By Victoria Hurley-Schubert, Staff Writer
Princeton University has the right to move the Dinky station and Princeton Township should not support Princeton Borough and its efforts to create a new transit zone, the township attorney told the Township Committee at its Monday meeting.
The new zoning is in response to Princeton University wishing to build a new arts and transit complex. The project plans call for the station to be moved 460 feet to the south, which has caused controversy.
But township attorney Edwin Schmierer says the university is within its rights to move the station because of a 1984 agreement of sale with the state and a 1996 amendment.
”Having reviewed the two agreements the amendment and the original agreement I have reached the conclusion that clearly the university does have the right to relocate the terminus of the current Dinky line at their expense,” he said.
The Borough Council has suggested an additional piece of zoning to protect the transit right of way, which will revert back to university five years after the Dinky station is moved.
”The question arose to whether or not the township should join the borough in exploring the concept of this transit zone,” said Mr. Schmerier. “Having reviewed this, I’m of the opinion that the township should not undertake a study or show any support for the concept of a transit zone. I think the purposes are laudable from the borough’s point of view because they are attempting to preserve a right of way which may be needed sometime in the future. However, I think there is a different mechanism that clearly exists that we could implement between the borough and the township having a joint planning board.”
The governing bodies could recommend to the planning board to study including the vacated train track area in the circulation element of the Princeton Community Master Plan for future transportation purposes, which would make it a community objective, said Mr. Schmierer. This would put a reservation on the land and give the municipalities a year to study any proposal for development on the site and the right to purchase the land if they chose.
A transit zone would not accomplish the protection of the right of way, said Mr. Schmerier. Including it as an objective in the master plan is a stronger way to preserve the right of way, he said.
Borough Councilwoman Jenny Crumiller came up with the zone proposal and understands the two towns may have different interests.
”I was thinking about ways to protect the right of way for rail as it currently exists and had been talking to people in town who have the same goals, including Carlos Rodrigues, who is a professional urban planner,” she said in an email interview this week.
She suggested a zone for the area because it “would have similar restrictions to the restrictions in the easement that is presently owned by New Jersey Transit,” she said. “If New Jersey Transit does end up agreeing to give away that public easement something that, contrary to what many have been told, is not necessary for the arts campus to be built and something I believe is bad public policy then we have the zoning to preserve the area for the public benefit as we have it now.”
Ms. Crumiller isn’t opposed to the planning board idea suggested by Mr. Schmierer.
”There is nothing stopping the planning board from identifying the existing railroad right of way as an important community asset that should be preserved. The planning board could have done this in the past,” she said. “I hope the planning board takes this action now. It could also identify an additional right of way that might be needed to bring rail transit service closer to the downtown.”
The councilwoman hopes the municipalities can present a united front to protect all interests.
Another way to protect the transit right of way is with the memorandum of understanding (MOU), which includes a floating easement for transportation purposes for 50 years that the university is giving to the municipalities. The university is also giving the towns $250,000 to study what to do with the right of way. The MOU has not yet been signed.The planning board will discuss the zoning in the township with a special meeting at 7:30 p.m. on July 7 at the Township Municipal Building.
