Pine Barrens Tribune March 27, 2021-April 9, 2021

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Vol. 5 – No. 26 ♦

The News Leader of the Pines

♦

March 27, 2021 – April 9, 2021

Tabernacle Approves Feasibility Studies of Proposed Upgrades to Township Center

DRIVING FORCE VS. DEMOLITION

By Andy Milone Staff Writer

Area Car-Racing Enthusiasts Gearing Up to Publicly Protest Plan to Replace Iconic Atco Dragway with Auto Auction Lot

By Andy Milone Staff Writer

WATERFORD—Anger has been building for the past eight months over the proposed transformation of Atco Dragway, an iconic six-decade-old venue for drag-racing enthusiasts in Waterford Township with a reputation as one of the busiest and most popular such tracks in the country, into a storage lot for thousands of damaged and disabled cars waiting to be auctioned online.

A conditional-use and site-plan application to bring that turn of events about was submitted at the end of last year to the Waterford Township Joint Land Use Board, but multiple technical hiccups and lengthy professional testimonies have left several hundred area residents having to wait their turn for a chance to decry the dragway’s prospective demise before the board.

Now, it appears that the pent-up fury at the prospect of losing the racetrack,

which is also used for swap meets and car shows, may finally have an opportunity to be unleashed at a virtual meeting scheduled for Monday, March 29 at 7 p.m.

“It looks promising that at least a portion of the public will get their chance to speak,” said Township Clerk Dawn Liedka about the upcoming board meeting.

In the meantime, according to its Facebook page, the dragway should See RACING/ Page 19

TA B E R N AC L E —T h e c e n t e r o f Tabernacle Township, where Carranza Road and County Route 532 intersect, could be in for some significant alterations if feasibility studies for a couple of proposed projects put forth by Committeeman Joseph Barton, which the township committee authorized to be conducted at a nearly two-hour workshop session on March 8, should prove to have favorable results.

Such endeavors would involve the former Tabernacle Schoolhouse property and a public sewer system that are both presently owned by the Tabernacle Township Board of Education. The township’s former landfill could conceivably be involved as well.

Barton’s first proposal, which passed by a 3-1 vote, authorized the township’s professionals to study the feasibility of subdividing the old school property on Carranza Road, which was formerly home to the Sequoia Alternative Program, with hopes that the municipality could acquire two parcels in a governmental transaction for the token price of a dollar.

One portion he had in mind was the grassy area on the north side of the school building for future public use as a recreational area with a gazebo, a staging site for a tree lighting during the holidays or possibly as a memorial, such as one commemorating the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The south side of the property containing the old one-room “Friendship School” is the other parcel that the township could acquire in order to avoid possibly having a future buyer ask the Tabernacle Historical See TABERNACLE/ Page 18

INDEX Business Directory... 21

Easter Services.......... 6

Marketplace.............. 22

Calendar of Events... 20

Job Board................. 23

Puzzles..................... 16

Easter Fun.................. 3

Local News................. 2

Worship Guide............ 8

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Page 2 ♦

LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

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Saturday, March 27, 2021

Unexpected Increase in State Aid Stemming from Rise in Enrollment Benefits Pinelands Regional Taxpayers Tentative Budget, However, Would Result in Increased Taxes in Two Townships, With Bass River Most Adversely Impacted

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

LITTLE EGG HARBOR—Taxpayers in two of four municipalities that comprise the Pinelands Regional School District will likely see an increase in their regional school taxes for the upcoming school year, while taxpayers in the remaining two towns will likely see some relief.

But a “really positive” piece of news for local taxpayers, according to a school official, is that the impact of the potential tax burden is expected to be lessened some by an unexpected increase in state aid, the result of rising district enrollment for the first time in at least seven years.

A “tentative” $39,837,604 budget for the district’s 2021-22 school year was approved March 16 by the Pinelands Regional Board of Education, and will now be sent to the executive county superintendent and New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) for review and approval. A public hearing and vote for final adoption is scheduled for April 27 at 6 p.m.

“I think we all understand we are at a critical crossroads for our community, and as we look to return to more in-person instruction, we have an obligation to ensure our students are provided a thorough and efficient education in accordance with state law,” said Business Administrator Nick Brown. “But we also have an obligation to our community to spend responsibly and keep taxes in check during these fairly unprecedented times. The proposed budget accomplishes both those objectives.”

The district is proposing general fund expenditures of $34,169,708, special revenue expenditures (matching contributions for grants, etc.) of $2,079,177 and a debt service payment of $3,588,719. Taxes to be raised, less anticipated revenues (including state aid), amount to $23,673,534.

The proportion of school taxes that each municipality in the regional school district is responsible for is based on a state formula, according to Brown, and when “Pinelands formed back in 1979” it was decided to base the regional allocation here on a “combination of enrollment, equalized enrollment and equalized value.”

For this upcoming school year, Brown noted, there is a “fairly significant swing” in proportionment, with Little Egg Harbor and Bass River townships “picking up a full percentage point of the budget,” while Tuckerton Borough and Eagleswood Township “will shed a full percentage point or more from their share of the budget.”

Bass River Township, according to Brown, will “see the most adverse impact,” with a home assessed at the township average of $215,876 currently expected to pay $306 more in regional school taxes compared to last year.

“One of the reasons you see a little more of an impact in Bass River is the ratable base is smaller,” Brown said. “So, there are not as many homes or taxpayers to spread that additional cost across.”

In Little Egg Harbor, a home assessed at the township average of $201,328 would pay $45 more in regional school taxes compared to last year.

However, in Tuckerton a home assessed at the township average of $215,469 would see a decrease in regional school taxes of $152, and in Eagleswood, a home assessed at the township average of $249,441 would see a savings of $96 compared to last year.

Pinelands Regional officials were bracing for a potentially more significant impact to regional taxpayers, but had received “a bit of good news this year” that the district will be receiving $12,830,747 in state aid for the upcoming school year, or a bit of an increase over last year.

“We were anticipating cuts in aid, but we are seeing increases in aid,” Brown maintained. “… It is one noticeable trend that is really positive for us.”

Brown attributed the unexpected increase in state aid to “a big increase” in district enrollment, or from 1,535 students in the 2019-20 school year to 1,585 students in the 2020-21 school year. Enrollment had been on the decline in the district since at least the 2014-15 school year, when 1,750 students were reported enrolled in Pinelands Regional.

“That represents plus 50 kids on our enrollment,” Brown noted. “This is an important benchmark for determining state aid. ‘Money follows the kids,’ as they say.”

Additionally, the district, which had a strong financial year despite the Coronavirus pandemic (see separate story), is in a position to allow more than $600,000 in bank cap to expire, referring to “tax levy the board is allowed to collect, but has not.”

“And after it expires, it won’t be collected,” Brown contended. “… That money will never be collected by the school board and is now a savings to taxpayers in our community.”

The district, the business administrator noted, is now also realizing a savings from five shared service agreements, including for superintendent, business administrator, director of special services, maintenance supervisor and food service. It also has taken a more aggressive approach to reviewing “spending in each department,” recently asking for department heads to find a 10 percent reduction wherever possible in their budget line items.

The overall tentative budget, according to Brown, “keeps all of our existing programs intact for next year, increases programs for our students struggling to get back on track,” and “increases the district’s commitment” to specialized programs, such as Jobs for New Jersey’s Graduates (JAGS), advance placement and dual enrollment.

And it maintains important athletic and elective programs.

“Our kids need to get back in-person – socializing, competing and interacting with their peers,” said Brown of the anticipated aftermath of the pandemic, which has necessitated remote and hybrid learning, and school closings, and what is earmarked for spending in the upcoming school year.

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Better-For-You Easter Baskets

&

Whether you’re avoiding sugar for health reasons or just don’t want to make Easter morning a sugar-fueled three-ring circus, it can be difficult avoiding heaps of candy in kids’ Easter baskets. Here are a few ideas for keeping the candy to a minimum.

GUIDE

5 Fun Easter Activities for the Whole Family Easter presents an ideal opportunity to spend quality time with your family. Here are a few fun ways to enjoy the holiday weekend together.

1. COOK BUNNY PANCAKES

Start the day with a plate of pancakes shaped like bunnies or Easter eggs, and decorate them with your choice of fresh fruit, chocolate chips and sprinkles. Other holiday brunch menu options include scrambled eggs and hot cross buns.

2. DECORATE AN EASTER TREE

Whether you choose to adorn a budding tree in your yard or arrange foraged branches in a vase, this is a great excuse to get crafting. Salt dough ornaments, tissue paper flowers and painted plastic eggs can be made by your kids and then hung from your tree.

3. PLAY EASTER GAMES

After you wrap up the egg hunt, keep the fun going by playing pin the tail on the bunny or having an egg-and-spoon relay race. If it’s a nice day, head outside for an “Easter egg” fight (with colorful water balloons) and a bunny hop sack race.

4. PLANT A FLOWER GARDEN

To celebrate the start of spring, add some color to your yard with flowers from a local farmers market or garden center. Alternatively, plant a few arrangements in flower boxes that you can transfer outside when the weather gets warmer.

5. MAKE A HOLIDAY GIFT BASKET

Decorate a wicker basket and fill it with an assortment of homemade baked goods or springthemed gifts from local shops (soaps, jams, candles, etc.). Leave the basket on an elderly neighbor or relative’s front porch with a note wishing them a happy Easter.

For more holiday fun, find out if any Easter events are being hosted in your community.

BOOKS Got a bookworm in the house? Stack their basket with new reads from their favorite authors.

You can also include bookmarks, a reading light, a lap desk and other reading accessories. For younger kids, look at activity books and throw in a new pack of colored pencils or crayons.

GARDENING Get them outside with gardening-themed baskets full of pint-sized yard tools, seeds, flower pots, a sun hat or apron, and potting soil. You can also include books on gardening and, if you hit up your local nursery, a few plants to get them started.

