FREEHOLD – A $250,000 bond ordinance has been introduced by the Borough Council to finance projects that Freehold Borough residents and business owners selected to receive municipal funding.
On Feb. 19, council members introduced a bond ordinance that, if adopted, will provide for the purchase and installation of lights at the Freehold Borough Little League baseball fields and the installation of a new roof at the borough’s firehouse.
To finance the two projects, the bond ordinance will authorize the issuance of $237,500 in bonds or notes and include a down payment of $12,500. A public hearing on the ordinance is scheduled for March 4. The council may adopt the ordinance that evening.
The ordinance’s introduction follows Freehold Borough’s second participatory budgeting initiative in 2018, which allows residents age 14 and older and business owners to select projects they wish to fund.
Municipal officials have said the projects that are selected are funded within the municipal budget and do not increase a property owner’s tax bill.
The project to add the lights at the Little League baseball fields was presented by resident Robert Sive, who said having lights would allow weekday games to be played in the evening.
Craig Nimick, who presented the project for roof and deck repairs at the firehouse, said the flat roof at the rear of the firehouse is leaking and needs to be repaired, and he said the deck leading to the fire escape needs to be replaced.
