Save the Victory Trail & Jacobs Creek Bridge

This past Monday evening, Hopewell Township celebrated the reorganization of our Township Committee, welcoming new Mayor Mike Markulec and new Committee member Kim Johnson. Mayor Markulec expressed his goals and agenda for the coming year in the speech copied below:

I would like to thank the residents of Hopewell Township for the honor and privilege of serving on the Township Committee. The last two years have been both extremely educational and extremely rewarding for me as I’ve learned more about our community and had the opportunity to interact with many of you. I’d like to thank my family for their support; my Mom and Dad who became Township residents last year, my wife Jen who keeps everything running smoothly at home while I’m off at more meetings than I can count, and my boys Michael and Ben who don’t mind sharing their dad with the community. I would like to recognize a few special guests this evening NJ State Senator Shirley Turner, Mercer County Freeholder Dan Benson, Ewing Mayor Jack Ball, and Former Hopewell Township Mayors Bill Cane and John Hart. Last but not least I want to thank my colleagues on the Township Committee who put in long hours away from their families to make Hopewell Township a better place to live and work for all of us.

As we enter 2010 the Township is faced with several challenges and a handful of opportunities that will shape our community for the foreseeable future. At the top of the challenges list is property taxes. While local municipalities cannot resolve this problem on our own, past Township Committees and our dedicated CFO, Elaine Borges, have done any outstanding job of controlling township spending while maintaining a high level of services. As always we will continue to look for shared service opportunities with our municipal partners Hopewell and Pennington, Mercer County, the State, and most importantly the Hopewell Valley Regional School District. Only through working together can we hope to make Hopewell Township an affordable place for our seniors and our children to live in the future.

Preservation of our historic agricultural heritage has been the cornerstone in building our unique rural community in the middle of the densely populated, over developed north east corridor. Over the last decade the Township has preserved thousands of acres of active farmland and open space; not alone but in cooperation with the State, Mercer County, municipal partners Hopewell and Pennington, and non-profit organize like the D&R Greenway, FoHVOS, and the Stony Brook Millstone Watershed. Additionally, Hopewell Township has been a leader in Mercer County in the preservation of our historic treasures, most recently with our purchase of open space property to protect the Harbourton Historic District. We have another opportunity for leadership as we work with the Mercer County, the State, and many interested historical organizations to preserve the Victory Trail for future generations to enjoy. I would also like to thank our Township Administrator and Engineer Paul Pogorzelski for his effort in developing and executing a trail program that links our preserved farmland and open space with the Hopewell Lawrence Trail.

One of my goals two years ago when I was first elected to the Township Committee was to help build a strong healthy vibrant community within the Valley. We have taken many positive steps including the development of the Twin Pines Recreational Facility, phase one due to be completed this spring, first annual 4th of July fireworks, and many new and innovative programs run by Judy Niederer through the Township Recreation Department. The Youth Advisory Board is the driving force to bring a Youth Activity Center (called The YAC) to the Valley, giving our teens a safe educational environment for after school and weekend activities. We also completed a community wide survey last year affirming the need for and helping scope a new senior center, a project I expect will gain momentum in 2010.

I am excited for the potential that 2010 brings and again I am extremely grateful for your support and the opportunity.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Based on the limited information and schematic rendering available from Mercer County regarding the proposed roadway re-alignment and removal of Jacob's Creek Bridge, and discussions with professionals based on that schematic - we have posted a 2-dimensional image and a cartoon rendering below to allow citizens to see how the countys' proposal will effect our historical landscape, allow a viable alternative for truck traffic, allow for increased speed limits, and destroy Washington's Victory Trail forever.

Historic Bridge Alternatives Analysis

Summary of Key Points

�� This report centers around the importance of accommodating the expansion

plans of Janssen Pharmaceutica and their anticipated 3,900 employees that will in due course

result in increased traffic flow as high as 13,000 vehicles per day on Bear Tavern Road.

�� Now that the report is available it is apparent that it is fatally incomplete. The Hopewell

Township Committee and the Hopewell Township Historic Preservation Commission were

pressed into making a decision without seeing this report. Restoration options have not been

fully explored (especially considering the historic Victory Trail) and that the concerns of the

affected public have not been considered before decisions were made.

�� Most importantly, nowhere in the report can you find any mention of the nearby elementary

school and the safety of the children. Instead it focuses on Janssen Pharmaceutica being

located in close proximity to the bridge but fails to point out that Bear Tavern Elementary

School is also within close proximity of the bridge.

