George Michael Development Plans
A public hearing will be held by the Frenchtown Planning Board this coming Wednesday night, November 9, 2005 at 7:30 PM to hear the latest proposal from George Michael for the empty lot between The Frenchtown Inn and Alchemy Clothing.
George Michael and Georgetown Builders have scaled back their original proposal and will present the artists concept drawings at this meeting. The photo below shows what the new building that will face Bridge Street will look like.
George Michael Development: River Mills at Frenchtown
The photo below shows Bridge Street as it appeared in the 1960’s. This scene is taken from a vintage postcard and shows the site of the proposed development.
The photo below shows a closeup of the original Victorian building that existed on this property. George Michael has taken care to make sure that the new development fits in with the townscape, and from the concept sketches it seems that he has succeeded in doing so.
Frenchtown New Jersey Development Site as it was in the 1960’s Closeup Shot
The photo below shows the development site as it now appears. Be sure and read our editorial about this development: B-I-G Comes Home. and other related articles: Frenchtowner.com: Not Just For Real Estate Developers Anymore, and Real Estate and Real Gentrification.
Frenchtown New Jersey Development Site
Disclaimers: George Michael and Georgetown Builders are members of the Frenchtown Business and Professional Association of which I am a member. This has not shaped or influenced my opinion in any manner as is proven by my original editorials that were published long before he or his company was a member of our association.
Frenchtowner.com and the Frenchtown NJ Blog encourage everyone with opposing views of this major development to post their views here and on the Frenchtown NJ Community Forum on Yahoo, and to show up next Wednesday night to voice their opinions pro or con.
The plans for this project are available for public viewing at the Frenchtown New Jersey Borough Hall on Second Street.
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Thank you GM. Towns are where development should be…not farm land. This is an intelligent and considerate use of space. The vacant lot is an eyesore and breaks the streetscape. Keep up the good work GM
I think the Frenchtown Business and Professional Association’s comments are enlightening as they implicitly refer to themselves as a civil governing body. Aren’t they a private association? It’s a pompous comparison.
Dear Anonymous,The Frenchtown Business and Professional Association does not “implicitly refer to themselves as a civil governing body”. We simply made a comparison, we used a symbolic analogy.The association’s membership is open to anyone with a business or profession in the area. Does that fit your definition of a private association?Sincerely,John Stringfellow
All this snapping and hen pecking….yes it does sound like the Clinton guild and their town bussiness owners. The movie sounded like an OK thing….as it went on and on…it was delivery and pick up disruption, litter, noise, and the final straw… harrassment of myself and one of my best customers. You can ask me if I want to be in your movie, but when I say no I mean NO. I have a bussiness to run, and my best client said no as well and had to say it twice. Was it my best week…absolutly NOT. Did it bring extra bussiness….I would say NO. Would I support another movie filming…Yes…but with better attention to some of the details. It can be a lesson learned and we can all move forward. Two cents that you didn’t ask for!!!!
Dear Porkchop,I appreciate your comments tremendously. You point out the good and the bad in relating your experience. I always feel it is our responsibility as humans to not only point out problems, but to suggest solutions to those problems.Your comments about the details being worked out better are right on target. I feel that the mayor and the police department and the business association could have made for a much better atmosphere for the filming had everyone in the affected area been better informed of the details of the filming, specifically that every business and resident in that section of town along Race and Bridge Streets should have been notified that the streets would be partially blocked or closed off for 5 days. All of us could have made plans to deal with this if we had known about it.As I have said many times, Frenchtown needs better communication. That is the driving force being this blog and personally I appreciate your two cents worth of opinion and I hereby ask for more!
I know i’m coming into this late … but what’s going on with this project? Is anyone aware of the plans for the condos (luxury, affordable, mix, lofts, etc … ?) Has the developer given any thought to doing a “green” or LEED certified building?I agree with the above comment that town are for development – I myself was eyeing that parcel for along time. In this case, I feel the architectural review board (if Frenchtown has one) needs to step in and REALLY consider the impact that this building is going to have in 10, 20, or 100 years – and be sure the building is designed accordingly.feel free to contact me … riley_llc@yahoo.com
Dear Riley, First of all it is good to have someone make a comment and actually sign it. Secondly, Frenchtown does have a planning and zoning board and they have had several meetings on this development. The current plans submitted by George Michael are available for inspection at the Borough office. Currently I believe George Michael is revamping the plans to address some of the concerns that came up in the two public hearings held by the planning board, but I do not know if a new hearing has been scheduled yet. In closing I wanted to apologize for not responding to your post earlier.