Volume LXX, Number 31
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Community Gathering Faces Tension, Conflict With Empathy, Humanity
Five Princeton Residents Will Compete for Three Open Seats on School Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 First Hand Views of the DNC From Hughes and Zwicker . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Princeton Personality Pam Mount Is Working for Sustainability . . . . . 8 German Vocal Quintet Calmus Performs Shakespearean Program at Richardson . . . . . . . 13 PU Alumna Sharkey Primed For Olympic Field Hockey Debut . . . . . . 24 CP Bluefish Swimmers Utilize Depth, Talent in Cruising to PASDA Title . . . . . . . . 29
First Lady and Princeton Alumna Michelle Obama in Her Element at the DNC . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 23 Cinema . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Classified Ads . . . . . . . 33 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Music/Theater . . . . . . 13 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 31 Police Blotter . . . . . . . 15 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 33 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . . 6
About two hundred Princeton community members gathered last Wednesday night for a forum sponsored by the town, the school district, and the religious community in response to recent police shootings of black men and sniper attacks on police. The event, held in the John Witherspoon School auditorium, featured speeches and a dialogue between African-American Tone Bellamy, former Trenton gang member, now Stone Hill Church elder, Sunday School teacher, facilities associate, and hip-hop artist and Princeton Police Officer Bill Kieffer. The loudest, longest applause of the evening came when Mr. Bellamy asked police officers in the audience to stand. “Right now in our country law enforcement officers are under extreme amounts of pressure and in need of encouragement,” Mr. Bellamy said. “We appreciate you. I thought it was important to do that from this platform.” Emphasizing the key note for the evening, he continued, “We must humanize first. And we must learn to empathize, to create space to listen to people who have different perspectives than we have. We must create contexts like this where people can come together and create a sense of familiarity. We must humanize and empathize. Then and only then we can begin to change the narrative.” In her opening remarks, Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert framed the proceedings, “The haunting images and videos we’ve all watched have been forever seared in our minds. These have been difficult and painful events to process and they can have the terrible power to deepen divisions and fears, but at the same time they can also compel us to come together, to create the kinds of relationships and the kind of community where every single man, woman and child feels belonging and connection.” She continued, “It is my hope that by coming together as a community tonight and by having conversations like the one we’ll have this evening, by understanding a multitude of perspectives and taking steps towards reconciliation, we can be a community of openness and trust, of belonging and connection.” Stating that Princeton is not without its problems and challenges, Ms. Lempert Continued on Page 6
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Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Princeton Gets Drenched by Saturday Storm
The afternoon rain storm that soaked the Princeton area last Saturday paralyzed traffic and closed roads in several areas of town. But by Tuesday, most everything was back to normal. More than seven inches of hard-driving rain flooded Hinds Plaza and sent water rushing into the Community Room of Princeton Public Library, raised water to unprecedented levels at Princeton Junction train station in West Windsor, and flooded Princeton High School’s boiler room and the orchestra pit in its performing arts center. Quaker Road, Route 206, and parts of South Harrison Street, Alexander Road, Nassau Street, Dodds Lane, and Hamilton Avenue were impassable because of high water levels. There was flooding between Princeton-Kingston Road and the border of Montgomery Township. Police, fire, and emergency workers were kept busy all afternoon. “We had four water rescues,” said Princeton’s
Emergency Management director Bob Gregory. “All were cars that tried to get through moving water. One car had seven people inside.” The water rescues were on University Place by Dickinson Street, on Alexander Street at West Drive, on South Harrison Street, and River Road. A fire in a garage at the historic house known as The Barracks on Edgehill Street was quickly contained by Princeton firefighters. “It looks like the garage flooded,” Mr. Gregory said. “The way the property slopes down, water got into the electrical system. But the fire department did a good job of holding it to the garage area. There was a lot of smoke damage in the house, though, and water damage to the basement and first floor. The person who owns it lives there and rents the attached cottage. Thankfully, the original part was not damaged.” There were several calls for help from people whose basements were inundat-
ed. The residents of 43 White Pine Lane had to be evacuated. “That house had at least six or seven feet of water, and it was moving to the first floor,” Mr. Gregory said. “That was the worst of it.” Princeton Public Library had to close Saturday afternoon when water began rushing into the first floor. The library reopened on Sunday. “We were really, really lucky. And my colleagues did an amazing job,” said library director Brett Bonfield. “They worked really hard for several hours and got the remediation company in.” Mr. Bonfield was speaking from Venice, where he flew on vacation Sunday night. “I was called on Saturday afternoon,” he said. “By the time I got there, which was not long at all, they were getting people out of the building. They were afraid people would slip because water was coming in so quickly. Everybody jumped in with mops and vacuums, and got right on top of it. These really devoted people made Continued on Page 15
New Rules Proposed For Removing Trees Under Town’s Protection
THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS: Saturday’s flood created the illusion of an upside-down world in the lobby of the library . (Photo Courtesy of the Princeton Public LIbrary)
Concerned about trees being removed when houses are torn down to make way for new construction, Princeton Council introduced an ordinance July 29 that would change the rules about cutting down trees that are under municipal protection. A public hearing on the measure is scheduled for next week’s Council meeting on August 8. The ordinance, which was originally consolidated in 2014, is the culmination of work by the Shade Tree Commission. Under the suggested ruling, the size of a tree being removed is taken into consideration regarding how many replacement trees must be planted in its place. Currently, it is a “one-to-one” situation in which a tree of any diameter is replaced by just one tree. A tree with a trunk diameter of 39 inches or more, for instance, would have to be replaced by four plantings. This would apply on private property or in a public setting, such as a park or right of way. Residents who choose not to replant would also have the option of paying into a fund that is used to plant and maintain trees on public land. Fees could range up to $1,600 depending on the size of the tree being removed. But residents can’t just pay the fees. They must plant, Continued on Page 15
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