The six candidates for West Windsor Council were asked to give a brief biography and provide answers to the questions below. Their responses are listed in alphabetical order by last name.
1.) Why are you running for Council and how will you contribute if elected?
2.) In what specific ways would you like to see the mayor and administration’s performance change or improve?
3.) In what specific ways would you like to see Council’s performance change or improve?
4.) Nobody wants higher taxes. What is the best way to limit increases while also not incurring large future expenses?
5.) Overdevelopment is a concern among residents. In response to builders, what should Council members do to best represent residents’ interests?
6.) Municipalities statewide are dealing with affordable housing. What do residents need to know about it, and what should Council’s role in the matter be?
7.) The topic of the transit village was brought up recently at the candidates’ forum. What should residents know about its current status and its potential future?
8.) What other township issues of importance would you prioritize as a Council member? Are there any issues which you believe are under addressed and deserve more attention?
#b#George Borek#/b#
1. I have been a professional firefighter in Jersey City for 34 years and serve in the leadership of my union. Residents have come to know me as a husband, father, and coach.
I have served on the West Windsor Council for the last 8.5 years. In all of these capacities I have worked to ensure that residents have a voice on Council about public safety, taxes, recreation, open space, and traffic, and their concerns are addressed.
2. I think that the mayor and administration have been very forthcoming with providing requested information and staff participation in support of Council deliberations and informed decisions.
I think that the mayor and staff need to have meetings with Council representatives between Council meetings so that the management of government does not wait for evening Council meetings every two weeks. I would ask for more regular financial reports so that Council is aware of revenue and expense discrepancies.
3. We need to be more proactive with issues facing the township. Waiting for Council meetings and not being available during the weeks between Council meetings is a disservice to our residents.
I would also like to see more transparency with Council agendas. Too much has been withheld from Council action by those who set the agenda. Issues should be brought forward and discussed and voted upon, up or down, in public view of the residents.
4. We need to attract and develop more commercial ratables. Residential development has costs in services that are not recovered —school expenses, brush collection, road maintenance, and the like. We need to be more supportive of our Class A commercial developments like we are with NRG Energy building a new headquarters in West Windsor; the new Hill Wallack headquarters on Roszel Road; and other potential commercial development. We also need to continue the purchase and preservation of the remaining open space in West Windsor.
5. First of all, Council members should not be speaking or dealing with developers directly. Developers should appear before our volunteer Zoning and Planning boards to have transparent, public hearings on what developers want to do in West Windsor.
Council eventually gets a vote on the developer agreements after the proposed developments have been vetted. The exception is when an Area of Redevelopment is considered. Then, Council is very involved as we have seen with the Transit Village. With this form of development, Council has a responsibility to involve residents in any discussions and decisions that are made.
Specific to overdevelopment, I believe that we need to continue our very successful program of purchasing vacant property remaining in West Windsor as preserved farmland or open space.
6. Unfortunately, the responsibilities of the state’s Council on Affordable Housing have been turned over to the courts to administer. COAH had been determining a municipality’s “fair share” of affordable housing over the years. West Windsor had a “builder’s remedy lawsuit” filed against it by Toll Brothers. The courts felt that West Windsor was not providing enough affordable housing, which resulted in the Estates at Princeton Junction.
Because of West Windsor’s development practice of inclusionary housing, we feel that we may be in a good position during this legal uncertainty. Council is directly involved, in partnership with the administration, in reviewing and providing its opinion on where any additional housing, and what type, will be considered in response to this court directive.
7. While the issues of development around the train station were litigated and settled, the economic climate has not been conducive to such a major development. Remember that together with housing and retail, there are major infrastructure requirements for this development. I believe that the development will happen but that additional adjustments may be necessary.
8. Besides taxes and development, we need to balance other elements that create a vibrant community. This includes recreational needs, which we are addressing in the development of Duck Pond Park, the cricket fields in Community Park, and the Princeton Junction pocket park (now Nash Park). Sports organizations are good partners in developing and maintaining sports fields, and we should continue to support these efforts.
