FEBRUARY 2019 FREE
Towns tire of Water Works woes
COMMUNITYNEWS.ORG
PennEast surveys underway
Triple take
Pipeline company sending contractors to property owners to assess impact to environment
by rob antheS
ranthes@communitynews.org
Coming off the worst year in its history, Trenton Water Works received notice of three more state violations in January, continuing a cycle the utility has spent months trying to break. Meanwhile, tired of questioning TWW’s ability to fulfill its purpose, residents and suburban towns served by the utility have begun resorting to other measures to ensure they have clean drinking water. Trenton Water Works has insisted the water coming from its system always has been safe. TWW’s management says while progress has been made in correcting deficiencies in staffing and procedures, it continues to struggle to meet state Department of Environmental Protection requirements. All three of the January violations, for example, were due to clerical or administrative issues such as missed deadlines, not new questions about water quality. TWW customers will be receiving notices about the January violations in the coming weeks. Trenton Water Works customers in Ewing, Hamilton, Hopewell Township, Lawrence and Trenton have become familiar with the public notices, many of them full of language suggesting there could be health concerns with the water. TWW has issued 24 such letters in the last two years, including for violaSee WATER, Page 11
by Joe eManSKI
jemanski@communitynews.org
Piper Ward, Morgan Schragger and Caroline Herbert, members of the International Thespian Society Troupe 7964 at Hopewell Valley Central High School, pose after taking part in the New Jersey State Thespian Festival, held at Robbinsville High School on Jan. 20, 2019. (Photo by Suzette J. Lucas.)
McLaughlin ready to lead Succeeds Kuchinski as mayor of Hopewell Township by Joe eManSKI
jemanski@communitynews.org
Hopewell Township welcomed its first new mayor in four years when the township committee elected Democrat Kristin McLaughlin to the post at its Jan. 7 reorganization meeting. Committee member Kevin Kuchinski, who had served as mayor since 2016, nominated
McLaughlin to the post. She was the only nominee and was elected by a vote of 4-0, with all four Democrats on the committee supporting her. Republican John Hart abstained. Michael Ruger was then elected deputy mayor by a vote of 4-0. McLaughlin was elected to the committee in 2016, and would be up for re-election this fall, should she seek renomination. Ruger ran with McLaughlin in 2016, but lost to Hart before running again in 2017 and winning election. In a phone interview a few weeks after the reorganization meeting, McLaughlin said
two years on the committee have made her more comfortable making difficult decisions. “When you’re a mom, you really work hard and you can’t always do it, but you really work hard to make sure everyone gets something out of the decisions you make,” she said. “At the township level, that’s simply not always possible. And sometimes that’s hard to explain to people.” McLaughlin, 52, has been a stay-at-home mom for 24 years. A township resident since 2008, McLaughlin lives in the Willow Creek neighborhood. She See MAYOR, Page 5
Residents of the Hopewell Valley and neighboring regions have been reluctant hosts in recent weeks. Their unwanted guests? Contractors hired by the PennEast Pipeline Company to conduct a variety of surveys on their land. The Federal Energy Resource Commission ruled that PennEast could construct a 120-mile natural gas pipeline in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in January 2018. But to get construction permits, PennEast has to prove to the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Delaware River Basin Commission that the pipeline would not pose environmental hazard. In the meantime, PennEast sued more than 130 recalcitrant landowners along the route to gain access to their properties to do environmental surveys with an eye toward beginning construction by 2020. On Dec. 14, federal judge Brian Martinotti ruled that landowners must allow PennEast access. Shortly thereafter, PennEast had boots on the ground. Timothy Duggan is an eminent domain lawyer with Stark See PIPELINE, Page 6
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