2-23 WWP

WW-P High School South’s Ben Jaclin has helped power the boys’ basketball team to a winning record. To read more about Jaclin and the team, turn to page 7.

West Windsor residents sue to stop warehouse complex

BY BiLL SANserViNO

Two West Windsor residents have filed a lawsuit against the township in an effort to stop construction of a large warehouse and distribution complex on the former American Cyanamid site.

The project, named Bridge Point 8, calls for the construction of seven warehouses totaling more than 5.5 million square feet on the 653-acre tract located at the corner of Clarksville and Quakerbridge Roads. The project was approved

by the West Windsor Planning Board in July.

Also named as defendants the in the court filing were: the West Windsor Planning Board; site operator Bridge Development Partners of Itasca, Illinois, via its subsidiary the Bridge Point West Windsor LLC; and land owner Atlantic Realty Development Corp. of Woodbridge, via its subsidiary, Clarksville Center LLC. The case will be heard by state Superior Court Judge Robert T. Lougy.

In the lawsuit, residents Justino

Gonzalez and Stacey Joy are challenging the validity of an ordinance approved in November 2020 by Township Council that rezoned the tract for warehousing and all subsequent approvals by the Planning Board.

The plaintiffs are being represented by Robert F. Simon of the Warren Township-based law firm Herold Law.

The lawsuit seeks to invalidate the ordinance’s rezoning, the Planning Board’s approval and to halt See LAWSuIT, Page 2

Explore history at area libraries

BY DAN AUBreY

Libraries are safe places that connect to the world of ideas and human memory and are always on the front lines of combatting censorship.

Yet they are often the physical representations of past values and designs — if one just takes the time to check them out.

So, let’s take a quick tour of some of the region’s vintage libraries.

First stop, the Trenton Free Public Library on Academy Street in Trenton. It’s the oldest organized library in New Jersey and the embodiment of

a particular American movement.

Founded in 1750 as the subscription-styled Trenton Library Company, it allegedly started with 50 books purchased by Benjamin Franklin.

Yet the person who turned that first page in Trenton’s history was Dr. Thomas Cadwalader, who served as the town’s first chief Burgess and contributed 500 pounds. The collection was housed in rented spaces or subscribers’ homes until the British arrived in 1776 and destroyed the building that housed the collection.

The library was back and running

by 1781 and by 1797 had 240 items in its collection. By 1804 the library collection was at 700 volumes and still growing without a permanent home.

That need was addressed in 1900, when the organization became the free public library, and Ferdinand W. Roebling served as its first board president.

The library board purchased the property that had housed the street’s namesake, the Trenton Academy, since 1782, and hired architect Spencer Roberts.

Roberts (1873-1958) was a Philadelphia-based architect who had

LAWSuIT continued from Page 1 all activity at the site.

The 37-page complaint seeks relief on a number of counts, including:

• The township failed to provide required notices to neighboring property owners, as required by state law, prior to holding hearings on the rezoning ordinance.

• The property is not appropriate for warehouse and distribution center uses, the rezoning ordinance was improperly adopted without evidence that the property was appropriate for such uses, and there was no zoning or planning justification to adopt the ordinance to permit such development on the property.

• The agreement between the township and the developer is an impermissible and illegal quid pro quo to award favorable zoning requirements at the property in exchange for agreements

Genius®

unrelated to the development of the property. This includes the fact that the developer is not required to build any affordable housing.

• The rezoning ordinance was “spot zoning,” which is illegal under state law. Spot zoning is defined as the process of singling out a parcel of land for a use classification totally different from that of the surrounding area for the benefit of the owner and to the detriment of other owners.

• The Planning Board did not provide “any meaningful opportunity for public participation” during its consistency review of the rezoning ordinance, because it failed to provide any opportunity for remote access to the hearing.

The complaint argues that although 10 out of 11 township boards and agencies provided for remote public participation at their meetings during the pandemic via

3D Mammograms Now

online services such as Zoom, the Planning Board did not, and required physical attendance by the public throughout the pandemic.

• The planning board’s approval of the project was “arbitrary and capricious.” The suit alleges: the Planning Board did not sufficiently consider the lack of studies done on the tract; the application failed to obtain all necessary exception and variance relief required by law; and the Board improperly failed to consider testimony and evidence presented by members of the public and their experts prior to approving the application.

• The public notice provided by the developer of the Planning Board hearings on the application was “materially defective” because it failed to meet the minimum requirements for public notice as required by state law.

The complaint states that the public notice failed to inform the public of the nature of the matters to be considered, it failed to identify all required relief and the identified relief sought, and it failed to contain all information required by law.

• The developer failed to obtain a review by the West Windsor Environmental Commission for the completeness of its Environmental Impact Statement, as required by state law. The Planning Board also did not grant a waiver of that

review in its approval.

Chicago-based Bridge Development Partners, the parent company of Bridge Point WW LLC, is focused on the development and acquisition of industrial properties in the United States and United Kingdom. Bridge is leasing the site from Atlantic Realty, which purchased the property from the Howard Hughes Corporation in 2019 for $40 million.

In 2020, the township reached a settlement agreement with Atlantic Realty to resolve pending litigation that had been filed by Howard Hughes.

The corporation challenged the zoning of the property, and the developer was pushing a plan to build a mixed-use project, featuring retail businesses, commercial offices and up to 2,000 residential units.

Township residents and officials had long been opposed to building residences on the property, due to the impact they would have on municipal services and schools.

West Windsor Mayor Hemant Marathe, who helped negotiate the deal with Bridgepoint, has argued that the project will boost township tax revenues by about $15 million a year, and would not add to municipal costs such as building roads and sewers if the land were instead developed residentially.