Another important element is public safety. We have just purchased the Twin W volunteer ambulance squad building and will equip this as an emergency services, first responder facility that will not only be staffed with paid personnel but will include volunteer staff as well. This new facility will be outfitted in the coming year or two.
As a result of this purchase, the emergency vehicles that remain in the old firehouse on Alexander Road (part of the Arts Center) will soon be relocated to the new building, allow ing for expansion of the Arts Center.
We need to continue to focus on infrastructure improvements, as most recently with Alexander Road, and this remains an important capital improvement area of the budget. We have done well in getting grants to offset local tax-based funding, but there are still locations that need to be addressed. Included in infrastructure improvements are safer bicycle paths and sidewalks. As most know, we are working on Cranbury and North Post roads currently.
#b#Gerald Halloran#/b#
1. Public service was instilled in me at a young age. I watched while many of my family members worked for, volunteered for, and ran for multiple public service roles. I was proud to have been designated as a delegate to American Legion Boys State, which provided the opportunity to learn first-hand how governments are formed and run. I run because I am excited to call West Windsor my home and want to ensure that we can continue to improve on a community that we can be proud of.
I am fiscally conservative and on Council I will bring my business world budgeting, relationship building, and management experience to the decision making process. I will utilize my 10-plus years of experience optimizing multi-million dollar budgets to identify wasteful spending, allocating those dollars to areas where investments can be most beneficial. I will initiate tough but fair conversations and will carry with me the belief that the only way to move forward is to do so by developing trust with residents, other council members, and the administration.
2. My interactions with the mayor and his administration have been limited so my concerns have mostly come from those residents I have met and spoke with over the last five months. A common theme residents have expressed is with the amount of time it takes to receive assistance from the mayor and his administration.
Residents of the Berrien City area have expressed concerns with how long and difficult it is to secure permits for renovations to their homes. The residents along South Post Road are disappointed with the overall lack of concern the mayor and administration have voiced when it has come to the loud Mercer County-sponsored concerts and festivals that occur weekly right across the street from their homes. Residents all over West Windsor are frustrated with the ever increasing number of ignored uprooted sidewalks and unsafe traffic speeds that are decreasing the safety of our streets.
I’ll champion these causes and encourage residents to attend the council meetings so the mayor and his administration can hear first-hand just how their inaction is affecting the residents they serve.
3. I would love to see Council reach out to the community and encourage more residents to attend meetings. They are short, to the point, and are very informative.
As I have campaigned, I’ve been lucky to have been invited to many “meet and greet” events to hear directly from residents and have come to understand the concerns and issues that are most important to them. I will continue this practice and will urge my council colleagues to attend with me.
4. We need to first work with our current roughly $38 million annual budget. During the Council’s portion of the budget process council members need to hold open and honest conversations with the residents, the administration, and the various department heads. I’ll have the courage to shift dollars away from unnecessary expenses that benefit a few, into areas of need that benefit everyone.
One example: The current five-year capital budget has earmarked $875,000 for the creation of bike lanes, which are a great urban initiative. However, that’s almost $1 million for what is a luxury within the suburban/rural environment in which we live.
Meanwhile residents have expressed concerns with the inability of the township to maintain current responsibilities, such as tree trimming, sidewalk repair, and open space management.
I love to bike! I own a road and trail bike. However, when setting priorities, I would allocate more money to programs that affect the overall welfare of West Windsor, while encouraging increased grant requests to satisfy luxuries such as bike lanes.
5. I moved with my wife and toddler son from Hoboken to West Windsor because I experienced first-hand how irresponsible planning and development can negatively impact schools, roads, and parks.
I value the open space that West Windsor offers and I offer the current Howard Hughes site as an example of how the voters can simply handle prevention of the same types of irresponsible development I escaped.
The Howard Hughes property is currently zoned for Research, Office and Manufacturing. The only way any major residential development can be put on this almost square mile of undeveloped land, is if the Planning Board and then the Council approve a zoning change.
