November 30, 2006

Forums set on transit village

CARMEN CUSIDO, Staff Writer

STAFF WRITER NORTH BRUNSWICK: Town- ship residents are invited to two workshops to give their input and learn more about options for the former Johnson & Johnson property along Route 1, part of what the developer calls a fully transparent "visioning" process as it looks to redevelop the site.

At the workshops today and next Thursday, residents will be able to view a newly created informational video about the project, meet the resource team that has been assembled since the last series of workshops in the spring, review different plan models, and begin discussing redevelopment costs.

Jonathan Frieder, managing partner for North Brunswick TOD Associates, LLC, an affiliate of Garden Homes and Garden Commercial Properties, which owns the 212-acre property, said the workshops aim to "fully engage the community in a transparent, open process."

"It's the most democratic process possible," he said.

The concepts being explored include a rail station; a mix of office, retail and residential space; and a transit-oriented development where people can live, shop, work, travel, and not necessarily get in a car.

Also under consideration for the site are a new township library, a youth center, and open space or "green plazas," along a new downtown area.

The company's director of planning and development, John E. Taikina, said North Brunswick could become a poster child for smart growth. Smart-growth initiatives emphasize mixed-use development, open-space preservation and increased dependence on public transportation.

Frieder and Taikina visited transit villages and mixed-use town centers in Florida, Texas, Ohio, Virginia and Maryland and presented a slide show to residents of what the North Brunswick site could potentially look like during an open house Nov. 18.

"Mixed-use space seems to work very well. They become the center of the communities they're in," Taikina said.

Frieder said yesterday the housing would accommodate young professionals, not large families.

Mayor Francis "Mac" Womack supports developing a transit village with a train stop on the site. He said whatever is developed at the site, he hoped every resident feels they've had a chance to be heard and that none of the decisions were made behind closed doors.

One of the questions Womack believes most people will ask is how many people and housing units can go on the site.

"We want this (redevelopment) to lower our taxes by bringing in sustainable long-term businesses, rather than increasing taxes by bringing in new children," he said, adding that the second question most residents ask is if a transit village and mixed-use center would increase traffic or worsen traffic in town.

Frieder said the development company is far from estimating the cost of the large-scale project because it is still meeting with residents to determine what the site would look like.

Garden Properties purchased the property last year after J&J's Consumer Products Co. ceased manufacturing at the site in April 2004. J&J still has about 500 researchers and salespeople working there. GAF Materials Corporation also maintains some operations on the site, which J&J opened in 1956.

Garden Properties already is acquainted with North Brunswick. The company has developed Renaissance Square, a shopping center at the intersection of Route 130 and Renaissance Boulevard, with 54,400 square feet of tenant space and 761 parking spaces.