Ahead of the school year’s start, construction for Penn Lyle Road’s reconstruction started on Thursday, August 9, with the implementation of full closure and a 24-hour detour of the roadway. Construction is planned to be limited to the section of Penn Lyle Road north of Canoe Brook Drive.
Plans call for the realignment and widening of Penn Lyle Road from Clarksville Road to the existing widened section at Canoe Brook Drive, and for concrete sidewalks to be added in front of High School South.
The Clarksville-Penn Lyle intersection will be reconfigured as bike lanes will be created and designated from the south end of the intersection to the limits of the bike lanes that were added last summer. Also, the right turn slip lane onto Clarksville Road will be replaced by a conventional right turn lane — in accordance with the Delaware Regional Valley Planning Association recommendations.
A.D.A. compliant crosswalks and ramps will also be installed along Penn Lyle.
Because the project falls adjacent to High School South, the township needed to coordinate the roadwork with the WW-P school district. At its August 6 meeting, Council unanimously voted to adopt an ordinance authorizing the acquisition of a road widening and utility easement from the district.
The township contracted Meco Paving Inc. of Millstone to perform construction work for the project. Construction is expected to take place over a 60-day timeframe.
Also at the August 6, 2012 meeting, Council approved the following:
– An amendment to the township’s professional services agreement with Piazza and Associates.
– A $14,800 contract with Spiezle Architectural Group to start designing green and energy efficient improvements to the municipal complex. In June Jason Kliwinski, an employee of Spiezle, was contracted by West Windsor Environmental Commission for the financial planning of its climate action plan (WW-P News, July 6).
– A municipal question to be placed on the November ballot to reduce the township’s open space tax. Mayor Hsueh worked with Friends of West Windsor Open Space to develop the reduction, which would be from 3 cents per $100 assessment value to 2 cents per $100 assessment value of real property. The change would begin with the 2013 tax year. A “Yes” vote will result in a reduction of $52.40 in taxes from $157.19 to $104.79 for the average residential property assessment of $523,950. The mayor explained his outlook.
“With a drop down to 2 pennies, we would still have enough money to buy all the open space that becomes available in the next 10 years. First, there are not too many pieces of open space that can be bought at the present time. Number two, if there is anything to do at all, I think we need to maintain the quality of open space and work with the Environmental Commission to get their perspective.”
– An agreement with developer D.R. Horton Inc. to compensate West Windsor for repairs of driveway aprons in Village Grande, as well as the reimbursement of township funds for emergency repairs to sinkholes in the development made this year. Mayor Hsueh said he did not bother involving township attorney as he handled the matter himself by speaking with representatives from D.R. Horton.
In an interview Mayor Hsueh reported that construction of West Windsor’s Environmental Education Center at the Schenck Farmstead, which he hoped to see begin this year, would likely be pushed back due to a personal matter involving the Environmental Commission’s consultant, Beth Redmond-Jones.
#b#West Windsor Receives Safe Corridor Grant#/b#
For 2012 West Windsor has received a Safe Corridor grant of $31,996.99 from the New Jersey Department of Transportation, helping to reduce the burden of West Windsor’s planned infrastructure improvements on taxpayers.
