I attended the West Windsor town council meeting on Monday, July 22, and it was an eye-opening experience. A large number of neighbors from Cranbury Road spoke about the need for sidewalks on their street and how they have been neglected for the last 20 years. I live one block away from Cranbury Road and have experienced problems myself, as the school district’s late buses routinely let children off the bus in the middle of the street during rush hour traffic. The street’s curves do not allow drivers to see the kids from a distance, and the lack of sidewalks or even a shoulder has caused the kids to have to scramble to get off the road. I have seen my own daughter and other children from the neighborhood desperately trying to climb a steep, grassy embankment to get out of the way of oncoming traffic. It is no doubt a dangerous situation that affects not only Cranbury Road residents, but residents of neighborhoods off of Cranbury Road, such as mine, as well.
The residents were eloquent and successfully made their case to the council, but it was downhill after that. Eric Payne, the mayor’s running mate in the upcoming election, made a shameless attempt to politicize the situation by talking about what the mayor had done about Route 1, claiming that the mayor “is the person to help you guys out” (a statement that was a little tough to swallow for those residents who have been making a case for Cranbury Road sidewalks for the last two decades.) It was followed by another political speech by the mayor about other things he has done in the past few years. The mayor made excuses for his inaction on the sidewalks, claiming there were no funds in the budget and blaming his failed attempts to get grants from the state to complete the project. In his words, he “was looking for sources of money.”
It was then that Bryan Maher correctly pointed out that the money does indeed exist in the West Windsor capital budget. It’s just a matter of deciding our priorities. Thankfully, he was joined by other council members to force the mayor’s hand.
With the election coming up and the mayor having a real opponent, one expects a little political theater. However, council meetings are not the place to play politics, and certainly not when a serious issue such as a lack of sidewalks on Cranbury Road is being discussed.
I am sure the mayor will request an engineering study and follow Maher’s recommendation to find money in the capital budget. Then he will claim credit for fixing the problem himself. It is important to remember that he has continually passed the buck during his 20 years on council and in the mayor’s office. And it was only due to the good members of council finally forcing his hand that he may now actually do the right thing.
Between now and November, I would urge voters to pay attention to the records of everyone running for office, and to listen carefully for excuses, empty promises, and yes, even for people claiming credit where it is NOT due. I personally believe it’s time for a change in our town’s leadership.
Virginia Manzari
Berkshire Drive, West Windsor
