Township considering redevelopment in many areas Parts of nearly every section of Woodbridge examined in massive study BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer WOODBRIDGE - As the ever-evolving redevelopment studies continue in the township, Mayor John E. McCormac said that economic redevelopment is the most important issue. "We are taking steps now to properly plan forWoodbridge in the future," he said. "It's important to get ready now when the economy is bad and a lot is not being built; we will be well positioned to capitalize [when the economy is good again]." McCormac said that when the redevelopment study process is completed, township officials will go out and ask what people think should be developed. "We will have control of what happens with the designated areas, but we will get input from the owners and accept requests for proposals," he said. McCormac added that properties suggested in the study are there because the planning firm the township has hired, Heyer, Gruel & Associates [based in New Brunswick], believes those are the properties in need of redevelopment. "Some that we thought were in need of redevelopment are, and some weren't," he said. The mayor said this is the first time the township has embarked on a full redevelopment study. "In the 1990s, a study was done on the Route 1 area and the Port Reading and Keasbey area," he said. "This is the first real effort for a township-wide redevelopment." The redevelopment studies along with the township's visioning processes will be incorporated into the master plan, which township officials hope to update by June. "This has been an inclusive process with stakeholders, the mayor's Wellness Committee of Seniors and Youths, etc.," said Caroline Ehrlich, executive director of the redevelopment agency. Township officials stressed that no plans are set, but they do have visions for the General Dynamics area in Avenel for an art-themed work-and-live townhouse development of boutiques, an ice cream store, and cafes, and for the Keasbey area to have more industrial warehouses come into the area similar to the current FedEx warehouse that is already in the area. Township officials set aside $610,000 for the redevelopment studies. Heyer, Gruel & Associates will conduct the studies for all areas except Route 27. The township, led by Marta Lefsky, director of planning and development, has developed the study for the Route 27 area. Route 1 There are a total of 15 areas along Route 1 that have been identified by the township and are being examined for their possible designation as redevelopment areas. The area of study encompasses an area extending from the Route 35 interchange on both sides of the highway all the way up to the Rahway border. The corridor has evolved during the past 50 years both in terms of development and roadway improvements. Strip commercial development has occurred, fueled in part by the increased traffic volumes along Route 1. According to Heyer, Gruel & Associates, the area has suffered from haphazard and piecemeal development, resulting in numerous curb cuts and driveway entrances from Route 1, development on relatively small lots, including intrusion of nonresidential uses into residentially zoned areas, prominent surface parking lots, excessive coverage, and inconsistent signage. The Township Council has already adopted redevelopment studies for areas 1 and 7 of the Route 1 redevelopment study, which includes the Bud's Hut building, and area 15, which is along Julius Street, has been sent to the council to be designated as an area in need of redevelopment. The township's goals for the Route 1 and 7 area includes encouraging municipal action to guide the appropriate use or development of all lands in the state of New Jersey in a manner that will promote the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare, and to promote a desirable visual environment through creative development techniques and good civic design and arrangements. Other goals include safeguarding the tax base and providing for a continuing source of employment and tax ratables through appropriate use of nonresidential land; to study changes in market conditions, relating to all nonresidential property, to ensure the matching to those designations with supply and demand; to be vigilant in the towns' efforts to protect the residentially zoned areas and at residences from intrusion by commercial and industrial uses into these areas; and to implement or undertake traffic solutions from intrusion by commercial and industrial uses into these areas. Keasbey The Keasbey area is broken up into three redevelopment areas: original Keasbey, Keasbey area 4, and Keasbey area 5. The area within the township has been the location of industrial uses as far back as the late 1800s. The original Keasbey area consists of 14 parcels and approximately 310 acres in size, bound by state Highway 440 to the north and the Raritan River to the south. The study area is characterized by vacant land with a long history of industrial uses, predominantly in chemical manufacturing, and with a preponderance of wetlands, concentrated along the southerly side of industrial highway. A number of the properties are contaminated and require remediation. The study has been completed and will be put before the Planning Board in the near