The BERKELEY Times Vol. 27 - No. 2
In This Week’s Edition
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
Hearing For Senior Development In WOBM Pit Pushed Back Again
BREAKING NEWS @
jerseyshoreonline.com
Dr. Izzy’s Sound News Page 18
The WOBM pit is a natural area frequented by off-road vehicles.
Dear Pharmacist Page 19
Inside The Law Page 21
Dear Joel Page 31
By Chris Lundy BERKELEY – The Planning Board hearing for the Berkeley 9 Estates in the former WOBM pit has been postponed yet again. A developer wants to build houses and commercial structures attached to a quiet neighborhood off Route 9, near Grant Concourse.
Radio station WOBM used to have property out there but it’s vacant now. It’s just an expanse of dirt trails. It’s known locally as the WOBM pit, especially by riders of off-road vehicles. The actual plan for the development could change by the time it gets heard. In 2019, it
was 60 homes and some commercial property. At a recent Planning Board meeting, township plan ner James Oris said it was senior housing. Requests to his office to determine if the number of homes had changed, or if there were amenities like a clubhouse, were not returned for this article.
─Photo by Chris Lundy He said to the planning board that the developer had met with the public. One part of the feedback was that the residents were concerned about overcrowding in schools. As senior housing, that would reduce that issue. They would be standalone homes, as (Pit - See Page 4)
Local Businesses Donate For Habitat House
By Chris Lundy BERKELEY – When you have a good cause, people simply want to help. In this case, the good c a u s e i s No r t h e r n Ocean Habitat for Humanity. They partner with families who are looking for a “handup, not a hand-out” in owning their first
home. The families put in “sweat equity” in helping to build the house that they will eventually live in. Recently, a “raising the wall” ceremony was held for their 20 th home. It’s located on a property on Grand Central Parkway in Berkeley Township. The land was part of an
estate given to Habitat. Nicole Abreu will be moving into that 20 th house in Aug ust or September, once it’s done. She’s a single mom with two child ren. Her oldest is already in Berkeley schools so it worked out that he’ll be able to stay in district. Roofing by Carl’s,
a division of Carl’s Fencing, Decking and Home Improvements, donat e d t he roof. “We’re happy that we can be a part of this and a part of the community. We feel very blessed ,” said Ca rl Del Pizzo Sr., who has been a board member with Northern Ocean Habitat for five years.
He said that the company is privileged to join the other sponsors to contribute to the new home, and hopes to be involved in NOHFH’s 21st home starting in the fall. Randy Laing, owner of Chap Construction, had his company frame the house as a 100% (Habitat - See Page 5)
June 26, 2021
COVID Report More Positive Than Past
By Stephanie Faughnan TOMS RIVER – As the liaison to the Ocean County Health Department, Commissioner Gerry P. Little has delivered his share of bad news since officials began reporting COVID-19 updates last March. For a long while, the focus was on documenting numbers – both positive cases and coronavirus-related deaths. Then, fast forward and Little’s report included acknowledging the difficulty in securing sufficient COVID-19 vaccine allocations. During the height of the virus, health department officials gave daily reports of positive test results in excess of three digits. It also was not uncommon for individual municipalities to document more than 100 cases in one day. Hospitals in Ocean County went on divert several times. Nursing homes became overrun with COVID-19 outbreaks. And – thousands ultimately lost their lives to the novel coronavirus. In a county with more than a third of residents over 65, the struggle hit close to home. The next battle was locating enough vaccines for those considering it as an option. When Little delivered his COVID-19 report at the most recent Ocean County Commissioner’s meeting, the first thing he did was remark on the smiling faces he saw from the dais. County directors concerned about crowding meetings returned to the meeting room for the first time in ages. Most assembled felt comfortable with removing their masks. “We have to thank our health department for this massive response,” said Little. “Overnight, we only had 19 new confirmed cases, which brings the total to 65,804.” Only eight municipalities throughout the county reported at least one case on the day of Little’s report. Lakewood led the list, followed by Toms River and Jackson, which each documented three confirmed cases each. “Long-term care facilities had six of the cases,” Little added. “For comparison purposes, there was a time that fifty nursing homes in the county that had an outbreak.” (COVID - See Page 4)
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