November 13, 2004
Open Town Meetings
Princeton Public Library

Present: Michael Mostoller, Yina Moore, Sheldon Sturges, Barrie Royce, Pat Ramirez, Gene Imhoff, Lois Craig, Joanna Kendig, Charlotte Bialeck, George Lamb, Lucy Mackenzie, Michael Shine, Michael Floyd, Antonio Reinero, Jim Floyd Jr, Charles Alden, Matt Hersh, Diane Girier, Shirley Satterfield, Ann Yasuhara, Jack Roberts, Carlos Rodrigues, Charo Juega, Pam Hersh, Len Newton, Pamela Groves, Per Kreipke, Robert Geddes, Jill Jefferson, Polly Burlingham, Howard Ende, Marvin Israel, Millie Israel, Charles Latini, Wendy Mager, Barrie Royce, Jim Floyd Sr, Kevin Wilkes, Jennifer Potash, Richard Casey, Ron Lusen,  Barbara Lusen, Martha Strunsky, Rick Weiss, Phyllis Suber, Mike Suber, Eric Craig, Minnie Craig, Robert Cerutti, Gail Ullman, Chris Knigge, Wanda Gunning, Hans Fiuczynski, Karen Jezierny, Heidi Fichtenbaum, Marvin Reed, Ricardo Bruce, Mildred Trotman, Sharon McHugh, Jamie Laliberte, Fay Abelson, Karen Wolfgang, Stephanie Charney, Orlando Fuquen, Jeff Furey, Leigh Peterson, Charles St. John, Christine St. John, Cathleen Carroll, Walt Mikovsky

Michael Mostoller [WSCS Team}:> Welcome to our first Witherspoon Street Corridor Study meeting. This meeting is meant to be a town meeting. And we welcome all of you, and we’re so many of you can be here on a beautiful Saturday morning.

Yina Moore [WSCS Team]:> Good morning! On each of your chairs, you should have a questionnaire. A form we are going to use to start the discussion.  We’d like each of you, as we go around the circle in the room introducing ourselves, to begin to answer the three questions. What we’d like to know, before coming to the library today, [that being the most common experience for all of us!]…what was your most recent interaction, use of and your most vivid experience of Witherspoon Street? What aspect of this experience did you recall most vividly? Where did it rank in the spectrum of positive and negative? Then we will go into a whole series of questions about the map, the place, the activities, the things in the present, the future and the context of the past.

Michael:> Let me just add one thing. I have made series of quick notes, every time I thought of something, about things that we want to do. Those include:

#1. We are an independent civic citizens group looking for the way the neighborhood wishes to proceed. I think that is very important. That is why we begin with this meeting. We begin with a series of data maps on the wall. That, eventually, in the series of this process hope to include ideas that will lead to the conservation, improvement and generation of appropriate development that comes out of these meetings. We see this as a programming meeting. So, we want to get people talking and thinking. We want to try, then, to try to focus our interest, intelligence and energy on creating a viable street and an interesting place. And Bob Geddes said when he was being interviewed for the events that will take place later today in honor of his tenure as Dean at the School of Architecture: “We are looking for a proposal to put the pieces together”. On the one hand we have a regional planning group and a regional master plan…on the other, we have groups that are looking with great energy & intelligence looking at specific sites along the street, including, of course the Healthcare Task Force. What we are going to try to do, I think, comes directly from what Bob Geddes said. We are dealing with the neighborhood which is smaller than the regional plan and larger than any particular site. So if your comments today can help us with that, that would be a way of focusing.

Yina:> Before we introduce ourselves… the process is one that is six months in duration with broad community participation. There will be three meetings in December that will look very distinctly at the sections of Witherspoon St. We will then move into a phase of analysis, reconvene to discuss the potential, current and planned to discuss how we determine it should in its life and service to Princeton. We hope to have inputs not only from the general community, but also the advisory level and counsel as well as the groups and appointed bodies Shade Tree, Historic Preservation and other commissions in this town. a layered process. Most important is to record what people say. We are recording this session. We also intend to have the tapes being recorded by TV30 available here at the library. There is a PO Box, 493 08542, and an email address princetonfuture@yahoo.com, if you want to send in your questionnaires. We want you to continue to think. Those that are not here, we want you to remain in the discussion. Please use all of the modes available to you to keep engaged in the process.

Michael:> Our group includes a team of professionals. Kevin Wilkes, Architect, will be part of a team that will try to put together things in a professional manner in dealing with the presentation and translation of program into physical and social goals. Holly Nelson, Landscape Architect, Shirley Satterfield, Historian, and Norman Marcus, Zoning consultant.

Yina:> And, we will also have a transportation consultant as well. Okay..

Walt Micowski:> I live on Birch Avenue, so my recent experience of Witherspoon St was to walk here this morning! The canopy of trees walking up from my house at this time of year is absolutely delightful!

Sharon McHugh:> I am also on Birch Avenue. Near the corner of Witherspoon. I use Witherspoon St every day a couple of times of day, going to Small World, the Library, Writer’s Block and other places in the community. I would say probably my least preferred aspect of the street is at the fine grain, it is the condition of the sidewalk. A vivid recollection. It is very difficult to negotiate for elderly, infirm…or on any wheeled vehicle...bicycle. Very uneven. It is a pleasant street.

Michael:> That is very important to us. Our first 4 maps are meant to the experiential aspects.

Chris Knigge [Borough Engineer’s Office]:> I also live on Birch Avenue. I bicycled here. I have walked. One of the ideas my wife wanted me to bring along…to make sure we make it a good place for walking… And, let’s save the trees. That is very important in the summer time. Bicycling? it seemed to me that it was safe enough this morning. Traffic was light. I also work for the Borough’s Engineering Department and helped to provide the map.

Michael:> We want to thank for Chris very much for his help.

Chris:> One of the things would be good to do is to put together a map of what we can do now…short term…immediate. One of the things I see short term is people sitting on the ground in front of the cemetery waiting for the bus. We could pretty easily provide a bench.

Mildred Trotman [President of Borough Council]:> I live on Witherspoon Street. I walked here. A vivid experience is the traffic I experience daily. I’d rate that a 5-6.

Lois Craig: >I live on Marjoram Court on John Street. I am up and down Witherspoon Street ten or twelve times a day. I love walking in the neighborhood. The best thing is that I know all the residents on the street and I can speak to them by them and they can call me by my name.

