U. to sell land in South Brunswick

The University's real estate development firm plans to sell 90 acres near the University's Forrestal campus in South Brunswick to a private developer who will construct a seven-building corporate research mini-campus.

Princeton-Forrestal Center Marketing Director David Knights confirmed that the University is "in discussions with a developer." He declined to specify which developer because discussions are ongoing, but said that a contract would be signed in December.

In addition to the seven laboratory buildings for corporate research and development, the developer may construct an additional office building and two hotels on the site in the future. The site may ultimately include nearly one million square feet of space.

The development will join over six million square feet of commercial development and over 1,000 residential units currently on the 2,200-acre Forrestal Center. The Center is looking to sell to the unnamed developer 90 of the 150 acres it owns on Route 1 between Independence Way and College Road West. The land is part of a 488-acre site purchased by Princeton in 1986. In 2004, the University donated almost half of that land to the township and state to remain permanently undeveloped as the Mapleton Preserve. In exchange, South Brunswick rezoned roughly 75 residential acres on the property for office space and research facilities, bringing the total amount of commercially zoned land on the site to 150 acres.

Knights was enthusiastic about the upcoming deal in an interview yesterday.

"We are very excited," Knights said. "These seven buildings will fill a niche in the market that is not served. We are dealing with a private-sector developer with considerable expertise in developing these types of buildings in New Jersey."

Knights said he believes that the developer is moving forward with the project "on speculation," meaning the developer does not yet have in mind a specific occupant for the property.

Though plans have yet to be finalized, South Brunswick Mayor Frank Gambatese is excited about the proposed center's campus-like feel.

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"We're very pleased with what we see," he said. "We're not the type of community that is looking for every square inch of property to be developed. We're one of the few places in New Jersey that is still only half-developed. We're very conscious of what we're doing."

Gambatese also pointed to economic benefits for the town. "When [the site] is fully developed, the ratable to the township will between $3 to $5 million, which is significant," he said, adding that he expects the project to bring about 1,000 high-tech jobs to the area. The ratable is the amount of money the township receives from the development in annual property taxes.

As part of the 2004 agreement between the University and the township, Princeton has already started construction to widen Route 1 in front of the property by adding a third lane at a cost of $1.5 million. Princeton has also begun working on installing a water line under Ridge Road that can connect the houses along the road.

Gambatese said that he expects the project to come before the town's planning board during the first few months of next year, and that the project will take three to five years to complete. Under the terms of the 2004 agreement, Princeton has 20 years to build out the site and must start work on the project by 2009, a requirement Princeton has already met.

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Gambatese said that construction of the access road leading to the new campus will begin shortly, and that the traffic impact on the area should be minimal since the road will come from and lead back to Route 1 South.

"A project of this size will take three to four months to get through the planning board," he said. "All of the drawings and architectural reviews can take a long time when we're talking 10 buildings. That will bring us to sometime around September of next year before they even start."