Spotswood land spared from 12 planned homes
County doles out $2.4M for purchase of nearly 5 acres
BY VINCENT TODARO Staff Writer
Spotswood has received its first open space grant from Middlesex County, and it's a big one, at $2.4 million.

The grant will be used to purchase a nearly 5-acre property near the corner of Old Stage Road and New Brunswick Avenue that is slated to be developed with 12 homes. A builder, Zigga Homes Inc., has Zoning Board of Adjustment approval to construct the homes on the property, which is said to be the last large plot of land available for development in Spotswood.

Officials announced the grant at the April 7 Borough Council meeting, clearly enthused to receive the money and stop the planned development.

Council President Curtis Stollen said this is the first time Spotswood will receive money the Middlesex County Open Space and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund. He described the grant and the land's preservation as a landmark event in recent town history.

"It's nice to see them send some of this money our way and preserve a valuable piece of land," Stollen told the Sentinel.

During the meeting, Mayor Barry Zagnit said the county really came through for Spotswood with this grant, though he wishes such resources were made available previously.

Spotswood is one of the only towns in Middlesex County that had not received grant money from the open space fund. Borough officials spoke out last year about the issue, saying borough residents had collectively paid about $1.13 million into that fund since 1996. County officials responded that they solicited grant requests from Spotswood over the years, and that the county has unsuccessfully made offers to purchase parcels requested by the town.

Speaking on the new grant, Councilman Thomas Barlow said the 4.5-acre property will be preserved and kept free of development or other subdivisions. The property will be spared from the large single family homes planned for it.

"The freeholders really came through for us," Barlow said.

"The county has come up to the plate," said Councilman James Shearn. He noted that the county has also voted recently to award $500,000 to improveMundyAvenue Park.

"It's a home run for us," Shearn said. If the property was developed as planned, he said, it would have brought more students to the school system, likely adding to the property tax burden.

"This is a win-win for us," he said.

Stollen told the Sentinel he feels the real estate market slowdown helped the town in this case, as there is not as much of a rush on the part of developers to build homes.

The borough made its request to the county last year, and though county officials agreed to the grant late in the year, it was not known that the acquisition would go forward until the county had the land appraised and then negotiated with property owners.

Stollen said there are no plans at this point to use the land for anything but open space. However, it is possible that the borough will use it for passive recreation in the future, depending on available funds.

Stollen was thrilled, and somewhat surprised, that the purchased was being made.

"This is certainly a major event in the history of Spotswood," he said