The three finalists in the race to be chosen as the master planning firm for the redevelopoment of downtown Princeton Junction will present their plans to the public at three meetings later this month.
The three firms are Michael Graves & Associates from Princeton, Hillier Architecture of 500 Alexander Park in West Windsor, and Street-Works from White Plains, NY. Each will give a separate public presentation. The presentations are scheduled for Wednesday, September 20, Monday, September 25, and Wednesday, September 27, at 7 p.m.
Says Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardner: “Their presentations were a notch above the others. In addition, their backgrounds and experience in redevelopment projects played a significant role. Their emphasis on the charette process and stakeholder input were areas of interest to those of us on the committee who selected the three.”
The charette process is a collaborative effort between an architect and the points of view of stakeholders. In the case of this redevelopment process, the stakeholders include residents, land owners, business owners, government officials, and entities such as New Jersey Transit.
Each of the three firms will give a public presentation, followed by a question and answer period for the public, Council, and Planning Board members. The presentations are expected to take place on three separate nights over the next two months.
The presentations are expected to focus more on the company’s history and the process by which they will approach the project rather than their vision for the appearance of improvements. “The planner should not be going in with any preconceived notions. If they listen, they will find hot-button issues and will be able to address those hot-button issues to the satisfaction of all the stakeholders. Then, the project will move expeditiously,” says Gardner.
Said Hsueh, who is chairman of the search committee, “We want the whole community involved in the decision. This is the most open process.”
According to a press release, the proposals submitted by the finalists will be made available to the public prior to the presentations.
According to a representative from one of the firms, the township asked that there be no discussion of the project with the press.
Once the firms have given their presentations, the Search Committee will again meet to determine one planning firm to recommend for approval by the Township Council. the mayor will negotiate the terms of an agreement to be presented for Council’s approval.
“This is the third phase of a three phase process,” says Hsueh about the public presentations. The first phase was the issuance of the RFQ/P to which 17 firms responded. The second phase was an interview process in which nine firms participated.
The search committee also includes Township Engineer James Parvesse, Land Use Manager Samuel Surtees, Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardener, Planning Board Vice Chair Steve Jany, and council members Franc Gambatese and Heidi Kleinman. Council President Linda Geevers is an alternate voting member.
Aside from the seven voting members, the committee includes three advisors: Township Attorney Michael J. Herbert, Planning consultant John Madden, and citizen advisor and former council member Kristen Appelget.
Graves & Associates
Michael Graves & Associates has teamed up with another famous firm for its proposal. Duany Plater-Zyberk specializes in “new urbanist town planning” in the United States and abroad, having completed designs for over 250 new and existing communities.
The proposal says the company’s estimated fee for the project is $376,”000 including expenses. This does not include all the township’s costs, merely those charged directly by MGA/DPZ. Reads the proposal: “We have purposefully developed a very tight fee budget and excluded items that are anticipated to be tasks that potential developers can reasonably be expected to undertake on their own, while providing a strong ‘roadmap’ for implementation.”
Graves & Associates has an office on Nassau Street, has practiced architectural and interior design since 1964 and has received more than 160 design awards. Michael Graves was awarded the 2001 AIA Gold Medal and the 1999 National Medal of Arts. The company is experienced with multi-use urban developments, as well as with corporate headquarters, hotels, libraries, theaters, museums, academic buildings, health care facilities, sports and recreational facilities, housing, and private residences.
The 144-page proposal sent by the company highlights its experience with transit-oriented developments, including Liberty Harbor North in Jersey City, The Waterfront in Camden, and other projects in Charlotte, NC, Springhill Lake, MD, Anacostia, WA, and Istanbul, Turkey.
The Graves proposal places an emphasis on its ability to meet scheduling needs. It outlines a process by which the final plans will be completed by October 2007. The Graves proposal acknowledges the desire of West Windsor to have the entire community involved in planning. “The schedule includes a concentrated two-week charretting period in which the community and the planning team participate in the planning process,” reads the proposal.
The company outlines its ideas for the meetings in which the public contributes its ideas. “As we envision it, the Charrette will begin with an introduction on vernacular building types in the area and site data, and will identify the project design parameters. This will include specific dynamics regarding the physical nature of the property within the Redevelopment Area.”
Street-Works
Street-Works director of urban design and planning Eric Fang offered several comments regarding the project: “The thrust of our proposal is that it is a detailed, thorough approach to fulfilling the needs of the township.”
