Berkeley Heights Township : BH Gets $500,000 From Congress For ‘West Side Drainage' Project

Press release from the Berkeley Heights Township:

March 14, 2022

The Township of Berkeley Heights is receiving $500,000 in federal appropriations in the $1.5 trillion appropriations bill passed by Congress this week. The money will be dedicated to furthering the so-called ‘West Side Drainage Project’ in town. President Biden is expected to sign the bill into law this week or next. 

The congressional appropriations bill, which includes $13.6 billion in humanitarian relief and military support to Ukraine, money for food aid programs, financial aid for college, defense spending and other monies, also provides infrastructure funding for roads, bridges, transportation programs and other projects for municipalities across the United States. Berkeley Heights submitted our requests for funding for the West Side Drainage Project to Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-O7), and Senator Cory Booker (D) in June 2021; both lawmakers included the Township’s requests in their respective chamber versions of the funding bills. 

“We have been looking to numerous sources of money to keep this project moving and to improve the drainage situation in this part of town – from federal sources down to other forms of local aid,” said Mayor Angie Devanney. “We know drainage is a problem throughout other parts of town as well, and we have been dedicating capital each year for several years to addressing smaller drainage projects. But being able to address this large vulnerability with this federal appropriation is a huge first step in tackling an extremely expensive, decades-long infrastructure challenge in our town.” 

“Tropical Storm Ida proved once again that we desperately need to invest in the infrastructure that protects us from storms and flooding,” said Rep. Malinowski. “I’m going to keep bringing home federal funding for flood control projects, and I can’t wait to see this one get underway in Berkeley Heights.”

The Township Council recently authorized another $100,000 to be spent to continue the survey work being done by Neglia Engineering; in 2020, Neglia completed a study of the water conveyance system that generally lies under the “West Side” streets of Emerson Lane, Mercier Place, Orchard Lane, Tanglewood Drive, Deep Dale Drive, Mountain Avenue, Kings Court, Plainfield Avenue, Arden Court, Cornell Avenue, Saw Mill Drive, Rogers Place ad Oakland Street. The area studied consisted of approximately 140 acres. That additional $100,000 will be spent on additional survey work. Council will consider authorizing the remaining $299,000 needed to get the project to the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank (NJIB) for zero- to low-interest funding, when the FY 2022 municipal budget is introduced later this month. 

“For years, New Jersey has been getting less back from the federal government than we send to Washington in taxes, and we are finally beginning to reverse that,” said Rep. Malinowski. “The funding I fought for and delivered in this bill will fix our old water and sewer systems, support our police departments, improve our local parks and pedestrian walkways, and create educational programs that support our rural economy. I’ll be working closely with our municipal and county leaders to ensure they can start breaking ground on these projects as quickly as possible.”

The Council also recently approved $100,000 worth of work to begin on an additional drainage study for the Spring Ridge area of town. This will help give the Township a bigger picture of the drainage issues in this part of town. This year’s proposed budget also includes money for stream cleaning, to help alleviate some of the flooding issues around town.

“Our drainage problems extend far beyond the ‘West Side’ area of town, and many more of our residents are suffering,” said Council President Jeanne Kingsley. “This additional study will give us a broader picture of what else needs to be done to address the drainage deficiencies in the Spring Ridge area, as we also seek to address other parts of town.”

Relatedly, the Township is applying for a state of NJ Department of Transportation grant in the amount up to $1.5 million for drainage, curbing and repaving of certain sections of Orchard Lane, Mercier Place, Old Farm Road and Deerpath Lane. Orchard, Mercier and Old Farm are an extension of the broader West Side Drainage project – any basins or other infrastructure added to these streets with this grant would help satisfy some of the conditions under the overall West Side Drainage project. Simply paving this area will not suffice; unless the underlying drainage issues are sufficiently addressed, the paving jobs will continue to degrade and cost more money in the long run. Deerpath Lane is a road that has severely degraded in part, to ground water and surface runoff from above; these conditions have actually caused the curb line at Mountain Avenue and Deerpath to slide away from the road. The condition is serious and requires attention. 

“We will seek out funds wherever we can find them to help offset the costs of tackling these drainage challenges,” said Mayor Devanney. “We will leave no stone unturned, we will use all contacts we can at all governmental levels. Our residents deserve no less.”

This press release was produced by the Berkeley Heights Township. The views expressed here are the author’s own.