Demolition Contractor in Morristown, NJ

How old are Morristown's buildings?

Morristown grew up around the Green in the 1700s, when iron forges stood along the Whippany River. Today the Census Bureau's survey counts about 9,360 homes in town, with a median year built of 1970. Nearly one in four went up in 1939 or earlier.

Newer buildings make up a big share too. About 16 percent of homes went up from 2010 to 2019, more than in any other single decade. About a third sit in buildings with 20 or more units, and only about a quarter are detached single-family houses.

The state's construction reports list a handful of housing units demolished in Morristown each year. In 2024 there were seven, all in one- and two-family houses. Our house demolition work takes down the whole house and breaks out the old foundation.

Redevelopment and commercial demolition along Speedwell Avenue

Downtown Morristown has been rebuilt before. In the 1970s, the buildings between Speedwell Avenue and Spring Street came down for the Headquarters Plaza office complex. The town has since adopted redevelopment plans for several areas. They include stretches of Speedwell Avenue (US 202), Spring Street and Morris Street, plus the train station.

Before the Speedwell plan, the area held older two- and three-story buildings and a large municipal parking lot. Large apartment buildings now stand on much of it. The newer plans allow five or six stories near downtown.

Three of the newer plans, including North Park Place and Spring Street, ask for a construction waste plan. They call for a reasonable effort to recycle or salvage demolition debris. The town code also asks for proof of legal disposal of construction debris before it issues building permits. Our commercial demolition work takes down the old building and sends concrete and steel to recycling.

What does a demolition permit in Morristown take?

In Morristown, a demolition permit application is filed with the Zoning Officer. Under the town's land development code, the Zoning Officer sends every application to the Historic Preservation Commission within 10 days. The commission then has 45 days to decide if the building should be "Preferably Preserved."

A building 100 years old or older can qualify, and so can one inside a state or national historic district. Parts of downtown, including North Park Place on the Green, sit in the Morristown Historic District. That district is listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places.

The Building Department's demolition check sheet adds its own list. It asks for letters that show the electric, gas, water and sewer lines are cut off. Cable and phone lines come off the building too. An asbestos clearance letter goes in, and owners within 200 feet of the property get a notice letter.

The Health Division issues its own demolition permit, with rodent bait set 3 to 10 days before the work. State law adds a New Jersey One Call notice at 811. Disturbing more than 5,000 square feet of soil brings in the Morris County Soil Conservation District. Each office has the final word on its own list.

Steep grades and the Whippany River in Morristown

Morristown is hilly. Along Spring Street, the town's plan shows the ground dropping about 60 feet from a cemetery to the Whippany River. Parts of that area sit in the river's regulatory floodway. Other downtown plans describe steep slopes and big grade changes on their sites.

Federal soil maps show about 70 percent of the town as urban land mixed with Riverhead soils. Riverhead soils are deep and well drained, formed in glacial outwash. Steep, rocky slopes with rock outcrops show up in places too.

Under the town code, disturbing more than 500 square feet of soil needs a permit from the Town Engineer. Projects with an approved site plan are exempt. When the builder is ready, our foundation excavation work digs the hole and hauls the spoils away.