Princeton Future Eyes Witherspoon, And Some Residents Are Suspicious

Matthew Hersh

Is Witherspoon Street the "next big thing" for Princeton?

After Palmer Square and Princeton Borough had settled their dispute over housing on Hulfish North, and after the Arts Council scaled back its plans for a new facility, Princeton Future, a community-based group assembled to analyze the effects of in-town development, decided that the next issue was what would become of Witherspoon Street once the hospital decides its fate. How will this major throughway, the so-called spine of the community, adjust to major changes in Princeton?

To many, Witherspoon Street means a nice stretch of city space from Nassau Hall to the library, offering an array of shops, restaurants, and in the springtime, when the pear trees bloom, resembling a "bride in her bower," as one resident poet put it.

To others, Witherspoon Street is their home; home to their parents and their parents' parents, and home to their children. Shirley Satterfield, who represents her family's sixth generation in Princeton, is the unofficial historian of the community and views Witherspoon Street quite differently than others.

"When I think of Witherspoon Street, I remember the only time we saw people who didn't live in the Wither-spoon-Jackson area was when they came to get people who worked for them," she said.

Historically, Witherspoon Street runs through Princeton's oldest black community. At one time, the street was referred to as "African Lane," a not-so-subtle reference to the racial composition of the neighborhood. Historically, the neighborhood was also home to Italian and German immigrants who came to Princeton as employees of the University.

So, as dollar signs spring up in the eyes of those developers who eye the Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood's prime location, residents there have become increasingly worried about the future of their neighborhood.

That worry is why when Princeton Future convened Saturday morning at the Princeton Public Library for a "listening" session, residents from in and outside the neighborhood spoke their minds.

"The transition of Witherspoon Street has not always been in the interest of the progenitors of the neighborhood," said James Floyd Sr., Harris Road resident and founder of the Witherspoon-Jackson Neighborhood Association. "Witherspoon has suddenly become of interest, and I hope we don't disregard the history of its residents and its traditions."

Mr. Floyd referred to what he regarded as "spot zoning" in the neighborhood, or the practice of slowly granting variances to individual institutions.

"We have suddenly become a town of institutions and financial interests," Mr. Floyd added. "The Witherspoon Street corridor has been described as a 'neighborhood in transition,' and I've seen the effects of urban renewal."

But Princeton Future organizers and presenters Michael Mostoller, Robert Geddes, and Yina Moore, who is herself a Green Street resident, assured residents that Saturday's library gathering was merely a forum where they could offer their insights and not a venue for endorsing particular ideas on development.

"We are here to participate in the 'what-ifs'," Mr. Geddes said.

Sheldon Sturges, co-chair of Princeton Future, backed up that sentiment, saying the role of the organization is to make sure that each neighborhood along the street is given an opportunity to speak. "We're trying to make sure everyone is heard properly."

"I think anytime you get people together for the first time, the points of view tend to be polarized one way or the other, and what we found is as long as people keep participating, more people get involved and more points of view get expressed and you can come to a consensus," Mr. Sturges added. "Openness works."

Openness is something Princeton Future is trying to extend to the Latino community, Mr. Sturges said. Up to now, the Latino community has had a relatively small voice in town, but it has since been amplified by the reaction of immigrant arrests in the Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood. Members of the community have recently marched in protest of the country's immigration laws and hope to see some sort of federal reform to those laws.

In the community-at-large, however, Maria Juega, chair of the Latin-American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said the reason why more people from the Latino community are not more vocal is because many have felt marginalized by either the governing bodies or by other residents. Ms. Juega did say, however, that many felt emboldened by Borough Council's passing of a resolution that supported immigration reform, but, she added, that is only the start.

"It is unfortunate that our legislation is such that it keeps many of these individuals at the margins of our society and therefore the Latino community finds it very hard to take roots and feel a part of the Princeton community."

Princeton Future officials said they will continue to bid for a consensus on any developmental proposals, citing successes in previous development projects, namely, the library square, and its ability to broker a compromise in the Arts Council planning process. However, Princeton Future has lost some support in the past several months. Mr. Floyd, for one, removed his name from Princeton Future's honorary chair list, and Princeton University, which had offered financial support to the organization, has announced that it would no longer support Princeton Future.

"We are a largely volunteer operation," Mr. Sturges said, adding that the lion's share of support comes from grants and donations.