The Princeton Community Democratic Organization (PCDO) nominated Wilkes, Anton Lahston and Craig Provorny for the position at a meeting on March 30.
PCDO chairman and Borough Councilman Andrew Koontz explained that the committee was required by state law to nominate three people for the position but had a preference for Wilkes. “We call it the Monty Python rule,” he said. “Three shall be the number.”
A letter from Koontz to Borough Municipal Clerk Andrea Quinty stated that the PCDO “highly recommends” that the council choose Wilkes.
Wilkes’ selection continues a trend of council members being appointed to their first stint in office rather than being elected. All of the current council members except for Mayor Mildred Trotman obtained their seats for the first time through appointment rather than election.
Barabara Trelstad, the last member to join the council, was selected to finish the remainder of Trotman’s term after she became mayor in 2005.
Koontz said that he, Benchley and Councilwoman Margaret Karcher all began their tenure on the council through appointments. Councilman David Goldfarb confirmed that he was appointed at first, and Trotman said that when Councilman Roger Martindell first joined the council, it was also via appointment.
In an interview with The Daily Princetonian, Wilkes said that his main goal in office will be to develop a long-term plan for the Borough, similar to the University’s campus plan.
“I want to help Princeton develop a vision for what we will be like in the next 20 years, the next 40 years,” he said.
Wilkes, who was a member of Ivy Club, said that he doesn’t “believe that the Borough Police should turn a blind eye to public displays of drunkenness and allegations of illegal behavior.”
When Wilkes was an undergraduate, the legal drinking age was 18, he said, but added that he thinks society now has “higher standards for young people consuming alcohol.”
While Wilkes said he was not knowledgeable enough to comment on charges the Borough has brought against eating club presidents in the past year, he felt that “the Borough Police are obligated to enforce the laws in the public realm,” and that club officers are “leaders who need to set an example.”
The University should increase its contribution to the Borough in the coming years, Wilkes said. “With the University planning two million square feet of planning, there will be clear costs on the community,” he explained.
Wilkes was nominated by the PCDO in 2005 to fill the Borough Council seat vacated when Trotman became mayor but did not meet the requirement of 12 months of continuous residency in the Borough.
In the Township, two open committee seats are being contested by incumbent bernie Miller, Casey Lambert and Sue Nemeth. None of the candidates received enough votes from the PCDO to garner an endorsement.
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