ARTS AND CRAFTS Load them up on crayons, colored pencils, markers, craft paper and more to keep little hands busy. Younger kids might enjoy coloring and activity books while older children may love craft kits that allow them to make finished projects, like LEGO or jewelry.

GAMES Load up baskets with a variety of games and let the competition begin. Look for smaller card games and pocket-sized games to round out the basket and keep it to a manageable size.

A FEW OF THEIR FAVORITE THINGS Combine these ideas, but make it on a theme.

If your kid loves dinosaurs, grab some dinosaur books, mini dinosaur toys, and so on. Repeat as needed with your little ones’ favorite things.

Trucks, Star Wars and more.

RELAX For teens or even adults, schedule some relaxation time and load them up with bath bombs, bubble bath, skin care, cosmetics and more. This can work with guys, too, just look for things like soap, beard oil and brushes, shave soap, and toiletry kits.

COUPONS Another one for older members of your family is to fill up plastic Easter eggs with coupons they can redeem. For teens, consider tickets for a later curfew, extra screen time or a night out on your dime. For adults, a coupon for a nap, for taking over one or more chores, or picking a Saturday activity.

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EASTER FUN & WORSHIP GUIDE

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM

How to Level Up Your Easter Egg Hunt Do you want to surprise your kids for Easter this year? Here are a few ways to put a creative spin on the traditional chocolate egg hunt.

• Draw a treasure map of your home with Xs to mark the spot of hidden Easter treats.

• Hide plastic eggs filled with stickers, mini animal figurines, bouncy balls and other small toys.

• Fill plastic eggs with silly instructions (hop like a bunny, chirp like a chick, etc.) that your kids must do to earn a candy.

• Put tiny glow sticks inside plastic eggs and have your Easter egg hunt in the evening.

• Send your kids on a scavenger hunt to find one of each type of hidden egg (a green one, a striped one, a blue one, etc.).

Saturday, March 27, 2021

The Easter Egg Hunt

What a great springtime sight to see: giggling children with baskets in hand, hunting for Easter eggs at school, at home, or around the neighborhood.

With the return of milder weather, an Easter egg hunt is a great way to celebrate this spring festival, and it is also a way for families to keep alive a very ancient tradition for future generations.

find these eggs can claim special surprises by following the instructions in the note. Make the directions as simple or as complicated as you like, depending on the age of the children and how much time and patience you have to organize it all. You might lead them on a treasure hunt, or require them to mime an animal or sing a song.

To organize an Easter egg hunt, buy some foil-wrapped chocolates to hide high and low, or buy some empty plastic eggs from a dollar store and fill them with chocolates, candies, and other small surprises, such as erasers, Easter-themed stickers, whistles, and coins. If you’d like to go one step further, you could include little notes in some of the plastic eggs. The children who

Everyone will have fun enjoying these unforgettable moments. Excited children adore rushing to find their share of treats, parents have fun hiding eggs, and of course grandparents love to take photos of all the action. Just remember that it’s always best to organize this hunt for the morning, when everyone has lots of energy — especially Mom and Dad!

• Leave written clues around the house that eventually lead to a stash of chocolates.

• Divide up pieces of a puzzle or Lego creation among the plastic eggs so it can be assembled once the hunt is over.

• Fill plastic eggs with slips of paper that list a reward the finder gets (skip chores, stay up late, have a pizza night, etc.).

If it’s a nice day, consider having your Easter egg hunt in the backyard.

Easter

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While your family is sitting around digesting delicious Easter dinner (more on that in a minute), chew on these facts.

• A medieval Easter game was to pass a boiled egg from child to child. When the clock struck midnight, whoever was holding the egg got to eat it.

• Easter is named for the Anglo-Saxon goddess, Eostre. Her symbols were thought to be the hare and the egg and she was the goddess of the spring and fertility.

• Good Friday, the holiday before Easter commemorating Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, isn’t a federal holiday and is a state holiday in just 12 states.

• The candy-loving Easter bunny is thought to be a German invention that dates to the Middle Ages.

• Americans eat about 600 million marshmallow Peeps during the Easter season.

• Cadbury can make more than 1.5 million Cadbury Crème Eggs in a day.

• More than half of people eat a chocolate bunny’s ears first.

• The White House Easter Egg Roll started in 1878, when a group of children approached President Rutherford B. Hayes and asked him to host one.

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• One of the largest chocolate Easter eggs ever created was made in Tosca, Italy. It weighed 15,873 pounds and was 64 feet around at its widest point.

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• Easter is the second-biggest candy shopping holiday after Halloween.

• Buying a new Easter outfit stems from a superstition that Easter clothes were good luck.

• Florida held one of the largest Easter egg hunts ever, which featured 9,753 children hunting more than half a million eggs.

• Americans spend nearly $15 billion on Easter every year.

• The tradition of egg painting, called pysanka, originated in Ukraine.

• Early egg dyes were made from natural materials like onion skins, flower petals and tree bark.

• When Peeps came out in 1953, making just one marshmallow chick would take 27 hours.

Now, it takes just six minutes.

• In the Christian calendar, Easter follows 40 days of Lent (not counting Sundays).

• Easter eggs symbolize the Resurrection and are also a symbol of spring’s new life and fertility.

• Enough Jelly Belly jellybeans are eaten in a year to circle the Earth more than five times.

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Saturday, March 27, 2021

BRING THE

Outside IN

Easter is April 4 this year — a little early for those May flowers, but you can still find a bevy of blooms to decorate your home.

Daisies work best in cut flower displays, along with other spring favorites like lilies and sprays of greenery.

Look for traditional favorites like Easter lilies, tulips and daisies. Let’s learn more about Easter blooms and what they mean.

OTHER BULBS

EASTER LILIES These nodding, white lilies are the quintessential Easter flower. Their pristine color symbolizes purity, virtue, hope and life, and their downturned, trumpet shaped blooms are said to be bowing in prayer in honor of Jesus’ sacrifice.

But be careful if you have cats in the home, these fragrant lilies are toxic to felines.

TULIPS These traditional spring bulbs wake up from the dead, symbolizing Christ’s resurrection. Also, the spherical, egg-shaped blooms resemble Easter eggs. Tulips come in a variety of colors and textures with more than 3,000 varieties with a huge amount of petal varieties, including double blooms and fringed petals and those resembling lilies.

DAISIES Daisies are small white or yellow flowers that are often the first flower children learn to draw.

They symbolize purity, innocence and loyalty.

Other spring bulbs that are popular around Easter are daffodils, ranunculus, hyacinths, lily of the valley and paperwhites. If you like in colder climates, you can force these bulbs to bloom indoors. To force your bulbs, first buy from a reputable source. Look for terms like pre-chilled, which will mean a shorter time to bloom. Local nurseries may also offer a variety of pre-made kits, where the bulb is already planted and ready to bloom.

If your bulbs haven’t been chilled, you’ll need to do this yourself. Put them in the vegetable drawer of your fridge. The time you’ll need depends on the type of bulb; ask your local garden center how long your chosen bulbs need to sit.

An easy and attractive way to force blooms is using just water and a forcing vase to keep the bulb out of the water and away from rot. Fill the bottom of the vase with water and a few pebbles to keep it stable, then nestle your bulb in the top part of the vase. Place it in direct sunlight until the bulbs begin to root and refill when the water level gets less than an inch.

Once you bulb roots, you can move it to any bright, sunny spot in your home.

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♦ Page 5

Easter Brunch Easter brunch is a great way to bring family and friends together after Sunday services.

Make-ahead recipes make this festive occasion even better, as you can spend more time with your loved ones. Keep reading for some great ideas that will save you time.

HAM AND CHEESE CROISSANT CASSEROLE Recipe is from Betty Crocker.

APPLE DUMPLING FRENCH TOAST BAKE Recipe is from Betty Crocker.

3 large croissants

2 Granny Smith apples, diced

1 8-ounce chopped cooked ham 1 1/4 cups, or 5 ounces, shredded Swiss cheese 6 eggs

2/3 cup light brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup half-and-half 2 tablespoons honey

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 tablespoon ground mustard

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon pepper

5 eggs

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup milk 1/2 cup baking mix, such as Bisquick

1. Spray a 10-inch glass deep-dish pie plate with cooking spray. Cut the croissants in half lengthwise, then cut in half into five pieces. Place the pieces in the pie plate and sprinkle with ham and cheese.

2. Beat the eggs, half-and-half, honey, mustard and spices. Then pour the eggs over the ingredients in the pie plate. Press the croissant pieces into the egg mixture to moisten completely. Cover the plate tightly with foil and refrigerate at least eight hours but no more than 24.

3. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Bake the casserole, covered, for 35 minutes. Uncover, then bake for 25-30 more minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

6 small croissants, torn in bite-sized pieces 1. In a 10-inch skillet, sauté apples and sugars until the apples are tender and the sugar is caramelized.

Add vanilla and stir to combine.

2. While the apples are cooking, mix butter, cinnamon and ginger in a small bowl.

3. In a large bowl, beat eggs and milk, then add baking mix and butter and beat more. Add in pieces of croissant and soak.

4. Add the apple mixture to the soaking croissants.

Stir to combine and pour into a 13x9-inch baking dish. Refrigerate overnight.

5. Heat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 45 minutes. Serve hot.

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EASTER FUN & WORSHIP GUIDE

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Saturday, March 27, 2021

I Am That I Am Ministries Inc.

FFirst Baptist Church of Vincentown Joseph Engle, Pastor 39 Main Street, Vincentown, NJ 08088 609-859-8967

Regular Sunday Worship Service at 11:30 a.m.

Palm Sunday Service on Sunday, March 28th at 11:30 a.m m.

Good Friday Service on Friday, April 2nd at 1:30 p.m.