Michael Shine:> I live on Birch Avenue. A pleasant experience is I walked here with my neighbors, Sharon and Walt. We walk quite a bit.  It is kind of a walking town. I’d say, to me, Witherspoon Street is a work in progress… with a long way to go.

Fay Abelson:> I live in the Township on Meadowbrook Drive.

Michael Floyd [NJ HMFA]:> I live in Lawrenceville. I grew up on Quarry Street and Harris Road. I was the Borough’s first Neighborhood Preservation Coordinator. I spend a lot of time in the JW neighborhood…My impression is that it should be a residential street. It has been morphed over the years by what appears to be spot zoning for business and other uses. I worry that when I hear “viable” and “energetic” it is as if there is something wrong with it. Maybe it should be down-zoned. Less energetic. Less mixed-use. Because it is primarily residential.  I don’t hear this discussion about Wiggins Street, or about Jefferson Road. I think that there is this concept about the spine, perpetrating some illusion you want to create.

George Lamb: >I live on Hodge Road, within walking distance of here. I have been living in Princeton for over 30 years. To me what I like about it is: it is very familiar. I think we should be very careful with how we mess with it in the future. The rights of property owners should be respected.>

Rick Weiss: >I live in the Township. I have work on Witherspoon Street for the last 7 years. I probably spend more of my waking hours on Witherspoon Street than any other place. I walk to the downtown for lunch and just love the diversity of the buildings tree canopy and the other things people have said about it. I really enjoy the environment.

Phyllis Suber:> I live on Terhune Road. My most recent experience was yesterday. I walk into town many times a week. I like the trees and the familiarity. I see people whose name I don’t necessarily know by name. But we say ‘hello’.  I do have problems with some of the sidewalk areas which could be in better shape.

Mike Suber [Bicycle Commission]:> We are just around the corner from Witherspoon Street which we use as an essential corridor into and out of town.  I agree with the gentleman who said it is a work in progress. We do love to walk and enjoy the scenery. Parts of it are beautiful. Parts of it are untidy. We find every day, and this morning, adult bicyclists are riding on the sidewalk. We need to ask each other ‘why?’. What can we do about it? Bicyclists and pedestrians don’t mix. Witherspoon St can be made pedestrian-friendly without a huge amount of difficulty, other than investment. To make it bicycle-friendly is a major challenge which both Princeton Future and the Regional Planning Board will address. Thank you.

Kevin Wilkes [WCSC Team]:> My last experience on Witherspoon St. was walking from Writer’s Block down to Contes for a pizza and walk back. It was awesome.

Jim Floyd Jr:> I live on Quarry St. I walk uptown regularly. As people have said the sidewalks do need repair.  I have lived there long enough to see that there are too many  chronically unkempt rental properties. My speculation is some of those buildings right around the corner from me are owned by some people who may also own rental properties on Wiggins Street which are kept up properly. Those properties don’t look the same. One wonders.

Matthew Hersh [Town Topics]: >My last experience of Witherspoon St was here writing down what you are saying about Witherspoon St!

Joanna Kendig: >I live on John St. This morning I walked, which is my preferred way of getting around anywhere. The real experience was yesterday afternoon when I was doing errands all over the town..East-West, North-South..of course I was in my car, between 3 and 4. So I experienced what we try to ignore, which is that Witherspoon St is a very busy car street. And, unless we put gates at both ends of the street, it isn’t going to change. The experience was neutral because I have been dealing with the traffic for 20 years because I know roughly what’s happening and know how to deal with the traffic.

Gene Imhoff: >I live on John St. My last experience on Witherspoon St, other than walking here this morning, was I was visiting someone on Witherspoon St. Friday afternoon. And traffic made it difficult to cross the street on foot. And the traffic made it difficult to hold a civil conversation between houses on the street. I think I agree with Michael Floyd. We must be mindful. It is a mixed use street but it is too narrow for that. Residential is the right direction.

Marvin Reed [Healthcare Task Force]:> I am on the Regional Planning Board and am chairing the Healthcare Task Force that is examining the future of the hospital site on Witherspoon Street. My most recent experience was going to Township Hall on Thursday night. I went to and from my house on Queenston Common via Valley Rd in order to avoid Witherspoon St and the downtown area.

Martha Strunsky: >I live on Shirley Court. I walked from the campus last night. It was lovely experience, even though it was raining. When it is night, I often worry about the safety of the pedestrian crossings. I wear black a lot and I often think that I am invisible. The lighting is problematic lighting. Of course the sidewalks always need repairing. I hope we all know this: the trees are so valuable. I know they are a problem. The leaves and the roots. There are the tree people and the anti-tree people. When I go past the cemetery, I always salute the old elm. This is its last year. It has put out its last leaves over the hundred years it has been there.

Wanda Gunning [Chair, Regional Planning Board>]: I live on Mercer Street. I walk to and from the Planning Board office at least 3 times per week. I have to admit most of the time I neglect the planning problems going up and down Witherspoon Street. I also enjoy the historic buildings. It’s something I’ve been interested in a long time. It is sad to say that demolition by neglect is something that is creeping into this neighborhood in a lot of places.  There are wonderfully-kept up places next to very poorly-kept properties.  It worries me. The rate of attrition is increasing. As people buy them, they are torn down and replaced by other buildings:  a familiar sense of neighborhood is eroded.

Barrie> Royce [Chair, Borough Zoning Board]: >I live on Harriet Drive.  I started off my family experience living in the Stanworth area.  Witherspoon Street was a way of getting to the university at that time. I enjoyed walking along it a lot. I think it is a valuable pathway between the university, the township and so on.  I guess the last time I used Witherspoon Street was yesterday. I entered from 206, from the north and drove down it at about 11 o’clock. It was remarkably traffic-free. I drove to the parking lot by the library picking up 2 cds. For my sins, I am a member of the Healthcare Task Force, so I am particularly concerned about the hospital part of the street. What either will happen if the hospital stays or if it leaves. I am also a chair of the Zoning Board where people who want to make spot zoning requests come. So, I am very interested in what the community thinks!

Susan Hockaday [>Princeton> Future Steering Committee]: >I live in the Borough. I have been eating and shopping on Witherspoon St for 40 years now. The most recent experience was coming here from where I live near the university doing errands. a couple of days ago.  I realized that the upper part of the street is almost a random indigenous collection of all kinds of buildings. Some very pretentious. Some incredibly humble. There is something very comfortable about a street that you know like an old suit of clothes. That parts of it are not entirely pleasant… they are a little rough-around-the-edges…but they your rough-around-the-edges buildings.  I enjoyed that experience. I like moving around from spot to spot. Seeing things that I haven’t noticed before. And the sense that I could be very efficient. Come in whiz around and get out again.

