Minute Maid plan not necessarily tailor-made

Mironov blasts developer who sees 246 units in borough

By: Vic Monaco
   HIGHTSTOWN — Coke used to come with a smile.
   But not now, when unfriendly neighbors Hightstown and East Windsor are finally taking the first sip of a huge development proposal for the site of Coca-Cola’s former Minute Maid plant.
   There was much criticism Monday night as the Hightstown Planning Board reviewed a conceptual plan for 246 condominiums and townhouses and 60,515 square feet of retail space on the 16 acres of the 37-acre site that lie in the borough. And many of the harshest words came from a surprising visitor to the proceedings — East Windsor Mayor Janice Mironov.
   Standing about 10 feet from several representatives of the landowners and prospective developers, she said the group has refused to communicate with her, including not alerting her to the first public display of the plan.
   "In my tenure, about 12 years, I would have to say that I have never had a developer, where it appeared that they were so actively attempting to mislead me as to what was going on with the property," she said, while adding that she showed up after getting "wind" of the meeting. "I can only leave open the question as to why they may have done that."
   She said that while township officials are open to the idea of a mixed use on the site, they have told the development group that they oppose one of the plan’s central concepts — multifamily, multistory buildings — and more specifically, residential units above retail space.
   "It is a great planning concept and it works well where there is a prime location in a real estate market (but) we had concerns about how that would work in a suburban area such as East Windsor," she said.
   Another stumbling block for the developers is the township’s desire, stated by Ms. Mironov, to have the project include an adjoining 26-acre tract, where a controversial warehousing project is planned, and the developers donating land for a "significant recreational facility."
   The Minute Maid parcel, along Mercer Street, is zoned industrial in the borough and industrial/office in the township, which means zoning changes or variances would be needed for any residential use. But the borough favors a mixed use and recently sought state funding for work aimed at rezoning the land.
   Planning Board Chairman Steve Misiura introduced Monday’s presentation by saying the proposal is "in alignment with what we envisioned." But board member and Borough Council President Walter Sikorski said the plan lacks one of the borough’s desired components — office space.
   "I understand it’s just conceptual but you don’t have a vision that addresses a need," he said.
   And borough government critic Gene Sarafin blasted the proposal, both during and after the meeting, as entirely too dense.
   "This isn’t a plan; it’s insanity," he said. "You’re talking about 246 residential units on 16 acres."
   Despite the negative comments, representatives of the owners — identified as real estate investors and developers Joe Cohen, of Edison, and Joe Mueller, of New York — said they are looking forward to working with both towns.
   "We know this site has tremendous value and importance to the borough and to that end, we took the (borough’s) Master Plan into account," said project attorney Paul Josephson. "We’re very excited about moving forward with the Hightstown portion of the parcel."
   After the meeting, Mr. Josephson said the group also is "looking forward to talking to East Windsor." Asked about the prospect of adding office space, he said, "I’m not certain there is a market there for offices but we’re open to considering that."
   Borough Mayor Bob Patten said he has been talking to the development group over the last year or so. Touting regional planning during the meeting, he said cooperation between the two towns is the way to move the project ahead.
   "If the visions of the two towns aren’t similar, then there’s going to be negotiation … and give and take on both sides," he said after the meeting.
   Despite that, he also said the potential developers could present separate plans for each section of the tract in an attempt to satisfy each town. And Mr. Josephson said after the meeting, "We’re prepared to provide separate plans."
   The planning boards of both towns are at odds with each other over the warehousing plan, on land next to Minute Maid near Airport Road, of which less than an acre lies in the borough.
   Developer Lawrence Rappaport was granted approval of that project in December 2005 from the township Planning Board. But the borough Planning Board last fall charged the developer and the township with failing to recognize the traffic impact of the project on the borough and requested a traffic study and signs directing trucks away from the borough. Mr. Rappaport refused and said he’d sue the borough.
   Ms. Mironov said this week that township officials would like the Minute Maid developers to buy the Rappaport tract and include it in their development. In addition, the township wants a donation of 4 or 5 acres for a "major" recreation building that would include a pool. Mr. Josephson said his group is willing to look at purchasing the adjoining property but pointed out that a significant portion of it is wetlands on which nothing can be built. Mayor Mironov said 4 acres are wetlands.
   While some representatives of the borough and developers said they were surprised to see Mayor Mironov at the meeting, no one chose to publicly respond to her comments. Mr. Misiura later said he had been surprised to see her but had heard secondhand about her concerns and desires.
   Another official attending the meeting, who asked not to be identified, said the township mayor overstepped her bounds because the plan presented was limited to the borough side of the parcel.
   "She’s criticizing a proposal for Hightstown," the person said.
   For her part, Ms. Mironov began her comments by saying the township realizes the borough has the prerogative to zone its land and develop the way it sees fit. She said she wasn’t asking anything of the borough, just sharing information.
   Coca Cola’s Minute Maid plant was the borough’s top tax generator when it closed in November 2003. The land on which it sits — bordered by Mercer Street to the south, Summit Street to the east and East Windsor to the west — is one of only two significant developable parcels in the borough. The other is the former rug mill site on Bank Street, which has been the subject of often testy and thus-far failed talks over about four years.
   Several warnings were made Monday night that the borough not approach this project the same way it did the now-ever-changing mill plans. Planning Board member Chris Emigholz suggested that the board develop some "end-all, be-all" requirements and not concentrate on the conceptual plan at hand. Mr. Sikorski also said the borough can’t become "fixated" on one proposal.
   Borough professionals who assist the board agreed.
   "Don’t look too specifically at the plan," said planning consultant Tamara Lee. "Look more broadly and more generally."
   Board attorney Gary Rosensweig said the process will benefit from first revising the local zoning ordinance and the Master Plan.
   "I see this simply as the beginning of the process," he said of Monday’s night’s presentation.
   That process will continue with Mr. Misiura’s suggestion of several workshop meetings.