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Vol. LXI, No. 46
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
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Vol. LXI, No. 46
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
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(2 Letters)
EVELYN SALDICK
Randall Road
ANNE O’NEILL
President
Princeton-Colmar Sister City Association
LINDA SIPPRELLE
Nassau Street
MICHAEL LaRICCIA
Arts Council of Princeton
ANNE WALDRON NEUMANN
Member, Princeton Environmental Commission
To the Editor:
I would like to thank all of the voters who came out to support me at the polls on November 6. I sincerely appreciate all of your support over the past 23 years. Clearly I could not have done this without the wonderful group of volunteers who have given so generously of their time, talents, and energy over these years.
I will continue to do my best to represent you in a fair and balanced manner as we work together to protect and preserve what is in the best interest of Princeton Borough.
MILDRED T. TROTMAN
Mayor, Borough of Princeton
To the Editor:
Although recently re-elected to the Princeton Borough Council as a Democrat, I thank all those who participated in the Princeton Borough election this year, no matter their party affiliation, interest in the community, or role in the local election. Having a contested political race promotes a dialogue about the future of our community that benefits us all. So I’m grateful to Linda Sipprelle for her candidacy and marathon election effort, as I am to Borough voters for according me the opportunity to continue working for our community.
I particularly solicit the continuing participation in local affairs of persons interested in reducing our local tax burden, those who seek greater contribution to the Borough’s annual operating budget from the non-profit sector, and those who would welcome a more business-like approach to Borough-Township relations and the resolution of the stalled downtown development. Your ideas and energy on these subjects are particularly needed.
Congratulations to Mayor Mildred Trotman and Councilman Andrew Koontz, with whom I look forward to working in the years ahead.
ROGER MARTINDELL
Prospect Avenue
To the Editor:
Burton Rothberg wrote (Town Topics, October 31) that he was saddened by the death of Dominique Wenzel, and that biking requires an “urban cycling attitude.”
If Ms. Wenzel had been wearing a helmet, her life might have been saved, as mine was 12 years ago when a truck hit me on Snowden Lane.
EVELYN SALDICK
Randall Road
To the Editor:
During election season when we are often asked to focus on partisan issues, I’d like to draw attention to the events of last weekend when a delegation from Colmar, France visited Princeton to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Princeton-Colmar Sister City jumelage. Whatever divided opinions may surface at this time of year, it is clear that the citizens of Princeton are empathically united in the enduring friendship we share with our “twins” in Colmar. From the moment when 20 Colmarians — Les Amis du Jumelage de Colmar and two Deputy Mayors — arrived at Borough Hall on Saturday, October 26 to be welcomed by their Princeton host families, the people of Princeton opened their hearts, homes, and their entire town to their Colmar friends. (Mayor Trotman proclaimed them honorary citizens of Princeton Borough.) When, on Tuesday, they departed for Washington, DC, the Colmarians expressed glowing thanks for the extraordinary welcome showered on them by the citizens of their Sister City.
The great success of this 20th Anniversary visit would not have been possible without a symphony of players: Princeton Borough Hall, The Arts Council of Princeton, The First Baptist Church, The Princeton Public Library, Princeton University, The Princeton Historical Association, Mediterra Restaurant, Witherspoon Bread Company, Conte’s Pizzeria, the Princeton-Colmar Sister City Association, and, of course, the many welcoming residents. To each and every one who helped send our Colmar “twins” back home with heart-warming memories of their stay in Princeton, I extend un grand merci for your generosity and the spirit of enduring friendship behind it.
ANNE O’NEILL
President
Princeton-Colmar Sister City Association
To the Editor:
I wish to extend my congratulations to Councilmen Martindell and Koontz on their general election victory.
I also want to express my sincere appreciation to the many Borough voters who supported my campaign and voted for me. I am encouraged by the election results.
It must be kept in mind when measuring electoral success that registered Democrat voters in the Borough outnumber Republicans four to one. The final tally indicates that my candidacy received significant bi-partisan and independent support from voters seeking change in Borough priorities and governance. This reality is illustrated by the fact that the number of votes I received out-paced by far the votes received by the countywide Republican candidates on the Borough ballot.
You believed, as I do, that a platform and campaign based on addressing and solving local problems, rather than instinctively supporting a particular party label is the right thing to do. It is clear, however, from the election result that the majority of Borough voters are not yet ready to make that choice, even if it is in their own best interest. Such a reflexive partisan stance makes victory difficult for an opposition candidate in the Borough’s current one-party mind-set. Nevertheless, I consider it a victory of sorts and a step in the right direction when Council members, since I launched my campaign, have also started to talk about cutting property taxes, the need for transparency in Council deliberation, “financial conservatism,” and “limiting the role of government in the lives of individual people.” I want to believe that this is more than campaign rhetoric.
As I move forward with my community involvement, I look forward to receiving your thoughts about Borough issues. By continuing to work together, we can counter the polarization that afflicts our community and advance our goal of positive change to make Princeton Borough both affordable and livable.
LINDA SIPPRELLE
Nassau Street
To the Editor:
On behalf of the Arts Council of Princeton we would like to thank everyone who participated in our Annual Hometown Halloween Parade. Hundreds of people marched from Albert E. Hinds Plaza to Palmer Square, following the Princeton University Marching Band and the Headless Horseman.
Our thanks go to the Nassau Inn for their generosity in providing activities and treats, Palmer Square Management for their support, and Small World Coffee for donating hot chocolate coupons. We would also like to thank Borough Mayor Mildred Trotman, the Princeton University Band, Princeton Fire Department, Princeton Police Department, Alex and the Kaleidoscope Band, and Susan Zamtak and Oscar the horse, aka the Headless Horseman. Special thanks also go to the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the J. Seward Johnson Sr. Charitable Trust for their funding support of our free community programming.
Finally, we wish to thank all of the families who participated. We look forward to seeing you next year.
MICHAEL LaRICCIA
Arts Council of Princeton
To the Editor:
I urge residents to take the Princeton Environmental Commission’s free Green Home and Garden Tour this coming Saturday, November 17, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Maps for this self-guided tour are now available at the library and other locations or can be downloaded from www.princetonboro.org. Tourgoers can take the tour in any order and, to avoid crowds, should begin the tour at a random point.
Together, the tour’s stops — five private homes, three gardens, and two public buildings — exhibit every major category of green building and landscaping: carbon-based energy reduction, renewable-energy production, water conservation, storm-water retention, indoor access to sunlight and air, avoidance of harmful chemicals, use of recycled building materials, and recycling discarded building materials.
One stop on the tour is a professionally designed and maintained organic landscape. Richard McCoy, of McCoy Horticultural Services, and Barry Draycott, of Tech Terra Organics, believe organic gardens help create balanced ecosystems. This garden’s design includes native and deer-resistant plants and is maintained using environmentally friendly strategies: composting, rainwater collection, organic and natural lawn maintenance, and compost-tea applications to encourage soil health.
Indeed, every stop on the PEC’s Green Home and Garden Tour promotes social and economic sustainability as well as environmental protection. By employing local architects, builders, and landscapers, the tour’s homeowners helped jobs and salaries remain here. Area residents who want to help the environment in large or small ways will see many practical examples on Saturday’s tour and can get written information at each stop. They can increase our social sustainability by helping build a community of those with environmental interests. And, whether or not they decide to hire any of the professionals they meet on the tour, their attendance will express support for our community’s economic sustainability.
ANNE WALDRON NEUMANN
Member, Princeton Environmental Commission