Freehold Township sets parking prohibitions near high school

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – Saying they were doing it in the interest of safety, members of the Township Committee have taken action to prohibit parking along streets near Freehold Township High School on Elton-Adelphia Road.

On Sept. 26, the committee adopted an ordinance prohibiting vehicles from stopping or standing on the south side of Elton-Adelphia Road (the side of the street the high school is on).

The existing parking spaces on Elton-Adelphia Road in front of the high school will remain in place, according to township officials.

The prohibitions regarding vehicles stopping or standing begin at the high school’s driveway; the prohibition by the easternmost driveway extends east for 1,640 feet and the prohibition by the westernmost driveway extends east for 200 feet.

The ordinance prohibits stopping or standing on both sides of nearby Old Post Road and Woodstock Place from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on school days. That prohibition begins at Elton-Adelphia Road; the Old Post Road prohibition extends 150 feet north toward Coachman Drive and the Woodstock Place prohibition extends 150 feet north toward Heritage Drive.

The ordinance allows parking by permit only on both sides of Old Post Road and Woodstock Place from 8-10 a.m. On both streets, permit parking is allowed beginning 150 feet north of Elton-Adelphia Road; the permit parking on Old Post Road extends from the street’s remaining length to Stonehurst Boulevard and the permit parking on Woodstock Place extends from the street’s remaining length to Heritage Drive.

A previous version of the ordinance prohibited stopping or standing at all times only at the easternmost driveway of the Marshall W. Errickson School, extending east for 1,012 feet. The prohibition by the westernmost driveway, extending east for 200 feet, was the only time-effective prohibition in the previous version, and was effective from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on school days.

The new ordinance replaces the prohibition on the easternmost driveway of the Errickson elementary school with the prohibition on the easternmost driveway of the high school and makes the prohibition on the westernmost driveway effective at all times.

The previous version of the ordinance also allowed parking by permit only on the entire length of both sides of Old Post Road from 8-10 a.m. and both sides of Woodstock Place extending from Elton-Adelphia Road to the intersection with Heritage Drive from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The stopping and standing regulations on these streets were changed in the new ordinance to conform with the prohibitions stated above.

In other business, the committee presented a proclamation honoring the 50th anniversary of the East Freehold Fire Company, which serves Fire District 2, east of Route 9.

According to the proclamation, the East Freehold Fire Company was organized in 1967 and is headquartered on Dutch Lane Road. The company annually responds to between 450 and 500 calls in Fire District 2 and in neighboring communities.

The East Freehold Fire Company is one of two all-volunteer organizations that provide firefighting services in Freehold Township. Fire District 1, west of Route 9, is served by the Freehold Township Independent Fire Company No. 1, which has its headquarters on Stillwells Corner Road next to the municipal building.