Neighbors lose bid to prevent ad firm from moving in
By: Jennifer Potash
A group of Mercer Street residents lost their bid to prevent an advertising firm from moving in nearby.
A June ruling by the Appellate Division upheld Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg’s ruling that the evidence the Princeton Borough Zoning Board of Adjustment used in deciding to grant a use variance to Trent-Jones, a public relations firm, for the property at 12 Stockton St. "overwhelmingly supports the action by the board."
"We are satisfied that the issues and arguments presented by appellants were adequately addressed and properly resolved by Judge Feinberg in her detailed opinion," according to the decision by Judges Sylvia B. Pressler, Irving I. Kimmelman and James J. Ciancia issued June 8.
Frank Lo Bosco, the attorney for Secondary Schools Admission Test Board Inc., the owner of the building, said Thursday that the contract with Trent-Jones for the sale of the building is still pending. His client is pleased the Zoning Board’s ruling was upheld, he said.
At issue was whether a public relations firm is too dense a use for the property, which has a vehicular entrance off Mercer Street.
On Feb. 25, 1999, the Zoning Board unanimously approved a use variance for 12 Stockton St., the former corporate headquarters of Secondary Schools.
The building is located in an R-3 zone, limited to multiple-family dwellings and public parks with playgrounds. Only one of the seven properties in this zone, however, is used for residential purposes, according to court documents.
The conditional uses permitted in the zone are churches and places of worship, public schools, nonprofit private schools, private parks and playgrounds, public buildings and nonprofit buildings.
Secondary Schools, which has owned the building since 1988, tried unsuccessfully for five years to sell the property, according to court documents, before trying to sell the property to Trent-Jones, whose 13 employees are located on Nassau Street.
The group of 18 residents feel a public relations firm is too dense a use for a residential neighborhood, said Jeffrey Hall, attorney for the residents.
The residents – identified in court documents as John and Nora Kerr, Gene and Gretchen Budig, Barbara Chancellor, Orley and Gina Ashenfelter, Bruce and Carolyn Robertson, John Powers, Luis E. Tellez, Wayne Meisel, K.P. Wesseloh, Corella A. Bonner, Andrew and Wendy Steginshy, Christina Henderson and Judson Henderson – sought to appeal the zoning decision, an appeal that in most cases would be heard by the Princeton Borough Council. But they filed their appeal past the deadline, Judge Feinberg ruled.
Judge Feinberg allowed the residents to file a prerogative writ and waived the time limit, thus permitting a review of the case.
However, a prerogative writ contained a higher burden of proof for Mr. Hall, who had to show the Zoning Board decision was "arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable."
Representatives for Trent-Jones testified at the February Zoning Board hearing that the staff size would not exceed 15 employees and the firm has three clients who may visit the office a few times per year. The firm’s other traffic consists of daily Federal Express and UPS deliveries and occasional visits from account representatives for printing companies, free-lance graphic artists and the firm’s accountant.
Ms. Kerr, one of the objecting residents, had testified at the February 1999 hearing that a decision by the Zoning Board to grant the use variance would open the door to commercial office use in the Mercer Hill Historic District and have a negative impact on the historic character of the residential neighborhood.
Judge Feinberg said in her June 1999 decision that the historic fabric of the district would not be destroyed, as the neighborhood already has undergone a shift in how buildings are used.
Trent-Jones officials say there are no plans to alter the exterior of the building, and that the building, used for office space for many years, would not be easily adaptable for single-family use.