By Kristine Snodgrass, Staff Writer
Progress on redevelopment of the train station area was stymied by indecision Thursday night as Township Council found itself again conflicted on the scale of the project.
The council held a workshop Thursday night to discuss revisions to the draft redevelopment plan by the RMJM Hillier architectural firm. After four hours of talks, members left the meeting unsure of what the next step would be, though it was clear another meeting would be needed.
It was the first of five work sessions attended by all members of council. Due to prior commitments, Councilman Will Anklowitz had made it to any of the earlier sessions, and Councilman George Borek had attended two.
Revisions to the draft were largely urged by Council President Charles Morgan and Council Vice President Heidi Kleinman. At the meeting, township planner John Madden and Planning Board attorney Gerald Muller again advised council that mixed-use development with both market rate and affordable housing would be the method most advantageous to the township to meet its current and future COAH requirements.
But Mr. Anklowitz said he cannot support housing above what is required by the Council on Affordable Housing. “The reality is we need to cut this down, and significantly,” he said.
Councilwoman Linda Geevers agreed the plan is too “grandiose.”
The inaction came despite strong urging from Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh to move forward with the project. The mayor did not attend the meeting, but sent a memo to the council Thursday urging the council to move forward.
According to the memo, Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardner had promised that the Planning Board could review and appropriate hearings so that the document could be returned to council for final adoption in January 2009.
”As I noted during recent hearings, many of the comments suggested by members of Council can be incorporated as the document is reviewed by the Planning Board or after the Redevelopment Plan has been adopted in concert with negotiations with redevelopers during the site plan process,” the memo from the mayor said. “Otherwise, still more precious time will be spent needlessly, jeopardizing the chance of receiving necessary state financing and capital investments by the private sector, which has grown skeptical about the resolve of this municipality to proceed with the redevelopment of the train station area.”

