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Planner urges pursuit of Transit Village designation near Sayreville commuter parking lot
Summary
The agency27s planner outlined a proposal to pursue a Transit Village designation near the commuter parking area adjacent to the Garden State Parkway, arguing it would unlock NJDOT funding, affordable-housing bonus credits and pedestrian/roadway improvements tied to a proposed Route 9 BRT study.
Planner Vina told the Redevelopment Agency that two area investigations are ready for further work, but she emphasized a separate, larger initiative: pursuing a Transit Village designation for the area adjacent to the Garden State Parkway commuter parking lot.
Vina said the designation would make the borough eligible for NJDOT funding for roadway improvements, sidewalks and pedestrian safety features and would provide bonus credits toward the borough27s affordable housing obligations. "If you are within a Transit Village designation, you get one bonus credit for affordable housing units," she said, and added that special-needs units can generate additional credits. Vina said the Transit Village pre-application and designation process takes time (she estimated roughly 18 months) but allows public engagement with property owners and can attract funding and private investment.
Commissioners asked practical questions about the proposal. One asked who owns the vacant Rite Aid property near the proposed boundary; planners said they would determine ownership and that property owners would receive notice during the Transit Village application process. Commissioners also asked whether a proposed new building at Gillette Towers could receive bonus credits if included in the Transit Village boundary; Vina said she would confirm the eligibility rules.
Vina linked the Transit Village pitch to a Federal Transit Administration-funded bus rapid transit (BRT) study led by NJ Transit along Route 9. She said the FTA granted $400,000 for the BRT study and that the corridor plan includes 17 proposed transit-village stops from Howell to Old Bridge; Vina argued Sayreville is well positioned to leverage the study even if it sits slightly outside some half-mile walk-shed boundaries.
The planner said she will schedule a pre-application meeting with NJ Transit and NJDOT, prepare a boundary map and bring a presentation to the next meeting; commissioners expressed support for further study and outreach to property owners and potential developers.