Gail Ullman [Regional Planning Board & Environmental Commission]: >I live on Maple Street. I, actually, am one of those people that drive down Witherspoon St...and I even choose to drive down Nassau St and I choose to do this. You can’t go very fast and I really enjoy looking around. I realize I am making it difficult for other people. On Witherspoon St. at one end or the other many times a week. 2 things: I am fond of the cemetery. I have a lot of friends in there. I am probably am going to have more. It makes me feel drawn to know I have people there. Just as Nassau St draws outsiders to the town.  Witherspoon St seems to be OUR street. Almost all of us have to be there several times a week for one reason or another if we don’t actually live there… It does seem to me to be historically, geographically, culturally the heart of the town. I think it is an extraordinarily important task you are undertaking.

Wendy Mager [Chair, Arts Council of >Princeton>]: >I live on Cherry Valley and have since 1980. So Witherspoon St is my way of getting to town.> I really like it. I like the fact that there are very different things on the street: churches, firehouse, a school, the hospital. I like the trees. It is a beautiful and interesting street. It’s a very busy street. If the hospital does move, and I think that is likely, I would like to see us as a community do what we’re talking about here: Trying to figure what would be the best thing to happen.

Karen Jezierny: [Director, PU Community Affairs>] I live 2 blocks from the end of the street. I think of it as my neighborhood because for 25 years my family has been involved in the recreation department.  I have been involved in the Y Pre-School programs. My daughters are in Community Park School, Like most of you, I use the hospital from time to time. We use the Library weekly. I feel like this is my street! I have walked the entire length 100 times a year.  I make the whole journey on a pretty regular basis.  Last night in the rain at 8:15. I agree that the pedestrians are often invisible. Between the rain, the potholes, the dark and the street lighting. I would say my experience last night was quite negative. But this morning it was wonderful!

Jim Floyd Sr: [Former Mayor, >Princeton> >Township>]:> Quite frankly I am quite proud of my 2 two sons. They have expressed everything I would like to say. I used to walk Witherspoon St every day for 30 years. I didn’t have a car. I walked. I am on Witherspoon St every day. Particularly, on Sunday, because Witherspoon St also houses the Witherspoon St Presbyterian Church. Of which I am an Elder and Clerk of Session. I am concerned about Witherspoon St. There are a few people who have been in Princeton longer than I have who have seen the transition. And, the transition has not always been in the interest of those who were the progenitors of Witherspoon Street. Many of you knew Witherspoon Street but you flew through it as fast as you could until now. It has suddenly become a street of interest to you. I hope that in the discourse, we don’t disregard the history of its residents, its traditions.  As Mr. Royce says, I hope we don’t continue this practice of spot zoning on Witherspoon St, or any residential street in town. We have suddenly become a town of institutions and financial interests. I read that the big concern is to get chewing gum off the sidewalks on Nassau St. I guess to attract more stores and more people to the town. The people who I knew and know on the Witherspoon St spine, as Mike describes it, can’t afford the prices up there anyhow. We talk about affordability. It extends to more than the roof over your head. It extends to those amenities you once enjoyed, but you no longer do. There is a reference to the hospital. Incidentally, I have served on the Planning Boards and Zoning Boards of both Municipalities. I have seen the transition. In fact, the Witherspoon Corridor has been described as a neighborhood in transition. I have seen urban renewal, I have seen declarations of blight, I have seen all of those that would either remove those folk who have lived there for years and some of their descendants continue to live here. I fear the involvement of people whose primary goal is the preservation of a commercial entity to the exclusion of a residential community. I will continue to be a part of this. I do have a grave concern about the pretentiousness of those who would think, and would have you think, that theirs is one of preservation, when it is really one of denigration. I think that has to be to be watched. The declaration of Princeton Future was one of preservation of neighborhoods. I think they have become more of a perpetrator than of the preserver.

Richard Casey:> I live on Jefferson Rd. When Witherspoon gets overloaded, we pick up an awful lot of North-South traffic. I am also a friend of Green St. I have been acquainted with the Princeton area since 1943. I came back in 1946. I have been living in the area ever since. I am particularly interested in neighborhood preservation. The Master Plan makes several provisions which indicate to me that Neighborhood Preservation is supposed to be a major objective. I dream of the day when the members of the Boards will read that Master Plan and follow it!

Hans W. Fuiczynski:> I live on Kimberly Court off of Mountain Avenue in the Township and have for 19 years now.  I try to avoid Witherspoon because of the traffic and the congestion. The places where I want to go, such as the Y, University, the library, and the Shopping Center, I can reach in other ways. Through using Witherspoon only for walking between the Library and Nassau. In the summer, for the pool. My most recent, very, very pleasant experience on Witherspoon St was two weeks ago arriving back from Europe, we found a message on our answering machine from our daughter-in-law: “Come on over to the hospital to meet your new grandchild!”

Lucy Mackenzie:> I live on Franklin Ave. I think I am influenced by the fact that I grew up in a town of 3000 people on the Texas-Mexico border. Princeton seems quite princely to me. I use Witherspoon St to walk up & down. I go the hospital once a month. I like Witherspoon St. I hope it doesn’t lose the character it has now. I often go off on the side streets. Most of which are quite well preserved. I came here to hear what other people think. This is an interesting conversation. I hope we are very careful about what we recommend! Thank you.

Charles Alden: >My first experience with Witherspoon St. was I born in Princeton hospital. And my most recent was when I walked from Monument Park down Witherspoon to come to this meeting. In between those two events, I had my first professional job working for the Township Engineer! I graduated from High School with Marvin Trotman in 1956. Since then I lived for a time in Europe and in Boston, and then for some 23 years in Miami. I am a landscape architect and urban designer.  A member of the Institute of Certified Planners. When I chose to retire, the place I was most fond of and the place that offered the most amenities was Princeton. So, I am one of those guys, and I am sure you know lots of them, who retired from Miami to Princeton! Well, I am very fond of Princeton. My Mother worked on Witherspoon St. As a kid, on numerous occasions, I participated in family shopping. It is one of the 2 or 3 most significant roadways in Princeton. Princeton is no longer the sleepy little town it was when I was born here…or, when I graduated from high school.  So that there are serious issues here relative to population changes and lifestyle, traffic, transportation and those types of things. I think that Princeton Future is the organization, with the full participation of the citizens & residents of Princeton, to find the best answers for those problems.

