Master Plan’s revisions need some revising

EDITORIAL: Plans overreaches and should be modified before vote Oct. 27

By:
   When the Planning Board meets Oct. 27 for a vote on the proposed Master Plan revisions its members have been discussing, watch for some key changes to make the plan more palatable for residents.
   Since presenting the plan in July, the board has been mulling over the four parts of the revisions — the town center plans for the area on Route 206 bounded by Amwell and New Amwell roads, the gateway areas (Route 206 leading into the town center), a transit village envisioned from Amwell Road on the west side of the railroad tracks where the future Route 206 bypass will have an interchange, and the GSA Belle Mead Depot.
   At the two public hearings held, board members got earfuls of concerns from residents living near the proposed transit village over the size and density of the project and the lack of traffic consideration for Amwell Road.
   And two of those residents — Valerie Chaucer-Levine and Lynne Winters-Mineo — are members of the board.
   The transit village plan, as envisioned by planner Roger Wells, includes a commuter railroad station with ample parking, a cluster of several four- or five-story office buildings, and an affordable housing component, ostensibly for workers drawn by the jobs at the station and offices.
   In presenting his design in July, Mr. Wells said residents could think of the Bristol-Myers Squibb office complex in Plainsboro as a good representation of the office component of the village. We think it looks more like the Somerset Corporate Center in Bridgewater, near Route 287.
   Under questioning from Ms. Chaucer-Levine, Mr. Wells acknowledged he didn’t analyze or even consider the traffic impact to Amwell Road from the project — surely, all of the traffic would just take the bypass, he suggested.
   But that’s a critical failing of the plan and we anticipate some modification of the development to more accurately reflect the available infrastructure.
   Residents have been interested in the plans being presented, and most seem comfortable with the general idea but very uncomfortable with the over-reaching parts.
   Mr. Wells should remember the Bristol-Myers Squibb complex he cites is serviced by six lanes of Route 1 via the four lanes of Scutters Mill Road.
   Furthermore, we doubt anyone would want to live in a residential neighborhood across that access road from Bristol-Myers Squibb, as convenient of a commute as that might be.
   And as long as the board is considering changes, here’s another one — put Hillsborough Elementary School back on the map.
   It’s unreasonable to suggest the school could be purchased by a developer, who would build a nice town square and a small building for retail shops.
   Let’s get rid of the parts of the revisions that don’t work — like the town square in our elementary school — and reduce the impact of the parts that are too extreme — like the transit village office park and housing.
   If the board votes on a more realistic and practical set of revisions, residents will be more supportive of the positive, long-range aspects the plan envisions.