By: Jennifer Potash
The Master Plan Subcommittee of the Princeton Regional Planning Board met Tuesday to strategize for the 2002 update of its Master Plan.
The state requires municipalities to update master plans every six years, explained board attorney Allen Porter. The Princeton Regional Master Plan last underwent revision in 1996.
Master plans are meant to serve as development guides for municipalities and can guide changes to zoning ordinances.
The entire Planning Board attended the meeting and brainstormed on what approach to take to update the different sections of the Master Plan – including land-use planning, conservation and open space, housing and community facilities.
The Master Plan does not need to be rewritten but mostly updated to reflect changes that have taken place, said Planning Director Lee Solow.
The Princetons should examine the master plans of surrounding municipalities "to see how that matches up with what we have," said Wendy Benchley, a member of the Planning Board and the Princeton Borough Council. She encouraged the board to take a more activist approach and attend meetings of other municipal planning boards regarding applications that would have an impact on the Princetons.
"We could have two- and three-man teams make forays out there," she said.
With major downtown institutions, such as the library and Arts Council, moving on expansion plans, the Master Plan’s treatment of the downtown was of concern to the Planning Board members.
Witherspoon Street offers the most potential for a mix of building types should the borough build a parking garage, said Planning Board member Joseph O’Neill.
Mr. O’Neill also said the board must be careful with that opportunity so the downtown doesn’t wind up with uniform buildings.
"I do not want to see a whole street of Benson buildings," Mr. O’Neill said, referring to the brick building at the corner of Witherspoon and Spring streets. "That would be the New Bruswick-ing of Princeton."
The open-space element of the plan, which urged Princeton Borough and Princeton Township to adopt an open-space tax and identified land parcels, such as the Robert Wood Johnson tract on Rosedale Road, has been successful, Mr. Solow said.
Princeton Borough residents will vote on whether to adopt a 1-cent open-space tax and Princeton Township residents will consider a 1-cent increase to their open-space tax Nov. 7.Members of Princeton Future, a citizen’s group seeking to guide the development of the downtown, attended the meeting
"We came to listen and to see what we could do to help," said Robert Geddes, a professor of architecture at Princeton University and co-chairman of Princeton Future.
