Main Street owners closer to getting deal for Carter Road eatery

Negotiations with property’s owners, Berwind Property Group, are under way.

By Gwen McNamara
   With no appeal in sight, there’s only one hurdle left for a Princeton restaurateur who would like to turn a 25,000-square-foot farmhouse off Carter Road in Hopewell Township, into a formal dining restaurant, ballroom and catering facility — negotiations with the property’s owners, Berwind Property Group.
   John Marshall, co-owner of the Main Street Euro-American Bistro & Bar in Princeton Township’s Princeton Shopping Center, is optimistic a deal can be reached.
   "It’s long been my hope that this all would work out," he said. "I’m still optimistic and hopeful about working with Berwind. Overall it’s just a great way to start the new year — fresh, with no baggage."
   Representatives of Philadelphia-based Berwind are equally upbeat.
   "We are still working with John and I hope we can get to a deal," said Christopher Locatell, a vice president at Berwind. "The first obstacle was the lawsuit. I am hopeful with that behind us we can make an arrangement work to bring him on site.
   "We think he has a great program and that the use will work," he continued. "But nothing is set in stone just yet."
   On Monday, Hopewell Township resident Ted Petrie confirmed he has not appealed an October ruling by Mercer County state Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg upholding a use variance granted to Main Street by the Hopewell Township Zoning Board of Adjustment in November of last year.
   The variance gave Main Street the go-ahead to convert the farmhouse, part of the 355-acre three-building Technology Center at 330 and 350 Carter Road, into a restaurant.
   Mr. Petrie and Hopewell Township resident Robert Kraeger filed suit in January. Mr. Kraeger later bowed out of the suit, which challenged the variance on several grounds, including that Main Street did not meet the criteria needed for the variance and that the township zoning board failed to establish whether the project would promote general welfare, or whether the site was suitable for a restaurant.
   Main Street needed the variance because restaurant operation was limited under the existing research and office zoning of the former Lucent Technologies site to serve just workers, as opposed to the general public.
   Mr. Petrie had no comment on why he decided not to appeal Judge Feinberg’s Oct. 4 ruling. His deadline to file an appeal was Dec. 6.
   In anticipation that he can work out an agreement with Berwind Property Group, Mr. Marshall is reaching out to his architect, kitchen designer and contractor to "get a sense of where we stand."
   Berwind took over ownership of the farmhouse and surrounding technology campus in June after purchasing the site from Townsend Capital. Prior to the transaction, Mr. Marshall had a long-negotiated verbal agreement to purchase the farmhouse from Townsend.
   If a deal is reached with Berwind soon, Mr. Marshall expects the restaurant could open in the first quarter of 2006.
   "I don’t have a written agreement in hand yet," he said. "But we are making progress."