With this in mind, I’d like to answer this question with a question to you, the voters. Do you want what estimates say could be up to 5,000 more homes in West Windsor? If no, then vote Halloran, because I will not support the creation of what will essentially be a city within West Windsor. If you do favor a mass increase in residential units within West Windsor, then vote for George Borek, who as your Councilman flipped on a previous campaign promise and voted yes to an additional 800 homes to be built around the Princeton Junction train station.
6. Compared to surrounding communities, West Windsor has thankfully been ahead of the affordable housing curve. With the court mandated number of units expected to be revealed between December and February, it’s important to remember that as long as West Windsor can show that we are working in good faith to achieve this mandated number, West Windsor can control the quantity of market rate units developers will want to piggy-back onto the mandated affordable housing units.
Negotiating and executing a plan that works towards the court mandated number is how West Windsor can keep wise development decisions in our hands instead of in the ill-advised hands of developers, lawyers, and judges.
7. After breezing onto the council back in 2007 by telling the residents of West Windsor “No To 1,000 Homes,” my opponent George Borek voted yes for a revised transit village plan that would have put 800 homes around Princeton Junction train station. Can you call that a compromise?
Thankfully for those who currently find themselves stuck in traffic along Washington and Alexander roads, this project is currently dormant. Should it somehow come back to life, I’ll in no way support this plan as it will cripple traffic flow, contribute to increases in flooding along Washington Road, and add an estimated 200 to 300 more school children to an already saturated district.
8. Two issues that keep arising as I speak with residents are traffic safety and the lack of a healthy business community.
First, traffic density across West Windsor continues to increase, and we need to take a look at how these increases are affecting road safety, particularly around areas of recent development. Meadow Road is a great example. Despite the recently developed Estates at Princeton Junction, the opening of Duck Pond Park, and the presence of Princeton Meadow Church and its accompanying nursery school, there is no posted speed limit along the entire stretch of Meadow Road.
I will initiate community feedback so that areas with unsafe speed limits, poor street lighting, and dangerous pedestrian crossings can be identified and addressed.
Secondly, I will reach out to our current business community — both locally owned and corporately owned — to identify the best ways to attract more commercial ratables. I will also encourage the mayor and his administration to identify and approach the numerous county and state entities that exist for the purpose of attracting businesses to local communities.
In order for West Windsor to responsibly move forward as a community it is essential that we also move our business community forward.
#b#Ayesha Krishnan Hamilton#/b#
1. I have chosen to live in West Windsor and want to create a community that will encourage my kids to also choose West Windsor as their home. To get there, we need involvement from the residents at every level and that is why I am running for Council. I am inspired by the people who dedicate themselves to enhancing West Windsor and I want to be one of them.
I want to grow this township from within — promoting our existing businesses and filling empty office and retail space. As an attorney and entrepreneur, I am uniquely positioned to do this and have spent much of my career supporting growth of small business by streamlining processes, eliminating excess, and identifying and supporting revenue centers.
Through my experience as a business owner, attorney, and chair of the Greater Philadelphia and NJ chapter of Athena Powerlink, an international organization that supports women-owned businesses, I have skills and knowledge to contribute to West Windsor. When our businesses thrive, West Windsor thrives.
2. West Windsor is an award-winning place to live. We are clearly on the right path and need to keep up the momentum. I want West Windsor to be on the forefront of national initiatives such as “Complete Streets” and other trends that will enhance our lives. To achieve this Council, mayor, and administration need to work collaboratively and respectfully. Without this type of collaboration, we will get nowhere.
The change must come from both council and the administration to take a more collaborative approach. But this responsibility falls to both branches of our government, and blame cannot be laid at only one doorstep. As with any corporation, mayor and Council together should establish annual goals and objective metrics to ensure that we are moving in the right direction and not stagnating.
3. The members of Council represent the legislative branch of our government. As leaders in our community, Council must sound a respectful tone in their relationship with the executive branch. While there is no circumstance under which rudeness and disrespect toward the mayor and administration is acceptable, this doesn’t mean that I will not ask the tough questions and hold the administration accountable when necessary.
