Redevelopment mulled for Snowhill St. area
Boro may seek review of area with dilapidated buildings
BY VINCENT TODARO
Staff Writer

SPOTSWOOD - With the goal of sprucing up some blighted properties in town, borough officials are considering a redevelopment project.

The Borough Council discussed the possible redevelopment, which would target the Snowhill Street area, during a meeting last week after resident Frank Kardashian brought up the area and its abandoned buildings.

Officials are interested in seeing new businesses brought in and the current eyesores removed, but have yet to ask the Planning Board to investigate the issue, Council President Curtis Stollen said. Stollen made note of a strip of land with old buildings from Adirondack Avenue to the Main Street/Manalapan Road area that needs to be looked at.

The properties, he said, are "underdeveloped, run down and boarded up." One building is a former oil heat business; another the former Benny's Tavern. Both have been vacant for years and are dilapidated.

Stollen said many people are annoyed by the condition of the buildings, and there is a desire in the community to see the area improved.

The issue is tied in part to a discussion of prospective work by Middlesex County to improve roads in that area. The county has put forth a number of ideas to make improvements in the vicinity of Main and Vliet streets.

If redevelopment is pursued, Stollen said a developer might want to group the areas together, and the roads could be realigned or repaired as part of the project.

Not only are officials interested in bringing in new tax ratables and eliminating eyesores, but they also want to improve safety in the area. Recently, a car carrying a woman and a toddler was hit by a train and sent into one of the vacant buildings. Neither the woman nor child was seriously hurt, in part because the train was moving slowly.

The area is not devoid of successful businesses. Not far from the boarded up buildings are business such as a pizza place, day school, auto body shop and a 7-Eleven store.

If redeveloped, the area would remain a commercial district due to its location, Stollen said.

During last week's meeting, Borough Attorney Gary Schwartz said there is a specific process to follow if the council decides to move forward with the redevelopment idea. The first move would be to have the Planning Board investigate the property to determine whether it meets the criteria as an area in need of redevelopment. The board would then file a report and make a recommendation to the council, which could then adopt an ordinance and declare the land a redevelopment zone.

Eminent domain would be an option, he said in response to a question, but Councilman Thomas Barlow said such a move would only be taken as a last resort. Barlow noted that some other towns have not had to use eminent domain to move forward with redevelopment. Condemnation in court is only used if property owners refuse to accept the "market value" being offered by the government.

Kardashian said he feels there is no doubt the area is in need of redevelopment.

Stollen said it seems as though the council will ask the Planning Board for a review.