We are a newsroom of your neighbors. The West Windsor and Plainsboro News is for local people, by local people. As part of the community, the Gazette does more than just report the news—it connects businesses with their customers, organizations with their members and neighbors with one another. As such, our staff sets out to make our town a closer place by giving readers a reliable source to turn to when they want to know what’s going on in their neighborhood.

Mammograms provide arti cial intelligence as another layer of assurance that nothing is missed.

They also provide shorter exam times and greater comfort, reducing our “squeeze” time by 75%.

To schedule, call 609-426-9200 or go to WindsorRadiology.com

SENIOR COMMUNITY EDITOR

Bill Sanservino (Ext. 104)

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Dan Aubrey

AD LAYOUT AND PRODUCTION

Stephanie Jeronis

Community News Service

9 Princess Road, Suite M Lawrenceville, NJ 08648

Phone: (609) 396-1511

News: news@communitynews.org

Events: events@communitynews.org

Sports: sports@communitynews.org

Letters: bsanservino@communitynews.org

Website: communityews.org

Facebook: WestWindsorPlainsboroNews

Twitter: twitter.com/mercerspace

17,000 copies of The News are mailed or bulkdistributed to the residences and businesses in Plainsboro and West Windsor 12 times a year.

TO AdVERTISE call (609) 396-1511, ext. 110 or e-mail advertise@communitynews.org

Whoever your heart beats for, our hearts beat for you.

Leaders in emergency and elective angioplasty. Ever feel tightness in your chest when going up a flight of stairs, or short of breath after carrying in the groceries? These can be signs of coronary artery disease. If you think you may be at risk, you should talk to a cardiac specialist at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton. At RWJBarnabas Health, we perform more elective and emergent procedures than any other health care system in New Jersey. Our heart team can clear blocked or narrowed arteries to safely restore blood flow to your heart. Schedule an appointment with one of New Jersey’s top cardiac specialists at rwjbh.org/heart

attended Spring Garden Institute and worked for prominent architect Frank Miles Day.

The Trenton library building is an example of the popular Beaux-Arts design popular during the period that has also been dubbed the American Renaissance.

As “Public Art in New Jersey” author Thomas C. Folk notes, the style, “which dominated much of American artistic and intellectual life from the 1870s to the 1920s, existed as both a reality and a mental construct. Not specifically a style or a movement in the commonly accepted art historical sense of those terms, the American Renaissance was more a mood, or a spirit, or a state of mind.”

In addition to encompassing “many diverse idioms of painting, architecture, and sculpture,” the style also “had a broad base of support with many politicians, financiers, businessmen, academics, and men and women of the American middle class. As an idea or mental concept, the American Renaissance held both nationalistic and cosmopolitan ideals and looked to the past and the future.”

The building also hits another historic note for what it is not. As a library history reports, “Contrary to popular belief, the new library was not a Carnegie Library. Between 1883 and 1929, businessman Andrew Carn-

egie donated funds to construct over 2,500 libraries, but certain cities like Trenton and Newark felt that accepting this money would show that they were unable to provide for themselves.”

The current Lawrence Library is located in a building that was formerly a massive trucking terminal, but its history goes back to 1960, when a group of township residents gathered more than 1,600 signatures on a petition demanding a branch library.

According to Lawrence historian Dennis Waters, the residents’ request was finally approved in 1961, and that year, the Lawrence branch opened in a small 1,600-squarefoot space at the rear of Dunham’s department store in the newly-opened Lawrence Shopping Center. It was an awkward location because it was not accessible from the main parking lot in front.

For the next 20 years, the Lawrence branch remained at the shopping center location, though it moved several times and gradually increased in size.

As time wore on, Lawrence residents grew increasingly unhappy with the size and services offered by the library.

In 1978 the Lawrence Township Library Committee commissioned a report to study the feasibility of leaving the county system and establishing a township-operated municipal library, as Hopewell Township had

recently done. The report advised against leaving the county system, and the Library Committee accepted its recommendation.

However, the Mercer County Library System recognized that it needed a major upgrade, so during the period from 1979 to 1982 it began planning an expansion that would bring new library buildings to all of its member municipalities.

In particular, it planned a facility in Lawrence that would serve as the system’s headquarters and include a much-enlarged reference department. Financing was provided by the Mercer County Improvement Authority through a $10 million bond issue.

The site chosen for the Lawrence Headquarters Branch was 12 acres at the corner of Darrah Lane and Brunswick Pike. The site contained an abandoned trucking terminal that was originally built in 1953 for Riss Brothers, at that time one of the largest trucking companies in the eastern United States.

The trucking terminal was very well constructed, so it was decided to renovate it rather than tear it down and start over. Renovation began in the spring of 1983 and on April 7 of the following year it opened.

At more than 40,000 square feet, the branch was five times the size of the branch in the shopping center that it replaced, although some of that space was used by the county system for its headquarters, which

moved from Ewing.

In 1994 the MCIA borrowed $15 million to fund another upgrade of the library system, including a 17,000-square -foot expansion at the rear and the west end of the existing building, providing an expanded reference section, additional community meeting rooms, and new offices for the headquarters staff, whose former offices became the fiction department “downstairs.”

* * *

The Hopewell Public Library at 13 East Broad Street is housed in the red brick building that once upon a time had been the Hopewell National Bank.

While the current Hopewell library company was founded in 1914, there had been some sort of book or material lending system established as far back as 1802. According to a history compiled by the Hopewell Library, that was when Pennington resident Archilles Wilson ran a library that provided books for Hopewell residents.

