Township Council Taxes

Drivers may want to avoid Franklin Boulevard in the evenings and early mornings through Nov. 4. Repaving work on the road, between Easton Avenue and Hamilton Street, has begun. The work will be performed nightly from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. The cost for this county project is $688,000, according to county engineer Matt Loper. [wpgmappity id=”6″]

The township’s efforts in shielding Gauguin Way residents from noise and other nuisances of Middlebush Park’s sports complex aren’t sitting well with at least one resident. The 70-acre park, accessible off of DeMott Lane, is home to the township’s Pop Warner football program. With 300 players, Franklin’s Pop Warner program is considered to be the largest in Central New Jersey. …

An ordinance that would continue the lease of township-owned land to the Franklin Township/South Bound Brook Little League was introduced at the Oct. 22 meeting. The five-year lease calls for an annual payment of $1 for the property at Hall Street and Madison Avenue. The lease would take effect in January 2014 and expire at the end of 2018. A …

A $311,000 contract for two dump trucks was approved at the Oct. 22 Township Council meeting. The contract is for two trucks with combination bodies and snow plows. Cambria Truck Center of Edison was the winning bidder. The deal includes a $20,000 trade-in.

Although Mayor Brian Levine wondered aloud whether the money could be better spent elsewhere, and at least one councilman was unsure of the contract’s term, the Township Council on Oct. 22 voted to spend $55,000 for software that is touted to allow police departments to “predict” where crime will occur. The idea’s champion on the council, Councilman Phil Kramer (Ward …

Mayor Brian Levine said Oct. 19 that he’s already been asked by a same-sex couple to perform their marriage. The wedding will occur next week at the municipal building, he said. “I was approached by a same-sex couple for the 24th, which is probably the first day you can do it after the three-day waiting period,” he said. The state …

A proposal to limit smoking in the township’s larger parks – and ban it outright in the smaller ones – is on its way to the Township Council. The township Open Space Advisory Committee at its Oct. 15 meeting endorsed a proposal brought by Alice Osipowitz, director of parks and recreation, to create the smoke free zones. The council would …

More than $130,000 in Community Development Block Grant sub-grants to area social service organizations helping township residents were approved at the Oct. 8 Township Council meeting. The money is targeted primarily to groups and organizations serving the township’s minority and low- and moderate-income residents. The money comes from a total $254,714 CDBG grant won by the township. The remaining funds …

Purchases worth nearly $380,000 were approved at the Oct. 8 Township Council meeting. The items the council voted to buy are two utility body trucks for $106,000 and two pickup trucks with snow plows for $78,500 from Beyer Brothers of Fairview, and a backhoe for $106,405 and an articulated wheel loader for $66,680 from Jesco of South Plainfield. The council also …

The Hampton Chase Homeowners Association is putting itself out of business, but helping the Franklin Township Food Bank along the way. The association’s three-member board on Oct. 5 will donate more than $11,000 – in the form of liens on homes in the single-family development – to the Franklin Township Food Bank. The idea for the donation came from Township …