ALLENTOWN – Borough Council members have voted to accept the wording that is expected to be included on new “gateway signs” that will be placed at six locations in Allentown.
The signs were a topic of discussion during the council’s Jan. 21 meeting at Borough Hall.
Allison Arnone, who chairs the Parks and Public Spaces Committee, presented the panel’s recommendations to the governing body. The new signs will replace signs that are weathered and no longer appropriate, she said.
Arnone’s remarks followed a comment from Mayor Thomas Fritts who said, “We have sign pollution throughout the borough that we need to address.”
“Gateway signs are meant for vehicular traffic so drivers know where they are entering and leaving,” Arnone said, explaining that the goal of the initiative is to give Allentown “a brand and an identity.”
On signs in the community and in other ways in which the town is identified, such as on internet websites, Allentown is variously referred to as a borough, a village and an historic village, she said.
“It’s a little bit of an identity crisis we are having. The message we convey needs to be consistent and it is not. A common thread improves a town’s brand and image,” Arnone told council members and residents.
She said the new gateway signs that will be placed at six locations will adhere to industry best practices in terms of the size of the lettering and the message provided.
The front of all six gateway signs will say “Est. 1706,” “Welcome to Allentown,” “Crossroads of the American Revolution” and “A National Historic District.”
The back of five gateway signs will say “Est. 1731,” “Entering Upper Freehold Township,” and “Breadbasket of the American Revolution.”
The back of the gateway sign at Allentown’s border with Robbinsville will say “Est. 1706,” “Thank you for Visiting Allentown” and “Crossroads of the American Revolution.”
Council President Robert Strovinsky, Councilman Michael Drennan, Councilwoman Martha Johnson, Councilman John A. Elder III and Councilman Day Payson voted “yes” on a motion to accept the wording Arnone proposed on behalf of the committee. Councilwoman Angela Anthony was absent.
Fritts expressed concern that the word “village” will not appear on the gateway signs. He said Allentown officials are pursuing a renewal of the borough’s village status as determined by the state based on certain criteria.
“Some people see that (use of ‘village’) as important. I question not using that word. There has to be a component with ‘village,’ ” the mayor said.
Arnone said a driver only has a few seconds to read a gateway sign and does not care about the use of a word such as “village” and what that word may mean to the community. A driver wants to know where he is, she said, adding that “village” could be incorporated in other ways in Allentown.
In other news, Arnone confirmed that in December the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders approved a $125,000 grant for the initial development phase of the Sgt. George Ashby Memorial Park.
Ashby Park is planned to be developed on a 3-acre parcel behind the Allentown United Methodist Church on Church Street. The borough owns the property.
Borough officials previously said Allentown would match the county’s $125,000 grant with funding from Allentown’s municipal open space tax.
Arnone has said Phase I of Ashby Park’s development may include the removal of overgrown grass, the removal of trees, some earth work, the planting of trees around a planned pathway, and cleaning up the areas near the proposed entrances on Broad Street and at Hamilton and Mechanic streets.
“We hope to have Phase I done by the end of the summer,” she told council members during the Jan. 21 meeting.