An age-restricted housing development proposed on the
corner of Route 206 and Franklin Corner Road, was outlined before the Planning Board’s Screening Committee last week.
By: Lea Kahn
Rosecliff, an age-restricted housing development proposed for a site on the corner of Route 206 and Franklin Corner Road, was outlined before the Planning Board’s Screening Committee last week.
The development, planned for a 29-acre site owned by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton, would contain 42 single-family cottages and 137 apartments in a four-story building, attorney Daniel Haggerty III told the Screening Committee at its March 22 meeting.
"What we have is a wonderful project here," Mr. Haggerty said. "It is the expectation of (applicants) Rosecliff Living Inc. and Morris Hall/St. Lawrence Inc. that it will be licensed (by the state Department of Health and Senior Services) as a continuing care retirement community."
In a CCRC, a resident who moves in may be able to live independently. If a resident’s health begins to fail, he or she may move on to an assisted living facility or a nursing home component of the development. Morris Hall/St. Lawrence Inc. already operates an assisted living facility and a nursing home on the opposite side of Route 206, Mr. Haggerty said.
Describing the 137-unit apartment building, architect David McGill of Roanoke, Va.-based SFCS Inc., said the community rooms on the first floor of the main building would serve as the "heart of the house."
The first floor of the main building would contain a swimming pool, a fitness and wellness center, a gallery, a library, a coffee shop, a bistro, a dining room, a beauty shop and a barber shop, as well as a game room for billiards.
Mr. McGill said there would be apartments on the upper floors of the main building, plus apartments in the east wing and the west wing of the building. The apartments would range in size from 867 square feet to 1,629 square feet. Plans call for 101 two-bedroom units and 36 one-bedroom units.
There would be parking for 153 cars underneath the three wings of the apartment building, and 139 parking spaces in an outdoor parking lot. The 42 cottages would each have a two-car garage.
The 42 cottages would be built along the perimeter of the property, Mr. McGill said. All units would have two bedrooms and all of the living areas would be on one level, he said. One model would offer the option of a second-story loft. The cottages would range from 1,563 square feet to 1,789 square feet, he said.
"People are retiring, but they are saying, ‘I’m still attached to the university,’ or ‘I want a place for my grandchildren to stay,’" he said, explaining the reason for the loft, which could double as a study or spare bedroom.
Preliminary pricing for the apartments ranges from the low $200,000’s to the mid- and upper-$500,000’s. The preliminary prices for the cottages range from the low- to upper-$500,000’s.
Residents would pay a monthly fee, which would range from around $2,000 to $5,000 for the apartments. The monthly fee for the cottages would cost in the $5,000 range. The fees are only preliminary.
The monthly fee would include utilities such as gas, electric and cable TV, some meals, maintenance, housekeeping and access to the exercise facilities and special events. Residents would be guaranteed access to the assisted living and skilled nursing care facilities at Morris Hall/St. Lawrence Inc.
"What we are seeing is a new type of senior (citizen)," Mr. McGill said. "We are finding 80-year-olds who are still ambulatory and who are still driving their cars. This generation is a little tough and demanding. They want a full range of services."
Mr. McGill said the full range of services could include health and wellness offerings, such as yoga and strength-training exercises. Arrangements could be made for a personal trainer to work with a resident to get him or her "excited" about exercising, he said.
Planning Board Screening Committee member Nat Moorman pointed out that some of the cottages would be "really close" to Route 206 and the off-ramp from Interstate Highway 95 less than 150 feet from the road. Mr. Moorman said he was concerned the residents may find there is more noise than they anticipated.
Mr. McGill said construction techniques could be employed to mitigate the noise. The buildings could be heavily insulated and triple-glazed windows could be used to cut down on the noise inside the house, he said.
Traffic engineer Brian Stankus of the Ewing Township office of Orth-Rodgers & Associates Inc., said traffic would not be an issue at Rosecliff. While some residents may be "active," he said, most won’t be leaving or entering the site during the morning or evening rush hours. The entrance is planned for Franklin Corner Road.
But Mr. Moorman and Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun, who also sits on the Planning Board and its Screening Committee, said they were concerned about the traffic impact. The intersection of Route 206 and Franklin Corner Road is heavily traveled, they said.
"It will make a terrible intersection a little worse," Mr. Moorman said, questioning whether residents would be able to get into the development or out of it at 5 p.m.
Responding to Mr. Moorman’s comments, Mr. Haggerty said his client would conduct additional traffic studies before presenting the application to the full Planning Board for a public hearing.

