To the Editor:

Glad we are patting ourselves on the back regarding the LEED Silver designation. Take a step back and let’s bask in the hypocrisy. Funny how Sustainable Princeton was absent from the meetings at the Town Council regarding the controversial AvalonBay development. I do not believe they conversed with members of the Princeton community or the Princeton Citizens for Sustainable Neighborhoods.

Smart Growth is the rallying cry from Sustainable NJ, our Town Planning Board, Planning Dept., and Princeton Futures. Smart Growth is a misnomer; its premise defies the reality of carrying capacity, a basic tenet of ecological, economic, social, and political health. In the end the decisions of these political entities fulfill the goals of the Regional Chamber of Commerce, the mayor, and Town Council’s vision of Princeton to become a denser urban place and the center for tourism and business in Greater Mercer County.

Ask how the small business owners in Princeton view the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce. Even the state has awarded Princeton “Urban Renewal” dollars for recent downtown projects. “Smart Growth” in Princeton? If we wanted to live and practice Sustainability, we would outlaw further development of green fields ie. sprawl. And sorry to say this, improve everyone’s life in the area by recommitting to the re-making of Trenton. NOT an easy task BUT it would be Sustainability in action.

Would our Council integrate the advice of independent experts and the hard facts which reiterate the communities’s position in recent controversies? They ignore most of the recommendations of the hardworking volunteers on the Environment Committee, Sprab and Princeton Open Space. The Council repeatedly disregards the professional testimony from the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association, the Sierra Club, residents. Many “outside experts” live in Princeton, a well-educated, compassionate citizenry. Our town is peppered with architects, planners, academics, scientists, businessmen, and conscientious, ethical developers.

The tenets of Sustainability include social and economic justice, environmental security, community over corporate interests, and improvement in the environment and quality of life. Review Robert De Martino’s October 15 letter to the editor regarding the Council ordinance to construct unwanted sidewalks along Poe Road. Another controversy that violates all the tenets of Sustainablity.

Let’s now turn our attention to the AvalonBay developers and the former hospital site. The hospital has changed from a community hospital to a corporate entity that has thrown Princeton to the wolves. I say Princeton and not the Witherspoon/Jefferson communities because the entire town will be negatively impacted by the 228-unit AvalonBay development. The hospital gorged itself on the finest building materials and architect to build a monument to itself leaving us to pay the bill when it chose AvalonBay, the publicly traded developer responsible to its shareholders not our neighborhoods. This project could have been an award-winning Sustainable design that respects the community, carrying capacity, environmental and historical integrity, and improves the quality of everyone’s life.

The Council and its legal representatives failed to stand behind the people of Princeton. The bullying AvalonBay pushed our weak Council around. AvalonBay refused to address the environmental problems identified by objective, professional consultants. It refused to meet any of the framework set forth by the town. A lost opportunity for Princeton to develop and live sustainably; AvalonBay laughed at our pre-established standards including the highest LEED certification.

Wendy Ludlum

South Harrison Street