Preservation and taxes are top concerns
By:Josh Appelbaum
Candidates for Township Committee said that preserving open space and keeping taxes stable are the top priorities for Cranbury.
But they differ on how much they are willing to spend on open space and farmland.
For the next three weeks, The Cranbury Press will be presenting a series of stories about where Township Committee candidates stand on various issues in town.
This week, we introduce the candidates and give them a chance to explain why they are running and what their goals are for the future. During the next two weeks, we will focus on open space and farmland preservation, development, taxes and the budget.
On the ballot are Democrats Richard Stannard, the incumbent, and David Stout and Republicans Richard Abrams and Jack Ziegler. Republican Michael Mayes is not seeking re-election after serving two terms on the committee. Mr. Mayes is the lone Republican on the five-member committee.
Richard Abrams
Republican
Richard Abrams of Applegate Court is CEO of Century 21 Richard Abrams & Associates in Plainsboro and Century 21 Premier Properties in Princeton. He has lived in Cranbury for five years.
Mr. Abrams ran unsuccessfully for Township Council in West Windsor in 1999. He has a bachelor’s degree from Trenton State College now The College of New Jersey and a master’s degree in human resources and labor relations from Rutgers University.
He owns several homes and land totaling 26 acres in Cranbury.
Mr. Abrams said he can bring a solid business knowledge to Cranbury. He supports preserving open space, and said preservation will allow property values to increase.
"I own several acres of vacant land and homes, so I have a vested interest in Cranbury," Mr. Abrams said.
Mr. Abrams said the township needs to prioritize what properties Cranbury should buy, without exceeding a $20 million debt ceiling.
"We need to control our spending, get our debt down and put the money in the right properties," Mr. Abrams said.
Mr. Abrams said the township can lower its debt by expanding Cranbury’s current commercial zone east of Route 130 and stabilizing the tax rate.
"As a real estate broker for 25 years, I bring good business experience to the table," Mr. Abrams said.
Mr. Abrams said fiscal responsibility will be his number one priority.
"We need to determine what would serve the best as far as open space. It appears this administration keeps spending and spending, and spending," Mr. Abrams said.
Richard Stannard
Democrat
Richard Stannard of North Main Street is an attorney. He has lived in Cranbury for eight years, has served on the committee for three years and is the current mayor.
Mr. Stannard has a bachelor’s degree from Southern Connecticut State University and a law degree from Fordham University.
Mr. Stannard said he is running for a second term because he would like to preserve the remaining available open space and farmland, see the township pay down its debt and help complete the Historic Preservation Advisory Committee charter for the management of new township lands.
"We’re headed into the endgame in terms of the land the township should use and I want to be there for the last of the story," Mr. Stannard said.
In addition, Mr. Stannard said he would look at current township-owned lands to meet the needs for active and passive recreation in the township.
He said tax increases this year and anticipated hikes next year are a hardship residents had to take on to preserve the Barclay, Fisher and Simonson properties.
Mr. Stannard said the $2 million received from the state Agricultural Development Committee and profits from the sale of farmland will help pay down the debt the township recently incurred.
Mr. Stannard also said the committee needs to work on an HPAC charter to "scrub up the jobs we started this year."
"The purpose of revising the charter is so that HPAC will have authority and its goals will be clearly defined. Charter members have been working hard behind the scenes this year, and I’d like to see these goals come to fruition, with action by the committee on this as early the beginning of next year," Mr. Stannard said.
David Stout
Democrat
David Stout of South Main Street is principal scientist and vice president of Blasland, Bouck & Lee Inc. of Cranbury. He has lived in Cranbury since 1993 and is on the Cranbury Environmental Commission, the Development Review Committee and is vice president of the Cranbury Lions Club.
Mr. Stout said his number one priority in running for Township Committee is to continue acquiring open space and farmland. He said he is in favor of deferring noncritical budget projects to buy open space. He said open space taxes are a reasonable, sound investment for residents.
"Our open space taxes are less than 1 percent of our tax bills, so you need to consider the cost-benefit analysis the benefits obviously outweigh the costs," Mr. Stout said.
He said it is important the township continue with its current open space goals, by recouping its share by subsidies and through land sales, stabilizing taxes to gain the maximum benefits of the ratable in order to sustain the momentum of farmland preservation.
"The residents needs to continue to support the committee so it can do its job to sustain the high quality of life we enjoy here in Cranbury," Mr. Stout said.
In addition, Mr. Stout said he will protect environmental resources though by continuing various preservation programs and that in turn will contribute to a better quality of life for Cranbury residents.
Mr. Stout said the township should proceed cautiously with land development for new buildings and commercial development east of Route 130.
"We need to choose parcels of land that offer the wisest, most sustainable use," Mr. Stout said.
He said with new development, the township needs to seriously optimize traffic control to protect town streets and village hamlets. Mr. Stout said there is pressure to accommodate commuters parking on Main Street in the morning but doesn’t advocate that traffic move any faster. He said current congestion actually helps keep children walking school safe during rush hour.
"Congestion in the morning is actually a blessing because traffic moves slower while kids are walking close to roads," Mr. Stout said.
Jack Ziegler
Republican
Jack Ziegler of Prospect Street is a lifelong resident of Cranbury. Mr. Ziegler has served on the township Zoning Board of Adjustment, the Middlesex County Board of Elections and the County Republican Committee. He is an active member of the Cranbury Volunteer Fire Company and was a member of the Cranbury Lions Club, holding the positions of secretary, treasurer, vice president and president.
Mr. Ziegler is a veteran of World War II and graduated from Rider College. He retired 11 years ago after 33 years at Ethicon Inc., a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, where he held managerial positions in data processing and office systems.
Mr. Ziegler is a real estate associate with Century 21, Rich Abrams & Associates.
Mr. Ziegler said his platform stresses is communication between the committee and the board and paying attention to detail. Mr. Ziegler is in favor of farmland preservation, but said the current committee’s handling of land acquisition has been irresponsible.
"We’re already at our maximum spending level or over it, they don’t know how they’ll pay for it there’s no way they can come up money for everything (the township) should buy," Mr. Ziegler said.
"We have to be more fiscally responsible we can’t just spend and spend and spend."
He also cited hesitancy and missteps on the part of the township in not purchasing the 50-acre Updike property as failures for the Township Committee.
Mr. Ziegler favors going back to the drawing board on open space and farmland preservation. He said he favors putting all available properties down on paper and focusing on properties that would serve to meet the economic needs of paying down the debt.
With this, Mr. Ziegler said it is important the township fully disclose to the public which properties the township seeks to buy, regardless of whether prices for those properties would rise.
Mr. Ziegler criticized the Township Committee for "wasting time" and "being indecisive" with regards to the construction of the new police station on Station Road.
Since the township began work on the project two years ago, the estimated cost has risen by almost $1 million. In 2002, when plans were first discussed, it was projected that the new station would cost $2.33 million. The price tag for the current project is $3.175 million. In September of 2003, the township hired Berkowsky and Associates to work on the proposed police station with Mylan Architectural Group, the original architect, at an estimated cost of $87,000.
"They hired someone to expedite the process, it cost us $1 million we need to be more decisive, stop the quibbling, I don’t want to waste time with being indecisive," Mr. Ziegler said.
He said the committee needs to reform its budgetary practices.
Mr. Ziegler criticized the convoluted way current budgets are structured and proposed a more transparent budget plan.
"The way the budget is put together is wrong," he said. "The business administrator needs something more specific. (The business administrator) needs to publish something understandable and list every individual item right now they can’t tell us what we are spending our money on."