Long Branch plans to honor those who go the extra mile – Transit Village upgrade work begins

By Neil Schulman
Long Branch — The city is working on a way to recognize those who go the extra mile to make the community a better place.
At the March 10 Long Branch City Council workshop, Councilwoman Anita Voogt said that Long Branch would again be recognizing Extra Mile Day on November 1, but she wanted to do more than just pass a resolution.  Long Branch was one of 512 cities around the country which issued a proclamation last year. Extra Mile Day was founded in 2009, to encourage people to help out more.

Voogt said that Extra Mile Day was a chance to “focus on the positive; focus on the people who, as the name says, have gone the extra mile.”

In addition to recognizing the day, Voogt thought that the city could reach out and find “ways to support” and recognize those who make a difference through their hard work in Long Branch. Mayor John Pallone and her fellow council members agreed with the idea, but thought that details needed to be ironed out. Those details include determining who should be honored, and how.

Some proposals given were to hand out certificates to those the city wanted to recognize. Though for the moment that would have to be virtual, Councilman Mario Veira said, posts on the city’s webpage or Facebook page. “Maybe when this pandemic is over, we can support it live,” he said.

Due to the pandemic, the meeting was held online, as have all council meetings for the last year.

While Extra Mile Day is on Nov. 1, the city might try to recognize individuals more often. Some council members said they’d consider a monthly recognition.

Mayor John Pallone said he’s heard of communities which hold an annual  breakfast or small ceremony to honor recipients.

“I think it’s always important to honor those who contribute,” he said.

Later in the workshop, during the private closed session, council discussed issues relating to the demolition and plans for the Seaview Towers area, as well as discussions about the future of Lower Broadway, two ongoing issues in the city. Neither was discussed in the public portion of the meeting.

Transit Village upgrade work begins

Construction on Third Ave, which will take around 75 days to complete, is made possible by a $475 million grant from the state.

By Neil Schulman

The New Jersey Department of Transportation has started work on the rehabilitation project for the Transit Village in the city, Mayor John Pallone announced. Third Avenue, between North Bath Avenue and Morris Avenue, is getting some improvements.

Work is supposed to be completed within 75 days.
The work includes:
Restoring and beautifying the sidewalks and curbing.
Resurfacing the pavement.
Adding pavers and decorative lights to the area.
Making several safety improvements.

Pallone noted that last summer, the DOT repainted the train station, and repaired their parking lot.

“We look forward to the finished project and upgrade of the area,” Pallone said.

The NJ Transit Village program creates incentives and offers grants and funds for municipalities to improve the area around train stations. The goal is to encourage the use of public transportation.