Highlands Council seeks input from North Jersey business owners

As part of an effort to assist economic recovery and growth in the Region, the New Jersey Highlands Council is seeking direct input from businesses in Northern New Jersey to help inform development of an Economic Sustainability Plan for the Highlands Region. Business owners are asked to complete a short survey of 13 questions that should take no more than 15 minutes to complete.

The Highlands region includes 88 municipalities in parts of Morris, Warren, Hunterdon, Sussex, Passaic, Somerset, and Bergen counties. A complete list of Highlands Municipalities is available below and on the Plan Conformance Status page of the Highlands Council website (www.nj.gov/njhighlands/planconformance/status/).

The survey seeks to better understand opportunities and barriers to economic growth across the region. Information collected will be used to shape solutions that address challenges, and map next steps for coordinating with state, county, and municipal governments to support the long-term economic health of the NJ Highlands. Survey results will only be aggregated, and individual responses will be kept confidential.

Highlands Region Economic Sustainability Plan Background

The Highlands Region Economic Sustainability Plan will result in a comprehensive plan that includes an economic analysis and profile of the Highlands Region along with recommendations for strategies and policies to guide economic growth in the region. Given the current COVID-19 crisis, the project will focus sharply on considerations related to the pandemic and its impacts on Highlands economies. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2021.

Sussex County municipalities in the Highlands region include Byram Township, Franklin Borough, Green Township, Hamburg Borough, Hardyston Township, Hopatcong Borough, Ogdensburg Borough, Sparta Township, Stanhope Borough, and Vernon Township.
The survey link is https://forms.gle/tUTWJFXL1HuU4Dqe6

The Highlands Council is a regional planning agency, established in 2004 with the passage of the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act and charged with implementation of the Act. More information is available at nj.gov/njhighlands.