The Republican Party did not field a candidate for the mayoral position.

The Princeton mayor is directly elected by the voters. The mayor presides over the Princeton Council meetings and only votes if there is a 3-3 tie vote among the six council members. In other towns, the mayor is chosen from among the members of the governing body and fulfills a ceremonial role.

Freda grew up in Princeton and served on the former Princeton Borough Council, before Princeton Borough and Princeton Township consolidated in 2012. He served on the Princeton Borough Council from 1986 to 1999, including five years as its president.

In announcing his candidacy for re-election on www.mayormarkfreda.com, Freda said he wants to continue the progress that has been made in many areas.

Freda reeled off a list of accomplishments carried out by the municipal government – from renegotiating the town’s agreement with Princeton University to forming a special improvement district to bring more focus on the business community.

“We are investigating ways to improve the public transportation system, and there is our on-going commitment to providing affordable housing,” he said.

Princeton residents increasingly like to walk or ride their bicycles more often, Freda said. The challenge facing the town is how to ensure there are safe routes for pedestrians and bicyclists in a town that was built around cars.

Princeton is viewed as a desirable place to live, which has put upward pressure on housing prices, he said. The challenge is to balance increased growth and density, while maintaining the character of the town that people find so appealing.

“Housing is one of our very important issues. There are demands for housing at every level. But for the community to remain what has made it so special is the availability of housing at all those levels,” Freda said in response to questions posed to him by the League of Women Voters on its candidates website at www.vote411.org.

The town has made progress in building affordable housing, but the next level after that continues to disappear within the community. People in affordable housing need to move out of town to move to the next stage of housing. People just starting out or some recently retired need this level of housing to stay in Princeton, he said.

Promoting the business community is another issue facing the town, Freda said. Experience Princeton was formed to help the business community, which accounts for almost 20% of the town’s tax base. The goal is to find ways to promote existing businesses and to make it easier to start a new one in town.

Other issues include health and human services, Freda said. There are many needs in the community.

“For the services we provide, do we do enough? Do we partner with other government entities, nonprofits and others to help us deliver needed services? These are areas we spend a lot of time and effort on, as we should,” he said.

Those are just a few of the issues that need to be addressed, Freda said. New issues will likely come up. Existing issues may become a higher priority as circumstances change. The municipal government has the right people in place to respond to issues and changing circumstances.

“My goal as mayor is true transparency and open government, promoting timely and clear two-way communication with Princeton residents on important decisions,” Freda said.

Higgins, who is 97 years old, was honored for his seven decades of service as a volunteer firefighter by Mayor Mark Freda, Fire Chief Adam Kooker and members of the Princeton Fire Department at a special ceremony Aug. 30.

Higgins was presented with a plaque – “In appreciation for 76 years of dedicated service, you are a shining example at Princeton Engine Co. No. 1.”

The event to honor Higgins was suggested by the staff at Brandywine Princeton in South Brunswick Township, where Higgins now lives. Officials jumped at the chance to arrange the event to honor him.

Higgins, who grew up on Patton Avenue, joined Princeton Engine Co. No. 1 as an auxiliary member when he was 16 years old. It is one of three fire companies – along with Princeton Hook & Ladder Co. and Mercer Engine Co. No. 3 – that make up the Princeton Fire Department.

Higgins became a full-time member at 21 years old following in his father’s footsteps. It is a tradition to serve as a firefighter – whether as a volunteer or as a paid firefighter – that runs deep in many Princeton families.

He served continuously, except for a stint in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was offered the title of fire chief when he returned home from the war, but declined because of work conflicts.

Higgins recalled that the last fire he fought happened about 15 years ago, when he was around 80 years old.

Asked about the most memorable fires that he fought, Higgins recalled the Dillon Gym fire on the Princeton University campus, and the Benson Building fire on Witherspoon Street at Spring Street.

Dillon Gym burned down in May 1944. The cause of the fire was never determined, according to published reports in the Princeton Alumni Weekly.

Five fire departments responded from as far away as Trenton, but the gym could not be saved. Mementos in the building, such as the ice hockey stick belonging to Princeton University ice hockey player Hobey Baker and the round football used in the Yale-Princeton football game in 1873, were among the items destroyed in the fire.

