Institute’s plan targets ‘hallowed’ housing site

Historical groups oppose 15-home scheme on edge of battlefield in Princeton.

By: David Campbell
   Land on which George Washington’s troops repelled the British at the Battle of Princeton may prove rough terrain for the Institute for Advanced Study, which would like to build faculty housing there.
   The institute was on the agenda at the Princeton Regional Planning Board meeting Thursday night with a concept plan to build 15 single-family residences for faculty and emeritus professors on 24 acres adjacent to the Princeton Battlefield State Park, to the west of the institute.
   The institute’s proposal appears to comply with all zoning requirements, which permit residential housing on the site, according to the township’s zoning office.
   But Jerald Hurwitz, president of the Princeton Battlefield Area Preservation Society and a Plainsboro Township resident, claims the land is "hallowed ground" where American soldiers fought and died and should not be developed.
   Mr. Hurwitz, a Revolutionary War and Civil War re-enactor who has taken part in re-enactments of the Battle of Princeton, wants the institute to put off its application to allow time for his group to arrange to acquire and conserve the land.
   "I want to sensitize the Planning Board and the institute to the fact this, of course, is an integral part to the battlefield and should not be developed," he said. "I want them to be aware the public will support preservation of the battlefield. I’m hoping to galvanize public support."
   Georgia Whidden, a spokeswoman for the institute, declined to comment on Mr. Hurwitz’s claims.
   The proposed new housing would be used for some of the 25 faculty members and 13 emeritus faculty at the institute, Ms. Whidden said.
   Each year, 190 scholars are invited to the institute to do postdoctoral work on projects for one to five years. The visiting scholars are housed in 169 existing apartments.
   The proposal does not signal growth by the institute, Ms. Whidden said.
   "The issue of providing housing for our faculty is an issue we’ve been concerned about for several decades, but it does not indicate growth on our part," the spokeswoman said.
   Access to the new houses would be provided by a new loop road that would extend Stone House Drive into the proposed development.
   Plans by architectural firm The Hillier Group allow for an undeveloped 100-foot historic preservation overlay zone buffer between the proposed new houses and the eastern edge of the battlefield.
   But according to township Historic Preservation Officer Christine Lewandoski, that buffer is actually 200 feet wide, and it contains eight of the 15 new houses under the design presented to the Planning Board on Thursday.
   The buffer does not prohibit development within its bounds, but does mean that a review by the township’s Historic Preservation Commission, which would act in an advisory capacity to the Planning Board, would be needed when the institute submits a formal application for the new houses, Ms. Lewandoski said.
   Review by the commission is optional, not mandatory, for concept reviews like the one presented to the board Thursday, but the institute chose not to undertake such a review, the historic preservation officer said.
   The property proposed for development is eligible to be listed on the state and national registers of historic places, said Ms. Lewandoski.
   The institute’s application to develop the land could trigger a review by the state Historic Preservation Office. This does not necessarily mean development will be prohibited, but it could result in alterations to the institute’s plans, Ms. Lewandoski said.
   The historic preservation officer said she has been told by the state Historic Preservation Office that part of the Battle of Princeton occurred on the contested property, which could hold archaeological remnants from the battle.
   Terry Karschner of the state Historic Preservation Office was unavailable for comment Thursday.
   In a letter this week to the institute, Alvin Payne, acting director of the state Division of Parks and Forestry, recommended the institute work with the state’s Green Acres program and allow the state to purchase the land.
   "This proposed development … would irreversibly destroy the archaeological resources of the site," Mr. Payne wrote. "I know the institute is looking to the future, however, we must never forget our past."
   John Mills, curator of the park, said the land played a pivotal role in George Washington’s victory over the British on Jan. 3, 1777.
   Massachusetts Continental troops and Pennsylvania riflemen helped Gen. Washington reverse a rout by the British by forming a right flank on the property to Washington’s left flank that drove the British troops into retreat, Mr. Mills said.
   The institute owns approximately 800 acres. The Institute Woods, 589 acres of institute land, is protected under a permanent preservation agreement under the stewardship of the institute, Ms. Whidden said.