Lawyer Anthony Campisano: Lawsuit may be dropped
By: Paul Koepp
Lawsuits filed by the township against two contractors and their insurance companies could be resolved soon, according to the attorney handling the litigation for the township.
The township may drop a lawsuit against the JPC Group, Inc., of Blackwood, and First Sealord Surety, Inc., of Villanova, Pa., because the contractor hired to do road improvements on Ridge Road in Monmouth Junction, has now completed most of the punch-list items in question, said Anthony Campisano of the New Brunswick law firm Bucca and Campisano.
In addition, a lawsuit against North Star Enterprises, Inc., of Randolph, and XL Specialty Insurance Company, of Exton, Pa., for failure to complete the construction of Rowland Park will head to mediation in mid-August, Mr. Campisano told the Township Council at its June 26 meeting.
The council authorized Mr. Campisano on March 15 to file the lawsuits, as 60-day extensions granted in January were set to expire. Mr. Campisano said that because extensions are often granted for contracted work, deadlines tend to be somewhat flexible, but the township felt that the delay in these two cases was excessive.
The township bonded for $400,000 to have the JPC Group curb and pave Ridge Road near the S-curves in Monmouth Junction. The company failed to do some inlet and paving work in a timely fashion, township officials said. All that remains is to relocate some utility poles, but Mr. Campisano said it should have been done long ago.
In the other case, the township borrowed just over $6 million to have North Star Enterprises construct the 79.5-acre Rowland Park. Township officials said the contractor did not complete electrical work and landscaping. The public works and recreation departments helped finish the work so the park would be ready for the start of the baseball season on April 14.
The park has four Little League baseball fields, a full-size baseball field, a softball field and two multipurpose fields that can be used for soccer, football and lacrosse. All of the fields are lighted and have water fountains and irrigated sprinkler systems.

