Princeton Council decided Monday night to postpone until February 8 a decision on the $4.4 million purchase of a 20.4-acre parcel of vacant land between Mt. Lucas Road and Route 206.

The land, slated to be preserved as open space, would be purchased with $2.2 million funding from the Mercer County Open Space Fund, $153,000 from the Williams Transco Pipeline project, $100,000 from Friends of Princeton Open Space, and additional funds from the NJ Green Acres Program, with little or no municipal funding required, according to municipal administrator Marc Dashield. 

Council’s plans for the purchase were derailed, at least temporarily, by Governor Chris Christie’s decision to delay release of the Green Acres funds in order to make them a part of the budget process, rather than a decision of the legislature. The debate in Trenton continues, according to Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert, not about whether Princeton will receive the Green Acres money but over how the Green Acres funding will be determined. “The message I got was that the money would be there,” she said.

The two-week postponement in approving the ordinance would make the February 15 closing date impossible and perhaps jeopardize the purchase. Council will seek further assurances of the Green Acres funding before their February 8 meeting. The bond would not take effect, and the closing could not take place, until 20 days after the Council passes the bond ordinance.

The land, which would be purchased from Princeton Land Development LLC, would be added as open space to the Princeton Ridge Preserve, and the development company has agreed to abandon its application and plans for construction of 36 townhouses on the property.

Five of the six Council members, as well as the mayor, who cannot vote on this issue except in the case of a tie, spoke in favor of the purchase, as did several residents who contributed during the public commentary period.

Bernie Miller was the one Council member clearly opposed to the ordinance, claiming “we’ve exceeded the goal of the Master Plan for open space, but we continue to acquire open space.” Mr. Miller called for use of open space funds to improve current Princeton open space, making it more accessible to the public, with better trails and signage and more convenient parking.

Among other Council members, Heather Howard emphasized “what an excellent opportunity this is,” and Lance Liverman concurred, saying “I would like to move forward with this project. It’s a great opportunity at this point in time to secure these acres for Princeton.”

Councilwoman Jenny Crumiller noted the environmental advantages in the purchase, the favorable financial conditions for the town, and the opportunity to prevent an age-55-and-older housing development. “We don’t want that kind of development in Princeton,” she said. “It would be an undesirable addition.”

Expressing consternation with the delay in funding, council member Patrick Simon refused to support the ordinance until he could be sure the money would be provided without tax payer obligation. “People find answers to all our concerns,” he said, “then in Trenton Governor Christie blew it.” Mr. Christie’s action, in the form of a pocket veto, “has taken away my confidence in the funding being there,” Mr. Simon said.

Councilwoman Jo Butler, though supportive of the open space project, also refused to vote in favor until financing details were cleared up.

After much deliberation, the Council opted to follow the proposal of municipal attorney Trishka Cecil and delay the vote until their next meeting, “when we’ll have more information that may or may not bring you to a greater level of comfort on this decision.”

Wendy Mager, president of Friends of Princeton Open Space, urged the Council to approve the ordinance, claiming that “it’s not a case of the funds not being there,” but “only a process issue.” She described the Green Acres funds as “constitutionally dedicated money” that “may be delayed while the governor and legislature work out this issue.”

Ms. Mager went on to describe Princeton Ridge as “an extremely important piece of preserved land.” “You made the right decision in introducing this ordinance,” she said.

Library and Police Matters

In other Council business, new library director Brett Bonfield was introduced and spoke briefly, stating that he was “very excited” to be joining Princeton Public Library. “How cosmopolitan this community is,” he said. “They know they are a part of the world and they take that responsibility seriously.” He also mentioned how impressed he was with the technological knowledge and understanding in the community.

In his 2015 Police Report to the Council, Police Chief Nick Sutter discussed a number of issues, including an assault last week currently under investigation, an increase in applications for gun permits, the problem of vacant houses, drug violations and increases in arrests and service calls. Mr. Sutter responded to questions from Council members and explained that the increase in police activity in 2015 was in accordance with their policy “to be more proactive, especially with regard to traffic. We mitigate issues through police pressure and enforcement. Those numbers are going to go up. That’s our officers responding to our community.”

The Council at Monday’s meeting also discussed goals and priorities for 2016, and decided to vote on a resolution for 2016 priorities at their February 8 session.