PRINCETON: Township balks at hiring construction manager

By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
   Princeton officials have delayed hiring a construction manager for the renovation of the two municipal buildings.Township Mayor Chad Goerner raised concerns last week when the Township Committee was asked Sept. 10 to consider approving a contract capped at $129,504 for the Yedlin Co.
   Mr. Goerner wants to see what the broader costs are for renovating the buildings and what the work timelines are.
   While the township committee held off approving the contract with Yedlin, the Borough Council supported it Sept.11.
   Borough Councilman Kevin Wilkes said he felt postponing hiring a construction manager delays officials from getting “firm estimates” on renovation costs.
   Borough Councilwoman Jenny Crumiller on Thursday expressed interest in sitting down with the Township Committee to resolve the issue.
   Officials are expected to take up the issue when the joint governing bodies meet Oct.1.
   With the clock ticking toward the merger of the two towns, municipal departments will need to relocate; the bulk of the consolidated government operating out of the current township building on Witherspoon Street.
   Based on conversations he had with staff from both towns, Mr. Goerner said the bulk of the renovations to Borough Hall relate to Corner House, a substance abuse program that is relocating there from its current home in the Valley Road school building. He said that, then, does not become a transition-related cost.
   Asked who would have to pay, he said officials would contact Corner House to inquire if the organization would be willing to contribute financially.