By Anne Levin

An alternative to Communiversity was presented to Princeton Council at its January 10 meeting by Adam Welch, executive director of the Arts Council of Princeton. The annual downtown street fair, a collaboration of the Arts Council and Princeton University, was canceled the last two years due to the pandemic.

Rather than let another year go by without the event, ArtsApril, a month-long cultural celebration spread out over several days in multiple locations, is being proposed.

“This is an opportunity to embrace the creativity of our talented and local community,” Welch said. “This is a decentralized event we can have in town for the entire month of April.”

As Welch detailed in his presentation, the April arts celebration would culminate with Princeton Porchfest, a free, family-friendly event featuring musicians performing on porches throughout the town on Sunday, April 24, the day that Communiversity might have been held.

“Attendees are invited to stroll from porch to porch and relax on front lawns and sidewalks as they enjoy live, local talent,” reads material that was in Council’s agenda packet. “A Porchfest guide will be available on the website, complete with scheduled performances and pop-up installations to explore along the route.”

The Porchfest movement started in Ithaca, N.Y., in 2007, and has spread to numerous communities throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Among ArtsApril’s proposed public art installations is the Princeton Piano Project, in which 10 upright pianos will be reimagined by local artists and placed around town for anyone to play. Actual performances will be scheduled on select weekends. Tentatively scheduled art exhibitions would be at the Princeton University Art Museum’s Art on Hulfish and Art@Bainbridge, Morven Museum and Garden, and Princeton Truckfest.

The existing mural on Spring Street will be painted on a rotating basis, and chalk drawings will be on streets, Welch added. more

CELEBRATING A RENAISSANCE MAN: Morven Museum and Garden marks the 200th birthday of Frederick Law Olmsted, creator of Central Park and numerous other urban green spaces, with a lecture by scholar Lawrence Cotton on January 27.

By Anne Levin

Frederick Law Olmsted is widely known as the designer of New York’s Central Park, Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, Boston’s Emerald Necklace, and to locals, Trenton’s Cadwalader Park and the campus of The Lawrenceville School.

But Olmsted was more than a landscape architect. He was a dedicated conservationist, abolitionist, author, and public servant. Across the country, the 200th anniversary of his birth is being celebrated this year with lectures, public programs, exhibits, and restoration projects. Among them is “Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing America,” a virtual lecture sponsored by Morven Museum and Garden on Thursday, January 27 at 6:30 p.m.

Lawrence Cotton, a historian and authority on Olmsted and his legacy, will present a “mini-travelogue” of select Olmsted landscapes across North America. Cotton was the originator, principal researcher, and consulting producer of the 2014 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) documentary Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing America. He sees Olmsted, whose firm is credited with 700 parks and 6,000 commissions, as a true Renaissance man.

“One could say that he saw his parks as a place to enact democracy for all races, religions, and classes to come together in one place for free recreations, for solace, fresh air, and health,” Cotton said in a phone interview this week. “He foresaw all of that. And it was part of his design intent from the very start.”

There were two Frederick Law Olmsteds — father and son — in addition to a second son, John Charles Olmsted, in the Olmsted firm. “Many people confuse who did what when,” Cotton said. “I’ll be covering all of that in my presentation.” more

A RARE PORTRAIT: This ivory miniature of Sarah Rodrigues Brandon, the focus of an upcoming talk, is key to the understanding of the history of multiracial American Jews.

By Anne Levin

It is probably safe to say that most people associate the history of Jews in America with those who emigrated from Eastern European countries in the late 19th century. But that history encompasses earlier times and other parts of the globe as well, as author and Reed College professor Laura Arnold Leibman will discuss in two upcoming virtual events presented by area Jewish organizations.

The first, on January 20, co-sponsored by The Jewish Center Princeton, Congregation Beth Chaim, Adath Israel Congregation, and Flemington Jewish Community Center, focuses on Sarah Rodrigues Brandon, who was born into slavery in late 18^th century Barbados and converted to Judaism, marrying into New York’s Jewish elite.

