Township Council Taxes

Changes to four construction jobs have resulted in a net $81,846 increase in their cost. The Township Council approved the changes at its Aug. 12 meeting.

Two ordinances allocating a total of $481,350 for open space purchases were introduced at the Aug. 12 Township Council meeting. The first would appropriate $222,000 from the Open Space Trust Fund for the purchase of lots 3, 4 and 5 on Belmar Street.

Purchases of goods and services worth nearly $1.5 million were approved Aug. 12 by the Township Council. The purchases covered items ranging from equipment for the Police Department to professional financial services.

The cost of having Somerset County act as the township’s health department will increase more than $37,000 over the next three years. The department’s 2013 annual report and new three-year contract was presented to the Township Council at its Aug. 12 meeting. The council acts as the township’s Board of Health.

A proposal to install a speaker system in the Middlebush Park sports complex will likely be defeated on Sept. 9 when it is scheduled to be up for a vote by the Township Council. All six council members who attended the Aug. 12 meeting said they would not vote for a system which includes external speakers, with some expressing support for a so-called …

Contracts for more than $1 million worth of road improvements were awarded at the July 8 Township Council meeting. The funding for the projects is included in the current budget.

More than $200,000 in equipment purchases for the police department were approved at the July 8 Township Council meeting. The council voted to buy seven vehicles and six portable computers.

The Franklin Web site should be streaming Township Council meetings by the end of the year, according to the township’s Information Technology director. Once council meetings are streamed live, the effort will be turned to stream Planning Board and Zoning board meetings, he said.

The first step toward financing the township’s $2.5 million 2014 road program was taken at the June 24 Township Council meeting. The council approved on second reading a bond ordinance for about $2.4 million of the cost, which will cover 27 township roads.

Funding for all but one of the 14 applications submitted for the township’s 2014 Community Development Block Grant program were approved June 24 by the Township Council. The only group that received none of its requested funding was the township’s Pop Warner Football program, which asked for $10,000 to install additional lighting for its practice fields.