MANALAPAN- MayorMichelle Roth of Manalapan and Mayor Jonathan Hornik of Marlboro have started to discuss initiatives that may benefit residents of both communities.
Roth said she and Hornik met to address mutual concerns, in particular a shortage of commuter parking and possible ways in which they could work to develop mutually beneficial solutions.
Roth said she and Hornik each reviewed their town’s present inventory of commuter parking locations with an eye toward developing more places where parking could be permitted.
She said Manalapan is seeking state grants that would provide for traffic studies to be conducted, “because we can’t just say we want to expand certain (parking) areas if they impact a major road.”
Roth referred specifically to Manalapan’s Franklin Lane commuter parking lot, noting that because of a conservation easement and the proximity of the Holiday North residential development, “we’ve gone as far as we can there.”
In explaining that Marlboro is faced with the same constraints when it comes to commuter parking, the mayor said she and Hornik have promised to work together to develop shared initiatives.
Roth said she and Hornik also discussed the possibility of Marlboro getting involved with interlocal agreements with which Manalapan is already involved, such as an animal control shared services agreement Manalapan has with Freehold Township and Freehold Borough.
Roth said she and Hornik discussed the possibility of Manalapan and Marlboro entering an agreement to share the purchase and maintenance of certain municipal equipment and vehicles.
They continued a discussion about the possibility of Manalapan residents being allowed to pay for the use of the Marlboro Swim Club. The discussion began last year when Township Committeeman Andrew Lucas was serving as Manalapan’s mayor.
Roth said Hornik told her he would get back to her with pricing and a registration schedule.
She said they also discussed the possibility of allowing children who participate in Manalapan’s summer recreation program to use the Marlboro Swim Club.
Roth said that after having discussions with Mona Cholowinski, the township’s recreation superintendent, the plan was to be able to provide swimming on a daily basis for Manalapan residents who register their children for the town’s summer recreation program.
The mayor said the way things stand now, she and the other members of the Township Committee would be looking to see an agreement reached that would provide a daily or four-time-a-week swimming opportunity by entering into an alternating schedule with the Marlboro Swim Club, the Monmouth Heights Swim Club in Manalapan and the Stonehurst Swim Club in Freehold Township.