His administration has launched “Operation Smooth Asphalt,” a data-driven program that repaved 22 miles of local roads last year—a visible win for suburbanites. But he’s also pushed through a controversial zoning change allowing “missing middle” housing (duplexes and townhomes) near the Trenton border, angering some residents who fear density.

Steinmann doesn’t pound a gavel. Instead, he pulls out a whiteboard and draws a pie chart showing the cost of a sharpshooter program versus a contraceptive dart program. He cites data from Rutgers.

Steinmann’s challenge is to serve both.

The other is the : the crumbling industrial waterfront, the aging strip malls on Parkway Avenue, and the infamous “Ewing Circle”—a traffic rotary that residents have cursed for 50 years.

One is the : tree-lined streets in Hillcrest, the historic village of Wilburtha, the sprawling campus of The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). It’s a bedroom community for state workers commuting to Trenton and Philly professionals looking for good schools and lower taxes.

“Private equity wanted to sit on the land for 20 years,” says Councilwoman Jennifer Keyes. “Bert said, ‘We can’t afford to wait. We’ll clean it up, subdivide it, and sell it piece by piece.’ It’s boring, granular work. But it’s working.” Ask any resident about Ewing, and you’ll hear two different towns.

“I thought I’d be doing budgets and zoning hearings until I retired,” Steinmann admits. “Suddenly, I was the face of the town during a pandemic.”

Steinmann’s response is classic him: he requested a state police analysis, hired two additional traffic officers, and installed automated license plate readers at the township’s entrances. The theft rate dropped 34% in six months.