Skip to content

A town square for an unsquare town

redbankgreen

Standing for the vitality of Red Bank, its community, and the fun we have together.

ROAD REOPENS IN TIME FOR KABOOM SURGE

nrrd-062910A man checked out the newly rebuilt roadway over the earthen dam shortly after it reopened Tuesday night. (Click to enlarge)

A stretch of Navesink River Road in Middletown was reopened Tuesday night, 13 weeks after a culvert collapse that Monmouth County officials thought would take four weeks to fix.

The reopening eliminates one potential source of trouble in keeping huge numbers of cars moving into and out of Red Bank for the KaBoom Fireworks on the Navesink Saturday night. The event is typically watched by a crowd estimated at about 150,000 people.

A county official told redbankgreen last week that he anticipated the road would be reopened by June 30, barring rain and a repeat of the kinds of mishaps that have plagued the job.

Additional work still need to be done, but the roadway will remain open while it is underway, according to press release issued by county spokesman Bill Heine last night

More from the announcement:

“After a number of disappointing delays beyond the county’s control, I am pleased to report  that the road is open,” said Freeholder John P. Curley, liaison to the county’s Department of Public Works and Engineering, which is performing the work in-house. “Our concern was to reopen the road to vehicular traffic as soon as possible and to ensure Navesink River Road is open in time for the big fireworks display this weekend in Red Bank. We have achieved that goal.”

Heavy rains in March had caused a culvert running under Navesink River Road to collapse, forcing the closure of the road between Route 35 and Hubbard Avenue.

The county’s engineering, bridge and highway crews are performing the work in-house, alleviating the expense and the time it would have taken to go out for public bidding to hire a private contractor and engineering consultant. Despite the delays, the county project will be completed more expeditiously and with a substantial cost savings.

Navesink River Road adjacent to Poricy Brook Pond serves as an earthen dam with two pipes running underneath. During the March storms, as the height of the pond rose, it put pressure and velocity on the water passing underneath the road, undermining the supporting soil and unsettling the road. Water drains from Poricy Brook Pond to Swimming River farther south.

The damaged pipes were 50 years old and constructed of corrugated steel pipes 60 inches in diameter. They were side by side under the road. Those pipes were replaced with concrete pipes and improved fortification which will be stronger and is expected to last longer.

The project took longer than expected due mainly to problems with the utilities and water lines. Two water main breaks and an unexpected change in the scope of the work by the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) led to the delays.

The county is awaiting final approval of plans for a gabion wall to be built on the downstream side of the spillway. The wall will hold soil back at the point where the pipes penetrate the earthen dam. Even without it, the road is stable for normal road conditions. That approval is expected soon.

Public Works and Engineering Director John W. Tobia said the unfinished work will have minimal impact on traffic except for limited lane closures to complete the remaining construction phase.

“I know the closure caused minor inconveniences for many people who live in that area and I want to thank them for their patience during the construction,” Curley said.

Remember: Nothing makes a Red Bank friend happier than to hear "I saw you on Red Bank Green!"
redbankgreen Classics
Partyline
THIS LOT IS GOING TO POT!!
Do NOT hit this monster pothole in Red Bank’s best parking lot for people watching or your weekend plans may go up in smoke. In the backgr ...
DEM GOV HOPEFUL FULOP VISITS RED BANK
110 people braved the ice on Super Bowl Sunday morning to head to Triumph Brewery to hear Steve Fulop’s case for why he should be our ...
REAL BRICKS!
Pardon our nerdiness, but we were excited to see the facade of the long-vacant building at 42 Monmouth being renovated with a facade that ap ...
NAVESINK SUNRISE
Sunrise colors Sunday over the Navesink. Shot from Maple Cove. (photo by Partyline contributor Thomas Doremus)
PET OWNER TO RED BANK: SCREW YOU
(photo and text by Partyline contributor Anna Cruz; headline by redbankgreen) Remember to scoop the poop!  
A HAIR DRYER IN A TREE?
(Photo and text by Partyline contributor Nicole Taetsch) If someone is missing a red hair dryer, it’s hanging from a tree on Oakland S ...
FROM DEEP LEFT FIELD..
(Photo and words by Partyline contributor Peter Cavalier) Shapes, Angles, and Colors: an Artist’s Canvas Where: A frigid Saturday morn ...
SUNSET ICE BOATING
Sunset ice boating Saturday. (photo by Partyline contributor Thomas Doremus)
ICY NAVESINK BLISS
Ice boating is back, baby! (Photo by partyline contributor Boris Kofman)
TEACHERS GET COUNCIL KUDOS
The Mayor and Borough Council honored five teachers from the Red Bank Borough Schools who were selected for the Governor’s Educator of the ...
RED BANK LIBRARY HEAD BIDS ADIEU
Eleni Glykis in her last day on the job in Red Bank Thursday (photo by Brian Donohue) redbankgreen stopped in the Red Bank Public Library to ...
TO TOWER HILL!
Parents and kids flocked to Tower Hill on Monday morning, taking advantage of the federal holiday and perfectly timed Sunday snowfall.
BROAD STREET IN WHITE
Taken during the snowstorm Sunday. (Photo by Partyline contributor Thomas Doremus)
Stunning Sunrise at Marine Park
Sunday’s sunrise from Marine Park. (photo by Partyline contributor Thomas Doremus)  
WALL STREET CLOSED FOR LEAK
Wall Street in Red Bank closed for water leak.
INDOOR SOCCER KICKS OFF
Pre-k and kindergarten aged kids were at Red Bank Middle School bright and early Sunday, participating in the indoor soccer program hosted b ...
SUNSET OVER FROZEN NAVESINK RIVER
Sunset colors Saturday evening over the ice shot from  Shrewsbury Ave. (Photo by Partyline contributor Thomas Doremus)  
ICY VIEW FROM TRAIN WINDOW
View of the partially frozen Navesink River Saturday afternoon from NJCL Train #7244. (Photo by Partyline contributor Karly Swaim)
RBR BEATS RBC IN BOYS HOOPS RIVALRY
 Red Bank Regional's boys basketball came out with the win at home against their crosstown rivals Red Bank Catholic on Tuesday in Little Si ...
FRIGID DINNER FOR WATER LINE WORKERS
Work continued into the late night hours on Bank Street Tuesday night as a crew replaced several water lines to homes under the town wide le ...