Voters in West Windsor will have an opportunity to choose between two candidates for mayor in this year’s election on Tuesday, Nov. 2.
Incumbent Mayor Hemant Marathe, who is finishing his first four-year term as the township’s top administrative elected official, is being challenged by Tirza Wahrman. This is Wahrman’s first run at political office.
Marathe has lived in West Windsor for 27 years with his wife, Punit. The couple has raised four daughters who all attended the WW-P School District.
The current mayor holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from I.I.T. Bombay, a master’s in electrical engineering from Virginia Tech and a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Washington.
He currently owns a small business that distributes imported ethnic food items from India. For the past 30 years he has owned three different small businesses in different fields.
Marathe served for 12 years on the WW-P School Board—the last nine as the president. He has served for two years on the zoning board and for three years on the West Windsor Council, where he was vice president in 2016. As a volunteer he has coached recreational soccer, served on several PTA committees and is a member of the West Windsor Lion’s Club.
Marathe is running on the “Promises Made * Promises Kept” slate with council candidates Linda Geevers and Martin Whitfield, who are both running unopposed (See story on Page 17).
Wahrman has lived in West Windsor with her husband, Warren Mitlak, since 2004. The couple has and three daughters, all of whom graduated from the WW-P public schools.
Wahrman a graduate from Barnard College, summa cum laude, and holds a law degree from Yale Law School.
She owns a solo law office and mediation practice, representing a range of clients from homeowners suing for claims under the Homeowner Improvement Act to policy holders seeking damages from insurance companies for alleged misleading representations.
Previously, she served for 10 years as a deputy attorney general for New Jersey in the environmental and energy regulatory groups. She also has corporate law firm experience at two major law firms, and earlier in her career, worked in-house at the Port Authority Law Department, where she appeared regularly in federal and state court in both New York and New Jersey.
Wahrman is an elected director of the Eenvironmental Law Section of the New Jersey Bar and is a regular panelist and organizer of Bar Association conferences on environmental topics. She serves on the advisory board of Clean Water Action New Jersey, and this past year, she testified before the State Assembly Appropriations Committee on behalf of the advisory board in support of the bill that eventually became the Plastic Pollution Reduction Act.
She has also served on the Board of the Jewish Center of Princeton and is a member of the West Windsor Environmental Commission.
She has also served as an adjunct instructor at Seton Hall Law School and Barnard College.
The News sent a series of questions to both candidates involving a number of issues involving West Windsor Township. Their answers appear below.
1. Why are you the most qualified candidate for mayor? What differentiates you from the other candidate?
Marathe: My record of public service makes me the most qualified candidate for mayor. I’ve held public office in West Windsor for the past 20 years as a school board member and president, council member, and currently as mayor. In every position, I’ve demonstrated an ability to get things accomplished by working with other elected officials and professional employees.
Faced with the pandemic, I kept the community informed in a transparent manner. Working with the state, over 90% of adult West Windsor residents were vaccinated, giving them peace of mind.
We avoided building 900-plus homes by settling the Fair Share Housing affordable housing lawsuit and purchasing the Hall property.
In addition, I settled with the new owners of the Howard Hughes tract to ensure that no housing can ever be built on the site and the developer cannot ask for a PILOT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes), thus ensuring that the school district will get their fair share of taxes. In addition, the new owners will remove over 40 dilapidated structures from that property and clean up the toxic chemicals left behind by American Cyanamid, the site’s previous occupant.
We’ve been a leader on the environmental front. Personally, shortly after attending West Windsor’s first in the area National Drive Electric Week, I purchased a Tesla and am in the process of putting solar panels on our house.
The township has developed guidelines to make residential solar installation easier for homeowners, and has successfully encouraged solar power and EV chargers for commercial properties. West Windsor is one of the first municipalities in New Jersey to obtain a SolSmart Silver level designation.
