Plainsboro officials are reviewing a variance application by the Princeton International Academy Charter School (PIACS) to occupy St. Joseph Seminary on Mapleton Road for instruction.
PIACS officials announced on the school’s website that they had finalized a lease agreement with the owners of the seminary, at 75 Mapleton Road, and that they were seeking approvals to use the existing classroom facilities to launch PIACS.
According to Les Varga, Plainsboro’s director of planning and zoning, the application is currently pending with the Zoning Board for a use variance as officials are reviewing the application to deem whether it is complete. “We have not scheduled a hearing yet.”
“They need to seek permission from the Zoning Board to occupy a small part of a building for a use that is different than what it’s being used for,” said Varga, who said the property is zoned for office-business. “The fact that there was an operating seminary there at one time certainly indicates it wasn’t always office-business.”
Still, a zoning variance is needed. Varga said officials are hoping to determine whether the application is complete in time for the board’s next meeting on Wednesday, July 7.
PIACS, scheduled to open in September, will consist of students from the Princeton, South Brunswick, and West Windsor-Plainsboro school districts. The school will be the first to offer an International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum framework as well as dual language Mandarin-English immersion.
