SaveTheHill.org

Located in Piscataway NJ, Society Hill at Piscataway is a 545 unit condominium association built in 1985. It is located within walking distance to Rutgers University, Busch Campus (Piscataway). There is easy access to Route 18 and Route 287, and the NJ Turnpike, Route 1, and the NJ Transit Edison and New Brunswick train stations on the Northeast Corridor Line (with direct service to NYC) are nearby (about 10 minutes drive).

Of the 545 units on the 55 acre property, 182 are "garden style" condominium units, 106 are "garden style" affordable housing condominum units, and 257 are "townhouse" style condominium units. The community hosts two tennis courts, two play areas, a swimming pool, and a clubhouse. Although all units are privately owned, some owners do rent their units as there is a constant demand for housing in the area. The proximity to a major NJ university and transportation corridors make Society Hill at Piscataway an attractive place to live.

Society Hill at Piscataway is a Condominium Association. Condominium associations are usually setup following the model of a non-profit business corporation and are run by an elected Board of Trustees. Each owner is considered a member of the Association, and as such is entitled to vote in the Board of Trustees elections, run for election to the Board of Trustees, serve on committees, and otherwise participate in the affairs of the community as set forth in its governing documents.

This is distinctly different from an apartment complex in which a single person or company owns the entire property and all the residents are just tenants. In the case of a condominium complex, ownership of the common property (exterior of buildings, the grounds, roads, recreational facilities, etc.) is divided up evenly amongst the owners. There are rental units, but this is individual owners, not the condominium Association, choosing to rent their units. There is also an on-site management office running the day-to-day operations of the community, but this manager is only responsible for maintaining the common elements, which excludes the insides of the units.

Condominium properties such as ours are divided into three "elements":

• Common Elements, which belong to everyone. Examples include the lawn, sidewalks, trees and shrubs, roads, outsides of the buildings, recreational facilities, and clubhouse.
• Limited Use Common Elements, which are for your use even though they may be publicly accessible. Examples include deeded parking spaces, stairways, attics, and patios adjacent to your units whether enclosed or not. Although these are common elements, they are limited to your use - hence the name limited common.
• Restricted Use Common Elements, which are for your exclusive use only. This would be the inside air space of your unit from finished wall surface to finished wall surface, and also the front door, shed doors, windows, interior non-structural walls, ductwork, dryer vent, fireplace chimney, and plumbing and electrical servicing your unit.

It is important to realize that the unit owner is responsible for maintaining and replacing all of the "Restricted Use Common Elements". The Association is responsible for the replacement of the limited common elements, but not their maintenance. For example, the Association is not responsible for cleaning balconies and patios.

Here are some examples of who owns what, as best as can be determined (this list is subject to change and future clarification):

Curbside trash collection for the townhome units is Monday and Thursday. Dumpsters for the condo units are picked up Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Here is the holiday collection schedule, directly from the trash contractors WEB site. You can also contact the management office to confirm the pickup days or ask any special trash collection questions. Pickup is usually between 8:30am and 10:00am. Please try and put your trash out on the morning of pickup. There has been an on-going problem over the years with residents placing trash out well in advance of pickup. This practice is not very respectful of your neighbors. If you really need to put your trash out early, there are several dumpsters through the community near the condo buildings which you may use. Since Society Hill is considered a privately owned community, trash collection is the responsibility of the Association, not the Township of Piscataway.

"Bulk pickup" for items such as water heaters, ranges, refrigerators, washing machines, furniture, and construction debris can be arranged through the Township of Piscataway's bulk-pickup service. Each resident is entitled to two free pick-ups per year. Please call the Department of Public Works at 732-562-2390 to schedule a pick-up.

The Township of Piscataway does not provide municipal trash collection, even for single-family residents. All township residents are required to contract with an independent trash collection company. The Township of Piscataway only provides bulk-pickup service.

Recycling is mandatory and takes place every other Wednesday except holidays. As with the regular trash, please be courteous to your neighbors and avoid putting out your recyclables any earlier than absolutely necessary. Also, please do not mix recyclables in with the regular garbage, or put out recyclables on non-recycling days. The regular trash collector will not pick up recyclables, and your recyclables will sit out at the curb for everyone to stare at until the next recycling pickup. Recycling pickup is provided by Middlesex County.

