Police/court building would be expanded; library moved
By elaine van develde
Staff Writer
First it was here, and then it was there. Now, Hazlet officials say, there could be a place for a new town hall, but final determining factors are up in the air.
After a couple of months worth of mulling over ideas, a town hall committee has come up with what it thinks could be a solution.
However, Mayor Christopher Cullen cautions that "the conceptual plan still has to be investigated by the architect and engineer."
"Right now, it’s a proposal; nothing firm yet," he said.
The idea is to convert the present library at 251 Middle Road, next to the police/court building, into a town hall. That would be accomplished by putting a second story on the library, adding some 22,000 feet of space in that building, Cullen said.
A second floor would also be added onto the neighboring police station, he said.
"The police have needed more office and storage space for a long time now," the mayor said. "This will help them out too."
In addition, the plan calls for use of the courtroom for municipal meetings as well as court days.
"It’ll now serve a twofold purpose," said Cullen. "The station will be right next door, so the dual use will work well and save money."
And saving money is what Cullen said the township is after.
"I think we’ll save on costs with the refurbishing rather than building an entire new town hall," he said. "The Police Department’s roof is shot, and the air-conditioning and heating system is in bad shape. They’re also in cramped quarters there. All this would have had to have been done anyway. So, instead of the new roof, we’ll add a story. They’ll get the room they need, and we’ll be able to share the courtroom for meetings.
"It works out well, as long as the studies say it’ll work. The present town hall has to be either demolished or repaired anyway, so the plan fits the purpose."
With the new proposal, the library would be relocated to the present town hall site. "Either a new library would be built, or the present building would be revamped and expanded," Cullen said.
The architectural firm of Sonnenfeld and Trocchia, Fair Haven, was scheduled to make a presentation yesterday on the proposal. Cullen’s other concerns were that the plan have sufficient parking and its configuration be feasible.
Officials have been wrangling with the details of a new town hall for years. They’ve been in search of the best spot for what they’ve said over and over again is a sorely needed town hall. A decade ago, plans were drawn up to greatly expand the police-court building and link it with the adjacent library to create a municipal center.
Most recently, officials condemned a property on Union Avenue by Veterans Park, saying it might be the best site. Residents were in an uproar over traffic implications, however, and what they called other feasibility deterrents. So were at least two township committeemen.
The two Republicans on the dais, Paul Coughlin and Michael Sachs, made it clear that the Union Avenue site, said to have been plagued with issues of incompatibility for building, was not the right spot. Buckling under the political and public pressure, officials formed a committee to study other prospects. They had done it on their own before and came up with only ideas for town hall sites — nothing definite. But the present facility is crumbling, Cullen says, and a site has to be decided on, and quickly.
So, in the interest of representing all community needs and wants, officials solicited the help of residents to join a town hall committee. Committeemen Coughlin and Michael Christopher pooled efforts and got a few residents to join.