By David Kilby, Special Writer
CHESTERFIELD — Thanks to a grant received from the state Department of Transportation, the township can go full speed ahead with its ongoing projects to repave Ward Avenue as well as to pave the parking lots of its Community Association building and library.
Chesterfield Township applied for a NJDOT Municipal Aid grant for Phase 1 of a two-phase project to repave Ward Avenue from the Village of Crosswicks to Hogback Road, said Christopher Trebisky, township engineer.
The NJDOT awarded the township with a $200,000 grant, which is the same amount it applied for, and Chesterfield then awarded the contract for the project to South State Inc. of Wrightstown, also the contractor performing the paving work for the Turnpike bridge on Ward Avenue for $189,000.
A couple of months ago, South State approached the township about closing Ward Avenue for a period of two months to allow the company to remove the existing Turnpike bridge, Mr. Trebisky said.
”We allowed them to close Ward Avenue under the condition that they extend their paving from the new bridge into Crosswicks Village,” he said. “They also agreed to pave the parking lots for the Community Association and the library.”
Because the township made this arrangement, it was able to complete the paving that it had originally planned to do as part of Phase 2 of the Ward Avenue project now, Mr. Trebisky said.
It was the grant from the NJDOT that made this possible.
”Here’s something where we were able to help the town without having the money come out of the community,” said Deputy Mayor Richard LoCascio, at the Chesterfield Township Committee meeting Aug. 23.
”The NJDOT municipal aid program is in my opinion a very successful program in that it allows the municipalities to target roadways that need the most attention and repair them for the benefit of the residents in a very efficient manner,” Mr. Trebisky said.