The report indicates that a Hopewell Library Company had an organized catalog in 1804 and that it was incorporated twice in 1806, first as the Hopewell Library Company, then as the Hopewell Columbian Library Company a week later. The name change was to indicate the library’s location in the Columbian section of the township, now Hopewell Borough.

While it is unclear what happened to that

company, it is clear that other efforts continued to supply residents with books and information. That included the Mrs. M. A. Carter, Library and Fancy Goods company, operating in 1887 on the corner of East Broad Street and Seminary Avenue, and circulating and traveling libraries organized by the Grange.

Today’s Hopewell Public Library was established by members of the socially minded Roundabout Club and opened in a former harness shop on West Broad Street. A few years later it moved to the Fireman’s Hall. A public referendum turned it into a municipal and publicly funded library.

According its own documents, “The library was extraordinarily popular: As of October 1916, with a Borough population of 1,200, the library had 680 active patrons and owned more than 1,300 books, and had circulated 10,127 books over the past year. The library quickly outgrew its new space and moved to 28 East Broad Street in 1924 and shared this new space with the Hopewell Museum.”

In 1964 the library moved across the street to the former National Bank building.

Opened in 1890, it is a simple, solid, yet homey two-floor structure — nothing like the American Renaissance-inspired banks that look like Greek temples.Here one gets the old-fashioned type of library experience of being greeted by librarians at a

desk in front of a wall lined with volumes that chronicle the community.

Although there are sections that show that it was a bank — it has a vault, for example — the building’s small rooms make visiting the library feel like taking a step back in time.

The New Jersey State Library in the capitol complex in Trenton has a long and fascinating history and a facility shaped by an important design movement.

The library began with a collection of documents used by legislators when New Jersey was an English colony and before Trenton became the state’s capital in 1790.

An actual library started in 1796 when the State of New Jersey assigned the house clerk with the responsibility of maintaining the documents, pamphlets, newspapers, and books used by both the senate and assembly.

As the collection grew, so did the effort to maintain it, and a fulltime librarian was appointed in 1822. By 1883 the library had more than 30,000 volumes and occupied the southern wing of the capitol building — designed originally by Philadelphiabased architect Jonathan Doane, whose colonial and federal design had American Renaissance-flavored modifications and expansions by John Notman (1845), Samuel Sloan (1871), and Lewis Broome, 1889.

The library moved in 1929 to a new art

deco-influenced New Jersey State House Annex building, which also housed the State Museum.

The library got its own building when the State of New Jersey created the Capitol Complex during the post-war boom in late 1950s and early 1960s.

The building was designed by Frank Grad & Sons, a Newark-based company noted as one of the leaders in modernist government and corporate architecture.

The antithesis of American Renaissance or embellishments that connected to a particular nation or era, Grad’s approach was influenced by the international style’s emphasis on no-frills simplicity and clean lines — as demonstrated by the open spaces, windows, and sleek furniture.

While this modern style is no longer seen as modern, it — like all the buildings noted — offers both the opportunity to find a book as well as walk into history.

MCLS adult virtual programs for February

The following are virtual programs scheduled to be held during the month of February by the Mercer County Library System. E-mail hopeprogs@mcl.org to register to receive a link to the program.

TuESdAy, FEBRuARy 7

Creative Writing Workshop for Adults. 7 p.m.

Also Feb. 21. Join us virtually for an opportunity to share original creative writing of all kinds in a supportive, group environment. Facilitated by Chip McAuley, poet and Hickory Corner librarian, this ongoing workshop is for everyone who enjoys working with words. We will share work, discuss writing techniques, give supportive feedback, read aloud and more in this all-in-one creativity hub.

WEdNESdAy, FEBRuARy 8

Freedom to All: New Jersey’s African-American Civil War Soldiers. 7 p.m. Author and historian, Joseph G. Bilby discusses his book, Freedom to All, which explores the contributions of New Jersey’s African-American Civil War soldiers. An often overlooked subject, Mr. Bilby expands on the involvement and historical impact of almost 3,000 New Jersey African-Americans in the Union army and navy.

FRIdAy, FEBRuARy 10

Teen Advisory Board. 3:30 p.m. All teens are welcome to join! Come be a part of the MCLS Teen Advisory Board. There are opportunities to enhance your leadership skills, earn community service hours, help run library programs, and write book reviews. New members always welcome!

TuESdAy, FEBRuARy 14

ESL Conversation Group for Adults. Also Feb. 28. 10 a.m. If you already know some English and want to improve your speaking and comprehension skills, please join librarian Elka Frankel for some practice sharing your thoughts and ideas about all kinds of things with others in the group. We’ll also cover vocabulary, idioms and grammar relevant to our discussions. Bring your questions too!

See LIBRARy EVENTS, Page 6

West Windsor Community

Jaclin drives resurgance of Pirates boys’ basketball

Rich Fisher

One of the most improved boys basketball teams in the Colonial Valley Conference has been sparked by one of the conference’s most improved players.

Ben Jaclin was good last year as a junior, but he has taken it to a new level as a senior in helping High School South to a 9-6 record as of Jan. 23 and victories over some of the CVC’s top teams. The Pirates were 7-11 last year.

“I definitely feel being an underclassmen on varsity as a sophomore (in a fourgame season due to COVID) and also last year, I’ve been able to learn from upperclassmen at the time,” Jaclin said. “Last year it was Ricky Boone, the year before it was a couple of others. I feel I was able to take everything they did and learn from it, and do my own thing along with that.

Among the Pirates successes were victories over Robbinsville, Nottingham and Hightstown, which are considered three of the CVC’s top teams along with Trenton and Ewing. They lost to the Blue Devils

by just two points. Against the host Rams, South trailed 20-6 after one quarter before Jaclin’s 30 points sparked a 55-52 win.

