The fate of the Waxwood development on Quarry Street will not be determined for at least another month, as Princeton Council has deferred action to its September 25 meeting in order to seek more input and information before making any decision.

If a 2002 agreement with architect and developer J. Robert Hillier, a Town Topics shareholder, is allowed to take effect, with subsequent amendments allowed to lapse, Mr. Hillier would sell the units. If Mr. Hillier’s preferred alternate proposal, presented August 10, 2017, is accepted, then the Waxwood would continue as a rental property. Under a third alternative, Mr. Hillier would set up a fund that would help residents with down payments or foreclosures. 

Currently three affordable units are being rented to qualified neighborhood
residents at rents at or below those dictated by the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH). Five “foundation units” are available for rent to qualified neighborhood residents at 10 percent below market rent, in accordance with an amended developer’s agreement, but two of the units are empty because Mr. Hillier cannot find tenants who are qualified neighborhood residents. Those units that are rented are now rented for between 35 and 40 percent below market rent.

At a working session last Wednesday morning attended by Princeton Council, Mr. Hillier and about 20 others, including residents of the Witherspoon-Jackson community and the Waxwood building, Mayor Liz Lempert described a positive, productive exchange. “Council left with a better understanding of necessary information and issues. Residents had an opportunity to express themselves and their views and to be a part of the conversation.”

She noted some support for the position that “a deal’s a deal” and that Mr. Hillier and the town should stick to the original agreement, especially if there are residents who are intending to purchase. But she also noted the potentially negative repercussions of enforcing the agreement. “The original intention was to increase the opportunity for home ownership in the community, but if the price is unaffordable or most residents would like to rent and can’t purchase, that changes the situation.”

Councilman Lance Liverman also seemed to be seeking a compromise resolution to the dilemma. “I want what is best for the community. I also want the individuals who were promised they could buy a unit to come to some agreement with Mr. Hillier. I am concerned if these units go on sale that we will displace several folks of lower means. Many folks simply cannot afford a large mortgage. So I would rather them stay rentals with additional affordable housing units added.”

Ms. Lempert stated that she is keeping her mind open in awaiting additional information. “It is important to have a result that is fair and is going to serve the community as best we can in providing additional housing opportunities for residents in the neighborhood and for people who’ve moved away and would like to move back.”

She described the Waxwood development project as a “great example of adaptive reuse,” but noted frustration that two of the units are currently empty, suggesting that better communication in getting the word out to the right audience or greater flexibility in rent might help the situation.

“It’s not a clear-cut decision,” she said. “Affordability is the big issue. I appreciate that Mr. Hillier has been trying to work with the Council and the community, but a signed agreement is a powerful thing.”

In the 2003 agreement between the town and Mr. Hillier, when he redeveloped Waxwood to create housing out of what had been first the segregated Witherspoon School for Colored Children, then a nursing home, then the Waxwood building, named after school principal Harry Waxwood Jr., there were to be three affordable units, restricted for neighborhood residents, and five “foundation” units to be converted ultimately to condominiums. Mr. Hillier arranged for a separate fund to be set up to help with the 20 percent down payment for those who wanted to purchase.

In making his case for a change in the original agreement that would allow him to continue to rent the properties, Mr. Hillier noted that the rental market is very strong and that there are few takers for purchasing condos. He cited letters from long-term tenants seeking to save money by continuing to rent.

In his August 10 letter to the mayor and Council, Mr. Hillier noted that the Waxwood, as a rental, has provided “long-term members of the community with high-quality, affordable rentals that are not available anywhere else in the neighborhood.”

He went on to recommend the option of making seven affordable rental units, either as COAH-qualified or “with a Witherspoon-Jackson preference.” His second-choice option would make six units available on the same terms, but add a $400,000 equity fund to increase affordability or to assist in the avoidance of foreclosures.

In his letter, Mr. Hillier also noted that though he maintained the responsibility for the management, maintenance, tax payments, and operations of the Waxwood, he had sold the building in a sale-15-year-leaseback agreement. “This is a standard financing device, “a mortgage,” he said. “I still have all of the responsibility and incentives to make the Waxwood the best that it can be.”

Council has requested a letter from the new owner, Robinhood Plaza Inc., to make sure that it will be bound by the terms of agreements made between Mr. Hillier and the town. Before its September 25 meeting, Council is also seeking an opinion on the legality of the neighborhood preference of setting aside units for people who lived in the community for at least 10 years or are descendants of longtime residents.