Tag Archives: Monmouth County

News

Scene Around: Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Replacement & Advisory

Yes, you can cross that Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge when you get to it. But there will be some intrusions through Thursday.

The long-planned new bridge is being constructed, as planned, parallel to the old, still standing bridge. However, the activity surrounding the bridge replacement may cause some disruptions in traffic flow to and from Rumson and Sea Bright for those few days, so Monmouth County officials have released a summary of what’s going on and where through Thursday between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., weather permitting. Take a look at the gallery above for a glimpse into the project (CLICK on one photo to enlarge and scroll.)

They have advised that people should be aware of the following travel disruptions:

Rumson Road, Rumson

  • The eastbound shoulder will be closed and both travel lanes shifted through Thursday.
  • Flaggers may be present to facilitate delivery of construction materials Monday through Thursday

Ocean Avenue (Route 36), Sea Bright

  • Flaggers may be present to facilitate delivery of construction materials through Thursday

Shrewsbury River

  • Construction of the temporary trestles will continue in the water south of the bridge.
Crime, Regional Interest

Prosecutor: Woman Who Killed Neighbor Gets 20 Years

A Monmouth County woman has been sentenced to 20 years in a New Jersey state prison for the 2016 fatal stabbing of her neighbor, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced.

Continue reading Prosecutor: Woman Who Killed Neighbor Gets 20 Years →
Arts & Entertainment, Schools Scene

NJ Teen Arts Tour to Feature RFH Grad’s Piece

Hive Mind, a porcelain piece created by recent Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) graduate Dante Cioffoletti, has been selected for the New Jersey Teen Arts Touring Exhibition and will be exhibited throughout Monmouth County for the next year.

Continue reading NJ Teen Arts Tour to Feature RFH Grad’s Piece →

Crime, Regional Interest

Prosecutor: Major Cocaine Distribution Ring Busted

Nine members of a Monmouth County-based cocaine distribution ring that was moving one-third of a kilogram of cocaine per week were arrested late last week after a nine-month investigation, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced on Friday.

Continue reading Prosecutor: Major Cocaine Distribution Ring Busted →

Crime, Regional Interest

Prosecutor: Criminal Justice Reform Statistical Update

The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office has compiled statistics for the first nine months of the 2017 calendar year relating to the Bail Reform and Speedy Trial Act that went into effect at the start of 2017.

Continue reading Prosecutor: Criminal Justice Reform Statistical Update →

Crime, Regional Interest

Prosecutor: Child Porn Sweep Nets Arrests of 14 Area Men

A summer-long operation focused on online consumers of child pornography dubbed Operation School’s Out resulted in the arrest of 14 area men, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni announced on Friday.

Continue reading Prosecutor: Child Porn Sweep Nets Arrests of 14 Area Men →

News

Detour: Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Overnight Closure

So it goes again … If you’re planning on traveling over the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge any time between 8 p.m. tonight and 6 a.m. tomorrow, Thursday, morning, you’ll need to plan an alternate route.

The bridge, which is slated for replacement, will be undergoing a continuation of routine maintenance work to its bascule span (the moveable part)  to keep it traversable until the total replacement transpires.

A released statement from Monmouth County officials on the previous week’s work said:

“This critical work is necessary to keep the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge’s movable span in working condition,” said Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone, liaison to the County’s Department of Public Works and Engineering. “Monmouth County works diligently to keep its bridges in safe, working order. The goal of the overnight construction is to minimize the disruption of travel.”

The bridge will be closed to all vehicle and pedestrian traffic while the work is conducted. Motorists should plan an alternate route during the overnight hours.

Detours will be posted. Motor vehicle traffic from Rumson Road in Rumson can travel west to Bingham Avenue over the Oceanic Bridge through Middletown and Highlands to reach Sea Bright.

Motor vehicle traffic in Sea Bright can travel south on Ocean Avenue through Monmouth Beach to Atlantic Avenue to Monmouth Boulevard (Oceanport) to Seven Bridges Road (Little Silver) to reach Rumson Road in Rumson.

News

Reminder: Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Replacement Meetings

It’s not something that’s happening any time soon, but the replacement of the deteriorating Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge is happening.

With what has been dubbed the Local Concept Development Phase of the project in the works, Monmouth County officials are letting the local public know that their input, in the form of public informational meetings, is invited as the project’s design moves into its Local Preliminary Engineering Phase.

