Broadwalk on a busy night last September. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s Broadwalk dining and shopping plaza would have a fixed spot on the annual calendar if an ordinance up for introduction Thursday night is adopted.
Also on the governing body’s agenda when it holds its first regular business meeting of the year: action on additional financing for replacement of lead water service lines; the introduction of a long-awaited new historic preservation ordinance; and more.
Lead-line test pits on West Sunset Avenue in November. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Seeking to cement Broadwalk as an annually recurring feature of downtown life, the mayor and council slate elected last May plans to introduce an ordinance to make the northern end of Broad Street a “seasonal pedestrian mall” no longer automatically subject to yearly debate.
Broad Street restaurants and stores between Front Street and White Street would have table access to the street starting the Monday after the second Sunday in May, and through September 30 “on an annual basis,” the proposed law reads.
The same law would also designate Emanuel Court, an alleyway connecting English Plaza to West Front Street, as a “permanent pedestrian mall” closed to vehicular traffic.
Broadwalk was created in 2020 to help downtown businesses recover from the wallop of the COVID-19 pandemic that arrived in the United States earlier in the year. The plaza is now guarded against vehicle intrusion by heavy-duty steel bollards that retract into the ground when not in use.
Though any law can be revised or scrapped by a majority at any time, adoption of the ordinance would please business operators in the zone, who have argued that the annual debate over whether renew the plaza makes it harder to prepare for. Opponents say Broadwalk benefits few businesses and causes traffic logjams around the downtown.
Among other agenda items are these:
• Introduction of Ordinance #2024-01, Amending Bond Ordinances 2023-06 and 2023-18 for Lead Service Line Replacement for $4,960,000
Details not posted
• Introduction of Ordinance #2024-02, a Bond Ordinance for Red Bank Station Pedestrian Improvements for $765,000
Details not posted
• Introduction of Ordinance #2024-03, the HPC Ordinance
Details not posted
• Introduction of Ordinance#2024-05 Ordinance to Amend the Salary Ordinance.
This would add the salary range ($65,000 to $95,000) for the new position of human resources manager.
• Resolution 24-28 Authorization Open Public Auction for Lease of Borough Owned Parking Spaces
This would put 11 borough-owned parking spots that are tucked in between Morford Place and Riverside Avenue up for lease, with a miniumum bid of $22,000 per year.
It would appear that the Monteverde cannabis shop, at 45 North Bridge Avenue, would need to win a competitive bid for the spots in order to comply with the conditions of the planning board approval granted last June.
Here’s the complete agenda for the meeting, which is scheduled to be held in the council chambers at borough hall, 90 Monmouth Street, starting at 6:30 p.m. Access and participation details can be found here. Remote participation is available via the media link (TV icon) on the borough government’s agendas page.
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