East Village Association pushes for preservation.
By: Joseph Harvie
Residents of Davidsons Mill Road may have a few more neighbors in the coming years.
Morris Realty Associates of Rutherford submitted an application with the Planning Department on Sept. 19 that calls for the construction of 76 single-family houses on the 220-acre Van Dyke property, located west of the N.J. Turnpike on Davidsons Mill Road.
According to the plans, there would be six streets in the complex, two of which would be cul-du-sacs. The four- to five-bedroom houses would be built on 2- to 3-acre lots. Several of the houses would abut the N.J. Turnpike and Davidsons Mill Road.
Residents who live in the eastern section of town, near the proposed site for the development, have been working since the beginning of the year to preserve the property.
They have formed the East Village Association to give residents of the rural eastern section of town near Route 535 a single voice when dealing with township boards, councils and commissions.
The group is pushing for preservation of the entire property, but the township has said it has not been able to contact the owner and that it will not condemn land for open space.
William Klimowicz, a resident of Davidsons Mill Road and a member of EVA, said the group is still going to push to have the farmland preserved. He said the owners of the land could still make money if they don’t build on it.
"I hope these people realize this is a special place," Mr. Klimowicz said. "They can make their profit on it, everyone can make money on it and it could still be left as a beautiful tribute to past life in South Brunswick."
Mr. Klimowicz said there is a grave on the property that belongs to a Revolutionary War soldier, John Vandike, who was a member of the Middlesex Militia during the Revolutionary War and served in the militia under Capt. John Morgan from 1777 to 1783, stationed in Old Bridge.
The veteran was buried near the farmhouse, which had been in the Van Dyke family from the early 1700s to the 1950s, when the family sold it to Walter Pulda. Mr. Klimowicz said the Van Dyke name has had many spellings over the years, but all seem to be connected.
Mr. Klimowicz said he would like to preserve the slave cemetery on the property so that it can be used to let residents know that slavery existed in New Jersey.
"Slaves built the farm," he said. "Slaves worked the farm. Slaves took care of the family on the farm. And slaves are buried there. We have this perfect example that slavery existed in New Jersey and it can’t be bulldozed over so this generation and future generations know this happened."