Officials introduce other ordinances
by Jane Meggitt, Special Writer
MILLSTONE — Negotiating the intersection at Scooter’s Corner is not for the faint of heart. Millstone and Paint Island Springs Roads and Route 524 meet at this juncture in an odd configuration left over from the pre-automobile era, when Route 524 was better known by its other moniker, Stagecoach Road.
At the June 19 Township Committee meeting, Mayor Nancy Grbelja said that the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders, who hold jurisdiction over Route 524, will vote on expending money to construct a roundabout at Scooter’s Corner at their next meeting on June 27.
”They might have to acquire property to put in the roundabout,” Mayor Grbelja said. “They hope to break ground by next spring.”
Committeeman Robert Kinsey said the township has been working with the county freeholders on the issue for the last five to seven years.
”That intersection is horrible. The county wanted a traffic light. We didn’t want that,” Committeeman Kinsey said, adding that the roundabout will reduce speed and the number of accidents while keeping the traffic flow moving.
”The alternatives were a lot more intrusive,” he added.
Also at the meeting, the governing body introduced several ordinances, which will be scheduled for public hearings July 17.
One of the measures is a bond ordinance totaling $800,000 for the township’s 2013 road improvement projects.
The projects include the middle portion of Battleground Road; new curbing on Alpine Drive, Cedar Court, Lakeview Drive and Agress Road; repairs on Stillhouse Road from Stagecoach to Backbone Hill Road, and improvements to Disbrow Hill Road, Prodelin Way, Pine Drive, Waters Lane, Deer Trail Drive, Algonquin Terrace, Hampton Hollow Drive and the Millstone community center.
Another ordinance would define kennels as “a commercial establishment in which more than five dogs and/or domesticated animals more than one year old are housed for the purposes of grooming, breeding, boarding training and/or sale.”
Mayor Grbelja said the ordinance is not establishing a pet limit, but clarifying the definition of kennel as a commercial enterprise. She said anyone boarding dogs was operating as a commercial enterprise, and the township also wanted to ensure that no one was operating a puppy mill. She said the proposed ordinance will not impact hobby breeders, who might breed one litter a year.
Township Engineer Matt Shafai addressed another proposed ordinance regarding site plans that if adopted would make it easier for small business owners to expand buildings if the expansion doesn’t exceed more than 500 square feet or 10 percent of the existing square footage.
Currently, such expansions must go before the planning board for site plan approval adding thousands of dollars to the cost, Mr. Shafai said. Under the proposed ordinance, small additions can be handled through the office of the engineer or planner, for an overall fee of $2,250, as long as the site plan does not contain variances or waivers.
Another measure introduced by the committee would address soil erosion resulting from Hurricane Sandy.
Mayor Grbelja said that residents started bringing in truckloads of soil, but under township ordinances, an escrow of between $6,000 and $7,000 was required, because the general ordinances referred primarily to mines.
Mr. Shafai said the proposed ordinance would allow residents to bring in 40 cubic yards of soil, approximately two truckloads, once a year at no charge. If bringing in between 40 and 400 cubic yards, they would need a minor soil removal and import permit. Those bringing in over 400 cubic yards of soil must go before the planning board for approval.