See Proposed Projects For 2024 Freehold Borough Participatory Budget

FREEHOLD BOROUGH, NJ — Freehold Borough residents and business owners can now vote for the projects they want to see receive funding for this year’s participatory budget.

Previews of the proposed projects first took place on Thursday at the Borough’s participatory budgeting town hall.

Each year, anyone 14 years of age or older can submit their own project idea for funding that meets local needs in the Borough.

According to Borough officials, the goal of participatory budgeting is to directly involve citizens in the budgeting and city-building process, foster civic engagement and community spirit, and help ensure that the town budget reflects Borough residents' and local partners’ priorities.

Information on this year’s projects comes from the Freehold Borough website. The proposed projects are as follows:

Downtown Digital Kiosk

• An interactive Atlas Outdoor digital kiosk with a touchscreen —would be able to provide crucial information to residents and visitors alike about local events, businesses, potential emergencies, and directions. This digital kiosk could be wrapped or housed in a custom case to match the historical aesthetic of downtown Freehold and would be centrally located. The Kiosk has multiple language support (English/Spanish) and it also offers ADA-accessible routing (directions to an accessible entrance to buildings).
• Cost: $45,000

Portable Outdoor Stage

• A new, portable outdoor stage owned entirely by the Borough would give us more freedom in event planning. The stage would enhance many of the events we currently run–such as the annual reading of the “Declaration of Independence” and would allow more kinds of large-scale events to be planned and put on in our wonderful town.
• Cost: $130,000

ADA Splash Pad at Liberty Park

• A small, accessible, freshwater splash pad would provide the children in our community hours of outside fun and some relief during those hot summer days. Making it ADA-compliant will allow access to all residents and help grow the sense of community through inclusive play.
• Cost: $75,000

Mobile Surveillance Trailer

• A mobile surveillance trailer provides our law enforcement an invaluable tool to help with enhanced security. It will deter vandalism and give our police force an additional set of eyes to maintain the security of the improvements at our parks and with the redevelopment in our town.
• Cost: $50,000

Portable Basketball Scoreboard at Liberty Park

• A portable basketball scoreboard for use at the newly refurbished basketball courts in Liberty Park will enhance play for the newly formed Freehold Basketball League. This will benefit the youth in our community by getting them out playing organized sports in our park systems.
• Cost: $3,500

Lighting and Electricity in Lake Topanemus

• Lighting for the bandshell and pavilion at Lake Topanemus would allow for the use of the park for special events such as evening concerts. The storage shed used for equipment storage has no power and would benefit from having the electricity extended to it and lighting installed to ensure the safety of the personnel who enter.
• Cost: $25,000

Decorative Archways for Downtown Alleys

• Decorative metal archways at the entrances to the downtown alleys will highlight and enhance the appearance of the alleyways. Signage on the archway could give directions such as “To Marketyard,” “To Parking,” “To Main Street,” “To South Street” or simply say “Freehold Borough.”
• Cost: $80,000

To vote for your favorite projects, you can submit a ballot online.

To be eligible to vote, you must be a Freehold Borough business owner or a Freehold Borough resident 14 years old or older.

Project winners will be announced on Oct. 7, 2024.

For more information on participatory budgeting, you can visit the Freehold Borough website.

Related:

• See Preview Of Resident Projects At Freehold Town Hall On Thursday