Volume LXXVIII, Number 10
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Hotel Construction Issues Keep Chambers Street One-Way Until May 16
Summer Camp Guide Pages 17-20 McCarter’s Production of Dreamgirls is About More Than Glitz and Glam . . 5 Visitors From Italy Bring Rich Culture, Education, Friendships to PHS . . 10 PU Public Affairs School Spotlights Children’s Health Equity and Justice . . . . .11 “There Are Smiles” on Ring Lardner’s Birthday . . 14 PU Orchestra Presents Concerto Competition Winners, World Premiere . . . . . . . . . . 15 Mitchell’s Aggressive Play Helps PU Women’s Hoops Top Harvard, Dartmouth . . . . . . . 25
Following a prolonged discussion, Princeton Council voted at its February 26 meeting to allow the Graduate Hotel to maintain the work zone on Chambers Street through May 16, which is more than two months longer than previously scheduled. That means the street will remain one-way going north until the hotel opens for business on that date. Much anticipated, the hotel’s opening is delayed due to structural issues in the front part of the hotel, an existing building at 20 Nassau Street. Opening up the street to two-way traffic was not considered a viable alternative at this point, since it would likely entail periodic closures. “We looked at numerous, numerous options to try and avoid this,” said Pablo David, representing the hotel. “We know that it has been an inconvenience to many of the residents, people who live, work, and play in the downtown. This is the quickest, most efficient way to get us off the street and the hotel opened.” Council members and Mayor Mark Freda were not pleased at the request. “This is the second time you have come to us with a choice that is not really a choice,” said Councilwoman Eve Niedergang, referring to the developer’s request nearly two years ago to change the plan of keeping Chambers Street two-way during construction, changing it to one-way. “I’m frustrated on behalf of the people this is impacting,” Niedergang continued, suggesting that the developers might offer compensation in the form of a corporate contribution to a community cause. David replied that he could not answer that request “on the fly.”
75¢ at newsstands
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Flu Numbers Remain High; COVID, RSV Decline As spring and the likely end of the season for high numbers of respiratory diseases approaches, influenza activity locally and throughout the state remains high, but health officials are hopeful that this year’s numbers may have peaked in February. “The trajectory for influenza has decreased in the past week,” wrote Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center Epidemiologist David J. Herman in a March 5 email. “If this pattern holds, we may have seen the peak of this year’s influenza season.” He noted that flu activity remains high in all New Jersey counties, but he pointed out that a tripledemic — flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) — “was not apparent, since all three viruses did not peak at the same time.” He added, “COVID-19 cases continue in a slow decline both locally and statewide.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) most recently reported for the week of February 17 that RSV percent positivity in New Jersey and the percentage of emergency department visits with a diagnosis of RSV had been decreasing since mid-December. Princeton Deputy Administrator/Director of Health Jeff Grosser also pointed out the high state activity for influenza, “with
61,506 cases reported through February 24.” He continued, “Last year we saw influenza peak through the early part of January. This season will likely conclude with the influenza peak occurring sometime in mid-to-late February. We have also observed a few fast-acting outbreaks of influenza in our K-12 schools.” Grosser noted that this year is different from previous post-pandemic years in that “we are not having that overlapping peak timing.” In past years there were times
when all three respiratory illnesses — flu, COVID-19, and RSV — “were peaking all at similar times, which increased the hospital emergency department burden.” For the 2023-24 season through March 4, Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center has reported 510 cases of influenza. There was a total of 672 cases reported for the entire 2022-23 season. Grosser stated that the severity of this year’s flu season seems “relatively typical,” but he said that with more workers Continued on Page 8
Citizen’s Police Academy Registering Participants for its Second Season
At the beginning of the six-week Citizen’s Police Academy held by the Princeton Police Department last spring, one of the 16 participants — a man in his seventies — told Sgt. Dan Federico that he had never really trusted the police. By the end of the program, “I think we opened his eyes on a few things,” said Federico. “He actually referred three people for this year.” Getting the Citizen’s Police Academy up and running was a(under goal of 4.5’) Chief Jon Bucchere when he took over the top spot in October 2022. The success of the inaugural program last spring has prompted the department to schedule a second series, which begins April 18 and runs on
All You Can Eat Sushi
Thursday evenings through June 6. Spots are still available for the 20 slots. Participation is free. “Having gone through it myself, I can say it’s a really top-notch program,” said Princeton Councilwoman Leticia Fraga during the governing body’s February 26 meeting. “It’s a wonderful experience. I would even go as far as saying it’s exciting. We may not get deputized. We didn’t get to keep a gun. But we learned how to use one.” Learning how guns work is just one aspect of the program. The focus is on how the department operates, and how it responds to incidents in the community.
Lunch $23.95 • Dinner $28.95• Kids Dinner $15.95
Matt Allocco Helps PU Men’s Hoops Edge Cornell In Ivy Showdown . . . . 24 Art . . . . . . . . . . . .21, 22 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 23 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 32 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 31 Performing Arts . . . . . 16 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
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12 ▲ 11 1 10 2 ▲3 9 (609) 520-8883 Tel: 8 4 415 Nassau Park Blvd. 7 5 Princeton, 6 NJ 08540 ▲
PHS Wrestler Mele Takes Sixth at 138 in N.J. State Championships . . . . . 29
Tel: (609) 683-2222
1378 Route 206 Skillman, NJ 08558 Daylight Saving TimeClub) (near (behind Wells Fargo Bank) Alland You Eat Sushi AllSam’s You Can Eat SIGNS Sushi OF SPRING: Cheery daffodils otherCan flowers are popping up around town, heralding that spring will soon
starts this Sunday at 2 a.m.
beDinner here.$15.95 masa8restaurant.com Dinner $28.95• Kids TurnLunch clocks$23.95 ahead• one hour. (under 4.5’)
morisushinj.com
Lunch $23.95 • Dinner $28.95• Kids Dinner $15.95 (under 4.5’)
Tel: (609) 520-8883
Tel: (609) 683-2222
Tel: (609) 520-8883
Tel: (609) 683-2222
415 Nassau Park Blvd. Princeton, NJ 08540 (near Sam’s Club)
1378 Route 206 Skillman, NJ 08558 (behind Wells Fargo Bank)
415 Nassau Park Blvd. Princeton, NJ 08540 (near Sam’s Club)
1378 Route 206 Skillman, NJ 08558 (behind Wells Fargo Bank)
masa8restaurant.com
All You Can Eat Sushi
Lunch $23.95 • Dinner $28.95• Kidsmasa8restaurant.com Dinner $15.95 morisushinj.com (under 4.5’)
morisushinj.com
(Photo by Sarah Teo)