Jaclin is putting together a seasonlong highlight video. After averaging 16 points with 35 3-pointers, 49 assists and 32 steals last year, he has pumped up those numbers to 18.6 points per game with 55 assists and 19 steals through 15 contests. His 3-pointers are down a bit as he had 25, but there is good reason for that..

“He definitely focuses more on penetrating this year,” first-year head coach Chris Gero said. “We run a lot of high pick and roll with Ben and Shubham Bhayana having the ball in their hands, and either J-Hova Bradley or Quintis Crosland setting that screen. A lot of that makes it so they can get downhill and whether they can score from there or have that dump off pass to the roll man or the kickout to the open shooter. That’s what’s contributing to his three-point attempts being lower.”

Jaclin feels part of it is that he looks to set up teammates more. “This year I’m more of a playmaker,” he said. “I’m defi-

nitely bringing the ball up a lot, so I’m not getting set up for threes, but I’m creating more. I’m trying to get to the basket and kick out to my teammates, while in past years I would just sit around the perimeter more and wait for others to get me the ball.”

Jaclin has been hooping all his life, starting West Windsor rec ball in elementary school before joining the Newtown, Pa. Rebels AAU team in fifth grade. He remained with them until this year, and also plays in a rec program in Monroe with his WW-PS teammates, saying “I wanted to keep playing with my guys, keep up the chemistry.”

Greco was an assistant during Jaclin’s sophomore year and feels he would have been a starter had there been a normal season rather than four games all against WW-P North. Last year, he was the team’s second leading scorer behind Ricky Boone.

After the Pirates graduated three seniors and Bryson Whitfield transferred to Trenton Catholic, Jaclin found himself

the team’s only returning starter. He was ready for the challenge.

“Ben is everything you look for in a student athlete,” Greco said. “He’s a leader and a basketball player on the court, off the court. We have three captains, Ben, Kai Hanson and Shubham Bhayana. We have leadership across the board, but really, Ben leads all of them.”

Jaclin understood immediately what was expected of him; and realized that he had to set an example and be there for the rest of his guys. Burger King and Taco Bell have been put on hold for the winter.

“I know the team this year relies much more on me,” he said. “I can’t have games where I’m not shooting the ball a lot or creating for my teammates. I need to be locked in every game and just providing for the team. Just having that mindset, that I can’t be taking games off.

This past summer, Jaclin went from a camper to an instructor at Pine Forest Basketball Camp in the Poconos, where he attended for years. He coached a few

See JACLIN, Page 8

teams at camp and felt that experience aided in his duties as captain.

“I think that’s helped with the stuff in basketball that I haven’t had to do the past couple years – always keeping my teammates’ heads up and holding everyone accountable,” he said.

Ben also spent time in the weight room and played on the Pirates soccer team last fall, wanting to be in top shape when the season started.

The 6-foot-1 guard served notice of what this season would be like right from the start. In the opener, he had 26 points, five rebounds and four assists in a win over West Windsor-Plainsboro North. He went for over 20 in the first three games, and exceeded that mark six times in the first 15. He had scored in double figures every game, and had 17 or more 10 times.

But points are only part of his contributions. “He’s been amazing on the court,” Greco said. “They’ve put a little extra defensive attention on him, so then he can make plays for others and that’s what he’s done so well. As we’ve moved forward he will continue to be the focal point of other teams’ defensive approach against us. So it’s not only him still scoring to make us successful but him making other plays as well.”

He has also improved at the other end of the court.

“I feel in the last two years I wasn’t a defensive liability but I hadn’t had much of a positive impact on defense,” Jaclin said. “This year I’m much stronger than I was. I’ve learned how to start taking charges, that’s a bigger threat to guys on the other team.”

And then there are the intangibles. The mindset that can’t be taught or coached. It just has to be within a player.

“If he makes a mistake, he’s not gonna make it a second time, and that’s obviously a huge benefit to the way that he plays,” Greco said. “And he wants the ball in his hands at all times. Most of the time this year if we need a play, he’s going to make a play and he’s gonna put it in the basket for us more often than not; or make a pass that leads to a basket.”

Jaclin is also a standout off the court, sporting an unweighted GPA of 3.8 and serving on the school’s student council. He is waiting to hear back from University of Maryland, his number one choice in schools, and has already been accepted at Penn State, Indiana, Delaware, Pittsburgh and Massachusetts.

Outside of school, he does work with the West Windsor Boys Charity Group, which aids the township by holding things such as spelling bees and ping pong tournaments. And he belongs to the Jewish Community Youth Foundation, which raises money each month for different charities.

“That definitely makes me feel good,” Jaclin said. “I like doing it with my friends. We all like helping out and doing whatever we can.”

Those exact same words could apply to what Jaclin does on the court as well. And WW-PS has become a team to watch this year because of his contributions.

“I also feel like I’m taking basketball more seriously off the court. Making sure I’m always eating right and before the games I’m stretching more. Just taking care of my body. I think that contributed a lot. I didn’t really change my diet, but I’m being more aware, especially on game days. I’m not eating fast foods and stuff like that. Just making sure I always feel right on the court and I’ve noticed the difference.”

