Volume LXXVIII, Number 4
Pennington Methodists Celebrate 250 Years . . 5 Small Group of PMS Parents Protests “Critical Theory” Curriculum . . 7 PPPL Science on Saturday Series Begins Jan. 27 . . . . . . . . . 10 PU Concerts Presents Virtual Reality Experience . . . . . . . 15 PU Women’s Hoops Produces 2nd Half Rally To Defeat Columbia in Ivy Showdown . . . . . . 22 Goalie Fenton Stars as PDS Boys’ Hockey Edges Lawrenceville 3-2 . . . 27
A Momentous Centenary for Franz Kafka (1883-1924) Begins in America . . . . 14 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 20 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 30 Comforts of Winter . . . . 2 January Home . . . . . . . 17 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 13 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 21 Performing Arts . . .16, 18 Police Blotter . . . . . . . 10 Real Estate. . . . . . . . . 30 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
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Citizen Group Sues Municipality, Mayor Over Master Plan Members of the Princeton Coalition for Responsible Development (PCRD) have filed a lawsuit in Mercer County Superior Court challenging the Princeton Planning Board’s recent approval of the Community Master Plan. The PCRD filed the lawsuit, identifying the municipality, Planning Board, and Mayor Mark Freda as defendants, on January 16. Started by residents of the neighborhood bordering Princeton Theological Seminary when buildings on the campus were demolished and a multi-family development was proposed, the PCRD is described on its website as “a nonprofit organization that was formed to advocate for and enable a more effective and collaborative approach to land use development and redevelopment in Princeton.” The group has been especially vocal about the Seminary development, and most recently about the new Master Plan, which was approved on November 30, 2023. Required by law, a Master Plan establishes a kind of road map to guide a municipality’s future growth and development. The Princeton Master Plan was last reviewed in 2018. The PCRD is represented by land use attorney Robert F. Simon. The lawsuit says that “the assumptions and resulting principles and policies, having insufficient technical basis, fail to guide the use of lands in a manner that protects the public health and safety and promotes general welfare, and fails to include all required components, contrary to the requirements of the MLUL (New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law).” Further, the 32-page complaint “challenges the specific recommendations set forth in the 2023 Master Plan and Reexamination Report related to certain properties within the AINR (Area in Need of Redevelopment) Study Area, as well as surrounding properties, as there is no technical basis in support of the departure from the recommendations set forth in prior Master Plan documents, which departure improvidently paves the way for the possible adoption of a redevelopment plan for the AINR Study Area that will be markedly out of character with its surrounding area.” Referring to the transparency of the process, the suit charges that the Planning Board intended to pass the Master Continued on Page 9
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Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Council Approves Consolidation of Board, Commissions At a public hearing on Monday evening, January 22, about its proposal to consolidate the Civil Rights Commission, the Human Services Commission, and the Affordable Housing Board into one single committee, Princeton Council voted 5-0 to follow through with the ordinance despite three hours of testimony — nearly all of it opposed to the restructuring. Emotions ran high at the meeting, both on and off the dais. Council members voted at the beginning of the hearing to amend the ordinance, changing its name from the Community Services Advisory Committee to the Advisory Committee on Affordable Housing, Human Serivces, and Racial, Social, and Economic Equity; the number of members, and how the chairperson would be selected. They also apologized for the way the ordinance was rolled out without committee members’ knowledge. “Many of you took the news as a slap in the face, and the repudiation of the years of effort you have put in,” said Councilwoman Eve Niedergang. “That was not our intention, nor is it our intention to move away from improving the lives of our residents who most need our support.” While sensitive to the comments being made, Council members maintained their view that consolidating the two commissions and one board into one committee would be more efficient in
dealing with issues of equity, homelessness, and racism. The idea of consolidation was first broached in a memorandum to Council by Deputy Administrator/Director of Health Jeffrey Grosser, saying the current configuration represents “an outdated paradigm, where boards, commissions, and committees are siloed and compartmentalized within narrow focuses that attempt to address complex, multifaceted problems without taking into consideration the
broader range of influences and variables which underpin them.” “It is a bold step, and change is never easy,” said Councilman Leighton Newlin. “But we cannot continue with the status quo when it is not serving our community. We must prioritize the well-being of those we represent, even if it means challenging the existing norms.” Members of the public, many of whom have served for years on the three entities under discussion, complained that the Continued on Page 8
Freda Announces He’ll Seek a Second Term; Others Are Candidates for Council, Congress
Last Friday, Mayor Mark Freda, a Democrat, announced that he is seeking a second term. A few days earlier, Princeton resident and former School Board member Daniel Dart made it known that he will run as a Democrat for Congress against incumbent Bonnie Watson Coleman. Current School Board member Brian McDonald, also a Democrat, announced last week that he will seek to fill the seat on Princeton Council that will be vacated by Eve Niedergang, who announced at Council’s reorganization meeting that she will not run for another term. And Democrat Leighton Newlin has confirmed that he will run for a second term on Council.
The primary is on June 4. Election Day is November 5. Freda, who grew up in Princeton and is president of the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad, pledged in his announcement to “lead with transparency, foster open communication, and build lasting relationships — within our community, with neighboring municipalities, and at the county, state, and federal levels.” Freda cited the renegotiation of the town’s agreement with Princeton University, the creation of the Special Improvement District (Experience Princeton), and navigating the challenges of the pandemic, among other achievements during his first term in office. He also stressed an Continued on Page 8
SERENITY AFTER THE STORM: Geese and ducks gathered amidst the beauty of the Millstone River after last Friday’s snowstorm. Residents and visitors share how they handled the storm in this week’s Town Talk on page 6. (Photo by Melissa Bilyeu)