|
Dear Neighbors,
With the summer behind us and
school in full swing, there are quite a few
items of interest. The list is lengthy, so
let's get started.
School
Referendum: The Lumberton Board of
Education is seeking voter approval for a $15
million bond referendum. The special
referendum election will be held on December
9th. The $15 million dollars is to
install 5,000 solar panels on the district's
four schools and make minor improvements to
the district's heating, ventilation and air
conditioning systems and roofing. The
state will rebate 43% of the project
costs. The school board also expects a
significant decrease in operating costs from
utility cost savings. They expect the
overall impact of the project to increase the
debt service by $.04 per 100 of assessed
value, and to decrease the operating budget by
$.06 per 100 of assessed value. The
projected net savings is $. 02 per 100 of
assessed value or $ 64.22 per year
for a home assessed at the township average of
$321,100.
Redevelopment
Update: The Township released a Request
for Proposals to developers for the Route 38
Redevelopment Plan. Once the Township
receives the various plans, the Township
Committee will select a redeveloper for the
project. The Request for Proposals can
be found on the Township web site. The
areas where redevelopment is sought are the
northwest corner of Route 38 and the Bypass,
the southeast corner of Route 38 and the
Bypass, and the northwest corner of Route 38
and Madison Avenue. The
Township expects to appoint a redeveloper
before the end of the year.
Cell Tower
on Route 38: The State of New Jersey
Department of Transportation notified the
Township of its intentions to place a cellular
tower along Route 38 at the Eayrestown Road
jug handle. The cellular tower facility
will be located on the right side of the jug
handle just before McDonalds. Under New
Jersey law, the Department of Transportation
does not need municipal or county approval to
make improvement or sublet the right of way
along state highways. The DOT did not
provide a timeline on when the tower will be
erected.
COAH
Lawsuit: In July, Lumberton Township
joined a lawsuit by the New Jersey League of
Municipalities against the state of New Jersey
challenging the new Council on Affordable Housing
(COAH) low income housing mandates.
Under the new mandates, the state is telling
Lumberton that we have to build and pay for an
approximately 400 additional low income housing units before
2018. In May, I in my capacity of mayor,
went to Trenton to meet with COAH and showed
them the errors in the their
calculations. However, they only made
cosmetic changes in our obligation. In
the coming weeks, I will send a special
article on this like I did in the past on
Transfer and Development Rights and Property
Taxes. So stay tuned.
New
Sidewalks: The Township completed
installing new sidewalks on the North end of
Main Street between Rockland Terrance and
Beulah Ave. The project cost $38,000 and
was paid for with a federal Community
Development Block grant.
Glenwood
Road: The Township expects to start
the road reconstruction and resurfacing of the
Glenwood section in October. The project
will also include some curb and apron
replacements. The project is expected to
be completed by the end of the year. The
project will cost over $500,000 and is being
paid with several Department of Transportation
grants over a few years.
Safe Routes
to School: The Safe Routes to School
project has been delayed by red tape and is in
Trenton for final approval again. The
project will install a sidewalk down Municipal
Drive for Little Bobby's Run to the Ashbrook
School and a sidewalk from Municipal Drive to
the Ashbrook School Building. The
project also includes a couple of crosswalks on
Municipal Drive.
Historical
Architecture Standards: On September
2nd, the Township Committee adopted an
Ordinance formalizing Historic Architecture
standards for the historical district for the
Township staff and Land Development Board to
follow. Earlier this year, the Township
Committee dissolve the Historic Architecture
Review Committee (HARC) which reviewed home
improvement projects in the historic district
before the homeowner went in front of the Land
Development board. The new standards are
expected to ensure the same standards are
followed without the extra bureaucratic step
for homeowners in the historic district.
Eayrestown
Road Resurfacing: The county expects
to complete the paving and restriping of
Eayrestown Road by Friday, September
28th. When it is done, the county
will have resurfaced 2.2 miles from Route 38
to Bridge Road.
