EAST WINDSOR: Township acquires additional open space

By Amy Batista, Special Writer
EAST WINDSOR — The Township Council acquired an additional 24 acres of Open Space on Airport Road during its council meeting on Sept. 2.
"This is one that we’ve actually been interested in for awhile," said Mayor Janice Mironov. "We’ve had it on our target list for awhile and they are willing to sell it."
According to the ordinance, the Township Council of the Township of East Windsor has determined that it is in the best interests of the township to acquire an approximately 24 acre parcel of land located at 181 Airport Road, and designated on the East Windsor Township Tax Map as Block 47, Lot 14 for use as open space.
The property is presently owned by Princeton Research Lands, Inc. which is located on 195 Nassau Street in Princeton, according to the ordinance.
An Agreement of Sale, between East Windsor Township, and Princeton Research Lands, Inc. has been negotiated with a purchase price of $200,000 for the property, according to the ordinance.
Resident Sean O’Connor said "we don’t have to take this money."
"I do understand that it is made available to us," said Mr. O’Connor. "I understand that that is a wonderful thing. I understand that it’s great to want to preserve land, obviously its precious."
"We don’t have to perpetuate a fiscal problem that is getting worse in this country," he continued. "I would like us to set an example there."
Mayor Mironov clarified concerns raised regarding the funding.
"The funding that is being used for the acquisition is all dedicated funding," she said. "It will all be used for this and nowhere else."
According to the ordinance, the township has been awarded New Jersey Green Acres Program and County of Mercer grants to fund the purchase of the 24 acre property.
Mr. O’Connor asked for clarification on the township’s goal on how many acres of land it wanted to preserve for Open Space.
"It’s not clear at what point we would say is the goal, the limit, in terms of the acres," he said. "How many acres of land do we want until we stop and say we’ve met our goal? There is not a clear statement there so that it comes across as if we’re just going to keep trying to come across land with all the dollars that come our way."
"We actually have an Open Space and Recreation plan that we adopted and we do an update from time to time that includes targeted properties within the community that are of interest for various reasons," Mayor Mironov said. "We’ve also identified properties that are targeted for preserved farmland and potential Open Space."