Corrections or additions?
This article was prepared for the November 8, 2000 edition of U.S.
1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Life in the Fast Lane: Millstone Bypass
The proposed Millstone Bypass has encountered another
roadblock, and from an unexpected quarter — Governor Christie
Whitman. Last week Whitman stepped into the increasingly acrimonious
battle between bypass opponents (Princeton residents and
environmentalists)
and proponents (West Windsor residents and officials). She ordered
an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project, a move that
will certainly delay the project.
Putting aside the intriguing question of just who or what influenced
the governor to take this unusual step, what does her order mean?
On the surface, a delay. The EIS, an in-depth study of the roadway’s
impacts, could take 18 months or two years to complete. The New Jersey
Department of Transportation (DOT) had planned for the two-year
construction
period to begin in late 2003, and this would push it back to 2005
or 2006.
But does it truly mean a delay? Not necessarily. Whitman’s EIS order
actually preempted a lot of folderol that might have resulted in an
EIS being ordered by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) six
months from now, after lots of hearings, reviews, and reports.
"We could have held the public hearing, digested the comments,
made the responses, turned it over to the FHWA, and they could have
said we still think you need to go for a fullblown EIS," says
DOT spokesperson Jim Berzok. The original hearing had been scheduled
for Monday, December 11, at the Sarnoff Center and will still be held
— but in the form of an information session.
To recap: the Millstone Bypass was planned to eliminate traffic lights
at three Route 1 intersections and ease congestion on Washington Road
in the Penn’s Neck section of West Windsor. The New Jersey Department
of Transportation just released an Environmental Assessment (EA)
report
intended to kick off the final round of the approval process for the
bypass’ construction. This hefty document was supposed to identify
all the potential social and environmental impacts of the DOT’s bypass
plan and help decide whether the in-depth EIS was necessary. Next
would come a public hearing, and then the various government agencies
would have to put their heads together to decide whether to issue
the EIS.
Whitman’s order bypassed all this palaver and cut
straight
to the EIS. Some observers say that the DOT document was faulty and
would eventually have precipitated an EIS anyway.
At issue is the state’s currently proposed "preferred
alignment,"
which has the bypass starting at Route 571 at the railroad bridge
near the Ellsworth’s shopping center in West Windsor, going through
Sarnoff property, using an overpass to cross Route 1 onto Harrison
Street, and veering off Harrison Street to go just east of the D&R
Canal to Washington Road. Washington Road would be open only to right
turns in and right turns out, and no traffic could cross Route 1 at
that point.
The plan has its supporters, and not all of them live in West Windsor.
"I don’t think people realize that Princeton is used as a bypass
anyway," says Joseph O’Neill, borough vice chair of the Princeton
Regional Planning Board and a supporter of the current plan. "The
two north/south routes, 27 and 206, run right through Princeton.
Before
the Alexander Road overpass was built we had a parking lot on Route
1 from Quakerbridge Mall to Harrison Street. My guess is that the
bypass — with Washington Road as a right in and right out —
would take north/south traffic off Princeton streets."
Now that the EIS is part of the process, many other options can be
considered or reconsidered, including the realignment of the
Harrison-to-Washington
Road section. Instead of running alongside of the D&R Canal (which
is causing a great deal of resistance from environmentalists) it could
run along the side of Route 1, as a frontage or service road.
A frontage road would feed traffic to almost the entire length of
Washington Road along the much lauded rows of elm trees. Princeton
University’s opposition to keeping Washington Road open is based on
how it could eventually create another safety hazard for pedestrian
traffic. "It would run traffic on a road that would bisect the
campus and duplicate the problems of traffic on Washington Road on
the Princeton side of the lake," said Eugene McPartland four years
ago, when he was the university’s vice president of facilities (U.S.
1, October 23, 1996).
"The frontage road would run between Harrison and Washington roads
and would allow Princeton to have three distinct entrances,"
counters
Alan Goodheart, a landscape architect (and Harrison Street resident)
who chaired the Good Options planning task force for Sensible
Transportation
Options Partnership (STOP) (E-mail: agoodheart@earthlink.net).
"Along
with other ideas, this would be a simple way to deal with university’s
issue of land taking. But the EIS is a great device for comparing
alternatives."
"The governor’s welcome decision calls for a study that will be
bigger in vision, more thorough, and more inclusive," says
Goodheart,
who terms the EA document "severely flawed." He says the EIS
"will be more complicated and expensive but has a chance of
serving
the entire region well into the future."
