Both Hopewell Township and Pennington officials will gather at 7 p.m., while Hopewell Borough’s session starts at 7:30 p.m.
By Ruth Luse
The Hopewell Township Committee, Hopewell Borough Council and Pennington Borough Council all meet Monday night to reorganize for 2004.
Both Hopewell Township and Pennington officials will gather at 7 p.m., while Hopewell Borough’s session starts at 7:30 p.m. Meetings will be held at the Hopewell Township Municipal Building (Scotch Road and Route 546); Pennington Borough Hall (30 N. Main St.); and Hopewell Borough Hall (corner of Columbia and South Greenwood avenues) respectively.
IN HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP Democrat David Sandahl of Dublin Road will join the five-member committee for a three-year term. He will take the place of Democrat Francesca Bartlett, who chose not to seek re-election in November.
Mr. Sandahl a senior partner with Kepner-Tregoe, Inc., a Princeton-based consulting firm will join fellow committee members, Democrats Jon Edwards, Marylou Ferrara and Vanessa Sandom, and Republican Arlene Kemp.
The committee will pick a mayor and deputy mayor from among its own membership Monday. At press time, no one was able to confirm which members would be tapped to take these positions. The current mayor is Ms. Bartlett.
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IN HOPEWELL BOROUGH, Democrat David Nettles of Hart Avenue who has served three terms on Hopewell Council and was appointed to the mayoral post in May after former Mayor George Padgett, a Republican, moved out of town will be sworn-in as mayor for a four-year term, having been elected to the post in November.
Mayor Nettles is a sales representative for ICG Holliston Mills, a provider of cloth bookbinding materials and, with his wife Susan Barosko, operates Proforma Unlimited Resource, a home-based business.
Republican Mark J. Samse of West Broad Street, a former councilman, will take the seat being vacated by Republican Judy Jengo, who was appointed by council in August to fill the vacancy created by Marc Moran. Mr. Moran, who was appointed in July to fill Mr. Nettles’ unexpired council term, resigned days later after it was discovered he was then a member of the white-supremacist group, the National Alliance. Ms. Jengo chose not to seek election to the seat in November.
Mr. Samse who is employed by the Princeton-based architecture, planning and engineering firm, CUH2A, Inc. was a member of Hopewell Council from 1990-1997, has been serving on the Planning/Zoning Board and is a former chairman of the Historic Advisory Commission.
Re-elected in November to his seat on council was Republican David Knights of West Broad Street, who also will take the oath of office Monday. Mr. Knights, currently council president, is a six-year member of council and an employee of Picus Associates, a real estate consulting firm, based in Princeton. Since 1993, he has served at various times on the Transportation Task Force, Planning Board, Hopewell Valley Open Space Advisory Committee and Hopewell Valley Traffic Management Committee.
Other members of Hopewell Council are Democrats Alice Huston and David Mackie and Republicans Janice "Jolly" Leigh and Schuyler Morehouse.
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IN PENNINGTON BOROUGH, Republican Mayor James Loper of South Main Street will take the oath of office for a four-year term as mayor. Mr. Loper employed by the New Jersey Education Association as a field representative was elected to Pennington Borough Council in 1995 and 1998, was appointed mayor in 2000, won election to the position in 2001 and beat Councilman Robert Di Falco (D) for the post in November.
Democrat Nancy Ross of East Delaware Avenue, a current member of council, will be sworn-in to a second three-year term Monday. She has been the mayor’s liaison to the Pennington Public Library Board of Trustees since 2000, spent two years on the Parks and Recreation Commission, one year as liaison to the Public Safety Committee, and one year as co-chairwoman of the Streetscape Committee.
Democrat Rebecca Palder of West Welling Avenue will be sworn-in to her first three-year term. She will replace Mr. Di Falco, who chose to run for mayor in November rather than go for another council term.
Since moving to this area, Ms. Palder, a 10-year resident of Pennington, has been active in the League of Women Voters, Women’s Political Caucus of New Jersey, Princeton Medical Auxiliary, Princeton Newcomers, and has worked on several political campaigns. For the past five years, she has served as a Mercer County committeewoman for District 2 in Pennington.
Other members of Pennington Council are Democrats David Garber, James Lytle and Edwin "Weed" Tucker and Republican Ken Baker.