The second, on February 1, sponsored by the Rutgers Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, is all about Leibman’s book, Once We Were Slaves: The Extraordinary Journey of a Multiracial Jewish Family, which was published last year. Her earlier book, The Art of the Jewish Family: A History of Women in Early New York in Five Objects, was published in 2020 and won three National Jewish Book Awards.

“In the general Jewish American community, this hasn’t been part of the story we’ve been told. And that’s interesting in itself,” said Leibman during a phone interview. “But for people in the field who are working on the history of Jews in the Caribbean, it is part of the story. A number of us are interested in this. Those communities are so diverse. We are starting to hear that this is actually a part of the early American story.” more

By Anne Levin

Robbert Dijkgraaf

Robbert Dijkgraaf, director and Leon Levy professor of the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), will leave the IAS sooner than originally planned. Dijkgraaf was nominated to join the cabinet of Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, on behalf of (the social-liberal party) D66, the second party in the country. Dijkgraaf is intended to serve as Minister of Education, Culture, and Science beginning January 10, 2022.

In this capacity, Dijkgraaf will be responsible for the ministry’s mission of ensuring “a knowledgeable, skilled, and cultured country,” the release reads. “His focus will include, in particular, higher education, research, and fostering a creative environment to support students, teachers, and scholars.”

Dijkgraaf has led the Institute since July 2012, and was scheduled to depart when David Nirenberg takes over on July 1 of this year. How the gap will be filled between Dijkgraaf’s departure and Nierenberg’s arrival remains in question. “An official transition plan is being developed by the board of trustees in cooperation with incoming IAS Director David Nirenberg and the executive officers of the four schools,” reads the release. more

WISHING HIM WELL: The Riverside neighborhood turned out in force last week to say goodbye to longtime postal carrier Mike Downes, who retired after almost three decades delivering their mail and much more.

By Anne Levin

With Mike Downes as their mail carrier over the past 29 years, residents of Princeton’s Riverside neighborhood have been spoiled.

Downes knew everyone on his route. He stopped to chat with people suffering from COVID-19 fatigue. He brought newspapers from driveways up to doorways. He shoveled snow when people were out of town. He picked them up at the airport. He was always cheerful.

When word got out that Downes, 66, was about to retire, neighbors wanted to give him a proper send-off. Carol Prevost of Lake Drive got the idea to organize a drive-through farewell at Riverside Elementary School, planning it for last Thursday, December 30, the day before Downes’ final day of work. Despite having a house full of family for the holidays, Prevost made and distributed flyers, assisted by her daughter and two little granddaughters, around the neighborhood.

She expected about 15 cars to show up. But more than 50 vehicles — bikes included — many decorated with colorful signs, turned out to bid Downes farewell. more

BACK IN BUSINESS: Now that Quaker Road is reopened, visitors are once again welcome to explore the Historical Society of Princeton’s Updike Farmstead Museum, inside and out.

By Anne Levin

After an extended shutdown due to the pandemic and the closure of Quaker Road, the Historical Society of Princeton (HSP) has reopened its museum at Updike Farmstead, 354 Quaker Road. The roadway, closed since last September due to damage from the remnants of Hurricane Ida, reopened December 22.

During the shutdown, the museum kept programs in play via digital media and virtual events.

“We’ve been so pleased to have been able to stay engaged with history learners of all ages throughout the pandemic via social media, digital exhibitions, digital tours, virtual lectures and workshops, and so much more. I’m very proud of the ways we’ve been able to innovate during this challenging time, and that we’ve still been able to inspire community members with stories from the past,” said Executive Director Izzy Kasdin. “But nothing beats being immersed in the timeless beauty of historical landscapes and being face-to-face with real historical material, like Albert Einstein’s pipe or an evocative photograph. We’re so looking forward to welcoming visitors back to Updike Farmstead, and hope it’s just the beginning of their history journey through all that Princeton has to offer.” more

By Anne Levin

Early this month, a petition signed by 130 students and alumni of Westminster Choir College of Rider University was delivered to Rider administration. Complaining of inadequate facilities, decreasing enrollment, and unfulfilled promises since Westminster was moved from its longtime Princeton location to Rider’s Lawrenceville campus last year, the petition demanded an immediate response.

