Volume LXXVII, Number 27
Young Musician Promotes PU Carillon . . . . . . . . 5 Vedic Cultural Program Offers Free Vegetarian Meals . . . 8 Broadmead Swim Club Seeks New Members . . 9 Onslaught — Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian . . . . . . . 13 New International Summer Music Festival Opens with Acclaimed Pianist . . . . 14 With Young Players Making Big Strides this Spring, PHS Softball Excited for Future . . . 21 Princeton Little League Wins District 12 Intermediate 50/70 Title . . . . . . . . . 23
PU Track Coach Fred Samara Made Indelible Impact in his 46-Year Run . . . . . . . . . . 19 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 17 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 25 Flavors of Summer . . . . 2, 3 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 12 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 18 Performing Arts . . . . . 15 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 8 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 25 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
www.towntopics.com
Tips for Reducing Trash After Holiday Parties Offered by Municipality Since Princeton Council approved a new solid waste management program earlier this year, most residents of the 7,500 households served by the program have adjusted to the new trash collection system. But according to the town’s Assistant Municipal Engineer Jim Purcell, there is a small percentage of people who complain that the 64-gallon cart provided by the town is not big enough. And they shouldn’t have to pay the annual fee the town requires for a second receptable, they feel, instead of using their old carts. It is those residents that Purcell targeted with an article he wrote prior to July 4, anticipating that those hosting barbecues and other celebrations on the holiday, and throughout the summer, might generate more trash than usual. Writing in the voice of those residents, he wrote: “What will I do with all that trash after I hosted my party of the fourth? Princeton has made it really hard to get rid of any trash that doesn’t fit in the municipal 64-gallon cart, and I can’t use any others. Yeah, I know they will let us have a second one, but they charge an annual fee and I don’t think I should pay for that. Why can’t the municipality simply pick up all the trash I put out on the street?” The change was made to address rising costs and reduce the town’s environmental impact, Purcell explains in the article, noting that the town has seen a 14 percent reduction in waste disposal since the program began four months ago. He also offers tips for generating less trash during the holiday — reusable plates, cups, and flatware instead of paper and plastic; providing containers for guests to take leftovers; composting; and asking a neighbor to dispose trash in their cart if there is room. “The biggest frustration we’ve had [since the program began] is that we get calls all the time from people who feel that we need to take care of their excess trash,” Purcell said in a phone conversation last week. “They feel that the new regulations we put in place, providing them with one 64-gallon can, just isn’t enough. And because they pay taxes, charging them an additional fee is just not acceptable.” The cans provided to residents allow the hauler to choose to use automated Continued on Page 10
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Wednesday, July 5, 2023
Zoning Board Rejects Coffee Roasting Proposal Last March, Princeton’s Zoning Board of Appeals first considered an application from Sakrid Coffee to open a new coffee shop, with a coffee roasting operation inside, at 300 Witherspoon Street. Following a lengthy meeting on June 28 — the fourth since the proposal — the board voted 4-3 to reject the idea for a coffee roaster. But the application for a coffee shop, minus the roaster, was approved. Sakrid has an existing location at the corner of Nassau and Chambers streets. Owners Jonathan Haley and Serge Picard have been roasting their coffee at a facility in Moonachie, and hoped to consolidate by relocating the operation to
Princeton. Moving the roasting process to 300 Witherspoon Street would not only cut down on the 110-mile round trips between Princeton and Moonachie, but would also allow customers to observe the roasting process in action. Since the idea was proposed, numerous neighbors of the site have voiced concerns about the possible odors, fumes, and health hazards the operation could bring, especially due to its proximity to Community Park School. Some other residents spoke in favor of the proposal. Sakrid’s owners brought witnesses familiar with the roasting process to testify that the process was safe.
In the end, the decision to deny the roaster proposal was based more on whether the zoning board could allow a manufacturing use in a commercial district, where it was not permitted, than on environmental concerns. Once the public comment portion of the meeting concluded, Zoning Board member Michael Floyd was the first to speak. While he was “comfortable” with the testimony that fumes and vapors would not be harmful, he said he was less comfortable with voting in favor of a variance that would change the current zoning code. Steve Cohen, who chairs the board, spoke up next, voicing a similar opinion. Continued on Page 7
Opening of “Oppenheimer” Inspires Tours, Talks, Commemorative Events
CELEBRATING INDEPENDENCE DAY: Montgomery Township hosted festivities and fireworks on Thursday evening at Montgomery High School in honor of the Fourth of July. Attendees share how they like to spend the holiday in this week’s Town Talk on page 6. (Photo by Charles R. Plohn)
Local excitement is building for the film Oppenheimer, set to open on July 21 at the Princeton Garden Theatre and across the nation. It was in Princeton that famed physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer — who was instrumental in creating the atomic bomb — lived with his family while serving as director of the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) from 1947 to 1966. Christopher Nolan’s movie stars Cillian Murphy in the title role, supported by Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, and Kenneth Branagh. Portions of the film were shot last summer at the IAS, at Princeton University, and around town, adding to local anticipation. Some Oppenheimer-themed events are planned around the opening. This Friday, July 7 at 1 p.m., the Institute is hosting a special virtual roundtable, “What Goes Unseen: Reimagining the Legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer” with panelists George Dyson, Graham Garmelo, Siobhan Roberts, and Alex Wellerstein. Participation is free, but registration is required; visit ias.edu to sign up. On July 19 at 7 p.m., the Historical Society of Princeton (HSP) and the Princeton Garden Theatre host a screening of Jean Renoir’s 1937 anti-war film Grand Illusion, introduced by Eve Mandel, the HSP’s director of programs and outreach. According to various accounts, Oppenheimer was brought to tears when he attended the film decades ago, at the same theater, with his wife Kitty. Oppenheimer is the subject of a special walking tour sponsored by the HSP, Continued on Page 11