Davis Property on Franklin Ave
Rory Moore made this OPRA request to Nutley Township Automatic anti-spam measures are in place for this older request. Please let us know if a further response is expected or if you are having trouble responding.
Dear Nutley Township,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I seek any and all information about the recent sale of the Davis Property on Franklin Ave.. I understand the property on 483 Franklin Ave, Nutley, New Jersey 07110 was purchased by the Township of Nutley.
I seek the sale date and the total price, including taxes and fees. I seek the Township's purpose for the purchase and the reason for the purchase.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
Rory Moore
Mr. Moore,
This correspondence shall serve as Nutley Township (the “Township”)’s
response to your request for access to government records pursuant to the
Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, et seq. (“OPRA”), which was
received by the Township on July 30, 2025 during regular office hours.
Attached is a copy of your request for records, and below is the
Township’s response to the same:
“I seek any and all information about the recent sale of the Davis
Property on Franklin Ave.. I understand the property on 483 Franklin Ave,
Nutley, New Jersey 07110 was purchased by the Township of Nutley.” “I
seek the Township’s purpose for the purchase and the reason for the
purchase.” Please be advised that under OPRA, agencies are required to
disclose only “identifiable” governmental records not otherwise exempt.
Requests for information are not encompassed therein. See MAG
Entertainment, LLC v. Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J.
Super. 534, 549 (App. Div. 2005). While OPRA provides a means of access to
government documents not otherwise exempted from its reach, it is not
intended as a research tool that may use to force government officials to
identify and siphon information that may be useful. “[T]he custodian is
obligated to search her files to find the identifiable government records
listed in the [OPRA request] . . . However, the Custodian is not required
to research her files to figure out which records, if any, might be
responsive”. Donato v. Twp. of Union, GRC Complaint No. 2005–182 (Jan. 31,
2007). Because this request would require the Custodian to conduct
research into what records would be considered “information about the
recent sale of the Davis Property on Franklin Ave.” or “the purpose and
reason for the purchase”, it falls squarely outside the reach of OPRA.
Additionally, in Spectraserv, Inc. v. Middlesex Cnty. Utils. Auth., the
court reiterated Bent’s holding that “OPRA does not countenance . . .
open-ended demands ‘for every document a public agency has on file.’” Your
request for “any and all” information for the recent sale of a property is
overly broad and therefore, improper under OPRA. Accordingly, this portion
of your request is denied.
“I seek the sale date and the total price, including taxes and fees.” A
search of Township files revealed no records responsive to this request.
To the extent that you have also requested access to the above government
records under the common law, your stated interest in obtaining the
records must be balanced against the Township of Nutley’s interest in
nondisclosure. See Loigman v. Kimmelman, 102 N.J. 98 (1986). The foregoing
response to your request for access to government records incorporates the
aforementioned balancing test. Please note that "a party's status as a
litigant does not enlarge its access to government records under OPRA”.
MAG Entm't, LLC v. Div. of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super.
534, 545-46 (App. Div. 2005). The Township reserves its right to deny any
request for records that are the subject of any discovery, subpoena or
court order pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5. Moreover, the Township may
restrict access to records sought for a commercial purpose. Id. The
Township reserves the right to raise any other grounds for denial not
raised in this response. Failure of the Township to assert an exemption or
privilege does not act as a waiver of any grounds for denial. Furthermore,
a reviewing Court or the Government Records Council ("GRC") may deem a
denial of access to be authorized on grounds other that those advanced by
a custodian. See Paff v. Twp. of Plainsboro, A-2122- 05T2, 2007 WL 957289,
at *2 (App. Div., Apr. 2, 2007), affirming, Paff v. Township of
Plainsboro, GRC Complaint No. 2005-29 (March 2006). If your request for
access to a government record has been denied or unfilled, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Township to deny access. At your
option, you may either initiate a proceeding in the Superior Court of New
Jersey or file a complaint with the GRC by completing the Denial of Access
Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at
866-850-0511, by mail at P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at
[1][email address], or on its website at [2]//www.state.nj.us/grc. The
GRC can also answer other questions about the law. All questions regarding
complaints filed in Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk
in your County.
Sincerely,
Ceci Tramontana, RMC
Deputy Municipal Clerk
Municipal Clerk’s Office
Township of Nutley, NJ
Office: 973-284-4955 | Direct: 973-284-4951 x2233
Fax: 973-284-5668
1 Kennedy Drive
Nutley, New Jersey 07110
[3]www.nutleynj.org
References
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