SOUTH RIVER–With the municipality needing items such as roadway repairs and vehicles, the Borough Council introduced a bond ordinance to provide funds for various capital improvements and equipment.
The total cost for the capital improvements and equipment is $1,610,000. The borough will fund the capital improvements and equipment with a $34,500 grant from the New Jersey Municipal Tonnage Grant Program. The improvements and equipment will also be funded with $542,200 in expected grant funds from the New Jersey Department of Transportation, according to the council agenda.
The council introduced a $981,000 bond ordinance on May 28 during the council meeting. Council President Raymond Eppinger said the second and final reading for this ordinance is set for June 10.
In addition to the grant funds and the bond amount, the borough will make a $52,300 payment to fund the remaining total amount for the capital improvements and equipment, according to the council agenda.
“We are using $100,000 from prior bond ordinances for roadway repairs. We are using $542,200 from the State of New Jersey to repairs the streets,” Mayor John Krenzel reported.
The various vehicles and equipment that the borough is seeking to purchase include: a vehicle lift, a backhoe, a sanitation parker truck, a police SUV, an Alcotest machine,a date voice recorder, the replacement of hoses,air bottles and gear, renovations to the firehouse kitchen, road improvements to Albourne Street; and improvements to various curbs and sidewalks within the borough, according to the council agenda.
If the bond ordinance gets adopted by the council, it will take effect 20 days after the first publication.
In related news, the council also introduced another bond ordinance to provide funding for various water utility improvements and equipment.
The total cost for the various improvements and equipment is $400,000. With a $380,000 bond, the borough is seeking to pay for the improvements and equipment. The borough will make a $20,000 down payment to pay for the remaining amount, according to the council agenda.
“The water and sewer structure is a mess. The pipes are old, the rust and the dirt is going into the pipes. We are working on a plan to repair the pipes [and] possibly putting a sleeve through the pipe so we won’t have to open up the roadway to do that. We are working on providing services within our caps,” Krenzel said.
The water utility improvements and equipment the borough is seeking include water main repairs, fire hydrants and valves, according to the council agenda.
Eppinger said that the second and final reading for this ordinance is also set for June 10.
For more information, visit www.southrivernj.org/agendas/council/.
Contact Vashti Harris at vharris@newspapermediagroup.com.
