From the June 1 edition of the Herald
New mill plan not good for town
To the editor:
Developing the mill under the current plan is no longer in Hightstown residents’ best interest.
As was apparent in undertones of some council members’ comments last week, the borough is ‘giving away the shop.’ No longer does the plan call for ‘high-end’ condos intermixed with trendy store fronts and a restaurant adjacent the brook. Instead, there is a 63 percent increase in the number of units, decreased sizes, no municipal hall, and a stripped-out retail component. We are developing a glorified apartment complex in the middle of town.
When considering the changes, in addition to Hightstown’s newly ordained ‘sanctuary’ status, I can’t help but imagine developing the mill under the current plan will cause higher taxes in the not-so-far term, sharply increase density, lower property values and will fail to fully complement residents’ quality of life and our borough’s small-town character.
I am asking our Borough Council and Planning Board to unwind the changes that have been made to the mill’s redevelopment plan. We have one opportunity to develop the mill correctly, and I find it more prudent to ensure that the community comes out ahead of the developer. As such, I am also in favor of letting the mill remain as is until the economics and desirability of living in Hightstown promote an environment for the mill to be developed as we all initially envisioned.
Additionally, the development of Enchantment will introduce a strong demographic to our community, which has yet to evolve, making me uncomfortable regarding how much we have compromised to the developer.
If you know my wife and me, you would know that we have tremendous faith and a long-term commitment to the borough. When choosing a community to establish ourselves and plan a family, we chose Hightstown because of its location, cultural and economic diversity, and the borough’s historical housing stock and town center. Our borough needs to fully leverage these assets before introducing this most significant development.
It goes without saying that I am extremely appreciative of the efforts of our council members and Planning Board members; they have all dedicated a tremendous amount of time to make ‘something’ happen. Unwisely, developing ‘something’ is becoming a proxy for progress, while the concessions that have been made are not in the long-term interest of the borough. A few years of nominally lower taxes are not worth extinguishing Hightstown’s future ability to develop our downtown. I expect that there will be a multitude of vested parties that disagree with me such as business owners, landlords, real estate agents and political candidates. However, inaction in this case is better than our current option. Hightstown is desperate for ratables, yet creating an apartmentlike atmosphere in the center of the town is not the solution nor is it healthy for the economics of our downtown. One or two voices within the community are not strong enough to redirect this plan. I urge residents with a long-term commitment to Hightstown also voice their concerns to the Borough Council and Planning Board.
Christopher Moraitis
Hightstown
Township believes in back-room deals
To the editor:
The article that was published in the May 18 edition of the Windsor-Hights Herald that described the behind-the-scene "deals" that were made between the Hightstown and East Windsor town councils prior to any public discussion on the reinstatement of school funding was extremely disheartening.
I bet that some of the East Windsor town council members who were quoted in the article must have been thinking several of the following questions: "What were those four Hightstown town council members thinking when they changed their minds about reinstating school funding after they promised Mayor Mironov and the East Windsor town council that they would vote no, despite public sentiment to the contrary." "Can’t these elected officials be trusted to live up to the back-room deals that were cut behind the backs of the voters of East Windsor and Hightstown?" How dare those four Hightstown council members think and act differently than they were told to think and act?
The East Windsor council members who were quoted in the article and, felt compelled to attack the integrity and character of Mayor Patten and the three other Hightstown Council members who voted to reinstate school funding, were the same people who publicly declared at a recent East Windsor town council meeting that their "commitment to the democratic process and their love of democracy" were the reasons why they could not, in good conscience, reinstate school budget funding.
I want to ask Mayor Mironov and all of the members of the East Windsor town council: "Is cutting back-room deals behind the scenes and agreeing on a decision before hearing what the public has to say on an issue the way that a democracy is supposed to function? I think that the democratic process in East Windsor is broken and is in desperate need of repair.
Clifford Mintz
East Windsor
Editor’s note: Mr. Mintz is the husband of school board member Alice Weisman.
District deceives on tax hikes
To the editor:
This is a continuation of my reply to the letter to the editor by the vice president of the East Windsor Regional Board of Education on Friday the 13th of April.
What I fail to understand is if there is only a "modest increase in property taxes" each year locally, as per the EWRBE letter to the editor, then how does the average increase overall for the past few years result in being a double-digit percentage increase? Is an average of over a 10 percent increase for the past five years now regarded as only a "modest increase in property taxes?" If so, then I can only imagine what percentage, perhaps approaching a 20 percent increase per year, that the EWRBE regards as being more than a "modest increase in property taxes."
Although the EWRBE always speaks in terms of it is only a few cents here and a few cents there, (per a $100 evaluation let us not forget), over a few years that became a high percentage (and a lot of money per multiples of a $100,000 evaluation). Although the argument is always in terms of it is only an average $55 increase, what is usually ignored is that this is on top of an average property tax that is already $4,240 a year for a supposed average local house assessed from $120,000 to $130,000.
In addition, the promise is made each year that increasing the property taxes "will reward the community with improved property values." But, in reality, despite the hefty increases in property taxes, I am told that my property value has just decreased by anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000 over the past year, so I fail to see the positive correlation, and instead I think that the increasing property taxes is one reason for my decreasing property values. Since my property values have decreased from 5 percent to 10 percent, perhaps the local property taxes should correspondingly decrease from 5 percent to 10 percent.
Although the standardized test results of some elementary schoolstudents who were previously failing have improved, locally, countywide and statewide, the criticism has been made recently by reputable CNN correspondents, and repeated by the rest of the news media, that the dramatic improvements over the past few years may not have been because of any real or significant improvements, but may have been because the state has merely dumbed-down the tests so that more kids would automatically pass so that the state looks much better under the federally mandated No Child Left Behind requirements and regulations (and as mandated by the New Jersey annotated code of politics as usual).
Frank Paul Lukacs
East Windsor
CASC all-star team was a big hit
To the editor:
Last Wednesday, we were incredibly lucky to have Roger Clemens in town to help the Trenton Thunder pack Waterfront Park for our first CASC fundraiser there!
An all-star team of 15 volunteers came to help sell 50/50 raffle tickets to a record-setting crowd. While "The Rocket" may not have had his best night of pitching, we sure did! With hustle the Thunder wished they had, our volunteers sold 3,798 raffle tickets, bringing home a check for $1,899 to support CASC! A great time was had by all.
Huge thanks to all the volunteers who came and "pitched in"especially our MVP for the night, full-time Greater Goods volunteer Norman Billings. Also joining us were Hightstown Mayor Bob Patten (who ably threw the honorary first pitch of the game); fellow CASC board members Bill Gilmore, Kathy Patten and Amanda Porter; Albert Abdemur; Dan Moyer; Pat Whitty; Denise and Amelia Snow; Dave, Adrienne and Kyle Bini; and the Rev. Bryan Franzen, who put his preaching voice to great use that night!
Special thanks to the Trenton Thunder organization, for providing us with this great opportunity.
Now that baseball season is under way, CASC can help you save money on upcoming games! Discount vouchers for Trenton Thunder tickets are now being sold at the Greater Goods Thrift Store. These vouchers cost $1 less than the regular ticket price of $10, and are redeemable for tickets to any home game this season. While you save money on Thunder tickets, each voucher sold earns $3 for CASC’s family support programs. It’s an easy way to help us serve the community!
Stop in at Greater Goods or call 448-2702 to reserve your certificates today. The store is located at 413 Mercer St. (Route 33) in Hightstown, next door to Lucas Electric. Our newly expanded business hours are: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Rachelle St. Phard
CASC board of directors
East Windsor

