By Anne Levin
At a meeting on Monday evening, July 13, Princeton Council voted in favor of two resolutions for Adopt-a-Park agreements with the Friends of Herrontown Woods for the municipally-owned open space areas known as Herrontown Woods and the Autumn Hill Reservation.
The meeting also included a presentation on the Community Needs Assessment, the first to be carried out since 2014; and a presentation of the 2025 audit report. Additional resolutions approved by Council were related to engineering services at the Rosedale Road/Elm Road/Cleveland Lane intersection, outdoor dining on Hinds Plaza, and improvements on Pretty Brook Road, among other issues.
Speaking before the vote on the Adopt-a-Park agreements, Steve Hiltner, who heads the Friends of Herrontown Woods (FOHW), said that the resolution involves trails and habitat on 230 acres of town-owned, preserved land.
“It makes official the intense and sustained work we’ve been doing at these preserves for the past 13 years,” he said.
The agreement formalizes the partnership between Princeton and the FOHW, stipulating the guidelines for open space usage and management. A lease agreement related to the Veblen House and Cottage [in Herrontown Woods] will be on the agenda for authorization at a future meeting. According to a memo to Council from Open Space Manager Inga Reich, that agreement must be approved by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program before it can be finalized.
The Community Needs Assessment was compiled by the Princeton Advisory Committee on Affordable Housing, Racial, Economic, Social Equity and Services (CARES); the Princeton Human Services Department; the Center for Modern Aging Princeton (CMAP); and consultant Subuhi Asheer, CEO and founder of Firefly Community Research. The assessment was commissioned in spring of 2025 to update understanding of the needs, challenges, and priorities of the town’s low-to-moderate income (LMI) residents, and plan for the future.
The study builds and expands on the 2014 study, with data gathered from 253 LMI households, said Asheer. Seventeen listening sessions were held with a diverse group of residents in English and Spanish, including older adults. Multilingual outreach included a survey offered in 12 languages.
The assessment determined that the services most challenging to access include affordable medical care, housing stability, and assistance with utilities and transportation. While meal-skipping is down, anxiety persists about food and nutrition, with 43 percent worried food would run out.
Regarding health care, 25 percent of those surveyed said they could not pay medical or dental bills, while 30 percent skipped or delayed care because of cost. Forty-three percent were on Medicaid of NJ Family Care.
Recommendations emerging from the assessment include expanding outreach, awareness, and access to services; strengthening community coordination and navigation; improving transportation awareness and coordination; and promoting affordability.
“The overall picture is relatively positive,” said Asheer. “But data points to some specific gaps.”
The presentation is in the agenda packet from the meeting, available at princetonnj.gov. The next meeting of Council is Monday, July 27 at 7 p.m., at Witherspoon Hall or via Zoom.