Lawrence Township has reached an agreement with Sheft Associates, Inc. to purchase more than 5.9 acres of property along Colonial Lake.
The purchase will preserve the land — located at 2420 Brunswick Pike, just southwest of Colonial Lake Drive — to stop the proposed development of an extended-stay hotel.
The proposed three-story, 52,902 square-foot Woodspring Suites hotel was met with opposition from many Lawrence residents. A Save Colonial Lake Facebook page has over 1,300 members, and a Change.org site garnered more than 5,200 signatures on a petition to stop the hotel project.
Township officials said in a statement that the purchase will ensure that the land is preserved from future development in an effort to “further enhance Colonial Lake Park.”
The property will be subdivided to allow for the continued operation of Colonial Bowling & Entertainment, township officials said in a statement. The agreement also includes the township’s right of first refusal to acquire the remaining lot should Sheft Associates, Inc. decide to sell in the future.
The township is using funding from various funds and grants to buy the land, including the Lawrence Township Open Space Fund, the Mercer County Open Space Assistance Program, the New Jersey DEP Green Acres Program, the Lawrence Township Conservation Foundation, Inc., and the citizen’s group known as “Save Colonial Lake.”
“The purchase of this property and its addition to Colonial Lake Park represents the best of what Lawrence Township can accomplish by working with our citizens and various private and public organizations to preserve and enhance Colonial Lake for generations to come,” Mayor Christopher Bobbitt said in a statement. “We are grateful to the Shefts for understanding the importance of the property to our community and coming to an agreement with the Township.”