Jennifer Potash [>Princeton> Packet]: >I am here to report on the meeting!

Rob Cerutti:> I lived here since 1977. I walk or bike the length of Witherspoon St 2x everyday. I live at one end, just off Mt. Lucas, on Laurel Rd. I think it is a wonderful st. I will say it is a bit treacherous for a person on a bicycle. I would hope that could that be considered in the plans. I hope it stays a wonderful street!

Ron & Barbara Lusen:> We have lived on Vandeventer Avenue for a quarter century, about a quarter of the age of our house. I am on Witherspoon St daily. One of the things we love about Princeton, is its walkability and its diversity. I frequently walk the length of Witherspoon St as far as Contes. Most recent experience was coming over to Abel’s Bagels and getting some real bagels as opposed to what is sold in most other places in town. I would say my major concerns, is , given the social and economic pressures, is trying to maintain the diversity particularly of the residential neighborhoods. If the hospital leaves, which may be likely, and if the university takes over the property, which may be likely, and if they turn it into a residential graduate housing or whatever, that may help maintain the residential aspects, although I am concerned about how that would happen. I love the walkability of the town and I hope we can improve some of the negative aspects that have already been mentioned, regarding sidewalks, less attractive buildings. Maintaining the viability of the town requires maintaining diversity of the residential neighborhoods.

Ricardo Bruce [Site-Plan Review Advisory Board]: >I live on Witherspoon St. I did have an unusual experience this morning on Witherspoon St! I came out of the house. There were no cars parked in the street! There was no traffic going North or South. There were no sirens.  No fire trucks. No emergency vehicles. I know it’s not going to last 5 minutes. But it sure was nice, those five minutes!

Eric Craig:> I live on Witherspoon St, 173. It is a great experience to be able to walk to where you want to go! There has been a lot of talk…I agree with the Floyds and what they say. There is talk about sidewalks… and about streets…about trees. That has nothing to do with redevelopment. Redevelopment means removal. >I think that some of the owners I have spoken to believe that any recommendations that may come from Princeton Future are not going to be in favor of the residents in town but will be in favor of retail sales and of more businesses going down Witherspoon St. This is a belief some of us have. I think we have enough retail sales down that end of town. It needs to remain residential. When they speak of traffic, how come no one has said anything about Bayard Lane, Wiggins St, Harrison St, …other streets that are piled up with traffic? Why is all the pressure always put on Witherspoon St? I would recommend to any homeowner, ones trying to hold to their home, that any recommendations coming from this group will not be in favor of the residents.

Minnie Craig:> I live with Eric on Witherspoon St. It was a pleasure, this morning, to be able to walk up to the beautiful library. Yesterday, my experience was trying to get out of our driveway to pick up our grandson at Riverside School.  You can really sit there for 5 minutes and wait to pull out onto Witherspoon St! It was a pleasure picking our gransonn up and bringing him down Nassau St and down Witherspoon St dropping him off at the library. In the summertime, you can see us sitting out on the porch, we have a big backyard, but somehow we are drawn to the front porch where we wave to the neighbors and friends who pass by. But we do worry about what is to become of Witherspoon St., especially about what areas are to be declared blighted areas.

Shirley Satterfield [WSCS Team]:> I live on Quarry St. I lived on old Clay St. I lived on Birch Avenue when they were tearing down old Clay St.  When I think of Witherspoon St, I go back, because, as someone said, I am an historian…I really am not, I just know a lot about Princeton.  Actually, my family is 6th generation in Princeton. So when Mr. Floyd said there are descendants who have been here, I think my family is the oldest one here. My Grandmother taught at the Witherspoon Street School for Colored Children. She taught Paul Robeson.  When I think of Witherspoon Street, I always think of  the buildings, my church, and the people who live there. I remember the people who didn’t live in the Witherspoon-Jackson area, the only time we saw them on Witherspoon St. was when they came to get people who worked for them, or when they came to the hospital. It has now become a popular street. The Chinese restaurant building that has been there for years and has never been repaired but they repaired the one up on Nassau St.  Now that there is a lot of construction on Witherspoon St, that building has been torn down. That building was an historical building, for those who know what was there before there was a Chinese restaurant.  So I remember Witherspoon St fondly. I am concerned about what is coming into Witherspoon Street.  In defense of >Princeton> Future, the building that is being done is not being done by >Princeton> Future. I think >Princeton> Future is trying to preserve what we have as far as our history. And, if anyone remembers, it was called >African Lane> because that is where they put us. And now it is as if they are trying to move us out.>

Cathleen Carroll:> I live on John St. I want to echo the sentiment about bicycling on Witherspoon St. because I do bike around town. Witherspoon St is pretty dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists. I think, with all of the students we have in this town, people who work here, prefer to bike. I think that is an important issue. I also want to talk about the character of the neighborhood and what drew me to the neighborhood. The Craigs mentioned that they sit on their front porch. I think that is a key element in what drew me to this neighborhood: people do sit on their front porches. There is life on the street. Suddenly there is a proposal by Hillier, who was just kind of imagining the future of Witherspoon St in a letter to the editor a year or so ago, doing away with the old houses near the Arts Council and replacing them some modern, suburban apartment buildings or something like that. I thought how dreadful that would be because it would take away the life on the street that is so key to the neighborhood.

Chuck Latini [NJ Office of Smart Growth]:> I am a native of Mercer County, so I am familiar with Princeton. More as a visitor. I am very fond of your community! Today, I am here as an observer of the public planning process. And to better educate myself on your issues as we talk about neighborhood stability and the revitalization of this area…and also the potential re-location of the hospital…and all of the other issues you are bringing up here today. And I hope we will be able to assist you in any way we can.

Pam Hersh [Community Affairs, PU]:> I have spent a great deal of my life walking up and down Witherspoon St. My kids were born on Witherspoon St. I have worked on both ends of Witherspoon St. I have worked for the Packet and for the University. And, in my job at the State-local government-relations person, I walk down to Township Hall four or five times a week. I enjoy enormously the urban, interesting, always lively, if not perfect…it is a very important part of Princeton…if I wanted Disney, I’d go to Disney. I, too, walked in the rain…the huge puddles, make it difficult to navigate. I like seeing the people. I like saying ‘hello’.  The urban diverse experience I like the best.