Recycling is now comingled. In other words, you can mix everything together in one bin - there is no need to separate items anymore. Place all items securely in the plastic recycling bins so they won't blow away in the wind. Most residents write their unit number on the bins to prevent them from getting mixed up with other residents' bins. If you have any questions about recycling, please contact the Middlesex County Improvement Authority at 800-488-6242.

If you need additional recycling bins, you may purchase them from the Township of Piscataway Department of Public Works. Their phone number is 732-562-2390. As of the Summer of 2004, the 20 gallon round bins were $7.45 each, and the 14 gallon rectangular bins were $5.85 each. If you stop by the Township offices to order and pay for your new bins, they will be delivered to your unit. If you call to order your new bins, they will be delivered to the Township offices and you will have to go pick them up. Delivery can take up to 3 months. You can always purchase plastic storage bins from any local home improvement or department store and use them for recycling. It is important to drill some holes in the bottom to drain the rain water, as the recycling person will not pick them up if they are full of water. Finally, you can also check with the management office to see if there are any spare bins available.

Please try and bring your empty recycling bins back into your unit as soon as possible after pickup. Please do not store your recycling bins anywhere outside, such as on the porch, patio, breezeway, or in the bushes.

By FCC mandate, the Association is not allowed to limit or restrict the installation of antennas on the limited common element. The Association is still allowed to restrict installations on the common element. Therefore, residents are permitted to install dishes on their porches and patios without permission from the Association. If your porch or patio is positioned such that you have clear line-of-site to the satellite, then you're all set. Just remember that the dish must be confined to your patio space, and may not extend out over the railing or beyond the edge of your patio or porch, as that is no longer considered your limited common element.

You may also have your satellite dish installed on the roof, however since the roof is the common element, you must submit a Property Modification Request form. You may NOT install your satellite dish on any exterior wall or in the lawn. Common element dish installations are permitted ONLY on the roof, as explained in the resolution on satellite dish installations. Additional details on the FCC rules are available at http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html.

All satellite dish installations must be done properly by qualified personnel. Holes in the building structure must be done properly so as not to introduce leaks in the walls or roofs. Cables must be properly routed and fastened. Over the next several years, the association plans to re-roof all the buildings in the complex. In the process, we will be installing special mounting areas on the roof for satellite dishes. If you live in a building that has been re-roofed, you must use the designated mouting areas and pre-installed wiring. Have your dish installer contact the office for installation details. The designated mounting areas and pre-installed wiring will make it much easier to install the dish!

Electric and Gas: Public Service Electric & Gas (PSE&G), 1-800-436-PSEG(7734)
Water: New Jersey American Water, 1-800-272-1325. Emergencies, 1-800-987-5325
Cable TV: Cablevision, 732-356-1300
Telephone: Verizon, 1-800-427-9977

Insurance coverage can often be confusing, and especially so in condominium associations with multiple parties involved and blurred lines of ownership. The Association has an insurance policy covering, among other things, the portion of the property and structures for which it is responsible. Both owners and tenants should be aware of the coverages and limitations of this policy, a brief overview of which is available here in An Explanation of Your Association Insurance Protection, from the Association's insurance company Brown & Brown. Pay careful attention to section V, Homeowner's Need for Personal Insurance.

The Association's policy does NOT fully cover the individual units or their contents. The Association's policy only covers the parts of your unit that where there when it was first built - that is, the original carpet and floor coverings, appliances, cabinets, fixtures and a base coat of paint on the walls. If your unit should become damaged by some external force, the Association is only obligated to restore it to its originally constructed state. Your damaged contents, such as furniture, clothes, personal belongings, other appliances, and valuables will not covered under the Association's insurance policy. It is very important to be aware of this! Be sure to go over your policy carefully to be certain you have the expected coverage. If you have upgraded your unit (wood floor, expensive carpet or kitchen cabinets, etc.), it is also important to confirm that you have coverage for "upgrades and options", as this will come into play if your unit is ever damaged by an outside force.

