My Vote Goes to Tara Prupis for Millburn Township Committee

On Tuesday, November 6^th, my vote for Millburn Township Committee will go to Democrat Tara Prupis.

Many of Millburn’s downtown merchants have repeatedly complained that the Complete Streets initiative has caused them great economic hardship, and in multiple instances, those hardships have led to stores permanently closing. The families in neighborhoods surrounding newly-narrowed Millburn Avenue have complained traffic is now at an unacceptable and unsafe volume as cars weave away from the clogged main artery. A recent survey of Millburn residents showed overwhelming dissatisfaction with the “flex parking.” It’s wrong to be dismissive and command “be positive” when these community members are expressing valid concerns. Tara Prupis is the solution-oriented candidate who acknowledges the upset and vows to regroup and remedy rather than impose more of the same detrimental construction.

I believe that the original Complete Streets advocates had the community’s best interests at heart. However, the unintended consequences of a heartfelt effort have created obvious flaws, such as the overly-narrowed roadways, excessively large corner bump-outs and awkward “flex parking”. I believe that in time, many of the Complete Streets alterations will be removed or revised to correct the now dysfunctional traffic flow. The problem is, several members of the current Township Committee are so personally invested, that it has been difficult for them to be objective and acknowledge the initiative’s weaknesses enough to revisit and reconsider, hence the resistance shown to reasonable proposals by the public. The sooner the Township Committee turns over, the sooner downtown Millburn can begin to heal. Electing Tara Prupis is the right step in the right direction.

Lastly, a few words about safety. The impetus of Complete Streets was the admirable objective to enhance pedestrian safety. I wonder if the same objective could have been achieved by digital speed indicator signs, revised road lines or additional traffic light installations. Additionally, there are reports that the drastically narrowed roads have led to emergency vehicle delays to the downtown areas. As anyone who has taken a course in CPR knows, brain damage can occur within 6 minutes of cardiac arrest. Successful resuscitation is correlated with the rapid arrival and administration of lifesaving defibrillation equipment, and rapid transport to a sophisticated emergency facility. I believe that Tara Prupis is the best candidate to take this issue seriously, and act accordingly.

In closing, Tara Prupis is the candidate I trust most to listen openly to resident concerns and to carefully examine and consider any further construction to downtown. Please vote for Tara Prupis for Millburn Township Committee on November 6, 2018.

Respectfully,

Regina Truitt