Street-Works, the lone firm based out of state, still has a history with West Windsor. Fang, as a consultant hired by New Jersey Transit, was involved in the vision plan study for the township in 2004 and presented a preliminary plan for a proposed transit village. His plan includes 120 acres, and the area deemed in need of redevelopment has been expanded to 350 acres. Fang’s plan was oriented around a series of new public places, including three components: An office district on Alexander Road and Vaughn Drive, consisting of existing office buildings, the current township compost site, and the old Princeton Polychrome property, A residential neighborhood in the area of the Washington Park office complex located off of Washington Road, and a mixed-use village core in the area of the existing train station, where the Vaughn Drive parking lots are now located. Says Fang of West Windsor: “It’s a great community with a lot of potential.”
Street-Works’ proposal summarized its interpretation of how it meets the Township’s needs for a planner. “We are a team with: The breadth of vision, experience and perspective to help the Township develop a redevelopment strategy that is visionary and implementable; The expertise in real estate development to ensure that the proposed plan has market appeal; An intimate knowledge of NJ Municipal Land Use Law, and a proven ability to get large-scale projects entitled; The skill to produce clear and compelling material for presentation and outreach; A proven technical understanding of how to balance traffic, transit with the needs of pedestrians and bicyclists; The flexibility, availability and enthusiasm to be able respond to the broad range of the Township of West Windsor’s continuing planning and public outreach needs; a track record of being able to manage a high-caliber, multidisciplinary subconsultant team; a proven ability to execute complex projects within a demanding timetable while working within budget.”
Street-Works’ experience with mixed-use developments includes Santana Row in San Jose, CA Bethesda Row in Bethesda, MD, New Roc City in New Rochelle, N.Y. and the Blue Back Square in West Hartford, CT. The company claims to specialize in not only creating space for ratables, but also for helping bring them to the township. “With our strong ties with the retail community, we are able to quickly determine the level of interest in the site and what possible deals can be achieved,”” says the company’s web site.
“In response to the Township’s budgetary situation, we have outlined a ‘Base’ scope of work that can be completed within the Township’s existing funding of $230,000,” says the proposal, “We are compelled to advise the Township that in our judgement, not all of the specific tasks as detailed in the RFQ/P can be completed to the level of detail and graphic presentation that other redevelopment plan efforts have incorporated within this budget.”
The price for Street-Works’ recommended plan is $425,000.
Hillier
Hillier Architecture designed the Princeton Public Library, as well as residential projects like the Condominiums at South’s Garage and Coventry Farm in Princeton, and the Parc Rittenhouse in Philadelphia.
“The philosophy in which the firm is grounded is the commitment to make each project a unique expression of the client’s dream. Coupled with the responsibility to preserve and enhance the precious natural resources of the earth, we have made every project a triumph of collaboration-of disciplines, expertise and experience,” reads one part of the 214-page proposal.
The local company outlines two work plans, each with a different price. “We are offering the Township two very different work plans and approaches within this proposal. We have developed a recommended work plan that includes a public visioning component, which we believe will best meet the needs and goals of the Township,” said Hillier’s proposal.
“At the other end of the spectrum, we have also outlined a ‘basic’ work plan, which meets all of the legal requirements for the redevelopment plan but assumes the visioning process is complete (based on the NJ Transit Vision Study). Because this limited scope excludes visioning, public participation would be limited to state-required Planning Board and Township Council Meetings. We do not believe this is appropriate for West Windsor.” said the proposal. The basic work plan would cost West Windsor $50,”000. This includes all labor costs for preparation of the Need Determination Study report, participation in up to two meetings, printing of one copy of draft and final report/maps, and CD-ROM with all documents suitable for printing or presentation on the Township’s web site.
The price quoted for the recommended work plan is $305,”000. This includes all labor costs for the Need Determination Study report, participation in up to five meetings/workshops, a copy of draft and final report/maps, and a CD-ROM.
The company designed 15 transit village projects, giving them a history working with both New Jersey Transit and Amtrak. Hillier has taken on 10 redevelopment projects, including Parkside Neighborhood Strategic Plan, Camden NJ The Trenton Capital District was planned by Hillier, as was the new Camden City Hall area.
“We are excited and honored to be named one of three finalists for the Princeton Junction transit village and believe it’s a great opportunity to work right here in our own backyard and help the West Windsor community shape its future,” said Anish Kumar, director of urban design at Hillier Architecture.
“To us, communities are about the people who live in them, so whenever we design a project–whether it’s an urban neighborhood or a transit village — we make sure that residents are heavily involved. We don’t tell people what we want to see in their community; we ask them what they would like to see happen,” he continued.