HEALTH HEADLINES

BI-MONTHLY NEWS FROM CAPITAL HEALTH

Capital Health Regional Medical Center

Nationally Recognized as a Leader for Social Responsibility, Patient Safety

Capital Health Regional Medical Center (RMC) recently earned recognition from the Lown Institute as one of the most socially responsible hospitals in America. In the Lown Hospital Index, a report by the Institute that evaluates more than 3,600 hospitals across the nation, RMC received an A grade and ranked 4th out of 61 hospitals in New Jersey based on several key metrics that measure social responsibility. Among those metrics, RMC ranked number one in New Jersey for patient safety and racial inclusivity, number three for health equity, and number five for overall inclusivity. The report also ranked RMC among the top 100 hospitals nationally for health equity, patient safety, and racial inclusivity.

“Capital Health Regional Medical Center has been a leader in providing high-quality, equitable care to the people of Trenton and surrounding areas for more than 130 years,” said Dr. Eric Schwartz, vice president of Community Health and Transformation and executive director of Capital Health’s Institute for Urban Care. “This ranking by the Lown Institute validates the hard work of our staff and reaffirms our commitment to community health in Mercer, Bucks, and Burlington counties.”

“America needs socially responsible hospitals,” said Dr. Vikas Saini, president of the Lown Institute. “That’s why it’s so important to lift up these high-performing hospitals as examples for others to follow.”

The Lown Institute, founded in 1973 by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Bernard Lown (developer of the defibrillator and cardioverter) is an independent, nonpartisan organization that conducts research to help bridge the gap between existing public policy solutions

and improved access to care for all Americans. The Lown Hospital Index is the first ranking to assess the social responsibility of U.S. hospitals by applying unique measures such as racial inclusivity, avoidance of overuse (how well hospitals avoid unnecessary tests and procedures), and pay equity (how well hospital staff are paid compared to executives), among others. Data sources include Medicare claims, CMS patient safety data and hospital cost reports, among others.

Capital Health Regional Medical Center has a long history of serving central New Jersey and Lower Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The hospital includes a state designated comprehensive stroke center (part of Capital Institute for Neurosciences), the Level II Bristol Myers Squibb Trauma Center (one of only 10 designated trauma centers in New Jersey), and Mercer County’s designated Emergency Mental Health Services Center. RMC also provides inpatient and outpatient radiology services, dialysis, and numerous other medical services. To learn more, visit capitalhealth.org.

DON’T DELAY: Call 911 If You Suspect a Stroke

“When it comes to treating stroke, we always say ‘time is brain,’ which means that the sooner we can treat you, the better chance we have at a successful outcome,” said DR. DUSTIN ROCHESTIE, director of the Stroke Program at Capital Health. “At Capital Health, we have safety procedures in place to protect you from infection, while making sure you get the immediate, lifesaving stroke care that you need.”

The Stroke and Cerebrovascular Center at the Capital Institute for Neurosciences is a major referral center for the treatment of all types of neurovascular diseases, including cerebral aneurysms, strokes, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), arteriovenous fistul as (AVFs), cavernous malformations, carotid artery and vertebral artery atherosclerotic disease, intracranial stenosis as well as Moyamoya disease.

The only Joint Commission certified Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center in the region, located at Capital Health Regional Medical Center (RMC) in Trenton, continues to provide safe emergency stroke and neurovascular services 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week during the current health crisis.

“As soon as you call 911, our prehospital alert system allows our team in the hospital to prepare for your arrival, saving valuable time to treatment,” said Dr. Rochestie. “Your call could also activate our Mobile Stroke Unit, which can be co-dispatched with basic and advanced life support service to provide safe, immediate care at your location before you even arrive at the hospital.”

Controllable Risk Factors for Stroke

There are steps you can take right away to lower your risk. Get started by talking to your primary care doctor to learn about stroke screenings and how you can treat or manage controllable risk factors such as:

High blood pressure

… High cholesterol

Heart/blood vessel disease

… Cigarette smoking

Visit capitalneuro.org to learn more.

YOU SUSPECT A STROKE, B - E F - A - S - T

— Balance

Is the person experiencing a sudden loss of balance?

— Eyes

Has the person lost vision in one or both eyes?

— Face Drooping

Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. Is the person’s smile uneven?

— Arm Weakness

Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

— Speech Difficulty

Physical inactivity/ obesity/poor diet

… Diabetes mellitus

Atrial fibrillation

… Sickle cell disease

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW IS EXPERIENCING SIGNS OF A STROKE, CALL 911.

Is speech slurred? Is the person unable to speak or hard to understand? Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence, like “The sky is blue.” Is the sentence repeated correctly?

— Time to call 911

If someone shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 911 immediately. Check the time so you’ll know when the first symptoms appeared.

AMERICAN HEART MONTH

IF YOU OR A LOVED ONE IS EXPERIENCING THE SIGNS OF A HEART ATTACK, CALL 911.

This puts you in contact with a trained dispatcher who will tell you what to do and sends an ambulance to your location. When the ambulance arrives, treatment begins in your home and the emergency department is prepared for your arrival at the hospital. Because your symptoms may get worse, driving yourself is a bad idea.

The Chest Pain Center at Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell is accredited by the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care and the American College of Cardiology. This means the Center meets high standards for diagnosing and treating cardiac emergencies, such as heart attacks.

When someone is having a heart attack, time to treatment is critical. Capital Health’s pre-hospital alert system allows ambulance patients to be tested in their homes and mobilizes an interventional team at the hospital if there is evidence of a heart attack, saving time for an initial EKG test or faster bedside blood tests for troponin, a protein that enters the blood stream during a heart attack.

If you or a loved one is having a severe heart attack caused by prolonged restricted blood flow due to a clot or ruptured plaque, Capital Health’s Cardiac Catheterization Lab is ready to provide an emergency stent placement.

After you or your loved one has recovered, your last step is preventing another heart attack or heart-related illness. The Cardiac Rehabilitation Center, located at Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell, offers a team of physicians, nurses, exercise physiologists and registered dietitians who provide individually prescribed education and exercise.

