Developer sues township, mayor over building permit Court orders township to issue building permit within 20 days BY TOM CAIAZZA Staff Writer The development company planning to build a Wal-Mart on Route 27 and Vineyard Road is suing Edison Township, and Mayor Jun Choi personally, for failure to release a building permit almost 21/2 years after the developer received final site approval. Edison Route 27 Associates, operating out of the office of Garden Homes, a Short Hills-based developer, filed a suit against the mayor and the township, citing "interference and obstructionist tactics" on behalf of Choi to keep Wal-Mart out of Edison. According to council President Charles Tomaro, the township was given a court order to issue the building permit for the project within 20 days, essentially putting an end to any legal recourse the township may have for holding up progress of the Wal-Mart. According to the complaint filed by Wolff and Samson, the attorneys for the plaintiff, Choi, who has publicly opposed a Wal-Mart in Edison since his mayoral campaign in 2005, allegedly directed Township Engineer John Medina and his subordinate, Edward Wheeler, from issuing the building permit, which could have caused monetary losses to the developer in the amount of $1.09 million. Both are named in the lawsuit. Choi's slate of council candidates for the June primary issued a release in response, stating that the developer was using "intimidation and scare tactics" against Choi and blaming incumbent council members for allowing "the Wal-Mart project to take shape." The release said that the developer's agreement between the township and the developer was "illegal" because it did not come with the consent of the Township Council. During the mayoral campaign in 2005, Choi said that the deal with Wal-Mart had been "snuck through." In the release, he admonished the council at the time for not challenging the agreement at the time it was signed. The suit contends that Choi "continually and unlawfully attempted to thwart the project" by disallowing Medina to release the building permit. The developer said in the complaint that Wal-Mart had been losing patience with the delay and threatened to terminate the lease, a move that would have caused the developer to lose the $1 million it paid to the township for "off-tract improvements" and $96,000 to the Edison Tree Fund, on top of the other costs it has incurred. The Edison Planning Board approved the final site plan for the application on Dec. 13, 2004, and former Mayor George Spadoro signed a developer's agreement a year later, shortly before leaving office. Choi ended Spadoro's re-election bid in the Democratic primary in June 2005 and would eventually go on to win the general election that November. The complaint also asked the court to disallow Choi from "taking any actions to thwart" the development of the project, a move that Choi said had been struck down. "This is an intimidation and scare tactic by the Wal-Mart developer," Choi said. "The township will comply with the judge's order." As for commenting on the plaintiff's calling for Choi to stay away from the project from here on out, Choi said that it is his right to speak on behalf of Edison. "As the judge has ruled that I, as a citizen and mayor, have every right to speak out on behalf of the families of Edison," Choi said. Representatives from Wolff and Samson or Edison Route 27 Associates could not be reached for comment as of press time.