Hillier wins West Windsor approval to plan station-area redevelopment

Mayor’s recommendation endorsed 4-1

By: Molly Petrilla
   WEST WINDSOR — A crucial vote unfolded in the municipal building Monday night long before residents headed to the polls.
   The Township Council voted 4-1 to approve Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh’s recommendation for Hillier Architecture to plan the township’s 350-acre redevelopment area — which includes the Princeton Junction train station — bringing West Windsor one step closer to a new transit village.
   The mayor said he chose West Windsor-based Hillier over the other two finalist planning firms — Street-Works LLC of White Plains, N.Y., and the team of Princeton’s Michael Graves & Associates and Duany Plater-Zyberk of Miami — based on a number of criteria, including cost and accessibility.
   Mayor Hsueh also said he hopes the council’s relatively quick deliberation and vote will serve as a message to the rest of the state: "We know how to make decisions."
   But that doesn’t mean there weren’t disagreements along the way.
   While most council members and residents who spoke at the meeting said they supported the mayor’s choice, others said they favored another firm or recommended delaying the process.
   Councilwoman Heidi Kleinman — who cast the council’s lone "no" vote — said she preferred the Michael Graves and DPZ team over Hillier, though she said she would be able to "work with and respect any of the three teams."
   Time was of greater concern for Councilman Charles Morgan, who requested "another couple of weeks" to discuss the planning firm choices and even suggested a motion to delay action.
   But such a motion was never put on the table and Mr. Morgan ultimately supported Hillier in the council’s vote.
   In addition to deciding which planning firm the township will employ, council members approved a resolution to add $225,000 to the $175,000 already allocated to the redevelopment project. According to the mayor, the combined $400,000 will cover both Hillier’s proposed fee of $330,000 as well as any additional expenses that may occur.
   Mayor Hsueh said his recommendation is largely the result of negotiations with all three firms that took place on Oct. 25 and 26. The decision also marks the end of a lengthy process that began early this year — which may explain the long round of applause that greeted the council’s vote Monday night.
   The mayor put out a call for redevelopment proposals in the spring, and council members subsequently appointed a seven-member search committee — consisting of Mayor Hsueh, two council members, two Planning Board members and two township administrators — that was charged with narrowing 17 proposals down to three.
   In September, representatives from all three firms made public presentations before residents and township officials, listing their qualifications and outlining their visions for the redevelopment site.
   Early on, views of the pending redevelopment plan shaped the race for a council seat between incumbent Barbara Pfeifer and challenger Will Anklowitz, which will be decided today.
   While Mr. Anklowitz maintained that the township needs "a little more parking" and "some more commercial development," he also said that the proposed transit village shouldn’t include much more than that.
   In particular, he argued against additional housing, which he said would simply cost the township money rather than boost its economy.
   Ms. Pfeifer said new housing is both desirable and necessary in order for a transit village to both survive and thrive.
   At their public presentation, Hillier representatives said they plan to include housing in the transit village.
   In addition to providing fuel for council candidate debates, the redevelopment process has also resulted in a series of often-heated discussions at recent council meetings regarding who — as Mr. Morgan put it — will "own" the redevelopment process.
   At a meeting Oct. 30, Township Attorney Michael J. Herbert proposed an ordinance that would allow for Planning Board members to work closely with the selected firm throughout the planning process.
   Since it caused a lengthy discussion at the time, Mr. Herbert said last week that the ordinance would be edited and re-introduced at a special agenda session scheduled for Monday.