future. The Keasbey area 4 consists of a total of four parcels, two of which are municipally owned parcels and parts of two privately owned parcels, which totals approximately 20 acres. The properties are located within the current M-1 Light Industrial zone. The redevelopment area consists primarily of the township's public works garage and other townshipowned property. The Township Council adopted a resolution designating the area in need of redevelopment on March 18. The Keasbey 5 area consists of five parcels totaling approximately 35 acres in two distinct locations. The first location consists of two parcels whose boundaries are defined by the Route 9 Bridge to the west, the Weldon Concrete Corp. to the east, Smith Street to the north, and the Raritan River to the south. These properties are currently located in the M-1 LightManufacturing zone and are located north of Smith Street and along Crows Mill Road. The Township Council has also adopted a resolution designating area 5 as an area in need of redevelopment. The overall goal of the redevelopment plan is to address the existing conditions that have negatively impacted the Keasbey area and to comprehensively upgrade the area as a major industrial area. Fords The Fords neighborhood located primarily along New Brunswick Avenue has been identified as an area in need of rehabilitation, which would include façade, walkway, lights, and bench improvements, and tax incentives. The township recommends only three properties in the Fords area to be designated as an area in need of redevelopment, including the former Fords Theater, and two parcels that include car sales and automotive-related uses along King Georges Post Road. Hopelawn The Hopelawn redevelopment study is broken up into a north and south area. TheHopelawnNorth study area consists of 37 parcels on approximately 33 acres. The study area is characterized in part by industrial and warehouse development, particularly along the southern side of New Brunswick Avenue, and contains commercial services including a supermarket, fast food, and medical offices. The Planning Board has recommended a portion of the study area (14 parcels) to the Township Council for designation on Feb. 20. The Hopelawn South study area contains three properties totaling approximately 8 acres that consist of township-owned property and a discontinued rail right-of-way, which is part of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Line. The very small portion of the site is located in the B-3Highway Business zone. The Planning Board has recommended the study area south of New BrunswickAvenue to the Township Council for designation onMarch 19. Hart Street in Avenel The Hart Street redevelopment study area is located on the south side of Randolph Avenue between Cragwood Road and Hart Street. The study area consists of 11 parcels on approximately 11.5 acres. The properties within the study area are located within the M-1 Light Industrial Zone. The study area is characterized by vacant land, industrial uses including industrial offices and warehouses for the repackaging and distribution of chemicals, a pumping station for the Middlesex Water Co., residential dwellings, paper streets, sanitary sewer easements, rightof way easements, and natural gas pipeline easements. The Township Council adopted a resolution designating a portion of the area in need of redevelopment in February. A redevelopment plan is being drafted. Woodbridge/Pennval Road The Pennval Road Study Area consists of 14 parcels on approximately 110 acres. The study area is generally defined by Woodbridge Avenue and the Woodbridge River to the east, Pennval Road to the north, the New Jersey Transit North Jersey Coast line to the west, and the southern boundary line of the township to the south. The study area is characterized by light industrial uses such as trucking companies with on-site storage of trailers, pallets, containers, publicly owned properties, and a vacant and remediated portion of a large industrial property located partially within the city of Perth Amboy. "This area has environmental problems," said McCormac, who added that the location is right across the street from the township's public animal shelter on Woodbridge Avenue. The Planning Board recommended a portion of the study area to the Township Council for designation as an area of redevelopment on March 12. Route 27 The study has seven study areas, which stretch for approximately 1.3 miles along Route 27 or Lincoln Highway in Iselin, including all properties along Route 27 between the Garden State Parkway and Dow Avenue. The area has a variety of mixed uses, including residential, commercial, churches and a school. The study area consists of nine parcels along Route 27 between the Garden State Parkway and Middlesex Avenue. Properties within the study area are located in the R-6 Single Family Residential zone. Areas 1 and 4 of the Route 27 study were recommended by the Planning Board to be designated as an area in need of redevelopment and were adopted by the Township Council on March 4. The Planning Board did not recommend areas 2 and 3, which are primarily the church parcels, for designation at this time. The Planning Board is scheduled to hear the study for areas 4 through 7 on March 26. A redevelopment plan is currently being prepared for areas 1 and 4.