Message from Councilman Roshan (Roc) White | October 10, 2025
Scotch Plains is a proud community that traces its roots back to the late 1600s, when the first residents of “Scot’s Plains” lived in wigwams and log cabins.
As we often look back on the town we once were, and sharing local history with our children, we also are focused on creating a bright future for the many generations to come.
The Township is beginning the process of drafting an updated Master Plan, a long-range blueprint that will guide how we grow and develop over the next decade and beyond. Each town in New Jersey is required under state law to have a Master Plan; guiding future development and conservation.
The municipal Master Plan – which we are required to reexamine and update each decade – addresses a wide range of issues that affect our daily lives, including land use, housing, transportation, economic development, recreation, open space, and sustainability.
This is not some report that gets compiled, left unread and placed on a shelf to collect dust. Rather, our Master Plan is one of the most important planning tools we have, and it will help ensure that Scotch Plains remains a safe, vibrant, well-planned and welcoming place for generations to come.
But this process cannot succeed without you. Your input, ideas, priorities, and concerns will help shape the vision that guides our decision-making in the new plan. Whether it’s improving traffic and pedestrian safety, strengthening our downtown, preserving open space, or ensuring that new development better reflects the character of our town, we want to hear what is important to you.
In the months ahead, we will be providing multiple opportunities for residents to participate, including an online portal, community survey, and public meetings. Information about these opportunities will be shared on the Township’s website, social media channels, this newsletter and through local community news sources. Our goal is to analyze data provided by the public and present a drafted Master Plan to our Planning Board and Township Council by fall 2026.
I encourage you to take part in this process and make your voice heard. By working together, we can create a Master Plan that reflects our shared values and aspirations and that serves as a thoughtful, relevant roadmap for Scotch Plains’ future.
We rolled out communication efforts for this imitative at Scotch Plains Day last Sunday, providing information on how to complete the survey. Staff was also on hand to answer any questions. As a member of the township planning board, I am also closely involved with this initiative and am happy to provide information and updates.
Thank you in advance for your participation and for your continued commitment to making Scotch Plains the best place in which to live, work, raise a family and, one day, retire.
