The folks with the Dayton Village Coalition have been trying to get South Brunswick’s local government to focus on efforts to create a more pedestrian-friendly village area — a goal that is certainly worth pursuing.
As I’ve written a number of times in the past — both in columns and in editorials — the area surrounding Five Corners (shown in the video above, which was shot at about 11 today) could serve as a perfect “downtown” for South Brunswick. The office/local retail mix already is in place and, with a little work, the area could be transformed.
First, sidewalks need to be extended — not only on Georges Road, but on Ridge Road, as well. And public parking needs to be added (this could be accomplished by gaining an agreement from the individual strip malls allowing people to park and walk).
Most important, though, is taking a broad enough view of the area so that its boundaries include the library, the two middle schools, Pierre’s, Indian Fields, Wetherill and the Stop & Shop on Route 522.
The work done so far by the Coalition has been positive, bringing as many of the stakeholders to the table as could be arranged. That has to be the first step. The next step is to bring the Township Council and Planning Board along, to make them understand that modest changes in thinking will allow the Dayton village to be everything it should be.
(Jump in on this one, either by commenting here, at The Blog of South Brunswick or on our South Brunswick Post Forum.)
Hank Kalet 
Hank, I would suggest at the minimum pedestrian safety stanchions, \”zebra\” crosswalk striping, and pedestrian crossing buttons — ones that actually work. All these improvements should have been put in place years ago, at Dayton and at every historic village and school in South Brunswick.
Hank, I moved to Dayton a year back and would love to volunteer on any efforts required to get something done.
Won\’t the Dayton Video store closing at Five Corners be a problem?