News from the Somerset County Board of Chosen Freeholders

Public Information Contacts: Linda Van Zandt / Joanne Vuoso / Lisa Krueger

908.231.7020 publicinfo@co.somerset.nj.us

October 21, 2009

Somerset County Stimulus Grant

Funds Roadway Resurfacing

BRIDGEWATER –Somerset County recently kicked off its first American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) roadway resurfacing project.

The county Department of Public Works obtained over $5.5 million in ARRA Highway Infrastructure Investment funding, endorsed by the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA), to resurface 14 county roads, located in 12 different municipalities.

Freeholder Director Rick Fontana, Freeholder Deputy Director Jack M. Ciattarelli, 16^th District State Senator Christopher Bateman, Bridgewater Mayor Patricia Flannery and NJTPA Executive Director Mary K. Murphy visited the worksite of the first county road to be resurfaced -- North Bridge Street near the county library -- on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

“Somerset County was one of the first counties in New Jersey to apply for stimulus funding for ‘shovel-ready’ projects that will address infrastructure needs,” said Freeholder Director Fontana. “The roadway resurfacing projects will improve the driving surface for residents and help to extend the life of several county roads.”

The work consists of milling variable depths of existing roadway before resurfacing.  Roadway widths will remain unchanged, curbing will be replaced as needed and all resurfaced roads will be re-striped. The improvements will comprise 16.35 miles of county roadway. The contract was awarded to Dello Pello Paving of Union.

“In allocating federal stimulus money, the NJTPA Board of Trustees wanted to ensure that much-needed county projects received funding,” said Freeholder Peter S. Palmer, a member of the NJTPA Board of Trustees. “As Somerset County’s representative on the Board, I’m pleased to see the county using recovery dollars to improve roads and create jobs. This work is an investment in our county’s future.”

As the federally endorsed Metropolitan Planning Organization for a 13-county area in northern and central New Jersey, the NJTPA must approve all federal transportation investments in the region.

Somerset County also received over $2 million in stimulus funding for a Peters Brook Greenway Extension Project, which includes the development of a half-mile-long pathway and construction of a pedestrian bridge over Route 202/206, connecting the Bridgewater and Somerville greenways.

Over $788,000 was awarded to the county Department of Public Works from the ARRA’s Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant Program for a system-wide signal optimization project and the construction of a solar array at the North County Public Works Facility.