Use All Open Space Tax Funds for Land Purchases

The September 2013 edition of the Hillsborough's FYI-Township News was sent along with our property tax bills. In this newsletter edition, one of the segments is about Hillsborough being named as the #16 best place to live in the nation according to Money Magazine. This is quite an honor for us.  

I went to the magazine’s website to read what they said about our town.  I was not surprised to see that they emphasized the open space of the town.

Following is the actual excerpt from Money Magazine:

"An hour from Philadelphia, New York City, and the Jersey shore, this town has preserved its farm-country roots and protected one-third of its land from development.

It's home to the 2,700-acre Duke Farm, the estate of heiress Doris Duke, which opened free to the public last year for hiking, biking, and cross-country skiing.

Located off a busy highway, Hillsborough is developing a pedestrian-friendly town center that will bring shops, restaurants, and housing to its Main Street."

The open space is one of the reasons we moved to Hillsborough.  Not only is it pleasant to look at but it helps keep our taxes from getting any higher.  The more land that is developed, the more schools are needed.  This in turn brings more traffic.  

In addition, open space helps the environment by filtering and absorbing rain water.

This is why I believe it is important to use all our open space money to purchase available tracts and keep them from being developed. 

I will vote No on Hillsborough's Nov. 5th Ballot Question to divert 20 percent of our open space tax for development projects. A No vote ensures that funds are used to continue land acquisition. A No Vote may indeed result in another high ranking in Money Magazine in the future.

Ron Miller