The Alternative Press

MILLBURN, NJ - Construction on a parking deck in the downtown will begin in earnest this week, as the contractor brings in equipment and starts demolition.

That is the report Committee member Robert Tillotson delivered at last night’s Township Committee meeting.

“They will start moving quickly,” he said.

The contractor, Dewberry Engineering, has secured the necessary permits for road closures and has been coordinating with the Millburn Police Department for traffic control so fences can be set up at the site, according to Tillotson.

The three-level deck is to be built on the site of Lot 2, at the corner of Lackawanna Place and Essex Street. The structure will have 400 spaces, an increase of 227 from the current surface lot, and will accommodate commuters, shoppers and businesspeople.

Tillotson said the engineers project the majority of the foundation work, or new concrete, will be poured in August or September and precast concrete work will start in October.

“The absolute finish will take place sometime in April,” he added.

Tillotson also reported the contractor found soil contamination in one corner of the site, and the township must hire a specialist to monitor the environmental aspects of the soil removal. The contaminated soil cannot be mixed with other soil, according to the committee member.

The cause of the contamination might be an old oil tank by the library, Tillotson said. Later in the session, the committee approved a contract with the specialist, William Pendexter of Dewberry Engineering. Fees for his services are not to exceed $49,400.

In other business, the governing body introduced two ordinances. The first is a capital ordinance to make various improvements in the amount of $1.6 million and taking the money from the capital improvement fund. Committee member Thomas McDermott said the projects were approved in this year’s budget and are listed in the capital improvement plan.

The second ordinance, a bond ordinance, authorizes the making of various improvements in the amount of $944,000 by taking the funds from current funds and issuing bond anticipation notes. Committee member Sari Greenberg explained the ordinance is for items outside the capital budget, including improvements to Ridgewood Road and Great Hills Road and repairs to a sanitary sewer pump station at Canoe Brook Road. A portion of the repairs to
Ridgewood Road and Great Hills Road is to be reimbursed by the state, she said.

Public discussion and final passage of the two ordinances are slated for the next meeting on Aug. 21.

Also at the session, Mayor Sandra Haimoff said the committee was approving a $2,000 payment for the Mayors Coalition on the Rahway River. Each of the 11 participating communities is chipping in to share legal costs needed to work with Essex County and the City of Orange to build a retention dam in the South Mountain Reservation.

Following the open session, the governing body went into closed session to discuss contract negotiations and litigation.