Scouts, students work on community service requirements
By: Cynthia Williamson
LAMBERTVILLE – Boy Scout Troop 49 and sixth-grade students fulfilling community service requirements for graduation were among those joining about 50 Connaught Hill residents Saturday in a community effort to clean up the neighborhood.
"If it weren’t for them, I don’t know if we would have gotten as much done," said Connaught Hill resident Karen Atwood, an organizer of the cleanup effort. "I’ve never seen a young set of boys hustle, dig in and do whatever had to be done."
The South Raritan Watershed Association had pledged to help coordinate and supply volunteers for the cleanup, originally set for Oct. 28, but withdrew the offer, she said.
At the Mount Ebenezer United Holy Church on Belvidere Avenue, congregants sifted through piles of debris in a wooded area of the lot, which the Rev. Margaret Payton said had been a dumping ground for years.
"We didn’t do this, and we think the city should pay to clean it up," declared Joe Leonard, the associate pastor, shaking his head at an aluminum boat one of his members had uncovered from under the mountain of debris. "As you can see, we keep our church up."
Nearby, resident Tom Soltin volunteered his time and backhoe, diligently digging through another pile of rubble and loading it into a trash bin the church rented for the cleanup.
"We can’t afford too many of these," Rev. Payton sighed, saying it had paid $465 for the garbage bin that was filled nearly to the brim.
Across the street from the church, Boy Scout leader Kevin Brady worked alongside Scouts Christopher Keyser, 12, of Lambertville and Billy Hood, 11, of West Amwell, hauling away tires and debris from the trash-strewn lot overgrown with brush and trees. The boys also were fulfilling a community service requirement for graduation, as was Jacob Stephens, 11, of Lambertville.
Connaught Hill resident John Anderson used a flat-bed truck from Dave’s Sunoco & Towing Service in Ringoes, which was used to pick up tires and drop them off at collection sites established in the two communities.
About 1,300 tires have been collected so far, and will be loaded into trash bins paid for by Lambertville and West Amwell and hauled away Oct. 28, Ms. Atwood said.
General Motors in Ewing Township, where she is employed, donated gloves for the volunteers, and Niece Lumber in Lambertville supplied trash bags.
"I felt very, very good about it," Ms. Atwood remarked. "It was nice to see people out and helping everybody. People think it’s about time everybody did something."
Ms. Atwood and residents calling themselves the Connaught Hill Homeowners Association decided something needed to be done to improve their neighborhood after an incident earlier this year. A woman reportedly living in an old school bus on one of the myriad abandoned properties allegedly was sexually assaulted during a party.
Connaught Hill, known locally as the Commons, is a small neighborhood east of Route 179 where a mix of neatly kept houses are nestled among abandoned structures and trash-strewn properties.
The residents’ group will discuss plans for a neighborhood block party when it meets at 7 p.m. Nov. 2 at the West Amwell Township municipal complex.
Since organizing, residents also have made other strides to improve their neighborhood.
Raritan Valley Habitat for Humanity plans to purchase a vacant lot at the corner of Belvidere and Allen streets and build an affordable housing unit for a qualified low-income family or individual.
The group is seeking volunteers to commit to the project as well as contractors and a family or individual to move into the Habitat home, which would be the first one in Lambertville.
The nonprofit Christian homebuilding ministry is set to hold a meeting Oct. 24 at the First Presbyterian Church on North Union Street in Lambertville, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
The City Council passed an ordinance last month making it unlawful to store more than one unregistered vehicle on private property. Police Director Bruce Cocuzza said the Police Department will begin enforcing the new law around Nov. 1.
"It was great to see residents concerned about their neighborhood and taking action," said Lambertville Mayor David Del Vecchio, who was at Connaught Hill Saturday. "I don’t think residents could have done it alone, and I don’t think we could have done it alone. It shows that when residents and the city work together, things can get done for the betterment of the neighborhood."
The city also is working with the building inspector and the Hunterdon County Board of Health to determine what can be done about abandoned structures. Numerous properties are in the hands of tax lien holders, who are keeping real estate taxes current but haven’t yet begun foreclosure proceedings and don’t own the properties. Without an owner to cite for building or health violations, it is difficult for officials to take action.
In the months leading up to Saturday’s cleanup, Ms. Atwood noted residents have been working in their spare time to clean up the community.
"We have done as much as we can do ourselves," she said. "We need the city’s help to do the rest."