By Anne Levin

At a meeting Monday evening, Princeton Council voted in favor of two ordinances adopting a redevelopment plan for properties in the area of Princeton Shopping Center. One is located on North Harrison Street, and the other at North Harrison Street and Terhune Road.

The developer AvalonBay is under contract with the shopping center’s owners to build housing on the south end of the site, currently a parking lot that borders the neighborhood at Clearview Avenue. The multi-family project allows for up to 200 units, 40 of which must be affordable housing. The other site, at the north end, calls for a limit of 130 dwelling units, with a minimum of 20 percent affordable.

The two properties are part of the 42.2-acre site that Council designated as an area of redevelopment in late April. Both were referred to the town’s Planning Board.

“The Planning Board felt very strongly that this proposal was in accordance with the Master Plan,” Princeton Planning Director Michael LaPlace said of the site at Harrison Street and Terhune Road, adding that it encourages green building and sustainable development. The other site “was also well received by the Planning Board,” he said. “They were particularly excited that it is not only a component of Princeton’s Fair Share Housing Plan, but that it gives us an opportunity to look at the shopping center almost 70 years after it was built. We can keep what we like about it, but at the same time, breathe new life into it.”

Earlier in the meeting, Council President Leticia Fraga, who is a member of the Permit Parking Task Force, said that in response to concerns from the public about the recently discussed proposal for changes in parking regulations, some tweaks are being made. Additional public meetings are being planned, including one that will include residents of all of the neighborhoods (the Tree Streets, Witherspoon-Jackson, the Princeton High School neighborhood, and the Western Section) where parking changes are being considered.

“We did that at the beginning [of the process] and want to do it again,” she said. “It would be very beneficial to have residents from the different neighborhoods hear each other as to what the challenges are. One of our goals is to have equity in parking in our different neighborhoods. Right now, it’s not an equitable system.”

Councilwoman Mia Sacks reported that work is underway to come up with a replacement for the freeB bus, which provided free  transportation throughout the town but was discontinued. In the meantime, a short-term solution is being developed. “I just want to reassure those who have relied on the freeB that we will be working to replace something in the short term. So stay tuned,” she said.

Councilman David Cohen said a request for proposal has been put together for a consultant to study the feasibility of a stormwater utility. Cohen also said that a stormwater redevelopment ordinance is nearly finished and should be introduced before Council by the end of the month.

Regarding public concerns about Princeton University’s efforts to move a former eating club on Prospect Avenue and demolish three Victorian homes, to make way for a new engineering complex — a proposal that the Princeton Historic Preservation Commission recently recommended that the Planning Board turn down — Cohen said he wanted to make it clear to the public that Council cannot weigh in on the issue.

“It is the Planning Board, and they are having a meeting on Thursday [June 17], so if you’re interested in sharing your feelings about the application, that’s where you need to show up and voice your concerns,” he said. Visit Princetonnj.gov for the link.

Council voted unanimously to pass a resolution commemorating Juneteenth of each year as an annual celebration of Black emancipation. Councilwoman Dwaine Williamson commented that it was important to not just recognize the date, but comprehend what it represents. “We have to really understand why recognizing holidays like this are important not just for the African American community, but for all Americans as a whole,” he said.

Fraga commended members of the Civil Rights Commission for taking their time in developing the resolution, “and actually putting stronger language on it rather than saying we just observe it.”