Orlando> Fuquen:> I live on Race & Birch. We have been in Princeton for 3 years. My wife and I enjoy it very much. We’ve taken trips to downtown Princeton regularly. We have a son. She likes to walk to town with him typically through John St. She doesn’t like to take Witherspoon St and I don’t either because of the sidewalk condition. We’ve always liked the people who live in the area. One of the things that concerns me, I have been reading in the Packet about the recent incidents between Latin Americans in the area. and others. I sense it’s starting to get a little bit tense. I happen to be Latin American. We are definitely under-represented here. As we plan, we ought to consider what is adjacent to Witherspoon…Race, Leigh, Birch, Lytle…they are all very diverse areas. The people there are very important as well.

Karen Wolfgang [PU Student]:> I am a junior at the university in the anthropology department. I am here mostly because I enjoy the process of public meetings. But also, because I drive Witherspoon St 4x/wk quite regularly. I drive a 10-yr old to the pool.  I noticed that the one pothole that bothered me the most got filled in recently. There are still a lot more. So that is my major concern. I appreciate everything everyone has said.

Polly Burlingham:> I live on Scott Lane. Since 1969. My father moved here with 5 daughters to work at the university. To find a house we could afford, we had to live in West Windsor. So 20 years later, my sisters, who are in California, always say they are from Princeton. When they meet someone who is from Princeton, they say they lived on Witherspoon St. That was their main impression of Princeton. I am now very concerned with community efforts to beautify Princeton, but without trying to take away the quality of our town. I think that >Witherspoon St.> is the heart of >Princeton>. It is the one street I come to to find the things I actually can use. There is very little left on Nassau St or in >Palmer Square> that is offering anything I can buy or use on a regular basis. >There is Contes, Community Park School where my children went to school, the hospital…Small World, there are a lot of smaller stores and businesses I want to see preserved. I agree we need to improve the condition of the street…and improve the sidewalks. Children walking to the library from the varying schools…bikes…really need to have a safer route. At the same time, Witherspoon St has a really diverse population and a real community feel. And that is why I am here. I don’t want to see that disappear. I want to see the true sense of the heart of Witherspoon St maintained, and just improved.

Charles St. John: >I live on Prospect Avenue. New Jersey is the most densely populated state. We’re growing people and we’re growing vehicle miles. >Witherspoon St> is a cross-town artery. We are going to be just inundated with traffic unless we make more plans to by-pass >Princeton>.>

Christine St. John: >I am interested in what happens to the hospital. If it And one way or the other, we are going to be needing a jitney, particularly if there apartments down there.

Anne Yasuhara [Co-chair, Latin American Legal Defense Fund]:> I live on Pine St. First of all I want to say Pine St is one of the most vital streets outside of the Witherspoon area that I know. We all know each other. We greet each other. We have block parties. I come to Witherspoon often. I walk here. Occasionally I drive. I also own property on Green St, because friends of mine live there and I’m trying to make it possible. So I am very concerned that the area stay as vital as it is. I don’t think big apartment buildings promote that. We don’t want to be like New Yorkers who don’t even know people on the same floor as they are! I am certainly concerned about the African American community which has been here for so long…How long can it stay here? I am concerned with the Latin American people who live there. I don’t like to see them packed in. I don’t approve of that. I think they should have some space for them so they can also have graceful lives. I am concerned, as my neighbor in front of me,..People aren’t talking about redevelopment. Redevelopment has tended to mean:  “Tear it down and don’t worry about who is living there”. I do worry about who is living there. I want to know that Shirley Satterfield is living in her house, along with other people I know in that community. I don’t know what is in people’s minds. So I can’t say anything against it, because I don’t get it. But I am very nervous about it.

Bill Sutphin: >I live in the Township. I have served for 25 years on the Princeton Cemetery committee. At the present time, I am Counsel to the Boro Zoning Board of Adjustment. I am here to listen today.

Howard Ende:> I live in Princeton Landing. I work near there on College Rd. I am an attorney. I am on Witherspoon several times a week for lunches and other things. My concern is getting here and the traffic situation. >I was attending a meeting at the Fellowship and Prayer headquarters at 291 Witherspoon St, a very lovely building. As I drove there, I specifically went a slightly longer route, but one which would avoid the traffic. I came along Valley Rd. I think about that traffic flow all the time. Because of my association with the fellowship which is right near the hospital I am very interested in how the hospital develops, or whatever is going to happen on that place.

Jeff Furey:> I live on 319 Witherspoon St. I am here because Witherspoon St is a gateway into Princeton and there is going to be a lot of changes here with hospital, with all of the economics that are occurring, the real estate. How Hunan knocked down their building..new building. New condos on the other side. I want to be part of the process that is going on here. There is not just the hospital, there is the Sinkler house which has been bought by the Town Topics. What is going to happen to that property? Etc. That’s why I’m here.

Pat Ramirez:> I live on McLean Street. My most common walk is going uptown along the stretch where the most densely built group of run-down houses are. My experience has been one of sadness, as I have time to reflect as I walk. And concern for the people who live there. Aside from that, there is the condition of the sidewalks. They are, not only too rough, they are too narrow for foot traffic. I would like to see them widened. It is particularly hard to walk on garbage collection day.  Instead of having garbage placed in front of each home, could we have a common collection area, behind the houses? And, finally,  I want to put in a plug for ending chain stores in Princeton. We do not need a Subway on Witherspoon St!

Hendricks Davis:> I have lived on John St for the past 21 years, so I am a newcomer to town.  I’ve been listening to the comments of everyone around the circle. I guess I feel some encouragement but also some anxiety about the potential for development on Witherspoon St.  I heard Witherspoon St described as the spine of Princeton. And I was sitting here trying to remmber my nursery school rhyme. This is a very appropriate place for it, sitting in the library. “The neck bone is connected to…” What is the spine connected to? Well, any way…it is connected to everything. It is influential of everything, including John St.  One of my Witherspoon experiences on John St. is that connection of traffic. People have become very savvy about getting around Princeton…even people who don’t live in Princeton. Because traffic inhibits their speedy progress on Witherspoon St, they find their way to John St and they are not quite as inhibited there in speeding down John St. So indeed the spine is connected to other parts.  I have a very curious pondering it is about preservation, or maybe, rather RESTORATION, maybe not in this context, but after the meeting the naming of things. Torrey Lane? As any sort of renovation or demolition in the physical properties ooccurs, I want to be sure that there is…where is that anthropolgist and archeologist. It was indeed African Lane. Who knows  what sort of things are being scooped up in big buckets and are being carted off without anybody even taking a look at what might be in the supposed rubble there.  That’s something I want to put out there. I think the archeologists and anthropologists should really tap into that to make sure we’re not missing things.

