The township agreed to pay $2.5 million to N.H. Wright Inc., owners of the Wright North and South properties and the Sieck Wright Roses flower business, said Township Attorney William Moran on Monday.
By:Brian Shappell
The township has agreed to acquire the Wright properties.
The township agreed to pay $2.5 million to N.H. Wright Inc., owners of the Wright North and South properties and the Sieck Wright Roses flower business, said Township Attorney William Moran on Monday.
The majority of the land, totaling 122 acres, will be put into the state’s Farmland Preservation Program, which means only farming accessory buildings and one accompanying residence can be built, Committeemen Art Hasselbach said. Because it will be deed restricted, farming will be the only acceptable use of the land, although there is no requirement to actually farm the acreage.
The properties, located west of the village and near the Cranbury School, were acquired to preserve the view of agricultural land from the downtown and to support a “hard edge” for the village by not allowing new housing or business development of the area.
Much of the cost of purchasing the properties will be reimbursed by the state because the township already has decided to put the majority of the land into farmland preservation. The reimbursement will be granted following approval of the preservation. The properties consist of Wright North, which totals 82 acres, and Wright South, which totals 40 acres.
Mr. Moran said no major hurdles stood in the way of the completion of the deal late last week.
“The negotiations, since the purchase price was agreed to, were fairly easy; the holdup was the final form the agreement was going to take,” he said. “Both sides moved in good faith to solve the issue.”
Christopher B. Wright, principal owner of N.H. Wright Inc., said Thursday he did not wish to comment on the sale until the final papers were signed.
In February, the Planning Board nixed an application that would have allowed 162 townhouses to be built on the property.
In response, the Wrights filed a lawsuit claiming that zoning restrictions drafted in 1993 limited the land’s development possibilities to 14 houses and devalued the properties. The suit also argued that townhouses matched the character of the villages higher density housing.
The township said that high-density townhouses would detract from the character of the historic village. The suit was dropped as part of the purchase.
The committee voted unanimously Oct. 16 to borrow up to $2.65 million to buy the Wright properties adjacent to the Cranbury School.
A couple of significant agreements were made as the final part of the settlement including the township’s allowance of Sieck Wright Roses to remain on the property until the business finds a new location and indemnification language deeming Mr. Wright responsible for legal actions taken while he is still operating on the land.
The township will hold back 10 percent of the agreed price for the land purchase until the Wrights relocate, after which the Wrights will receive that money with interest.
The township also agreed to retain the services of the Wrights’ present accountant, Klatskin & Co. It will be used to prepare tax returns on the property purchase next year, Mr. Moran said.