Millstone seeking to meet residents’ recreational needs

Parks, recreation and open space plan in the works (April 13)

By: Purvi Desai
   MILLSTONE — The Township Committee kicked off with baby steps last week a comprehensive park, recreation and open space plan that will provide recreation and leisure opportunities currently unavailable to residents.
   "Because of the fact that we’ve had an increase in the population, it is important to assess what the children are going to need now and as the children grow older," said Mayor Nancy Grbelja in a phone interview Monday.
   She said the township needs to determine what facilities and what demands will be made to accommodate not only the growing child population but adults as well. The plan is to discover what types of facilities are needed for the future and the recreation needs of the residents, she said.
   Thomas Miller, a civil engineer, professional planner and a certified engineer with Environmental Resolutions Inc., said the first steps will involve research and document-gathering. Some of that information will be released to the public, he said.
   "We have about 35 people in our team," Mr. Miller said. "Other people will get involved. I think one of the things we’re looking forward to is the team, or the ad hoc committee, which will involve Millstone citizens."
   The ad hoc committee will be created by the township and will assist Mr. Miller and his co-planner and senior vice president of Environmental Resolutions Inc., Barbara Fegley, with their team.
   Mr. Miller said he has been in the environmental business for 25 years.
   "I have an interesting background in that I really specialized in the parks and recreation and open space sector very, very early on — right when I really got out of school," he said.
   Over the years, he said, he has planned more than 200 parks throughout the state, some of which have been award-winning.
   Mr. Miller said once the committee and environmental planning team is in place, they will establish goals and objectives and discuss their timelines.
   "(We will) outline what the basis for the plan is going to be," he said. "(We will) gather some community information, character, history, demographics and the like. Our goal is really this long-range planning for the schools and community, which is going to outline the needs for all of the different populations."
   The process will be concluded with the development of a formal parks, recreation and open space plan for the community, Mr. Miller said.
   "Our intent is to look at … existing facilities and look at what deficiencies that you might have in the community. I think public input is going to be key throughout the process."
   Mr. Miller said the team will conduct some personal interviews and talk with people in the community. It will also look at the inventory of existing facilities and natural resources, he said.
   Cory Wingerter, former mayor and a resident of Millstone Road, urged Mr. Miller to attend the Planning Board and school meetings and also urged them to see the schools’ long-term plans.
   He also mentioned there are three camps in Millstone, and Mr. Miller should meet with the camp owners so that he can gather relevant information for the project.
   Ms. Fegley, who explained each phase and the timeline for the project, said the first meeting between the ad hoc committee and their team is expected be sometime at the beginning of May.
   Mayor Nancy Grbelja assured Mr. Miller and Ms. Fegley that the ad hoc committee will be established by April.
   Ms. Fegley said her team will sit down then with the ad hoc committee and have a fact-finding meeting and data collection and find out what the goals and objections are so they are all on the same page, and she estimated this phase will take approximately two months.
   "After that, then we’ll start with the facility and the open space inventory and analysis," Ms. Fegley said. "Looking at what the demographics are in the township, what the park and recreation areas are, starting to map the condition of them, looking at all the natural resources, mapping on wetlands, the areas that need to be preserved a little more.
   After identifying all these facilities, the team will conduct a needs assessment, she said.
   "What exactly are the needs? Are you meeting the needs of the residents right now? What are the future needs, what is the five-year plan, 10-year plan? Where are your areas that are going to be developing?" Ms. Fegley said. "We’ll come up with a draft plan involving a lot of public input and then a formal plan, and I estimate probably four to five sessions with the ad hoc committee."
   The project, she said, will involve a lot of e-mails, telephone calls and four to five public meetings.
   "Then the final plan will probably be in six to nine months," she said.
   Mayor Grbelja appointed the township engineer, Mr. Matt Shafai, as the key contact person for this project.
   Mr. Shafai described to the gathered audience the details of his summer project, the Charleston Spring Park, which is separate from the parks, recreation and open space project.
   "It’s a 25-acre piece of property that was dedicated to the town for recreation," Mr. Shafai. "Now we are putting plans together to put out bids, we’re proposing to put a paved road, three basketball courts, three tennis courts, (and) one handball court."
   There will be a walking path connecting the courts and room for future expansion, Mr. Shafai said at the meeting.
   "There is room for restrooms also," he said. "Hopefully it will be a good summer project."
   Deputy Mayor Bob Kinsey said a lot of the residents were consulted about their preferences.