Letters to the Editor, Nov. 29

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, Nov. 29

Sidewalk not needed on Overbrook Drive
To the editor:
   
The following letter was sent to Mayor Phyllis Marchand and other members of the Princeton Township Committee:
We, the undersigned residents of Overbrook Drive, write in order to make clear our strong united opposition to the proposed installation of sidewalks on one or both sides of our street. Adding sidewalks to Overbrook Drive will not solve a safety problem, it will damage the feel of the neighborhood, and it will divert much-needed public funds from other more deserving projects. We urge your committee to plan for improvements to the roadway without imposing the needless, destructive and expensive option of sidewalks.
   We appreciate the time that you and the members of the engineering and public safety staff spent at the neighborhood meeting on Nov. 1. We hope we made it clear that we all acknowledge the need for resurfacing Overbrook Drive, which has been neglected for too many years. Some of us prefer overlayment to full reconstruction, and some object to using Belgian bricks for curbing, but we all agree that the road needs resurfacing. We concur that speeding and excess traffic are big problems, and we support a broad, community-based effort to solve them. And we applaud your decision to direct the Engineering Department to ameliorate the problems with drainage.
   We believe there is no compelling safety reason for the construction of sidewalks on this particular 1,500-foot stretch of roadway. Unlike many sections of Snowden Lane, Overbrook Drive does not have schoolchildren competing with cars or exposing themselves to vehicular danger. Sidewalks are already in place where they are needed, on the roads leading directly to Littlebrook School.
   Destroying green areas to make way for more sidewalk paving, whether blacktop or concrete, contradicts the township’s commitment to maximizing green space for all who live here. Tearing up grass for sidewalks will serve no clear public purpose, and it will irrevocably mar the character of our neighborhood.
   We are opposed to sidewalks in our neighborhood for financial reasons as well. Many of us are retired senior citizens who can ill afford further tax increases. Our tax bills are projected to rise already without this unnecessary expense. Adding sidewalks where they are not needed also adds to the financial burden on all township residents, and we believe that money would be better spent solving real community problems.
   We urge you to direct the Engineering Department to devise a plan for the resurfacing of the road that does not use sidewalks on either side of the street. The version of the Princeton Community Master Plan dated Oct. 2, 2003 (the only version currently available on the Internet) in fact shows no proposed sidewalks for Overbrook Drive. We hope that your committee will respect the judgment of the overwhelming majority of the residents of Overbrook Drive in deciding how to proceed.
   We ask that, first, sidewalks be removed from the project description for the resurfacing of Overbrook Drive. Secondly, we ask that before any plans are put out for bidding, the resurfacing of Overbrook Drive be discussed in a public meeting of Township Committee in which the concerns of residents be given full consideration. Third, we ask that the public meeting of the Township Committee to vote on the final plans be scheduled for January, since many of us have commitments out of town during December.
David and Kate Mechanic
Susan and Harold Loew
Andrew Lazarus and Donna Tempel
Gisela and Charles Allen
Nancy and Andy Brauer
Ihab and Myra Mahana
Dina and Mike Shaw
Paul and Cheryl Horan
Debra and Brian Hoffman
Mary E. Robbins
Ruth Wedelich and Jacqueline Mundy
Phil and Paula Berg
Lynn and Josef Silverstein
Wei Y. and Stephen F. Teiser
Mark Ettin and Marsha Heiman
Overbrook Drive
Princeton
Elks thanked for generous donation
To the editor:
   
On behalf of the board of trustees of the Princeton Hub, I would like to thank the Princeton Elks for their generous donation to our Thanksgiving meal for our participants. The Hub is a Saturday evening gathering place for adults with developmental and/or mental health challenges, and the Elks support us in many ways.
   We are grateful to the Robotti family in particular and other participating Elks for cooking and delivering the lovely turkey and dressing, the centerpiece of our special feast this past Saturday. Their humanitarian service in the Princeton area is to be commended.
   In this season of giving, it seems only right to recognize an organization that gives all year.
Anne Woolley
Community Liaison
Princeton Hub
Knickerbocker Drive
Montgomery
Job losses hurt in many ways
To the editor:
   
New Jersey lost nearly 5,000 jobs last month, the largest decline in employment in almost two years. These numbers, released by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Work Force Development, continue to spell trouble for working men and women in New Jersey, and the larger New Jersey economy.
   As the new governor struggles with what is predicted to be at least a $5 billion deficit, I have a question for business, industry and political leaders throughout the state of New Jersey: What are you going to do when you run out of taxpayers to pay the bills and fund the government?
   As our jobs continue to be shipped overseas and profit-hungry corporations slash and burn what little security working men and women have, the net result will ultimately be that there will be no one to pay the bills upon which the engines of government and industry run. Then, perhaps too late, people will begin to realize that changes need to be made.
Chip Gerrity
New Jersey International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
Franklin Street
Hightstown
The more we separate, the more we duplicate
To the editor:
   
Besides paying among the highest auto insurance prices in the nation, New Jersey’s state and local tax burden (estimated at 10.4 percent of income) ranks 14th highest nationally. New Jersey taxpayers pay $4,567 per capita in state and local taxes. Yet the state debt now tops $25 billion.
   Where is all the money going, besides graft and corruption, especially when many, if not most, of our 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 4.8 million. By 2002, the population nearly doubled to 8.6 million, ranking New Jersey ninth in population in the U.S., 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 so many 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 and school diistricts be more than enough?
   The growth of housing in New Jersey makes its quant towns more comparable to neighborhoods in the boroughs of neighboring New York City. Bay Ridge, Brighton Beach, Rego Park — each has police stations, firehouses 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.
   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 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
Allison Court
South Brunswick