4. Our analysis about taxation has to be broader than simply thinking about limiting taxes. We have to focus on how to generate the right type of revenue for West Windsor, and enhancing our small and professional businesses will do exactly that. I don’t want higher taxes, but consider the following questions when looking at West Windsor’s fiscal strategy:
• Do you want to lose services like trash and yard waste pick-up?
We are one of the few towns in the region that pay for these services. These services maintain the beauty and cleanliness of West Windsor at a lower cost than if we paid privately for them.
• Do you want to risk bankruptcy? Townships are prohibited from raising taxes more than a certain percentage per year. If we continue to cut taxes by depleting our reserves, we will hit a point where we need to raise taxes to maintain services but will be legally prohibited from raising taxes more than a certain amount. At that point, the township will have to cut services and raise taxes but it could be too little, too late.
• Do you want to lose your AAA bond rating? West Windsor is one of 10 municipalities in New Jersey that has this premium bond rating. When we borrow money or obtain insurance, it is at lower rates than the rest of the state, meaning lower taxes for us. We protect that bond rating by maintaining a certain level of reserves (savings) and by indicating a willingness to manage our tax base to prove that we are a good risk. Short-term gains of reducing the tax rate or cutting into the reserve will mean certain disaster in the long run.
For instance, if we cut our reserve from $6 million to $3 million, spread over 20,000 households results in a savings of $150 per household, per year. Do we want to risk West Windsor’s financial stability for a tax break of $150 per home?
• As individuals, we save for retirement and for that “rainy day.” To run your finances any other way is just irresponsible. When we apply for a mortgage, we have to provide proof of savings (reserves) to show that we are a good risk for a low interest loans with no points. We don’t spend money we don’t have or cut into our savings unless there is a dire emergency. The very same common sense principles that should be applied to the township.
When West Windsor considers raising taxes, on average for a $500,000 home, on average, your local taxes are about $10,000. Of that, the Township receives about $1,500. A 2 to 4 percent tax increase translates to an increase of $30 to $60 per year. While I am not advocating raising taxes, we all need to be careful about the “knee-jerk” reactions and actually look at the numbers.
5. Recognizing that land owners, municipalities, and residents have rights and obligations, compromise on all sides will be necessary to protect our residents. In considering the totality of the circumstances, Council must balance its legal obligations to the land owner against concerns like increased traffic volume, noise, and air pollution resulting from the development, impact on our schools and services, and other concerns raised by the public.
Townships have negotiating power with builders based on the zoning of the property and can ensure that any proposed development appropriately accounts for residents’ and West Windsor’s needs and preserves the character of our neighborhoods.
Above all, Council must realize that a refusal to negotiate with the landowner virtually guarantees a loss of control over the building project. As with Toll Brothers, the township has minimal say in the development after having lost the “builder’s remedy” law suit. Controlled and responsible development has the added benefit of increasing our tax base and providing us the tax relief we seek.
Council must work with the landowner to implement traffic-calming strategies, mitigate the impact on the schools, and address noise and air pollution concerns through expert advice. When relying on objective scientific studies and data, you are in a much stronger position, and Council must embrace the science of the analysis rather than speculate about the knee-jerk fears. The scientific studies must appropriately address and weigh residents’ concerns and provide a reasonable work-around where possible or a reasonable, objective explanation for why a work-around isn’t available.
Information is power and residents raising objections also have a responsibility to ensure that they are well educated on the issues, have read the studies and are prepared to raise cogent arguments for or against a particular proposal. Once again, this is a collaborative effort between the township, developers, and residents to ensure all needs are addressed.
6. While the term “affordable housing” appears to evoke a negative connotation, we need to start thinking about the issue differently. All municipalities in New Jersey have a legal obligation to provide a certain number of affordable housing units. In general, the ratio is one affordable unit for four market rate units for new construction. Residents’ should also understand that while the ratio is different, commercial development also has affordable housing implications.
There is currently a lawsuit pending before the state Superior Court to determine the exact affordable housing obligation, but residents’ should know that West Windsor is well on its way to compliance.
While we do not have a specific number from the courts yet, the fact that West Windsor has been proactive in addressing its affordable housing requirements is likely to positively influence the courts to reduce the required number from approximately 1,800 units to 1,000 units. We are currently at 712 units with another 82 planned, with only another 288 to go to meet our legal obligation if the court sets our obligation at 1,000 units.
