LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

From the June 15 edition of the Herald

Herald article was misleading
To the editor:
The article published in the June 1 edition of the Windsor-Hights Herald, entitled "Schools consider user fees," that represents to the community that the East Windsor Police Athletic League does not pay for, or is not charged for use of "Hightstown High School’s gym, fields and auditoriums" is either a misstatement or a misrepresentation of the actual facts.
   Although the East Windsor Police Athletic League (a nonprofit, charity organization) has a wonderful and cooperative working relationship with the East Windsor Regional School District, the fact of the matter is that during the year of 2006 our organization paid the East Windsor Regional School District $7,476 in user fees and an additional $8,351 in user fees for the current year. The fees were paid for the use of gymnasiums in the various schools within the district and also for the use of the auditorium in the high school.
   Although the East Windsor Police Athletic League has its own outdoor facilities, which serves over 2,300 children within the community, (which in the past has been used for high school athletic activities) we depend upon the use of the gymnasiums for our winter athletic programs, such as indoor soccer and basketball. Additionally, our Little League baseball program, travel soccer program and travel lacrosse program utilize gym time to improve and maintain their levels of skill during the winter months.
   The fees paid by the East Windsor Police Athletic League to the East Windsor Regional School District are raised through registration fees charged to the participants of our programs. The fees paid represent billable time of $14 per hour for gymnasium time and $28 per hour for the use of the auditorium.
   If the intent of the article was to garner support for the institution of an additional revenue stream or as a suggestion that by billing local not-for-profit organizations for facility use instead of a "pay-for-play" policy, the use of the East Windsor Police Athletic League’s programs to subsidize the revenue stream is already being "tapped out."
John T. Funda
executive director
East Windsor PAL
Council misleads on funding vote
To the editor:
I am very concerned with the level of misinformation conveyed about the East Windsor Council’s rejection of the personnel funding question in the recent school elections. The council members and others have propagated the false suggestion that the school board requested the council to ignore the "the will of the people." Not so! Rather, the state Legislature mandated that the council make the determination if the "will of the people" was in the community’s best interest. Because the governing law was enacted just a few days before the school budgets were due, the Legislature added an extra level of government oversight to the election results. The law provides: "For only the 2007-2008 school year, any proposal or proposals rejected by the voters shall be submitted to the municipal governing body or bodies for a determination as to the amount, if any, that should be expended notwithstanding the voter rejection." (N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-39(c)(3)). In other words, the state Legislature mandated (not requested) that local governing bodies review any aspect of the school budget that was voted down. Obviously, the Legislature did not intend that the council merely confirm the majority vote.
   Therefore, council members’ contention that democracy was not served by reconsidering a rejected vote entirely ignores their statutory obligation. Despite the council’s hollow flag-waving, the lesson in democracy they teach is that if one does not like the obligation imposed on it by law, one is free to ignore it.
   Comments made by letter writers last week reveal the lack of knowledge of the law at issue. One writer says that we should not bash the council "because they were following the letter of the law. …" They clearly did not. Even a council member dared to write that he "could not, in good conscience, set aside the will of the majority for the sake of the opinions of the 15 people who spoke." While shamelessly demeaning the thousands who did not speak, he ignored his mandate to determine if the community is best served by the "no" vote. Previously, another council member was quoted as saying that if the school board had a better attitude, he may have voted differently – an overt violation of his oath of office.
   When council voted not to reconsider the rejected proposal, they either had not read the new law or understand what it required, or willfully misled the public as to its statutorily-mandated role. People may disagree as to what is in the community’s best interest, but we can all agree that we are not served by council members who do not know or disregard the law or who vote based solely on their subjective, personal animus.
   Reasonable people on all sides of the issue should work cooperatively to attempt to reconcile the competing concerns of improving the quality of public education while reducing the excessive taxes we are forced to pay because of a flawed school funding system. In so doing, we should reject the negativity and divisiveness of the council.