�� The report is fatally incomplete in that it specifically does not include the historical

significance of the site. On page 10 it observes that there are no other historical aspects

nearby. Clearly, this is mistaken and with the full background of the site known the conclusions

and imperatives of the report could be quite different.

�� We now know that the action taken by the Hopewell Township Committee and the Hopewell

Township Historic Preservation Commission back in February and March was taken without

the benefit of this study that should have been readily available to the members, without

the council members considering their own guiding Master Plan, without the advice of

restoration experts, and without the full input of the public. . In fact, the report was not

finalized and submitted until 4/20/09 which was well after the Hopewell Council endorsed the

current plan.

�� The taxpayers put out over $90,000 for this report and it was withheld from them. Not only was

it withheld but it was not open to questions, challenges or discussion. The authors of a report

of this importance and cost should be made available to several public meetings to discuss,

explain and defend their findings and recommendations.

�� This disclosure proves that the process was flawed from the start because the freeholders, the

Hopewell council as well as the public were being pushed into decisions without the benefit of

the basic study. A fresh new look at the whole picture is required.

�� We do not see any consultation with other historic bridge restoration experts nor any examples

of successful restorations in similar circumstances such as Califon. This, like the above, tends

to indicate that the report is incomplete as the restoration techniques and latitude are not fully

fleshed out in any case, particularly in view of the high historical value of the entire site.

�� The option chosen by the county unquestionably will massively disturb the Victory Trail view

shed. As this was not considered it is doubtful that this project will receive federal approval in

its current form.

�� Highlighted is the soon to take place expansion of Janssen from 1,600 employees to 3,888

employees. This results in a projected average daily traffic (ADT) volume of over 13,000

vehicles per day. This is a staggering, frightening number of vehicles traveling through what is

supposed to be a rural neighborhood past an elementary school.

�� Indeed, the residents have not been provided with a visual conception of the chosen option

which includes a 196 foot long and unsightly retaining wall that cuts directly through the Victory

Trail.

�� Since the report ignored the historic significance of the site, Section 106 of the National

Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) has not been met. Section 106 requires Federal

agencies to take into account the effects of their undertakings on historic properties, and afford

the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation a reasonable opportunity to comment.

�� Clearly Alternative 2 is the option preferred by the residents. Rehabbing the current bridge will

not only preserve the historic Victory Trail, it will protect the neighborhood and nearby

elementary school from the massive trucks and increased traffic volume.

�� It is frightening to think that Alternative 7A was even a consideration. This option would require

a "right-of-way" through several properties totally destroying their property value. This explains

why one of the property owners was so upset at the township committee meeting last Monday

evening and resulted in the deputy mayor telling her she was "pathetic and ridiculous". She

was obviously concerned not knowing what would happen to her home.

�� This Historic Bridge Alternatives Analysis is "fatally incomplete" since they never considered

the historic value and preservation of the site and they never consulted the Hopewell

Township Master Plan Historic Element.

�� Therefore, the Mercer County Freeholders should require Keller & Kirkpatrick to do a new

analysis of alternatives that includes the history and preservation of the site. This should be

done by K&K at no cost to the taxpayers since the original report was “fatally incomplete”. The

new report should have more emphasis on the rehab options due to the need to preserve the

site of the Victory Trail.

�� Supporting documents missing from report:

o Wetlands Investigation Report April 2006

o Field Inspection Workbook

o Traffic Needs Assessment

�� Other previous reports prepared by others missing from report

o Traffic Impact Study for Janssen Pharmaceutica Master Plan Expansion 11/6/03

o Alternatives Analysis report dated 5/10/95 Ammann & Whitney

o Abbreviated Archeological Survey Report 9/24/96 prepared by NJDOT

�� The Hughes Administration should appoint a task force that includes affected

Hopewell residents to restart this process and examine it in a comprehensive transparent

fashion.

The County Executive, Brian Hughes, has refused to disclose details of his proposed new alignment for the roadway span he intends to replace Jacob's Creek Bridge. Using former Governor Mcreevey's 2002 Executive Order to hide behind, we are only privy to a simplistic drawing showing a roadway leading from Bear Tavern Road in Hopewell Township to Rt. 579 in Ewing Township. 