EASTER WORSHIP SERVICE EA

The seven last words of Jesus on the Cross.

Refreshments will be served afterward.

Sunday, April 4, 11:00 A.M., In-Person and Virtual In-Person: We follow all Covid-19 safe practices. In order to help us plan for attendance beyond our current level at Sunday worship, reach out to us at fbcvnj fb b j.orgg, access Contact Form or call 609-859-8967.

Sunrise Easter Service on Sunday, April 4th at 6:30 a.m..

Resurrection Sunday Service April 4th at 11:30 a.m.

Pastors Florence and Russell Webber

For Virtual: Navigate to <zoom.us>, “Join a Meeting” “Meeting ID”: 6098598967, “Password” for this service is 20210404

50 Burrs Mill Rd. Southampton, NJ 08088

We look forward to you joining us for our Easter Service.

609-847-4848 www.iamthatiamministriesinc.com

Holy y Week and Easter Services April 1 Maundy Thursday 6:30 p.m.

Pastor Led waalk/service through the Stations of the Cross (Meditation Walk).

To virtuallly visit Meditation Walk https://lordlife.website/14701.html April 2 Good Friday* Noon and 6:30 p.m.

Lawn Chairr Worship with Hands-on wrapping on the Cross (BYO chair) April 3 Saturday Easter Vigil 5 p.m.

Law wn Chair Worship with Holy Communion (BYO Chair) Apriil 4 Easter Sunday* Services 8:15 a.m. and 10 a.m.

Law wn Chair Worship with Holy Communion (BYO Chair) *Good Friday and Easter Sunday worship services will also be available online.

Lent End Egg Hunt and Activities March 28 at 3 p.m.

All are welcome! l !

Please join us for an “Egg”cellent time crafting, egg hunting and egg dropping. Temperatures will be taken and masks/social distancing will help to keep all safe during the fun. Crafting from 3-3:30.

Hunting g/designing at 3:30.

Child dren ages 3-K will hunt in n the Grace Place Presc chool fenced area, and gra ades 1-3 will “hunt wiith clues”” on ground ds.

Grades 4-6 will design “egg-sperimental” protective devices while the hunts are ongoiing.

Then all are invited to watch the Egg Drop Experiment!

Grace Place will have an information booth.

Please consider bringing a canned good for local food pantries.

Lord of Life Lutheran Church 1 Winchester Court, Tabernacle, NJ 609 9-2 268-0262 • www.lordlife.us

Saturday, March 27, 2021

AD HOTLINE: (609) 801-2392

Youu’re Invited to Attend Our Easter Service O In-Person or Watch Online 10 a.m. Easter Sunday

Messia ah Lutheran Brethren Church

EASTER FUN & WORSHIP GUIDE

♦ Page 7

We invite you to join us online for the full experience of Holy Week: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and, of course, EASTER SUNDAY at 9:30 am. For all the details, follow us on facebook.com/MedfordUMC. We look forward to connecting with you!

530 0 Virginia Drive, (Presidential Lakes) Browns Mills, NJ 08015

Streamin ng Online www.messiahlbc.church

You Can Watch Anytime!

2 Hartford Road | Medford NJ 08055 | medfordumc.org 609/654-8111 | info@medfordumc.org

TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH, VINCENTOWN EASTER WORSHIP SCHEDULE ALL are invited and welcome.

18 Mill St., Vincentown (609-859-2299). Add’l parking behind church.

PALM SUNDAY: March 28, 10 a.m.

HOLY THURSDAY: APRIL 1, 7:30 p.m.

GOOD FRIDAY: APRIL 2 , 12 NOON EASTER SUNDAY: APRIL 4, 10 a.m.

www.trinityvincentown.org

Page 8

♦

EASTER FUN & WORSHIP GUIDE

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM

Saturday, March 27, 2021

EASTER IS A

Symbol of Life

The meaning of Easter goes far beyond simply marking the arrival of spring with gifts of chocolate and ham dinners. It is traditionally a religious holiday that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For Christians around the world, it also marks the end of Lent, a 40-day period during which fasting is required. The word Easter comes from the ancient Saxon word “Eostre.”

These ancient people worshipped the spring god with an annual celebration in his honour. Later, when they were converted to Christianity, the name was adopted for the celebration of Passover and eventually became “Easter.” According to Christian belief, the resurrection of Jesus Christ occurred during the Jewish Passover. In 325 A.D., the Roman Catholic Church decided that

the Easter holiday would be celebrated on the first Sunday following the spring’s full moon, which is why Easter is always celebrated sometime between March 22 and April 25. This year, Christians around the world will be celebrating Easter on April 4. While for some people this annual holiday does not have the same religious meaning as it once did, it does continue to be an important celebration of life for all. A symbol of hope and renewal, Easter marks the arrival of spring and the awakening of the earth after a long hibernation. Some will honour this holiday with feasts, songs and sweets; for others, it will be a time of devout prayer. For many people, Easter is an important symbol of new life.

REBIRTH &

Renewal

Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox churches will celebrate Easter on April 8 this year. Easter is a day of rejoicing for all believers as they commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ after He died on the cross and was buried in a tomb near Jerusalem.

Christ died and rose again during Passover, a celebration He would have observed as a Jew. Today, Easter is the biggest festival in the Christian calendar, as people honor the gift of eternal life that He bestowed when He died on the cross. That Jesus rose again represents the victory of life over death, of light over darkness, and of love over hate.

In some traditions, Holy Week begins as a sober event, as people remember Jesus’ suffering, betrayal, and torture on the cross. Then, on Easter Sunday, many churches rise with dawn and start the day with a candle light vigil, honoring Christ as light of the world. Easter church services are lively and festive, and many baptisms take place on this day.

Easter does not have a fixed date, like Christmas.

Instead, it is determined by the lunar cycle and is always celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon after the spring Equinox.

Living Every Day “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.”

James 4:14 NIV

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hat would you do if you knew that you only had a year to live? What if it was only a month to live, or a week, or even just a few hours? Thinking about the prospect of death, especially if it is done with some seriousness, has the power to focus the mind on the things which one really values.

Most of us, I suppose, would call loved ones if we only had a few hours or a day left to live.

And while people often say that they would travel the world or otherwise try to squeeze as

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much pleasure out of life if they had only a year to live, most of us would still be thinking about spending that time with our families and close friends. And while this thought experiment may seem abstract and perhaps even far-fetched, it is really the situation all of us find ourselves in every single day. We all know that today could be our last day, and when we take that seriously it tends to keep us focused on the more important aspects of life.

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Pinelands Regional Unexpectedly Built Its Surplus; Given Clean Audit for First Time in at Least 9 Years

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

LITTLE EGG HARBOR—A 220-page audit of the Pinelands Regional School District’s financial books reportedly has come back clean, a first in at least nearly a decade here.

“We have no formal recommendations or comments for the report this year,” said Auditor Brian J. Waldron, CPA, PSA, of Holman, Frenia, Allison P.C. “So, we have a clean, unmodified opinion. The audit was in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, government standards and all the requirements set forth by the Department of Education. We have no issues of non-compliance or any other items.”

And the school district, despite the Coronavirus pandemic which has wreaked havoc on the local economy, unexpectedly emerged from last year with even more fund balance (or surplus) than it had the year prior, according to Waldron. He called last year a “very strong year to say the least” compared to some other districts.

“Overall, in a difficult year, with all the things going on, the school district actually performed very well compared to the budget they adopted last year,” the auditor contended. “For the 2020 school year, the district had anticipated utilizing surplus, their own fund balance, of almost $1.5 million, to balance their 2020 budget. And they actually had revenues that exceeded their expenditures during the current year.

That actually flipped it from utilizing surplus of $1.5 million to gaining an additional $1.2 million of surplus.”

The increase in fund balance, he added, was also the result of the district being able “to stay under budget with expenditures.”

Waldron maintained that it was “very positive news” that not only the district’s fund balance was $4.4 million as of June 30 of last year, but that the district was able to add money to its capital and maintenance reserves.

These findings come as the district’s enrollment is climbing again for the first time in at least seven years, resulting in an unexpected increase in state aid (see separate story) for the 2021-22 school year.

As for the clean audit, Board Member Karen Poklikhua noted that this was her ninth year on the board, and, “I believe this is the first time that I can recall we have a clean audit with no audit findings and no internal control or compliance issues.”

She praised Business Administrator Nick Brown, who subsequently contended it was the result of the work of the entire business office staff, central administration and administration at the school level that resulted in both the clean audit finding and increase in the fund balance.

“Everybody managed their budgets responsibly, tightened their belts in a really difficult time, and is committed to spending your tax dollars responsibly,” Brown said.

As for spending of reserves or surplus, Waldron pointed out that $250,000 will be utilized in the subsequent year budget, but that it is always good to maintain fund balance for “rainy days” or “things that come up.”

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Bass River and Washington Officials Request Residents to Prominently Display Numbering in Case of Emergency

Saturday, March 27, 2021

Washington’s Mayor Wants to Know ‘How You Feel’ About Allowing Any Marijuana Operations in Town

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

Photo By Douglas Melegari

Reflective mailbox numbers.

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

WASHINGTON—First responders in both Bass River and Washington townships are asking residents to prominently display their official house/business numbers so that they can be seen clearly from the road in case of emergency, and to make sure they are reflective so that they are visible in the dark.

The request comes after several locals apparently dialed 911 for help recently, but emergency crews had a hard time finding them and their residences due to a lack of numbering – and ‘seconds count’ in an emergency.

“We are having trouble finding residents during the middle of the night because of lack of numbers, posting of numbers, and making them visible, so on and so forth,” said Barbara Cavileer, chief of the Green Bank Volunteer Ambulance Company.

Both townships are, for the most part, sparsely populated and mostly forested, and therefore darker than most locales at night, making some homes difficult to find, let alone to identify.