Bruce D. Ettman
East Windsor representative
Board of Education
East Windsor Regional district
Bad info spread on district spending
To the editor:
Mr. Schemelia and others continue to ignore certain facts and spread misinformation regarding our district administration and our budget.
   In my letter published April 6, I highlighted facts from the state Department of Education Comparative Spending Guide. One fact is that our district has the lowest administrative costs in Mercer County, compared to our total costs per pupil. Among the 103 similar school districts statewide, only 16 had lower administrative costs per pupil than EWRSD.
   So how does Mr. Schemelia calculate that our support staff and kids get less? What numbers does he use to substantiate his claim of "out-of-control spending?" Does his analysis include the millions of dollars in savings that his administrators, often serving two or three positions, have brought to the district?
   He and others also continue to ignore the fact that the independent review of our defeated budget questions by municipalities this year was mandated by law. The system that we do believe in, that of representative democracy defined in our constitutions, was understood by those who wrote the new school budget law, but apparently not by others.
Bob Laverty
East Windsor representative
Board of Education
East Windsor Regional district
School spending not most important
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.
   The United States spent an average of $8,701 per pupil to educate the children in 2005, the Census Bureau said.
   New York was the biggest spender on education, with New Jersey second and Washington D.C. third, the Census Bureau said. Seven of the top 10 education spenders were northeastern states.
   Experts say the correlation between spending and testing performance is not strong.
   Tom Loveless, education policy expert at the Brookings Institution think tank said it’s not necessarily true that states with higher spending have higher test scores. He said Washington D.C. has among the highest spending in the country but its students have among the lowest scores on standardized tests, while some states like Montana with relatively low spending have fairly high performance on tests." (Reuters, 05/24)
   So let us compare some numbers according to the published data of this spring. The cost-per-pupil state median, Mercer County median, West Windsor-Plainsboro district median and East Windsor Regional district median were all within a few hundred dollars of each other — between $12,000 and $13,000 (for Trenton $15,000). The median faculty experience in years was 10 as state median, nine as Mercer County median, 12 as West Windsor median, and 16 as East Windsor Regional median. To the nearest thousand, the median faculty salary was about $51,000 state median, $59,000 Mercer County median, $59,000 West Windsor median and $66,000 East Windsor Regional median.
   Now let us take a look at the comparative results of this spending on national standardized tests, namely the SATs, the test that really matters most at the end of 12 years of education. For the past few years, the average SAT test scores for the nation have been around 500 per section; the average SAT test scores for the state have been around 500 per section; the average SAT test scores for Mercer County have been around 500 per section; the average SAT test scores for the East Windsor Regional district (with a sixth of the students not even taking the SAT, presumably those who would perform the worst and bring down the averages) have been around 500 per section; and the average SAT test scores for the West Windsor-Plainsboro North and South districts (with 100 percent of the students taking the SATs) have been around 600 per section, or about one standard deviation higher (for Trenton 400).
   Perhaps the East Windsor Regional school district does not understand that experts say the correlation between spending and testing performance is not strong, and that there are other more important factors responsible for which individual students nationwide, statewide, countywide and locally receive an average 500 SAT score, an average 600 SAT score or an average 700 SAT score.
Frank Paul Lukacs
East Windsor
Bashing mill critics disconcerting
To the editor:
There were several public comments at this past week’s Planning Board meeting from numerous credible participants in our community, an elected official and two council candidates regarding proposed changes to the redevelopment plan. While a majority of those commenting were opposed to meeting Greystone’s requirements, I found it disconcerting when dissenters’ credibility was put into question.
   We are the experts who live in Hightstown and have a long-term interest to ensure that the development at the mill enriches the community. It is Greystone that is negotiating their interest in maintaining a profit margin and has planned a pseudo-apartment complex in the middle of the downtown. As such, I find it unfair that those who voiced their opinions had their credibility challenged.
