Week in Review

Nearly 100 Firefighters Respond to Westfield Road Blaze

A single- family home on Westfield Road was destroyed by fire Monday evening. East Windsor Fire companies 1 and 2 responded to the fire at approximately 10:30 p.m. and found flames and heavy smoke engulfing the rear of the single family home. The fire spread rapidly and the first floor collapsed, according to the fire department.

East Windsor Taxes Rise 2.6 Percent More Than State Average

East Windsor's property tax bills hovered around the state average in 2012, but the rate of increase from 2011 to 2012 was higher than the average throughout New Jersey. From 2011 to 2012, East Windsor taxes increased 4.3 percent; taxes throughout the state increased an average of 1.7 percent between 2011 and 2012.

Hightstown's property taxes are slightly above average for the state of New Jersey in 2012, but the increase in taxes between 2011 and 2012 was minimal. The Borough's 0.8 percent tax hike was 0.9 percent lower than the state average tax hike of 1.7 percent.

Elks Students of the Month Named for January

Chelsea Tasko, Efrain Monterroso, and Jessica Fidler of Hightstown High School were named the Elks Students of the Month for January. Students are nominated for this award by their teachers for those who have shown improvement in school citizenship, academics, or have performed random acts of kindness.

Shiseido America To Expand East Windsor Facility

Shiseido America in East Windsor will be undergoing a 72,988 square foot two-phase expansion of their facility on Princeton-Hightstown Road. The building is currently 211,000 square feet and has 150 full-time employees and about 150 temporary employees. The expansion will bring an additional ten full-time employees to the building. 

Hightstown HS Hosting Robotics Competition Jan. 20

The varsity sport for the mind will be on display this weekend, as the Hightstown High School FIRST Robotics Team Mercury will be hosting the Snow Day Showdown on Jan. 20.The Showdown is a FIRST Tech Challenge competition event, where competition FTC teams will be showcasing the abilities of the robot they’ve worked diligently to construct during weeks of building. 

Girl Scout Cookie season is here! The 2013 theme from the Girl Scout Cookie Program reminds girls they have the power to do anything with the lifetime of skills and confidence they gain through Girl Scouting. Girl Scout Brownie Jordan Batista of East Windsor sold over 1,000 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies last year. This year Jordan has continued to set her sights high. Her goal is to sell 1,000 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies or more - not an easy feat considering Jordan is 10-years-old. 

Cranbury Has One Of State's Highest Tax Bills

Cranbury's tax bills remained the among the highest in the state in 2012, as did the amount taxes increased during the year. The township's 5.0 percent tax hike was 40th out of 566 total tax bill hikes.

NJ Forum Addresses School Safety After Newtown

School is about teaching more than English, math and science. It is also about building character, modeling behavior and nurturing all children. “What we do today and what we do after today honors the children of Newtown, but more importantly it honors the children in our schools today,” said Dr. Maurice Elias, director of clinical training at the Rutgers University Department of Psychology, a nationally recognized expert in community and preventive psychology and school intervention.