Rider responded with a lengthy email on December 16, addressing the concerns listed in the petition. “Starting at a high level, please know we have invested considerable time and millions of dollars in Westminster Choir College campus transition and the facilities to support it, all in a very challenging fiscal and COVID-impacted environment,” reads the letter, which is signed by Rider President Gregory G. Dell’Omo, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost DonnaJean Fredeen, and Westminster College of the Arts Dean Marshall Onofrio. “We know transitions are hard and often require sustained work to get right. We are continuing our work as explained below.”

While surprised at the length of the administration’s response, one of the students who wrote the petition was less than impressed with its content. “To me, it’s a prime example of gaslighting,” said Marion Jacob, who is pursuing a graduate degree in choral conducting. “It has taken all of our concerns and said they were not valid, exaggerated, or just don’t deserve attention. From every part of this petition, every one of our concerns was ignored. They mention a few things they have changed, but only since they got the petition.”

Westminster’s 22-acre choral campus has been located on Walnut Lane in Princeton since the 1930s. The college became part of Rider in 1992. Four years ago, Rider announced it would sell Westminster and its Princeton campus, saying the institution had been losing money. But the controversial plan was dropped in 2017 after attempts to sell fell through, and last year Rider absorbed Westminster into its Lawrenceville campus. more

By Anne Levin

At a meeting of Princeton Council on Tuesday, December 21 (after press time), the governing body was expected to consider taking the next step toward forming a Special Improvement District (SID) by hiring Economic Development Strategists LLC for the third phase of consulting services on the proposal.

Stuart Koperweis, president of the company, led a presentation on the initiative at Council’s December 13 meeting. Koperweis has worked for the past year with the town’s Economic Revitalization Steering Committee, which held two meetings last September with business owners about forming a SID. The issue would be further discussed at a January Council meeting, when there would be opportunity for public comment.

A SID is a defined area in the business district of a town that is authorized by state law and created by a local ordinance to collect a special assessment on the commercial properties and/or businesses in that area. A nonprofit organization, separate from the municipality, collects that assessment, which goes toward improving the economic, physical, and social values of the district.

At the December 13 presentation, local business owners including Kathy Klockenbrink of Jammin’ Crepes and Jack Morrison of the JM Group of restaurants, both of whom are on the steering committee, spoke in favor of the concept. Towns including Montclair, Red Bank, and South Orange have successful SIDs, “a consistent and stable funding source to address agreed upon goals,” said Klockenbrink. Morrison said the idea is especially relevant considering the effects of the pandemic. “Over the last 22 months the community has witnessed firsthand the importance of an organization that supports local business, nonprofits, and institutions, while nurturing alliances with our town on shared initiatives,” he said. more

By Anne Levin

Princeton University has announced a shift to remote exams, and a cancellation or postponement of some indoor gatherings, it was announced Wednesday. The changes are effective Thursday, December 16.

An increase in undergraduate COVID-19 cases is the reason for the shift. The entire University community must cancel or postpone all indoor gatherings with food, and those where face coverings cannot be worn. The order lasts through Friday, January 7, when the University will revisit and update the policies accordingly. Students will be able to leave the campus at their earliest convenience, and take their exams remotely.

As of Wednesday evening, the campus risk status was posted as “moderate to high.”  The campus website lists 34 positive cases out of 18,934 tests between December 4-10.

Undergraduates will test twice a week regardless of vaccination status. Graduate students who are fully vaccinated will continue to test once a week, and those who are not fully vaccinated must test twice a week. Student athletes participating in group practices and competitions must test three times a week, placing samples in a drop box by 10 a.m. Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.

The University’s COVID-19 testing clinic and test kit pickup information will switch to limited holiday season hours from Wednesday, December 22 through Sunday, January 2.

For further information, visit covid.princeton.edu.