"We always knew an EIS was a very distinct possibility and, as
the only landowner on this side of Route 1, we intend to participate
in the process," says Pam Hersh, spokesperson for Princeton
University.
"We have said relief is needed on Route 1, and that we would
support
an alignment that fulfills the original goals, including preserving
the integrity of the land for future educational development."
So what did prompt Governor Whitman to go out on the EIS limb and
issue a statement like the following: "Before we consider taking
action that would so permanently change this Princeton landmark (the
removal of a number of trees along the historic Elm Alle’), we must
convince ourselves that we are taking the route that least affects
the area’s environment and character."
"It’s not that unusual for the governor to get involved in an
issue that one of the departments is working on," claims Jayne
O’Connor, a spokesperson in the governor’s office. "This is an
issue that has been going on for years, so the governor has been aware
of it for a long time. Recently she has had numerous contacts from
people interested in the project, asking for her to get involved,
and she did."
O‘Connor cites two other examples: Canceling the move
of the revenue department to Hamilton ("That didn’t make sense,
given the overall state plan, to move the building out of Trenton
into the suburbs") and the proposed watershed rules limiting sewer
growth as a way of controlling sprawl. If passed, this rule will
infuriate
builders. But neither example has anything to do with transportation,
and not even avid Christie watchers remember her interceding on a
traffic plan.
Also puzzling is that Whitman is Republican, and the plan’s opponents
come from a jurisdiction that is largely Democratic. "This is
not a political issue in her mind," says O’Connor. "The
governor
is known as someone who does what she believes is the right thing
to do."
Another possible motive concerns Christie Whitman’s future. She has
been burnishing her reputation as an environmentalist and was seen
on the last weekend before the election making campaign appearances
at environmentally crucial locations with George W. Bush. "She
wants a cabinet position," says one insider, "and she is
positioning
herself as Ms. Environment."
— Barbara Fox
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Expansions
Road, Princeton 08540-0001. Judith D. Moore, president & CEO.
609-720-6500;
fax, 609-720-6550. Www.chauncey.com
The for-profit arm of Educational Testing Service signed a lease for
a 4,500 square-foot fulfillment center at 1580 Reed Road. Paul Goldman
represented the tenant and landlord. The group does testing and
certification
for corporations, professions, and government.
Princeton
08540. Howard Goldberg, vice president. 609-734-4800; fax,
609-734-0502.
This pharmaceutical service company is expanding to 6,200 square feet
at 1009 Lenox Drive and is expected to move at the end of November.
The firm does data capture and project management services to support
pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies during the clinical
research
process. It was represented by Paul Goldman of Commercial Property
Network.
08901. Daihwan Choi, office manager. 732-418-0008; fax, 732-418-0858.
This software development company specializing in applications for
the insurance and pharmaceutical industries moved from 7,000 square
feet at Carnegie Professional Center to a larger space in New
Brunswick.
It has 69 employees at this location The company’s president, Sam
Fang (Princeton ’73), operates out of Santa Cruz, California.
Princeton
08540. 609-452-1701; fax, 609-452-1704. Www.epam.com
The computer consulting firm is expanding from 3,800 to 8,000 square
feet at Princeton Commerce Center. Bill Barish of Commercial Property
Network represented owner and tenant.
Founded in Belarus, Russia, Epam Systems does consulting in sales
force automation on PCs for various industries, domestic and foreign.
The programs are webcentric and adaptable for either Internet and
intranet use.
Drive, West Trenton 08628. Yves Dzialowski, general manager.
609-538-1800;
fax, 609-538-8122. Www.epitaxx.com
The fiber optics firm has expanded to Ewing Mercer Commerce Center.
First it took 98,400 square feet at 200 Ludlow, and now it has signed
a lease at both 100 and 200 Ludlow for a total of 130,000 square feet.
It will move into the new space early in 2001. It is headquartered
at Graphics Drive. Paul Goldman of Commercial Property Network
represented
the tenant. The building owner is Peter Sorce Companies.
Founded by Greg Olsen (who just sold his current company, Sensors
Unlimited) this firm was formerly known as EPITAXX Optoelectronic
Devices Inc. It was bought first by a Japanese-owned company and then
by JDS Uniphase Corporation, based in San Jose. The company sprang
from the David Sarnoff Research Laboratory in 1982. It manufactures
and develops optoelectronic devices for fiber optic communications
networks.
Road, Princeton 08540. Jay Bernard, president. 609-921-6880; fax,
609-924-8991.
On November 1 the insurance company moved from Rider Furniture’s
building
at 12-14 Main Street in Kingston to what is known as the Yellow Book
Building, formerly owned by Joe Boyd, founder of the Consumer Bureau.
