I stayed until the end of the first planning board meeting.  I rushed out to my car to avoid the traffic from the 100 or so people who were still there, bleary eyed at 11PM.  I got held up for 10 minutes or so at route 46 when two police officers were trying to figure out how to 'fix' the light to stay green in our direction.  Remember - this is 11PM at night and NOT many people were still at the meeting.  Once they got the light green, they held it that way and let traffic (albeit light traffic on a snowy Monday at 11PM) on Route 46 back up.

Try getting 1000 cars out of 140 Green Pond Rd making a left turn at the new light that will surely be placed there...With the police officers 'fixing' the light in the green position and all others waiting, and waiting, and waiting...

FYI - 1000 cars form a line of traffic approximately 4 miles long.

Now - flash foward to the future.  It's 2015.  The gracefully aging Rev. Ireland has met or exceeded all his growth projections....Oops - I forgot - he has no projections...just tens of millions of dollars and a dream...If he had made growth projections back in 2004, he'd be pleased to find that his flock has grown to that magical 25,000 number and even includes a new record 15 families from Rockaway Township.  Of course, all the improvements he has ever asked for have been approved by the planning board.  After all, only 11 years earlier (in 2004), he threatened them with their first RLUIPA lawsuit and they backed down and gave him all he asked for.  Once the planning board backed down the first time, Rev. Ireland knew that the RLUIPA threat would get him whatever he wanted.  Over the past 11 years, he's used the threat of lawsuit against religious freedom to build a beautiful parking structure that holds 17,000 cars.  Unfortunately, he didn't have room for the baseball and soccer fields when the outdoor stadium went in, but the free Christian concerts are worth it - some even go to late night.  And how many high tech Christians got jobs (3 even came from Rockaway Township) - sorry, no Jews need apply, when they wired the entire campus for interactive video so he's not stuck preaching to only the 8000 that fit in the newly modified chapel, but can actually reach out to another 5,000 around the campus (include the newly opened high school).  Once that retractable dome, recently approved by the planning board, goes into the stadium, Rev. Ireland will be able to have his dream of 15,000 together in one location so he can get back to doing only two services a week instead of the 5 he's up to lately...but...Oh yeah, getting back to 2015....Imagine 10,000 cars trying to enter / leave.  It's easier now that Ireland Way (Green Pond Rd. was renamed back in 2009) has been rebuilt as a six lane road with a movable barrier so 5 lanes can go in one direction at a time.  It's amazing that if you lined up all those 10,000 cars, they'd be FORTY MILES LONG.  It really doesn't feel in when they're all snug in the parking garage.  It doens't even take 45 minutes to get out.  Of course, the poor people who live nearby can't get their cars on the road, but that's OK.  Rev. Ireland is bound to buy them up soon for the next planned expansion.  And it's the least he can do, to help our town.

Hey - it may sound exaggerated...but what do you think Rev. Ireland's goals are?  He's already stated that he won't stop at 25,000 people.  Remember, 25,000 people will come in 15,000 cars which is a line of cars SIXTY MILES long.  The chance to affect the future of our town is NOW.  Stand up NOW for what is right or forever suffer the consequences.

I loved your scenario!  I think you should be working FOR Ireland, not against him!

I'll bet he loves people who can envision such wonderful plans for the future the way you did.

With your vision, Rockaway may actually contribute something to society someday!

Keep up the good work!

Gee - any name could go there?  Oh wow, I couldn't figure that out.

I'll say it again - Come on Church supporters.  What are you afraid of?  Post with your real names.  Don't hide behind anonymous posts.

Come out, come out, whoever you are.

tED dOTY (ouch - that cap things is painful tED - please stop it) - you are not included in that group.  Although I find your thought process disturbing at times, I have respect for the fact that you stand up for things you believe in.

He's getting desperate--he used to merely imply things about the township residents' opinions and motives.

Now he's coming right out and making blanket statements--hate, racism, anger, breaking the law.

What's next, Todd?

Are you going to suggest that we're responsible for global warming?

There can be no middle ground. All the 'olive branches' that Rev. Ireland offers (or will offer in the future) are (will be) minor and side issues.

The main issue is the number of congregants that they have now and in the future, and the traffic those congregants will generate.

Look at Rev. Ireland's two quotes in today's Daily Record article:

"We are willing to make concessions," Ireland said.

"We can't change the size of the congregation," Ireland said.

So tell us - what concessions could they make to reduce traffic, when they can't change the size of their congregation.

What concession will they make in the future? Megachurches attempt to grow and CC will attempt to grow. If their track record for growth is any indication, they WILL grow, and they will grow quickly. How will CC address future traffic issues / growth?

Will they promise us not to grow? It'll never happen. They'll never make a meaningfull concession because there are no concessions they can make that will both allow them to grow boundlessly and also address Rockaway Township residents' traffic concerns.

Click to view these responses

1. Don't you think property... by Norb, 3/3/04 !

that question with an answer as it's been answered numerous times.One question Todd, where will you live when they close down Greystone?