“We were back on Smith Lane one night and woke everyone up on that lane up because we couldn’t find the house,” Cavileer said. “We really need better identification.”

Washington officials are planning to send a mailer to local residents asking that they comply with the township law regarding house numbering. Additionally, Cavileer has requested that the municipality’s code enforcement officer notify any residence without appropriate numbering.

The code book for Washington requires an occupant of a residence to put the numbering on the structure, a post at the

end of the driveway, or on a mailbox so that it is “clearly visible from the street on which the building fronts.”

If one has a mailbox, however, the numbering must be displayed on both sides of it, and if a mailbox is located on the opposite side of the street on which a building fronts, the numbering must also be additionally displayed on its post or the corresponding building.

Numbering placed on a post at the end of a driveway should be “no less than 4 feet and no greater than 6 feet above the ground” or “level with a mailbox.”

Figures “at least 3 inches high” are required to be used to display the numbering, according to the Washington code book, and they must either be of light-reflective material “which contrasts in color with the background for the figures,” or “black in color when on a white background, or white when on black, or black when on a silver- or aluminum-colored background.”

While a search of Bass River’s code book came up short in finding regulations related to house numbering, municipal officials recently asked on the township website that residents “please display house numbers that are easily seen from the roadway.”

Bass River officials made a second request for residents (which in the past has been another topic of conversation in Washington) to also “keep a clear path to your property entrance(s).”

“This also applies to trailer parks, campgrounds and all other businesses,” wrote Bass River officials. “Doing this will help our first responders – EMS, fire department and police and emergency management – have quick and easy access to your property in case of emergency.”

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WA SH I NGT ON —T h e m ayo r o f Washington Township wants to hear from residents as to whether or not they want the municipality to allow marijuana operations in town – with six different categories of licensing available under a newly passed state law.

“How do you feel about it?” asked Mayor Daniel James. “Yay, nay, don’t care? We need to hear from you so that we have some kind of guidance (as to how to proceed).”

On Feb. 22, Democratic Governor Phil Murphy signed three historic adult-use cannabis reform bills into law, legalizing and regulating cannabis use and possession for adults 21 years and older.

Under one of the bills, a Cannabis Reg ulator y Com m ission (CRC) will promulgate regulations to govern the medical and adult-use industries and oversee the applications for licensing of cannabis businesses.

That same bill, known as A-21, established six “marketplace” classes of licensed businesses: • Class 1 Cannabis Grower License: for facilities involved in growing and cultivating cannabis; • Class 2 Cannabis Processor License: for facilities involved in the manufacturing, preparation, and packaging of cannabis items; • Class 3 Cannabis Wholesaler License: for facilities involved in obtaining and selling cannabis items for later resale by

other licensees; • Class 4 Cannabis Distributor License: for businesses involved in transporting cannabis items in bulk intrastate, from one licensed cannabis establishment to another; • Class 5 Cannabis Retailer License: for locations at which cannabis items and paraphernalia are sold to consumers; and • Class 6 Cannabis Delivery License: for businesses providing courier services for a licensed cannabis retailer.

“We have 180 days from Feb. 22, which is the day that the governor signed into law three specific bills related to the sale, cultivation and distribution of recreational marijuana,” said Township Solicitor Tom Coleman. “So, within that 180 days, municipalities are encouraged to either adopt an ordinance that either permits or prohibits the sale of recreational marijuana in a municipality – it could either be from a retail standpoint, cultivation standpoint, or medical marijuana use.”

Washington, the solicitor noted, is somewhat limited in its retail opportunities, given that the township only has a handful of such establishments, but “someone coming into town to open a dispensary could happen.”

“If you don’t adopt an ordinance, and you change your mind, you are kind of shut out for a period of five years (or 60 months),” Coleman contended.

James said that the township will soon mail a questionnaire to residents to solicit feedback, and asks that it be returned as soon as possible, given the limited window of opportunity for the township to act.

LRHSD Tentative 2021-22 School Year Budget Includes ‘Operational Reductions’ and ‘Reductions in Positions’ Student Programs, However, Would Be Preserved in Budget That Calls for Tax Increases in Six Towns

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

SHAMONG—The Lenape Regional High School District (LRHSD) Board of Education has adopted a tentative budget for the 2021-22 school year that, according to a subsequently issued press release, proposes “operational reductions, reductions in positions and other costsaving measures,” and would result in a tax increase in six of eight municipalities that comprise the district.

The pronouncement came in the wake of the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) yet again slashing aid to the district.

District Spokeswoman Allyson Roberts

declined to immediately identify to this newspaper what the cost-saving measures and operational reductions entail, along with naming the specific positions that are proposed to be eliminated.

“The executive county superintendent has until April 20 to approve the district’s proposed budget; the district will discuss cost-saving measures in greater detail during the April 28 public budget hearing,” the spokeswoman said. “In the meantime, the district is continuing to gather and analyze information related to many factors including course selections by students, planned retirements, and new guidelines for See LRHSD/ Page 17

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Three Possibilities Considered for Future Refuse Collection in Southampton as Committee Weighs Fiscal Year Budget

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

SOUTHAMPTON—Three possibilities are being weighed for the future of Southampton Township’s refuse collection – including purchasing a new vehicle fleet that would require less manpower and provide for more automation, or privatization.

The Southampton Township Committee and the municipal budget committee have been discussing the possibility of making changes to the trash pickup program during 2021 budget discussions, even though the township now has a surplus of over $2 million, according to Mayor Michael Mikulski, with the township fund balance “a little bit more than last year,” even amid the Coronavirus pandemic.

“We are in a whole lot better situation than many towns,” said Mikulski at a March 16 budget workshop meeting. “We have a lot to be thankful for. When we are making these decisions, the good news is we are making them with the long-term financial health of the township in mind, as opposed to maybe some years when we are doing ‘x’ versus ‘y.’

We are, however, not in that position and we are very happy to not be in that position.”

According to the mayor, the three possibilities are “keeping it the same and therefore just continuing to replace trucks and equipment as needed,” going to “OneArmed Bandit” trash trucks (automated refuse collection trucks that have the capacity of auto-loading refuse containers similar to those used by the county recycling program), or privatization.

“We haven’t eliminated any possibility,” said the mayor on March 16 in response to a question from this newspaper. “… We are not leaning on any one option. As we sit here today, we are merely looking at all of the

options to make the best decision.”

Mikulski pointed out that a decision would potentially need to be made in time for introduction of this year’s budget, or perhaps for a future-year budget, because of the likely need for advance planning for any one of the three options, especially in the face of current refuse equipment nearing the end of its useful life.

Deputy Mayor Ronald Heston, also chair of the budget committee, later told this newspaper that such things need to be looked at “in order to do due diligence on the budget” and that “we need to look at all things in order to determine what is best for the residents of Southampton.”

If the committee were to decide to keep things the same, Mikulski said, the governing body will need to put together a “five-year plan” for the purchase of new trucks (so that it doesn’t incur the costs all at once), while if the committee decides to pursue the “OneArmed Bandit” trash trucks, “we then have to look at how long the process would be to purchase the cans, trucks, etc.”

Just like with the county’s current recycling program, automation trucks can only accommodate certain kinds of cans.

“If we decided to see what the options were for privatization, that would require an entire bid process, etc., so the likeliness of that happening this year would be fairly slim,” Mikulski noted.

There was some discussion that the committee would hold a special workshop budget meeting to further discuss the future of the township’s trash-hauling service.

In 2017, the committee had entertained the possibility of privatization, but the governing body reversed course in the wake of community reaction from this newspaper’s coverage, and after James F.

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Young Sr., a now 27-year committeeman who served for a quarter century up until 2020 as the mayor of the municipality, stated, “When I first came onto this committee, the first thing that was said to me was, ‘Whatever you do—never, never, never touch the trash.

If anything works well in this township, it is trash pick-up.’”

“The idea is when you say privatize or something like that, you have to look at it this way: a company would come in and give you a low price now,” added Young at the time. “You would get rid of all your trucks and then after two or three years they would sock it to you.”

Young, however, during the latest budget workshop meeting, did not weigh in on the revival of such a possibility.

“We have hired an outside firm to analyze the costs and or savings should we privatize trash collection,” Heston later told this newspaper. “There are no plans, currently, to eliminate employees.”

Mikulski, also in a follow-up interview with this newspaper, noted that “in all of our discussions about options, we have never once considered layoffs as part of the process,” and that “we got plenty of work in the township they (those individuals currently working the trash trucks) could be doing if they are not doing trash.”

The Pine Barrens Tribune recently reported that several area towns are having difficulty in obtaining bids for new trashhauling contracts, and that the New Jersey Municipal Management Association, in an article posted on its website in 2019, acknowledged that “municipal managers have had to face the fact they receive very few bids for their garbage-hauling-proposal requests – and they all run more expensive than they have in the past.”

Additionally, neighboring Medford Township, cut ties earlier this year with Gold Medal Environmental of NJ, Inc., its solid waste collector and disposal service provider of nine years, and instead went with Republic Services. While Medford would only say that it went with the “lowest responsible bidder,” this newspaper learned through public records that the municipality paid $499,800 for its collection and disposal services in 2012, and Gold Medal proposed a charge of $1,105,799 for this year. Republic has agreed to charge Medford $810,781.20 during its initial year of providing services.

Heston, during the March 16 budget meeting, pointed out that one can’t let Southampton’s current surplus minimize future anticipated costs that the township will incur.

Heston noted that it was anticipated in 2022 that there would be construction of a storage building at the new Red Lion Road Recreation Complex (formerly part of the Good Farm), and that a new trash truck would possibly be needed by that point, which would potentially cost between $220,000 and $280,000.

In 2023, a $2 million road program is anticipated, while in 2024, another trash truck is expected to possibly be needed, he added.

