There are Many Opportunities for Creative Thought and Reuse of Choir College Property and Its buildings
To the Editor:
Congratulations and thank you to Town Council for the courage and clever implementation of eminent domain to bring resolution to the Choir College acquisition. Like many other residents, we wonder and have thoughts about the reuse of this site. Too often, outside consultants with little knowledge of Princeton and the values of its residents are retained at considerable cost with less than ideal results.
Princeton is fortunate in having many bright, creative and successful residents that are available or can be retained to advise on this opportunity. The involvement of Princeton Future and volunteer resources is representative of how community planning can be accomplished that is satisfactory to its residents. The Choir College site could provide a location for mixed and affordable housing, reuse of the existing academic buildings by the PPS or other entities, and providing open space at the existing front lawn.
For example, a 40-year land lease for the vacant rear property to a developer who would pay the bond interest cost apportioned to that part of the site over 40 years could financially provide an incentive for a greater number of affordable units than the typical 20 percent currently required. The developer receives the IRS tax benefits of depreciating his entire construction cost without the expensive initial land cost, while the town ultimately benefits from the land and asset reversion after 40 years.
Is this feasible? Ask prominent local developers and architects to meet in roundtable discussions with the municipality and Princeton Future to develop an outline concept for residential reuse that is sensitive to the neighborhood while addressing the state mandated affordable requirement. They have the experience and financial savvy to propose concepts that would be open to public review before consultants prepare the request for formal redevelopment proposals.
The existing academic buildings could be reutilized with safety updates to meet the N.J. rehabilitation subcode, without extensive modifications that would destroy these buildings and increase project costs. Or perhaps another charter or private school could step up financially to either purchase or lease them. Open park space could be retained at the front lawn, perhaps with adjacent single family homes that mirror the size and height of neighboring homes.
In summary, there are many opportunities for creative thought and reuse of the Choir College property and its buildings. Residents have already taken on an $89 million PPS bond cost, so Council needs to mitigate the $42 million Choir College acquisition cost with either the partial sale or leasing of the property with zoning and approval revisions that will attract outside investment. It is a concern that an outside consulting firm has already been retained for review of the property without initial community input. This does not reflect well on government transparency for a project that could have significant initial and additional unforeseen costs imposed on Princeton residents.