Projects win grants

County gives borough $472,000 for Lakeview: Buckelew Mansion.

By: Stephanie Brown
   JAMESBURG — Sometimes cash really is the best holiday gift.
   The Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders presented the borough with a $472,000 grant on Dec. 22 from the county Open Space, Recreation and Farmland and Historic Preservation Trust Fund.
   The money will be used to help restore Lakeview: Buckelew Mansion to its former glory.
   "Jamesburg is a small town," Freeholder Director David Crabiel said. "For them to rehab that building on their own, it would have drained their taxpayers."
   The rehabilitation project will include repairs to the mansion’s foundation, roofing and heating system.
   "It’s a great Christmas gift for the people of Jamesburg," Jamesburg Historical Association President Ron Becker said. "We’re very thankful to the borough for applying for the grant and the county for giving us the grant. With this money, we’ll be able to make the building a showplace for the people of Jamesburg, make it something they can be proud of."
   The improvements are part of a larger three-phase project, and are the most urgently needed repairs.
   Mr. Becker said the house is sagging and the foundation needs to be replaced, the furnace is "shot" due to water damage from a flood problem in the basement, the roof leaks and, in some places, has caved in.
   In the future, he said the Historical Association hopes to stabilize the smokehouse, repaint the mansion, and replace rotted porch floorboards and pillars.
   Mayor Tony LaMantia said the borough is appreciative of the county’s response to the borough’s needs.
   "They’re really conscientious about helping the municipalities and we’re grateful for that," he said.
   Mayor LaMantia said the borough intends to seek further grant assistance, possibly next year, for additional improvements.
   "We explained to the county that it’s a three-phase project that amounts to a total rehabilitation," Mayor LaMantia said Tuesday. "The mansion is in dire need of upgrading and repairs so we’ve started with the main phase and will go from there."
   The house and yard is the former home of borough founder James Buckelew, an early entrepreneur and prominent figure in Central Jersey. The site is also listed on national and state historic registers.
   "James Buckelew had a great influence on the Jamesburg area and beyond," Mr. Becker said. "It’s a great honor for the Jamesburg Historical Association to preserve his home and continue to promote his legacy, and of course, this grant is going to help us do that."