Those meetings, held in cooperation with the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration, are today in both Sea Bright and Rumson: from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Sea Bright Municipal Building’s public meeting room, with a presentation at 2:30 p.m.; and tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School in the cafeteria.

 

From the county …

“The purpose of the Public Information Center meetings is to inform the public of the status since the Local Concept Development Phase of this bridge replacement project including refinements to the approach roadways and intersections, and to solicit public input and comment on the Preliminary Engineering Phase of the project.

“These meetings are being conducted in conformance with Federal and State regulations. The public is invited and encouraged to comment on the project and may attend either or both meetings.

“Written comments will be accepted through Friday, July 8, 2016. Comments may be mailed or faxed to:

Inkyung Englehart, Project Manager
Monmouth County Division of Engineering & Traffic Safety Hall of Records Annex, 3rd Floor
1 East Main Street
Freehold, NJ 07728

Fax 732-431-7765 engineer@co.monmouth.nj.us”

 

Continue reading Reminder: Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Replacement Meetings →

Local Life, News

A Weekend Respite: Oceanic Bridge Open

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An extra push with work on the Oceanic Bridge will allow for a weekend opening from Friday evening through Monday morning, Monmouth County officials announced.

Officials said in a release that work has been ongoing around the clock since 6 a.m. on Monday.

Harms Construction, the company doing the work, have assured that the work will be complete by next Friday, June 12, on schedule.

Work on the south side of the drawbridge that spans the Navesink River from Rumson to Middletown will start again on Monday at 6 a.m. 24 hours a day in two 12-hour shifts, a release from the county said.

County officials added that the bridge is open only to marine traffic with the usual season rules and scheduling applying.

 

Oceanic Bridge background information from the county … 

“The 2,712-foot drawbridge crosses the Navesink River and serves beach, commercial and residential traffic, as well as pedestrian and bicycle travel. It is also a key route for coastal evacuations and emergency vehicles headed to hospitals or providing mutual aid. The bridge has been classified as structurally deficient.

“Built in 1939, the Oceanic Bridge has deteriorated due to decades of exposure to saltwater and from accommodating heavier vehicles and traffic volumes than for which it was designed.

“In 2012, Monmouth County completed extensive work to rehabilitate the bridge’s 100-foot, center bascule span, allowing motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians to continue use of the bridge.

“Monmouth County received notification from the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) Board of Trustees in January that $600,000 in federal funding was available to perform a Concept Development Study for the replacement or rehabilitation of the Oceanic Bridge.

“Monmouth County plans to replace the Oceanic Bridge in the next ten years.”

News

Rumson’s Piping Rock Park Primed for Improvements

By Elaine Van Develde

It’s all about the green right now at Rumson’s Piping Rock Park — money, grass and a green light for improvements.

The borough was recently one of 15 municipalities in the county awarded $250,000 in 2014 Monmouth County Open Space Trust Fund grant money to fund mostly playing fields improvements at the park.

The $250,000 is a maximum grant amount allocated to go toward eligible projects that are slated to come to fruition in 2015.

All 53 municipalities in the county are eligible to apply for the now annual county grant which requires that projects suit an open space need, such as improvements to or acquisition of passive or active open space and/or recreation swaths of land.

Rumson officials’ choice was based on an impending need to upgrade the highly used, now war-torn natural grass fields.

They get so much use, Mayor John Ekdhal said, that there’s been “no time to ‘rest’ or repair the grass surface,” so turf is the way to go in order to accommodate the “amount of children using the fields for all the various sports.”

The mayor estimates that the cost for an artificial grass field (alone) “is upwards of $600,000, and  hence the plan is to apply and hopefully receive a second $250,000 grant in 2015 to move forward (into Phase II of the plan).”

In addition to the turf installation, there will be a few more associated improvements as part of Phase I of the project as it was outlined by Rumson Engineer David Marks, of the Middletown-based T&M Associates, in September of 2014.

The plan for Phase I, according to borough minutes, is as follows:

    • a multi-sport synthetic turf field for regulation size soccer, field hockey, lacrosse and practice football (no end zones or goal posts), which could also be used for two side-by-side child soccer fields;
    • a 10-foot-high vinyl buffer fence along the southern end of the park, from Forrest Avenue to East River Road;
    • a 10 to 15-foot-high chain link perimeter fence in the field area along Forrest Avenue;
    • paver walkways on the north side of the field by the Carton Street parking lot which will connect to the playground area and south side of the field and parking lot by East River Road.
    • relocation of the 9/11 Memorial and flagpole;

Check the minutes for the Phase II plans by clicking here.