Dear Mayor Trotman and Borough Council Women and Men:
In considering your vote on whether or not to keep the community pool continuously up and running and available for the present and long term, please give heavy weight to its role as a place that serves three important interrelated community functions.
* It is a place where those in that fairly densely populated neighborhood can go easily
* It is a place where those who do not have their own pools or affordable access to a private pool can go
* It is a place where all segments of our community are welcome and comfortable and thus is a place for us to enjoy together – to get to know each other at least a little more than we otherwise do.
There are very few places in Princeton where we can all gather together comfortably. The Princeton Public Library, the most vibrant and beloved place in our town, is a notable exception; the community pool is nother.
At the Not In Our Town youth forum “Through Our Eyes” in 2007, the high school students spoke repeatedly about Princeton’s fractured communities and how difficult it is, other than in a school setting, for young people to get together in natural, comfortable settings. The
closing of the community pool would be a great loss to our town.
Not In Our Town is an organization that cares about the well being of the community, especially regarding matters pertaining to privilege and race. Thus we support policies that promote and enhance comfortable participation by all members of our community. Real community occurs when each of us is happy to support, in whatever ways we can, those places and events where all of us can be together and get to know each other.
We thank you for your attention to this important matter,
Barbara Fox
Wilma Solomon
Fern and Larry Spruill
Marietta Taylor
Ann Yasuhara
For Not In Our Town
February 11, 2011