Marvin Israel:> I live on Willow Street. I am a little skeptical of things that come from Princeton Future. They supported development of the apartment buildings which will bring a whole lot of traffic to the downtown. In spite of their quotation they have in their booklet of people from Princeton Future meetings being concerned about traffic.  Almost everybody here mentioned traffic. It seems to me putting the apartment buildings up ..there is going to be another one across the way…is only going to make the situation dramatically worse. On a positive note, I would recommend some of the restaurants other than Contes on Witherspoon St! There is a small Spanish restaurant which is the only place in town you can get fresh cantaloupe juice. And many other fresh juices, as well as aeronated [?] pork sandwiches, which I am particularly fond of.

Millie Israel:I> have a few observations and images. I am from New York City. My husband is from Chicago. This is our second time back in Princeton. Originally, we lived on Madison St. That was a wonderful street. I thought it was just too long a commute. I work in Manhattan. And then four or five years ago, we gravitated back to Princeton because it is a walking town. We will live in no other town than a walking town. My husband requires a university book store. The last time I was on Witherspoon St was when I broke my finger. And I said to myself, “What is my image of Witherspoon St?” For me, Witherspoon St is the Witherspoon Bakery, which is unfortunate for me, because

You start on Nassau, in the spring anyway, it’s like seeing a bride in her bower. There is nothing more beautiful than seeing pear trees in bloom. We are lucky enough to live near Moore which is also quite bridal. But if my image of Witherspoon ends at Witherspoon bakery, I don’t consider that the hospital is on Witherspoon. For me there is a real disconnect in terms of walking in Princeton. I stop at the bakery. Other places on Witherspoon I do not walk. I feel that it is too narrow. From Nassau to the bakery it is fairly wide and beckons you to walk. The streets parallel to the cemetery do not inspire walking. I think that my instincts about development is that there is a real leaning towards commercialization. I think that the only thing that keeps a town vibrant --we saw that in New Brunswick, where we used to live--the only thing that keeps a town vibrant is people living in the town.

Jack Roberts [Recreation Director of the Borough and the Township]: >Witherspoon St doesn’t affect us directly, but as an ancillary problem, we, as a board, agonize over are Community Park South and the Pool and the tennis courts, which still represent the flagship of what the Recreation Department offerss to the communities. The dilemmas that face us: Community Park as a field space is under constant demand. It is not the most perfect field space. It is a field space that should be offered to the full community. We have another community that lives next door that views it as a neighborhood park. How do we mix and improve and offer services to the community as we offer them to the neighborhood? That neighborhood is perhaps not as ambulatory as other neighborhoods.  How do we do that without increasing the traffic in the neighborhood. We have conceptual plans to try to improve services to the community. There are different strains of an equation that do not meet in the middle. This is something we deal with. On a personal basis, my waistline will attest to the fact that I take too many trips to Molisana Deli for sandwiches from my office.

Maria Juega [Co-chair, Latin American Legal Defense Fund:> I live in the Township. I work in the Boro. My most recent experience on Witherspoon St was a week ago, when we marched through town to protest the immigration raid that occurred a month ago…to ask for immigration reform from our Federal government. It was a wonderful experience.  Princeton really turned out in full force. We had a rally in front of Boro Hall in which our Mayor and several Councilmen spoke in favor of our goals. And Boro Council also passed a resolution sending a strong message to the Government. These issues affect the Latino community which resides in the John-Witherspoon area. It is unfortunate that our current Federal legislation is such that it keeps many of these individuals at the margins of our society. Therefore the Latino community in Princeton finds it very hard to take roots and to feel a part of the community. When we talk about the lack of participation by the Latino community, we have to put it in the context that they are excluded from being full-fledged members. One of the things we are seeing is that when families do settle down, are economically in a position to buy a home, they are forced to move out of town because they can’t afford housing here. So there are very few Latino families here for any length of time. They move out. It is very unfortunate. That is the state of affairs. We are hoping that with pressure, changes will happen.

Charlotte Bialek [Past President of the Regional School Board]: >I live on Jefferson Rd. In asense, I also live on Witherspoon St! I have breakfast there every day. I walk and drive. I never ride a bike. It is the most unbelievably dangerous town for bicycle riders. >I love Witherspoon St. There are 3 areas. There is the retail area, where I spend most of my time, from the Library on up to the university. There is the Neighborhood which I treasure tremendously. To me that neighborhood is the history of Princeton. I would hate to see it damaged or lost. Something we should be proud of. I have an interest in archeology. I agree that we should be talking to some experts about how we should look at what we have..what we can save…and understand better before we start knocking anything down. Then there is the institutional area of Witherspoon St…the hospital, the Community Park School, the Township Hall, the Valley Rd building. I am a member of the School Board. I am eternally disappointed because they never want to include the school board in any of these discussions. And yet we hold an extremely interesting property on the end of Witherspoon St. and I believe we need to be included!

Heidi Fichtenbaum:> I live at 38 Carnahan Place. A small street right by Contes Pizza. So I use Witherspoon St every single day because it is the main route from my home.  My impressions of Witherspoon are small children walking to school, porches filled with people, rough road, homes & shops needing repair. Those are my mental images. One of the things I am really concerned about here, is… What is going to happen to the Valley Rd building? What is going to happen to the hospital? What is happening to the home where Mr. Robinson lived for many years, which the Town Topics has bought?  We were friends with him and friends of his daughters. The Master Plan says these are supposed to remain residential areas. I sort of see it being gobbled up and used in ways the community is being eroded.  The businesses who move in will not be as concerned about that community, and the building relates. About how when they turn out the lights at 5 o’clock and go home, they make the street look abandoned. All of those things are on my mind. And one of the things I am really encouraged about are all of the people in this room today. It is awesome. To see all of the neighbors here. To know that we are the community. We are those people on those porches. On the street. And it is maintaining our connections as human beings that will maintain this community. That is what it all about. That is why the physical changes that people discuss have to keep that as the top priority. That’s is what makes community. I know I was recently at a meeting regarding the hospital, I was referencing the Sixties when they had urban renewal, but was really urban removal. And there were a lot of communities that were economically low on the totem pole. What happened was they knocked those communities down and built things

Like Pruitt Igoe where there really was no community. People didn’t know who their neighbors were. They concentrated all the negative aspects together and they lost all of the positive that existed in those communities. Instead of supporting and allowing them to become strong and vibrant. It is the human connection. It was irreplaceable. You have to be very careful what you take down. Whatever replaces it has to maintain the human connection.

