STOCKTON: Council plans Wilson Drive work

By John Tredrea, Special Writer
   A $450,000 bond ordinance that would pay for work on Wilson Drive was introduced by the Stockton Borough Council during its Nov. 12 meeting, borough Clerk Michele Hovan said.
   Improvements to drainage along Wilson Drive and to the road itself would be paid for if the measure is adopted, as expected, during the council’s December meeting.
   A public hearing on the proposed bond ordinance will precede the adoption vote.
   Ms. Hovan said that, under the measure, a $165,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation (DOT) would pay for part of the Wilson Drive project, with the borough paying the balance.
   She said the plan for the Wilson Drive project is “to design it over the winter, put it out to bid in the spring and do the actual work in the summer.”
   Ms. Hovan said the council has decided to purchase an emergency generator for Borough Hall, which lost power for days due to Hurricane Sandy.
   This power loss forced the borough to place its election day polling station at the town’s firehouse. An emergency generator borrowed from the county Board of Elections made that possible, she said.
   Council already has begun the process of purchasing the generator for Borough Hall. “It will be better if, in the event of an emergency that causes loss of electric power in town, residents could see that the lights were still on in Borough Hall and that their local government is up and running,” she said.
   Power was restored to Stockton, which is serviced by Jersey Central Power and Light, on Nov. 8, two days after Election Day.
   She noted that the borough had prepared an emergency evacuation order before Sandy hit town. It wasn’t necessary to implement the order, because all indication as the storm approached were that there would be no serious flooding due to the storm, and, in fact, there was not.
   ”Council also is looking into better ways to communicate with people during a serious storm that causes power outages and other serious problems,” she said.