If approved, the 363-unit building will be marketed by the borough to returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, as well as prior wars, fitting for a Borough that has long supported the military. “It was a win/win for the borough,” says Susan Rubright, a land-use attorney at Brach Eichler and attorney to the Borough’s planning board.

Willow Walk was originally planned as a 422-unit age-restricted development of the former Federal Steel site on Route 202. When ATA Developers requested that the age restriction be lifted, the planning board denied the application. ATA appealed, and the parties were ordered into mediation. “We believed the project was too intense for a site of 25 acres,” she says, explaining that age-restricted developments utilize less parking.

The planning board was trying to balance the number of units with the size of the site, while ensuring that 20% of the apartments would be affordable under the state’s Council on Affordable Housing requirements. But an annual tradition gave Rubright an idea. For nearly three decades, Raritan Borough has held a memorial parade every September to commemorate Marine Sgt. John Basilone, the hero of Guadalcanal and the other men and women from Raritan Borough who served in World War II. In fact, Rubright notes, one in five borough residents served in that conflict, and the town retains a strong link to the military.