Long-time Plainsboro Committee member Michael Weaver attended his last committee meeting on May 22. After almost 15 years of service Weaver is leaving the committee and Plainsboro. He and wife, Stephanie, are moving to Southport, North Carolina, this summer.
“I have had a good run as a committee member, but a conglomeration of events and personal issues has made me realize that it is time to step back from serving the community and spend more time with my family. My wife had a very serious illness about four years ago, and my son was injured pretty severely, and it has taken all this time to get them back to being healthy and whole, which luckily they both are now. So I feel it is much more important at this point in my life to spend more time with my family.”
The Weavers have lived in Plainsboro since 1984, and Weaver started getting involved with the community in 1987. While serving on the committee, Weaver has been liaison to the Public Works Department, the Committee of Community Associations, and the Parks and Open Space, Cable Advisory, and Veterans’ Memorial committees. Weaver has also served on the WW-P school district’s Strategic Planning Committee; was a trustee of the WW-P Education Foundation; served as a member of the WW-P Soccer Association board of directors for seven years, including a term as president; has coached Little League and soccer for both his son and his daughter; helped with and advised the WW-P African-American Parent Support Group; has been a member of the Plainsboro Lions Club; and has volunteered with Fathers’ Coalition, which supports youth in the community.
“I have touched a lot of different bases during my time here in Plainsboro, have worked with many different segments of the community. My wife, Stephanie, was a third grade team teacher at Wicoff school until she retired in 2011, and she too has built relationships with many students and parents over the years. We love living in Plainsboro. We moved here because of the schools and the sense of community, and both of my children benefited greatly by attending WW-P schools.
“But now it is time to move on. My daughter Danyelle lives in Los Angeles, and is a VP of human relations for Chubb Insurance. And my son Michael Jr. is graduating from Cornell University with an MBA in finance, and we expect he will be working in New York City,” explained Weaver.
“I am already retired from my ‘full time job’ for the state Office of Information Technology (OIT). So now I am planning on more time playing golf and traveling. And we are very excited about moving to Southport, with golf courses, ocean access, and more. But we have many friends here in Plainsboro, so we will be coming back often to visit.”
“Plus, I know David Bander [the Democratic candidate for the open seat] very well. (See WW-P News, April 12). He has been very involved with voter registration, and reinvigorating the Plainsboro Democratic Party for younger people. He has a very good background for the committee as well; he is a lawyer and works for a union. He will bring a younger perspective to our government.”
Weaver is proud of many of the things the committee accomplished while he served: the creation of the Plainsboro Preserve; the development of the village center; significant road improvement projects; the new hospital; and the renovation of Forrestal Village. “I am also pleased that we maintained a balance of growth throughout the town; the number of apartments and town homes compared to the number of houses, and the diverse mixture of businesses and residences. We are fully developed and yet have preserved a great deal of open space as well,” said Weaver.
“We accomplished all of this and managed to do it in a way that was mindful of our tax payers,” he added. “We made significant changes to the tax structure, changing it from a ratables base to a per pupil base, which helped stabilize the school taxes as well.”
“The one project I would have hoped to be finished before I left is the Schalks Crossing Bridge renovation. We have been working very hard with the state Department of Transportation to get that done —numerous meetings, planning sessions, phone calls — and we were able to secure the money and the plans. And then we hit a snag with Amtrak, which owns a portion of the property under the bridge, so it is not yet finalized. It is one of the gateways into Plainsboro Village, and it has no pedestrian walkways or lighting, plus the bridge needs structural improvements as well. But I have been assured by the Planning Board and others that this will still remain a high priority.”
Young Republican
Two Republican candidates had announced their intention to run for Township Committee: Jordan Smith and Matthew Greenberg. Smith, however, has had a change of plans: he is moving to Lawrenceville this summer so will no longer be running. As of press time, a replacement for him had not been announced.
Matthew Greenberg is still very much in the political race. Greenberg, who is 18 and a senior at High School North, said, “I have always been interested in politics and government, so it seemed like a good way to get involved in the process. This will be the first election I can vote in.”
Greenberg has lived in Plainsboro his whole life, with parents Jack Greenberg and Laura Nash, and younger brothers Bennett and Steven. “My father is planning on opening an ice cream shop, and my mother is the school psychologist at Millstone River School. Both of my parents are supportive of my decision to run.”
When asked about his brothers, who are in tenth and eighth grade, Greenberg answered, “I hope they are supportive also.”
In fact, his father’s ice cream shop is one of the issues he sees in this campaign. “I think there are too many regulations on businesses in Plainsboro,” he said. “Here’s an example. My father wanted to open his shop in Princeton Meadows, and the location was too large, so it was going to be split in half and used for two different businesses. But because of the zoning regulations, the town wouldn’t allow both businesses to put up signs. Who would want to open a business without being able to advertise it with a sign? So my father decided not to open his business in Plainsboro and is looking at Mt. Laurel instead. This is just one example of too much regulation.”
Greenberg plans on campaigning by going door to door and canvassing neighborhoods. “Even though this is hard work, I think it is much more effective than spending money on lawn signs and posters and such. It is a good way to meet and talk to people.”
Greenberg is no stranger to hard work. In addition to going to school, he works 45 hours a week as a WW-P Community Education extended day program counselor at Millstone River and as a server at Pei Wei Asian restaurant in West Windsor. “Over the summer, I will be working as a counselor at Lenape Day Camp, and as a counselor for Community Ed’s summer camp, and I will continue to work at Pei Wei.”
Greenberg will attend Rutgers in the fall. “Although I will be staying on campus, I will be coming home on weekends and during the week when I don’t have classes. I will still be permanently residing in Plainsboro. I will probably major in finance.”
“I know I am young, but I have a lot to contribute. I have a great perspective on the school district because I am so close to it. I will be able to enlighten some of the older committee members about the schools and some of the issues. Even if I don’t win, I hope that by running, I will be helping change the dynamics of the conversations, to encourage more young people to be involved, and to encourage more discussions focusing on a younger perspective,” he added.
“Unfortunately, not that many kids my age are interested in politics. People think they are entitled to things, and don’t realize that they have to work hard to achieve what they want. “
Before he began working, Greenberg played baseball on school teams from seventh through tenth grades. He volunteered as an umpire for Cranbury-Plainsboro Little League. “I love the community of Plainsboro. Everyone here is friendly; we all help each other. I know all of my neighbors, and know a lot of the other kids. It is a great town to get involved in.”
In addition, Greenberg was involved with National History Day in the eighth grade. “I filmed a documentary with my brothers on Herbert Hoover and the Great Depression. What most people don’t realize is that Hoover did more to get our country out of the depression than Franklin Roosevelt did. It was an interesting history lesson — and my documentary won first place in the entire country.”
“I have always been interested in history, because it repeats itself. If you study history, and learn from it, you can fix the problems of today by considering the problems of the past,” Greenberg said.
