Volume LXXII, Number 35
Back to School Section on Pages 17-25 Be Wary of Wild Mushrooms . . . . . . . . . 5 Princeton to Charge for Marriage Ceremonies . . 7 Rescue Squad Remembers Kenwood’s Heroism . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Outside Looking in With Shelley and the Parkers . . 16 No . 10 PU Field Hockey Starting 2018 Season This Weekend . . . . . . 39 PHS Boys’ Soccer Primed to Maintain Winning Tradition . . . . . . . . . . 43
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Use of Franklin Lot Debated at Meeting Of Princeton Council
The temporary future of the open lot on Franklin Avenue was the focus of Princeton Council’s continuing discussion of parking at the Council’s meeting on Monday, August 27. The town’s parking system is being studied and improved, and the governing body has been receiving updates as details are worked out by consultants and staff. The future of the Franklin lot across from the Avalon Princeton complex is temporary, because the lot has been designated as a future site for affordable housing. Until that time, which could be between one and two years, the spacious lot could be the site of regulated parking, or something else. The property was formerly owned by Princeton University, which donated it to the municipality in 2014 as part of a seven-year agreement on voluntary contributions. “I want to make it totally clear that we are talking about temporary parking, because this is slated for affordable housing,” said Mayor Liz Lempert. Municipal engineer Deanna Stockton explained that the western side of the lot Continued on Page 28
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Wednesday, August 29, 2018
Drumthwacket to Be a New Jersey “Point of Pride” With its six white columns and sprawling wings on either side, Drumthwacket is among Princeton’s most visually striking buildings. But the official residence of the governor of New Jersey, last occupied from 2002 to 2004 by former Gov. James McGreevey and family, is in need of some major TLC. Since Gov. Phil Murphy took office last January, First Lady Tammy Murphy has made the Stockton Street property a priority. Working with the Drumthwacket Foundation, Mrs. Murphy plans to spruce up the building, inside and out. The house, which dates from 1835 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is regularly used for receptions and open to the public on a limited basis. But the upstairs family quarters has decades-old carpeting, loose plaster moldings, and a few electric sockets that are falling down. The Murphys “would love to move in,” Tammy Murphy said during a phone conversation this week. “But this isn’t just for us. It’s for everyone. My goal is to fix up Drumthwacket so that my husband and his administration can use it for meetings, and it becomes a point of pride for New Jersey. I want to make it shine. I feel as
though it has gotten a little bit rundown.” It was the front lawn that first got Mrs. Murphy’s attention. “When I arrived here, I was struck right away by the fact that cars were parked on the lawn,” she said. “We can’t do that anymore. It’s bad for the neighborhood, the house, and the lawn. And it’s a waste of money because the DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) has to come in after each event and regrade the lawn.”
Creating a parking area involves fixing up the back driveway, which has lately been out of use. That work is underway. “We also want to open up the back gate, which hasn’t been used for years,” Mrs. Murphy said. “And the tennis court and swimming pool — it’s almost a dangerous situation and it has to be fixed.” This summer, students from Rutgers University’s horticulture department Continued on Page 28
Jackson, Sherman Highlight Coalition for Peace Fall Conference
The Rev. Jesse Jackson will be the keynote speaker at the Princeton University Chapel on November 11, preaching at the 39th Annual Multifaith Service sponsored by the Coalition for Peace Action (CFPA). For the CFPA’s Conference for Peace that afternoon at the Nassau Presbyterian Church, the renowned civil rights, religious, and political figure will be joined by Wendy Sherman, lead U.S. negotiator for the Iran nuclear agreement; Ray Acheson, steering group member for the International Campaign to Ban Nuclear Weapons and part of the Nobel Peace
Prize-winning effort last summer to pass the nuclear weapons prohibition treaty at the U.N.; and Bill Hartung, internationallyrecognized expert on the issues of Pentagon spending and the global arms race. “I’m thrilled to have such a dynamite collection of speakers, with Jesse Jackson kicking it off,” said CFPA Executive Director the Rev. Bob Moore. “There’s a great lineup of speakers,” CFPA Assistant Director Niki VanAller concurred. “Jesse Jackson has been a leading voice for peace for so long. He speaks to a wide audience, different Continued on Page 29
Part Two of Readers’ Choice Awards Results . . 10 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach Realtors . .26, 27 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 37 Cinema . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Classified Ads . . . . . . 47 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Music/Theater . . . . . . 34 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 25 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 45 Police . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6 Weddings . . . . . . . . . . 29
IN NEED OF SOME TLC: Drumthwacket, the New Jersey governor’s mansion, is being spruced up under the direction of First Lady Tammy Murphy and the Drumthwacket Foundation. From new parking areas to kitchen improvements, some changes are underway. (Photo by Virginia Hall)