   I was pleased with the direction given to the board by Tamara Lee, Hightstown’s municipal planning professional. She advised the board to focus solely on the municipal planning aspect of the proposal. Why is it good to remove office and retail space from the proposal? Would this extend our downtown and increase our town’s walking culture? Would approving this change help execute the vision of the Master Plan? She also directed the board not to be swayed by the perceived tax benefit. It was not a mistake that Greystone’s economist was sitting in the crowd and marched out in front to assert the value of short-term tax benefits to Hightstown. In essence, Ms. Lee stated that is all well and good but those assertions have not been validated and are beyond the purview of the board’s recommendations. She felt that the board should make a recommendation based on the vision of this community.
   The proposal has left many residents uninspired, as it has stripped out any real value to the community. I cannot fathom why there’s any concern that the developer maintains a profit margin, an amount that we as the public will never know or be able to verify. Please remember, Greystone paid roughly $3.5 million dollars for the mill, approximately 300 percent more than it sold for nearly a decade ago. Why did they pay so much if the redevelopment plan was not profitable?
   The notion of mutual benefit has been lost. If we concede again, there will be only one winner here — not Hightstown. I’ve always felt I’ve represented my interests in the community fairly well as I have a long-term interest in seeing this borough recognize its full potential. ‘OK’ is not good enough and I hope residents and borough officials are equally as optimistic in Hightstown as I am. If we do not give Greystone what they want, we will be no different tomorrow as we were yesterday. In planning Hightstown’s future, sometimes the opportunities we don’t take are just as important as the ones we do.
   The Planning Board will be meeting again on June 25; make sure they know how other credible residents feel.
Christopher Moraitis
Hightstown
Parking garage best for mill site
To the editor:
Some persons decided that the conversion of the rug mill to housing would be a good thing? For whom? The deciders or the town.
   At first it did sound like a good idea. It appeared to be a source of revenue for Hightstown and in the short term a quick municipal budget fix with water/sewer connection charges and a PILOT (payment-in-lieu-of-taxes program). It appeared to be at an upscale sales price that would bring the yuppies to town with a commute to New York.
   The mill housing proposal is for condominiums. Condominiums are not fee-simple houses. They are apartments with tenant ownership or investor ownership. We are a town with 90 percent of the housing units as single-family homes. Many of these single-family homes are now multiple-family homes for people who share expenses with family members. A re-examination of the mill project has led some to conclude that maybe what we wish for is more than what we want.
   The whole concept of converting factory/warehouse space to living space works well in areas that need such housing and are in cities where there is no hour commute. Why would someone want to leave the ambiance of the big city they work and play in for the ambiance of suburbia unless they are home owning suburbanites, with lawns to mow and children to chauffeur to events for children? Would they choose a $380,000 condominium over a $380,000 house just to commute to the city? We really don’t know the answer to that question until it is tried.
   The rug mill site is 7 acres of land with a stream running through it. I asked myself what would I do with the property if housing was not an option nor leaving it as is an option.
   The obvious answer for the greatest return would be to convert it into a cemetery. Note that the mill site was offered to Hightstown for free back in the early 90s. But we can’t generate municipal revenues from graves, as of now.
   We could make it into a beautiful park with exotic plantings and charge visitors to see it.
   Parking? Why not? I drive to the Dayton park and ride to get the express bus to New York. Think of it. An express bus to New York or a bus to the Princeton Train station or Route 1 for the local commuters. Cars parked inside a shelter from rain, sleet and snow. Traffic? Some 20,000 cars a day pass through Hightstown on their way to Dayton, Princeton Junction or the Turnpike. A three-story parking garage on an acre site holds 450 cars. There would no need for the trip to Dayton. An express bus from Hightstown gets to New York City Port Authority Garage in 45 minutes. The rest of the site would be landscaped and be our own Central Park.
Eugene E. Sarafin
Hightstown
PAL’s 1st golf event was 1st class
To the editor:
After participating in the inaugural East Windsor PAL Little League Golf Outing on May 29 at Mercer Oaks, I felt compelled to write to congratulate everyone involved in organizing this fun, first-class event.
