Grosso would move Brokaw/Gulick house to preserve it
By:Laura Toto
The developer who owns the historical Brokaw/Gulick house said he has no plans to knock it down.
The Brokaw/Gulick house is a 155-year-old building on Route 206. Built around 1845, it is the site of the former Belle Mead Animal Hospital and The Curiosity Shoppe
"I never had intentions of knocking it down," said developer Richard Grosso, who plans to erect a car wash on the site.
In the event the house has to be moved, Mr. Grosso said he would want to place it in the rear of the property.
"We’ll fix it up and rent it out. The house is in poor shape and it’s all rotted," Mr. Grosso said in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon.
The Township Committee was expected Wednesday night to pass a resolution protecting the building.
The resolution was intended primarily as a signal to make the Planning Board aware the Township Committee feels the house should remain intact.
Only ordinances can stop a developer from tearing down building.
"Developers will be going before the Planning Board in a month or two and we want it protected," Mayor Joseph Tricarico said Wednesday. "Historic homes in Hillsborough are being taken away by developers."
The Historic Preservation Commission has to come up with a list of homes and structures and the existing ordinance will protect them. The commission is in the process of creating and checking its list, which dates back to 1984.
The house had been recommended in December 1984 for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places because of its Greek Revival architecture, but it never was added.
The property was the site of the Belle Mead Animal Hospital and The Curiosity Shoppe, both of which closed in the past year after.
Sue Nittolo, a resident of Brook Drive close to Route 206, grew up in the 155-year-old house and has been asking the commission to save the house. Mrs. Nittolo lived there for about 40 years with her parents, Frank and Louise Bogner, and her brother, Frank.
The 9-acre property was sold to Mr. Grosso by Mrs. Nittolo’s late brother. Mrs. Nittolo has said she hopes the old house, could remain part of the property.