Earlier this month, officials took time out of a recent Township Committee meeting to announce that Hillsborough had once again been bestowed with the New Jersey Smart Workplaces Platinum Award.
Mayor Frank DelCore described the township’s achievement during the Dec. 13 Township Committee meeting.
“Hillsborough Township was once again honored at the Annual RideWise recognition breakfast as one of only two municipalities in Somerset County to receive Platinum status in the program,” he said.
The Tenth Annual recognition breakfast was held on Dec. 1, 2016, where Somerset County business and government leaders gathered to recognize programs implemented to improve commuters’ quality of life.
RideWise is a Transportation Management Association (TMA) based in Somerset County that serves as a source for sustainable travel and alternatives that improve mobility, reduce traffic and decrease carbon emissions.
New Jersey Smart Workplaces is a statewide program that recognizes employers and municipalities who show vision and leadership by providing commuter benefits to employees.
Since 2014, when Hillsborough became the first municipality in the county to achieve platinum status, the township has consistently earned the rank.
In 2013, Hillsborough earned a silver ranking.
Employers are nominated at the Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze level according to the scope and of programs offered.
In order to achieve the rank, Mayor DelCore said the township had moved forward with a number of initiatives throughout the year, such as: maintaining an ongoing relationship with RIDEWISE; including alternative commuting information in new hire packets; encouraging employee registration to traffic alerting sites and messaging systems; teleconferencing utilization; participating in the 2016 Green Living Wellness and Health Fair; hosting a bike safety presentation for employees; promoting programs through the Friday e-newsletter; and establishing a designated bike area for employees who wish to bike to work.
“This recognition further demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and improving the quality of life for employees who work within the township,” Committeewoman Gloria McCauley, who serves as the liaison to the Sustainable Hillsborough Steering Committee, said.
Along with the municipality, official representatives also nominated local businesses, who were also recognized earlier this month.
Highlighted businesses and organizations within Hillsborough were: Bridgeway Senior Healthcare and Duke Farms, which received the platinum award; Reckitt Benckiser, who received the gold award; and Natural Systems Utilities, which earned a silver award.
“The participation of these Hillsborough businesses and organizations shows their commitment to working towards improving commuter’s quality of life while being successful in their line of work,” Committeeman
Greg Burchette, liaison to the Hillsborough Environmental Commission, said. “They have taken the lead to inspire other businesses in the community to participate.”
In other news, the township was also recently lauded for its sustainability efforts with its fifth consecutive Sustainable Jersey certification.
Hillsborough Township is one of only 25 New Jersey municipalities to have attained certification at the silver-level, the program’s highest distinction, in 2016.
According to Committeewoman McCauley, the township has been working toward sustainability for the last decade, with efforts stemming from local community and business needs.
“Sustainability and planning has been ongoing with the focus being to plan for the future to ensure our community has balanced economic, environmental and social objectives, developed with public input,” she said.
To become Sustainable Jersey certified at the silver-level, Hillsborough Township submitted documentation to show it had completed a balance of the required Sustainability actions, meeting a minimum of 350 action points.
The township received credits toward its 2017 re-certification by: supporting local businesses, hunting and wildlife management; the Mayor’s wellness campaign; participating in the NJ Smart Workplaces program; and purchasing recycled paper.
Previous actions taken by Hillsborough Township in recent years include hosting the Green Living & Wellness Fair, establishing the Shop Hillsborough program, designating its parks as smoke free areas, providing a community paper shredding day, and supporting a community garden.
“We are very proud of this achievement and look to the future for continued improvements and success of this program,” Committeewoman McCauley said.
