Town met gown in the Forbes College dining hall on Sunday, as Princeton Borough Mayor Joseph O'Neill sat down with students to discuss their concerns.
U-Councilor Will Benjamin '07 organized the meeting after complaining to O'Neill that Alexander Street in front of Forbes lacked adequate drainage.
"When it rains, I start right off getting my feet soaked as I try to ford Alexander Street," Benjamin said.
O'Neill said the road probably had not been refurbished in 15 years and pledged to overhaul the thoroughfare starting in March.
Construction cannot take place until March because of the onset of cold weather and current construction on adjacent University Place.
Students also inquired about the fate of the proposed Borough alcohol initiative. If passed, police could do spot checks for serving alcohol to minors in eating clubs.
Authorities can currently only cite individuals for serving minors on private property if responding to another incident on the site.
"Frankly the initiative sounds too much like the Gestapo to me," said O'Neill.
He explained that the Borough has no intention of passing the initiative, but that the municipality uses it to make sure the University takes aggressive measures against alcohol abuse.
"We arrested a few club presidents a few years ago and I think that got the attention of the [University] Board of Trustees," O'Neill said.
O'Neill suggested that students start attending Borough Council meetings if they want their grievances addressed.
But, he said there should be "quid pro quo," and the University has to fulfill its obligations to the community.
The University contributes about two million dollars in taxes and gifts to the Borough each year.
However, O'Neill said the amount should be about $700,000 more.
Though the University's nonprofit status exempts it from property taxes, O'Neill said the University should contribute funds equivalent to the residential tax rate assessed over all its landholdings, similar to Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
But O'Neill said the University remains an asset to the Borough.
"The University is a very ethical institution," the mayor said. "When it sees an obligation for a social good like affordable housing, it fulfills its obligation."
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