Jay Bernard, represented by Al Toto of Commercial Property Network,
bought the building.
Building 200, Suite 200A, Plainsboro 08536. Upinder Zutshi, president
& COO. 609-750-9595; fax, 609-750-9510. Home page:
The software development company moved to 5,720 square feet at
Princeton
Meadows Office Center. It does onsite or offsite software development
in USA, Europe and Asia. Paul Goldman of Commercial Property Network
represented the tenant.
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Contracts Awarded
Suite 206, Princeton 08540. Donald L. Drakeman, president.
609-430-2880;
fax, 609-430-2850. Home page: www.medarex.com
Eli Lilly and Company has signed an agreement for Medarex to produce
fully human antibodies for various disease targets; Lilly will try
to develop these antibodies as therapeutic pharmaceutical products.
Medarex will get a fee for each target against which it raises an
antibody and could also receive license fee, payments, and royalties
when further progress is made.
The agreement, the 26th partnership for Medarex to make human
antibodies,
was signed November 6.
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Leaving Town
89107. Janet Romano Ferris, manager. 609-452-1555; fax, 609-452-7374.
Home page: www.eltec.de.
Janet Romano Ferris, a "trailing spouse," has managed not
only to keep her job but is now working poolside from a home-based
office. Ferris has moved the United States sales office of a German
computer company from 101 College Road to Las Vegas. Currently, she
is working from her Nevada home, but by next month will have an
official
address.
She is the spouse of Harris Ferris, former general manager of the
American Repertory Ballet, now in a similar position at Nevada Ballet
Theater.
Janet Ferris went to the State University of New York at Buffalo and
worked in the banking industry before being hired as office manager
for the company based in Mainz, Germany, in 1996. Now she is both
office manager and sales rep. For clients such as Boeing, Lockheed
Martin, and the University of California, Eltec provides computer
hardware — circuit boards, embedded systems, and smart cameras
for manufacturing and research — for aviation and industrial
security
purposes.
Spring Lake 07762. Tom Gifford, vice president. 609-720-0500; fax,
609-720-0703.
After two years at Princeton Forrestal Village, Tom Gifford has moved
this office to Spring Lake. A Duke graduate, he does healthcare
investment
banking focused on the life science industry. The headquarters is
in Research Triangle Park.
1721, Yardley 19067. Jolly Joseph Paily, president. 215-369-4500;
fax, 215-369-4704. Home page: prontosol.com
Citing Pennsylvania’s support of technology companies, Pronto
Solutions
has consolidated its 3,000-foot office on Franklin Corner Road and
in Pittsburgh to a 4,500 square foot space in Yardley, where 25 people
are working. In addition, 100 software consultants are doing offshore
development in Bombay.
Pronto recently landed a long-term contract for a web-based
information
system for Delaware’s department of natural resources. The firm offers
website designing, portal development, and web-based applications.
A computer engineer at the University of Bombay, Class of 1991, Paily
spent five years in technical jobs and then moved to business
development.
He moved to the United States in 1996, first as a founding member
and director of ERP services for a Pittsburgh consulting company,
United Breweries Information and Consulting Services, that went public
in 1997. Pronto was founded that year.
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Stock News
(ITXC),
600 College Road East, Princeton 08540. Tom Evslin, CEO. 609-419-1500;
fax, 609-419-1511. Home page: www.itxc.com
ITXC shares rose after a quarterly report showing 26 percent increase
in revenues over the previous quarter, a 259 percent increase over
last year’s results. ITXC is an international Internet telephony
services
carrier.
CN 5350, Princeton 08543-5350. Joseph A. Mollica, chairman and CEO.
609-452-3600; fax, 609-452-3672. Www.pcop.com
Phamacopeia’s stock jumped on Thursday, November 2, after quarterly
earnings were released. The results showed a revenue increase of 10
cents per diluted share versus two cents in the previous quarter.
It has patented chemical screening libraries for early drug testing
and development.
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Correction
Princeton
08540. Stephen C. Steelman, executive vice president. 609-951-0500;
fax, 609-951-0038. Home page: www.bovis.com
The name of this company has changed from Bovis Construction (as
printed
on November 1) to Bovis Lend Lease. Last year it was acquired by Lend
Lease, an Australian-based company.
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Deaths
mathematics editor at Princeton University Press and president of
Parallel Computing Development Corp.
police in Jamesburg.
president and vice-chairman of Homasote Co.
retired postmaster with the Kingston Post Office.
Educational
Testing Service.
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