News-pourri

PROPOSED APARTMENT BUILDING – An artist’s rendering of the proposed four-story, 200-unit apartment building proposed for the former K-Mart location in Rutgers Plaza. The October 17 Zoning Board of Adjustment hearing on the Levin Properties application to build 200 apartments in Rutgers Plaza has been postponed until 2025. The township published an online notice, saying that Levin had requested the …

The Raritan Valley Symphonic Band returns to Franklin High School, 500 Elizabeth Avenue, to start its 42nd season with its free Fall concert, “American Voices”, at 3 p.m. October 20.  The band is under the direction of Music Director William Berz. American composers of many different types of music, diverse backgrounds, and different eras will be featured during the performance. …

Balmy weather on October 13 served as a backdrop for a number of events in the township. Franklin High School Project Graduation held the first of what will be three clothing drives. The organization get paid by the pound for the clothes, which are sent to needy people overseas. We stopped in at the event, held at Franklin Middle School …

The Township’s 2024 Leaf Cleanup Program begins the week of October 28, and extends to the week of December 9. Run by the Department of Public Works, the program’s goal is to “keep our neighborhoods pristine during the fall season,” according to a press release on the program. Leaves can be placed in any 30-gallon biodegradable brown paper leaf recycle …

MAKING HER CASE – Public Safety Director Quovella Maeweather explains the need for changes to the Township’s noise ordinance during the October 8 Council meeting. Classifying noise as a “nuisance” and better regulating large outdoor parties were topics of conversation at the October 8 Township Council meeting. The Council took up two proposed ordinance amendments: one that would require registration …

POT TALK – Township Manager Robert Vornlocker talks about the proposed ordinance amendment limiting the number of cannabis retailers in the township to 18. The number of cannabis retailers in the township would be officially limited to 18 under an ordinance amendment introduced at the Township Council’s October 8 meeting. There is some leeway in that number, however. If a …

The 100th anniversary celebration for the Kingston Volunteer Fire Company No. 1 continued on October 5 with a short program and a barbecue. The celebrations began with a dinner on February 29, the actual day in 1924 on which the fire company was started. There was also a parade in July, said George Luck Jr., chairman of the 100th Anniversary …

More than 1,000 high school students ventured out to the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens on Somerset Street October 5 to meet with representatives of colleges and trades in the church’s second annual College Fair. The goal of the event, said the Rev. Danté Quick, the church’s pastor, is to “expose young people to future opportunities around higher education …

Approximately 300 people gathered at the Ukrainian Cultural Center on Davidson Avenue October 5 to help Second Chance for Animals in its biggest fundraiser of the year. Second Chance is the organization that provides the bulk of operating expenses for the Franklin Township Animal Shelter. The event sold out weeks ago, and is one of the hottest tickets among the …

The work of about 24 township artists was on display October 5 in the second annual “Not Quite Wine & Cheese Art Opening,” held at the Franklin Township Senior/Community Center. The inaugural event was held last year in the municipal building lobby, but response to it had organizer Saffie Kallon thinking maybe a bigger space was needed this year. Kallon, …