The committee, Heston said, is preparing for the possible purchase of a new firetruck for the Vincent Fire Company in 2025, as well as construction of a salt barn for the Department of Public Works so that “we can control our salt instead of the state supplying us.” He noted that the county, as he understood it, serves as a backup supplier of salt, but that, “I’d like to see us become self-sufficient.”

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Page 12 ♦

LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

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Saturday, March 27, 2021

Tabernacle Committee Closes Door on Proposed Use of Former Landfill for Solar Farm Upon Being Advised of Need for Costly Study, Competitive Bids Under Law Lawyer for Rejected Redeveloper, Who Wasn’t on Meeting Call, Claims Township Can Legally Opt to Go with Any Firm It Chooses

By Bill Bonvie Staff Writer

TABERNACLE—The prospects of a proposal to turn a long-closed municipally owned landfill into a solar farm appears to have been all but extinguished following a March 22 virtual meeting of the Tabernacle Township Committee at which an impromptu motion to scrap it entirely was narrowly voted down and another such motion to send it to the Township Land Development Board was approved 3-2, only to have an actual resolution to do so rejected on a 4-1 vote due to sudden cost concerns.

The sense of confusion generated by the discussion was reflected in a public comment afterwards from Stuart Brooks, a frequent participant who was listening in on the session along with his wife, Fran.

“I have got to tell you the procedure was just a shock,” he declared.

Then, in referring to the “long discussion that culminated in a rapid reading of extensive passages of law,” he remarked, “I could not follow it, and I’m an attorney. … and I know that statute fairly well.”

Mayor Kimberly Brown, who had reluctantly voted against the first motion to have the township simply retain the land in question rather than proceed with the plan to lease it to a prospective solar redeveloper, CEP Renewables, also observed at the meeting’s conclusion that “it doesn’t always go the way you plan things to go,” and that while “it was a good discussion,” it might have been better suited to a workshop session, in which there is “more latitude, because that is the purpose—to talk things out.”

Perhaps the most significant aspect of what took place, however, was the committee’s being advised by Township Solicitor William Burns that it could not simply opt to lease out the site in question for such a project without first opening it up to competitive bidders, and that that in order to do so, it would need to have an evaluation of the property done by the land development board. The entire process involved could end up costing an estimated $10,000 or more, according to Township Engineer Dante Guzzi.

That expenditure, the mayor contended in voting against the resolution, was money that the township, having “no contract with anyone,” might be unable to recoup, since “if we don’t have the votes to move forward with solar, the taxpayers will bear any such study might entail.

To further complicate the matter, the company, which had asked to be named redeveloper of the property and which has reportedly offered to cap the former landfill as part of any leasing agreement, did not have a representative taking part in the meeting to address any more queries, leaving the mayor to note that “unfortunately, we won’t be able to provide answers this evening unless we have answers ourselves.”

While CEP Renewables has entered into agreements to convert former landfills into solar farms in both Southampton and Shamong townships, and has been in negotiations over proposed projects in other area communities as well, the difference in Tabernacle’s case, according to Township Clerk Elaine Kennedy in a phone interview with the Pine Barrens Tribune, is that the land in question is publicly owned, whereas in those other municipalities the company has been given the opportunity to purchase tax liens on the tracts involved.

In addition to the legal requirements for

bids to be solicited in such a situation, it also has to be determined if the property even qualifies for redevelopment, Township Administrator and Director of Public Works Douglas Cramer told this newspaper after the meeting.

As a result, both Kennedy and Cramer concurred that any deal with the company, while still possible, is not feasible at the present time.

“It appears to be off the table for now,” Kennedy maintained.

She added that “we can’t either lease or sell it” until a determination is made that “it is no longer needed for public use.”

“Right now, in its present form, the committee has decided not to move forward on sending it to the land development board, which essentially stops the CEP project in its tracks,” Cramer contended. “That is my interpretation. But they can always come back.”

That the door might still be open to such a prospect, however, was suggested the following day in a phone interview this newspaper had with CEP attorney Steven Gouin, who said he thought his firm’s proposal to pay the entire tab for the project after being named redeveloper of the site was still “a viable option” as well as a perfectly legal one for the township.

“It is a path we have followed in other municipalities,” said Gouin, contending that once a site is designated in need of redevelopment, the law gives a municipal government the power to contract with anyone it chooses.

“But if they want to go through the bidding process, that is their prerogative,” he maintained. “We understand how it works, and there are no hard feelings. We’re a phone call away if they change their mind.”

Asked why he or some other company representative hadn’t participated in the March 22 committee meeting, Gouin replied they hadn’t even been informed in advance there would be a meeting, but had merely been asked by someone in the township on the day it was scheduled if they would be taking part, and he had answered, “No, we haven’t been invited.” He further contended that the last time he and other professionals from the company had been invited to take part in a virtual meeting, which was a workshop, no one had even bothered asking them any questions.

Cramer, however, told this newspaper that based on the discussion at the meeting, it was his understanding that the committee had “moved from that proposal on to evaluating future uses for that landfill,” two of which he was currently working on. The property in question, a 26-acre tract which lies north of County Route 532, between Old Indian Mills and Oakshade roads, is one of the sites now under consideration as a new location for the public works department, he pointed out.

In the public comment period prior to the committee’s taking up the proposed solar project, Stuart Brooks, who said he had listened to all the previous sessions on the issue, criticized the committee for having had “no discussion of the economics” involved and having made no attempt to determine what the potential value of the site might be to the township or what tax revenue it might generate.

“So, I don’t see how you can make any decision at all as to whether it would be in your interest to do it,” he declared.

“I would hope you would address these See COMMITTEE/ Page 15

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Interest Expressed in Condemned Duplex Leads Pemboro to Try Selling It in Order to Avoid the Cost of Demolition

♦ Page 13

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By Andy Milone Staff Writer

PEMBERTON BOROUGH—Pemberton Borough could be relieved of the costs of demolishing a condemned duplex at 54 and 56 Hanover Street, which it recently acquired for that purpose, by an unidentified party who has purportedly expressed interest in purchasing and possibly even restoring it.

Pemberton Borough Council unanimously approved a resolution to move forward with a public auction for the property at its virtual meeting on March 15. The resolution sets the minimum starting bid for each unit at $5,000 and gives the winning bidder 60 days from the close of the public sales to either demolish the building or begin repairing or reconstructing it in accordance with plans approved by the borough construction official.

If the buyer or buyers wish to proceed with the latter, the work must be completed and a certificate of occupancy issued within six months of the closing of the sale, the resolution states.

As the borough was in the process of determining prices for demolition work on the duplex, according to Mayor Harold Griffin, one gentleman expressed interest and “asked if he could have a structural engineer look at it to see if it would be worthwhile for him to restore it.”

Harry Wetterskog, the former borough construction official who retired soon after declaring both sides of the duplex to be unsafe structures as defined under the Uniform Construction Code (UCC), previously told this newspaper that 54 Hanover Street, the northern portion, which was initially condemned, is “past the point of repair” and “shouldn’t be here and should be demolished.” The unit at 56 Hanover Street eventually received the same designation.

Pemberton Borough later acquired the entire unoccupied building as a “gift” from the previous owner, Dovbear Property, LLC, of Great Neck, N.Y., with plans to incur the costs of its demolition, something that has been said would most likely require the municipality to issue a bond.

The borough took possession of the property in exchange for forgiving a 2020 municipal tax obligation on it totaling $7,320, as well as cancelling $2,987 in electric and water/sewer charges.

The head of Dovbear, Sebastien Ayache, had previously vowed to the town’s administration that he would fix up the

Photo By Andy Milone

duplex, but instead of taking action, opted to pay thousands of dollars in fines for failing to bring the buildings into compliance with the code.

Pemberton Borough Council had a number of other resolutions up for approval at the meeting as well, but tabled one of them that would have authorized a five-year lease on its Canoe House next to the Hanover Street bridge overlooking the North Branch Rancocas Creek to be put out for bid starting at $200 per month.

The tabled resolution notes that “parties” have contacted Pemberton Borough with interest in leasing the building and the nearby surrounding area, which includes a bulkhead for the launching of watercraft onto the creek.

The building was most recently occupied by a business known as Clark’s Canoe/ Kayak Rental, but the business has since shut down, according to an online listing, and the phone number was no longer in operation.

A draft of the leasing agreement stipulates that the property may only be used for canoe rental, launching and instruction.

Councilman George Ward, however, expressed an interest in making changes to the language of the prospective agreement before putting it out for bid, including that an exception be made allowing youngsters who do not have their own canoe or kayak to be able to rent one for free on some Saturdays at no cost.

He also suggested during discussions that the borough find a way to charge a small fee to any visitor who has his or her own watercraft and decides to launch off the bulkhead as a way for the municipality to generate some additional revenue.

Ward said there would be an increase in interest in such recreation because of one of the resolutions, approved by council that evening, awarding a contract to Surf Bulkhead and Docks for $19,500 to install a new bulkhead, in place of the old one, which is covered by a grant from the Burlington County Municipal Park Development Program.

Another resolution approved at the session authorized the awarding of $29,690 to Amerifence for the installation of fencing for a new dog park on part of the site where the Pemberton Borough Elementary School once stood. It will also be covered by grant funding from the county municipal park program, which is intended to encourage the creation of recreational infrastructure projects.

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Saturday, March 27, 2021

Four Hopefuls to Vie for Two Assembly Seats Due to Open at Start of 2022, While Two Republicans Plan to Challenge Incumbent Democratic Commissioners Hopson, O’Connell

By Bill Bonvie Staff Writer

MOUNT HOLLY—Even as we recover from the drama and chaos of the watershed 2020 election, there is an off-year contest now shaping up for the coming November in which the political complexion of New Jersey’s 8th Legislative District and the current absolute Democratic control of the Burlington County Board of Commissioners, to say nothing of the governorship of New Jersey, are at stake.

