Volume LXXVI, Number 22
Digital Tour Traces History of Princeton Public Schools . . . . . . 5 Public Invited to Tour Reimagined Nelson Glass House . . 8 Isles Forum Offers Solutions To Challenges of Equity, Sustainability . . . . . . . . .9 PU Men’s Lacrosse Falls To Maryland in NCAA Final 4 . . . . . . . . . . . 21 PHS Boys’ Tennis Edges WW/P-North to Win Sectional Title . . . . . . 25
Walt Whitman Shows Up In This Week’s Memorial Day Book Review . . . 14 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 20 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 32 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 12 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 29 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 30 Performing Arts . . . . . 15 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 7 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 32 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
www.towntopics.com
Neighbors of Seminary Raise Concerns About Demolition of Buildings Problems blamed on the pre-construction process for a new complex at Princeton University have sparked anxiety among some neighbors of Princeton Theological Seminary, where the demolition of buildings on the Tennent-RobertsWhiteley (TRW) property on Stockton Street is planned. “Nearby neighbors have had surprise visits from an employee of Princeton Theological Seminary, who is going door to door to schedule appointments to document roofs and foundations prior to the demolition of the TRW buildings,” reads an email from the Princeton Coalition for Responsible Development (PCRD), sent last week. “These unexpected visits have sparked anxious calls among neighbors who are appropriately worried about their property and also worried generally about the demolition process and environmental impacts.” While the process for construction of Princeton University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science (ES & SEAS) involves blasting of bedrock, which neighbors of surrounding streets say has caused cracks and leaks, the demolition on the Seminary property does not. “Indeed, there will be no blasting at the site,” wrote Beth DeMauro, interim director of communication and marketing for the school, in an email. “The Seminary is taking every step to ensure that this project has minimal impact to the surrounding homes and community. Individual meetings have been held with neighbors contiguous to the site to assess and address any concerns related to the demolition. The project has been thoughtfully planned and will be carefully executed to minimize disruption to the neighborhood.” They were designed in part by prolific Princeton architect Rolf Bauhan, and members of the PCRD consider them worthy of preservation. The buildings are not protected under any historic designation. They have been used for Seminary housing and office space. “The Seminary conducted an extensive study of the buildings on the site in 2018 as part of its proposed plans to build new student apartments, concluding that the adaptive reuse of the existing structures and upgrade to current standards was not viable,” DeMauro wrote in Continued on Page 11
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Wednesday, June 1, 2022
Health Dept. Juggles COVID, Other Priorities With COVID-19 numbers apparently leveling off, the school year winding down, and summer arriving, the Princeton Health Department is juggling a full schedule of obligations to the community along with the need for ongoing COVID-19 monitoring. Jeff Grosser, Princeton deputy administrator for health and community services, recently discussed the current challenges for the health department in adjusting to a new phase in the pandemic and a new workflow. “For over two years everything has gone into the COVID-19 response,” he said. “Now, many of our annual obligations of regular food, youth camp, and pool inspections, along with investigating communicable disease outbreaks, are being worked into our existing COVID-19 workload.” Grosser noted that many routine, cyclical responsibilities, like strategic planning, quality improvement, and workforce development, were back on the priority list. Public health professionals are now “working out how to budget pre-COVID responsibilities with the continued expectations of COVID-19 case investigations, outbreak cluster review, and guidance consultations to community
stakeholders,” he said. “This, of course, is coupled with continued COVID-19 vaccination clinics.” According to the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), the state’s seven-day average for new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday was down 16 percent from a week ago and up 54 percent from a month ago. The New York Times reported on Tuesday that the daily average of new cases in New Jersey was down five percent over the previous 14 days, and in Mercer
County the daily average was down nine percent over the previous 14 days. The transmission rate for the state was most recently reported at 1.09 on Saturday, with any number over the benchmark of 1 indicating that the virus is spreading, with each new case leading to more than one additional case. At Princeton Public Schools 71 new cases, including 43 at Princeton High School, were reported for the week Continued on Page 7
Primary Election Day is June 7; Lambros, Sacks Unopposed for Council
Tuesday, June 7 is primary day in New Jersey, and the two candidates for Princeton Council, incumbents Michelle Pirone Lambros and Mia Sacks, are running unopposed for the Democratic nomination for two available seats. They have both been endorsed by the Princeton Community Democratic Organization (PCDO) and have received the support of the Princeton Democratic Municipal Committee (PDMC). No one has filed to run for the Republican nomination. Also on the ballot are Bonnie Watson Coleman, running unopposed for the Democratic nomination for another
two-year term in the U.S. House of Representatives, and, looking to face Watson Coleman in the November general election, unopposed Republican Darius Mayfield. Princeton voters will be able to cast their ballots in one of three different ways. They can vote in person on June 7 between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. at the polling place listed on the front of the sample ballot received in the mail. Early in-person voting is available from June 3 to 5 at various locations throughout the county, including a voting site at the Princeton Shopping Center. Continued on Page 10
MARCHING ON: Presented by Spirit of Princeton, the Princeton Memorial Day Parade returned on Saturday morning after a two-year hiatus with participants, including the MacGregor Pipe Band, shown here, marching down Nassau Street to Monument Plaza. The parade was followed by a ceremony at Monument Hall. (Photo by Weronika A. Plohn)
Three world premieres by three of today’s most exciting and innovative choreographers
JUNE 3-5, 2022 •NEW BRUNSWICK PERFORMING ARTS CENTER•ARBALLET.ORG