By Frank Mustac, Contributor
The borough will be adding grant money to its municipal budget to help pay for protecting its police officers.
According to Pennington Borough Councilman Charles “Chico” Marciante, approximately $900 from the state will be granted to Pennington to help pay for body armor for the Pennington Borough Police Department.The money comes from the state Body Armor Fund grant program, which offers funds to local law enforcement to offset the costs of purchasing body armor vests for officers.
The program is supported by the Body Armor Replacement Fund, a non-lapsing revolving fund financed through a $1 fee assessed on convictions for motor vehicle and traffic offenses and on forfeitures of bail, according to the state Division of Criminal Justice, which administers the program.
The borough employs five police officers within its department.
Nearby Hopewell Township is receiving $2,905 through the same grant program for its police department.
In addition to receiving the body armor grant, the borough council authorized the submission of a grant application for federal funds for construction of the Downtown Streetscape Phase II project in town.
The move was made during the council’s Nov. 2 meeting.
Up to $1 million from the Transportation Alternatives Grant program is available to a municipality by way of a competitive process administered by the state Department of Transportation (NJDOT).
If Pennington receives the grant, the funds would help pay for sidewalk and curb improvements on Delaware Avenue to the east and west of the section of North Main Street – an area that has recently undergone upgrade work. The funds would also help pay for a continuation of improvements on South Main Street, according to language in a resolution approved by the Council.
In other news, the borough is seeking an extension of a deadline to June 15, 2017 to receive previously approved state grant money in the amount of $283,500 for reconstruction of King George Road.
Pennington had already obtained two deadline extensions from NJDOT after a grant agreement was forged in mid-2014 with NJDOT to accept the funds.
NJDOT told Pennington that failure to award a construction contract within a set deadline period would jeopardize the use of state funds for the King George Road project.
