New Jersey's full of important and compelling American history including many Revolutionary War battle sites but in Upper Freehold residents are mounting a fight of their own to protect a piece of that American history the environment and their health they're trying to stop a proposed Warehouse from being built on a revolutionary war site Ted Goldberg spoke to people at the protest and inside a committee meeting about what they're doing to try to keep this Warehouse out of their Community it's a sham for the people who are like raw raw American Revolution and then you did nothing in your own town to preserve it you're Hypocrites the possibility of a warehouse an upper Freehold has locals up in arms much like George Washington's soldiers when they pursued British troops here nearly 250 years ago Washington is newly trained troops are leaving Valley Forge and he decided to Trail them but he couldn't get too far east because then he would have been concerned about being outflanked and there's accounts of them firing at the British as they marched and then after they encamped they attack them here that skirmishing led to the more well-known Battle of Monmouth a few days later people who live here say putting a warehouse on historic land wouldn't just be an affront to history it would mean a much more polluted Community they're talking about 108 loading docks that will generate by conservative estimates of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide 2500 tons of pollutants into this community per year residents like Sue Kozel say leaders haven't taken the necessary steps to protect this land from development clearly there's a problem with the five people in the township committee and tonight's about holding them accountably you have to open your mouths and tell us before the playing board meeting why you will not take any proactive steps kozil and others stop by an upper Freehold Township committee meeting last night to air their grievances about the proposal since it wasn't a planning board meeting a Committee Member and the mayor had to step out before public comment since there are either on the planning board or have close family there Township attorney Dennis Collins gave a warning before public comments started you may be creating a situation where you're helping the developer get something that he may not otherwise get Collins confirmed that a warehouse application has been filed with the planning board he also said that if a current Committee Member heard testimony and then joined the planning board next year they might be disqualified from voting on any warehouse proposal there that would give the developer a a significant ground if he's not happy with any result to say that the process has been completely tainted it's kind of like if we were suing each other and I got to talk to the judge without you being here to hear what I say to the judge that being said people still let out their feelings the traffic congestion number one in and around upper Freehold is going to be horrible under this I'm just I'm not asking you to respond wink or do anything else tonight the proposal is about to destroy our property values that beeping noise I don't care high how high how high of a berm they build what they do to to soften the sound you're going to be hearing that all night it's nuts I've moved here and the first thing we said we must be great if this Pawn stayed a farm until our kids were older it's good in fact not just my house but everyone's they're not virtually in our backyard they're literally in our backyard if leaders don't buy the land residents tell me they have other options people say they've seen bald eagles around the area of where the warehouse would go and if a bald eagle nest is found on the property federal laws could gum up the works for putting a warehouse there in Upper Freehold I'm Ted Goldberg NJ Spotlight News