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Borough candidates speak out on affordable housing |
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Princeton Justice Project sponsors forum. A mayor or council member of a modest-sized community like Princeton Borough or Princeton Township might have few opportunities to address global problems such as homelessness and affordable housing. But several candidates for office in the borough and township, speaking at a forum Thursday at Princeton University, pledged to bear those wider issues in mind along with the concerns typical to their communities — property taxes, parking and suburban deer matters. The candidates' forum was sponsored by the Princeton Justice Project, formed in 2001 as a means for university students to research and address social injustices in the United States. Speaking at the forum were Princeton Borough mayoral candidates Joseph O'Neill, a Democrat, and Green Party candidate Steven Syrek; Princeton Borough Council candidates Wendy Benchley and Peggy Karcher, both Democrats; and Princeton Township Committee candidates Bill Hearon, a Democrat, and Vic Federov, an independent candidate. Borough Council candidates Alan Hegedus and Mark Alexandridis, both of the independent Princeton Party, and Princeton Township candidate Colin Vonvorys, a Republican, were unable to attend due to illness or family emergencies, according to Anne Healy of the Princeton Justice Project. Running for Mercer County executive, Democrat Brian Hughes, a Mercer County Freeholder and Princeton Township resident, attended the event, as did contender Robert Klein, an independent candidate. Republican candidate Cathy DiCostanzo, currently the Mercer County clerk, was unable to attend due to a prior commitment, according to Ms. Healy. Because the homeless lack the capital to buy houses, the issue really is affordable rental housing, Mr. O'Neill said. And many municipalities are loath to attract rental developments because the property-tax revenues won't cover the education costs for children living there, he said. The solution is statewide property tax reform, he said. Mr. Syrek, who attended despite suffering from bronchitis, said he cares about the plight of the homeless, but questioned what the mayor of a small town could do about the problem. "Of course this issue has my greatest sympathies, but is an issue society as a whole needs to deal with," he said. The township and borough may want to encourage the university, which is the source of a large number of service and blue-collar jobs, to consider building housing for that segment of its population, said Ms. Benchley, who lauded the university's effort to provide more graduate and faculty housing. "We do want people who work in Princeton to live here," she said. Mr. Hearon, who earlier admitted that homelessness was not an issue he had dealt with directly during his 17 years in the township, suggested local officials lobby state legislators to support a bill by Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence) that would establish a statewide rental-assistance program for homeless New Jersey citizens. The candidates all pointed to the success each municipality has had in meeting past affordable-housing obligations while continuing to provide new low- and moderate-income housing opportunities. If approved, the proposed new Council on Affordable Housing regulations would require municipalities to provide one affordable unit for every 10 new market-rate units, said Ms. Karcher. The borough has had a policy in place seeking 20-percent affordable units within new housing developments, she said. "And we will make sure we will continue to do that" as well as rehabilitate existing residences with the aim of adding more housing to the borough's affordable stock, Ms. Karcher said. Mr. Federov, whose platform of Athenian Democracy appears to blend philosophy and theology, repeatedly reminded voters "to be aware for what the kingdom of God is." As a volunteer at local soup kitchens, he said many homeless people he encountered "are darn hard workers when they do work." One method to address lack of affordable housing for minimum-wage workers is to lower real estate prices, Mr. Federov said. "It's very patriotic to lower them," he said. |
