Princeton board approves subdivision to let nonprofit conserve manor house and expand public access to preserved woods

The Princeton Zoning Board of Adjustment on June 3 approved a minor subdivision and accompanying variances that will let Woods and Wayside International acquire the manor house parcel at 1128 Great Road and place conservation protections and public-access arrangements on adjacent land.

The board voted to grant the subdivision (case Z25-72), a use variance and the necessary bulk variances with conditions requiring the applicant to satisfy engineering and zoning staff comments, to record and identify all access and utility easements, and to complete a conveyance or equivalent agreement to a conservation-minded entity that will maintain the site for conservation, environmental education and passive recreation.

Applicant counsel Bob Casey called witness Christopher Bar to resume testimony about the proposed plan, exhibit A2 (a subdivision plan dated Nov. 25, 2025) and how the parcels would be used. Bar, who said he co-manages Woods and Wayside International and Ridge View Conservancy, described the purchase of a 3-acre lot (lot 4.05) specifically "for the purpose of conservation," plus a contiguous 6-acre conservation easement along the western boundary that provides public access into a larger, 187-acre conserved forest adjacent to the school campus. "We concluded that purchase specifically for the purpose of conservation," Bar said in his testimony.

Engineer Eric Ruben outlined the geometry of the proposal: the original ~35.35-acre parcel would be divided into a school lot of roughly 12.4 acres and a manor-house lot of roughly 22 acres. Ruben said existing driveways to Great Road and Drake's Corner Road would remain in place and that the application proposes no new paved surfaces or building construction. He testified that the site currently includes roughly 70 striped parking spaces and described where those spaces would fall after the subdivision; the board and staff noted parking-sharing agreements will be formalized for events.

Town staff — including acting land-use engineer Jim Purcell — pressed for documentation. Purcell told the board they need recorded, meet-and-bounds descriptions for the 6-acre conservation easement and for any proposed access easements, and he said municipal review is focused on whether those easements will preserve access "in perpetuity" for emergency vehicles or future owners. "Our concern is what is the status of these easements in perpetuity," Purcell said, urging that limits on future roadway construction be made explicit in recorded easement language.

Planner Carlos Rodriguez, accepted as an expert witness, reviewed the RA/RB zoning history and concluded the proposal is consistent with the town master plan's conservation and community-facility goals, noting the application proposes no new construction and advances open-space stewardship. Rodriguez recommended conditioning final approval on the staff and engineering items under discussion.

Applicant counsel and the municipal engineers agreed that many of the outstanding items — easement descriptions, utility easement charting, minor plan edits and checklist items — could be handled by condition. The board's motion to approve therefore required the applicant to provide the final easement descriptions and to record the instruments or otherwise ensure a conveyance of the manor-house parcel to Woods and Wayside (or to a similar nonprofit committed to conservation, environmental education and passive recreation) before or at closing as set out by the parties and the board's resolution.

A neighbor, Sophie Gloier of Drake's Corner Road, spoke during public comment in support of the plan, saying the neighborhood has "partnered on the preservation of the property" and supports improved public access. The board closed the public portion, discussed final drafting details, and adopted the approval by roll-call vote. The chair directed staff to draft a resolution reflecting the conditions the board discussed.

What happens next: staff said they will prepare the resolution and the detailed list of conditions drawn from the engineering and planning memoranda. The approval does not authorize new construction; it authorizes the subdivision and the variances as conditioned, and the conveyance/recording steps and final easement language must be completed before the applicant may rely on the approved uses for the manor-house parcel.

(Reporting note: quotes and attributions here are drawn verbatim from board testimony and staff comments recorded on the June 3 hearing record.)