METUCHEN – The borough is preparing to acquire a vacant gas station property, located in the gateway to downtown, through condemnation if the parties can’t agree on a fair-market price.
The borough wants the property at the intersection of Main Street and Amboy Avenue for its planned Metuchen Arts District. The Forum Theatre, which is adjacent to the gas station property, is the centerpiece of the arts district and envisioned as a multipurpose arts center.
This week the Borough Council introduced an ordinance to acquire the property at 304 Main St., the site of a former Jersey gas station, though eminent domain if the borough can’t obtain it at fair-market value through good-faith negotiations.
A public hearing and adoption of the ordinance is scheduled for the council’s Dec. 11 meeting.
Mayor Jonathan Busch said the borough is pursuing a variety of avenues toward the goal of…