Something else our residents should understand about affordable housing is that many of the units involved are for 55+ communities. This means that you are able to use residential development to satisfy our affordable housing obligations and to control the impact on our schools. These residents will also form a productive part of the workforce necessary to support West Windsor businesses. This means that we are keeping business revenue and income tax local.
7. From a personal perspective and in my discussions with residents, there is support to create a “walkable” downtown in West Windsor. We are at the national forefront on developing a network of bike and pedestrian pathways, and I would like to see more local shopping and dining for us to walk and bike to. While increasing our tax base, this will also enhance our sense of community, drawing us out to meet friends and neighbors. We get to decide the size, scope, and character of this type of development and make sure that residents are heard and respected and that their concerns are accounted for.
8. West Windsor needs to be at the leading edge of the national “Complete Streets” initiative, ensuring that our streets provide safety and access for vehicles, pedestrians, and bicyclists.
Township improvement projects need to move faster. Residents are concerned that while their needs are being met (Cranbury Road sidewalks), the process takes too long. Some of the delay is caused by the time it takes to receive county and state grants for the projects, but some is also caused by the time it takes to receive engineering reports and the time allowed for public comment and residents’ review and approval of plans. The administration and Council should implement better timelines from its technical experts and focus on efficiently and expediently addressing the issues before it.
West Windsor is a beautiful, vibrant community. As residents, we owe it to each other to get more involved and to volunteer on the committees and groups that support us. We are all stronger together, focusing on the positive future of our community.
#b#Virginia Manzari#/b#
1. I have an MBA from Cornell University, and my professional experience is in business development, strategic marketing, and brand management. I helped launch two start-ups (giving me small business experience) and I’ve worked for three Fortune 50 companies — Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson — so I have plenty of corporate experience. I have successfully managed budgets much larger than the township’s. I now serve on the Zoning Board and previously served on the Documents Review Committee, responsible for drafting and reviewing ordinances and resolutions for Council to consider.
I am a long-time volunteer and an advocate for residents of West Windsor, and I believe we need more advocates on Council. Proactive, resident-focused leadership is what I will bring to Council.
2. I’m told repeatedly by business owners that West Windsor is not very “business friendly.” This is unfortunate in that it minimizes our ability to shift the tax burden from residents to businesses. Residents also feel that their issues are often not heard or addressed by the administration. Issues on South Post Road, North Post Road, Cranbury Road, and Washington Road have not been adequately addressed. Elected officials are there to represent the residents, and this could definitely be improved upon.
3. I would like to see West Windsor managed more proactively. If each council member identified an issue or an opportunity, researched it, generated possible solutions, and brought it back to Council for implementation, we’d get a lot done. Waiting for problems to surface and reacting to them is much less efficient than proactively identifying and handling unmet needs.
4. Careful long-term planning is essential to managing the municipal budget as there are ebbs and flows in spending from year to year. Sending jobs out to bid more frequently and using shared services agreements will get us more competitive prices and keep expenses down, which is the key to balancing the budget.
Fiscal management is a principal responsibility of Council, and it’s important to choose council members who have a proven record of ability and commitment to financial stewardship. During the debate, my opponent Mr. Borek said “none of us sitting on the dais wants to raise our own taxes.” However, he did just that six times in a row.
His running mate, Ms. Hamilton, claimed that raising taxes to increase the fund balance is necessary to protect our AAA credit rating. That is 100 percent wrong. Our town earns its AAA rating because we have the willingness (as indicated by our credit history) and the ability (thanks to a reliable stream of high-income-earning taxpayers drawn to West Windsor’s excellent schools and ease of transportation) to repay our loans. Maintaining an artificially high fund balance is simply not necessary, as is demonstrated by the many AAA-rated towns in New Jersey that have a much lower fund balance to total budget ratio than we do.
5. It is important to elect council members who have a proven track record of opposing large-scale, high-density residential housing. Since moving here almost 17 years ago, I have steadfastly opposed this type of development because of its deleterious effects on our taxes, traffic, and schools.
