Township Council — February 10, 2026

What was decided

At roll call eight members were present (Anbarasan, Francois, Kharazi, Kramer, Onyejiaka, Uddin, Vassanella and Wright), with the Ward 1 seat vacant.

• Ward 1 appointment. Mayor Kramer named three candidates: Shubhendu Singh, Kunal Lakhia and Cheryl Bethea. No one spoke at the public hearing on the vacancy. The Council appointed Shubhendu Singh for a term ending November 3, 2026, 8-0 (mover Anbarasan, second Uddin): ayes Anbarasan, Francois, Kharazi, Kramer, Onyejiaka, Uddin, Vassanella and Wright. The Clerk administered his oath, and a second roll call listed all nine present.

From the approval of minutes onward, every vote is recorded 8-0: ayes Anbarasan, Kharazi, Kramer, Onyejiaka, Singh, Uddin, Vassanella and Wright; no nays; Ms. Francois absent.

• Adopted on second reading:
  • Ord. 4487-26, revision and codification of the Township’s ordinances (mover Vassanella, second Uddin);
  • Ord. 4488-26, Chapter 384, Water, Section 384-19, Curb Connection Capital Fees (mover Anbarasan, second Uddin);
  • Ord. 4489-26, inclusionary zone district MFIZ-4 (mover Kharazi, second Uddin), after the hearing described below;
  • Ord. 4490-26, MFIZ-2 (mover Anbarasan, second Uddin);
  • Ord. 4491-26, Multi Family Inclusionary Zone-1 (MFIZ-1) (mover Uddin, second Anbarasan);
  • Ord. 4492-26, MFIZ-5 (mover Anbarasan, second Uddin);
  • Ord. 4493-26, the Franklin Boulevard Redevelopment Plan, Section 112-350 (mover Uddin, second Kharazi). See redevelopment and PILOTs.
• Introduced:
  • Ord. 4494-26, Chapter 180, Fees, Article IV, Miscellaneous Fees (mover Kharazi, second Uddin);
  • Ord. 4495-26, a surface utility easement and temporary surface easement for the approved major disposal/diversion of 0.14 acres of Green Acres parkland at Castleton Park, 816 Easton Avenue (mover Vassanella, second Kharazi);
  • Ord. 4496-26, replacing Article XXXIII, Affordable Housing Development Fees, to meet the Fair Housing Act and the Uniform Housing Affordability Controls (mover Anbarasan, second Kharazi);
  • Ord. 4497-26, repealing and replacing Chapter 81 for the same requirements (mover Vassanella, second Uddin).
• Consent agenda (Res. #26-076 to #26-099; mover Kharazi, second Vassanella). It included:
  • appointments of Rossana Gutierrez as Chief Financial Officer (#26-076), Tiffany Esquilin as Tax Collector (#26-077), John Gillooly as Tax Assessor (#26-078) and Catherine Gantner-Wilbur as Deputy Tax Assessor (#26-098);
  • developer agreements with Dunbar Homes, Inc., Block 85, Lot 59.04, Hempstead Drive and Route 27 (#26-091); Haven, LLC, Block 468.01, Lot 15.01, 260 Davidson Avenue (#26-092); Pomegranate Investments, LLC, 347 Elizabeth Avenue (#26-093); and Royal Somerset Inn, LLC, 315 Davidson Avenue (#26-094). See Fourth Round housing;
  • #26-083, police headquarters skylight replacement, not to exceed $118,000.00;
  • #26-086, a $75,000.00 Local Recreation Improvement Grant application for Grosso’s Grove;
  • #26-087, on the endorsement of adult-use cannabis in New Jersey;
  • #26-095, raising the bid and quote threshold; #26-097, a leaf composting grant application; #26-099, bond counsel Everett M. Johnson, Wilentz.
• Approved the minutes of November 25 and December 9, 2025 and January 3, 13 and 27, 2026, and warrants of $1,428,935.00.
• Appointments by acclamation: Sami Saban (Planning Board Alternate #1), Michael Dougherty and Kunal Lakhia (Board of Adjustment Alternates #1 and #2), Deana Luchs (Open Space Advisory Committee).
• Executive session on pending litigation (Res. #26-100; mover Anbarasan, second Uddin).

The MFIZ-4 hearing

Edward Anselmi, of Anselmi & Carvelli, read a letter for the owners of The Palace at Somerset Park (Block 502.01, Lot 53.01). It said his client had only recently received notice, that the sites in the ordinance appear to be surrounded mainly by non-residential, commercial uses, raising “the question of whether a multi-family residential development is an appropriate use in this location”, and asked the Council to carry the hearing at least two weeks so his client could retain a planner. The minutes record Township Attorney Rainone advising that adoption not be delayed, “as such a delay would violate a court-ordered deadline from a lengthy and public review process”. The other housing and redevelopment ordinances drew no comment.

Public Discussion

The minutes record these speakers:

• Joyce Lee of Timberhill Drive: persistent ice, poor plowing and contractors pushing snow onto cleared sidewalks; no heat at the Senior Center.
• Kunal Lakhia of Supra Court: asked for a $75,000 funding commitment for a traffic light for the Princeton Highlands community.
• Debra Hingman of Roberts Road: ice, snow left far from the curb on Roberts Road, snow pushed onto sidewalks, and no enforcement of moving cars off the street during storms.
• Ted Chase of Old Georgetown Road: supported a traffic light in the Princeton Highlands area.
• Vinot Gupta of Eagles Pass: congratulated Mr. Singh.
• Tracy Wynn of Alcorne Street: asked why her area has no recycling bins and asked for a new traffic study at Arden and Gerard.
• Edward Anselmi began comments on an ordinance and was directed to its hearing.
• Javahn Walker of Kuhn Street: asked whether all roads are properly plowed.
• A resident of Treetops Circle: plows fill in cleared driveways; said property taxes have increased, asked what additional value residents receive and what could be done to hold or reduce taxes.
• John Litrakis of Arlington Avenue: traffic on JFK Boulevard and the need for a light at Winston Drive.

Answers. The minutes record that:

• the Township’s 45 plow routes cover over 240 miles, extreme cold made salt ineffective, and special equipment for driveway entrances was “financially impractical”; residents should report problems to Public Works or the police;
• the cost of a Route 27 light is unknown because of right-of-way issues and the need to be equitable across community requests;
• a previous study at Arden and Gerard did not meet warrants for a four-way stop, and the Manager agreed to have the Traffic Bureau do a preliminary analysis;
• the Senior Center problem is confined to one large room heated only to 65 degrees, and the system’s engineer will inspect it;
• recycling collection is delayed by a truck supply problem, with at least a year’s wait for new vehicles.

FY2026 CDBG hearing

The Clerk presented the FY2026 Community Development Block Grant schedule (applications due March 10; Council approval of the action plan June 23). Allie O’Brien of the Franklin Food Bank said the Food Bank is reaching capacity and asked for continued funding.

Records

• Minutes (approved March 10, 2026) · Agenda · Packet
• Video on Granicus (2:02). Granicus publishes no captions for Franklin meetings; this page follows the Clerk’s minutes.