Princeton University is moving forward with plans for a $300-million Arts and Transit Neighborhood project after finally receiving approval from the Princeton Borough council, but several locals are hanging on to the hope that they can halt the project and the concurrent relocation of the Princeton Station train platform.

The university’s plan would require the “Dinky” station be moved about 460 feet south of the current location on University Place. For some residents, that is a change they are unwilling to accept.

The plans have incited two lawsuits against the university. The university is aware of the lawsuits but does not believe they have merit, said university vice president Robert Durkee.

“There was extensive master plan discussion before there was even zoning discussion, and then there was very extensive zoning discussion at borough council and township committee and planning board,” Durkee said. “A lot of that discussion focused on ways in which this proposal responds to community concerns and interests.”

In one of the lawsuits, filed by attorney Bruce I. Afran, the plaintiffs hope to prevent the move by citing illegal spot zoning, among other issues. Plaintiffs in that case include borough residents Walter and Anne Neumann and township resident Marco Gottardis.

Neumann’s lawsuit challenges the zoning that permits the Arts and Transit Neighborhood project, stating that a Memorandum of Understanding between the university and the borough and township called for “monetary payments and other consideration” in exchange for zoning approval.

Afran said the university skipped steps that are usually necessary to get passed the zoning changes it needed.

“The two governing bodies should not have passed this zoning. The university has to go to the zoning board if it wants permission to change the zoning rules for its land, and they’re not doing that. Like any other land owner, the university has to follow the same rules,” he said.

Durkee dismissed the spot-zoning claims.

“The zoning was very thoroughly discussed by all the relevant bodies this past year,” he said.

Afran said moving the train’s station to a more southern location would negatively affect the town.

“This plan of the university’s sounds like it’s not much, just 500 feet, but it has very serious implications,” said Afran.
Save the Princeton Dinky, a grassroots group which also seeks to halt the train station relocation, seems to agree. Although members did not respond to repeated requests for comment, the STPD website makes it clear that they feel the extra 460 feet—or 500, as they say the distance is—would cripple Princeton’s mass transit system and reduce ridership on the spur line, which connects Princeton Borough with Princeton Junction and from there New York and Philadelphia.

In an earlier lawsuit, filed Oct. 4, members of the Save the Dinky group filed suit, through Afran, against the university and NJ Transit, questioning if a relocation of Princeton Station was legal.

“[The Dinky] is a public benefit, and I don’t think that the university has a right to move it. I am worried that it will stop running. It’s going to be in a much less convenient location for me and other people, and it will be not as publicly visible as it is now,” Neumann said.

Afran said the new proposed location would take pedestrians down a steep slope and could pose problems in harsh weather.

“The Princeton Station is currently about a 10-minute walk from Nassau Street and is, for many, easily accessible,” Afran said.

Neumann and Afran both said the proposed new station location would make the traffic on Alexander Street worse, forcing commuters to make a left turn during rush hour.

“The point of a transportation system is to be efficient and easy. This will now force people into a longer commute, because they’ll have to allow 20 minutes more time to go through rush hour traffic to get to the new location with their car,” Afran said.

Neumann currently takes the train once a week, while her husband uses it daily for his commute. Moving the Dinky would make it necessary for her to take her car to the station, find parking, risk a parking ticket and add to carbon emissions, she said.

Moving the Dinky is a necessary part of the building project that Durkee believes will benefit the community. The university has also claimed that a significant portion of Dinky riders are affiliated with the university, and the proposed move would not affect them.

The university’s plan also includes moving the Wawa Market from its current location on University Place to the proposed future Dinky station.

Moving the Wawa location to the proposed location is a bad idea, Afran said, because the current location is a major hub for pedestrians, university students and even high school students. Afran said moving it to a part of town that will be deserted at night could create crime and hurt businesses.

“It’s a safe area, it’s busy, no one can get into trouble there. Move it to the edge of town where it will be empty much of the time, and you’ve changed it from a safe place to a place that’s no longer safe,” he said.

Moving the Wawa to the new Dinky station would mean commuters walking from Nassau Street to Wawa to the train would shorten their overall walk, Durkee said. He said the new location will be lively and attractive with open landscapes and retail space.

He also said that the new Arts and Transit Neighborhood will add to the arts community. The project will be built right next to McCarter and Berlind Theatres and will be readily accessible to the community, complete with ample parking.

Afran believes theater patronage will be diminished due to the parking being too far away, which would discourage people from attending events.

Though much of the opposition to the arts project stems from the proposed Dinky move, Durkee said the fate of the Dinky station is ultimately unrelated to the Arts and Transit Neighborhood.

“I think it’s been clear all along that the Dinky would be moved either way, if we went along with this plan or not. I think it’s a good thing that the zoning is now in place to allow the full plan to go forward. The zoning discussion was never about whether the Dinky would move or not. The zoning discussion was only about whether the university could develop this area for the arts,” he said.

Despite the controversy, Durkee expects the project to move forward in stages. If it is approved by the planning board, the first stage will be for infrastructure, improved road circulation, moving parking lots, creating the new train station and creating a new driveway into campus. Once those things are in place, the university can start constructing buildings.

Durkee said they hope to be done building the project in five years.

Afran said his lawsuit could also take years. He, along with his plaintiffs, hope the university will be understanding and possibly amend its plans, possibly by proposing an alternate location for the project.

“If they would do that, a lot of the negatives with this whole zone disappear,” said Afran.