Plainsboro Committee revealed several pieces of good news for taxpayers at its October 24 meeting, including a free ambulance for the rescue squad, 46 new gas masks for the police department, and the opening of the new park along the Millstone River — paid for by the University Medical Center as part of its relocation to the Plainsboro location. And Mayor Peter Cantu also offered some encouraging news for what could be an even bigger bonanza for the township, a new overpass on Route 1 at Harrison, just over the border from Plainsboro in West Windsor.
The mayor reported on a meeting he and other area mayors had with the state Department of Transportation commissioner James Simpson following the DOT’s decision to halt the experimental jughandle closings. “I was pleased,” said Cantu. “He said the jughandle decision was based on hearing the concerns of the community, but he was not going to close the books on the problem. He was willing to look at all the options.”
Those options include the widening of the Alexander Road bridge in Princeton Township, the extension of Vaughan Drive from Alexander Road to Route 571 in West Windsor, and — “the one most important to us,” said the mayor — the construction of an overpass at Route 1 and Harrison Street. Cantu added that “a lot of credit should go to Shing-Fu Hsueh,” the West Windsor mayor. “He did a good job pulling all the mayors together, and then in dealing with the state in a positive way.”
Committeeman Neil Lewis reported that the Plainsboro Rescue Squad had done well in its recent recruiting effort and had also been bolstered by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, headquartered on College Road East in the Forrestal Center, which had picked up the tab for a new ambulance to replace one of the squad’s older models. “We are lucky to have the foundation here,” said Lewis. To which Cantu added: “They are a good corporate citizen.”
Middlesex County provided the replacement gas masks, reported Chief Guy Armour, at no expense to the town.
The committee also set the agenda for its next meeting on Wednesday, November 7, and put out a call for volunteers to serve on various township committees and boards, including an alternate position on the Planning Board and a permanent and alternate seat on the Zoning Board.
“Some vacancies currently exist and additional openings will become available at the end of the year when terms of appointment end. Appointments are made when the Township Committee reorganizes in January and throughout the year as vacancies occur,” the township said in a press release.
“The sense of community that Plainsboro benefits from can be directly attributed to the generosity of our citizens,” said the mayor.
For more information or to obtain an application, visit www.plainsboronj.com/content/volunteer-opportunities or contact the clerk’s office at 609-799-0909, ext. 2547. All applications are kept on file for two years.