   For a very reasonable cost, attendees got to practice on the driving range, receive a gift pack, enjoy a great lunch, play a round of golf on a beautiful day with friends and neighbors, participate in various auctions for some terrific sports memorabilia and other great prizes and have a nice dinner (with some adult beverages consumed along the way as well).
   For those who thought about playing but didn’t make it to this first outing, I strongly encourage you to sign up for next year’s event. Some important things to keep in mind for next year are: 1) you don’t have to have a child playing in the PAL Little League to participate, 2) you do not have to be a good golfer to play (as we saw from a number of participants including myself) and 3) you may want to diet prior to the event as the food and drink was plentiful.
   Thanks again to everyone involved in setting up and executing this outstanding event. I’m looking forward to next year’s outing.
Grover Duckworth
East Windsor
Many thanks after Paws Walk
To the editor:
Thanks to all who made our first Paws Walk a success! Over 75 dogs walked, with close to 100 owners. Walkers came from many towns, thanks to the business, vet’s offices, libraries and schools that distributed our poster and fliers. All proceeds go directly to assisting animals in need. Many of you signed up to become more involved; others can go to www.hightstownborough.com to get info.
   Some dogs made a salon visit to the "Head to Tail" booth for nail clipping and ear cleaning. Many happy memories were photographed by InovativeCreations.com. The skies were good to us for the event after the walk, at Peddie Lake, where humans played games, said hi to McGruff, saw K9 demos from Washington Township and the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office, had their faces painted at Currier’s, and shopped at "Bark Lane."
   A huge THANK YOU to all our vendors and volunteers. A special thanks to Kelsey Jones, the AWC’s student representative member, who ran the Collar Toss game with her friend, Niki..
   The Animal Welfare Committee wants to share this event with some children at the BMS Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnbson. In case you missed the giant heart greeting card and display on Saturday, we are collecting money to send stuffed animals to the kids. There is still time to donate. (We will sign your name on the card for you). Checks can be sent to the Animal Welfare Committee, Hightstown Borough, 148 N. Main St., Hightstown, NJ 08520. Please write ‘RWJ Kids’ on your check.
   Our sponsors were very generous in their support: Allen & Stults Insurance, the Bowman Family; Dr. Petranto and Twin Rivers Animal Hospital, All Paws Petsitting, Janice Juzva and Firmenich, Hedy’s, Brandesign, Best Friends Pet Care, Cranbury Pizza and Gentle Healing Wellness Spa.
   There were many businesses and individuals that donated financially or in kind: A Bit of NYC, Americana Diner, Bark Lane, Charles Gregory School of Nursing, Comcast, Robin Conrad, Comisky’s Greenhouses, Currier’s Magical Mania, Dill’s Pets in Freehold, Dr. John Laudenberger, Famiglia Pizzeria, Ed Fielding, Michelle Foley, Hallmark, Head to Tail, Hightstown Bagel, InovativeCreations.com, Jenkins Family, Sumit Khanna, Robert Seda-Schreiber and the eighth-grade students at Kreps School, Moloney Family, Lisa Murphy, Larry Quattrone, Perenniel Home, Precious Pets, Rita’s Ice, Sal’s Pizza, ShopRite, Slow Down Café, Society Cleaners, Theo’s, Tony’s Farm & Garden and Trast family.
   Thanks to the Windsor-Hights Herald for the lengthy coverage the week before the event.
   For Paws Walk, there were many people "behind the scenes" that helped us: Lt. Reppy and Chief Eufemia; Leona Baylor, Rich Lewis, Candace Gallagher and Arlene O’Rourke and Public Works.
   The Animal Welfare Committee is about 2 years old. Thanks to you, the committee’s dedicated members have been able to make a difference in the lives of our furry friends. As the committee grows (hope you join!), we will remember the kindness you all have in your hearts for the joy that walks into our lives on four legs.
Barb Harrington
Hightstown
chairwoman, Paws Walk