Princeton Planning Board approves shopping-center monument sign, directory signs and transformer with conditions

The Planning Board of Princeton on a recorded vote approved a preliminary and final major site plan with variances for new freestanding signage and a proposed electrical transformer at the Princeton Shopping Center, 301 North Harrison St., filed as P2424-506P by Princeton Edens LLC.

The vote granted variances to permit three larger directory signs, a 99-square-foot shopping-center identification monument sign along North Harrison, and a transformer sited inside the required 50-foot setback from adjacent residential zoning (the transformer would be at 29 feet). The board approved the application with conditions including a lighting study to be added to the site plans, replacement plantings for trees from an earlier approval, and landscaping or an art treatment around the transformer.

Why it matters: The shopping center has been redesigned and partially redeveloped in recent years; the owner and tenants told the board the site needs clearer wayfinding for motorists and pedestrians. The new signs and electrical upgrades are intended to improve on-site circulation and to support additional leasing and storefront visibility on the Grover Park side of the center.

The applicant and witnesses presented testimony on design, safety and technical compliance. Ryan Leeming, vice president of development for Edens, told the board the project "is the final piece of our redevelopment project" and that "the center could use a little bit of help in letting people know how to get around, and where businesses might be located." The applicant described three directory wayfinding signs (two roughly 30 square feet and one roughly 48 square feet per face) that would replace earlier, smaller directory signs permitted for pedestrian courtyard use. The monument identification sign is proposed to be double-sided and internally illuminated with tenant name panels (applicant described 16 panels on the prototypical layout).

Engineering and lighting testimony: Bohler civil engineer Tungto Lam described sign and transformer locations on the submitted site plan sheets and confirmed the new transformer is larger than the existing unit and must be set on a larger concrete pad. Lighting consultant Glenn Fassman (architectural lighting designer) presented a photometric model of the monument sign. Fassman testified that the modeled illumination at the property line does not exceed the ordinance limits the board referenced (0.7 foot-candles of light trespass at a lot line and 50 foot-Lamberts for luminance). His calculations showed peak values in the immediate sign vicinity and a modeled level at the property boundary well below the 0.7 foot-candle threshold.

Planning assessment: Planner John McDonough said the package advances multiple purposes of zoning — including safe circulation and a desirable visual environment — and recommended approval under the c.70 balancing test (practical benefits versus potential detriments). He described the signs as "markers, if you will," arguing they help knit the large site together and improve wayfinding for visitors.

Board concerns and conditions: Board members and staff pressed the applicant for details on letter size, nighttime brightness, directional arrow graphics and exact sign locations. Staff noted the zoning ordinance allows one shopping-center identification sign of up to 64 square feet (6-foot height maximum) and only four directory signs intended to be located within interior courtyards or passages; the applicant sought relief from those provisions. The board attached the following conditions to its approval (summary): - Require the lighting calculations and photometric exhibits presented at the hearing to be added to the final site plan set and that illumination at property lines be demonstrated to remain within the town's numerical standards; - Remove tenant- or owner-advertising logos from the reverse sides of the freestanding directory signs; the board instead allowed the rear faces to be devoted to either (a) an arts-council-approved art treatment (no commercial logos) or (b) simple pedestrian-oriented messaging that does not encourage illegal traffic movements; - Add an "Exit" arrow/label or other traffic-control message on the back of the directory sign nearest the Walgreens entrance to reduce potential driver confusion there; - Require the applicant to replace two trees that were part of an earlier approval but are now missing (replacement locations to be determined after a site visit by the municipal arborist); the landscape subcommittee will review final tree locations and any screening plantings for the transformer; - Provide a screening solution for the transformer (landscaping between bollards or an artwork treatment coordinated with the arts council; planting must not interfere with PSE&G access or required bollard protection); - Add a legend to the site drawings explaining the visibility/sight-distance hatch patterns used in the submission (the red/green visibility overlays shown at the hearing); - Provide required signature and certification blocks on the plan set in the format required by staff.

Vote and procedural notes: The motion to approve the application was moved by Julie Capizzoli and seconded by David McGowan. The roll-call vote recorded the board’s concurrence (see actions array below for the full roll-call list and outcome). Several board members said they were supportive but expressed lingering concerns about driver behavior and tree impacts and requested the post-approval landscape review and the required lighting exhibits before any sign fabrication or transformer installation.

What’s next: The board will expect final plan revisions and the lighting exhibits on the plan set; staff and the landscape subcommittee will coordinate with the applicant on the tree-replacement and transformer-screening details before issuing final site-plan sign-off.