Four contenders are currently planning to compete for the district’s two Assembly seats that will be vacated at the beginning of next year by Republicans Jean Stanfield, who is seeking to replace 8th District Democrat (and one-time Republican colleague) Dawn Marie Addiego in the state Senate, and Ryan Peters, a Navy Seal reservist and critic of former President Donald J. Trump, who previously announced he does not plan to run for a third term in the Legislature.

T he c u r r e nt slat e of a n nou nc e d candidates endorsed by the Burlington County Republican Committee includes Hammonton (Atlantic County) Councilman and transportation company owner Michael Torrissi, Jr. and Lumberton Township Administrator Brandon Umba, of Medford, who, barring any new entries in the race, it appears will now face off against Democrats Mark Natale, of Marlton, an employee rights attorney who ran for the same Assembly seat two years ago, and marketing specialist Allison Eckel, one of two Medford Township members of the Lenape Regional High School District Board of Education.

Republ ic an Com m itte e -backe d

challengers to Democratic incumbents Felicia Hopson and Daniel O’Connell, who will be r unning for re- election to the Burlington County Board of Commissioners, are former Eastampton Councilman John Adams and Al Pallanti, of Evesham Township, described as a specialist in government relations and education at ECOLAB, a global water safety company.

Yet another elected post, that of Burlington County surrogate, is currently open and being sought by Burlington Township’s Democratic mayor, Brian Carlin, an attorney specializing in wills, trusts and estates, and Bass River Township’s Republican mayor, Deborah Buzby-Cope, who is a chiropractor.

Both have been endorsed by their respective political organizations.

So, what do the newly minted candidates from both parties think they can bring to the table during this tumultuous time of changing demographics and strident political sentiments?

“As a business owner, I have seen firsthand what happens when the politicians in Trenton think they are entitled to reach into the pockets of hard-working New Jerseyans,” Torrissi claimed in an email sent to the Pine Barrens Tribune.

He added that he looks forward to working with declared GOP gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli to “safely and responsibly” reopening New Jersey businesses and schools, and bringing “much-needed relief to my 8th District friends and neighbors.”

In the same email, Umba, who is a thirdgeneration firefighter and one-time aide to former Republican Congressman John

Photo By BurlCo GOP

8th Legislative District GOP candidates Jean Stanfield (a current assemblywoman), running for state Senate, and Michael Torrissi and Brandon Umba, both of whom are running for Assembly.

Runyan, pointed to a purported reduction in the Lumberton Township tax rate during his six-year tenure as administrator as being indicative of why his experience “is exactly what is needed in Trenton.” Describing himself as “a fiscal hawk,” he pledged to hold politicians accountable and ensure that residents of the 8th District “receive the services they need without crippling them under a heavy tax burden.”

Natale, in a message emailed to this newspaper by Austin Lyle, the campaign manager for both Democratic Assembly candidates, claimed his career has been dedicated to “ensuring that working men and women across the state have someone in their corner representing them regardless of their political orientation.”

He cited such experiences as “sitting

across the table from a mother who doesn’t know where her next paycheck is coming from” and fighting to secure health care for a young family whose source of livelihood disappeared during the pandemic as having inspired him “to pursue this opportunity to serve my neighbors in state government.”

Natale added that when he ran in 2019, he was proud of the enthusiasm it created in the community.

“Now, unfortunately, we still live in a world that highlights too many of the problems that initially motivated me to run,” he said. “The pandemic has only served to underscore the greatest needs in our society, from underemployment to basic affordability for middle-class families.”

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“I believe I have the qualifications to serve in the position and address all the issues that are there, but that will be left to the voters (Continued from Page 14) of Burlington County to decide.”

He also said that if elected to the surrogate Natale said, “I am confident we will build position, there are certain portions of his on the relationships we’ve created with our practice from which he will have to be neighbors and run a hard and competitive “stepping back,” including writing wills, and race this year,” adding, “Our message of that he will also have to give up his partmiddle-class families first will serve in stark time mayor’s post, since New Jersey General contrast to our opposition’s desires to put Court rules require that anyone assuming party bosses ahead of our community.” that role “shall resign from any other public Eckel described herself in the email as office, position someone whose or employment, l i fe h a s b e e n focused on elected or public service on appointed, held public service, by such person.” which in addition “I love the job to her ser vice of mayor, and on the Lenape there are very school board, few positions I Addiego Natale Eckel has included would give it up mentoring children and serving on the board for, but the county surrogate’s position is one of the Medford Education Foundation. that I have the background and experience “I’m running for State Assembly because in that makes it a perfect opportunity for residents in South Jersey need someone me,” Carlin added. who will put aside politics and represent Bu zby- Cop e, when asked by th is their needs in Trenton,” she said. “The newspaper whether she could handle the 8th Legislative District is a classic swing responsibilities of the job and still maintain district that is turned off by petty partisan her chiropractic practice in Little Egg politics. Residents are tired of business Harbor, replied, “absolutely I’ll be able to,” as usual. Mark and I will win because we noting that she has her own practice, so she fundamentally understand the struggles of can make her own hours. our neighbors and we will fight tirelessly to Asked about her qualifications, she said, share our candidacies with every voter in “Actually, it would just be a continuation the district.” of everything I’ve been doing for the past As for the candidates hoping to win back 40 years—listening to people and helping those county government seats for the GOP, them out, especially in my office.”

Adams, according to another email to this To do the job of a surrogate, she added, newspaper from the county Republican “you have to be compassionate, since people organization, “worked across the aisle as an Eastampton Township Councilman to are coming in to either probate their wills or increase services and new businesses to the because they have lost someone.” township while holding the line on taxes She also noted she has considerable (during) all four years he served on council.” experience, both as a mayor and as a His military service, business mentality, and businesswoman, in dealing with budgets ability to balance budgets while meeting and finances. residents’ needs, the message claimed, Burlington County GOP Chairman Sean “will bring a much-needed perspective” Earlen, in an added pitch for his party’s slate, to the board, which would continue to be claimed that “through the past two federal dominated by Democrats, even should both elections, county and local Republican GOP candidates win. candidates outperformed federal Republican Pallanti, the email noted, was appointed by candidates by substantial margins,” and former Pennsylvania Republican Governor that “despite the national climate, many Tom Ridge to serve in that state’s Department unaffiliated and even Democratic voters of Revenue prior to moving to Burlington chose to split their ticket down the ballot in County 20 years ago. He is described as favor of the Republican candidates who they having “the corporate, government, higher believed would best serve their local needs.” education and community experience to He added that the county GOP is confident bring a balanced approach to a bipartisan “that as the focus turns away from national commissioner board.” politics and back towards what is best for In regard to the surrogate’s job, Carlin, Burlington County families, more voters will who has served as Burlington Township return to our column knowing that Burlington mayor for 11 years and a councilman for County Republicans put rhetoric aside to do five, and has maintained a law practice in the hard work of running compassionate and Mount Holly for 35 years, during which he efficient government, especially as we cope estimates he has written some 750-800 wills, told this newspaper in a phone interview that with the Coronavirus pandemic.”

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(Continued from Page 11)

township vehicles is currently projected in 2026, Heston maintained, as one had to be removed when the township constructed a new building for public works a few years ago.

And for this year alone, the committee is exploring borrowing for stormwater improvements to Falcon Drive and Ridge Road ($850,000), purchasing a pumper truck for the Hampton Lakes Fire Department ($550,000), a local road program (up to $3 million), municipal parking lot improvements ($112,000) and additional improvements to the recreation complex ($100,000).

“We’re looking at over $4 million, closer to $5 million (in improvements), and 5 percent down is $250,000 on a borrowing note,” Heston maintained.

While it is not a certainty until final adoption, the committee, according to Mikulski, is currently proposing to use about “$680,000 of surplus” for this year’s budget, or “$46,000-48,000 more than we used last year with the budget,” while still leaving a cushion. The governing body is hoping to introduce a budget in April, he said, with

COMMITTEE (Continued from Page 12)

shortcomings if you are really serious about considering this.”

At the conclusion of the meeting, Stuart Brooks thanked a couple of the committee members for realizing that “what the committee just did was to stick their foot in a very deep pile of expensive work,” but was nonetheless critical of the fact that the question didn’t come up much earlier of whether the township could go forward with a particular vendor like CEP. Fran Brooks, for her part, blamed what she called the “total chaos” of such a session on the committee’s failure to observe Robert’s Rules of Order.

At the out s et of the d is cu s sion, Committeeman Robert Sunbury, after contending that ”CEP has not provided us with any financial specifics, but only “vague generalities,” suggested that the township “be willing to hear an offer for them to lease the landfill, to cap it, but also sufficiently bond us in the event of their failure so there are enough funds to remediate it back to its capped status,” removing any material they may have left behind in that event, “which would also leave us with a usable property.”

LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

♦ Page 15

“no increase in the municipal tax rate for a fourth year in a row.”

But, the surplus to be used and municipal tax rate, the mayor noted, could ultimately be affected by any decision on the refuse collection, and three other “unknowns,” to include: recommendations about fire trucks, recommendations about roads to improve and what amount the town will receive in federal COVID-19 relief monies.

Already factored into a potential 2021 budget, as mentioned at a February budget workshop meeting, is the anticipation “that some litigation may end,” with the potential for settlements, including over a Buddtown Road accident and lighting dispute, a Mobile Estates drowning accident and over a property on Hilliards Bridge Road. Additionally, the state is conducting buyout transactions through its Blue Acres Program in flood-prone areas, which will not only reduce the residential tax base some, but also potentially result in increased property maintenance costs for the town under a state requirement.

The committee is also “projecting” that there could be a new hire in “financial administration” this year, for someone “to learn the position for a possible upcoming retirement.”

