EAST GREENWICH TWP. – During the first East Greenwich Committee meeting of the new year held on Jan. 10, Mayor Dale Archer announced that the township has received a large grant from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP).
According to Archer, the NJDEP grant totals $6 million dollars and will first be utilized to install a filtration system on Well No. 3, located in the Mount Royal area of the township.
“This is the equivalent of winning the New Jersey Lottery,” Archer said regarding the rarity and excitement the township committee feels regarding the grant. “$6 million would have, in other words, had to have been passed down to our residents in regards to debt for this township.”
The filtration system and its installation will cost a total of $193,509, all of which was authorized unanimously by the committee during their Jan. 10 meeting. Additionally, all money spent to-date regarding the project, which Archer estimates to be roughly $700,000, will be completely reimbursed by the NJDEP grant.
“We’ve been working on trying to obtain this grant for well over four years,” Archer said. “And $6 million is just absolutely outstanding.”
Also discussed by the township committee is the current disarray of Whisky Mill Road in Clarksboro. Currently, the road is littered with potholes, uneven surfaces, gaps and other potentially dangerous imperfections.
Although a developer for this road has been selected for the last five years, the township committee states that they have been negligent in finalizing the repavement. Due to this, the township council is requesting that their solicitor send another letter to the developer to discuss recalling the bond meant to provide funding for the asphalt and paving.
“Unfortunately, Whisky Mill Road is in such disrepair and disarray, and it is a danger to our residents,” Archer said. “We are going to fight the developer, and we are going to do what’s right for our residents.”
The township committee also authorized the township’s participation in the Defense Logistics Agency’s program that allows for East Greenwich to request and access Department and Defense Equipment. East Greenwich has been a part of this program for a number of years to help support the township’s police department. The Main Street Baseball Club’s raffle license was also approved for March 31 and Sep. 30, although the traveling baseball team has yet to announce details for either of these events.
By Berry Andres
