to be Sold and Potential Locations for a New Well and Septic System<\/a><\/p>\n

2019 Hunterdon County Board of Health Approval for Septic System Design and Well<\/a><\/p>\n

UPDATE–MARCH 4, 2026:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Q and A on Proposed Sale of Deats Case Tenant House<\/a><\/p>\n

Minutes of the June 16, 2016 Historic Sites Council Meeting<\/a><\/p>\n

September 1, 2016 Letter Conditionally Approving Demolition of Deats, Case & Co. Tenant House<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PUBLIC COMMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n

Written comments on (or questions about) the proposed sale may be directed to:<\/p>\n

\n

Jocelyn Gulla, Esq., Regulatory Officer
\nNew Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
\nOffice of Transactions and Public Land Administration
\n401 E State Street
\nP.O. Box 420, Mail Code 401-07
\nTrenton, NJ 08625-0420<\/p>\n

Jocelyn.Gulla@deptest.nj.gov<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Please send a copy of any comments submitted on this proposal to:<\/p>\n

\n

Mary Monteschio, Esq., Regulatory Officer
\nNew Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
\nNew Jersey Fish and Wildlife
\nMail Code 501-03
\nP.O. Box 420
\nTrenton, New Jersey 08625-0420<\/p>\n

Mary.Monteschio@deptest.nj.gov<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Written public comments on the proposed sale will be accepted until March 6, 2026.<\/p>\n

Please note that electronic submission of comments is preferred.<\/p>\n

For emailed comments, please include \u201cDeats, Case & Co. Tenant House\u201d in the subject line of the message.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON PROPOSED SALE OF HISTORIC PROPERTY   UPDATE–MARCH 4, 2026 A document summarizing, and providing answers to, the public comments received by the Department through March 4, 2026 has been posted below under “Additional Information”. The Q and A document will be updated to respond to any additional comments received through […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":257,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,21,34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8135","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pla-njdep-property-conveyances","category-pla-public-notices","category-pla-public-notices-subcategory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/257"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8135"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8213,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8135\/revisions\/8213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/otpla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}