All program candidates are interviewed prior to entering the Cardiac Rehabilitation program, which allows a team to develop and implement a personalized care plan. Participants include those who have experienced:

Acute myocardial infarction (heart attack) within the past 12 months

Coronary artery bypass surgery

Current, stable chest pain (angina pectoris)

Heart valve repair or replacement

Angioplasty or stenting to open blocked coronary arteries

… Heart or heart-lung transplant surgery

… Stable, chronic heart failure

Talk to your doctor about participating in cardiac rehabilitation. Visit capitalhealth.org/cardiacrehab for more information.

DO MEN & WOMEN HAVE DIFFERENT SIGNS/SYMPTOMS OF HEART ATTACK?

YES

SYMPTOM MEN WOMEN

Chest Pain

Shortness of breath

Sweating

Crushing, center of chest

Pressure, tightness, ache, stomach pain, sweating

With or before pain, may occur With or before pain, common

With cold, clammy skin, may occur Similar to men

Arm Pain Pain, numbness Similar to men

Back, Neck, Jaw Pain May occur

More common than in men

Stomach Pain May occur

Indigestion May occur

Anxiety May occur

Fatigue May occur

Dizzy/ Lightheaded May occur

Extend to abdomen or only abdomen

2x’s more likely than men

Mistaken for panic

Flu-like symptoms

More common than in men

If you or someone you know is experiencing these signs and symptoms, call 911.

KNOW THE SIGNS OF A HEART ATTACK AND WHAT TO DO IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW IS HAVING ONE

Capital Health – East Trenton Opens Offering Emergency Department Services and Continued Outpatient Medical Clinic Services

On December 21, Capital Health assumed responsibility for health care services previously provided by St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey. That campus, which now operates an Emergency Department and some outpatient services, has been renamed Capital Health – East Trenton and no longer operates as an acute care hospital.

“Without this transition, Trenton would have lost desperately needed health care services, including emergency services, behavioral health, and cardiac surgery. This would have been

KEY INFORMATION FOR YOU TO KNOW SERVICES

The Emergency Department remains open 24/7 in the same location. Patients needing hospital admission will be transferred appropriately for the care they need.

… The Outpatient Primary Care Clinic, located next to the Emergency Department, remains open in the same location. Specialty Care Clinic Services are available at various locations.

The CARES child wellness program remains open in the same location.

The LIFE program is now called Capital Health LIFE and remains open in its Bordentown location. Assisted Living Program patients continue to receive care as they did prior to the transition.

… Some primary care physicians, specialists, and surgeons who were previously with St. Francis Medical Associates have transitioned to Capital Health Medical Group practices. Visit capitalmedicalgroup.org to find your physician’s new location and phone number. If your physician did not move to Capital Health, visit capitalhealth.org to find the physician you need and complete contact information.

Cancer Center services, including infusions, are available at Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell. Visit capitalhealthcancer.org to learn more, or call 609.537.6363. For infusion appointments at Capital Health, call 609.537.7226.

Patients receiving care as part of the Infectious Disease, HIV and Lyme’s disease programs can be seen at Capital Health –Infectious Disease Specialists, located at 40 Fuld Street, Suite 305 in Trenton. Call 609.394.6338 to make an appointment.

devastating to the residents. I want to thank everyone who partnered with us to make sure key services did not leave Trenton,” said Al Maghazehe, President and CEO of Capital Health. “We are committed to continuing to provide critical medical services in the city of Trenton and working closely with members of the community, local officials, and other key stakeholders.”

Learn more about the services Capital Health offers at www.capitalhealth.org.

Sleep services are available at Capital Health – Hamilton, located at 1401 Whitehorse-Mercerville Road. Call 609.584.5150 to schedule an appointment.

The Behavioral Health Inpatient Program is at Capital Health Regional Medical Center.

Wound Care patients can call Capital Health’s Center for Wound Management and Hyperbaric Medicine at 609.537.7457.

Outpatient diagnostic testing services are available at other Capital Health locations, including Capital Health Regional Medical Center. Call 609.394.6695 to schedule an appointment.

TRANSPORTATION

Shuttles from the Hamilton Avenue campus to Capital Health Regional Medical Center (RMC) leave every hour, on the hour, beginning at 6 a.m. with the last shuttle leaving at 8 p.m. for RMC. All shuttles depart from the turnaround in front of the old Main Lobby on Chambers Street at the new Capital Health – East Trenton location. Return shuttles run every half hour from 6:30 a.m., with the last departure for Capital Health – East Trenton at 8:30 p.m. This can be used by patients or visitors.

MEDICAL RECORDS

If you need a copy of your medical records for services you received at St. Francis Medical Center before December 21, 2022, call 609.394.4460 or visit Capital Health’s website for other options.

MAIN NUMBERS

Capital Health – East Trenton: 609.599.5000

Capital Health Regional Medical Center: 609.394.6000

Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell: 609.303.4000

Recognized

travel talk with Caryn and Aron My team is growing

Eva Petruzziello, CRS, ALHS, SRES

Eva Petruzziello, CRS, ALHS, SRES

A name you can TRUST

A name you can TRUST

 A Proven Track Record of More than 30 Years 

 A Proven Track Record of More than 30 Years 

 Solid Reputation of Service and Dedication 

 Solid Reputation of Service and Dedication 

 A Professional Who Cares and Listens 

 A Professional Who Cares and Listens 

 Home Stager 

Results you can count on!

 Home Stager  Results you can count on!

