The first Planning Board meeting for the 45-acre Maneely tract lasted nearly four hours on August 5, and residents spent the final hour questioning the safety of the proposed traffic circle and increased traffic impact. Toll Brothers’ mixed-used development on Bear Brook Road and Old Bear Brook Road will be a single site that includes 51 three-bedroom townhouses, 20,000 square feet of retail space with 40 apartments built above, and 192 corporate suites. Multiple Planning Board meetings are expected, and the next one is scheduled for Wednesday, August 19.
Led by attorney Henry Kent-Smith of Fox Rothschild in Lawrenceville and engineer Mark Mayhew, Toll Brothers’ spent the bulk of the meeting presenting various aspects of the site plan application, including storm water mitigation plans. The Maneely tract is currently an open field, and with existing flooding issues on nearby Alexander Road the addition of impervious surface will be addressed through multiple detention basins and a permanent pond on the southeast corner of the parcel that will be five feet deep.
During the public comment period, multiple residents questioned the safety of the proposed rotary traffic circle that will replace what is currently a T intersection of Bear Brook and Old Bear Brook roads.
Jack Chen, who lives on the fourth house away from the intersection, voiced his concern about the roundabout’s accessibility. Chen is visually impaired, and he turns right at the intersection on his daily walking commute to the train station.
Toll Brothers representatives confirmed that the crosswalks on the rotary circle will be compliant with the American Disabilities Act (ADA), and Mayhew said the company is open to building a sidewalk on the north side of Old Bear Brook Road, across from the planned development.
However, since a sidewalk requires easements from property owners Chen said there is no guarantee of a sidewalk, and so Toll Brothers is obligated to provide a safe access alternative, with which Kent-Smith disagreed.
Planning Board chair Marvin Gardner told Chen the township intends to address the issue, while also wishing him a happy birthday.
After the meeting, Chen explained one can hear an oncoming car at a T intersection, but it is more difficult to perceive a vehicle in a rotary circle. Chen, who is an attorney, disagreed with Toll Brothers’ assertion that there will be ADA-compliant access.
“There’s no standard for ADA compliance for a roundabout,” Chen said. “I don’t think it’s safe.”
There is another alternative mid-block crossing on the other side of Old Bear Brook Road that crosses Alexander Road and leads into the new Vaughn parking lots. At the meeting, Chen also questioned whether a study has been conducted for ADA compliance on the crossing.
“Even if it’s ADA compliant, it’s not safe,” Chen said. “Cars speed by to get to the train station. I have no hope.”
In addition to Chen’s safety concerns, a 72-unit affordable housing site adjacent to Toll Brothers’ mixed-use development is planned. No application has been filed, but 10 acres off Old Bear Brook Road will be subdivided and donated to the township for affordable housing development. One nonprofit candidate is Project Freedom, which develops housing for individuals with disabilities.
Robert Suto, a resident and trustee of Windsor Haven, asked what the anticipated traffic impact would be. Toll Brothers representatives told him more than 600 cars currently drive through Bear Brook Road during peak hours, but they did not know the projected number of cars the development will invite to Bear Brook Road. The development will have more than 430 parking spaces.
“We need to know what you’re adding,” said Suto, who noted that Windsor Haven faces the site of the new project. “There are 165 windows facing an empty field right now.”
#b#Council Update#/b#
The August 3 Council meeting proceeded relatively quickly, as two property acquisitions were finalized.
The township will purchase 35 acres of open space on Clarksville Road for $564,000 and the former Twin W facility on Everett Drive for $700,000.
After it was pulled from the agenda at the July 13 meeting, Council approved a $525,000 appropriation for open space maintenance.
A resolution to appoint Dennis Power to the Board of Recreation Commissioners was pulled from the agenda, and every other item was approved.
West Windsor will participate alongside other municipalities in a fair share affordable housing analysis for $2,000. Townships across the state are chipping in to hire planning expert Robert Burchell of Rutgers to conduct the study, which would determine each town’s affordable housing obligation (see affordable housing story, page 1).
In other news, Council approved the rejection of bids for the sewer pipe project that would replace the existing Duck Pond Run pumping station. All bids exceeded the township’s estimates for the project, also known as Duck Pond Run Interceptor – Phase 2. The Montana Construction Corporation partially completed the project, but the township terminated the $1.2 million contract after the company was unsuccessful in tunneling under the Amtrak railroad.
