By Anne Levin
At its meeting on April 27, Princeton Council paid tribute to outgoing Zoning Officer Derek Bridger with a special proclamation recognizing his 25 years serving the Municipality. Bridger, whose retirement became official a few days later, was praised for his “careful and consistent oversight of zoning matters affecting projects both large and small across the community,” among other citations.
Bridger is one of two longtime Princeton municipal employees to depart this year. Chief Financial Officer Sandy Webb, on staff for just over 26 years, plans to officially announce her retirement in August.
Both Bridger and Webb have seen the town go through changes, consolidation, and growth. There have been challenges, but each express a fondness for the people with whom they have worked and a certain wistfulness for making their exit.
“I’m ready to go to the next chapter,” said Bridger, who served in banking and real estate appraising before working for the town under former Princeton Borough Zoning Officer Frank Slimak, whom he considered a mentor. “You get to a certain point in life where there are only so many summers left,” he continued. “I’ll travel, play more music (guitar, ukulele, and mandolin), cook, eat, hike, and bike. My daughter lives in California so we go out there. I’m going to Austin in a few weeks for live music.”
Over his tenure, Bridger has witnessed considerable redevelopment in Princeton. “The surface parking lot where the library is, the growth of Palmer Square — it was like a vacant lot,” he said. “The University’s growth has been amazing. The biggest challenges were dealing with the two [Borough and Township] codes never being harmonized or put together, like the Old Testament and the New. But I have to say, in the last 10 years the town has really become much more proactive.”
Webb was working as the chief financial officer in East Windsor when Princeton’s municipal attorney approached her about the opening in Princeton Borough. “I already had a job. But we clicked,” she said. “And it was the best move I ever made.”
Consolidation presented special challenges for Webb and her colleagues in the finance office. “We went through two years of consolidation. We switched financial software, and then had to do it again,” she said. “But overall it has worked out incredibly well.”
The most recently approved budget was another hurdle. “We’re growing, our surplus is growing,” she said. “We’re doing better financially each year, but that doesn’t mean you still don’t have challenges putting it together. The Finance Committee I had this year has been really involved in the process, asking all the right questions. And they’ve been a strong advocate for the budget we presented to Council.”
Asked to comment about Bridger’s retirement, Mayor Mark Freda repeated words he said at a party in Bridger’s honor last week. “Derek is everything you want from an elected official’s perspective,” he wrote in an email. “He is everything you want as a resident. Derek is everything you want as a co-worker. Derek is professional, helpful, kind, reasonable, and a really nice person. He will be missed; he has been a terrific asset to our town for a long time.”
Councilman David Cohen said that coworkers, elected officials, developers, and landlords attended the farewell luncheon for Bridger. “Everyone had only nice things to share — this says it all. Derek has been a pleasure to work with for all of us, with a calm demeanor and a collaborative work ethic. Derek has always wanted to get to yes, and most of the time has found a way to make it happen.”
Webb, who has headed Pennington’s finance office on a part-time basis while serving full-time in Princeton, looks forward to spending time with her family and slowing her pace when she retires in August. “My husband says I’ll go crazy after one day, but we’ll see,” she said with a laugh. “It’s hard to believe it’s been over 26 years. It feels like a blip on the screen.”
Cohen praised Webb for her “wealth of knowledge, not just about Princeton’s finances, but about the State’s labyrinthine budget requirements,” he said. “She has taught me over the years that crafting a budget is an art, not a science – there is always more than one way to get to the desired outcome, balancing concern for taxpayers with concern for staff and for the priorities of elected officials. Like Derek, she has a calm demeanor and a collaborative approach, and she will be sorely missed.”
Bridger is grateful for his time in the Municipality. “It has been a great place to work,” he said. “The people you meet, the residents — everybody is interesting.”
Above everything, Webb said, “I love my job in Princeton. I know how geeky that sounds working with numbers all day, but it is the truth, which is another reason why I struggled with my decision to retire.”
Council President Michelle Pirone Lambros summed it up: “Derek Bridger, our zoning officer, and Sandy Webb, our CFO, have been exemplary professionals on our staff,” she wrote in an email. “Both have contributed to the town’s successful consolidation, and helped navigate the many changes to our staffing needs over the years. We wish them all the best in their retirement.”