28 Townhomes Proposed On 5 Acres At Princeton's Founders Lane

PRINCETON, NJ — A developer wants to replace the Princeton Italian-American Sportsmen's Club on Founders Lane with 28 townhouses, and town staff say the Zoning Board of Adjustment needs more information before it can weigh the request.

Toll NJ I, LLC, the contract purchaser, filed a use variance application for the 5.08-acre property at 8 Founders Lane. The property is owned by the PIASC Foundation, Inc. Six of the townhouses would be set aside for very-low-, low- and moderate-income households. The existing clubhouse and banquet hall would be demolished.

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The land sits in the OR-2 Office-Research District, where housing is not permitted. "Townhomes are not an expressly permitted use in the OR-2 Zone and therefore the Project requires d(1) use variance relief," the applicant's project narrative states.

The application is "bifurcated," meaning the board would first decide only the use variance. If it approves, Toll Brothers would return with a separate site plan application and any other variances it needs. Toll submitted additional materials Sept. 24 in response to the zoning officer's Aug. 27 completeness review letter. Attorney Benjamin Nadell of Saul Ewing represents the applicant.

In an Oct. 2 memo to the board, Zoning Officer Taylor Gribbin, Assistant Planning Director Nathan Foote and Acting Land Use Engineer James Purcell recommended that a complete site plan be submitted before the board takes up the variance. Consideration of the request, they wrote, "is dependent upon many aspects of the site not yet submitted for review."

A survey shows wetlands along the southwestern property line and in the northern corner of the lot. Staff said it "is not in receipt of a letter of interpretation from NJDEP regarding these wetlands," which makes it difficult to determine buffers and whether the site can support the project.

Staff also flagged a concern that the request could amount to a rezoning. Zoning changes are "a legislative function that is properly undertaken by the Municipal Council," the memo states. Staff said it may comment further once the applicant explains its reasons for the variance.

The lot has no frontage on a public road. It reaches Terhune Road through an easement across the neighboring Governors Lane development, and the memo says Toll must show that easement can serve the new homes. Staff also said Toll must clarify whether the six affordable units would be for sale or for rent, because state affordability rules differ for each.

Toll's traffic study, prepared by Dynamic Traffic and dated June 18, projects 13 new trips in the morning peak hour and 14 in the evening peak hour. That works out to about one added trip every three to four minutes. The study says it is "not anticipated that the change in use will have any perceptible impact on the traffic operation of the adjacent roadway network."

The conceptual plan shows five buildings, 99 parking spaces against 56 required by the town, a dog park and a bocce court. Staff noted the layout could change when a full site plan is filed. The memo also lists several bulk standards the plan does not meet, including lot frontage and building setbacks. Those would be reviewed at the site plan stage.

The memo says Princeton's 2023 Master Plan includes goals that could support the project, such as expanding housing options and affordable units, and others that could cut against it, such as limiting disturbance of wetlands and other sensitive lands. Staff said Toll must address both.

The Zoning Board Meeting will be held on Wednesday.

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