Business
Expansions: Two businesses along the
541 Bypass have been preliminarily approved for
expansions. Franklin Machine will add
40,000 square feet of manufacturing space and
additional parking. Radwell
International will add another 36,000 square
feet of storage space and the associated
parking. Additionally, AAA
Pharmaceuticals will be moving into the old
Celebrations building on Main Street and the
Bypass. AAA is a contract manufacturer
of over the counter and prescription
pharmaceuticals who is currently headquartered
out of Paulsboro, NJ.
Municipal
Parking Lot: The Township Committee
awarded the winning contact to a local
landscaper to refresh the
landscaping at the municipal parking lot at
the corner of Main and Chestnut Streets.
The Township has also solicited bids to
re-grade and pave the lot as well. The
entire project is expected to be completed by
the end of the year.
Community
Calendar: Here are some upcoming
events in Lumberton. More events can be found
on the Lumberton E-News Community
Calendar.
You
can also add your own events to the Community
Calendar - no middleman!
-
Gaun
Building Clean Up: The
Lumberton Historical Society is
looking for volunteers on Saturday,
September 27th to help clear out the
basement of the old township building
or the Gaun Building on Main
Street. The project starts at
9:00 AM and are expected to go all
day. To volunteer, just stop by
on Saturday morning.
-
Community
Day: Community
Day will be held on Saturday, October
4th, from 1:00-4:00 PM at the
Municipal Complex. The rain date will be on Sunday,
October 5th.
Lumberton
businesses are welcome to set up a
table, free of charge, to promote
their business.
There
will be games, some rides, live
demonstrations, food, roaming
characters, face painters, and much
more.
There will also be a free paper
shredding services for private
personal documents. If
you are interested in performing,
setting up a table, sponsoring
entertainment or volunteering, please
call the Recreation Department at
267-3217.
-
Fire
Department Golf Fundraiser:
The Lumberton Fire Department will be
holding its annual Golf Fundraiser on
Monday, October 6th starting at 9:00
AM at the Golden Pheasant Golf
Club. There are still tee and
sponsorship opportunities
available. Contact Jim Rosell at
261-8053 for more information.
All proceeds support the operations of
the Lumberton volunteer Fire
Department.
-
GLRBA
Meeting: The Greater
Lumberton Regional Business
Association will hold its monthly
meeting at the Diamond Diner on Route
38 on Tuesday, October 8th at 8:00
AM. The guest speaker will be
Medford Mayor and Congressional
Candidate Chris Myers. The
event is free and open to businesses
located in Lumberton and the
surrounding communities.
-
Halloween
Party: The annual Lumberton
Halloween Party will be held on
Saturday, October 18th from 1:00-3:00
PM at the Walther School. The
event is open to all children. Please
come in costume. There will be music, some games, & lots of fun.
Volunteers are needed to help with the
event. For more information,
contact the Lumberton Recreation
Department at 267-3217.
-
Tennis Demonstration:
The tennis equipment manufacturer, Prince,
is sponsoring a Tennis Demonstration on October 18th from 1:30-3:30
PM at the Village Green. There
will be equipment to try out, tennis
tips, and lots of giveaway
items.
-
Community
Yard Sale: There will be a
community yard sale on November 8th
from 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM a the
Municipal Complex. There is a
$20 fee to sell and you must bring
your own table. To register or
for more information, contact
Lumberton Recreation at
267-3217. The rain date is
November 9th.
-
Scouting
for Food: The local Boy Scouts
will be holding its annual food drive
on Saturday, November 15th. The
scouts will be dropping bags off on door
steps the week before. They are
asking for residents to donate canned
good and other dry packaged foods (no
glass) to help feed the poor and
homeless.
-
Joshua Garman Beef & Beer/Auction
Fundraiser: The Joshua
Garman Beef & Beer Auction
Fundraiser will be held November 22, 2008
at 6:00 PM at the Mount Holly VFW.
Tickets can be purchased by calling
(609) 914-0185 or visiting www.joshuagarman.blogspot.com.
As always, thanks for reading and
thank you
for your continued support.
Pat Delany
122 Kingsbridge
Drive
Lumberton, NJ
08048
(609)
560-8045
|
