The council chamber rang out with applause at the Planning Board meeting Monday night, as nearly 100 residents cheered the Planning Board’s decision to favorably review an ordinance that would allow property near the Sheraton Mahwah Hotel to be rezoned as office space only.

In March, the Council passed three ordinances (numbers 1684, 1686 and 1687) which rezoned the property from office use only to full retail. The move would have allowed the Crossroads Developers, LLC to develop a 600,000 square-foot mall complex.

Fearing the complex would change the feel of Mahwah, several residents formed The Committee to Stop the Mall. The goal of the committee was to “preserve roads, neighborhoods, and quality of life and to prevent Mahwah from becoming another mall community.”  The committee drafted a petition and gathered over 2,000 signatures asking the issue be put on the ballot in November.

After the response, the council introduced Ordinance 1698 which rescinded the previous three. Ordinance 1698 was sent over to the planning board for their opinion and at the Monday meeting, the planning board said that the previous three ordinances, specifically Ordinance 1684, went against the master plan.

Joseph Layton, town planner, said that in 1989, the town’s Master Plan said the area in question was zoned strictly for office use only and Ordinance 1684 was inconsistent with the Master Plan. Thanks to Ordinance 1698, essentially nullifying the previous three, the property now reflects the town’s Master Plan.

Council President John Roth, who attended the meeting, said the next step would be for the town council to receive the official approval from the Planning Board and Ordinance 1698 would officially be adopted at a special meeting on Sept. 1.

Councilman Chuck Jandris praised the decision. Jandris, who serves as the liaison between the council and planning board, said the council reacted quickly to the complaints of the residents. “When the council first did this it was inconsistent with what was good for the town. Had the complex been built it would have changed the feel of western Mahwah,” said Jandris, who recused himself from the vote because of his involvement with the council.

Mayor John DaPuzzo, who also sat on the Planning Board, said the council cared about what the residents had to say which was why the council rescinded the original ordinances. “When I was council president, I voted against it originally, but since I became mayor, I was unable to vote for it. I am glad the Planning Board passed this tonight,” said DaPuzzo.

However, he cautioned that a corporation could come in and build office space on the property and the office space is zoned for 1.8 million square-feet.

The next meeting regarding the Crossroads property will be a special meeting on Sept. 1.