Volume LXXIII, Number 25
www.towntopics.com
Town Employee Charged With 2nd Degree Bribery In Sewer Dumping Scandal
YWCA’s All-Girls Robotics Team Visits SES . . . . . . 5 MoveOn Rally Draws Crowd in Hinds Plaza . . 8 Rare Tick-Borne Virus Has Yet to Affect Princeton . . . . . . . . . . 10 Princeton Symphonic Brass at Westminster Choir College . . . . . . . 16 PU Football Alum Horsted Looking to Make Chicago Bears . . . . . 26 PHS Track’s Wildberg Places 5th in Long Jump at Nationals . . . . . . . 29
Nat King Cole at 100 . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach Realtors . .22, 23 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 24 Classified Ads . . . . . . 35 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Music/Theater . . . . . . 17 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 33 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 6 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 35 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 34 School Matters . . . . . . 12 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
As a result of a joint investigation by the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and the Princeton Police Department into illegal dumping at the Princeton Sewer Operating Plant, a former municipal employee has been charged with bribery in the second degree. Thomas Hughes, who until June 6 was the supervisor at the facility on River Road, was charged “for accepting payments to influence his official duties,” according to a police report issued this week. Hughes is scheduled to appear in Mercer County Superior Court on June 27. He allegedly allowed contractors to dump materials, including dirt and asphalt, at the facility. In addition, the head of the Department of Infrastructure and Operations, which oversees the Sewer Operating Division, has been placed on paid leave while the investigation continues. “There may be further actions taken as the investigation proceeds,” Mayor Liz Lempert wrote last Friday in her weekly email update. “The municipality has called in the Mercer County Prosecutor’s office, and is committed to a full and thorough investigation and appropriate disciplinary measures. The Council and I are angry about the misuse of the River Road site. Our goal is to support a thorough investigation, to uncover any systemic failings, and put new procedures in place to safeguard our operations.” First reported by Planet Princeton late last month, the allegations of improper dumping have resulted in Princeton’s Health Department, along with state and county environmental officials, inspecting the site to determine whether violations of environmental regulations have occurred. Last week, the town received a report from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) saying materials were disposed of at the facility without proper approvals. A full inspection report has not yet been filed, according to the agency’s website. “The municipality is in the process of engaging the services of a licensed site remediation specialist to advise on necessary cleanup actions,” Municipal Administrator Marc Dashield wrote in a statement this week. “The municipality intends to terminate the contract with ICUNJ, the contractor for the Linden and Continued on Page 9
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Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Princeton Pride Parade Rolls Out Saturday Princeton’s first-ever Pride Parade is ready to roll out Saturday morning at 11 a.m. from the Municipal Building on Witherspoon Street. Organized by the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice (BRCSJ), the parade, led by Philadelphia Freedom, an LGBTQIA marching band from Philadelphia, will proceed up Witherspoon Street, turning on Paul Robeson Place, and ending up at an after-party at the YMCA green space with live music, a drag show, food trucks, and “a vast array of speakers,” according to BRCSJ Chief Actifvist Robt SedaSchreiber. “The significance and history of this moment is realized both in celebration of this being Princeton’s very first Pride
Parade and in recognition and respect to Stonewall 50,” said Seda-Schreiber. “In honor of these concurrent events we will sashay and strut in the delight of how far we have come as much as we will march in solidarity of how far we have yet to go.” Seda-Schreiber pointed out that sometimes a parade is more than just a parade. “This event will carry forward well beyond this one event, this one day,” he said. “We hope to create an exponential safe space, as this day inspires folks to recognize and celebrate our diversity and our intersectionality.” Eleven-year-old Mani Martinez, who is organizing a group of young people who will ride bicycles in the parade as part of the “Pride Riders,” commented on the im-
pact of the parade and the BRCSJ, which opened six months ago. “Since it opened, the Center has made me feel safe and happy, more like myself. Now this Pride Parade is going to help a lot of other kids feel that same way, and that makes me even happier.” Emphasizing the potential impact of the event, Seda-Schreiber continued, “Our kids who are bullied in school, our coworkers who are harassed in their offices, our elders who have spent a lifetime unrecognized as their true selves — they will see us assembled and feel represented, respected, even loved. They can feel like they are a part of something rather than constantly on the outside of it.” Continued on Page 11
Youth Committee Advises Council, Forges New Directions for Princeton
ART ALL NIGHT RETURNS: Live mural painting was just one of the many attractions at Art All Night, held last weekend at the Roebling Wire Works in Trenton . The community festival, which also featured plenty of art, live music, interactive events, food trucks, and more, returned with increased security after it was cut short by gun violence last year . Eventgoers share their favorite parts of the festival in this week’s Town Talk on page 6 . (Photo by Charles R. Plohn)
Current members of the Princeton Council are all at least a generation removed from their youth, and no matter how strong their memories might be, the world of 2019 presents a very different landscape with different challenges from those of the past. That’s why the Princeton Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) for the last three years has been advising the Princeton mayor and Council on a range of issues of interest to local youth. “We give a voice and platform for the youth population of our town,” said YAC Vice Chair Nandita Nammanamanchi, a Princeton High School (PHS) junior. “Our role in working with the Council is important because we are able to give them first-hand insight on a demographic that is highly important, but one they are detached from, and we can present them with new perspectives on their projects. In general, for the youth of Princeton, we are giving them a voice in the local political sphere.” YAC Chair and PHS Senior Eli Wasserman pointed out, “YAC is extremely valuable to our community because we act as a primary source for the issues facing students in Princeton. High schoolers are becoming more active and outspoken on political and social issues every year, so the YAC is here to listen to the students’ needs.” Continued on Page 12