Morris Leader

The annual Morris County Development Activity Report has been released by the Morris County Office of Planning and Preservation. It details housing and commercial development activities in the county during 2024. Joseph Barilla, Director of Planning and Preservation, provided an overview of the report at the Morris County Board of County Commissioners meeting on April 9 in Morristown.

In 2024, the Morris County Planning Board received 244 applications. Parsippany-Troy Hills Township led other municipalities with 34 submissions. Sixteen new multifamily housing applications were reviewed, proposing a total of 923 units as towns aimed to meet state-mandated affordable housing obligations. Notably, three developments accounted for 598 units, with about 11% designated for age-restricted or assisted living housing. Eighteen revised applications totaling 1,652 multifamily units were also reviewed.

Median sales prices in Morris County in 2024 remained high, standing at $808,995 for new single-family attached homes and $993,190 for new single-family detached homes, according to data from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs.

Warehouse project submissions dropped to 726,124 square feet in 2024 from 2.66 million in 2023, with Parsippany-Troy Hills accounting for the largest share at nearly 500,000 square feet from four redevelopment projects. The county continued witnessing the redeployment of underused commercial sites, particularly in Parsippany’s Campus Drive and Sylvan Way office campuses. In 2024, construction commenced on several previously approved projects, and the Planning Board reviewed three new proposals, including two warehouses and a 280-unit multifamily project with a luxury fitness club.

Despite these developments, the creation of single-family detached residential lots continues to decline except in large legacy projects. This trend reverts to the decline observed in 2019 and 2020, following two 10-year highs in 2021 and 2022 driven mainly by townhomes with individual lots.

For more details or to access past reports, visit the Morris County planning website at planning.morriscountynj.gov/publications.