‘Skillman Village’ includes housing, retail, open space
By: Kara Fitzpatrick
MONTGOMERY After months of preparation, a document that will serve as the cornerstone for the future of the former North Princeton Developmental Center now referred to by the township as Skillman Village is available for public review.
Prepared by Coppola & Coppola Associates in cooperation with HACBM Architects Engineers Planners, the master plan document referred to as the 2005 Redevelopment Concept Plan explains the guiding principles and design parameters that should be considered while developing the 250-acre property, which the township is slated to purchase from the state.
According to an executive summary of the concept plan, Skillman Village will include open-space features, municipal, civic, cultural and educational resources, age-restricted housing, retail uses and a conference center.
However, the concept plan is flexible, Mayor Louise Wilson said, adding, "This is not a redevelopment plan." She said the township is not seeking to make a profit on redeveloping the tract.
The concept plan outlines 14 guiding principles that should be taken into account when redeveloping the NPDC site. Those principles include employing adaptive reuse on more than 30 identified buildings, if feasible; safeguarding the integrity of existing adjacent neighborhoods; exercising smart-growth tactics; and designing uses for the tract that generate relatively low traffic levels.
Mayor Wilson stressed that officials "understand that traffic is a very, very important constraining factor."
The concept plan also states that all housing should be age-restricted, and the property should be a model of sustainable development economically, environmentally and socially.
In addition, the concept plan states that at least 140 acres will be set aside for open space and that original landscape features and roadways, for the most part, should be maintained. The tract is envisioned to have bike paths throughout.
According to a map provided with the summary, the open-space acreage is scattered throughout the tract.
In addition, the map suggests that a 24-acre portion of land in the southeast section of the tract be set aside for a retreat-type conference center and other cultural and public-service uses. Suggested applications could include passive uses, such as a sculpture garden or cemetery, or "quasi-public" uses, such as a health spa or recreation facility, such as a YMCA.
The map suggests that 16 acres in the northern portion of the property be designated for municipal, civic and recreational uses possible applications could include a new municipal building, library, post office or community center.
The plan sets aside 20 acres that includes and extends north of Village Elementary School for education and family services. Seventeen acres immediately to the east are designated for age-restricted housing
Six centrally located acres, that include the existing Smalley Theater, are suggested as a theater-cultural complex. That area could include small boutique retail shops with the artist or craftsperson living on the second floor.
According to the map, 16 acres in the western half of the tract, north of Lake Sylvan, are envisioned to serve retail, hospitality and commercial recreation purposes. Another four in the south-central area of the tract are set aside for restaurants and mixed commercial use.
The plan also designates nearly four acres in the southeast corner for alternative living arrangements for those with special needs and 14 acres in two areas for professional or medical offices.
According to the executive summary, the concept plan "is intended to provide direction to prospective redevelopers of the core portion of the NPDC property" regarding how it should be developed, as well as how it should not be developed.
The executive summary acknowledges that the formation of a redevelopment plan will be an "ongoing process brought into sharper focus over time." However, the summary continues, some of the guiding principles will provide the framework for that plan.
The executive summary concludes that the township encourages potential redevelopers to be creative, provided their proposal is consistent with the guiding principles and "advances the township’s overarching effort to build community."
The concept plan document is available for review at the municipal building.
A public hearing on the plan is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14 at the municipal building.