Volume LXXVII, Number 33
The Princeton Singers Celebrates 40th Anniversary This Season . . . . . . . . . . 5 All in a Day’s Work: Lifeguards at Community Park Pool . . . . . . . . . . 8 Sustainable Princeton to Host “Swap Party” . . . 11 Princeton Native Ettin Leaving Hoops Roots To Coach at UC Santa Barbara . . . 21 Plucky Nassau Swim Club Lemmings Enjoy Another Successful PASDA Campaign . . . . . . . . . 25
Young Franz Kafka Plays Ball in This Week’s Book Review . . . . . . . 14 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-19 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 20 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 29 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 12 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 26 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 8 Performing Arts . . . . . 15 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 29 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
www.towntopics.com
Council Gives Go-Ahead To Pursue Establishment Of Public Art Master Plan Members of Princeton Council took part in a work session Monday night about a proposal for a new public art master plan. James Steward, director of the Princeton University Art Museum, and Adam Welch, executive director of the Arts Council of Princeton, who have been working on the plan for several years, delivered the report at the Council meeting. Steward chaired a public art committee created in 2018 under former Mayor Liz Lempert, but it lacked funding that would have allowed it to work proactively, he said. He and Welch suggested that a newly-formed committee could be funded by levying a 1 percent fee on the cost of commercial and commercial residential capital projects to be paid into a public art fund, with some exceptions including affordable housing, individual residential projects, and nonprofits. “This is the most prevalent model at play across the country,” said Steward, who cited municipalities in 27 states including Philadelphia, Pa.; New York, N.Y.; and Ann Arbor, Mich., as having such programs in place. The fee would only be for projects with budgets of $1 million or more. Steward proposed that a five-to-eightmember committee of local experts and stakeholders be on the committee, which would be appointed by resolution. A municipal staff member would be designated to take part, and the funding stream would be established by ordinance. Councilwoman Michelle Pirone Lambros commented that the time is ripe for such an initiative. “There are a lot of construction projects happening. It seems like a golden moment, where we have the resources that are there, that hopefully we can leverage at this moment,” she said. “And then there’s the resources of James and Adam and others in the community. We’re so fortunate to have that kind of input. We have incredible heritage, history, and culture in our town. Bringing all this together, and being able to create placemaking and public art at this moment, seems to be a natural.” Steward added that with the newly revamped art museum opening in 2025, and the strength of the Arts Council, “we can very much expect that the nation’s Continued on Page 9
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Wednesday, August 16, 2023
New Leaders Take Reins at PDS and Hun With September fast approaching, new heads are preparing to lead Princeton Day School (PDS) and the Hun School into the coming school year, while the Princeton Public Schools (PPS) continues its search for a new principal for Princeton High School (PHS). On July 1, Kelley Nicholson-Flynn officially took over as head of PDS, succeeding Paul Stellato, who stepped down after 15 years at the helm. “Each August, I still feel the familiar twinge that comes with a new school year — a mix of eagerness, hopefulness, and a dash of nervous excitement,” she wrote in an email. “So much is unknown at
every beginning, but I believe in embracing those uncertainties. This sense of being ‘all in’ is how I approached my new role, immersing myself in the culture of Princeton Day School and focusing on creating an experience for our students that puts them at the center of every decision made. In doing so, even just in these two short months, my belief in the work taking place at PDS has been deeply reinforced.” Before coming to PDS Nicholson-Flynn was the assistant head of school for operations at Riverdale Country School in the Bronx, N.Y. Before that she was head of the upper school at Riverdale. She began her teaching career at the Lawrenceville
School in 1998, where she worked for 14 years in various roles, including science department chair, interdisciplinary program chair, and teaching and learning programs coordinator. At the Hun School, Bart Bronk officially became head of school last month, succeeding Jon Brougham, who retired after 14 years as Hun’s head. Bronk came to Hun from his position as head of school at University Liggett School in Grosse Pointe, Mich., where he had served for 11 years, five years as head. “I have been so grateful for the warm welcome I’ve received in my first month on campus,” Bronk wrote in an email. Continued on Page 9
Construction Projects Continue in Numerous Sections of Princeton
TO THE HOOP: Jaxson Carter of Ewing leaps for a basket Saturday morning at the Joint Effort and Bailey Basketball Academy Youth Hoops Clinic at Princeton High School. The free skills clinic was part of this year’s 10-day Joint Effort Safe Streets program, which concluded on Sunday. Participants discuss what they learned at the event in this week’s Town Talk on page 6. (Ph oto by Charles R. Plohn)
CUSTOM POOLS • HARDSCAPING CUSTOM POOLS • HARDSCAPING OUTDOOR • LANDSCAPING OUTDOOR LIVING LIVING • LANDSCAPING COMMERCIAL SNOW REMOVAL COMMERCIAL SNOW REMOVAL
The Princeton Municipal Engineering Department and the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) have recently provided updates on eight different construction projects taking place around town. The NJDOT has reported that its Washington Road Bridge over the D&R Canal replacement project is progressing on schedule according to plan, and is expected to be completed in October. There has been an increase in congestion on Route 1 since the project began on July 26, particularly, as expected, during the morning commute. Also, during the middle of the day, the NJDOT notes, there has been an increase in traffic on Harrison Street and Alexander Road, which are being used for the detour. Multiple detour routes, provided by NJDOT, should help to minimize delays. NJDOT recommends that motorists on Route 1 northbound use the Alexander Road detour before Washington Road. “Motorists should plan extra time when traveling in the area,” NJDOT advises. The Engineering Department has announced that University Place and Dickinson Street will be closed to through traffic on Wednesday, August 16 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. to remove trees that have become hazardous. Princeton University, the Princeton Public Works Department, and PSE&G will be working together during this time to remove five large trees. Police officers will be directing traffic at the intersections at Nassau and University Continued on Page 10
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