253 Nassau Street • Princeton, NJ 609-924-1600 • (Dir) 609-683-8549

Happy New Year! 2023 looks to be an amazing year, especially for those of us in the travel business. After the past 2+ years, it is great to see. And with the growth in travel, comes the time to grow my team. I have already added one new member but am still receptive to adding one or two more.

This is a great commissionbased associate opportunity for the right individual who loves to work with people to help them realize their travel dreams, while also having the opportunity to get out to learn and experience more of what our beautiful world has to offer.

This would be a great role for someone who is in a life transition - perhaps about to retire or looking to make a career change. Perhaps you know someone who is ready to return to the workforce after raising their children and is now an empty nester seeking a new way to help make people’s dreams come true. This isn’t a “job”, but a chance to be an entrepreneur and be your own boss as an independent contractor – full or part time.

Those who have travel or sales experience are preferred, but not having such experience won’t automatically rule someone out. The right person can be located anywhere in the US. A passion for travel is a must!

If you or someone you know would be interested - let’s chat!

We would love to have you

join us on one of our travel experiences in 2023. We are looking forward to sailing in late September on the adults only Virgin Voyages out of Barcelona with an overnight in Ibiza and then right after Thanksgiving I will be taking a small group on a Christmas Markets River cruise in Europe with a chance to arrive early and explore Prague. Right now through the end of the year there are great promotions for these trips. There is still time to book your Spring Break travel and now is the time to start planning your summer and holiday getaway. And don’t forget to purchase travel insurance.

Contact us at cberla@ cruiseplanners.com or 609.750.0807 when you are ready to set up time to discuss your next memory making vacation.

At Cruise Planners we specialize in all types of travel (not just cruises). Whether you are looking for a Cruise, an All-Inclusive Resort Vacation, or a European Land Tour, we will provide you with the exceptional service you should expect from a travel professional.

Visit us at www. makingvacationmemories.net and follow us at www.facebook.com/ familycruising. Unlike big online travel sites, Cruise PlannersABC Family Cruising and Travel delivers the personal touch.

(Eve) 609-799-5556

(Cell) 609-865-3696

(Cell) 609-865-3696

EvaPGetsResults@gmail.com • www.GreatHomesbyEva.com

EvaPGetsResults@gmail.com • www.GreatHomesbyEva.com

4 Eiker Rd., Cranbury: Charming 3 bedroom ranch in a quiet setting of Plainsboro and near shopping, schools and easy access to main transportation. Freshly painted and refinished hardwood floors throughout. Updated kitchen with blonde wood cabinetry,

14 Caraway Ct., South Brunswick, NJ: Premium location in desirable Princeton Walk. 2-story foyer, updated kitchen, appliances, counters, cabinetry, & ooring. Living room & dining room feature hdwd oors & a gas FP. 2 bedrooms on 2nd r. 2 updated bedrooms & a new powder room on the 1st level. Finished basement & storage room. Club house, indoor/outdoor pool, tennis courts & much more. Near Major highways, shopping & restaurants. O ered at $360,000

My Priorities Are Simple. They're Yours!

A patriot, a tavern and a Continental Congress

PAUL LIGETI WEST WINdSOR ChRONICLES

The Historical Society of West Windsor—a 100 percent volunteer nonprofit that preserves and promotes local history—explores the life of Jacob G. Bergen—one of West Windsor’s founders, a former owner of the building now called “Grovers Mill,” a Revolutionary War soldier, and a prolific innkeeper—one of whose taverns was a headquarters of the United States Continental Congress and thus, temporarily, the Capitol of the United States.

Mill owner, soldier and tavern keeper

Jacob G. Bergen was born in 1745 to George Bergen and Maria Probasco in Windsor Township—the predecessor of West Windsor, which contained all of present-day West Windsor, East Windsor, Hightstown and Robbinsville, as well as all of Princeton southeast of Nassau Street and slivers of Millstone and Monroe townships.

In 1771, Bergen purchased a grist mill at the intersection of Cranbury/ Clarksville Roads. This building, whose water wheel turned with the flow of the adjacent Bear Brook, had been built prior to 1760 and ground grain into flour.

It still stands (as apartments) as a bluegrey building at 164 Cranbury Rd. in the historic community of Grovers Mill—but back then, it was called “Bergen’s Mill.” Jacob was the first of several Bergen family members who owned the mill until 1816.

In 1777, during the American Revolution, Bergen was listed as a lieutenant in the Somerset County militia, stationed around Princeton.

The same decade, he ran two inns in Princeton called The College and The Confederation (the reader can guess where his allegiance lay).

Apparently, he was popular and wellconnected (as many tavern-keepers often were). A petition circulated in the 1770s to have the village of Princeton formally organize as a township and establish itself as an independent entity that would host government meetings in Bergen’s tavern.

This petition did not succeed (Princeton didn’t become a township until 1838), but it demonstrates a fact of colonial American

life: the ubiquity of holding government meetings in taverns—a theme throughout Bergen’s life.

Bergen and the Continental Congress

Bergen’s influence, however, wasn’t confined to Princeton. In 1780, he announced in the New Jersey Gazette newspaper that he had set up shop in a 1730s-era “public house” (inn/tavern) known as the Thirteen Stars—one of Trenton’s largest buildings, especially after Bergen added a third story. During Bergen’s time there, New Jersey’s House of the General assembly met in the attic of the building—portending a much higher profile to come.

In 1782, an advertisement appeared in Philadelphia’s Independent Gazetteer newspapers proclaiming that Bergen had “removed from Prince-Town… to the Sign of the Bunch of Grapes,” in Third-Street, Philadelphia.”