That recommendation, however, was rendered moot for the time being once it was determined that leasing it for a solar project, whether to CEP Renewables or any competitive company, would possibly take considerably more doing than originally anticipated.

In other business, the committee, by a 4-0 vote, approved a resolution appointing Su nbu r y as the tow nsh ip Of fic e of Emergency Management coordinator (a role he has been filling on an interim basis) for a three-year term beginning April 30 at a base salary of $8,756.80, and as the safety coordinator for the township’s Joint Insurance fund for a concurrent term.

Sunbury abstained from the vote.

It also authorized the appointment of Natalie Lewis as secretary to the township tax assessor and authorized Guzzi to prepare plans and solicit sealed bids for the 2021 drainage program, which will include work on Pricketts Mill Road, Eldorado Drive, Hawkin Road and North Drive.

Committeewoman Nancy McGinnis, in a report at the meeting’s conclusion, noted that March 22 was the 120th anniversary of Tabernacle’s incorporation and expressed the hope that “after COVID’s all done with, we can have a party, and maybe every year have a Tabernacle day and a festival.”

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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

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LRHSD

(Continued from Page 10)

schools related to COVID-19 mitigation, all of which will influence the district’s costsaving options.”

The public hearing is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on April 28, and will take place inside the school auditorium of Seneca High School, one of the district’s four high schools.

The school is located at 110 Carranza Road in Tabernacle Township.

Roberts declined to reveal the total tentative budget being proposed, which accounts for not only the general fund portion, but also any special revenues and debt service.

“The total budget is subject to change based on a number of factors, including updates from federal and state officials regarding special revenues like COVID-19 funding,” she replied when asked for the figure, contending it would be more accurate to report that number once the district hears back from the executive county superintendent.

The district did announce that the general fund portion of the budget proposed is $158,758,708 “because that is the budget that will impact taxes,” according to Roberts.

The tentative budget was approved for submission to the executive county superintendent during a March 17 LRHSD board meeting, and an agenda for that session noted that the tax levy for the general fund is $122,685,941, (or the amount to be raised through taxes).

According to Roberts, the LRHSD will receive $25,072,520 in the state aid for the 2021-22 school year.

The grand total represents a reduction for the 2021-22 school year of 4.24 percent, or $1,110,080.

LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

AD HOTLINE: (609) 801-2392 According to the district’s press release, the proposed general fund budget represents a 2.17 percent increase over the previous year, “the net difference of a 2.13 percent tax levy increase and a decrease of state aid in the amount of $1,110,080.”

Last year, the LRHSD lost $1,155,936 in state aid (4.2 percent decrease), and the year before that, $961,300 (3.4 percent decrease).

Following board approval of submission of the tentative budget to the executive county superintendent, a message from Board President Barry Fitzgerald appeared on the district’s website, asking for the public’s help “to save the Lenape District and others from unjust budget cuts resulting from a flawed funding formula.”

March 24 was designated as a day of action to “let your voice be heard” and call, email or Tweet to Democratic Governor Phil Murphy and state legislators. Murphy had signed in 2018 Senate Bill S-2, with provisions that revised the school funding formula to “fully fund” schools, but as is in the case of LRHSD, actually result in a decrease in funding for districts considered by the state to be overfunded, with enrollment apparently considered a major factor.

“This is an unusual year and not a year for the ‘business as usual’ attitudes from some elected officials when it comes to implementing state funding cuts,” wrote Fitzgerald in recognizing the impact of the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.

“Throughout New Jersey, and locally, there have been some elected officials who joined us in our request to pause the cuts to our state funding, but not all. This is not a political party issue, it is a student issue, one that impacts every kid in the Lenape Region.”

The board president asked the “LRHSD family” to ask three things from legislators and the governor, including a pause in state funding cuts caused by S-2, “work to update the antiquated school funding formula,”

and “if a revised funding formula dictates the cuts are necessary, reestablishment of a better timeline for districts to manage the cuts within the capped tax levy.” “‘Cutting state aid will have irrevocable and far-reaching consequences, hampering our ability to prepare students for success in college, careers and the workforce in a post-COVID-19 world,’” said Fitzgerald of one of several suggested messages he would like the public to repeat to legislators and the governor.

Superintendent Dr. Carol Birnbohm has contended in recent communications that the cuts, and the inaction so far by the elected officials, “defy logic.” During Lenape Region forums about the impact of S-2, which were held in previous years, the superintendent had warned of “negative impacts,” including academic program eliminations/reductions.

The tentative budget, however, according to the district press release, “does not require any reductions to student programs this year.”

It was also noted in the press release that district’s debt service tax levy is decreasing by $74,129, “which reflects the current payment schedule for the 2021-2022 year that was previously approved by the taxpayers.”

A proposed general fund tax levy increase of 2.13 percent, and a debt service tax levy decrease of 3.83 percent, would result in the following tax impact upon final adoption: • Evesham Township: Tax levy increase of 0.02 cents, which would result in an increase in regional school taxes of $2.71 on a home assessed at the township average of $271,884; • Medford Township: Tax levy increase of 1.18 cents, which would result in an increase in regional school taxes of $39.94 on a home assessed at the township average of $326,586; • Medford Lakes Borough: Tax levy increase of 5.01 cents, which would result

♦ Page 17

in an increase in regional school taxes of $150.68 on a home assessed at the borough average of $288,021; • Mount Laurel Township: Tax levy increase of 1.59 cents, which would result in an increase in regional school taxes of $39.33 on a home assessed at the township average of $237,700; • Shamong Township: Tax levy decrease of 0.48 cents, which would result in a decrease in regional school taxes of $11.64 on a home assessed at the township average of $309,233; • Southampton Township: Tax levy increase of 2.67 cents, which would result in an increase in regional school taxes of $52.93 on a home assessed at the township average of $192,493; • Tabernacle Township: Tax levy decrease of 4.18 cents, which would result in a decrease in regional school taxes of $97.03 on a home assessed at the township average of $267,131; and • Woodland Township: Tax levy increase of 3.10 cents, which would result in an increase in regional school taxes of $70.09 on a home assessed at the township average of $254,800.

A “more in-depth discussion” of the budget and its tax impact is promised by district officials for the upcoming public hearing.

During the latest board meeting, in addition to student and curriculum revision presentations, the retirement of longtime Seneca guidance counselor Erica Maira was approved, effective July 1, among other district employees. Juanene Yates has been appointed to the post of Seneca office manager, while Sharron Bytheway will swap schools with Jason Russell as a custodial shift supervisor (Seneca to Shawnee and vice versa).

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Send It Over to News@PineBarrensTribune.com The present-day center of Tabernacle.

TABERNACLE (Continued from Page 1)

Society, which is the curator of the building, to move the structure somewhere away from its current spot.

School officials said a previous agreement to sell the entire 5.77-acre property to The Friends of Cyrus Partners II, LLC for $850,000, as previously reported by this newspaper, fell through because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I n a not h e r 3 -1 vot e at t h e s a m e meeting, the committee gave the township professionals a green light to work together on first studying the feasibility and possible costs of connecting the Tabernacle Township Municipal Center, including the town hall, public works and annex buildings, to the school district’s sewer system, and if possible, then coming up with a conceptual plan to make it happen.

All of the township buildings utilize an on-site septic system, which means the swap could theoretically reduce maintenance responsibilities and limit the amount of nitrates polluting the groundwater, according to local officials.

But the long-term, possibly bigger-picture move could ultimately set the stage down the road for the township relocating its public works department from the center of town to another piece of public land, such as the old landfill, and constructing an addition at the end of town hall in place of where the public works facility is now located.

The possibility of doing that has been discussed for many years, and was strongly considered around 2012when, according to Chief Financial Officer Rodney Haines, the township could have moved forward with relocating the public works area to the landfill and building a town hall addition via a bond. But there was a concern at the time about having to raise taxes in order to take on the additional debt, he said.

The potential benefits of such changes to the municipal complex, local officials contend, would be a less industr ialappearing and more aesthetically pleasing municipal complex at the town’s center.

Beyond that, they say, an addition could allow for the possibility that all the municipal offices could be in one building as a “one-stop shop,” reconfigured and possibly expanded to better serve the town’s growing population, and could enable its courtroom and meeting room to become more ADAaccessible.

Committeewoman Nancy McGinnis was the only member to vote against Barton’s proposals at the workshop session. Mayor Kimberly Brown was absent.

McGinnis said the old Sequoia school property would be a “less marketable” commercial lot after the possible subdivision

Photo By Andy Milone

because of the elimination of the grass portion, resulting in it no longer being a “corner property” at the intersection of Carranza Road and County Route 532.

“We are going to have the school sitting there – just like the Tabernacle Inn is sitting there, and nobody is going to want to buy it,” McGinnis said. “And that’s our problem too, because that school is in our township.”

As for hooking up the municipal buildings to the school’s sewer system, she said properties along Route 206 should have been included in the plan for the sake of attracting more ratables, despite that arguably being a much more daunting prospect when it comes to meeting the demands of the Pinelands Commission.

Barton, the township’s school-district liaison, said he had met with Tabernacle School Superintendent Shaun Banin, board member Dr. Megan Jones and Tabernacle Historical Society President Rick Franzen, a former mayor of the township who had served as a committeeman for more than a decade, to discuss both proposals at the end of January.

“The township expressed the desire to the district, and we need to have a larger discussion, esp e cial ly regardi ng the sewer system’s feasibility,” said Banin in a telephone interview March 11, adding that both the propositions are in the “exploratory” phase.

He would not commit to supporting or opposing either possibility, nor did he have an update on when or if further discussion will ensue.

“We’re always looking to maintain a good relationship with the town, and we would look at it as a partnership with the same goal of wanting to see the town flourish,” said Business Administrator Patricia Palmieri, who also was on the call with this newspaper.