The land use boards use a Green Practices Checklist for new developments. The Environmental Commission is very active in developing Pollinator and Rain Gardens, starting with the Community Park.
We’ve doubled spending on roads and sidewalks and are focused on making West Windsor a bicycle friendly community. This year we’ll complete the extension of the Trolley Line Trail to Village Road West, with a goal of extending it to Mercer County Park.
Even during the pandemic, we presented a budget with no tax increase for the second year in a row, while doubling township reserves.
I’ve been responsive to individual residents and have demonstrated that, even when making hard decisions, I am able to have productive discussions with people who disagree with me.
Wahrman: We live in challenging times, where a township like West Windsor needs a strong and persistent advocate before state and county officials. I believe my practical experience as a lawyer, with previous government experience, makes me the ideal leader and problem solver for the township.
I have worked with the staff at the Department of Environmental Protection and other state agencies, both as their attorney and later, on behalf of private clients in my private practice.
Our current mayor has taken the easy way out on the best ways for this town to grow in a smart and sustainable way. Other towns seek and receive substantial grants and incentives from state agencies like DEP and third-party organizations to build town centers and improve their retention basins to reduce the risk of flooding.
Developers in other communities showcase their wildflower gardens which are not just beautiful but serve as natural buffers during heavy rain events.
Other communities partner with their developers to plan and harden the built environment against severe storms.
West Windsor does not; in fact, our township tolerates the presence of abandoned homes and fenced-off, unsightly properties for years. West Windsor can do better and I can lead the way.
2. Commercial development and occupancies have slowed down in town, especially on Route 1. What would you do to promote development and attract more commercial ratables (other than warehouses) to West Windsor?
Marathe: Actually, we’ve seen an increase in many types of commercial developments coming to West Windsor as a direct result of specific steps I’ve taken to increase business development.
I simplified the process by replacing SPRAB (Site Plan Review Advisory Board) with the TRC (Technical Review Committee). This not only sped up the process but also improved the quality of applications coming to the planning board.
The result has been that several areas in town, which were dilapidated for over 25 years, have seen new and improved uses. For example, a new restaurant and gas station/convenience store is coming on Southfield Road, replacing abandoned housing. A new Starbucks is coming on Meadow Road. A Tractor Supply Company and hotel are coming on Route 1.
Boston Properties has decided to upgrade Carnegie Center. The Windsor Green shopping center has submitted plans for upgrading the mall.
Although Nassau Park and MarketFair have faced some tough challenges, we continue to work with them to attract new quality tenants. As a result, several new businesses have opened up in Nassau Park.
The Princeton University campus will have space for new high-tech businesses. Our open approach and my accessibility are making it possible to attract more and varied businesses.
Currently we are in negotiations with many of them. The warehouses proposed for the old Howard Hughes site will contribute over $15 million annually in taxes to support the entire town. And they’ll be required to route truck traffic onto nearby highways and hide those buildings from the road, just as the existing buildings are hidden.
Wahrman: If elected mayor, I will stress and amplify West Windsor’s unique position with a central train station and proximity to Princeton University as a natural draw for sustainable, commercial development.
I think the current mayor is making the critical error of completely deferring to the plans submitted by developers, instead of taking a hard look at the loss of green fields and vegetation that are gone forever when developers are allowed to build in an uncontrolled manner.
The proposed construction of nine large warehouses on the former Hughes Tract would destroy the equivalent of 125 football fields and lead to massive amounts of truck traffic. With record flooding and precipitation, West Windsor cannot afford to permit development that isn’t done in a sustainable manner.
Solar farms also generate revenue and produce clean energy. Was this option even considered for placement on top of large, flat buildings at the former Hughes Tract?
The Hughes Tract has wetlands on it; was the possibility of creating a wetlands mitigation bank explored, so that the landowner could receive revenue from other developers for increasing wetlands development on the site?
