October 19, 2011
Princeton:Village, Small Town or City?
Robert Hillier
Architect, Chairman, Princeton Chamber of Commerce
Princeton:Village, Small Town or City?
Robert Hillier
Architect, Chairman, Princeton Chamber of Commerce
Minutes of the Sixth Meeting of the 70th Year
President Bob Varrin gavelled the meeting to order at 10:15AM.
Don Edwards led the choral invocation.
Two guests were introduced: Ramsay Vehslage, guest of Arky Vaughn, and Sheila Berkelhammer, wife and guest of Jerry Berkelhammer.
Owen Leach read the minutes of the meeting of October 12, 2011. The speaker was Dr. James Murray on the topic “The Marriage Equation”. Owen said that he and his wife tried to apply Dr. Murray’s findings but they couldn’t agree on what they disagreed on.
Bob Varrin made several announcements:
Landon Jones introduced our speaker, J. Robert Hillier. Mr. Hillier was the founder of The Hillier Group, a world-renowned Princeton Architectural firm. When it was merged with the London firm of RMJM a decade or so ago it became one of the largest architectural practices in the world. His firm has won more than 300 State, National, and International design awards for projects for which Mr. Hillier was the principal designer. Having separated from RMJM, in 2009 he has reinvented himself as a developer and hung out his shingle at 190 Witherspoon Street with the title “J. Robert Hillier, Land Use – Strategy – Execution.”
Mr. Hillier titled his talk: “Princeton – Village, Small Town, or City.”
He started the presentation with a synopsis of his life and practice, saying “Princeton is my life.”
He was raised here, attended Princeton Country Day school, Lawrenceville Academy, Princeton University undergraduate and graduate schools. His father was co-developer the electron microscope and became director of the RCA Sarnoff Laboratories. Bob’s entrepreneurial career began in 1952 when he began selling tropical fish from his mother’s Princeton flower shops. After apprenticing with the Nassau Street firm of Fulmer and Bowers, Architects, he opened his own practice in 1966.
Starting with the design of a bathroom vanity for a prominent local businessman, he parlayed that acquaintance into a commission for a headquarters for the A.M. Marcus Co. in Chicago. His firm would eventually design more than 80 corporate headquarters, 70 libraries, and numerous large scale projects including entire college campuses, huge casinos, office buildings, and multi-family residential projects. His firm would grow to be one of the largest in the US (before the merger with RMJM) with offices in Washington DC, Dallas, Philadelphia, New York and Princeton.
When his and his wife’s interest in the joint practice was eventually bought by RMJM for some 33 million dollars, he retuned to his early side-line of the design and construction of land development projects.
Mr. Hillier showed a series of images of projects in the Princeton area for which he was responsible. These included, among others:
Mr. Hillier then turned to his theme of “Princeton – the Best Little City in the World.”
He maintains that because of its central location, good public services, excellent educational and cultural institutions, good access to city centers and transportation hubs, plus handsome, wooded residential areas, Princeton has many of the advantages of urban living. One result has been the attraction of over 1,250,000 visitors a year. It also has disadvantages of urban living - high cost of living, high taxes, insufficient affordable housing, heavy traffic with resultant parking problems, and a dwindling quantity of buildable land.
Showing a map of the town with it patchwork of zoning areas highlighted, he described the economics of affordability. Land has become so valuable that it pays builders to buy small houses and tear them down for the land. At an average of $300,000 for a one acre lot in Princeton, such a replacement house would have to sell for $1,000,000 – that’s “the cost of entry to Princeton.” The middle class is being forced out.
Here are others of his observations and ideas:
Mr. Hillier concluded that we must change our “small town attitude” if we are to enhance the notion of Princeton as The Best Little City in the World.
During the question and answer period, J. B. Smith suggested that Mr. Hillier should be elected mayor of the consolidated Princeton.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Fulmer
Don Edwards led the choral invocation.
Two guests were introduced: Ramsay Vehslage, guest of Arky Vaughn, and Sheila Berkelhammer, wife and guest of Jerry Berkelhammer.
Owen Leach read the minutes of the meeting of October 12, 2011. The speaker was Dr. James Murray on the topic “The Marriage Equation”. Owen said that he and his wife tried to apply Dr. Murray’s findings but they couldn’t agree on what they disagreed on.
Bob Varrin made several announcements:
- The October 26 meeting will be The Fields Center at 10:15AM;
- The November 2nd meeting will be at the Princeton Public Library at 10:15 AM and there will be no hospitality gathering;
- The November 9th meeting will held here (the Friend Building) at and there will be a hospitality gathering at 9:30AM.
