Volume LXXIII, Number 31 Hopewell-Pennington Area Life Pages 18-19, 22-24 Historical Society Hosts Talk on “Green Oval Buildings” . . . . . . . . . . . 5 American Repertory Ballet Announces New Chapter . . . . . . . . 8 Kendal Joins PPS School Board Race . . . . . . . . . 10 Princeton Summer Theater Presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream . . . . . . 14 PU Alum Hale Finding Home with New York Yankees . . . . . . . . . . . 25 PHS Grad Linsley Heading to World Rowing Junior Championships . . . . . . 27
A Look at Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood . . . 13 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach Realtors . .20, 21 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 17 Classified Ads . . . . . . 32 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Music/Theater . . . . . . 15 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 31 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 4 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 32 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
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Council to Explore Public/Private Partnership For Food Waste Program Princeton Council is looking into a replacement for the Curbside Organics Program that was suspended in February. At a meeting July 22, Municipal Administrator Marc Dashield outlined a possible public/private partnership that would have the town doing the hauling, and a private contractor processing the material. Council members indicated they are interested in pursuing the possibility. “There is a unique opportunity we have,” Dashield said. “We have been in discussions with MetLife Stadium, and they have a digester they are not using anymore, and they are willing to donate it.” Dashield said it would cost the town about $20,000 to repair dents and rust in the digester, and to move it to the local area. Representatives of the town visited the stadium to inspect the digester, and have been told by the manufacturer that it is otherwise in good shape. Partnering with a private contractor would provide the town with “the best of both worlds,” Dashield said. “The municipality would provide the hauling, which eliminates the need to go out for bid.” The arrangement would also allow the town to have control over the process, and it would reduce some of the regulatory requirements. A local farm is envisioned as the partner in the program. “We know there is an interest,” Dashield said. “We would do an RFP (request for proposal).” Princeton’s Curbside Organics Program was suspended early this year after seven years of operation. Solterra, the solid waste contractor, was not making required pickups, and there were periodic failures to take the food waste to a farm for composting, delivering it instead to a landfill. In addition, when the town sought new bids for waste hauling and disposal, the only bidder was Solterra, at double the previous price. Some 800 families were enrolled in the service, which cost $65 a year. Princeton was the first town in New Jersey to start a composting program, and last year was one of 35 cities to receive a challenge grant of $100,000 from Bloomberg Philanthropies to further develop its organic waste plan. Mayor Liz Lempert called the proposal Continued on Page 9
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Wooten Tribute Kicks Off W-J Celebrations A community tribute for Laura Mitnaul Wooten, hosted by the Wooten family, on Saturday, August 3 at 10 a.m. at the Arts Council of Princeton Paul Robeson Center will launch this year’s week-long Joint Effort Princeton Witherspoon-Jackson Safe Streets Program. Wooten, who died at age 98 in March of this year, was the longest serving — 79 consecutive years — election poll worker in the United States. Saturday’s event will include a Community Salute Brunch at 10 a.m., followed by a Tribute to Laura Wooten Recognition Program at 11:30 a.m. celebrating her life through a historical display of videos, pictures, proclamations, articles, awards, personal stories, and other memorabilia and recognizing her service to the local, state, and national efforts to encourage citizens to vote. Joint Effort Safe Streets has also announced the panel for its Tuesday, August 6 critical issues discussion on the future of Princeton. The community dialogue taking place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. will feature an introduction and perspective
on the future of Princeton by Princeton Future Chairperson and Princeton Design Guild Architect Kevin Wilkes, followed by a response panel discussion. Panelists will include Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert, NJ Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker, Princeton Councilman David Cohen, Princeton Public School (PPS) Board of Education Member Jess Deutsch, businessman and former Councilman Lance Liverman, Witherspoon-Jackson Neighborhood Association Chairman Leighton
Newlin, PPS Superintendent Steve Cochrane, architect and Studio Hillier Principal Bob Hillier (a Town Topics shareholder), Princeton Transportation Committee Chair Dosier Hammond, architect and JZA+D Managing Partner Joshua Zinder, businesswoman and Council candidate Michelle Pirone Lambros, Princeton Affordable Housing Committee Chair Alvin McGowen, and Princeton Planning Board Continued on Page 9
Public Art in the W-J Historic District— Who Will Make the Decision, and How?
A diverse gathering of about 70 met at the First Baptist Church of Princeton on John Street, Saturday morning, July 27, to grapple with the question of public art in general, and, more specifically, public art in the Witherspoon-Jackson (W-J) Historic District. Sponsored by the Witherspoon-Jackson Neighborhood Association (WJNA) in response to a mural project proposed by
the Arts Council of Princeton (ACP), the meeting was not to discuss the ACP plan and “NOT to come to a decision but to begin a conversation and dialogue among the people who live in the neighborhood,” as the WJNA invitation flier noted. “We are backing up the process and starting it all over again where we believe it should have begun in the first place, Continued on Page 11
MUSICAL FUN ON PALMER SQUARE: It was a lovely evening last Thursday for Dueling Piano Night on the Green, which featured two performers leading all-request sing-alongs of popular hits . The event is also scheduled for August 1 and 8 . Participants share their favorite sing-along songs in today’s Town Talk on page 6 . (Photo by Erica M. Cardenas)
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