The township’s desire for commercial ratables must be pursued in a balanced, sustainable manner. Our township was featured on CBS News in Philadelphia during one of the recent flood events. How can this be good for people who want to move to New Jersey if they begin to associate our town with frightening, destructive and repeated flooding?
3. Communications between local government and the community is important. What are some ways that the township can better keep in touch with its residents?
Marathe: I’m proud to say that several residents have told me that I am the most approachable and transparent mayor they have dealt with.
We use multiple means to reach residents and that has never been more important than during the pandemic. We’ve improved and upgraded our website. We post updates on all issues affecting residents on the website and email it to residents who have signed up for our E-bulletin.
The police use Nixle very effectively to keep residents informed. I am very active on social media, directly addressing residents’ individual concerns. Our council meetings are available in person, YouTube and Zoom.
Wahrman: The township website is incomplete and not updated in real time. This community deserves open and transparent decision making.
I would make the website rich with information and easily searchable. Most important, I have asked why the planning board, which makes critical decisions regarding proposed developments, has lacked a remote link during COVID.
I believe the township’s failure to provide a link raises ongoing issues under the Open Public Meetings Act. If elected mayor, I will use the township website to solicit input on important projects.
I also pledge to make appointments to boards and commissions on a non-partisan basis, and to respond to applicants who are not selected to serve and have a publicly-accessible waiting list for those who seek to volunteer.
Lack of evenhandedness and transparency in appointments has been a documented problem in the current Administration. This hurts all of us.
4. Over the past year there has been a lot of talk about addressing racial inequality, including making changes in law enforcement. West Windsor is an increasingly diverse community. What are your thoughts about this issue?
Marathe: One of the best qualities of West Windsor is our diversity, which attracted my family and continues to attract families to West Windsor.
As a first-generation immigrant, I try to lead by example. The appointments to boards and committees I have made are diverse and based solely on qualifications of the individual.
The new employees we’ve hired demonstrate my commitment to diversity. West Windsor police have earned the respect of the community by their approach to policing over the years. They, too, have taken steps to diversify the police force. Having worked with the police chief and other officers, I am proud of the department.
Our aim is to make it a model department. We achieve diversity without sacrificing quality. I am proud of the record I have built on this front, not only as mayor but as school board president.
Wahrman: When I served in-house at the Port Authority, I represented individual police officers in court.
I have the utmost respect for the difficult and dangerous jobs that our police officers do. I have had only the best experiences with our highly professional police department in West Windsor.
As a citizen, I am aware of instances of police misconduct in other jurisdictions. They are covered, as they should be, in the national media. I attended the Black Lives Matter gathering in Community Park last year to show my support for equal treatment under the law.
I was inspired by the passion and idealism of our high school students who spoke. I pledge to have open and robust discussions with every member of our community to ensure continued racial harmony and mutual respect, which is the bedrock of our democracy.
5. How would you work to help control municipal taxes? Are there any areas of the budget you feel need to be looked at?
Marathe: The best way to minimize the tax burden on residents is to increase commercial revenue, and I’ve adopted policies to do exactly that.
The results speak for themselves. Even during the COVID crisis, the township generated $750K more revenue than projected in the budget. We have had no municipal tax increase for the past two years while doubling the township surplus during that time.
As a small business owner, I watch expenses carefully and continually look for ways to improve efficiency. One example of this is the purchase of a leaf truck this year, which will reduce the manpower required for brush collection and reduce truck trips to the dumpsite.
Wahrman: I am committed to a path of careful fiscal oversight to minimize the already-high tax burden that is a feature of living in West Windsor.
As a matter of good financial stewardship, I would revisit any contractual relationships older than five years to ensure that those contracts deliver value for the township. I would strive to cut “fat” from the budget.
As discussed above, state agencies like DEP and other not- for-profit groups provide substantial funding to townships to help mitigate flood events. These funds can be used to relieve the pressure on municipal spending that leads to tax increases. Finally, I will review our expenditures with the fine-tooth comb that our taxpayers deserve.
Hemant Marathe,