One of my opponents, however, after running a campaign promising to fight a huge housing development at the transit village, supported the developer and approved 800 homes there. As devastating as that development could be, that number pales in comparison to what could be built at the Howard Hughes site. If re-zoned to allow market rate housing, the Hughes property, 10 times the size of Quaker Bridge Mall, represents the biggest threat to our community.
Because they refuse to tell Council how many housing units they wish to build, one can only estimate. If you apply the same rate of density they’ve used for similar projects, the number is about 5,000 homes. This would completely change the character of our community. Council must remain united in not allowing for a zoning change on this property.
Buying up open space is also critical for preventing overdevelopment. I will support the continued purchase of land, and I will fight to protect our community from outside influence, including developers who wish to profit from the open space in West Windsor.
6. When the court determines the number of units West Windsor is responsible for, then we can assess what our deficit is and plan for it. West Windsor has done a good job of including affordable housing over the last several years, and we should continue to be creative in doing so as we move forward.
As a member of the Zoning Board, I voted to approve a variance for an organization that will build an Alzheimer’s facility near the train station. Beds in this facility will count toward our affordable housing requirement and will contribute to our tax base, but without adding school children or traffic.
7. About $1 million taxpayer dollars were spent on the transit village, and nothing has come of it. Although there is a new owner of this property, it is unlikely that the massive development that was once planned will be built because of the many issues that would need to be overcome. Flooding on Washington Road, the lack of funding for a Vaughn Drive connector, and issues with wetlands are among the problems it faces. Given that 800 units were approved on this property, I would hope that no development occurs there since current projections indicate that about 400 to 600 children would live in those residences, resulting in chaos in the school system.
8. Representing residents and addressing neighborhood concerns are a high priority for me. Additionally, there are many derelict buildings in West Windsor, such as behind the Ellsworth center. Cleaning up the blight long overdue.
Creating a gathering place or downtown area to help us regain our small town sense of community is also of significant importance.
#b#Hemant Marathe#/b#
1. I was appointed to the council four months ago, on June 8. This transition to council followed my 12-year tenure on the school board, where I proved my ability to work with different people and achieve goals that made the district a better place for all. I believe I can do the same for West Windsor Township. My short tenure on council already demonstrates my ability to handle difficult issues, such as the purchase of the Twin W building.
I take seriously my commitment to work with people of various backgrounds and opinions to build a consensus in doing what is best. Decisions reached after hearing all opinions and evaluating all options always result in better outcomes. I always support the best solution no matter where the idea originates. As Harry Truman said, “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you don’t care who gets the credit.”
2. I would like to see the mayor and council work together more effectively. Based on what I’ve seen on council and on the school board, I can see ways the current process could be improved.
While it’s true that under our form of government the mayor has the authority to make certain decisions independently, that’s not always in the best interest of the township. The mayor should establish policies and procedures that take advantage of the expertise and broader perspective of the council.
A perfect example is the naming of the pocket park and its dedication ceremony. The park is a public property and, as such, all decisions regarding it should be made after a public discussion. I was disappointed that, when the name of the park was announced publicly, along with the dedication ceremony date and time, it came as a complete surprise to council. Five council members are elected to be representatives of the residents. West Windsor would be better served if they are consulted on all matters that affect the township.
3. The council needs to establish policies and procedures to guide deliberation on township issues. Then, following a full debate, individual council members need to accept and support the decisions made by the entire council. There will, of course, be instances when an individual member doesn’t like a decision. However, we need to show respect for people with differing opinions. As long as proper debate takes place and procedures are followed, each council member is obligated to accept the decision.
Of equal importance, each council member should pledge to make decisions based on what he/she feels is best for the township without consideration to any external entities. West Windsor has a nonpartisan form of government that has served us well. Council members should keep it that way.
4. First, we need to work with our legislators to make sure West Windsor gets its fair share of state aid, both at township and school board levels. For too long, the state has short-changed communities like West Windsor. The same applies to Mercer County. Due to our high assessment levels, we pay relatively high county taxes, and they increase faster than do township and school taxes. We deserve due consideration from the county, in terms of monetary contribution and for issues that affect our residents.
