Ah, 2024! What better way to close out the year than with an inspiring tale of generosity—by the Princeton council, of course—towards their cherished property developer. Truly, the season of giving was alive and well.
Picture this: a council meeting held the Thursday before Christmas. The agenda? Oh, just your run-of-the-mill $40M+ tax break for 30 years, funded by—you guessed it—the taxpayers. And because the spirit of convenience must reign supreme, the date coincided with the annual PHS concert and an event hosted by our shiny new State Senator. Coincidence? Surely.
Undeterred by these minor scheduling quirks, the council pushed forward like Santa on a caffeine binge, sweeping aside pesky questions from the school board and those pesky citizens who dared ask for more discussion. We were assured the poor developer (bless their heart) would scrape by with a mere 5.9% return on investment without the PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) tax break. Such hardship! Somebody fetch the tissues.
But wait, there’s more! Without this tax break, we were warned, residents of “affordable” units might have to pay for parking and facility fees. So we need to give him over $1M per year to cover this parking cost and to ensure that he does more than the minimum to mitigate surface water run-off.
Strange that this decision is the developer's to make, but we learn something new at every meeting.The underground parking is also at risk, suggesting that without the PILOT a smaller project more in keeping with the historic district would be built.
What irony, the developer and council are telling us that without this massive tax break funded by the taxpayers we would not get something we do not want?
And as for the 40+ extra kids this project would bring into the school system? Not a problem! In fact, we were told the cost per pupil would magically decrease. Who knew math could also benefit from a little Christmas magic?
And let’s not forget the state of New Jersey and Mercer County, cast as the vilan in this holiday fable. The County will of course ensure that the taxpayers cover their share of missing taxes from this generous break and apparently the State make it practically impossible for the town to share its “extra revenue” with the schools. Truly, they are stealing Christmas—right from the schoolchildren’s stockings, but the option of not giving the PILOT is just too dreadful to contemplate.
Still, the council insists this tax break is the gift that keeps on giving. More revenue for the town and zero impact on schools! Clearly, we mere mortals lack the intellectual fortitude to grasp this holiday miracle.
So as we close out the year, let’s raise a toast to $140M+ in cumulative PILOT tax breaks over the past few years for this and projects at the shopping center, Princeton Circle amongst the many. Who cares about the 200+ extra kids in the school system that will come from all this? Surely, they’ll fit somewhere—maybe the janitor’s closet, or even in the old abandoned Westminster choir school that apparently we have $50M to acquire through 'eminent domain'?
And let’s not dwell on the stealthy approval process, with meetings always mysteriously scheduled around public holidays and a soundtrack of “urgent, must approve now!” playing on repeat. After all, it’s Christmas! We must not spoil the illusion for the children.
In the spirit of the season, let’s suspend disbelief and celebrate. It seems at least one person will be having a VERY merry holiday—shouldn’t we all just be happy for them?
Maybe this is what the Mayor was alluding to when he stated,“The Project will result in significant benefits for the health, welfare and financial well-being of the Municipality and its citizens.”
Perhaps in the New Year the grateful citizens will use their opportunity to ask the courts to take a look at this, and help us all understand what those benefits are,but just like the Holidays there are only a few days left.
Best wishes for 2025!
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