Antonio Reniero:> I live at 38 Carnahan Place. Development has to be very clearly defined.

Leigh Peterson:>  I live on Birch. I take Witherspoon St everyday. I take the Dinky and work in Manhattan. I don’t want to live in Manhattan. I don’t want our neighborhood to become Manhattan. I don’t want a Starbucks. Part of the beauty of Princeton is that it treasures diversity. When I hear people say urban renewal, it is just a euphemism for commercialization. Did any of you see the picture in the Town Topics of what the hospital might do? Medical buildings on our side of the street…2 more parking garages. What is next? Do we commercialize John St…Do we commercialize all of Birch Avenue? We have a night club. Why don’t we talk about what is really going on? Are we going to turn the entire neighborhood into a commercial area? We who are here today want to keep this a residential area. There 2 Witherspoon Streets..not one. On our side, it is where we live. As Mrs Israel said, a lot of people don’t know this. I walk my dog at 6 in the morning. Everyone says ‘hi’. The guys who are waiting to get picked up in the morning, they pet my dog. That is why I live here…not in North Jersey…not in West Windsor..where no one knows my name. I hate to see this town go the way of all the towns, because it is one of the last ones in the state that has this kind of character. It has been able to preserve it, in spite of all the outside pressures to change. It really would be a shame. We are pretty much the last bastion of principled development, I think. I really would not like this to become a commercial corridor. I think it would be a real shame.

Michael Mostoller:> Let me summarize. We came here this morning to listen to everyone. Issues about redevelopment are considered as important input into what we are trying to do.  We are trying to provide a process for the community to carry out this discussion. In my own personal case, I would say, when the Shirley-Mclean Housing project was beginning, I came up with the idea that this was a neighborhood of happy porches. >It shows so much civic energy on each porch, by each individual in the JW community. It is truly remarkable. There is a sign of a family that lives on that street which seems to me to be a symbol of what we are trying to accomplish in terms of neighborhood stability. “The Craigs”. We are not here with any other agenda…except to listen and try to go forward with you.

Yina Moore:> Michael has prepared several maps which will become the tools for our looking at different layers of the conditions on the street. There are a lot of issues on the street. Property and property development. But I think what he wants us to know is that there are several uses and systems for walking, driving, bicycling, by buses… other modes that are struggling to maintain a presence and provide a balance of access..>

Michael Mostoller:> In order to try to concretize what comes up in a meeting like this, we came up with the idea that our study is really going to be in 4 parts. First we will have a series of Neighborhood Workshops which were outlined in the Town Topics. We are going to have workshops to get people around smaller tables where we contribute and discuss in concrete ways the issues you came up with today. Of course there will be more. We will then try to document those in ways that will isolate and identify places of preservation, conservation and improvement primarily.  I think it is unwise of us to be polyanna-ish about this to think we can prevent what is allowed in the zoning now.  We can make recommendations concerning future development. And then we want to create a series of design parameters and criteria that we feel should be addressed. I heard one today that if you look at this drawing here:  This a> rainbow>.  [Green = open space; Red = Commercial; Blue = Institutions; Yellow = Residential; Gray = Parking].> It is threatened in its rainbow character.  If one of those arcs disappears or dies, it is no longer a rainbow. This to me is a great symbol. This is just a chart of the different uses…of the different powers…that show the character of what came out in the discussion today. What we are going to try to do…is working from a very specific series of what I call “maps”…

The first map will include much of what we talked about today: street pavings; sidewalks,  seating areas, piazzas and plazas. That would include how we can improve the viability the impact between the bicycle, the pedestrian and the automobile. People sitting on the ground waiting for buses…people sitting on their porches watching the parade. That map is the most significant one. We have to find a way to utilize the ground in a way that is useful and yet beautiful. That will be incorporated with a Landscape Plan and then a Street Furniture Plan.  So the first ‘idea-set’ comes out from our experiences. Many of which we heard today. So those would be isolated on the larger segment of this ‘facts of the matter’ map which we got from Chris and from his counterpart in the Township, so that we can work more in design mode and analytic mode with specific information.  Now, transportation is an important part of the study and we will definitely have to deal with these 2 maps…the overall grid of the community. It is a unique neighborhood bounded by two streets: One is the artery that everyone is talking about and the other [John St] is increasingly being used for utility and automobile access. And if anything were to happen over here, in the Y, Merwick and Stanworth, we would want to investigate what that impact would be on the neighborhood… 206, Nassau St…We will have to come to grips with the traffic> issues.  Utilities> follow along with that, the infrastructural maps. Then there is the structuring map. All of this has to be translated, somewhat professionally, into issues that can be defined through land use, densities, zoning, setbacks, frontages and building types.> This is where our professional group will focus. We hope to provide a series of cross sections that guide the development in these issues. Landscaping, sidewalks, landscaping, trees being preserved>…Everything would be shown in a series of three dimensional views that would allow us to present these ideas. Another important map is…We want to try to establish a History Trail.> That would respect the neighborhood and identify it for its critical importance to the history of Princeton and the nation. And then finally our last map, in the sense of providing an outline of something we might follow: zones, forms, strategies,agents and methods of implementation at specific milestones: one year, five years, ten years, twenty years.> 

Marvin Israel:> I think there are some simple things you could do, like recommend to the zoning boards that there should be no new development that increases population density. That’s simple, right? You can recommend: no destruction of any existing, viable structure. Instead of talking about having plazas, just put down ‘benches by the bus stops’. So there are a lot of simple things to preserve the exisiting neighborhoods.  Whne you mention a history trail to me, that’s scary. You are going to have plaques for where things used to be. That means to me that this is going to be a town that is great for Hillier but not so good for me as a resident…or for those who live closer.

Michael:> We are trying to listen to that. The only thing I would say…

Jim Floyd: >May I say something? Michael responds by saying ‘We will try to listen to that…” You are hear this morning to listen to that..not try to listen. One of the things about Princeton Future that I abhor is its assumption that it knows all that is right for you. My name is listed in the manual. I am not an active member any longer. By virtue of the fact that there is, as Heidi says, an awesome turnout, I would love to have this awesome turnout make some impression on what you are about to do. Don’t snow us with pretty maps. The point to be made is to try to reflect what these people have said. That is the intent of input. That is what Princeton Future said at the outset. We will listen to the the neighbors and we will be governed accordingly. Why are these people here? They will dictate in my opinion…if you do it in a manner you purport to do it…what you will take and refine and whatever you want to do with it: to come up with the reflection of people.  >That’s the point.

