NORTH BRUNSWICK — The Township Council isn’t on summer break just yet, and they discussed several important items at Monday night’s workshop meeting.
With the upcoming budget season fast approaching, the council must decide if they wish to restore money to the library’s budget in order to continue a program with Laurel House Middlesex.
Laurel House is a facility that provides social, education and employment opportunities for people with ongoing mental issues. Located in New Brunswick, the “clubhouse” offers support in a surrogate family-type setting.
Laurel House has been utilizing the services of the North Brunswick Library for months now, allowing members to legitimately work there, handling tasks such as dusting, shelving and helping members.
“It’s something I need,” library Director Cheryl McBride said, noting that the library was named Employer of the Year at a recent fundraiser.
The Temporary Employment Program (TEP) offers a work environment without the anxiety of applying for a job or going through an interview process.
Ray, who lost his job four and a half years ago, said he “didn’t know how bad depression could be” and visited Laurel House at the behest of his therapist. He worked at the library for nine months, which provided him with money, confidence and a new library card.
“I loved it. Having to get up at a certain time again, having to get there … having something you actually felt like you were doing every day” was satisfying, he said.
Robert, who is a diagnosed schizophrenic, said he has become more socialized and less isolated, after not working for about 15 years.
“[This] proved to me I can work again,” he said. “Being there is sort of instruction enough. You get to practice how to deal with other people and to break out of your shell and to get into a normalized environment.”
The members learn skills so that they can care for the clubhouse, either through clerical, culinary or maintenance work.
On another note, council members have been debating revisions to Chapter 266 “Rental Housing” and Chapter 197 “Housing Standards and Occupational Limits” in the Code of North Brunswick.
In order to maintain property values and keep the quality of life at a high standard, new landlord registration fees are being considered.
There could be a new three-year landlord registration requirement for singlefamily, two-family, and two-family owner-occupied units with an associated fee of $30, to be renewed every three years on Oct. 1, if the ordinances are passed during Tuesday night’s council meeting.
Failure to do so would result in a penalty of $250 for the first offense and $500 for a second or subsequent offense.
If there are any changes in the information on the Landlord Registration Statement, an amended document must be filed within 30 days or face a penalty of $150 for failure to register within 30 days, $250 for failure to register within 60 days, and $500 for failure to register within or after 120 days.
Landlord registration is also being moved from the Township Clerk’s Office to the Department of Community Development.
“We have determined that too often our existing landlord registration information is either outdated or completely missing,” said Michael Hritz, director of Community Development. “When this happens, tenants are ill-served and the township is deprived of the resources necessary to be in regular contact with a property owner when maintenance issues are discovered or brought to our attention.”
If the revisions are passed, the law will go into effect on Aug. 1. Existing landlords who are already registered with the township will have until Oct. 1 to register under the new terms.
In addition, the council will decide if existing streets in town can be named for township veterans in an honorary fashion.
Because new housing developments have generally been put on hold and new streets are not being constructed, a program initiated by Councilman Robert Davis a few years back to have new streets bear the surnames of veterans in town has been inactive .
There were about 60 names on the list, and 14 had to be pulled because of the dissolution of two housing plans. Thus far, only three veterans’ names have been placed permanently within the town.
“Lots of vets are from World War II and Korea. They’re getting up there [in age],” Davis said. “Unfortunately, I have to tell them right now we don’t have any streets.”
“It’s not a bad idea to honor the men who served, and quite frankly, give it a little more meaning … than a development they may never even see,” council President Carlo Socio added.
The criteria for selecting an honorary street and specific veteran would have to be determined.
Furthermore, Hritz announced that the Department of Transportation has confirmed the conversion of the shoulder lane of Route 1 south between Thomas Avenue and Finnegans Lane into a right-turn lane as of next April.
During peak hours, about 600 of the 2,500 vehicles traveling along Route 1 make a right turn onto Finnegans Lane, or approximately one in five, Hritz said. Contact Jennifer Amato at [email protected].