On costly projects, neighbors’ opossition, and no competition
A quick glance at the local papers’ headlines lists several items of interest:
Controversial Snowden Lane pathway proposal advances: Committee introduces $100,000 ordinance
The Princeton Township Committee introduced a $100,000 ordinance Monday for the construction of a blacktop pathway and additional landscaping along Snowden Lane
The neighbors have opossed this very expensive project ($100,000 for 1300 feet of sidewalk, at $77/linear foot, plus $1,000,000 for street rebuilding for 1300 feet of road, at $770/linear foot) for various reasons, mostly that the rebuilt street would not be safer. The Town Topics reporter this morning unfavorably compares those residents with the residents of another street who he says “overall embraced the fact that [sidewalks] are a good idea”, no matter the expense. Elsewhere in The Principality, the folks opposing a night club on Bayard Lane will be suing the Township: Jazz Club Proposal Hits a Major Chord With Board Approval. Their hopes of avoiding a lawsuit were dashed when “the Site Plan Review Advisory Board of the Princeton Regional Planning Board (SPRAB) voted to recommend the plans despite anticipated legal battles”. Meanwhile, the neighbors on Queenston Place, Linden Lane and other nearby Borough streets aren’t exactly thrilled at the prospect of new construction
Barsky Brothers Holdings Corp., of Witherspoon Street, wants to subdivide 1.42 acres of land on two existing lots into five new lots, convert the existing three-story frame house, previously subdivided for apartments, back into a single-family residence, and build four new residences with two-car attached garages.
. . .
The East End Zoning Watchdogs members opposing the development argue that a 4,000-square-foot house on an 8,000-square-foot lot is too large a building on too small a site. By comparison, the existing houses, mostly built in the early 20th century, range between 3,000 and 3,500 square feet but the lot sizes are considerably larger— ranging between 15,000 and 25,000 square feet, Mr. Gupter said.
The Borough’s looking at reducing its police force, therefore, Princeton takes baby steps toward police force consolidation, which would make the Township carry most of the expense, as always. The Township approved
$98,750 professional-services agreement with Virginia-based Carroll Buracker and Associates Inc. to conduct an overall evaluation of police operations, which is expected to take five months to complete. The firm also is conducting a study of the dispatching operation.
The Topics’ lead story says it all: Currently, there are no Republicans vying for the open seats. The entire Borough and Township Commitee are a 1-party system.
As I said before, it’s enough to give you a case of bad hair.
