EATONTOWN – The Eatontown Borough Council plans to appropriate $9.25 million for improvements to municipal property and the acquisition of capital equipment.
On June 23, council members introduced a bond ordinance providing the appropriation. The ordinance authorizes the issuance of $8.46 million in bonds and notes to finance a portion of the costs.
A public hearing on the ordinance is scheduled for July 14. The members of the governing body may adopt the bond ordinance that evening.
According to the ordinance, a $340,000 grant the borough expects to received from the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) will help finance the $9.25 million appropriation. The remaining costs will be covered by a down payment of $445,322.
An estimated $6.95 million will be dedicated toward improvements to borough property at the former Fort Monmouth, which has been undergoing redevelopment.
According to the ordinance, an estimated $766,600 will fund the acquisition of municipal vehicles and equipment, including two hooklift trucks with dump body, plow and spreader, switch diffusion coupler for loaders and brush/leaf claw-rockland for the Road Division; a mason dump truck for the Park/Tree Division; a service truck with air compressor, automotive updates, forklift attachment and forklift for the auto shop; a vehicle for the Inspections of Buildings Division; and two vehicles for the Eatontown Police Department.
The 2021 road program will use an estimated $650,500, with the $340,000 DOT grant and an estimated $294,975 in bonds and notes helping to cover the costs. Work will include miscellaneous sidewalk, paving and road repairs; Americans with Disabilities Act ramp upgrades; improvements to Industrial Way West and Pinebrook Road; and road analysis and sewer repair.
Various improvements to public buildings, grounds and signs will cost an estimated $441,846, according to the ordinance. The improvements include a rubber resurfacing of the playground area at the Eatontown Community Center/Preschool; a key fob system for the Borough Hall main floor; an awning over the Borough Hall side door; the replacement of the Borough Hall boiler; the installation of a camera/intercom system at 68 Broad St.; the acquisition of computer equipment; and the replacement of carpeting in the main area of the Eatontown Public Library.
The $441,846 appropriation will also cover the repair of the museum building at 75 Broad St.; duct cleaning throughout Borough Hall; the modernization of the sewer system at 68 Broad St.; Husky Brook Park rubber and resurfacing under a proposed outdoor fitness area; the acquisition of new playground equipment for Husky Brook Park; the installation of a solar outdoor lighting fixture and a 6-foot link chain fence at Nicodemus Recreation Center; and the installation of a sound system, speakers and a permanent flat screen and the acquisition of an outdoor deck table, chairs and umbrella for the Senior Center; improvements to the recycle plant at Lewis Street; and tank work at the Eatontown Fire Department firehouse and the Department of Public Works garage at Pinebrook, according to the ordinance.
An estimated $441,500 appropriation will be used to acquire machinery and equipment, including a borough-wide phone system; a command center for Office of Emergency Management vehicles; 50 traffic barriers; ballistic vest with rifle plates; gym equipment and repair; seven office computers and equipment; and five mobile video recorders.
A $419,425 appropriation will be used for items to include laser fiche document storage and licensing server; a shared borough storage building and portable radar trailer for the police department; and turnout gear, hose replacement, pagers and hydraulic ram for the Fire/Water Department.