The 5.77-acre former school property at 180 Carranza Road has been for sale for more than a year. An automobile accident in 2018 left the building damaged and resulted in the Sequoia Alternative Program being relocated to another building in Marlton.

Once the repairs were complete, the students and staff never retur ned to Tabernacle and in turn, the lease agreement with the Lenape Regional High School District (LRHSD), which runs the Sequoia program, was not renewed.

And now that a sales agreement had fallen through, Barton said the question became “whether the school really needed all that property.”

“The grass portion was used as a ballfield for many, many years,” Barton said. “Since that use stopped, basically the only use of that grass area of the school has been for parking for the Pine Barrens Festival. The school board has maintained that property.

They do cut that grass.”

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RACING

(Continued from Page 1) be open at 9 a.m. on Saturday, March 27, with opening-day racing scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., a “Summit Racing” series of sportsman, pro and super-pro slated to be held from April 10 through Aug. 28, and a series of “Index Insanity” events scheduled from April through October.

“Everyone has been told that we will have a schedule for this season,” said Caitlin Sabin, who picked up the raceway’s telephone on March 23. “It is what is out on Facebook.”

When asked if the schedule could be halted due to the pending sale, Sabin, who is listed in various places online as an owner, said, “I can’t predict the future.”

Word of Insurance Auto Auctions (IAA) Corp, out of Westchester, Illinois being under contract to acquire the decades-old dragstrip at 1000 Jackson Road from owner Leonard Capone, Jr. was first revealed last summer, and since then, has been a white-hot topic among racing fans in the Pinelands.

IAA is a publicly traded, global digital marketplace for damaged or otherwise low-value vehicles or those that have been declared a total loss, with more than 200 facilities throughout the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom.

The prospective auction facility would be located in the township Planned Light Industrial District, which permits new and used automobile sales and service establishments if certain conditions are met.

No dismantling, removal of parts or maintenance would be performed at the site, according to officials at the meetings. Vehicles, from insurance companies, fleet companies, rental car companies, and charities would be delivered and then moved to their designated spaces on the property until auctioned online,

according to the company.

A petition to Democratic Governor Phil Murphy titled, “Don’t let Atco Raceway die!” has garnered more than 9,000 signatures since it was posted on change.org nine months ago

by Zach Flanagan. In addition, a “Save Atco Raceway” Facebook group has welcomed nearly 1,400 members.

“Atco Dragway has been a second home to southern New Jersey car enthusiasts for the past 60 years,” the petition states. “The track has been known to draw crowds of thousands. … After Englishtown’s raceway park dragstrip was closed down nearly two years ago, Atco is all that we have left.”

The petition concludes with a plea to not let the facility get turned into a parking lot.

“The track holds immeasurable value to the local community, it contends, adding, “It would be an honest shame to see such an amazing facility go to waste.”

The Facebook group characterizes the dragway as a place where members go to get together with friends and family “to show off our cars and to safely and legally race our vehicles,” bringing along wives, husbands, parents and children, and describes it as truly being “a family-safe environment that holds many of our memories since its construction in 1960.

“We, the supporters, fans, and patrons of Atco Dragway stand to lose all of this if action is not taken,” the posting adds.

Attendees of the Dec. 21 land use board meeting, according to minutes posted online, were told that the board’s professionals needed additional time to review the application before beginning discussions on it.

The first public meeting on the application was scheduled for Jan. 20, but initial testimony pertaining to it had to be postponed due to concern with the virtual maximum capacity limitation on Zoom being set at 100, before it was later increased to accommodate the much larger number of potential participants attempting to listen to the meeting.

A subsequent Feb. 17 meeting that lasted until 10:30 p.m. was halted after nearly four hours of testimony and board questions with the expectation that another on March 1 was to be a continuation of the board’s interrogation before the application was opened to public comments.

Due to a purported recording malfunction, most of that meeting’s audio recording was apparently lost, and it was announced at the March 1 meeting that an attempt would be made to uncover a recording from another source, or else the “record would have to be recreated.” The latter ended up happening on March 15, with similar testimony being given by the professionals involved and variations on questions from board members being answered during another nearly four-hour meeting.

At the latest such session, Waterford Township Mayor Andrew Wade, a member of the board, also announced that he was recusing himself from further meetings and the eventual vote on the application following allegations about his having a potential conflict of interest as the owner of Wade’s Salvage in town.

Wade contended that he wanted discussions more focused on the application, rather than himself, despite Solicitor Stephen Boraske previously denying there was any conflict of interest because “the use that is proposed by the applicant is too far attenuated from Mr. Wade’s business.”

Barring another unexpected hurdle, or questions from the four remaining board members who haven’t already weighed in taking several hours more, it appears that the public may be given a chance to finally be heard before a vote is taken on the application.

Although members of the public haven’t formally had the opportunity to speak their minds on the application, a Zoom chat box was left open for some of the earlier meetings, giving spectators a chance to type up their thoughts unofficially behind the scenes.

♦ Page 19

“Save the track!” wrote one who gave her name as Angie Marie. “No one wants Atco to turn into the Simpsons Movie because of the pollution from the crap they’re gonna (sic) bring in.”

Karl Knaupp, another participant, wrote, “I moved to the area for the track, not a junkyard.”

If the land-use board ultimately gives approval to the application and the necessary other approvals and permits are obtained from Camden County, the Pinelands Commission staff will review the completed application submitted by IAA for its proposed private commercial development and decide whether or not to give it the final green light, based on a series of standards in place to protect the preserved natural resources of the Pinelands.

The prospective development, according to public records, would entail the demolition of four buildings that are 50 years old or older; the construction of an approximately 10,000-square-foot commercial building, and the change of use from an existing dragway to an automobile auction facility.

All in all, the land-use plans submitted to the township propose the construction of two covered enclosures delineated for auction vehicle parking and motorcycle parking, along with an office building, access gate, employee parking, pull-out zone, drop zone, and stormwater management facilities.

They also call for the removal of substantial portions of the existing paved areas and dragstrip, as well as the entire South Jersey Quarter-Midget Race Track and other features such as the existing fencing and bleachers.

The total project area involves about 180 acres, using land located at 2556 Tremont Avenue, 1000 Jackson Road, 924 Jackson Road, 940 Jackson Road and 1007 Glendale Road. About 40 acres will be utilized as inventory space, and several portions of the property will revert back to their natural conditions.

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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

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Deputy Mayor Samuel Moore inquired further about the cost of such a project, based on his desire to avoid a municipal tax increase, and received a reply from Township Engineer Dante Guzzi that it “wouldn’t cost a great deal of money” to draft a subdivision plan if deemed feasible.

Com m itt e e man Bob Su nbu r y had questions about what use the grass portion could serve, if the township did not own the parking lot, and ultimately had to rely on the town hall parking lot across the street, which he described as “already limited.”

A survey of the property has already been completed by the school district, which means the township has avoided a bulk of the future cost associated with the possible subdivision, according to Guzzi, who said it is now a preliminary matter of reviewing the property to see if a subdivision would be feasible in regard to factors such as lot size and configuration. If a plan were to be proposed at a later date, it would have to gain the approval of the township land development board.

Barton also envisions town hall, along with the public works and annex buildings,

being connected to the school sewer line that already serves the Tabernacle Elementary School, Kenneth Olson Middle School, Tabernacle Rescue Squad Station, and the former Sequoia Alternative Program building.

The annex building is occupied by the offices of the tax assessor, fire inspector and employees of the construction and zoning departments.

The township’s investigation will further determine if such capacity is available and the additional flow involved can be supported, as well as the most cost-effective and efficient way to make the connection, although Guzzi, in a later telephone interview, said the project would likely be feasible, and more a matter of whether or not the committee wants to take on the cost.

Whether the community center at 81 Hawkin Road could possibly figure into the town’s future plans was also discussed at the workshop meeting, but the matter was left unresolved.

Tow nsh ip Ad m i n istrator Doug la s Cramer, in an interview with this newspaper that there were “tons of wonderful ideas” at the meeting, but he was hopeful the committee will give him and his staff a “clear direction” before the end of the year, so that they can do more planning and budgeting for the future.

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JOB BOARD

♦ Page 23

Tired of Waiting for Your Job to Reopen?

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re Like Wherk!

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Page 24 ♦

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM

Saturday, March 27, 2021

KEEPING A HEALTHY SPIRIT Monday, April 5, 2021 | 6 p.m.

Location: Zoom Meeting Challenging times can be difficult to navigate, but mindfulness meditation can provide a sense of grounding and calmness along the way. To learn how you can experience the benefits of mindfulness, join DR. KRISTINA MCGUIRE, a clinical psychologist from Capital Health – Behavioral Health Specialists, for an interactive presentation that explores this meditation technique and guides participants through several mindfulness exercises.

This event will be taking place virtually using Zoom. Register online at capitalhealth.org/events and be sure to include your email address.

Zoom meeting details will be provided via email 2-3 days before the program date. Registration ends 24 hours before the program date.

@capitalhealthnj

Lifestyle Strategies to Manage PRE-DIABETES AND DIABETES Tuesday, April 6, 2021 | 6 p.m. | Location: Zoom Meeting Pre-diabetes is a condition that can lead to type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Join DR. SHERI GILLIS FUNDERBURK, medical director for the Capital Health Diabetes Education Program, and MINDY KOMOSINSKY, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, as they discuss risk factors, normal glucose metabolism and changes in the body that can lead to pre-diabetes and diabetes, the relationship between food choices and blood glucose, and strategies for reducing your risk.

This event will be taking place virtually using Zoom. Register online at capitalhealth.org/events and be sure to include your email address.

Zoom meeting details will be provided via email 2-3 days before the program date. Registration ends 24 hours before the program date.

@capitalhealthnj