Despite remaining resident concerns, architect J. Robert Hillier said significant changes were made to his Greenview Avenue condo proposal in response to feedback from meetings held with neighbors of the site.
By: Nick Norlen, Staff Writer
"We’ve changed the scale, we’ve changed the bulk, we’ve changed the character of it by changing the materials," he said. "We’ve done this because they’ve been telling us what they do and they don’t like."
The application, made by Mr. Hillier’s personal development company, calls for replacing four lots used for rental housing with a three-story condominium containing 11 market-rate and three affordable units.
The project requires variances increasing the floor-to-area ratio from 45 percent to 90 percent, increasing the coverage area from 30 percent to 38 percent, and increasing the number of units per structure from three to 14.
After Mr. Hillier held two neighborhood meetings with property owners around the narrow street that abuts Princeton Cemetery, some residents expressed concerns that the project would create a building out of scale and character with the neighborhood.
Although Mr. Hillier said the meetings garnered "a really good reaction," he said some residents are "still referring to (the project) as a behemoth."
"And it’s not," he said.
"We’ve articulated it so that it reads as kind of three wings that have courtyards facing the street," he said, noting that the current plan is "much more in scale."
In addition, he said the inclusion of underground parking "has greatly reduced the footprint" of the building.
He said the old scheme with enclosed, at-grade parking had the condos being wrapped around the lot, which added to the "sense of size and bulk."
Furthermore, designers scrapped plans for slate and brick received negatively by the residents for cedar shingles, Mr. Hillier said.
"It’s very much in keeping with the materials in the neighborhood," he said.
Although one resident complained of the project’s proposed flat roof, Mr. Hillier said it would allow the building to exist well within the height requirements for the area.
Moreover, the reason for the flat roof is so it can be covered in sod, one of the environmentally-friendly features of the plan, Mr. Hillier said.
"I think it’s actually a pretty cool design," he said. "In my eyes, it represents an improvement of the neighborhood."
He said benefits of the plan include the removal of an "old, industrial" structure on the block as well as parking areas that he said are often used illegally.
And with the construction itself, "we are replacing some pretty derelict houses," he said.
But some residents have said they feel no need to manage the appearance of other properties on the street, and others cited concerns about the removal of renters, who they said help to make the area diverse.
However, Mr. Hillier said the proposal’s detractors aren’t recognizing the potential benefits of the plan.
"I think that people are fearful of change," he said, noting that he has had plenty of positive feedback. "A lot have just written letters saying ‘this is terrific.’"
Nevertheless, some residents said last week that there is nothing Mr. Hillier could do to make the project palatable.
And several said they plan to voice opposition to the plan when it reaches the review stages.
Greenview Avenue resident Julie Fox, who shares a driveway with one of the rental properties included in the plan, called the proposal "monolithic" and "shockingly huge."
She added, "I don’t think it would fit with this neighborhood at all. These rental properties are so important to Princeton. This has always been a neighborhood for artists, more non-conventional people."
But before the necessary hearings can occur, the application needs to be deemed complete by the borough zoning office.
Mr. Hillier said he just received a letter from the borough with the required changes, but he said only minor revisions are needed.
"I think we’re probably two months away from being ready from any hearing," he said.
Borough Zoning Officer Derek Bridger said that because Mr. Hillier is bifurcating the application, he will apply for a site plan only if he is granted the use variances.
Mr. Hillier said letters will continue to be sent to the residents informing them of any action that’s being taken.
"We’re trying to make it so we’re open and accessible to them at any time," he said.

