Taxes

The Magnolia Street bridge replacement work is now not expected to be completed until later this Spring. (File Photo.) The Magnolia Road bridge replacement project’s end date has been stretched from mid-February to sometime in April or May, the Somerset County engineer said on March 17. The delay is due to necessary preparatory utility work that has to be done …

The school district’s assistant superintendent for business, Jonathan Toth, and schools Superintendent John Ravally (left to right) discuss the proposed 2033 budget at the school board’s March 17 meeting. The Board of Education on March 17 introduced it’s proposed $204 million spending plan for Fiscal Year 2023. The District’s preliminary $203,871,228 total budget – a 6.2 percent increase over FY …

Schools Superintendent John Ravally said the District is working to mitigate the effects of a loss in state aid. (File photo.) School officials are working on how to absorb a $33,000 reduction in state aid without it having an adverse impact on programs and services. The district is slated to receive $15,621,841 in state aid for FY 2023, according to …

A $2 million decrease in water utility collections may lead to a rate increase during the year, the Township Council was told on March 15. Township auditor Andrew Hodulik told the Council during its second budget hearing that the utility’s fund balance decreased from $10 million to $8 million over the last year. “You’re probably going to look at a …

The Township Council heard the first round of budget requests at a special March 7 virtual meeting. Requests for equipment and new hires highlighted the Township Council’s first budget hearing on March 7. The budget hearings, the second of which will be held on March 15, are the Council’s chances to hear what the various department heads say they need …

Approval for the purchase of eight vehicles for the Franklin Township Police Department was approved at the February 22 Township Council meeting. Resolutions to purchase seven 2022 Ford Explorer SUVs, for a total price of $237,500, and one 2021 Ford Expedition SUV, for a cost of $39,358 were approved. The eight vehicles were purchased as part of the department’s fleet …

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 …

The Franklin Township Police Department’s more than 65 uniformed officers are among those scheduled to add body-worn cameras to their equipment list around February 1, a police department spokesman said. The cameras became mandatory thanks to a 2020 law signed by Gov. Phil Murphy. Their use, and the storage and maintenance of videos recorded with them, are heavily regulated by …

The Franklin Township Library Board of Trustees awarded the library’s southern branch construction contract to a Garfield-based company. A Garfield-based construction company on December 27 was awarded the contract to construct the Franklin Township Public Library’s southern branch building. Pal-Pro Builders was given the $2.6 million contract during a special meeting of the library Board of Trustees. Roughly half of …

The Township Council on December 14 approved minor stipend increases for some Fire District Commissioners for 2022. Approved were increases from $7,500 to $7,650 for commissioners in Fire District 2 and increases from $7,584 to $7,750 for commissioners in Fire District 3. The $8,000 stipend for commissioners in Fire District 1, the $8,500 stipend for Fire District 1’s chairman, and …