Category Archives: Princeton In Depth

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Tony Lunn writes,  “The “core” of the borough voted against consolidation. The further away from the residential center of town,  the more people voted for consolidation. The effect is dramatic  (unofficial vote counts, without absentees*): District Vote Area 4, 5, … Continue reading →

Note: The percentages on the district voting map are calculated as a percentage of total votes and thus do not add  up to 100 %.  Some people voted but chose not to vote on the consolidation question.   For instance in … Continue reading →

it’s a fake

Friends: In just a few days, voters in Princeton Borough and Princeton Township will decide whether or not we shed our common border and become a single municipality.  As a Borough voter, I’ll be voting too, and to make a … Continue reading →

The Commission has recommended that the total combined police force be reduced from 60 to 51 (a 15% decrease) over a three-year period.  As part of this overall reduction the patrol squads will be reduced from a current total (Boro plus Township) of … Continue reading →

Paul Mulshine writes about the lack of press attention to those who oppose consolidation. “‘We are never taken seriously by the press,’ said the leader of a group of Princeton residents called Preserve Our Historic Borough. ‘When I do talk … Continue reading →

Kate Warren writes, “The Consolidation Commission would have us believe that two-thirds of the savings from the proposed consolidation will come from a phased-in 20% reduction in police protection that will happen in an orderly fashion by simple attrition.  Opponents … Continue reading →

Emails from May 24th, 2011 obtained through OPRA* requests show that the Commission gave municipal employees less than 24 hours to estimate transition costs and then slashed the one careful estimate they received by more than 90% because the state … Continue reading →

POHB began research into the Boro’s capital surplus after Unite stated as a reason for consolidation that “The Borough has depleted its capital surplus for the last several years in order to keep taxes flat.”  They have since modified that statement, … Continue reading →

Princeton–and we include both the Borough and the Township in that word– is a very special town, particularly in the United States. It has a vibrant downtown, whereas most town centers have declined in favor of the surrounding suburbs and malls. We … Continue reading →

“In government, the whole idea of economies of scale is turned on its head,”  says Wendell Cox who has studied the benefits of merging towns across the country. The Wall Street Journal article where he is quoted reports on the lack of cost savings in government … Continue reading →

Note: OPRA documents reveal that the Commission gave municipal employees less than 24 hours to turn around their request for an estimate of transition costs. Only one department made a careful estimate, the one described below. Emails show that that estimate … Continue reading →

Note: The IT estimate was for $2.1M, substantially over the $1M dollars that Neilsen mentions below.  A reconciliation with transitition costs already included in Commission police estimates shows that only $106,500 of expenses in the IT estimate were already counted by the … Continue reading →

Dr. Frank writes, “Princeton Borough was established in 1813: Princeton Township was established in 1838. Boundaries of these two municipalities have hardly changed.  Are these the boundaries that would have been established in 1900, 1950, or 2000? Probably not. Slight … Continue reading →

Phyliss Teitelbaum writes, “Some people who are pro-consolidation insist that “we are all one”–that there are no significant differences between Princeton Borough residents and Princeton Township residents.  Often the same people say we must consolidate because Borough Council and Township … Continue reading →

Kate Warren writes, “Just this week Consolidation Commission Chairman Lahnston offered the dissolution of Seneca Falls Village, NY as a model analogous to the upcoming Princeton consolidation referendum in a Trenton Times’ guest opinion.  Preserve Our Historic Borough (POHB) has … Continue reading →

Township police wrote to all Township residents that it is “our duty to inform you about potential safety concerns we have in regards to consolidation”. They write that “the negative impact on services and public safety will be significant.” This came out … Continue reading →

David Goldfarb’s letter to the town : DON’T CONSOLIDATE! To the Town: Having served on the Borough Council for 21 years and on the Consolidation and Shared Services Study Commission for the past 15 months, I question the reasoning behind … Continue reading →

Phyliss Teitelbaum writes, “Those who oppose consolidation say that the controversy over moving the library demonstrates the differences between the Borough and the Township and thus strengthens their arguments for defeating consolidation. Former Borough Mayor Marvin Reed, who supports consolidation, … Continue reading →

Underlined is ad by Unite Princeton, public question group in favor of consolidation of Borough and Township. Unite “Fact”:  Every Borough and Township resident will save on his or her municipal tax bill. Analysis: The Commission’s Impact Report does not take into … Continue reading →

 Peter Marks writes to us: “Appointed commissioners and paid consultants, many with no experience in consolidation, have prepared a “roadmap” which they expect will determine the shape, size, and functions of our future (consolidated) government. Commission meetings were open to … Continue reading →

In selecting a consultant to work up a consolidation “roadmap” for Princeton Borough and Township, the Consolidation Commission chose Joseph Stefko, a Rochester, New York resident working for the Center for Government Research. [1] Stefko has no actual experience with … Continue reading →

Commission members and local elected officials Daivd Goldfarb and Chad Goener appeared October 11 on Joan Goldstein’s Back Story on Princeton Community Television to discuss the pros and cons of consolidation.  Among many points discussed, Goldfarb said that resident and merchant concerns over the … Continue reading →

