Valerie Haynes
Why PCH? Why were you interested in joining the PCH Board and working for affordable housing in Princeton? And how long have you been on the Board?
I first joined the PCH Board in the mid-1990’s as the representative from the League of Women Voters. At the time I was a relatively new resident of Princeton, having moved to town in 1992 and joined the LWV board as a continuation of my LWV activity in East Windsor/Hightstown. I jumped at the chance to be on the PCH Board because I wanted to learn how PCH had succeeded in creating affordable homes in an expensive suburb.
What is your professional background?
After a peripatetic undergraduate career spent at Michigan State and Temple University, I received my B.A. from Thomas Edison State College in 1976 with a major in social science. By that time my husband and I were living in East Windsor and had a son and daughter, and I was a full-time homemaker, organic gardener, and volunteer. In 1981 I enrolled in law school at Rutgers – Camden and received my degree in 1984.
Initially I worked for small firms representing municipalities who were dealing with the Mt. Laurel decisions; I also spent a year clerking with the appellate courts; and a year at the NJ Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency. Finally I joined the civil law division of the NJ Attorney General’s Office and spent twenty fascinating years representing the Department of Environmental Protection, the NJ Meadowlands Commission and the NJ Pinelands Commission in matters involving sewage sludge, clean water regulations, wetlands, waterfront development, solid waste, land use and pretty much everything except Superfund litigation.
What other volunteer activities do you participate in?
After retiring in 2009 I served on the Consolidation/Shared Services Study Commission and Transition task force for the Township of Princeton. Starting in 2016 I did some per diem legal work for the Fair Share Housing Center as they participated in the municipal cases establishing the Third Round Mt. Laurel obligations. Currently I am a citizen member of Princeton’s Sewer Management Committee and the Social Justice Grants Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Princeton, as well as currently serving as the UUCP representative on the PCH Board, and I am active in the Princeton Progressive Action Group, which advocates for changes to Princeton’s zoning to incentivize creation of homes for the “missing middle,” among other reforms.
How long have you been in the Princeton area and why did you come to this community?
We came to the Princeton area in 1970 for my husband’s job. We joined the Unitarian Church of Princeton and bought our starter house in East Windsor in 1971. My previous exposure to Princeton had been as a child passing through on Sunday drives, when I discovered a passion for Collegiate Gothic architecture and fell in love with the town.
What are your hobbies and interests?
I enjoy walking on the trails and paths in the many parks and open spaces in our area, and I read more newspapers than I should – but no cable news. I am fortunate to have the families of both of my children in the area, so I spend time with them and with my five grandchildren. Other hobbies include gardening, cooking and needlework, and lots of reading – nonfiction on housing and social justice issues and mystery novels for distraction.