Proposal has pros, cons and plenty of unknowns

When East Brunswick reached a deal this spring with Toll Brothers to redevelop a 32-acre Route 18 property known as the Golden Triangle, it came as no surprise. After all, the property’s sale to a builder was needed in order to spare residents from what would have been a hefty municipal tax hike. The measure, as one could also have guessed, was approved along party lines, with the largely Democratic governing body supporting the agreement, and Republicans on and off the dais against the plan.

But what could not be known by the time of Monday’s public hearing on the issue is just how this arrangement will affect East Brunswick in the future. Lots of people are willing to bet on any number of scenarios. Some believe the Toll Brothers’ development, with 400 condos alongside a mix of retail and office space, and commuter parking, will wind up hurting the township in the way of taxes to support future schoolchildren and municipal services, or that it will worsen traffic congestion. On the other side of the argument are those who feel that, not only will this plan eliminate an immediate economic problem, its financial benefits will be felt for years; that it will never present much in the way of educational costs for schoolchildren due to the nature of the high-end condos.

The great difference in views on the Toll Brothers deal will leave many residents wondering not just who to believe, but how such an unusual course of action came about in the first place. It’s not every day that you see a governing body seeking to turn a vibrant commercial tract into a “transit village” with a major residential component. But since East Brunswick owned the land and because its lease agreement for the businesses was bringing in far less revenue than could otherwise be realized, its sale to a developer seemed like an appropriate avenue.

In the midst of negotiations, however, the township found itself with a sizable budget deficit and saw Toll Brothers as the best way out. And while it’s certainly nice to find a creative way to avoid what would have been a major tax hike, one has to question how this scenario affected negotiations on the Golden Triangle. Indeed, the current proposal is far different than Toll Brothers’ pre-budget crisis proposal for 200 housing units, which would have been age-restricted.

But the deal on the table also has its positives. Among these are the price tag of more than $30 million that over time will pour into the municipal budget, $5 million for a community center, and $20,000 payments for schoolchildren whose parents are new owners of the homes. Other highlights are the new park-and-ride deck to be built for commuters, and the general idea of a downtown-type village for shopping and walking.

But are those perks worth it, given the risk that one day hundreds of schoolchildren may wind up in the new development, costing the township in the way of new teachers or even a new school, or if too many cars jam Old Bridge Turnpike and traffic on Route 18 gets even worse? Unfortunately, questions like these were just beginning to be debated this week as the township conveyed the land to Toll Brothers. The action was rushed in order to bring revenue into the 2004 budget, and as a result, many impact issues could not be fully explored.

Over the next couple of years, the township and Toll Brothers will continue to plan the specifics for the Golden Triangle’s redevelopment, with issues such as potential tax abatements and the overall site plan still to be worked out. This process will hopefully be a more open one that places a greater emphasis on public input and expert analysis of the impacts that such decisions will have on the township’s future.