Morristown may share fire department with Morris Township; council also okays grant applications for open space, bike signs

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Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty is forming a committee to explore merging fire departments with Morris Township, he said at last night’s town council meeting.

“If it’s going to be doable, now’s the time to do it,” the mayor said.

Town Council President Anthony Cattano Jr. and a former fire chief will serve on the committee.  (The matter came up at the 7:44 mark of the meeting; see the live blog here.)

The study comes at a time when Morris Township has pulled the plug on another shared service, the Colonial Coach bus operation.

Facing a budget crunch, the township has stopped paying its $50,000 half of the annual tab, according to Morristown Administrator Michael Rogers.

As a result, the service, which serves many seniors in the two municipalities, ceased making stops in the township as of Aug. 1, Michael said. (See the 9:12 mark in the live blog.)

In other business, the Morristown council authorized the town to pursue grants for open space, “share the road” signs for biking, and a review of the zoning master plan.

raline smith-reid
Morristown Councilwoman Raline Smith-Reid questions a proposed town bicycle plan. Photo by Kevin Coughlin

The town will request state Green Acres funding and money from the Morris County Open Space Trust Fund to purchase a two-acre residential property at 20 Hillcrest Drive. (See the 7:47 mark.)

Preserving that site as open space would prevent the addition of two or three homes, development that could adversely affect storm water runoff and aquifer recharge, said Samantha Rothman of the town environmental commission.

A vacant home on the property had fallen into disrepair, and its out-of-state owners had been trying to sell it for a long while, Samantha told the council. Now the owners are talking exclusively with the town, she said.

After much discussion, the council also gave the administration permission to seek a grant from the state Department of Transportation for posting and painting “share the road” signs, as recommended in a consultant’s bicycle plan now under review by the mayor. (See the 8:32 mark of the live blog.)

Councilwoman Alison Deeb suggested that signs won’t go far enough; she contends that James Street could accommodate bicycle lanes. Stefan Armington of the planning board countered that the consultant did not find any major roads in town suitable for such lanes.

Councilwoman Raline Smith-Reid requested a presentation to the council about the bike study.

The mayor and business administrator said the grant application is just a first step in a process that will have plenty of opportunities for input from residents and town officials.

The town’s master plan, meanwhile, could use a once-over and Phil Abramson will seek $200,000 from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development to do it. (See the 8:55 mark.)

Phil works for Jonathan Rose Companies, the town’s new planning firm. He said the last major review of the town plan was in 2000, and cost $125,000.

This time, he hopes a more comprehensive plan that weighs sustainability issues will provide a blueprint for growth that serves Morristown for the next 10 to 20 years.

“If we’re going to dream, we’re going to dream big,” he said.

The zoning plan needs to better reflect the needs of the town’s retail community, said Alison Deeb, the council’s liaison to the Morristown Partnership, the downtown business organization.

The grant application received unanimous approval from the council.

1 COMMENT

  1. Deeb wants to pretend she knows more about bikes than the people working on the issue for years. They call Joe Biden a bloviator. Deeb makes Biden look reticent.

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