Administrator Bruschi Reflects on Princeton Consolidation Process

With fewer than five months before Princeton Borough and Princeton Township consolidate into one municipality, much of the work of the elected officials and volunteer citizens working on the Transition Task Force subcommittees is coming to a close.

The implementation now rests with the Princeton’s municipal employees, led by Borough Administrator Bob Bruschi, who has been tapped as Administrator in the Princeton.

Bruschi has been attending up to two consolidation-related meetings each day, plus up to three night meetings a week. It is all work to ensure that residents notice minimal changes in their day-to-day dealing with their local government come Jan. 1, 2013.

“With any luck, the biggest change they (residents) will see is where they go to transact business with the community,” Bruschi said in a recent interview.

Employees Already Working Together

Officers in the two police departments have begun ride-alongs with each other. Borough Department of Public Works employees in the helped with the Township's leaf and brush pickup and cleanup following a recent storm that downed trees and tree limbs throughout the Township.

In the Borough, where development and redevelopment is in full swing with the Avalon Bay project, Hullfish North and Princeton University’s Arts and Transit Neighborhood, there would be no way to handle the construction-related permit paperwork with the current staffing, Bruschi said.

So the Township, which has a lull in building projects right now, is handling all permit-related activity for Princeton University, Bruschi said. 

That’s helping achieve another goal of consolidation: cost savings by reducing the number of employees in the new Princeton.

Fewer Employees Will Lose Their Jobs

The Joint Shared Services and Consolidation Commission estimated a consolidation Princeton would save at least $3.16 million a year in duplicate personnel costs, savings that helped spur merger approval in both the Borough and the Township in November. 

Officials anticipated a reduction of 11 positions through consolidation, but only three people actually will lose their jobs, Bruschi said.

“Most of the reductions in staff we’re going to be able to handle through retirements,” Bruschi said. The affected positions are part-time or hourly, he said, but declined to name specific departments or positions.

“We’ve been having discussions over the past month,” he said. “We’ve approached it from the standpoint of if people retire, it will be much, much easier.”

Upcoming Challenges

Despite good news in the number of anticipated layoffs, the biggest challenge of consolidation is personnel-related.

“It’s getting all of the people walking in the same direction,” Bruschi said. “We have a highly qualified staff which is a great starting point, but we do operate differently.”

As the staffs merge and become familiar with each other's operations, Bruschi believes there will be opportunities for even more operational efficiences. 

One thing that eases consolidation is that the Borough and the Township already have a significant number of shared services.

“We have 13 joint agencies where we don’t have to meld the personnel together, so that will make it easier,” he said.

One thing causing some employee stress- the medical benefits and time off in the new Princeton has now been decided, with a decision to endorse the recommendation put forth by Bruschi and Township Administrator Kathy Monzo, which was designed with employee input.

If all goes according to plan, employees (with the exception of police) will start moving into their new offices in September.

“No doubt there’s still some concern about relocating and having new employees or new supervisors,” Bruschi said. “But if the department heads are any indication of how the other employees will come together, I can tell you it’s going to be great."

Preparing for the Merger

The process of consolidation has not been easy; hundreds of people have been involved in endless discussions about every detail of the processr. 

Bruschi compared the process to taking a local train versus an express train: it may not have been the most efficient process, but it got Princeton to where it needed to go. 

"The good news is we have a lot of buy-in through the governing bodies and the public," Bruschi said. "These guys, in a truncated period of time, put in an awful lot of effort for this community, an awful lot."

He believes consolidation is the right choice for Princeton and may be the right choice for other communities in New Jersey. 

"I'm excited for the community and I think it’s the right thing to do," Bruschi said. "I do think in the long run if we can critique this idea (consolidation) and fine tune and send feedback to the state, it’s an idea other communities could consider."

What's Next for Bruschi

Bruschi has been Princeton Borough administrator since July 1, 1999. Before that, he worked for West Windsor Township for 13 years. At the end of 2013, he plans to retire, handing over the reins to Monzo, who has been named Assistant Administrator in the new Princeton.

Bruschi said he agreed to extend his contract after consolidation passed to ensure a continuation of knowledge and expertise through the merger.

“As I’ve indicated to everyone, this is not a long-term engagement,” he said. “I’m too old for this, this is a younger person’s game.”

Monzo, who was previously the Township’s chief financial officer, will spend some of her time in finance come January, but the plan is also to groom her to assume Bruschi’s job, getting her comfortable with the position and getting the employees and the governing body comfortable with her. She will probably oversee several departments, Bruschi said. 

“She is a tremendously talented individual,” said Bruschi, who has been working closely with Monzo over the past several months and was a proponent of sucession-planning. “I’m not a numbers guy, it’s not my forte. I’m more of a global, big-picture guy, I rely on people who are good at what they do and I think as retirements end up taking place, the new Princeton is going to be in really great shape."