By Anne Levin
As expected, Princeton Council officially adopted the comprehensive affordable housing plan that details out how the town will fulfill its state-mandated obligations over the next 10 years. Council’s adoption, at a special meeting on Thursday, June 26, came a day after the Planning Board voted unanimously to approve the plan.
The Fourth Round Housing Plan Element and Fair Share Plan calls for 249 units, spread across 13 sites in the former Borough and Township. They vary in size from 19 units, proposed for The Jewish Center at 435 Nassau Street, to 191 units at the Niksun office complex, located at 457 Harrison Street.
Two properties — at the former Chestnut Street Firehouse and 303 John Street (across multiple buildings)— are 100 percent affordable and will be built and managed by Princeton Community Housing. The other sites are mixed-income developments with 20 percent affordable mixed with market rate units.
While some of the people who spoke during the public comment portion of the Planning Board meeting offered a few suggestions and concerns, each of them praised the plan and thanked those responsible for putting it together. Among them was Dana Molina of Laurel Road (and vice chair of Housing Initiatives of Princeton), who was concerned about traffic, especially at the intersection of Laurel and Mount Lucas roads where her daughter was recently hit by a car at the crosswalk.
Planning Director Justin Lesko assured Molina that a full site plan review will be undertaken, and a traffic engineer will be involved. Molina also asked if the community will be included in development of the designs. Lesko said that the plans will be available at public meeting of the Planning Board.
Chris Sturm of Riverside Avenue said the plan “strikes a great balance between 100 percent affordable and inclusionary projects,” and that while she was happy to see that there are some opportunities for ownership [in addition to rental] of the units, she would like to see more, concluding, “This plan continues Princeton’s historic legacy of being a diverse and inclusive place to live.”
Jane Scott of Battle Road commented that she was impressed with the variety of locations, project sizes, and approaches. She asked why the former Valley Road School was not among the sites. Lesko replied that since it is owned by the Princeton Public Schools, it cannot be part of the plan.
\“I’m also very interested in that, as I look out the window every day at it,” he said. “I hope we can do something with it in the next couple of years.”
Seth Mellman of Adams Drive said he was pleasantly surprised by the balance of the plan, and how it included “out-of-the-way places” as housing sites. I think everybody would have liked to see the specifics a bit sooner, but it’s been an incredible lift to get this tonight.”
Leigh Avenue resident Dosier Hammond commented that the town could do more than what the plan calls for, which amounts to about 24 units a year in the next 10 years. “And we should look for ways to get more than 20 percent inclusion,” he said.
Gene Rosenblum, who serves on the board of Princeton Community Housing, said the organization has over 1,000 households on its waiting list, including young families, people working in town, and long-term residents who can’t afford to age in place.
“The plan meets a critical need and helps meet the obligations for the fourth round,” she said. “Affordable housing is a critical need right here in Princeton, not just nationwide.”
A link to the plan is available on the Planning Board’s page of princetonnj.gov.