In a letter to the Town Topics, Frank writes, “Consolidating Princeton Borough and Township into one municipality means that the average voter loses voice in municipal affairs. According to the Board of Elections, there are currently 6,491 voters in the … Continue reading →

It slips easily off the tongue. “You must save alot of money if you eliminate a mayor, a police chief, an administrator.” It feels right intuitively. But in this case one’s gut feeling is wrong. Let’s do a back-of-the-envelope calculation … Continue reading →

Elisa Rosen writes that: “For 17 years I have lived in Princeton Borough. I am appalled at the constant hammering every few years to get the Borough and Township to consolidate. We have already spent enormous sums of money setting … Continue reading →

The following annotations to page 6 of the Commission’s Summary of Tax and Non-Tax Impacts from Consolidation show that the Commission’s estimated financial benefit to an average Township taxpayer is $664 and to an average Borough taxpayer $149.   This is after consolidation and … Continue reading →

Kate Warren writes that Governor Christie’s announcement last week of proposed legislation to provide municipalities with 20% of the transition costs of consolidation “coming on the eve of the November referendum is suspect.”  In July the state’s DCA Deputy Director Pfeiffer declined to answer … Continue reading →

Staff cuts to sworn police officers of 15% if consolidation passes and Commission recommendations are implemented are not backed up by statistics or comparison with other New Jersey municipalities. The combined police force would have 8 officers on the street at any … Continue reading →

Kate Warren, spokesperson for POHB, submitted an OPRA (Open Public Records Act) request to both the Township and the Borough on September 23, 2011 asking for all documents relating to the “cost of transitioning in a consolidated municipality.” The request … Continue reading →

At the Special Joint Meeting last night, Princeton resident Rob Dodge urged public officials to understand the magnitude of the task of consolidating service organizations. “I was involved in two consolidations, consolidating a small unit of a major pharmaceutical company into a … Continue reading →

At the  Special Joint Borough/Township Meeting held last night as a forum where Boro Council, Township Committee, and the Commission could discuss consolidation with constituents, an audience which presented many reasons not to consolidate faced a staunchly pro-consolidation political establishment.  Among reasons … Continue reading →

Both the Borough Council and the Township Committee will meet to hear public comments regarding consolidation tomorrow evening, Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 7 pm in the Borough Hall Council Chambers.  Please come to present your views on consolidation.   Those opposing … Continue reading →

Princeton resident Anne Neumann disputes Patrick Simon’s claim at the PCDO debate last Sunday night that although Borough residents are passionate about the Dinky, right now they “have no standing in the zoning in the Alexander Street area.”  The Township … Continue reading →

Princeton resident Ken Fields in a letter to Town Topics writes that advisory planning ” districts would have no actual power. They would be allowed to offer opinions to the Planning Board, and the Board would have to answer them. Not … Continue reading →

Mayoral candidates for Princeton Borough, Jill Jachera and Yina Moore, at Tuesday’s September 22nd debate both brought forward issues with consolidation. Ms. Moore said she was not yet convinced and that questions remain — questions she has been asking the … Continue reading →

Princeton resident Ken Fields, a veteran of the 1996 fight to stop the consolidation of the Borough and the Township, writes to us, “(1) All of the ‘savings’ being promoted by the Consolidation Commission are hypothetical: they depend on a … Continue reading →

The Daily Princetonian reported a lively discussion between particpants at the PCDO’s debate Sunday night.  They quoted Alexi Assmus as saying that “the commission is overstating the potential property tax ratings, which are not guaranteed. The predicted property tax savings depend on the … Continue reading →

This is a rare chance to see the matter of consolidation discussed publicly from both sides.*  The PCDO’s Consolidation: A debate on the proposal to merge Princeton Borough and Township will take place at Sunday, September 18th, 7:30 pm at the … Continue reading →

If consolidation occurs, at least $1.2 million per year will be an added cost to the combined municipal budget to cover the cost of former Township trash collection. Currently Township residents pay for their own trash collection. The Commission estimate … Continue reading →

The basic political fact that Borough voters are outnumbered by  Township voters  by almost 2-1 was brought to the attention of the Commission by Phyllis Teitelbaum and  Anthony Lunn. The number of  registered voters in the Township is 12,038 and in the Borough is 7,154.  … Continue reading →

In October LUARCC* contracted with the School of Public Affairs and Administration to conduct a review of the literature on municipal government consolidation.  They concluded that,  “Overall, the literature indicates that there is no compelling evidence for consolidation” and that … Continue reading →

In an Op Ed piece, Marks writes, “Because there are few if any economies of scale in the provision of government services, it is highly unlikely that a consolidated Princeton would find itself able both to trim payroll costs and … Continue reading →

Phyllis Teitelbaum points out in Planet Princeton that “It is not surprising that commission members who favored consolidation from the beginning would decide to recommend consolidation at the end. What is surprising is that we, the public, are expected to accept the … Continue reading →

Currently only the representatives from the Princeton Consolidation Commission which supports consolidation will be presenting at the library’s October 1st meeting from 9 am until 12 pm at the Community Room in the Princeton Public Library.  Those opposing consolidation have been denied the … Continue reading →

Krystal Knapp wrote a front-page article for Princeton Echo’s September edition, “Battle lines drawn on consolidation: Pro and con groups advocating for and against November referendum”.  See full article, left column front page.