Ranking members of the Princeton Township Police Department told members of Township Committee Monday that the department is in the midst of a two-year, 110-point process on the way to receiving state accreditation, as part of a recommendation from an independent, top-to-bottom departmental analysis conducted in 2005 by Carroll Buracker & Associates, Inc., a Virginia-based public safety management consulting corporation. The department has also followed the report's recommendations by reducing the force to 31 sworn officers, eliminating a lieutenant position, an administrative sergeant position, two patrol officer positions, and a part-time secretary position, resulting in a payroll cut of nearly $400,000. All positions were eliminated through attrition, though the elimination of the secretarial position was not part of the Buracker report. Township Police Capt. Robert Buchanan said the accreditation process would cost less than $3,000, and that the department could pursue national accreditation status after state certification is confirmed.
Members of the Princeton Township Historic Preservation Commission will attend a meeting tomorrow, March 29, at 9 a.m. in Meeting Room B at Township Hall to discuss intrusions on the King's Highway National Register District. Lewis K. Branin from the New Jersey Department of Transportation's office of Community Affairs is expected to discuss issues like fences going up in the right of way and the DOT's plans to conduct enforcement. Representatives from the State Historic Preservation office are also expected to attend.
The Princeton Township Police Department is hiring school crossing guards to work two daily posts, from 8 to 8:30 a.m. and from 2:55 to 3:35 p.m. Trained guards are paid $25 per hour and training and equipment is provided by the Police Department, which is also encouraging interested applicants with limited time to consider covering only a morning or an afternoon post or sharing coverage with a friend or neighbor. For more information, call Ptl. Kim Hodges or Sgt. Thomas Murray at (609) 921-2100, ext. 825, or e-mail khodges@princton-township.nj.us.
American Legion Princeton Post No. 76 has established a four-year college scholarship for a resident of Princeton Borough, Princeton Township, or West Windsor Township, who is the child, step-child, grandchild, or great-grandchild of a U.S. war veteran. Interested high school juniors or seniors or college freshmen should write to: Princeton Area Community Foundation, 15 Princess Road, Lawrenceville, N.J., 08648.
Princeton Township Committee Monday night signed off on a professional services agreement with the Carlsbad, Calif.-based SITE Design Group, Inc. to conduct the design process for the planned 11,000-square-foot skate park at Princeton Township's Hilltop Park. The Princeton Recreation Department reviewed proposals and interviewed four of the leading designers in the country. "Although they all are award winning designers, we felt that SITE Design really was outstanding in involving community input and is on the cutting edge of designing hybrid type parks," said Katie Herlihy, program supervisor for the Recreation Department. Community design workshops are expected in the coming months, according to Jack Roberts, Recreation Department executive director, adding that the park could open as soon as this fall. The agreement with SITE Design places a payment cap at $29,200.