News-pourri

The second annual Juneteenth Parade and Festival – organized this year by the SC Juneteenth Committee Inc. – kicked off from Pine Grove Manor elementary school on June 17. The parade made its way up Highland Avenue, then down a stretch of Hamilton Street before turning off at Matilda Avenue and into Naaman Williams Park for the festival. U.S. Rep. …

SUPPORTIVE WORDS – Attorney Howard Cohen, representing the Canal Walk Homeowners’ Association, speaks to the Township Council at its June 13 meeting. Amendments to the Township’s Noise Ordinance which restrict the time that industrial-related loading and unloading operations, as well as the use of vehicles with backup beepers, can be used on properties that abut Scenic Corridors which are adjacent …

Author Wheeler Antabanez will appear at the Franklin Township Library’s main branch on DeMott Lane to present a video tour of the old Boonton railway line, and sign his book on the same topic. The talk, entitled “Walking the Old Boonton Line: A Photographic Journey on the Abandoned Rails of New Jersey,” is scheduled for 1-2:30 p.m. June 24. In …

Most of the Warrior 4 Life Scholarship Foundation‘s 2023 awardees gathered at the Township Cultural Gazebo in the Municipal Complex June 11 for the annual photo op. Foundation founders Nicholas and Rebekah Solomon and Daryn and Adrian Plummer explained the Foundation’s mission and introduced the award winners. This year, 12 graduating seniors were awarded a total of $13,500 in scholarships. …

JUST SAY NO – Shade Tree Commission member Arnold Schmidt led his fellow Commissioners in sending a letter to the Township Council opposing a proposed deal that would allow public money to be spent on planting trees on private property. The Township Shade Tree Committee voted at its last meeting to tell the Township Council it opposes a proposed deal …

McDonald’s has to provide a few more details about its planned restaurant in Rutgers Plaza before it can receive the township Historic Preservation Advisory Commission’s blessing. Specifically, the Commission members want to see details of facade treatment for the enclosed trash area. The fast-food company won Planning Board approval in November 2022 to raze the former Burger King building fronting …

Students from across the district were honored for their achievements during the past school year in a special June 5 Board of Education meeting at Franklin Middle School – Hamilton Street Campus. Students received awards for a variety of activities, from athletics to academic competitions to artistic endeavors. “This has become an annual program for us,” schools Superintendent John Ravally …

NEW COMMANDER – Township resident Laura Johnson, the first female Commander at VFW Post 9111, holds the Commendation given to her by Mayor Phil Kramer. A township resident made history on June 2 when she became the first female Commander installed at VFW Post 9111 in Kendall Park. Laura Johnson, a 20-year veteran of the Navy Reserves was inducted in …

JUNETEENTH PARADE – The annual parade commemorating the official end of slavery in the United States will make its way to Naaman Williams Park for a block party. (File photo.) U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson-Coleman will be the Grand Marshall of this year’s Juneteenth Parade, set to begin 11 a.m. June 17 at Pine Grove Manor Elementary School, 130 Highland Avenue. …

EDUCATORS OF THE YEAR HONORED – A ballroom at the Imperia was filled with district teachers, administrators, families and friends to take part in the annual ceremony. Twenty district educators were honored June 1 during the annual Educators of the Year breakfast at the Imperia. Honored were Teacher of the Year and Educational Services Professional of the year from each …