Our family has watched with disbelief and dismay the destruction of over 900 trees on Old Ewingville Road to make way for a new housing development. The clearing of over 12 acres of green space has made us aware that Ewing has far fewer green spaces, preserved woods and parks than do our neighbors in Hamilton, Hopewell and Lawrence townships. What, if anything, is Ewing’s plan to protect and promote woodlands and open space in our community?
–Karen Jackson
Ewing Township has over 335 acres of preserved parkland. We have worked with Green Acres, Mercer County and the D&R Greenway to protect and develop active and passive parks. We have Moody Park, Banchoff Park, Ewing Higgs Park, Watson Park, Armstrong Park, Village on the Green Park, Municipal Complex Park, the Ewing Senior and Community Center, Benjamin Temple Blake Farm Park, Sherbrook Park, Shabakunk Park, Trent Street Park and Roosevelt Park.
We also have the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park, the Mountain View Golf Course and Mercer County owned land that is used for soccer fields. The prior owners of the land on Old Ewingville Road chose to sell it to developers. The new development will have single family homes with landscaping which will include many trees.
Additionally, we will be planting over 700 new trees in Ewing Township to help offset this loss of trees. The new trees are part of a negotiated agreement that will be planted this spring throughout our parks. We have an active Green Team and an Environmental Advisory Committee that helped us receive a Silver Certification for our efforts to be more green and energy efficient.
There is a home in our neighborhood that was recently auctioned off, and the new owners have contractors who are leaving trash that is blowing all over the place. The overflowing trash has been sitting in front of the garage for over a month. There is now a garden hose that was thrown in the middle of the street. This home is still empty so trash will not be picked up. Who can I contact about homes that have a lot of trash in front of their property?
–Nicole Warren
I have asked our Code Enforcement office to send out inspectors to address the trash and construction debris left on and near your property. If the problem continues you can call (609) 883-2900 ext. 7677. You can also call my office and ask for me or my administrator, Jim McManimon. The owners of the property will be given a very short time to clean up the property. If they fail, the township will clean up the property and assess a lien on the property for the actual cost of the cleanup, along with an additional administrative fee. This fee would have to be paid by the end of the year as part of the property tax bill.
On the I-95 south exit to Federal City Road south, there is a point of land at the end of the exit. There are trees covered in vines there and it makes it difficult to see the oncoming cars, creating a hazardous situation. Who is responsible for cleaning out the vines so that motorists merging onto the road can see?
–Beverly Hagy
The exit you refer to belongs to the State of New Jersey, and they maintain the ramps and the interstate. The property behind the ramp belongs to a resident of Lawrence Township. I have reached out to the Lawrence Township manager and requested that they contact the property owner and ask that they trim the branches to help improve the visibility in the area of the merge on Federal City Road.
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