C L I P S: Netherwood plan hearing Thurs.. Council Mon., Wed... Death penalty hearing tomorrow.. Corzine's thin skin..

PLAINFIELD

Plainfield Today: (Click HERE to read the posts serially, otherwise take your pick below. There are more stories up than posted below, and more go up during the day. -- Dan)

"Corzine's thin skin guarantees Turnpike story has legs"

Plain Talker: "North Avenue, Netherwood Issues Coming Up"

Crescent Times: "Henry Johnson letter on Franklin Avenue Property" | "Response to Mr. Johnson"
Plainfield Trees: "Sugar Maples"

School Funding: "Two-thirds of schools in line for more aid" -- Ledger | Mulshine | Courier |
Latisha DiVenuto: "Smart, social and talented, senior takes November's title" -- Go Latisha!
Mystery Celebrity: "Plainfielder makes appearance at swanky NYC gala" -- Scroll down to next to last row of images.
McGreevey: Ledger cartoonist Drew Sheneman puts up a gallery of some McGreevey-inspired laughs. In print only...sorry.

Anti-gang Outreach: "Churches Fight The Good Fight"
Death Penalty: "Stage is set for fight over death penalty" -- Crunch time: Hearings tomorrow and next Monday.

Holidays --

Hanukkah: "Hanukkah happenings in Central Jersey"
Christmas Trees:

"Area tree farms ready for Christmas"
"Guide to tree farms in Central Jersey and beyond"
"'Trees for Troops' makes sure military has holiday"
"Tips from the tree growers"

Got a tip? Question? Click here to send PT an email.

REAL ESTATE SUNDAY

SMALL PICTURE

'Smart Growth': "Chesterfield, NJ: In Preservation, Room for Growth"
Dwek Development Scam: "Suit targets major bank, Dwek backer" -- Bankruptcy trustee alleges HSBC knew Dwek was running 'a Ponzi scheme'.
Foreclosures: "Foreclosures Hurt Neighbors, Too" -- 48 neighbors' values affected by one.
Recording Mortgages: "What If a Mortgage Is Not Recorded?"
Windows: "Noise-busting windows" -- Coming soon to Home Depot?
Dix Hills: "Coltrane Slept Here"
H Street NE: "Signs of Recovery in a ‘Riot Corridor’"

BIG PICTURE

Age-Restricted Communities: "Adult but Not Old"
Eminent Domain: "Judging Eminent Domain" -- Kelo hovered in the background of this unusual case.
Middlesex County: "Real estate slump has developers stymied" -- Shelved, scaled down, in jeopardy.
Mortgages: "US Mortgage Payment Index"

TOOLS

Buy or Rent?: "Cost Comparison Tool" -- Enter your own values to calculate which is better, buying or renting. A really neat tool!
Ledger: "Home Finder", "Premier Estates" and "Real Estate" sections online.
Courier: "Real Estate" section online.
NYTimes: "This Week's Residential Sales Around the Region" (12/02/2007)
Trulia: "Your Personal Real Estate Google"

WHAT'S HAPPENING

Reminders:

Library's Food-for-Fines drive under way thru December 7 -- details here.
Van Wyck Brooks HD's 'Old-Fashioned Christmas' House Tour -- Advance ticket info here.

