Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh called West Windsor a “full service” community while explaining the town’s high taxes during his sixth annual state of the township address on Monday, March 5.##M:[more]##
“Being an empty nester and property taxpayer living on a fixed income, I understand your concern about the high property taxes we pay every year,” said Hsueh.
He said the bottom line when it comes to paying the inflated taxes is “you have no choice. You just have to do it.”
Hsueh spoke about the redevelopment, saying “in six months we will have a plan. It won’t be my plan. It won’t be Bob Hillier’s plan. It will be our plan.”
He said in addition to the redevelopment plan, other township projects will be done by the end of the year “with mostly federal, state, and other alternative sources of funding:” Grovers Mill pond restoration, skate board park, dog park, and the PSE&G easement pathway with a bridge across the Big Bear Brook.
He said the Alexander Railroad Bridge project is expected to take 16 months since Amtrak and NJ Transit allow only nighttime construction to the bridge that spans the railroad tracks.
The address included a presentation of plaques to the West Windsor Arts Council, the Farmer’s Market, and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Task force.
Hsueh also held a Town Hall meeting on Saturday, March 10, at which he displayed the latest in-progress plans from Hillier Architecture. One resident raised the question that if the plans were to be carried out as shown, it would require that the township use its power of eminent domain to facilitate widening Wallace Road.
Hsueh said he opposes the use of eminent domain. He urged residents to remain positive about the redevelopment and to take part in the next two charrettes. The second of the public meetings will be held Saturday, March 17, from 9:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. at High School South.
Hillier Architecture will unveil four designs at the meeting. Participants will be asked to respond with input on what they like and do not like about each of the plans. The firm will then use the input to create a single plan, to be shown and critiqued at the final charrette on Thursday, April 19, from 7 to 10 p.m. at Grover Middle School.
