By Vic Monaco, Managing Editor
The consolidation study everyone knew about just got a shot in the arm.
The state Department of Community Affairs has approved a $10,000 grant to expand the feasibility study of having East Windsor take over Hightstown police coverage to include a review of the two towns’ court systems, township Mayor East Windsor said Wednesday.
”This additional grant amount will pay for an independent review of East Windsor and Hightstown municipal courts to determine if significant financial benefits for our taxpayers could be realized by a shared arrangement,” she said. “This study component also will link to the police study by further analyzing costs and logistics of providing police coverage for court sessions, with or without a shared court arrangement.”
Mayor Mironov said the Patriot Consulting Group, of Monmouth Beach, which was hired by both towns in the summer for the police feasibility study, has indicated the court review would taken about two months.
”Meanwhile, the police study, which is near completion, has been awaiting what we anticipated would be a positive response on this additional grant so that both the police and court reviews could be finalized together,” she added.
The two towns approved the police study in August, and the DCA previously awarded the towns $40,583 to finance it. That study was expected to be completed in November.
Hightstown and East Windsor have been talking about police consolidation since 2006 as a means to address about $1.6 million in annual police-related costs in the borough.
Hightstown Borough Administrator Candace Gallagher has said the net revenue from its court system was $74,000 in 2005, $110,000 in 2006 and $179,000 in 2007.