The only way to limit taxes in the long term is to control our expenses. The council, along with the mayor, needs to find more efficient ways of doing things. On the school board I demonstrated that repeatedly. We can control taxes while maintaining or even improving services. During my tenure on the board the per pupil expense went from $300 above the state average to more than $1,000 below.
We also need to maintain a realistic fund balance. It’s counterproductive to increase our taxes simply to keep a higher fund balance than is necessary. Some have claimed the need for a higher fund balance to maintain our AAA bond rating. That is a false choice as the rating is based on our ability to pay our taxes, which remains high regardless of our fund balance.
For the past two years the township has achieved a flat tax rate without cutting services. This should always be the goal.
5. I firmly believe there is no need to grow West Windsor in terms of the number of residents. In the past I have stated that “I will not shed a tear” if not a single new house is built in West Windsor in the near future. Both our schools and our roads are at capacity. Unfortunately, our hands are tied with regard to the zoning that has already been approved. However, we don’t have to grant variances and exceptions to builders when they come to the council or planning board for approvals.
One case in point is the new Toll Brothers development on the Maneely tract. The development will have significant impact on the traffic in that area. In such instances, all representative bodies in West Windsor need to take a hard look at what works best for West Windsor.
6. The most important thing residents need to know is that the decision the court hands down will have a direct impact on their pocketbook. I believe it’s our ethical and moral obligation to provide housing for those who need affordable housing options.
However, it doesn’t mean the court can let developers take advantage of the township as happened in the Toll Brothers case. In that instance, neither the residents of the development nor taxpayers were well served. We should insist that the court take a reasonable approach and not side only with developers. The best defense is to educate yourself and choose candidates who will serve the residents.
As for the council, we should present our strongest case to the court to minimize the impact of the ruling on the township. Once the ruling is handed down, Council should take a proactive approach that will keep the negative impact on residents to a minimum. Any solution should take into account the location and the number of units built to satisfy the court ruling.
7. The mayor has not shared anything with the council and township because not much has happened regarding the transit village. Unfortunately, both the people who supported it and those who opposed it are unhappy with the outcome so far. There are some serious concerns with the site. In fact, the study commissioned by the township states there are no easy solutions to the flooding problem. Further, the state has pulled the funding for a potential bypass.
Our hands are currently tied by the approvals already given by the previous council and mayor. The council will need to take a measured approach that encourages piecemeal development of that area. The vision painted by the mayor for a transit village is unlikely to happen in the near future.
8. The single most critical issue for the next council will be controlling development, because the pending affordable housing decision could have a direct negative impact on our schools, traffic, and quality of life. Our response to the affordable housing ruling should be to minimize the impact on our current residents and to phase it in to reduce disruption.
The residents should also be aware of the potential danger posed by uncontrolled residential development on the Howard Hughes property — potentially the largest development in the history of West Windsor. The residents should evaluate all candidates based on their record and vote for those who in the best position to control development in West Windsor.
Taxes are always an important issue because it is the number one reason residents give for leaving once their kids have graduated from our schools. As a school board member, I demonstrated that taxes can be controlled while maintaining services and improving quality. Council needs to ask hard questions and make difficult decisions to control spending and taxes.
Advocacy for individual neighborhoods is important because many residents feel their concerns are not being addressed by the mayor and Council. For example, South Post Road has experienced disruptive noise from concerts in Mercer County Park, and North Post Road residents are concerned about potential changes to the road.
Every resident needs to be heard. The Council and mayor may not be able to give every resident the answer that he/she expects, but under no circumstances should a resident feel he/she is not being heard.
#b#Alison Miller#/b#
1. I have extensive community service experience. I have been on Council, Planning Board, Zoning Board, Site Plan Review Advisory Board, the Affordable Housing Committee, and the Cable TV Advisory Board, and mayoral task forces under three mayors, achieving land preservation, the community pool, the Arboretum, the 9/11 Memorial, and bicycle and pedestrian safety measures.