Most residents purchase additional insurance coverages, depending on their specific circumstances:

• Resident Homeowners usually have Condominium Homeowners Policy, or HO-6, to insure their contents. Depending on the details of the policy, this may include their personal belonging, furniture, clothes, and additions and upgrades to their unit, as well as some personal liability protection for injuries to other people living in or visiting their unit.
• Tenants should consider a Tenant Policy, to cover their belongings, among other things.
• Non-resident Owners renting their units often purchase a Combo Dwelling Policy to protect their unit, minus the tenant's contents.

You should speak with an insurance agent to discuss your specific needs and the available insurance products.

If you are buying a unit here in Society Hill, and your mortgage company has requested a "Certificate of Insurance", please go to Brown & Brown and click on "Certificates of Insurance - Apply Here". You may also request a certificate by FAX or by phone. For further details, please see requesting an insurance certificate from Brown and Brown.

The nearest Post Office is on Skiles Avenue off Morris Ave (very close). There is a mail collection box located on the property near the intersection of Chesterfield Drive and Morris Avenue. You may also mail letters from your private mailbox - just empty it out first, and place your outgoing mail with the stamps as far back in the box as possible so the mail delivery person will notice them when they open the rear door of the cluster mailbox.

If you don't empty your mailbox often enough, your new mail won't fit and the mail delivery person will bring it back to the post office and you will have to go and pick it up. If you loose you mailbox key or just need a spare, call the Piscataway Post Office at 732-981-0740 to request a key. As best we can determine, the US Postal Service owns and maintains the cluster mailboxes and therefore controls the locks and the keys.

Residents are permitted to maintain the flower bed areas around the foundation wall of their units, extending approximately 3 feet out from the wall. If you choose to do this, you need place a few small white flags in the flower bed to indicate to the landscapers that you are maintaining the area. These flags are available through the on-site Management Office. The flags are important!! There have been a few incidents over the years where the landscapers have pulled out residents' plants, not realizing the resident was maintaining the flower bed themselves.

Please be aware that if you choose to maintain your own flower bed area, it is your responsibility to keep it neat and trimmed at all times. The landscapers will not maintain any plants that are planted by individual residents.

Please avoid parking in other people's parking spots. If you are unsure of your space assignment, please contact the on-site Management Office. Parking is allowed only in the designated areas!

Even though Society Hill is considered a private community, the Piscataway Township Police are legally authorized (via "Title 39") to patrol the streets and issue tickets to motorists in violation of the motor vehicle laws. There was a Resolution passed by the Board of Trustees on this topic - please check it for further information.

All vehicles parked in Society Hill must be in proper working condition, with valid registration and inspection stickers, and registed with the association. Conact the management office to register your vehicles and obtain a parking decal for your vehicles. You can no longer register your vehicles yourself on the WEB site, as the managment company WEB site does not provide that capability. You are not allowed to "store" your vehicle in the parking lot. You are also not allowed to use a vehicle as a storage shed! Please utilize one of the local "U-Store-It" facilities if you need additional storage space.

Note that there is no parking allowed on Buckingham Drive from Hoes Lane to the Clubhouse between the hours of 8:00am and 4:00pm, Monday to Friday. This restriction was put in place as a result of numerous University students parking their vehicles in Society Hill and making it impossible for many of our residents to find empty parking spaces.

Even though you might only be renting a unit in Society Hill, you are still responsible for following all the rules, regulations, and laws governing condo living. At the very lest, please review the Rules and Regulations. Your owner should have either given you a copy or pointed you to a copy - regardless, you are still responsible for following them.

If you have any serious maintenance requests please contact your unit owner and have them in turn contact the Management Office.

For unit owners, property taxes are due on February 1, May 1, August 1, and November 1. There is a 10 day payment grace period. The Township of Piscataway does not always mail out a bill! This is especially likely if you just purchased your unit. Just because there was not bill, does not mean you don't have to pay! They will still apply a late fee if you pay late, bill or no bill. The Tax Collector's phone number is 732-562-2331. You can always pay in person at the Township Offices on Hoes Lane. Property taxes are around $3,000/year

Sewer fees are due March 1 and Sept 1. There is NO grace period with sewer fees.

