Letters to the Editor

Solar Farm 'Not in Best Interest of the Township'

Former Committeewoman Katy Rupert speaks out against the application for a solar farm on Country Club Road.

To the Editor: Now that I am no longer a member of the township committee, I can finally speak out on the solar application that is proposed on Country Club Road in Bedminster. The citizens of Bedminster need to know that the members of the township committee cannot opine on this issue that is before the Land Use Board.  Depending on how the Land Use Board rules on this variance application to turn 55 acres of farmland into a solar farm, that ruling may then be appealed to the governing body. If that appeal takes place, the members of the township committee must hear that appeal without prejudice, and they can’t do that if they have taken a position on the application. Though it may be frustrating, following the law this way helps protect …

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Letters to the Editor

Ordinance Allows Solar Systems in All Districts, Committeewoman Says

Carolyn Freeman refutes a letter from a New York resident about the solar ordinance.

To The Editor: This is in response to a letter from Luke Morgan of New York who stated that Bedminster Township is considering an ordinance to ban solar parking canopies in commercial parking lots. This is not accurate. Our deliberations at the meeting in question concerned only the commercial center in Bedminster’s portion of The Hills development. Since Mr. Morgan is not a local resident, he may not know that The Hills is a large residential development spanning two towns. The portion of The Hills in Bedminster is comprised of mostly townhouses and condominiums with one shopping center across from an office building. The proposed ordinance allows roof-top solar systems in every district. It allows parking lot canopy-mounted solar energy …

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Letters to the Editor

Reader Laments Option to Ban Solar Parking Canopies

Luke Morgan thinks Bedminster should allow them through its new ordinance.

To the Editor: I am very disappointed to learn that the Bedminster Township Committee is considering an ordinance to ban solar parking canopies in commercial parking lots.  Solar parking canopies transform existing parking lots into green power plants with numerous benefits. For starters, they lower a building’s consumption of fossil fuels, decrease energy costs, reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions and increase property values. On hot summer days, they produce free and clean power from the sun while shielding parked vehicles from blazing heat. In the winter, they can still produce power and protect people and cars alike from snow. A well-designed canopy will also collect rainwater for recirculation in the building or on-site …

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Moms Talk: How Do You Break Bad News to Children?

The Boston Marathon bombing is only the latest event that can rock kids' sense of security.

On the day of the Newtown, Ct. school shootings, my younger son arrived home from Ridge High School to find the television tuned to a news channel and me passing along the news that there had been a shooting in Connecticut, not far from where his grandparents and my brother live. Without intending, I burst into tears when I got to the part I had to say that so many children had been shot and killed. Of course, he was sympathetic. He also inquired about the safety of my neice, who attends school nearby. But then he urged me not to dwell on such news so I wouldn't get overly depressed. Therein lies some of the uncertainty of talking to children about local, national (or international) tragedies that are being blared all over the news. Some …

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Poll: What's the Busiest Intersection in the County?

We look at places that take the longest to navigate.

Somerset County is a very busy place—between all the major highways that converge there to the many side roads, there always a lot of cars out at all times. So we want to know what you think are the busiest intersections throughout Bridgewater, Basking Ridge (such as mornings by Ridge High School), Green Brook, Warren, Watchung, Hillsborough, Bernardsville, Bedminster and beyond. Where do you usually get stuck in traffic? Take our poll and let us know in the comments where are the most difficult roads to navigate.

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Voltaire

3:11 pm on Tuesday, March 26, 2013

I think Mr. Balls statement is a bit extreme but the new Somerville Circle is nothing like the old circle. I remember as part of driver education class in the '70s we had to drive around the circle 3 times with the driving instructor. Believe me, it's nothing like it used to be.   more ›

Poll: What Roads Are Too Dangerous For Walkers?

Let us know what roads you would never cross on foot.

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign (TSTC) recenty determined that Route 22 is the most dangerous road in Somerset County for pedestrians based on the number of deaths over a three-year span—but that's not the only place to watch out. A total of four pedestrian deaths were reported on Route 22 between 2009 and 2011, in addition to others on Weston Canal Road and Route 619. And these figures, of course, don't include motor vehicle fatalities—that have nothing to do with pedestrians—including the death of a Bound Brook resident on Route 22 in Bridgewater Thursday. But there are other roads throughout Somerset County while, not as dangerous, still pose some kind of threat when trying to cross. So we want to know what roads you consider too …

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Larry Pearce

2:48 pm on Tuesday, March 19, 2013

@ Karen...yuo can walk and talk?   more ›

Letters to the Editor

Committeewoman Says DOT Should Improve Maintenance Yard

It is located on Route 202/206.

To the Editor: I just read your informative story on the DOT's plans for ramp changes affecting Bedminster. I would like to add a few items that were not in the story but will be of major interest to Bedminster residents. At the Feb. 19 township committee meeting, I stated that we should ask the DOT to improve the appearance of their maintenance yard on Route 202/206. (As you know, DOT was working with a developer to swap this property for a new maintenance yard when the deal fell through. My opposition to the proposed dense, commercial development was the major issue in my campaign and, I believe, the main reason I won the election as a Democrat.) The yard is an eyesore and, at the Jan. 16, 2013 meeting with DOT, I asked them to paint, …

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Tree Cutting Concerns Raised in Bernardsville Resident's Letter

Resident suggest citizens contact Somerset Hills school board and Bernardsville Council members regarding proposal.

Editor's note: The following letter was submitted with comments by a resident of Old Colony Road in Bernardsville regarding plans to construct additional field space on a lower field below the existing turf field at Bernards High School. The Bernardsville Council is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. on Monday night. The meeting's agenda includes a closed-session discussion on contract negotiations regarding a use agreement for the proposed Chestnut Field behind the Bernardsville Middle School, a separate proposal. To the editor, Did you know that within the next week or two, upon final permitting, a controversial cut and fill operation will begin at Bernards High School? The plan, made public and approved all within just the past three weeks by …

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Moms Talk: Are You Sometimes Skeptical Your Kid is 'Too Sick' For School?

What's your call when you're not sure whether to believe your child is really too sick for school? Are 'r & r' days ever justified?

There already are rumblings in this house about whether it's necessary to go to school both Thursday and Friday when the usual weeklong February vacation is cut short this week. It's assumed that some students at Ridge High School will be gone for ski vacations or other trips preplanned before those two days were put back on the school calendar to make up for time lost to Sandy. Needless to say, my sympathy runs from zero to almost zero on this subject. I note that it wouldn't kill my student to get a little reinforcement in his classes even if teachers must re-cover some of the same information when the lucky vacationers return next week. But I'm also listening with a jaundiced ear (if there is such a thing) to a slowly incubating sniffle…

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Linda Sadlouskos

2:10 pm on Thursday, February 21, 2013

I sometimes think that always being "connected" makes it really hard for today's kids to get the "down time" we used to be able to get just by sneaking off by ourselves once in a while...   more ›