While Diane Ciccone will soon relinquish her seat on West Windsor Council — and with it her role as Council liaison to the Environmental Commission, she may continue to be involved on the commission. At its November 10 meeting five members of the commission passed a recommendation to the mayor to appoint Ciccone as an official advisor.
Ciccone was an active participant during the three-hour meeting and reflected on her experience and admiration for the commission.
“It has been a pleasure working with you guys as a council member — seriously. When I look at the different committees, you guys have done such great work. It really shows how well volunteers can work in partnership with government. We would not have gotten to silver (certification from Sustainable Jersey) without you,” she said.
Ciccone said that once the new council is in place she will recommend that at least one member take a proactive role with the Environmental Commission. Chairman Michael Hornsby told Ciccone she has been “extremely effective” in her role as liaison.
The commission will review proposals as it plans to spend $5,000 to hire a consultant to develop plans for the new environmental center at the Schenck Farm. The commission is authorized to use $150,000 donated by a developer to renovate three rooms and create a sustainability-themed educational center targeted towards children at the fourth grade level.
For most of Thursday evening the group heard presentations from two potential consultants/builders. Township landscape architect Dan Dobromilsky had sent a request for proposal to three firms and individuals that he thought were in line with the smaller-scale project that the commission will look to do at the Schenck Farm. Over the past few weeks he spoke with the consultants and two individuals came to tour the space at the Schenck Farm just before meeting with the commission.
Presenters included Christopher Kenney, principal of Philadelphia-based UJMN Architects and Designers, and Karina Raude, an illustrator and muralist in New Hope, PA.
Kenney’s firm has worked on major projects including University City Science Center on Market Street in Philadelphia and the PSE&G Energy and Environmental Resource Center in Salem, New Jersey. Raude has designed and created spaces at the Bucks County Children’s Museum as well as the Mercer Museum, and she showed the commission two binders full of photographs of her artistic visions, which were mainly centered around children’s themes and learning.
Dobromilsky said he has one other person in mind based on telephone conversations they have had. The next step would be for all three parties to submit their proposals and include the breakdown of the $150,000 budget including design and planning plus construction costs. The date set for submission of proposals is this Friday, November 18.
The Environmental Commission plans to act swiftly as it must use its $5,000 fund for a consultant by December. Hornsby planned a tentative conference call with all members for Monday, November 21, to discuss the proposals and select one.
Sustainability Grant Awarded. In other news, Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh announced that West Windsor Township has been awarded a $25,000 Sustainable Jersey Small Grant funded by Walmart. West Windsor is one of just three municipalities in New Jersey in 2011 to receive the $25,000 grant.
The money will be used to help develop a Climate Action Plan or CAP. “Implementation of the plan will reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from municipal operations and from the community in general benefiting taxpayers and reducing our carbon footprint. Congratulations to the West Windsor Environmental Commission for preparing the winning application,” said the mayor.
“The commission prepared the grant application, which contained two unique features,” said the mayor. “First, CAP tasks will be prioritized based on a cost-benefit analysis. Second, the CAP will pilot a new state law that allows government agencies and schools to make energy related improvements to their facilities and pay for the costs using the value of energy savings that result from the improvements. We look forward to working with Sustainable Jersey and the community on the development of the plan.”