The Township of Piscataway has a website at http://www.piscatawaynj.org (site will open in a new window - may take several seconds, please be patient) with lots of useful information including a telephone directory, Council directory, and Calendar. Society Hill is in both Ward 2 and Ward 3. If you have concerns at the township level you can attend a town council meeting and raise your issue in the public portion, or you can contact the ward 2 or ward 3 councilperson (check the Piscataway WEB site for the name and phone number of this person). Some of the more frequently used township telephone numbers are repeated here for easy reference:

Piscataway public libraries have their own WEB Site which has library hours and directions.

Holiday decorations may be displayed thirty (30) days prior to the holiday and must be removed fourteen (14) days after the holiday using the following guidelines:

• Lights may be placed on or around your unit - just keep it reasonable and don't break anything.
• Wires and decorations may not cross or obstruct sidewalks or entryways.
• Holiday decorations may be wrapped or tied around balcony railings provided that they do not require nails or other fasteners that would damage the siding, brick, or wood.
• Decorations using fire are not permitted.

Some of the services provided by the Association are contracted out. Below is a list of the current Association sub-contractors (as of Spring, 2009):

• Property Management - Town & Country Management, 711 Sycamore Ave., Red Bank, NJ, 07701, 732-212-8200.
• Landscaping - inhouse staff
• Snow Removal - inhouse staff
• Irrigation - inhouse staff
• Maintenance - inhouse staff
• Pool Operations - Preferred Pool Management, 297 S. Washington Ave., Bergenfield, NJ, 201-837-1961.
• Trash Collection - Grand Sanitation, Scotch Plains, 908-222-1566.
• Insurance - Brown & Brown, Lehigh Valley, PA. 610-974-9490.
• Engineering - Falcon Engineering, Somerville NJ
• Towing Services - ?
• Exterminating - Bowco Labs, Woodbridge, NJ. 732-819-8404.
• Auditor - Mirra and Associates, Hillsborough, NJ. 908-281-4500

As of February 8th, 2016, the Affordable Housing Plan for Society Hill at Piscataway expired. The following units were originally covered under the affordable housing plan:

• Canterbury Court, Building 2: 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 17, 18, 23, 24, 27, 28, 31, 32
• Canterbury Court, Building 3: 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 44
• Canterbury Court, Building 4: 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80
• Lancaster Court, Building 27: 330, 332, 333, 334, 335, 336, 337, 338, 339, 340, 341, 342, 343, 346, 347, 350, 351
• Lancaster Court, Building 31: 428, 429, 432, 433, 436, 437, 438, 439, 440, 441, 442, 443, 444, 445, 446, 447, 448, 449
• Hampshire Court, Building 32: 274, 275, 276, 277, 278, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 289, 290, 291, 292, 293, 294, 295, 296, 297

There are special rules regarding the use and storage of propane, charcoal, and electric grills here in Society Hill:

• Propane and charcoal grills are permitted only for the townhouse units.
• Electric grills are permitted for all units.
• Propane grills must be stored a minimum of 5 feet from the rear wall of a townhouse unit.
• Propane cylinders must never be stored inside a unit.
• Propane cylinders must be properly maintained.
• Do not operate any grill near the external wall or privacy fences (see melted siding below).
• Use common sense and keep an eye on your grilling.

The Township of Piscataway operates a senior citizens bus that services Society Hill, as well as several other areas of the town. The bus runs Monday through Saturday. Service is door-to-door. The pickup run is between 8:30am and 8:45am in Society Hill. The bus brings all riders to the Senior Center on Hoes Lane. From there, transportation is available to the grocery store, doctors, bank, etc.

The return run leaves from the senior center around noon, and gets to Society Hill around 12:30pm. There is another return run around 2:00pm as well. On Saturdays, there is additional service from the senior center to the shopping mall. For additional information or to request service to your residence, please contact the Piscataway Department on Aging at 732-562-1133.

Unavoidably, a variety of pests such as squirrels, mice, rats, pigeons, canadian geese, cockroaches, and ants find their way into the buildings and must be dealt with.

Here is a good resource on cockroaches from http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7467.html.

To the left, is a picture of what can happen to your balcony when the pigeon netting is broken and the pigeons move in. They leave a huge mess.

There are numerous other pest resources on the WEB as well. Controlling many of the pests requires a comprehensive strategy as no single approach fixes the problem. Eliminating food sources and blocking access to the buildings is an important component of that strategy. Traps and insecticides are another component.

