General News

Blair Wilson and Bill Grippo (left to right) at the Franklin Food bank headquarters. Blair Wilson has been a supporter of the Franklin Food Bank for more than a decade; now he has a title to go with that effort. Bill Grippo, who created the Food Bank’s Ambassador Program several years ago, said on March 27 that Wilson is the …

An online portal designed to prevent underage drinking, drug use, and teen dating violence was recently launched by two non-profit organizations. EmPoWER Somerset and Safe Communities Coalition of Somerset / Hunterdon Counties have partnered to create the web site, SoberTruth4Youth.org. The portal features eight short videos developed by the Safe Communities Coalition and other community partners such as Safe+Sound Somerset …

Deputy Mayor Crystal Pruitt was one of a number of Franklin residents included on the 2022 InsiderNJ African-American Power List. (File Photo). Five Franklin residents have been named to the 2022 InsiderNJ African-American Power List. The list includes more than 100 Black leaders in the state, representing politicians, community activists, and religious leaders, among others. Topping the list for Franklin, …

The township Community/Senior Center off DeMott Lane remains closed as cleanup continues following a sprinkler pipe burst. Township Manager Robert Vornlocker said on February 8 that the pipe has been repaired, but “the carpeting throughout the offices and in several rooms will have to be replaced.” A carpet installer was expected to be at the center on February 8, Vornlocker …

A partnership between the Franklin Township Public Library and the Somerset County Library System of New Jersey, through which members of each can borrow items from affiliated libraries, is seen by officials as a model of cooperation between the SCLSNJ and independent libraries in the County. Through the program, Franklin Township library patrons can borrow materials from and take advantage …

Discarded Christmas trees will be picked up by the township Public Works Department on January 10 and January 18. All lights, wires, decorations and tinsel should be removed from trees. All trees should be out on curbs by 7 a.m. Jan. 10. Trees can also be brought to the Convenience Center on Berry Street on any date the center is …

Township residents whose employment was adversely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic may qualify for a free job training program. The training program is sponsored by the township, the Somerset Community Action Program and Raritan Valley Community College. Under the program, the township will pay for attendees’ tuition, supplies for training, transportation and child-care services. To qualify, residents must show that …

One of the three entities from which the township buys water has asked its customers to conserve water as much as they can. NJ American Water put a notice out on January 3 asking its 45 customer towns in Somerset, Mercer, Hunterdon, Middlesex and Union counties to hold back on water usage. The reason, the company said, was because of …

Robert “Kash” Kashinsky for Community and the Franklin Republican Club are sponsoring a clothing gift drive for Franklin Township children in foster care. Working with a local agency, Kashinsky set up the drive which has donors pick a child from the provided list, purchase the gifts, and drop them off at his DeMott Lane home, from where they will then …

An artist’s rendering of The Cosmopolitan, the four-storey residential building planned for the former Kmart site in Rutgers Plaza. The three-year speculation of what would replace Big Kmart in Rutgers Plaza may be at an end. Levin Properties of Plainfield, the owner of Rutgers Plaza at John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Easton Avenue, has submitted to the Zoning Board of …