Princeton University Donates 127 Acres Surrounding Princeton Nurseries, Canal

Matthew Hersh

The Delaware & Raritan Canal knows no boundaries ‹ at least according to Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand. To her and to thousands of others who travel the path annually, it erases the lines between municipalities and provides an escape for an otherwise bustling central Jersey. The towpath is the place where walkers, cyclists, and joggers alike go to find quiet seclusion in an area so close to the gridlocked grind of Route 1.

Now, thanks to a major land preservation effort spearheaded by Princeton University, the state Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres program, and South Brunswick and Plainsboro townships, that area will remain quiet and secluded.

Formally announced last Wednesday at the former Princeton Nurseries headquarters on Mapleton Road in Kingston, the preservation initiative includes 127 acres of Princeton University-owned land in South Brunswick and Plainsboro. The entire project results in 187 preserved open space acres of property that abuts the canal, already a designated state park; the village of Kingston; and the Princeton Nurseries Historic District.

Calling it a "gem" and a "different world" along an otherwise overly congested Route One Corridor, Ms. Marchand added that keeping the surrounding land preserved will enable residents to continue to have pedestrian access to what could have been prime land for developing. The preserved land will function as a park.

University Vice President and Secretary Robert Durkee called the University a "willing donor" since the project builds on the goals the University put forth when the Princeton Forrestal Center was established in the 1970s and again in 1986 with the University's acquisition of lands from Princeton Nurseries. Appearing alongside South Brunswick Mayor Frank Gambatese, Plainsboro Mayor Peter Cantu, DEP Commissioner Bradley Cambell, Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (D-14th District), and Ms. Marchand, Mr. Durkee lauded the combined objectives of all of the principal players in the initiative.

"These goals can fairly be described as a commitment to 'smart growth' ‹ before the term became a central part of the regional planning vocabulary," he said.

The 60 acres acquired by the DEP in the preservation effort were pivotal to a package deal, Mr. Gambatese said. "We needed to take care of the center of all this property, which was Princeton Nurseries."

Princeton Nurseries, which had been in operation for 93 years up to its closing last year, was at one time the largest commercial nursery business in the U.S. The property was purchased by DEP for slightly less than $2.8 million and the department will subsequently operate a seven-acre portion of the nurseries property as an addition to the D&R Canal State Park. The park's headquarters building and visitor's center will be located in the nursery's former headquarters. The remaining 53 acres will be managed by South Brunswick.

But Ms. Marchand, whose presence at the dedication ceremony was a clear indication that this was a regional effort, argued that while the land is across the municipal border, the lack of commercial development in that region will impact anyone who uses the towpath.

"From my point of view, this is just as important as if it were in our community," she said. A D&R Canal commissioner, Ms. Marchand offered her assessment of the canal: "You're not in the Borough or Township; you're in Eden."