Landon Jones introduced our speaker, J. Robert Hillier. Mr. Hillier was the founder of The Hillier Group, a world-renowned Princeton Architectural firm. When it was merged with the London firm of RMJM a decade or so ago it became one of the largest architectural practices in the world. His firm has won more than 300 State, National, and International design awards for projects for which Mr. Hillier was the principal designer. Having separated from RMJM, in 2009 he has reinvented himself as a developer and hung out his shingle at 190 Witherspoon Street with the title “J. Robert Hillier, Land Use – Strategy – Execution.”
- He graduated from Princeton University in 1959, and earned his MFA degree from Princeton as well.
- He is owner and publisher of Princeton magazine, part owner of The Town Topics, and developer of an on-line magazine ObitMag.com.
- He is currently the president of the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce.
- He was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Inc. Magazine in 1989.
Mr. Hillier titled his talk: “Princeton – Village, Small Town, or City.”
He started the presentation with a synopsis of his life and practice, saying “Princeton is my life.”
He was raised here, attended Princeton Country Day school, Lawrenceville Academy, Princeton University undergraduate and graduate schools. His father was co-developer the electron microscope and became director of the RCA Sarnoff Laboratories. Bob’s entrepreneurial career began in 1952 when he began selling tropical fish from his mother’s Princeton flower shops. After apprenticing with the Nassau Street firm of Fulmer and Bowers, Architects, he opened his own practice in 1966.
Starting with the design of a bathroom vanity for a prominent local businessman, he parlayed that acquaintance into a commission for a headquarters for the A.M. Marcus Co. in Chicago. His firm would eventually design more than 80 corporate headquarters, 70 libraries, and numerous large scale projects including entire college campuses, huge casinos, office buildings, and multi-family residential projects. His firm would grow to be one of the largest in the US (before the merger with RMJM) with offices in Washington DC, Dallas, Philadelphia, New York and Princeton.
When his and his wife’s interest in the joint practice was eventually bought by RMJM for some 33 million dollars, he retuned to his early side-line of the design and construction of land development projects.
Mr. Hillier showed a series of images of projects in the Princeton area for which he was responsible. These included, among others:
- Willow Street townhouses, a former laundry;
- McCosh House on Nassau Street, an historic renovation project;
- One Markam Place, a 16 unit condominium;
- 16/18 Quarry Street , a very contemporary duplex which won an American Institute of Architects design award. Each half sold for $950,000, more than triple the price of single family residences on that street.
- 190 Witherspoon Street, the former Jefferson Plumbing warehouse, which is now his 12-person office and which just received its Certificate of Occupancy.
- Copperwood, soon to be constructed on Bunn Drive, an age-restricted 4 story rental housing group of 4 buildings on a platform with parking underneath. Compared to the Hovanian project originally proposed here that would have covered 77% of the land, this design covers only 17% of the property, saves 470 trees and allows more than a third of the land to be deeded to the Township as conserved open space.
Mr. Hillier then turned to his theme of “Princeton – the Best Little City in the World.”
He maintains that because of its central location, good public services, excellent educational and cultural institutions, good access to city centers and transportation hubs, plus handsome, wooded residential areas, Princeton has many of the advantages of urban living. One result has been the attraction of over 1,250,000 visitors a year. It also has disadvantages of urban living - high cost of living, high taxes, insufficient affordable housing, heavy traffic with resultant parking problems, and a dwindling quantity of buildable land.
Showing a map of the town with it patchwork of zoning areas highlighted, he described the economics of affordability. Land has become so valuable that it pays builders to buy small houses and tear them down for the land. At an average of $300,000 for a one acre lot in Princeton, such a replacement house would have to sell for $1,000,000 – that’s “the cost of entry to Princeton.” The middle class is being forced out.
Here are others of his observations and ideas:
- In the small 1/3 acre lot zones (R4) the maximum units per acre now allowed by zoning is 3. If those 3 units are built at maximum allowed coverage, 2200 square feet each, the rent would have to about $5,600 per month – way beyond affordability for families of modest means. If, however, the density could be eight 800 s.f. units per acre, the rent could be a manageable $1,950 per month. Much of the existing density in the John Witherspoon neighborhoods is 22 units per acre.
- Parking might be eased by building 2 more parking garages located to afford pedestrian access to town center while removing traffic from mid-town. An urban style parking authority is needed.
- How about creating a “Central Park” at the Princeton Cemetery on Witherspoon Street by puting more gates in the fencing and opening them during daylight hours?
- The many left-turn intersections that create high-traffic bottle necks might be eased by rerouting traffic and opening new circulation routes such as Elm Road, through MarquandPark, down Springdale Road to lower Alexander Road.
- The YMCA would better serve the community if was at Valley Road School – near the community pool, tennis courts and playing fields.
Mr. Hillier concluded that we must change our “small town attitude” if we are to enhance the notion of Princeton as The Best Little City in the World.
During the question and answer period, J. B. Smith suggested that Mr. Hillier should be elected mayor of the consolidated Princeton.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Fulmer