From the issue of Nov. 24, 2005.
Save historic Vandike property
To the editor:
Named after the family that owned the land for nearly three centuries, the Vandike Historical Park needs to become a reality. A large portion of rapidly dwindling open farmland , the hallowed burial grounds of early Americans, the buildings that have defied time and destruction, the woodlands that have become a sanctuary for all kinds of New Jersey wildlife, and the ecological importance of its swampland define one of the largest remaining preservation prizes in this state.
Not only is this park a bonanza for open-space preservation, it must be developed for its educational value, as well. It is a living study of rural, agricultural life in New Jersey. Open fields on which early Americans toiled and are buried still exist.
Here, the slavery issue in New Jersey can be studied and even visited. Slave quarters still exist in the house that they helped to build hundreds of years ago. Some of these African-Americans have their graves here.
Once owned by a patriot of the Revolutionary War, this park has the burial ground of this soldier and his family.
All of these people lived and most likely died on this land. Their bodies have become one with the land itself a piece of the American story.
This is a wonderful educational opportunity to study colonial life in South Brunswick, Middlesex County, and New Jersey, on a site that was settled even before the birth of the United States. How many more such opportunities are there left?
The educational value alone is incredible. The farm is a relic of history that has survived the centuries. It is especially precious now, in what is left of present-day New Jersey.
The proposed park lies right next to one of the most valuable ecological areas left in this part of New Jersey, the Pidgeon Swamp State Park. Since parts of this proposed park are actually part of the Pidgeon Swamp, it would be a most logical addition to this vital area of preserved land. This land has also become one of the last remaining wildlife sanctuaries in this area.
The proposed park could also provide recreational value to this entire area of New Jersey. Few people realize the beauty of its open space its woodlands, and even its swampland. The area could be officially opened for educational hiking tours, horseback riding, and even ecological boat tours on its hidden ponds and lake.
Combined with Pidgeon Swamp State Park, this area can become a crowning achievement for all involved in saving it from development.
The entire colonial village of Rhode Hall has vanished in South Brunswick. Developmental pressure is relentless. The historic eastern area of South Brunswick that has been under ruthless attack has finally growled back in protest. Some officials have pointed out that land has been preserved in this area in the past. It simply demonstrates that politicians can save environmentally critical areas. Now it is time to save another critical area from becoming developed.
The Vandike Historic Park? It must become a reality. Preservation of this land is an opportunity to peer into a magical looking glass to see this part of New Jersey as it was in the past, not to look into an ordinary mirror to see what we have become.
William P. Klimowicz
South Brunswick
Mr. Klimowicz is a member of the Eastern Villages Association of South Brunswick.
New Jersey: What’s wrong?
To the editor:
Aside from paying among the highest auto insurance prices in the nation, New Jersey’s state/local tax burden (estimated at 10.4 percent of income) ranks 14th highest nationally. New Jersey tax payers pay $4,567 per-capita in state and local taxes. Yet, state debt now tops $25 billion.
Where is all the money going, aside from graft and corruption, especially when many, if not most, of our 115 townships still depend on volunteer fire departments and/or first aid squads, a system that worked well back when the Garden State consisted of a few urban cities and the rest was sparsely populated farmland.
In 1950 New Jersey’s population was just 4,835,329. But, by 2002 the population nearly doubled to 8,590,300 ranking New Jersey ninth in population in the United State, and it is projected to reach 9.6 million by 2025. Pick-your-own farms are a dying, endangered species, replaced by shopping malls, and housing developments. By 2000 New Jersey already had the highest population density among the 50 states: 1,134.4 persons per square mile.
When do we face the fact that we are too highly populated to rely on volunteers? And when do we see that it is cost ineffective to have nearly a hundred school districts and police departments, with each requiring a high salaried superintendent and police chief?
It is not only costly, it is highly inefficient. Response time of police calls varies greatly depending upon the size of the town, compared to the number of police cruisers on duty. Further, when you dial 911 on your cell phone, you are asked what town you are in, which is often impossible to know while driving and adds delay. With 21 counties wouldn’t 21 different police forces, fire departments school districts be more than enough?
The growth of housing in New Jersey makes its quaint towns more comparable to neighborhoods in the boroughs of neighboring New York City. Bay Ridge, Brighton Beach, Rego Park each has police stations, fire houses and schools, but they are part of the New York City police force, fire department and school district.
The more we separate the more we duplicate, the higher the operations cost and the less efficient they become. And they create unequal school opportunities in towns with higher taxes.
Consolidation that eliminates waste, when that waste is someone’s job is never popular, especially with those whose jobs are at risk. But we need to look at the bigger picture. Like it or not, the reality is that New Jersey today is not the same as the New Jersey of past generations. What New Jersey do we want to pass on to for generations to come? Do we want our children and grandchildren to inherit a crowded, debt-ridden state with high taxes and inefficient services, or do we gradually work (through attrition, for instance) toward a more efficient, safe, equal and cost effective state?
It won’t be easy, but it is important, necessary and therefore worth the very hard work of trying our best to make this state the best it can be.
Mirah Riben
Monmouth Junction
Giving thanks for community
To the editor:
On Sunday evening, we were privileged to be participants in South Brunswick’s 25th annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayer Service.
I, Ellen, writer of this letter, only wish I could find the words to really convey the good-spiritedness and inspiration it achieved.
Christians, Jews, Muslims coming together to express our appreciation for God’s goodness; all contributing their part to the readings, music, and meditations. What was outstandingly clear was our common faith in Divine Providence and our being called to help our fellow man.
It was absolutely inspirational. I couldn’t help but think of how we in America can do this. Freely. I also couldn’t help but think of how this is the prime example we should be trying to set for the rest of the world. People of real faith recognizing God through different lenses, even using different names, perhaps, but all going in the same direction, and respecting each other while we make the journey. What a wonderful world we have the power to achieve.
Our gratitude goes out to the South Brunswick Area Clergy Association for sponsoring this wonderful gathering and to the Rev. Frank Hubbard and St. Barnabas Episcopal Church for hosting both this service and the Fellowship Hour afterward.
Mayor Frank Gambatese
Ellen Gambatese
Kendall Park

