By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
It was 240 years ago on Jan. 2, 1777, when about 1,000 American Continental Army soldiers, under the command of Col. Edward Hand, lined up on top of the hill at today’s Darrah Lane at Route 206/Lawrenceville Road in Lawrence Township., Their goal was to hold off British troops from reaching Trenton and capturing Gen. George Washington and his army. They delayed the British army’s arrival in Trenton until dusk, resulting in the Second Battle of Trenton and ultimately the Battle of Princeton., Today, another fight is shaping up on the remnants of the battlefield on Route 206/Lawrenceville Road – the site of Col. Hand’s delaying tactics – in front of the Lawrence Township Zoning Board of Adjustment., That’s because the Bridge Academy, which is a private school that teaches children with dyslexia and other learning disabilities, wants to construct a school building and parking lot on what remains of the battlefield., But the Princeton Battlefield Society is opposed to the proposal. All that’s left is a tiny piece of the historic battlefield, which the society wants to preserve and protect, said attorney Bruce Afran, who represents the group., The Bridge Academy has leased space at Adath Israel Congregation at 1958 Lawrenceville Road for 13 years, and now seeks to buy the adjacent 6.3-acre property to the south at 1900 Lawrenceville Road, near Darrah Lane., Representatives of the Bridge Academy outlined their plans before the Lawrence Township Zoning Board of Adjustment at its Jan. 18 meeting. The school needs a conditional use variance because the proposed parking lot is less than the required 50-foot setback from the street and from the northern property line., The Bridge Academy wants to construct a 14,500-square-foot building that would include math and science classrooms, a science lab, regular classrooms, a library, a music room, an art room and two rooms for tutors to help the students., The new school building would be built at the rear of the existing house on the property, which itself would be converted into administrative office space. A 32-space parking lot would be built in the front yard of the house., Sue Morris, who is the principal and director of education at the Bridge Academy, told the zoning board that the school enrolls about 60 to 70 students in grades 3-12. The plan is to expand enrollment to 90 students, and provide suitable facilities for them., “The students are very bright, but they struggle,” Ms. Morris said., Students with learning disabilities do not perform well in school. They are told they are stupid and will never succeed, Ms. Morris said. But with specialized teaching techniques, they can succeed., While fewer than 25 percent of students with learning disabilities who remain in public school will go to college, about 87 percent of Bridge Academy students do attend college, she said., The property next door to Adath Israel Congregation is desirable for the school, she said. While school officials looked at other locations, this one is ideal because the students are familiar with the woods, fields and Five Mile Creek., But the Bridge Academy’s plan has run into stiff opposition from the Princeton Battlefield Society. The society is fresh off a fight with the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton over plans to build on privately-owned land that was part of the historic Princeton Battlefield on Mercer Road., At the Jan. 18 meeting, Mr. Afran, the attorney who represents the Princeton Battlefield Society, peppered the Bridge Academy’s engineer with questions about the location of the proposed 32-space parking lot. It would be located 25 feet from Route 206/Lawrenceville Road, and 25 feet from the Adath Israel Congregation property line – less than the minimum 50-foot setback requirement., Engineer Joseph Mester said the parking lot could not be located anywhere else on the property because of environmental constraints and an easement for a natural gas pipeline. Of the 6.3-acre property, slightly more than a half-acre is developable, he said., Mr. Mester said 32 parking spaces are needed, based on the ratio of one parking space per three students. The Bridge Academy will need 31 spaces when it reaches a 90-student enrollment, to include a handicapped parking space., Having run out of time, the Zoning Board of Adjustment will continue the public hearing at its March 15 meeting.
