Under the banner of transit-oriented development, the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission is considering construction of large-scale developments around the new Secaucus Junction train station. The commission is apparently being approached by developers eager to take advantage of the new station, and wants to organize any development into a single overall plan.

But the area – the heart of the environmentally sensitive Meadowlands – is inappropriate for large scale new development. The new station, meant to increase the utility of the state’s rail network, should not be transformed into a car traffic generator. Scarce state resources, which the commission anticipates being used on highway interchanges and other roads, should be spent where they support the McGreevey Administration’s smart growth program. In the Meadowlands, for green-field development, such expenditures will only mock that agenda.

The commission, which is working with NJ Transit and the Town of Secaucus, has dubbed the project a "transit village." Indeed, New Jersey has a poorly funded transit village program, which aims to reward municipalities that orient development to transit stations. The program is meant to revitalize existing centers, however, not to promote new ones in undeveloped or sensitive areas.

The "Secaucus Junction Vision Plan" – released earlier this month – foresees substantial development in co-existence with 114 acres of threatened wetlands. It includes: construction of 1,850 residential units, with some on the riverfront; a 300-500 room hotel with conference facility; and 575,000 to 750,000 square feet of new commercial space. The plan would require new roads and ramps and is estimated to take twenty-five years to complete. The state has already spent $80,000 to study the idea, and may be poised to pour far more into the swamp-lands. 

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