Princeton University alumni rallied and Dillon Gym was rebuilt

The second most memorable fire in town – at least from Higgins’ perspective – was the January 1977 blaze that destroyed the Benson Building on the corner of Witherspoon Street and Spring Street.

The building was home to about 15 stores and offices, according to Princeton Hook & Ladder Co. archives. Unofficial estimates placed the damage at $1 million – the equivalent of $5.2 million in 2024 dollars.

A new building was built on the site of the former Benson Building.

Three people were arrested by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division in the July 10 raid, according to Resistencia en Accion New Jersey. The grass-roots group has offices on Witherspoon Street in Princeton.

But Princeton officials, including Mayor Mark Freda and Princeton Councilman Leighton Newlin, said that the municipal government – including the Princeton Police Department – had no involvement in the raid and did not learn of it until later.

Speaking through an interpreter at the rally, Angela Ramos said the news spread that ICE agents were roaming the streets and making arrests. Several ICE vehicles were parked on Witherspoon Street, near the Princeton Public Library.

Community members approached the ICE vehicles, but the agents did not roll down the vehicle windows or respond to questions about who they were and why they were in Princeton, Ramos said.

Fatima Mughal of Princeton Mutual Aid said the group has worked with the immigrant community, which she called the backbone of the larger community, for several years.

The July 10 raid was the worst one in years, Mughal said. Members of the Latino community were afraid to go to work, to go to the store and to pick up their children at camp in reaction to the ICE raid.

“The people of Princeton want to make it clear that ICE is not welcome in this town,” she said. “We will not tolerate fearmongering.”

Charlene Walker, who is the executive director of Faith in New Jersey, said Princeton made the decision to become a welcoming community, where immigrant neighbors can hold their heads high, she said. They know they are welcome in the town.

The ICE raid was intended to shatter what it meant to be part of the community and what it meant to be part of Princeton, Walker said. It was meant to instill fear and terror in the immigrant community, “but you (ICE) will not scare us,” she said.

Walker told the elected officials that they are being called on to adopt policies and systems to protect the people they are charged with caring for – and “if not, guess what. You don’t need to be here.”

The mayor also spoke to the attendees. His remarks were translated into Spanish by Princeton Councilwoman Leticia Fraga, who is fluent in Spanish.

Freda sought to dispel impressions that the Princeton Police Department was involved in the raid. It did not participate in the raid and had no role in the raid, he said.

“I want to make sure the message from us is clear,” he said. “We are a welcoming town and we welcome everyone to our community.”

The Princeton Police Department does not, has not and will not assist ICE, Freda said. It has not had any involvement with ICE since 2013 – years before the State Attorney General set out guidelines for municipal police involvement with ICE.

Freda said the immigrant community can trust the Princeton Police Department. The town’s Human Services Department and the Health Department provide services to everyone and will not report anyone to ICE.

Freda also told the attendees that he, police Capt. Christopher Tash and Administrator Bernard Hvozdovic Jr. spoke to ICE officials in the Newark office on July 12. They made it clear that municipal officials will monitor ICE’s actions in Princeton.

Newlin asked attendees when did they have a problem with disrespect from the Princeton Police Department, only a couple of people raised their hands.

“The point is, do not make us the enemy,” he said. “We want no harm to come to you. We want to protect you.

“We are not part of the federal government. ICE is its own entity.

“The message here is not to work against us. We need you to work with us so we can solve the problems together. We are going to search hard and find the answers to the questions you are asking,” Newlin said.

Mayor Mark Freda, who sought the Democratic Party’s nomination to run for a second term, received 1,904 votes in the Democratic Party primary. He was running unopposed.

Incumbent Princeton Councilman Leighton Newlin and his running mate, Brian McDonald, received 1,776 votes and 1,801 votes respectively for the Democratic Party nomination for Princeton Council. They were running unopposed.

The Republican Party did not field candidates for mayor or Princeton Council.

The results as of press time June 5 are unofficial and will remain so until they are certified by the Mercer County Clerk’s Office.