Below please find the text from Executive Order #21 which the county is applying to the Jacob's Creek  situation:

1. At all levels of government - State, county, municipal and school district - the following records shall not be deemed to be public records under the provisions of Chapter 404, P.L. 2001, and Chapter 73, P.L. 1963, and thus shall not be subject to public inspection, copying or examination:

a. Any government record where the inspection, examination or copying of that record would substantially interfere with the State's ability to protect and defend the State and its citizens against acts of sabotage or terrorism, or which, if disclosed, would materially ncrease the risk or consequences of potential acts of sabotage or terrorism.

b. The Attorney General is hereby directed to promulgate, in consultation with the Domestic Security Preparedness Task Force, a regulation to govern the determination of which government records shall be deemed to be confidential pursuant to subsection (a).

* How does this Executive Order apply to the Jacob's Creek Bridge? As an American citizen who lost a childhood friend in the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers in NYC,  I find this tactic insulting and opportunistic.

Our new photo album "Generations at the Bridge" and comments from our online petition have made it obvious that the bridge holds a very special place in our hearts and personal histories.

Please feel free to share your memories here and let everyone know how much this bridge and site mean to you and your families.

Remember to look at the photo album and share any photos you have, as well.

Department of Environmental Protection

Historic Preservation Office

501 E. State Street

Trenton, NJ 08625

Att: Mr. Dan Saunders

Re: 52 Maddock Road

*sent via email & U.S. Mail

Dear Mr. Saunders,

On October 6, 2009, I emailed your office requesting information on the status of my preliminary application for Historic Designation of my property at 52 Maddock Road in Titusville, and asked if there was any additional information your office needed to make a determination. My application was received by your office on September 21, 2009. I have not heard back from you to date.

As you must be aware, the designation of my property (and that of the Victory Trail, specifically the site at Bear Tavern Road and Jacob's Creek) is of importance in the fight to save this historic site and the Jacob's Creek Bridge.

Since my original request to you, I have been made aware of the DEP Green Acres' Crossroads of the American Revolution land preservation initiative, which recently preserved a 213 acre parcel which includes "Washington's Rock", deemed historically important due to local legend.

The Victory Trail, however, has been identified as such by Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian, David Hackett Fischer, the Daughters of the American Revolution (who placed a commemorative plaque at the site, on the side of my property, in 1929), and Mercer County itself , who has signage at the site indicating that the crossroads at Bear Tavern Road and Jacob's Creek is on the historic Victory Trail.

It has also come to my attention that Mayor Sandom of Hopewell Township has now decided that this well known Revolutionary War site cannot be deemed historic without an archeological survey to confirm it (see attached letter), simply because the preservation of this site will interfere with plans she supports (in opposition to township residents) for the County Executive's proposed removal of the bridge at the site , and the roadway span he intends to replace it with. How ironic that she and County Executive Hughes are suddenly willing to question, dismiss and forfeit this important and integral piece of New Jersey's history (not to mention the nation's history!) to achieve their own goals.

Although I requested information regarding any additional data you would need to make a determination on my application, I have not heard from you that an "archeological survey" would be necessary. As such, I am assuming that this is not standard procedure, especially at a location which has been identified since the "turning point" of the American Revolution as the path travelled by General Washington and his army on the way to their victorious Battle of Trenton. Additionally, my property line does not extend to Jacob's Creek, therefore, no Stream Encroachment permit would be necessary for an evaluation of the historical nature of the property.

I respectfully request information on any and all designated sites in New Jersey which have required an "archeological survey" to determine their historical significance and under what circumstances they were considered necessary.

I have attached excerpts from "Washington's Crossing" by David Hackett Fischer for your perusal, as well as a photograph of the DAR plaque from 1929 (which is now missing along with all but one of the historic markers at the site). I believe you already have a copy of the map of Washington's Victory Trail which I supplied with my application.

Looking forward to your prompt response, as obviously, time is of the essence to save this sacred historic site.

Sincerely,

Roni Browne Katz

52 Maddock Road

 Titusville, NJ 08560

Cc:

Governor Jon Corzine ,DEP Acting Commissioner Mark N. Mauriello ,A.L. Holloway Studholme, LLC, David Hackett Fischer, Ron Emrich, Executive Director, Preservation NJ ,Cate Litvak, Crossroads of the American Revolution ,Melva Murray, Daughters of the American Revolution, President William Jefferson Clinton, Hopewell Valley News, Trenton Times, Trentonian

Although members of our group have embraced the preservation and clean up of the bridge area, it is apparent that there is daily littering of the site and no efforts by Janssen to maintain it. Why then, is their sign there?