To the Editor:
Vote Yes on P’Boro
Fire Equipment
On Saturday, September 26, from 2 to 9 p.m., Plainsboro voters will be asked to vote on a proposal by the Board of Fire Commissioners to replace two pieces of fire apparatus that are more than 30 years old.
I’m writing this letter to urge your support of this referendum.
Plainsboro Township has changed drastically since 1977 when the pumper slated to be replaced arrived here and since 1979 when the fire company purchased a used aerial ladder tower to protect the growing community of garden apartments and office buildings of that era. Firefighting equipment and technology over those three decades have also changed drastically.
These expenditures will have no impact on township taxpayers. So, while a yes vote won’t cost you any more, a no vote might since fire apparatus age is one component of the Insurance Service Office (ISO) formula for computing community fire insurance ratings.
Beyond that, the trucks are now five years beyond the 25-year maximum fire apparatus life established by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and beginning to reach a point where expensive repairs — $11,000 in the case of the pumper alone — will be required to keep them ready and able to answer the call.
It’s also important to remember that our fire risk profile will change again as the University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro moves to our township. It would be wrong to expect firefighters to protect a 21st-century, high-rise healthcare facility with 1970s equipment and technology, let alone the homes and businesses that are already here.
Please cast a “yes” vote for your safety on Saturday, September 26.
Thomas C. Healey
The writer is Safety Officer and a 20-year member of the Plainsboro Fire Company. This letter expresses his personal opinions and not those of the Plainsboro Fire Company or the Board of Commissioners, Plainsboro Fire District #1.
Dismal Downtown
On a beautiful early fall morning, my wife and I decided to enjoy the outdoors by riding our bikes into downtown Princeton Junction to eat breakfast. Along with our 19-month-old, we had a pleasant ride on Penn Lyle Road, but things quickly went downhill. Upon entering the Acme shopping center, we were greeted by weeds and empty storefronts. It was a truly disheartening and depressing morning.
I’m sharing this experience because I feel that we can do better. There is no reason why we need to get in the car for a simple breakfast trip, but given our options that is what we will do next time.
How can “less affluent” communities manage to create beautiful downtown spaces, while ours remains pitiful? Adjusted for demographics (per capita income etc.), I would venture to say that our downtown ranks among the worst in the state.
Why is there no urgency on the part of our elected officials? Our community is in deplorable condition and immediate action needs to be taken. If they spend half the energy addressing this issue that they did getting themselves re-elected, we may actually get somewhere.
James Maltese
Village Road West
Hersh for Council
On Friday, September 18, Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year — began a period of self-reflection and renewal for Jewish people around the world. The 10 days from the beginning of Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur are a time to forgive and ask for forgiveness and a time to reflect on what is truly important in life. It is a time when many of us do a check on our value system to ensure that we are doing good deeds and creating value in our lifetimes.
This year I am proud to say that I have focused on my son, my family, and my community. The latter is what drives me to run for Township Council. I want to do good deeds and use my gifts to be valuable in our community. I am proud to say that I believe that my community goals are shared across the many beautiful cultures represented in West Windsor. Here are a few of my goals:
Strengthen Education: The foundation for success in life. As a community, we need to challenge our schools and parents to help elevate our school system to “best in country” from “top 10 in state.” I grew up in a national top 20 school system. It gave me advantages in life, and I want the same for my son and our community.
Increase Community Volunteerism and Support Community: Cultures and communities have long succeeded by helping each other. It is how so many immigration populations have become successful. The Community Action Resource Exchange (CARE) program is about providing help to those who need it in the community using municipal resources that are already in place.
Improving the Environment: The greening of West Windsor is a moral imperative. We can harness FOWWOS and the township’s Environmental Sustainability Committee to help us achieve this objective in a cost-effective manner.
Improving the environment, however, isn’t just about “going green.” We need to rescue the 571 corridor between Wallace and Alexander roads, we need to help residents keep cell towers out of their backyards, and we need to keep Bear Brook and Vaughn roads from becoming a congested dumping ground for new development. This is the environment we live in.
Becoming More Resourceful: With the economy in the tank, it is also a moral imperative that we do what we can to stop wasting your tax money. Princeton Borough recently cut new project spending from $3.2 million to $1.65 million in 2009 and had a 0 percent budget increase as well. Anyone who argues that being more efficient and resourceful could sacrifice our AAA bond rating does not comprehend what needs to be done. We need to become more efficient and more resourceful to protect our AAA bond rating.
With the drop in home values, reduction in one-time municipal revenues, and defaults on property taxes, the township can increase your taxes, dig deep into surplus, or become more efficient and resourceful. Becoming more efficient and resourceful is the best answer. I have a long track record of doing this successfully, and I offer my expertise to the community.
In the Jewish religion, a “mitzvah” or “mitzvot” for plural, is to perform a good deed(s). Please help me to perform as many mitzvot as possible for our community next year. A happy and healthy New Year for you and your families. L’shana tova.
Andrew Hersh
5 Halstead Place, West Windsor
Ciccone for Council
As the advertising and media coverage of the New Jersey gubernatorial election increases, I fear that busy West Windsor voters may not have time to investigate the candidates running for West Windsor Town Council in November. I support Diane Ciccone for town council because she has consistently demonstrated a commitment to serving West Windsor. Diane has raised children here and is familiar with many of the issues I, as a parent, have and was very involved in volunteering with the schools while her daughter attended.
Diane has consistently volunteered her time to help our community serving on the Planning Board, SPRAB, WW Arts Council, FOWWOS, GroWW, and WWPBPA. Earlier this year, Diane was selected by council from several candidates to fill a vacancy and now enjoys support from the mayor as well as almost all of her fellow council members.
Diane is concerned about our tax burden and has pushed for zero-increase budgets, she is seeking to attract new business to increase our ratables and lessen our tax burden, and she is passionate about pursuing green technology and sustainable practices wherever it can benefit tax payers.
Mike Donnelly
Diagnose AD/HD Early
As we celebrate the progress we have made as a social movement, AD/HD awareness week is also a time to assess how much more work we have ahead of us. Thanks to CHADD’s advocacy work, AD/HD is increasingly being caught early in people’s lives. In our work in Mercer County, we are aware of the great divide of service.
Our support group participants do not reflect the diversity of our population’s ethnicity. Therefore, our goal for 2009-’10 is to change the equation. We wish to create greater outreach and education of teachers and parents in every town and school district in Mercer County. Why the urgency?
1.) Untreated AD/HD can have devastating consequences. It can lead to poor school performance, involvement with the juvenile and criminal justice systems, increased risk for substance abuse, and greater risks and rates for auto accidents.
2.) Effective Treatment Options are Available. The NIMH study from the 1990s showed that effective treatment for the disorder includes parent training, behavior intervention strategies, education adaptations, parent-child education regarding AD/HD, and medication. The follow-ups find that comprehensive treatment is effective when it is continual, and not started too late.
3.) How to Get Help. We have four groups designed to meet your support needs: Adult support, Day-time Parent support, Evening Parent and Adult Lectures, and “Suppers for AD/HD” Nutritional Harm Reduction education. Call 609-683-8787, or visit www.chadd.org. Jane Milrod
CHADD Mercer County
