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Montgomery Township Officials Advance a Concept Plan for Belle Mead Station Area, Includes 189 Apartment Units
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By Barbara A. Preston for The Montgomery News | September 15, 2026
An updated vision for the former Belle Mead Train Station site area, including a proposed 189 market-rate apartment development, was presented at the Montgomery Planning Board meeting on September 14.
Township Administrator and Planning Director Lori Savron outlined the project's evolution, revised architectural concept plans, and its central role in the Montgomery Township affordable housing strategy. It is designed to offset the recent extension of affordability controls on 96 existing units at Pike Run Apartments.
Lori Savron's presentation included a preview of what the proposed 189-unit apartment complex could look like on the former Belle Mead Train Station site. She referenced Amwell Terrace at 384 Amwell Rd, in Hillsborough (See photo above).
Future Reactivation of the West Trenton Commuter Line
Highlights of the Belle Mead Station development will be the inclusion of a new commuter park-and-ride lot servicing bus routes and future reactivation of the West Trenton commuter rail line, Savron said. It will also feature pedestrian connections to Montgomery Place Shopping Center,
Design enhancements guided by township staff and their planning consultant Clark Caton Hintz, include revised building positions for greater green space, a resident community garden, an enclosed maintenance yard, and decorative fencing with an optional sound wall along the CSX line.
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The Belle Mead Station - A Short History
The Belle Mead train station includes two buildings (one on the east side of the tracks and the other on the west side). Both were built in 1919 along the West Trenton Line in the Belle Mead section of Montgomery Township according to Preservation New Jersey. These stations replaced a large c.1870s three-story station that was slightly further west along the tracks in Belle Mead by the Hillsborough border.
The current buildings are in an advanced state of rot and decay. Both are built of red brick with chestnut trim and were used until 1982, when the passenger rail service was deactivated. There were once four tracks, but only one remains and it is used by CSX for freight service. Both vacant stations have suffered from years of neglect and vandalism.
Belle Mead Station Building 1 on the north side of the tracks.
Photo by Barbara A. Preston
Belle Mead Station Building 1 on the north side of the tracks in 1994
Photo courtesy of Preservation New Jersey.
Belle Mead Station on the south side of the railroad tracks.
Photo by Barbara A. Preston
Belle Mead Station Buildings 1 and 2 circa 1920. Folks could take the train to Philadelphia or New York City from this line.
Photo courtesy of Preservation New Jersey.
A Decade-long Development Framework
"Because some people may not be aware of the history of things, I always like to add the origins of a project when possible," Savron said.
"The Transit Commercial Site" project at Belle Mead Station traces back to 2014, when Montgomery Township entered into a settlement agreement with Country Club Meadows LLC (owned by Atlantic Realty). The agreement established a general development plan and zoning regulations across several large parcels in the general area of Pike Run along Route 206.
Earlier phases under that plan have already reshaped the corridor, yielding 150 single-family homes at Country Club Estates, as well as 96-senior apartments at Montgomery Meadows, and the recent approval of a 196-unit Thrive assisted living facility. Also, two commercial centers, Montgomery Grove (includes 27 affordable units), and Montgomery Place, were built.
"The transit commercial parcel represents the final phase of that overarching plan," Savron said, "and its role in Montgomery Township's required Fourth Round Affordable Housing Fair Share Plan (2025–2035)."
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Balancing Market-Rate Units and Affordability Controls
Under the township’s amended Fourth Round Affordable Housing Plan, spanning 2025 through 2035, the proposed development—currently identified as Belle Mead Station—would feature 189 market-rate rental units, comprising 118 two-bedroom and 71 three-bedroom apartments housed in three-story buildings.
Rather than constructing new affordable units directly within the development, the project utilizes a greater than 20 percent set-aside model. The municipality will satisfy its state affordable housing obligations by extending affordability controls on 150 existing affordable family and senior units across the township.
These include 96 units at Pike Run Apartments, which yield 144 credits when paired with 48 rental bonus credits. The extension secures housing affordability controls set to expire between 2028 and 2031 from original 30-year deed restrictions signed in 1997.
Pike Run, also developed by Atlantic Realty, has a total of 210 affordable, deed-restricted apartments.
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Transit Connections and Revised Design
A cornerstone of the development is a developer-funded commuter park-and-ride lot situated near Route 206 and Pike Run Road. The facility is designed to accommodate regional transit operations—such as Suburban Transit bus routes—while preserving infrastructure access for any future reactivation of the West Trenton CSX commuter rail line.
In response to recommendations from township staff and planning consultant Michael Sullivan of Clark Caton Hintz, the developer re-submitted a revised concept plan. Key updates include:
Open Space and Landscaping: Shifting building footprints to expand green space and establish a thicker vegetative buffer along Township Line Road.
Community Amenities: Adding a resident community garden, mirroring an active garden at the nearby senior development.
Site Operations and Infrastructure: Enclosing an outdoor maintenance yard, consolidating pedestrian walkways linking to the Montgomery Place shopping center, offering decorative fencing along Township Line Road, and proposing an optional sound wall along the CSX railway lines.
During her presentation, Savron did not mention what will happen to the historic Belle Mead Train Station — the two buildings that were left to decay.
A lingering question: Can the old Belle Mead Train Station buildings be saved?
Savron told The Montgomery News, "That’s a question for NJ Transit as they own the buildings. Nothing in the proposed development infringes on those buildings, so it’s whatever the state has planned for them."
Preservation New Jersey (PNJ) has written that they "hope for the rehabilitation of the Belle Mead Station, should the passenger line be reactivated." PNJ actively calls for CSX to stabilize and secure the structures to limit further degradation. PNJ also recommends that "CSX be proactive in finding an interested party to take on the responsibility of determining a compatible new use and undertake the necessary planning and preservation work to ensure the station’s long-term viability through adaptive reuse."
