Princeton Nurseries Redevelopment Plan Gets South Brunswick Nod

PRINCETON, NJ — South Brunswick on Wednesday adopted the redevelopment plan ordinance for the Princeton Nurseries site.

The site is located along Ridge Road, Route 1 and Mapleton Road as well as parcels owned by the Trustees of Princeton University and Plainsboro.

The location makes one of the biggest remaining underdeveloped land parcels with frontage along Route 1.

The property, identified as Block 99, Lots 3.213, 8.041, and 14.04, is around 162.3 acres and is surrounded by commercial properties and housing.

The plan calls for three separate districts to be established on the site with different uses.

District A will be for offices and hotels, District B for offices, hotels, retail and commercial uses, and District C for offices, research, and life science facilities.

However, many residents opposed the adoption of the plan. Attorney Stuart Leiberman representing a resident on Ridge Road, asked the council not to adopt the plan saying it would “wreak a lot of havoc on people who have lived here a long time.”

“They never expected to have buildings 70 feet tall behind them, never expected that they would have to confront tractor-trailer trucks due to warehouses in their neighborhood,” Leiberman said. “The plan does not make sense in so many ways.”

Suan Bristol, the Municipal Police Specialist at the Watershed Institute said she found the plan "frighteningly vague and missing the point of a redevelopment plan."

This plan does harm not only to your residents - puts them in danger, decreases the quality of our watersheds, it definitely doesn't mitigate the storm events that we are witnessing due to climate change," Bristol said.

"The better approach would be to consider not only your own residents and immediate neighbors, but the neighbors downstream of this site."

Despite the dissenting voices, the council adopted the ordinance unanimously, with Ann Grover being away.

Located in the Kingston section of New Jersey, Princeton Nurseries is nationally significant for its association and contribution to the history of commercial horticulture in the United States.

It was once the largest commercial nursery in the United States and at its peak, occupied 1,000 acres and employed 300 workers.

The nursery was established in 1913 by William Flemer, Sr. and introduced many important plant varieties.

The nursery business relocated in 1995 to Allentown, New Jersey. Over 214 acres of the former nursery are currently in public domain, owned either by South Brunswick Township or the State.

The heart of the nursery contains the former sales and administration building, a blacksmith shop, two large cold storage buildings, a propagation house, and several greenhouses connected to the propagation house.

Additionally, the district contains numerous horticultural areas, former worker's housing, and former Flemer family dwellings.

Princeton University purchased 448 acres from Princeton Nurseries in 1986- 191 acres in Plainsboro and 297 in South Brunswick.

The university later donated the land and the remaining land was sold last year.

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