Property tax information is a matter of public record. The New Jersey Association of County Tax Boards has a website on which you can search for owner information and tax assessment for any property. It is sometimes useful if you need to contact a resident in an emergency situation. Click on "Records Search". Deeds are also a matter of public record, and can be viewed on-line at https://mcrecords.co.middlesex.nj.us/recordssearch/. The book and page number can be obtained from the tax board WEB site.

Several years ago, the membership approved 3 major capital improvement projects, in addition to the ongoing work on various capital repair projects. Most of these projects were either under way or through the design and engineering phases, until being shut down and cancelled, without membership authorization, by new board leadership. Many of these projects were set to return significant cost savings to the association either through increased operational efficiencies or increased revenues. As a result of this abrupt change in course, roughly $400k of design, engineering, legal, and partial construction work was carelessly discarded by a small group of board members and owners with no technical or design background. A brief summary of each project is below, along with many of the design documents from those projects.

Following the sidewalk repair project and the pond dredging project, a consider amount of excess soil was generated and was stockpiled at the end of Lancaster Ct. near the pond. The plan was to form the excess soil in to a landscaping feature with seating areas, benches, as walkway, and plantings. Walking paths were planned up and down the streams that feed the pond.

Below are the concept and engineering drawings for the proposed pond improvements. An environmental consultant and multiple engineers were involved in creating these drawings over a multi-year period.

1. 2008 Original Pond Improvement Proposal from around 2008.
2. April 18, 2013 The original pond sediment lab results from early 2013. The sample was take before anything was touched, from the shoreline on the Lancaster side.
3. December 15, 2013 Draft of the 2014 Drawing for the Township of Piscataway SESC permit for the pond dredging project.
4. April 24, 2014 Letter from Greenworks to Township regarding DEP permits.
5. April 15, 2014 Dredge Permit issued by NJDEP
6. April 15, 2014 Dredge Permit Drawing
7. June 5, 2014 Stormwater Release Permit from NJDEP
8. January 15, 2015 SESC Permit Approval from the Township of Piscataway.
9. January 27, 2015 Resolution of the Piscataway Township Zoning Board for approval of the maintenance building site plan application, showing the numerous restrictions placed on the approval.
10. June 6, 2016 Determination Letter from NJDEP regarding what permits are required.
11. March 1, 2018 Existing Conditions
12. March 1, 2018 Prelimanry Enginerring Drawing
13. May 2, 2018 Site Plan Drawings, Sheet 1
14. May 2, 2018 Site Plan Drawings, Sheet 2
15. May 2, 2018 Site Plan Drawings, Sheet 3
16. July 14, 2021 First summons and second summons from summer 2021, and a letter from the town on the same subject.
17. July 28, 2022 Additional Hill Remediation Info released by the Board.
18. July 29, 2022 OPRA Response from Township of Piscataway for Pond/Hill records.
19. August 2, 2022 Another Beryllium Lab Test from ANS Consulting.
20. August 3, 2022 Letter from Township of Piscataway and the Board blaming me for everything - of course.
21. February 23, 2023 Report from T&M Associates on the state of the pond and Hill.

Then entire complex is irrigated, using water from the water company. Over dry summers, the system puts out millions of gallons of water, costing nearly $50k in those years. Due to soil conditions, much of that water runs off in to the storm drains, and into the pond. Using the pond as a source of water for the irrigation system makes sense both environmentally and economically, as a million dollars could be saved over a 30-year period.

Using pond water requires joining the 4 independent irrigation loop in Society Hill, so they can all be serviced from one source. At the center of this design is a new pump system that can suck water from the pond and distribute it throughout the complex. During the sidewalk repair project in 2011/2012, 4" irrigation mains were installed under the walks to connect 3 or the 4 independent loops, and then during the pond dredging in 2014/2015, another 4" main was installed to connect the last independent loop, and install the perforated intake pipes and pre-filter under the pond. The last missing piece is the pump house, which is captured in the design below, and which has been "cancelled" as well by the current board leadership.

