PRINCETON: Borough, township zoning changes needed for project

By Victoria Hurley-Schubert, Staff Writer
   Lack of an indication on zoning intentions has brought the $300 million proposed Arts and Transit project to a screeching halt and has Princeton University officials searching elsewhere for a home for the new Lewis Center for the Arts.
   Without zoning changes, the project can’t go forward, according to university officials. The proposed parcels by the Dinky station on University Place and Alexander Street are not zoned to accommodate the facility, which is a mix of arts and education.
   The areas are currently zoned for service, commercial and transportation uses and some portions of these zones would need to be converted to an educational use to allow the construction, said Lee Solow, planning director of the Regional Planning Board of Princeton.
   Both the use and placement of buildings as shown on the university’s concept plan are not permitted under the current zoning.
   Zoning decisions are controlled by the governing body of a town, said Robert W. Bruschi, borough administrator.
   ”They set what can be built and the standards as to how it can be built,” he said. The zoning board, community members appointed by the mayor, hears requests for variances to those standards and enforces those decisions.
   ”This is a complicated site because it is in both municipalities and in six zones,” said Robert Durkee, vice president and secretary at Princeton University. “What we have proposed is a new zone for this site.”
   The university had proposed a new, single zone for arts, education and transit that would allow the project to move forward as a unified zone instead of the six fragmented zones.
   Zoning specifically delineates areas or districts within a municipality with uniform regulations and requirements govern the use, placement, spacing and size of buildings, said Mr. Solow. Zones are usually based upon land use recommendations in the Princeton Community Master Plan, which is adopted by the Regional Planning Board.
   ”Zoning is adopted by the governing body and with an affirmative vote of the majority can be in conflict with the master plan,” he said.
   The project would have to go to the governing bodies, not the zoning board, for approval because of the zone changes.
   ”The zoning board can not change zoning. They can grant variances from the zone requirements for very special reasons and on a limited basis,” said Mr. Solow. “They can not specifically rezone an area.”
   To have the zoning changed to allow construction of the Lewis Center, the university would need approval of the governing bodies of both the borough and the township because the project straddles the two municipalities.
   BREAKOUT BOX:
   Borough: NB, E2, R3
   NB – Neighborhood Business district, permits residential uses, offices, banks, retail uses eating and drinking places and mixed uses (residential and nonresidential combined in one building).
   E2 – Education District, permits residential uses, educational uses such as dorms, classrooms, office , library, theaters, lecture halls and retail stores devoted primarily to the sale of educational or athletic supplies.
   R3 – Residential zone permits one and two family dwellings. Please refer to the Borough zoning map for location of the zones. Generally, uses not specifically permitted are prohibited.
   Township: S1, E1, E2
   S1 – Service District permits trucking and bus transportation uses, storage, handling and sale of lumber, coal, mason materials, grain and fuels, warehouses, public utility structures, freight yards, railroad sidings and other railroad uses, service stations, printing establishments, banks, retail stores, hotels and motels.
   E1 and E2 – Educational Districts permitting institutions of higher learning, residences for faculty, students and staff, and single family homes. There are different bulk standards in each zone that effect the placement of buildings on a lot. Please refer to the Township zone map for the location of these zones. Generally, uses not specifically permitted are prohibited.