December 19, 2012

News that actors Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck would be filming scenes for the crime thriller Runner, Runner at several sites in Princeton drew hordes of people to town last Friday. The streets, already clogged with holiday shoppers, got even more crowded as visitors anxious for a glimpse of the movie stars quickly filled up parking garages and side streets.

While there were no sightings of Mr. Affleck, Mr. Timberlake was spotted at numerous locations. Chief among them was the 100 block of Nassau Street, where a section of the sidewalk was closed off for approximately an hour while New Regency Productions shot scenes for the film. While some local business owners reached this week said they welcomed the attention, others were angered by the interruption of what they consider a crucial holiday shopping day.

“At 2:45 they closed the sidewalk until 4 p.m.,” complained Henry Landau of the Landau store at 102 Nassau. “We were having a great day, and all of a sudden there’s nobody in the store. It’s ridiculous. One customer had driven from a distance and couldn’t get in. It just shows a total lack of consideration of the merchants.”

Next door to the Landau store at Forest Jewelers, owner Mitch Forest concurred. “Whoever gave permission to do the filming didn’t take into consideration, other than receiving a fee, how it would affect shopping,” he said. “Did they talk to any Borough merchants? If nobody did, then it’s just another indication of how little perhaps those who gave permission understand how business works in the community. It’s almost a disrespect. It killed us for that period of time.”

Borough administrator Bob Bruschi said merchants received hand-delivered notifications about the planned filming. “Clearly there is an impact,” he said. “We tried to make that impact as small as possible. We felt that since they were kind of hop, skipping, and jumping around town at three and a half locations that it wouldn’t be that much of an interruption. We try to be flexible and we feel that in the long term, it’s a good thing. It’s a tough time of year and I know that they want to make their nut, and we want them to do that. But we have to weigh the decision.”

One merchant saw business improve as a result of the filming. “I thought it was great,” said Sal Mazzella, owner of Massimo’s Express at 124 Nassau. “A lot of kids, especially high school girls, who were on the street, came in and got slices, and the movie company ordered 10 pizzas. We had an extra 100 people who came in. This kind of thing brings people to town who usually don’t come. If you live half an hour away and you want to see JT, then you’ll come to town.”

Mr. Mazzella has souvenirs in his store from the making of the film Transformers in 2008. A scene from the movie was shot on the Princeton University campus, and actors Shia LeBoeuf and Megan Fox were among the cast and crew who came in for pizza. “I locked the doors when they came in, and as a thank you they gave me a copy of the Bumblebee [action figure], an autographed script, and a picture of them, which are up on my wall,” he said. “It’s great when that kind of thing happens.”

Brian Harris, manager at Princeton Running Company at 108 Nassau, said he had no complaints about loss of business due to the filming. “There was one period where we didn’t have many customers, but generally we got the business we were going to get for that day,” he said. “A lot of customers said they had a problem parking, though.”

Parking is a constant concern for Dorothea von Moltke, owner of Labyrinth Books at 122 Nassau. While the sidewalk in front of that store was not closed for the filming, the lack of parking added to her worries. “The big thing that was a problem was the traffic snarl,” she said. “As bad as it is on Friday afternoons, and with parking such an issue during the holidays, this made it more of a concern. We are always worried about that because our competition is the malls, which have easy parking. So anything that compounds that is an issue. But we were busy, and because the weather was good it was a fine day for us anyway.”

Mr. Forest said that while he did receive the flyer informing him of the filming, the news came as a last-minute surprise. “They just popped it on us,” he said. “This is a time of year when we need nothing but momentum, and we lost some momentum. Did it tick clients off? Absolutely.”


Life on Nassau Street was back to normal Saturday following Friday’s closing of a portion of this block to permit Justin Timberlake and a film crew to do location filming for the crime thriller “Runner, Runner.” Not all local merchants were happy. See story on page 7. (Photo by Emily Reeves)

September 19, 2012

Details of a proposed plan to update the two information kiosks on Nassau Street were the focus of the September 11 meeting of Princeton Borough Council.  While Council members expressed interest in the presentation delivered by Peter Crowley, president and CEO of the Princeton Area Chamber of Commerce, they had several questions about the plan to make the kiosks more user-friendly and  decided to delay voting until more information is provided.

The kiosks have been fixtures at the Nassau Street corners at Vandeventer Avenue and Witherspoon Street for several decades.They are currently used as information boards to advertise cultural and political events, rooms for rent, and the like. Under the plan developed by the Chamber’s Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, the care and decisions about what is displayed would be overseen by the Chamber.

“I’m sure what you’re planning will be an improvement over what’s there now, visually,” commented Councilman Roger Martindell. “But I’m a little concerned about content.” Social and political messages are currently posted on the kiosks, Mr. Martindell continued. “It’s a public space for public dialogue. It’s sometimes good to be uncomfortable, especially in a community such as ours.” Mr. Martindell continued that by turning them over to the Chamber, the kiosks become mostly commercial. “Who’s going to sit there and say we’ll accept this one and not that one? Do we care about losing that quality?”, he asked.

Resident and former Township mayor Jim Floyd agreed. “I urge you to really give serious consideration as to whether you want to give up that public right and public expression,” he said.

Councilwoman Jo Butler questioned whether the kiosks have become outdated and unnecessary. “They are the vestige of a past way of communicating,” she said, adding, “I’m not sure in the long run whether this is what we want in our streetscape. I’d like some time to take this back to the traffic and transit committee.” Ms. Butler also expressed concern that the updated kiosks could pose a distraction for drivers. “I just worry that this could contribute to these corners becoming less safe,” she said.

Mr. Crowley said that because the kiosks front onto Nassau Street, which is a state highway, there are restrictions about what can be put on the street side. The interactive portion of the kiosks would therefore not be visible from cars traveling on the street.

Mr. Crowley described the renovated kiosks as having eight weather-resistant panels. One would be devoted to the municipality, another would be dedicated to not-for-profits, and a third would be used by the Princeton Merchants’ Association. Instead of a fourth panel, there would be an interactive community screen with information on restaurants, cultural activities, and events on one side; and services such as dog-walking and classes on the other. “They would be organized,” he said. “Someone could push a button and find what they want.” The other four panels would be dedicated to advertising.

Councilwoman Jenny Crumiller asked whether ads could be posed only by members of the Chamber, and Mayor Yina Moore asked what percentage would be dedicated to Princeton businesses. Renovating the kiosks is part of a plan by the Chamber to enhance tourism by making information more available to visitors. The front window of Princeton University Store on Nassau Street would be devoted to information for tourists.

“If we didn’t have these at all, would anyone think it was a good idea to install them?” asked Ms. Butler. “I don’t think this is what communities are doing today.”

Mr. Crowley said that the revamped kiosks would be a positive step for both tourists and residents. “I hope when this is done that what you have instead of clutter is a more organized approach to the information,” he said. “It’s a more sustainable use a cleaner look, and it provides individuals with access to more information.”

In other action at the meeting, Council President Barbara Trelstad reported that about half of the $106,000 needed to complete and install sculptural gates at Hinds Plaza, funded by private citizens, has been raised. Mr. Martindell suggested that the Borough make an initial contribution to the effort, though the bulk should continue to come from private funds.