Draft Master Plan amendments to be prepared for 9-acre property
By: David Campbell
The Regional Planning Board of Princeton on Thursday night moved closer to consensus on reuse options for the 9-acre Merwick Rehab Hospital & Nursing Care facility off Bayard Lane, which Princeton HealthCare System is selling as part of its planned relocation to Plainsboro.
Following a presentation to the board by community planning group Princeton Future and comments by the public, the Princeton Environmental Commission and officials with PHCS and Princeton University named as a possible buyer of Merwick Princeton Planning Director Lee Solow agreed to prepare draft Master Plan amendments to be weighed by a subcommittee of the board.
Mr. Solow said the Planning Board appeared to be nearing consensus on possible amendments to the community Master Plan, which could lead to new zoning at Merwick. He recommended that municipal staff draft proposed language for the amendments, which he said would then be put to a discussion by the board’s Master Plan Subcommittee in the next three weeks or so.
The board seemed to be in agreement that a variety of building types should be permitted; that historic preservation must be considered, as should density and clustering; that vehicle and pedestrian circulation is an issue; and that any new zoning should be flexible enough to permit Merwick and two of its neighboring properties to plan and expand cooperatively, Mr. Solow said.
Merwick is located near the Princeton Family YMCA/YWCA Princeton facility off Paul Robeson Place and Princeton University’s 154-unit Stanworth Apartments.
The university has said Merwick could be a good site for new faculty, staff and graduate-student housing. But university Vice President and Secretary Robert Durkee said Thursday night that it might be five or more years before Princeton became the owner of the property. He said that no deal would be made before PHCS relocates, and that a public or commercial buyer could well acquire the land instead.
Mr. Durkee said the site could be ideal for university housing given its proximity to Stanworth, as well as being within walking distance of the campus, that "reasonably high" residential density might be appropriate there, and that planning flexibility is a must.
On Thursday, Princeton Future member Kevin Wilkes also presented 12 informal planning proposals for Merwick developed by eight area architectural teams who took part in a Princeton Future-sponsored planning forum held recently.
One of the recommendations that came out of that exercise was that the three adjacent properties be combined under a new overlay zone with planning parameters that would benefit the property owners concerned including seller PHCS as well as the Princeton community.
Also on Thursday night, Princeton Environmental Commission Chairman David Breithaupt urged the board to preserve trees and woodland on the Merwick site. He put forward a recommendation by the commission that greater allowable building height be considered to protect trees while still getting desired density.
In January, the Planning Board approved Master Plan amendments for PHCS’s 12-acre University Medical Center at Princeton campus on Witherspoon Street that allows the site to be rezoned for high-density mixed-use development, made up primarily of residential units.
In February, the board began its discussion of reuse options for the Merwick site with possible rezoning similarly expected. Board Co-Vice Chairwoman Gail Ullman noted Thursday night that further public discussion by the board will be held.
PHCS is selling Merwick and the UMCP campus as part of its planned relocation to Plainsboro. The health-care system is buying 160 acres owned by FMC Corp. at Route 1 and Plainsboro Road to build a $350 million hospital campus to replace its Princeton facility.