Michael:> I agree. I have no quarrel with what you have just said.

Jim Floyd: Then I think you can call it a day and take what has been said and go work on it.

Michael:> Exactly.

Joanna Kendig: >I have a question for homeowners in the room. What legal restrictions would you put on your house at the time of sale, in terms of what can happen to it after you sell it. Let’s say you are in a residential-business district, what would you do? What would you think of your property values if your neighborhood was down-zoned? That is a factor when we talk about the preservation of the neighborhood. How you balance that with your property value and your freedom to do what you can with your property. Please think about that.

Michael Shine:> I think we have all heard that Witherspoon St is the spine. But the community is the backbone. The community is made up of the neighborhoods. Not the Township. Not the Borough. The community. One of the things that we heard the other night at the meeting by the paid consultant of the Healthcare Task Force, was that certain sections of Witherspoon St around the hospital are defined as blighted. My neighborhood is not blighted. I find it hard to believe that the Task Force considers certain sections of the Boro and Township to be blighted. I think that this group has an uphill battle because the minds of the people we have elected to represent us are already made up.

Mildred Trotman: >If I could just clarify one thing. I think you refer to a paid consultant on the Task Force. I think you may be referring to Carlos. He is not a paid consultant. He is a member of the Task Force.

Jamie Laliberte:> I live on Harris Road. I live in one of the very small houses on Harris. When I moved in, I had every intention of renovating. I have had many people tell me to tear it down. I choose not to. With the hope that I will make it into house that is reflective of the neighborhood.  I had the neighbors approve the drawings and they say it will only improve it. What I would hate to see happen to the rest of the Witherspoon neighborhoods is what is happening to us on Harris Rd. The houses across from us are sitting empty. Nobody can decide what to do about those houses until somebody decides what to do about the hospital. I would certainly hate to see neighborhoods encroached on and then left to become blighted. So I caution the members of all task forces. Don’t move into a neighborhood and leave buildings standing so they will fall down. Then there is no recourse.

Ron Lusen:> One thing that I forgot to mention earlier, I think imposing restrictions on property is somewhat limited in terms of what the law allows. I think there a couple of avenues that could be followed to mitigate the economic and social pressures that are being put on the area. One is the Zoning Board is a real key. Whenever they get a spot zoning request, they should consider it in the context of the overall big picture of the neighborhoods. I know the laws prevent it from going very far. The property owner and the commercial interest can sue at the drop of a hat. Laws meant to protect individual rights allow changes that are not really good for the community as a whole. Besides the Zoning Board, zoning laws should be looked at hard.

;>

Wendy Mager:> Before we break up, could one of the officials who is here, please explain what has been declared blighted?

Yina:> Nothing has been declared blighted. Marvin do you want to clarify?

Marvin Reed: >I think what was said was specifically to the Harris Rd houses on the West side. One of our Task Force members was making a valiant effort because, at the meeting we had in October, that the hospital is expected to stay within its block. They said if they were to modernize in order to stay competitive, if they could stay within their block, they could put an addition where the old Medical Arts building is. Those buildings are ready for replacement. They proposed a new building that would have to be 13 stoires high. Now some people that are here today thought that 13 stories was abit higher than most of the other buildings in town. Carlos wanted us to make a very valiant effort, instead of going up and forcing them to stay within the block. So he was examining properties on each side of the street. He looked at the Packet parking lot. All seem to agree that no matter what happens, it ought to be something other than the Packet parking lot. But he also commented on the fact that the houses on Harris Rd that the hospital had left in such shabby condition, he asked, shouldn’t we just face that the fact that we should expand in that in that direction. Now there is a lot of debate about that on the Task Force. And the same thing applies on the other side of the street. The Boro’s affordable housing: Maple Terrace and Franklin Terrace. One way or another they have to be rehabilitated, if nothing else. There is also the possibility that they be replaced. On the West side of Witherspoon, if nothing else happens, they should at least be ‘reinvigorated’. Because the hospital is right across the street, they sort of languish there. The delicatessen it’s quaint it has character to it. Maybe it gets a new sidewalk. Some people interpreted that exercise that he was implying that it was blighted.

Heidi:> Marvin, he said that these buildings were ‘unsightly’.

Marvin:> Yes, that is what he said.

Heidi:> The rest of us read into that:  “What is he really saying?” He is really saying it is blighted. My kids use the deli like constantly. It could use a better sidewalk. Those are improvements I don’t anyone in the neighborhood would say “We love our uneven sidewalks!” No one wants our neighhood torn down, period.

Marvin:> All right. There were a number of people who came to the meeting to say that. And it has been very important to our discussion vis a vis the hospital. And if the hospital moves away something will take its place. So at our next meeting on Dec 8th at Township Hall, that is what we will talk about…alternatives, what will come in its place. It’s not just what comes in its place but how it comes in its place. Whether it is a modernized hospital or another development, how does it fit in? How does it fit in so it an integral part of the neighborhood.

Yina:> Thank you, Wendy, for bringing it up. That’s why we have included Map 14 for issues of implementation. There are many different ways we might arrive at what may be a solution. A declaration of blight puts legitimate fear because there are legal processes which create opportunities for others which are out of others’ control. Thank for bringing that up.

Sheldon Sturges:> We have a chance to wish Professor Geddes ‘Happy Birthday’. [Applause]

Robert Geddes: >I would like to pick up on what the Mayor Emeritus said. I think it is wonderful to be in this room, on that square, to go back to where we were when this project started. Originally, according to the Mayor’s plan, that building [Witherspoon House] was to be an office building. There was no open space, it was set back a few feet. There have been no walkways. The whole conception of this area, good or bad as it may be, this room, as glorious as it is today, did not exist in the original plans of the Library…opening up to the square as it does. It came about because the community spoke up. We had a number of WHAT IF? Meetings. We didn’t know what the issues were. We didn’t know what the community felt about it. But by the community voice this came into being. Not a single task force meeting where you are told the alternatives, but a process which generates from your perceptions of what ought to happen over time in this Corridor. To Michael & Yina’s extraordinary credit, they have identified a number of sets of relationships that were not apparent at the the outset. But they are only the beginning of what those relationships are... So I urge you to participate in WHAT Ifs before it moves too far.

End tape