on Golden Triangle site
East Brunswick to hold three public forums
on Golden Triangle site
BY VINCENT TODARO
Staff Writer
EAST BRUNSWICK — Residents and politicians have expressed a mix of feelings on the proposal for Toll Bros. to redevelop the Golden Triangle area.
The Township Council chambers were packed for Monday’s council meeting, with many in the audience presenting strong opinions about the ongoing process to redevelop the 32-acre, township-owned site at Route 18 and Tices Lane that is home to Sam’s Club and other uses.
Those who spoke in favor of the idea argued how nice it would be for East Brunswick to have a downtown village area, as is proposed, while opponents said the move would overdevelop an already congested area.
The proposal by Toll Bros. and the redevelopment process will be the subject of three public forums, scheduled for June 9, 18 and 30.
The plans call for a sprawling, pedestrian-friendly village of 15 to 18 buildings that include from 250,000 to 287,000 square feet of retail space and 250,000 square feet of office space, and between 210 and 230 senior citizen condominium units. It also includes 3,700 parking spaces, with an expanded parking facility for the existing park-and-ride operation.
Monday’s discussion was about more than the proposal, as it saw residents and Republicans accusing the mostly Democratic governing body of fast-tracking the process so far, without enough input from the community. Some suggest that more feedback should be sought before negotiations continue between the township and Toll Bros., which was selected last week from a pool of developers seeking to redevelop the site.
Despite the criticism, the council voted 4-1 to authorize the negotiations to begin.
Mayor William Neary has stated that all he was asking for at this point was the council’s permission to begin negotiations. But members of the GOP say Neary really wants to push the redevelopment process and the Toll Bros. proposal through to fruition.
Republican Councilwoman Christi Calvano, who is running against Neary for mayor this November, argued that Neary has used the "concept" excuse before, specifically when he asked for council approval to investigate the idea of selling a township-owned property for funds to build a multi-use facility.
The idea first came up in 2002, but some council members did not support the proposal. Neary brought the idea back last year and received permission from the council. Calvano said Neary did not answer all of the council’s questions before selling the property in the end. She also said the council voted to sell the land before all questions were answered.
"We were supposed to get an investigation of that piece of property," she said, stating that the investigation never came.
Calvano also complained that the redevelopment bids were received March 15 but the administration would not release them until last week.
"We had only one week to read them," she said, noting the material was voluminous.
Democratic Council President David Stahl responded that although the administration and staff will handle negotiations with Toll Bros., they cannot approve any plan. The council as a whole must decide whether to accept the plan that is negotiated.
Some residents accused the GOP of trying to bog down the process.
Calvano said the nature of the redevelopment request may reach further than people realize. She said she has heard there is a gap in this year’s municipal budget, and that is the reason the budget has not yet been introduced. She asked if the administration was trying to use money from the deal — Toll Bros. has offered just over $30 million — to close a gap.
Officials did not respond to her charges, but said that the later timing of the budget’s introduction is not unusual.
Calvano cast the lone vote against granting the administration permission to negotiate.
Resident Michael Levine said he applauds the redevelopment actions, however, because it would create a downtown area and a place for people to congregate. He also said it would be great for East Brunswick to get $30 million for the deal and then $2 million a year in tax ratables.
"I see no reason to slow this down or not move forward," he said.
Neary said many of the terms have to be ironed out during negotiations. Included among those are the cost and blueprint of a new parking garage and what kind of housing — expected to be age-restricted — will be built.
He also said the current lease for the existing businesses is in place until 2008, so it is not as if change can occur overnight.
"An awful lot of site plan work is needed," he said.
Neary and other Democrats also said the public will be involved throughout the process, and that Toll Bros. wants to work with residents on the plan.
Resident Michael DeLucia said he was impressed with the plans presented so far, but he was concerned increased traffic in that area would not be in residents’ best interest.
He said the housing component, in particular, presents traffic concerns.
Robert Tagliente, a Republican who ran unsuccessfully for council in 2002, also questioned whether the area needs senior housing, as there is much senior housing going up in nearby towns.
Stahl said he would defer to the Pennsylvania-based Toll Bros., who are experts in the field and feel there is a market for such housing.
Daniel Brown, running for council this year as a Republican, said that because last week was the first time concrete ideas were unveiled, he believes officials are rushing by authorizing the negotiations. He noted that Stahl and Neary, by virtue of being on the redevelopment committee, have seen the bids since March, while others on the council had not.
He said parts of the plan have merit, but questions need answers before negotiations begin.
Several Democratic officials got up to support the redevelopment idea, including Party Chairman Shawn Taylor, also the township’s Planning Board chairman, and Planning Board Attorney Lawrence Sachs.
Township Planning and Engineering Director Leslie P. McGowan said that, with the zoning for the site allowing only retail uses of less than 50,000 square feet, the Sam’s Club operation would be grandfathered in, but it would have to go to the Zoning Board of Adjustment for any future expansion proposals.
Wal-Mart has reportedly made an offer to purchase the property, and Calvano said that by limiting the retail space, the township was making it impossible to consider the Wal-Mart offer of $19 million.
Frank Regan, the township’s attorney for the redevelopment project, said the negotiations would create a framework for a possible deal. He said he would like to wrap those discussion up in 20 days but that they will likely take longer due to the complexity of the situation.