Pump House Design
Irrigation Piping Map
Engineeering Drawings for Water Diversion Permit required by NJ DEP

Since transitioning to in-house staff around 2008, it was always the plan to construct a new building on the property to house all the maintenance equipment and supplies. The various piles of supplies and equipment you see scattered around the property were supposed to go in this building. The building was granted site plan approval in 2016 but had to be reconfigured slightly due to zoning board conditions and was submitted for re-approval in 2018, however the application was withdrawn by the new board leadership.

3D front view
Back view
First-floor floorplan
First-floor 3D view
Bathrooms, crew area, pesticde storage rooms
Second floor crew area, storage, and boiler rooms
Generator and fuel storage rooms
Electrical plan
3D view of electrical
3D view of plumbing
Sanitary sewer plan
Sanitary sewer 3D view
Communications conduit
Boiler room
Radiant heating loops

If you happen to have AutoCAD on your computer, or the free "DWG Viewer" from AutoDesk, you can download all these shop drawings and see every single component of the design.

Engineer site plan drawings
Architectural drawings
Letter of Interpretation (missing file) for wetland delination
Download Materials cost estimate (incomplete)
Download Heat-loss calculations
Fuel system and backup generator drawings

Another engineer specializing in mechanical (HVAC), electrical, and plumbing ("MEP") designs prepared drawings which included forced-hot-air and radiant-gas-tube heating.

Electrical Drawings Sheet 1
Electrical Drawings Sheet 2
Electrical Drawings Sheet 3
Electrical Drawings Sheet 4
Mechanical Drawings Sheet 1
Mechanical Drawings Sheet 2
Plumbing Drawings Sheet 1
Plumbing Drawings Sheet 2

A different MEP engineer was brought on to re-do the HVAC portion of the MEP design with a radiant floor heating system, which is what was orignally requested for this buidling.

HVAC Sheet 1
HVAC Sheet 2
HVAC Sheet 3
HVAC Sheet 4
HVAC Sheet 5

Already several years ago, the technology and economics were at a point where it became practical to obtain "bulk" internet service and deploy it community-wide. The economies have since improved even further, making it possible to implement such a system at a recurring cost per unit of only a few dollars a month. Due to the distances involved, fiber optics are required to connect the buildings. During the sidewalk repair project in 2011/2012, conduits were installed under all the walkways to make it much easier to install fiber cabling in the future. Over next few years when time permitted, conduit was installed down Hampshire Ct., over to Lancaster Ct., and up to the side of every building. 99% of the conduit and the difficult work is done. In 2018, the new board leadership declared that 5G wireless service will be available soon and the concept of a wired fiber-optic community internet system is obsolete. The project was therefore "cancelled". Editorial comments on that decision can be found in the discussion forums.

Below are the drawings for the entire community-wide internet system, including the internal building wiring that would need to be installed. The original plan was to wire the buildings as the roofs were replaced, as that is the best time to conveniently get access to all the attics. This was actually implemented as per the plans when the in-house staff did the roof replacement on building 3.

Conduit/Fiber Layout
Condo Wiring Schematic
Condo Gable Wall Wiring
Townhouse Wiring Schematic
Townhouse Gable Wall Wiring
Townhouse Attic
Satellite Dish Mounting and Wiring
Equipment Enclosure at each building
Junction Box Detail
Power Distribution Network
Fiber Optic Patch Panel in communication room
Fiber Optic Cable Splice Points
Fiber Optic Cable Splice Points
Network Switch Equipment
Communication Center Rack
Details

Around 2011, the Association hired a professional roofing consultant to investigate the on-going issues with our roofs, and prepare a detailed bid specification so when this project was eventually put out for bid, it would be done right. Unfortuantely, the current board of trustees, and in particular Board President Tong Zhou, has no interest in or intention to use this specification. There were a number of design flaws in the original roofing system, most critically the roof ventilation, which should be corrected in any re-roofing project. Apparently that is not happening, and 6 buildings (2 townhouse and 4 condo) were done without consideration of this defect in the fall of 2020.

• CoverPage
• Section 0.1
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• Section 0.6
• Section 0.7a
• Section 0.7b
• Section 0.8
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• Section 0.12
• Overall Drawings and Photos
• Specification10-047
• Details
• TestCuts
• ACRM Results