To the Editor:

I fully support the Institute for Advanced Study’s plans for faculty housing, which are currently before the Princeton Township Planning Board.

I attended the last meeting, and was amazed at the many barriers and irrelevant arguments mounted by those associated with the Princeton Battlefield Society, especially given the Institute’s carefully thought out and accommodating proposal. The Institute has been very mindful of minimizing the impact of the housing on the Battlefield Park, and it has also diligently addressed preservation concerns by conducting archaeological surveys of the whole site. In fact, the Battlefield Society’s own historical witness, Dr. Babit, conceded at the February 2 Planning Board meeting (when properly informed of the Institute’s plans to yet again survey the archaeology of the site before and monitor it during construction) that, with that commitment, the Institute’s plan was something even he could accept. To now try to undermine the proposal with claims about wetlands and stream corridors only dishonors the mission of the Society. I have been involved with and followed this project for years during my tenure as mayor and as a member of the Planning Board. It is now time for the Planning Board to acknowledge that the IAS has not only the legal right to build on this site but also has presented an application that merits approval.

I urge the Planning Board to vote for the approval at its next meeting.

Phyllis Marchand
Former Mayor Princeton Township