This inn, however, did not serve Bergen for long: in 1783 he returned to the Thirteen Stars in Trenton, which was by then renamed the French Arms.

Bergen, by this point, must have had

some political clout—on Aug. 31, 1784, he signed a memorandum of agreement with representatives of the United States Continental Congress for the use of the French Arms as the headquarters of the Continental Congress of the United States of America.

In anticipation, the building’s “long room” was refurnished to serve as the assembly hall; its ceilings whitewashed, the walls repapered, and the floor re-carpeted. In this room, the Continental Congress met from Nov. 1 to Dec. 24, 1784. It was also here, on December 11, that Lafayette—the legendary Frenchman and Revolutionary War hero—gave his farewell address before returning to France.

Bergen and West Windsor

So, how does this story relate to West Windsor (beyond Grovers Mill)? Well, presumably after he left Trenton, Bergen maintained a tavern back in Princeton from at least the mid-1780s to the early 1790s. However, by 1795, he had moved to (what is now) the West Windsor area, presumably to live with his family and that of his wife—Elizabeth Covenhoven.

That year, he purchased a small building at the crossroads of South Mill

Jacob Bergen’s French Arms tavern (left) in Trenton, once stood at the intersection of West State and South Warren Streets. It was demolished in 1837. At right is the historic house in Dutch Neck that was once Jacob Bergen’s final tavern and the meeting site of West Windsor’s government for many years, starting in 1797, the year of the town’s formation.”

Road and Village Roads East & West in the historic village of Dutch Neck. This structure seems to have been established as an inn around 1784 by a man named Elisha Cook. Sometime prior to 1795, it was acquired by three men named Robert Hancock, John Harper, and William Shaw. However, the building was forcibly seized by the High Sheriff of Middlesex County in 1794 and auctioned off to pay significant debts they owed.

Moreover, two of them—Robert

Hancock and William Shaw—were in a lot more trouble, as they were indicted that very year in Lancaster, PA, for being part of a counterfeiting ring (albeit it’s unknown if they conducted their counterfeiting in Dutch Neck or elsewhere). They and most of their co-conspirators were fined $300 each and sentenced to fifteen to sixteen years in prison.

Bergen placed the successful bid for Hancock’s/Harper’s/Shaw’s Dutch Neck inn in 1795. After Windsor Township split

into West Windsor and East Windsor in 1797, Jacob Bergen’s inn in Dutch Neck was set as the meeting location for West Windsor’s nascent government. There, the election of our town’s first officials would take place, along with nearly every town meeting until 1808 and many more afterward.

Bergen ’s Legacy

Bergen died in 1805, but his wife, Elizabeth owned the Dutch Neck inn for

Village Grande Values

Realtor Associate

Joan Eisenberg

Office: 609-951-8600

Cell: 609-306-1999

ese Wonderful Houses are Located in West Windsor in the Village Grande ACTIVE ADULT COMMUNITY. e Exceptional Clubhouse Includes Indoor and Outdoor Pools, Tennis, Recreation Rooms, Exercise Rooms, and Social Rooms. e Community is Close to Major Roads, Shopping & Commuter Train.

WEST WINDSOR : Don’t miss this impeccably maintained 2 bed/2 bath Coventry model. An elegant front entryway with beautiful hardwood flooring flows into the spacious and bright living room and formal dining room. The kitchen has a large pantry and breakfast area with an elegant bay window leading to a screened porch with a ceiling fan to keep you cool while you relax outside and enjoy the landscaped grounds during the warmer months. The cozy living room o ers another place to unwind. A large main bedroom with ceiling fan, tray ceiling and 2 large walk-in closets leads to an immaculate bathroom with double vanity, jetted tub and walkin shower. The 2nd bedroom, full bathroom and spacious 2-car garage, complete this wonderful home. Recessed lights and ceiling fans throughout. Other updates include brand new roof, newer HVAC and thermostat (2018) $475,000

many more years, and was succeeded by several more innkeepers over the decades Around 1879 or 1880, the building permanently shut down as an inn and instead took on its current identity as solely a private residence.

Sometime between 1912 and 1930, it was relocated to its current position at 212-214 South Mill Road, where, unlike the French Arms tavern in Trenton (demolished in 1837), it remains an icon to centuries of local history. When the weather is nice, visit the cemetery of the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church, containing around 1,200 burials— some of them dating to the 1700s.

There, to the right of the church (its north side), just a few hundred feet away from the former Dutch Neck inn, a brown-red gravestone memorializes Jacob G. Bergen (1745-1805)—Revolutionary Soldier, West Windsor founder, millowner, and innkeeper who once hosted the United States Continental Congress. We invite you to contact, support, or volunteer for the Historical Society and check out our new West Windsor history book. Visit westwindsorhistory.com to learn more. We are also on social media—search “@SchenckFarmstead” on Facebook and Instagram.

Jeremax@aol.com • www.JoanSells.com

Paul Ligeti is the head archivist of the Historical Society of West Windsor.

Donna is truly amazing and she’s the kind of realtor you want working for you. If you are looking for someone who is highly skilled, professional, and will get the job done - you won’t need to look any further than Donna. She worked tirelessly on our behalf to list, prepare, and market our house. She worked seamlessly with the buyer’s agent, and took control of the sales process to negotiate a successful o er. And the result was a sale at full list price – even as the local market was starting to soften. She has a solid knowledge of the market, extensive experience, and an attention to detail work process that brought interested buyers to the table. Donna truly cares about her clients and followed up with us constantly to make sure that our expectations were being met and to give us timely updates. She even went above and beyond expectations when she put our deal together on Labor Day! We would recommend Donna to be your realtor without reservation.