Montgomery to work out details on NPDC purchase

Township Committee schedules executive session

By: Jake Uitti
   MONTGOMERY — The agreement between the township and the state regarding the sale of the North Princeton Developmental Center will be discussed by the Township Committee in executive session Wednesday.
   The committee is expected to discuss the terms and conditions of the agreement to purchase the property from the state. Committee member John Warms said that if the Township Committee is satisfied with the memorandum of agreement, "then we will go through with the state to buy it."
   Details of the agreement could be publicly disclosed as early as Thursday’s Township Committee meeting.
   The basic terms of the sale, Mayor Louise Wilson said, are already agreed upon. These include the size of the purchase, 256.5 acres; the cost, $5.95 million; the upgrade of the sewage treatment plant; and the township’s responsibility for cleanup and demolition of buildings on the property.
   But despite these accepted terms, Mayor Wilson said, "We have an agreement, but we don’t have an agreement." There is still more detail work to be done, she said.
   Another issue slated for public discussion is the name of the property, now dubbed Skillman Village. Mr. Warms, at the Nov. 30 meeting, suggested the name become "Skillman Village at Montgomery." Another name suggested for the area was "Montgomery Village at Skillman."
   The purpose of this name, Mr. Warms explained, was to make the area a unifying center for a township that he enthusiastically called "a great place to live." The idea, he said, is to unify Montgomery.
   The idea of a unified Montgomery, which may include one ZIP code, has received varying responses.
   "A unified ZIP code is a great idea," said Frank Drift of Sunset Road. "Right now, there is no such town as Montgomery."
   Asked about the a new name for the NPDC property, Mr. Drift said, "I would like to see a ballot of some kind where we can pick from three or four names. We should let everyone decide."
   John Parker of Colfax Road said the changes involving ZIP codes and town names could be more trouble then they are worth.
   "I suspect that people who have been living here for a long time would find it a lot of work" to change address information, he said.