The long-discussed township youth center could be open for business by September of 2019. That was the projection Feb. 13 by Martin Kimmel, one of the architects contracted by the township to design the facility, which is targeted for a 40,000-square-foot parcel on Lewis Street.

Three families were displaced following a fire Feb. 13 at Kingsberry Acres. No residents were injured in the blaze, but a Franklin Township Police officer was treated for a minor injury, according to a press release from the FTPD.

Requests for new equipment and new staff positions highlighted the Township Council’s first hearing for the 2018 municipal budget on Feb. 12. This is the first of two expected hearings, during which department heads and Township Manager Robert Vornlocker appear before the council to make their case for requested money for the coming year.

The Catholic Community of St. Matthias, 168 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, will offer “Drive-thru Ashes” from 4-5 p.m. Ash Wednesday, Feb. 14. The church will also celebrate Mass at 7 a.m., 12:10 p.m., and 7:30 p.m., and hold a prayer service at 5:30 p.m., according to a press release from the church. The masses will be held inside the church …

The 29th annual Tour de Franklin, a fund raising event for the Franklin Food Bank, is set for April 29. The tour, one of the first organized bike ride of the season, takes off from Franklin High School, 500 Elizabeth Ave.

Bridgewater, NJ- The Somerset Patriots and manager Brett Jodie have announced the coaching staff for the 2018 season. Glen Barker will return as the team’s Third Base/ Hitting coach while Jon Hunton has announced his retirement from professional baseball and has been named the team’s Pitching Coach/ Director of Baseball Operations. Fox Beyer will also return as a volunteer Assistant …

Central Jersey College Prep Charter School is planning to weigh its upcoming enrollment lottery in favor of children from low-income families. The plan is still pending final approval from Lamont Repollet, the acting state Department of Education Commissioner, said Namik Sercan, the school’s chief education officer.

Members of the Somerset County Democratic Black Caucus were encouraged Feb. 10 to “stomp like an elephant” to “change the world.” That was the exhortation given by Akil Kokayi Khalfani, the keynote speaker in the caucus’s Black History Month celebration at the Senior/Community Center on DeMott Lane.

U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, (D-12), announced Feb. 10 that she’s running for a third term in the U.S. House of Representatives. After her kickoff announcement, Watson Coleman stopped by the Somerset County Democratic Black Caucus’s Black History Month celebration at the Senior/Community center, where the Franklin Reporter & Advocate caught up with her.

Naomi “Jockie” Claudia Shimalla, 75, passed away peacefully on Feb. 8 at home with her loving family and dedicated Squad members by her side. She was born in Somerville of the late Pauline and Walter Herubin USAF WWll. Naomi was a third-generation lifelong East Millstone resident whose grandparents settled here from Italy in the mid-1800s. Her grandfather, who was a …