I have served on the League of Municipalities and the Central Jersey Transportation Forum legislative committees. I am a founding trustee of both Friends of West Windsor Open Space and the West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance; I currently serve on both boards as well as being a member of the West Windsor Parking Authority and Affordable Housing Committee.
This experience, along with my expertise as a certified planner, gives me a unique perspective on West Windsor’s history, current conditions, and place in the region. I believe my knowledge and analytical ability and my ability to work well with people of diverse opinions will be an asset to Council.
2. Every community has its own traditions. In West Windsor, Council meetings, televised, rebroadcast, and extensively reported on, have become the focus for people who want to know what’s going on, make comments to and ask questions of elected officials, and see government in action. Though it is not traditional in other communities with our form of government, the mayor should go with the flow and attend at least one Council meeting a month, giving reports of meetings attended, work in progress, and goals achieved just as Council members do.
Special attention should be paid to reporting progress on projects, such as the Cranbury Road sidewalks, that have generated interest among residents and have had special meetings devoted to them. The mayor’s town hall meetings should focus on topics that need more time than a Council meeting provides, complementing, rather than rivaling, Council meetings.
3. Council should work better together as a team. Offices should be rotated among all members. There should be more public discussion of potentially contentious issues, and the participation of the mayor should be welcomed and facilitated. Politeness should have a higher priority than politics during meetings. Council should appoint a liaison to the Recreation Commission to facilitate good communication and information sharing.
4. The budget, at all stages of development, should be scrutinized for opportunities to save. Shared services agreements with other municipalities, Mercer County, and the school district should be sought. We must let our neighbors know what a great place West Windsor is for businesses to locate. We must keep our zoning code flexible to attract commercial development. We must strive to gain a reputation in the business community for being easy to work with.
5. We must continue preserving land for farms and open space. We must manage growth to avoid high density. We must require road and traffic improvements wherever significant development takes place. We must keep our zoning code reasonable with regard to density and type and mix of uses. We must understand that all landowners have the right to develop their land, but not with the maximum they can cram onto it. We should look at our zoning code as a comprehensive plan and aim for a balance of uses that will bring in new businesses but not stress our roads, schools, or municipal services.
6. The New Jersey Supreme Court requires that each municipality provide its fair share of affordable housing. Each municipality is supposed to be assigned a fair share number of affordable units that must be realistically zoned for, usually as part of developments where 20 percent of the units are affordable and 80 percent are market rate.
The New Jersey Supreme Court has ordered each municipality to come up with its own fair share number and zoning plan and present it to a Superior Court judge. West Windsor has joined other municipalities in hiring an expert to come up with fair share numbers using a consistent methodology that will be difficult for developers to contest.
West Windsor is particularly attractive to developers, but until we know what our number should be and can craft a comprehensive plan, it is inappropriate for an official or potential official to comment on specifics. If a developer can convince the judge that our plan is deficient, we could be subject to a builder’s remedy lawsuit and be forced to permit a higher percentage of market rate units to subsidize the affordable ones, leading to more development and higher costs to taxpayers.
7. The mixed-use project near the train station on the south-bound side, brought to us by InterCap, has vested rights and could come in for final approval whenever the developer thinks economics are favorable. Once this project and the road improvements associated with it are built, it is likely that more development will come into that area, creating a true downtown transit village.
As the economics are not favorable for a parking garage at this time, no NJ Transit land will be available for development in the near future. Princeton-Hightstown Road between Alexander and Cranbury/Wallace roads, slated to transform into our Main Street, is transforming slowly but surely.
8. Intra-governmental communication needs improvement. Working with the mayor and business administrator, I would develop an outline for more specific reports to be presented at Council meetings. Traffic issues, large and small, concern people. I would urge the creation of a traffic intersection task force that would present the administration with a list of places needing attention, which could then be brought to the attention of the Mercer County Traffic Department.
Council needs to have a liaison to every board mentioned in the Administrative Code, which will also facilitate communication. The township is doing an excellent job of environmental planning; I would make it a priority on Council to facilitate the research necessary to maintain West Windsor’s preeminent position in this important area.