Today - December 2. 3 - 5 PM. Chamber Music Recital. Works by Quantz, Milhaud, Haydn and Vivaldi highlighting the flute and oboe. Victoria Griswold, piano; Carolyn Pollak, Oboe; Andrea Herr, Bassoon; Laura George, Flute. Sponsor: Plainfield Cultural & heritage Commission. At the Plainfield Public Library, 8th Street and Park Avenue. Reception for the artists follows the concert. FREE.
Tomorrow - December 3. 8:30 AM. Raritan Valley Service Extension to Phillipsburg. Presentation and discussion at the Raritan Valley Coalition meeting. Somerset County Administration Building Meeting Room, 20 Grove Street, Somerville. Info: (908) 231-7021.
Tomorrow - December 3. 7:30 PM. City Council Agenda Session. City Hall Library. 515 Watchung Avenue.
Tuesday - December 4. 10 AM - 1 PM. Small Business Tax Workshop. Topics include: Reporting business income, filing sales and use taxes, registering your business, types of ownership and the tax consequences of each. Sponsor: NJ Division of Taxation. At the Plainfield Public Library, 8th Street and Park Avenue. Free, but registration is required: (908) 737-4220.
Tuesday - December 4. 6 PM. The AIDS QUILT. Public viewing of the traveling panel and reception. 7 - 9 PM, a workshop and panel discussion of AIDS and HIV in 2007. Child care provided. At: First Unitarian Society, 724 Park Ave. Information: (908) 756-0750.
Tuesday - December 4. Chanukah begins.
Wednesday - December 5. 7:30 - 9 PM. New Horizons College Club. Helping high school students prepare for college. See Club website here. At Washington Community School, 427 Darrow Avenue.
Wednesday - December 5. 8 PM. City Council Business Meeting. City Council Chambers/Courthouse. Watchung Avenue and East 4th Street.
Thursday - December 6. 6, PM cocktails. 7 PM, dinner. The Scarlett Foundation's Pledge Dinner. A fundraiser in support of the DASH program (see website). $60 contribution as a placeholder, pledge to be made at dinner. Sponsor: The Scarlett Foundation. At: Café Vivace, 1370 South Avenue. Information and reservations: (908) 499-9298.
Thursday - December 6. 8 PM. Planning Board Public Hearing on Revised 'Netherwood' Plan. The Planning Board meets at City Hall Library. Public invited.
Thursday - December 6. 6 - 9 PM. Holiday Exhibit Opening: Francisco Langdon Clay, Juan José Olivieri, Erik Lauritzen, plus Eight Contemporary Women Artists. Edge Art Gallery, 1575 Irving Street, Rahway. Info: Website or (732) 669-0112.
Friday - December 7. 6 PM. The AIDS QUILT. Public viewing of the traveling panel and reception. 7 PM, a screening of Silverlake Life, about a couple who had and ultimately die from AIDS. Discussion follows. Child care provided. At: First Unitarian Society, 724 Park Ave. Information: (908) 756-0750.
Friday - December 7. 7 PM. 13th Annual Drake House Christmas Tree Lighting. Stories, carols, refreshments -- and many decorated trees throughout the house. Drake House, 602 West Front Street (at Plainfield Avenue). Info: (908) 755-5831.
Saturday - December 8. 8 PM. Holiday Choral Concert: Our Family Celebration. A concert by the NJ Gay Men's Chorus. Attendees are invited to bring a donation of canned goods, which will be donated to a local food bank. $25 at the door. Discounts in advance -- see their website here or call (609) 396-7774 At Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, East 7th Street and Watchung Avenue.

Got an event to publicize? Click here and send me the details.

CENTRAL JERSEY

Airports: "New Rallying Cry: Save the Small Airports" -- Including Manville.
Bridgewater: "Sikh temple expanding in Bridgewater"
Linden: "2 workers die at Linden plant"
Newark --

Development: "Small investors, big changes"
Gays: "In a Progressive State, a City Where Gay Life Hangs by a Thread"
Kerner Commission Update: "Newark offers visiting scholars portrait of inner city"
Re-entry Program: "Plan to aid ex-cons stumbles"
Joan Whitlow: "Layoffs, the arena and worries over police protection"

New Providence: "Development hinges on shopping center"
Somerville: "Tapestre: Food of Lands Touched by the Mediterranean"
Luther Vandross Auction: "Auction offers peek, piece of Vandross"

STATE

The Auditor - For political junkies: "Sunday, December 02, 2007"

Energy: "New Jersey to Empower Manhattan"
Health Care: "Dying in New Jersey: Expensive and Hard"
Homeland Security: "Jersey faults Bush counterterror budget" -- Including Gov. Tom Kean.
Hospitals: "More N.J. hospitals gravely ill"
Paterson: "Tom Rooney is Leaving City Hall, Not His City"
..... - "Statistics Pinpoint Problems in Paterson Schools"
Rutgers: "McCormick marks five tumultuous years at helm"
Turnpike 'Monetization': "Corzine's thin skin guarantees Turnpike story has legs"

Sheneman's Cartoon is here.
Margulies' Cartoon is here.

NATION / WORLD

2008 Primaries --

Dems: "Abundance of Warmth At Democratic Forum"
GOP: "The Man Who Helped Start Huckabee's Roll"

Abramoff White House Visits: "Secrecy Cited on Abramoff Records" -- Conservative think tank says 'this adds fuel to the fire'.
Cheney & Plame Affair: Paul Mulshine: "Dems let Cheney off Scott-free"
Iraq: Dan Froomkin: "Is Bush Ready to Talk Pullout?"
Pakistan: "Calculating the Risks in Pakistan"

OF INTEREST