Rockwell Automation has no immediate plans to sell Somerset properties and is unconcerned about possible rezoning in the area
By Aleen Crispino, Special Writer
Representatives of Rockwell Automation — owner of at least four and possibly seven vacant residential properties on the south side of Somerset Street in Hopewell Borough — say the company has no immediate plans to sell the properties and is unconcerned with the possibility, being explored by the borough Planning Board, of rezoning.
This information was reported by Councilman David Mackie and Borough Administrator/Clerk Michele Hovan to Hopewell Borough Council at its regular meeting Monday.
Rockwell intends to apply to the Planning Board for permits to demolish the remaining homes on the properties, then “plant some trees and landscaping and maintain them as residential properties until the (groundwater) treatment is finished,” said Councilman Mackie.
In a conference call Monday with Jennifer Elder Brady, project manager at the Cranbury-based environmental engineering firm Arcadis BBL, and John Persico, Arcadis BBL associate, Ms. Hovan and Councilman Mackie received an informal update on plans by the firm, hired by Rockwell Automation of Milwaukee, Wis., to build a groundwater treatment facility at 21 and 29 Somerset St. and to maintain the property surrounding it.
”They said their general procedure is they complete the remediation and then divest themselves of the property,” said Councilman Mackie. Exactly how long it will take to pump out and treat all of the contaminated groundwater is unknown. The project could be completed in “five, 10, 15, 20 years,” said Ms. Brady in June 2007.
Rockwell Automation, which, as Rockwell Manufacturing Co., operated a plant at 57 Hamilton Ave. from the early 1900s to 1975, has been ordered by the state Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) to clean up air, soil and groundwater contamination by “volatile organic compounds,” primarily trichloroethene (TCE), in an area extending from Somerset Street south to Lafayette Street and from Hamilton Avenue east to The King’s Path development in Hopewell Township.
As part of its effort to remediate the site, Rockwell has purchased two residential properties: 19 and 21 Somerset St., and has already demolished houses and felled trees in order to remove contaminated soil at these locations. In addition, the company has either purchased or is in the process of purchasing the five remaining homes on the south side of Somerset that lie within the borough, Mr. Persico said Dec. 20. The borough has received copies of deeds for 29 and 37 Somerset St., indicating that those sales have been completed, said Ms. Hovan in May.
Rockwell plans to build a recovery well and an approximately 60- by 40-foot Cape Cod-style treatment building, constructed of pre-engineered metal, at 21 and 29 Somerset St., said Ms. Brady in December 2007. Before doing so, it would need to present an application and site plan and receive the approval of the borough Planning Board. Demolition of any of the remaining houses also would require approval from the board.
At its last few meetings, the Planning Board has been holding public discussions of the 2007 Master Plan recommendation that the south side of Somerset Street be rezoned for commercial or industrial use. This recommendation was triggered by Rockwell’s purchase of the residential properties for its treatment facility as well as future plans by New Jersey Transit to create a railroad parking lot on the north side of the street for a reactivated West Trenton Line.
Members of the Hopewell Woods Homeowners Association, whose members reside on Elm Street and whose back yards are adjacent to the south side of Somerset Street, have publicly opposed rezoning for anything other than park or recreation use, and have stated their desire to keep the south side of the street residential.
Richard Friedman, of 31 Elm St., president of the association, presented the board Dec. 12 with a letter citing homeowners’ fears that rezoning would “adversely affect the quality of life on our street and in surrounding neighborhoods,” as well as that “this action would have a negative impact on property values,” which have “already suffered due to Rockwell’s pollution of the groundwater and soil in the Somerset Street area.”
The Planning Board has said its main concern is to prevent unwanted use of the properties upon possible future sale by Rockwell. “My overriding concern is to be able to control what happens there,” said Planning Board Chairman Bob Donaldson in May, describing a possible scenario where the land is sold to a developer wishing to build townhouses or condominiums.
Councilman Mackie said the views of neighborhood residents might be a factor in Rockwell’s future plans. “They’ve had some conversations with residents of Elm Street,” said Mr. Mackie, adding that this may have influenced the decision of company representatives to maintain the residential character of the property for the duration of the remediation effort.
IN OTHER BUSINESS, council postponed a public hearing on the proposed 2008 budget to 7 p.m. today (Thursday) in the Hopewell Fire Department conference room on the first floor of the Municipal Building at 4 Columbia Ave.