Thursday, January 10, 2013
Verona Township is looking to past storms to better prepare for future emergencies.
Verona Township is looking back to Hurricane Sandy to see how it can improve its response to future emergency situations. During the Verona Township Council's public meeting on Monday, Verona Director of the Office of Emergency Management Jeff Hayes presented the council with “lessons learned” from Sandy. “After every storm with a lot of activity we conduct a lessons learned meeting so that we can better ourselves for the next storm,” said Hayes. “As we prepare for emergencies in the township we follow four major categories: mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.” The township has brought in an outside consultant to review areas of the town which could be upgraded through the use of generators. The town is examining the community…
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Plans to improve recreational facilities are high on the priority list in both Verona and Cedar Grove.
Verona Beginning in 2013, Verona Deputy Mayor Bob Manley said one of the council's main issues will be seeing through a project to bring new athletic fields to Hilltop Park. During 2012 meetings, the Council has reviewed plans for a new baseball field, multi-purpose field, walking trails and an amphitheater as part of Phase II of the Hilltop Park development plan. The proposed plan also calls for improvements to two existing fields, Veterans Field and Centennial Field, by adding a new press box and resodding the fields. “We hope the voting on the field for Hilltop can happen very early in the new year,” said Manley. “We hope to get shovels in the ground in spring.” The project would take approximately 18 months to complete, which would …
Monday, November 26, 2012
The Verona Township Council presented awards and was recognized by the Verona High School Football Team for their efforts in readying the lower football field for the season.
The Verona Township Council formally recognized five students as the winners of the Idle Free Verona campaign poster contest, during its public meeting on Monday, Nov. 19. The Verona Environmental Commission has been sponsoring Walk to School Day for the past four years to reduce air pollution. This year, to increase participation, they held a poster contest for students in grades one to eight and received more than 150 submissions. The winners are Emily Wyne from F.N. Brown School, Julianna Spina from H.B. Whitehorne Middle School, Bobby Donohue from Forest Avenue School, Diane Valverde from Brookdale Avenue School and Thomas Radigan from Laning Avenue School. Each student received a certificate and $50. The Verona Environmental …
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Panel will conduct family income surveys to mark areas that qualify for the Community Development Block Grant program to avoid using local tax dollars.
At the Verona Township Council meeting Monday night, the council discussed possible road projects it should submit for its yearly Community Development Block Grant. The grants provide the township with federal money for various street improvements. However, Congress has dramatically cut funding for the program and made qualifying criteria more difficult over the years, said Verona Township Engineer Jim Helb. “We are revisiting some areas that we had done many years ago and readdressing some of those areas because they do still qualify from the standpoint of income criteria,” said Helb. In 2012, Verona received $95,000 in funding — its lowest appropriation for the program, said Helb. The township used this year’s funds to pay for repaving …
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Verona Civic Center
600 Bloomfield Ave, Verona, NJ
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Wednesday, October 17, 2012
The park would include two new fields, renovations to the existing fields, bathrooms, concessions, walking trails and an amphitheater.
Plans for a new baseball field, multi-purpose field, walking trails and an amphitheater as part of Phase II of the Hilltop Park development plan began to take shape following a special Verona Township Council Tuesday night. Township Engineer Jim Helb said the township also plans to make improvements to two existing fields – Veterans Field and Centenniel Field – adding a new press box and resodding the fields. The project is in the preliminary discussion stages and the council said it plans to look for funding that does not involve tax dollars. The long-term operation costs would not be substantial since field maintenance requires few full time employees, he added. “One of the town's major achievements was Centennial Field, built in 2007 …
The Verona Township council introduced an ordinance to replace water meters, wastewater equipment and add shade trees to the town pool.
The Verona Township Council introduced an ordinance concerning renovations for water, wastewater and pool utilities during its Monday night meeting. All three are user paid utilities and “no tax dollars go to the operation of these entities,” said Township Engineer Jim Helb at a previous Council meeting. Instead of property tax dollars, the projects will be paid by for user fees. This means that as a wastewater user, residents pay for water every time they flush the toilet or turn on a faucet. User fees also include memberships to the town pool. The $50,000 water capital ordinance will replace some badly needed water meters, which were installed in the mid 1980's. The wastewater, or sewer ordinance, will concentrate on the wastewater plant…
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Council to discuss two new turf fields, part of the next phase of the Hilltop recreation project.
Phase II of the Hilltop property project will be the subject of a special meeting and workshop by the Verona Township Council tonight. The meeting is set for 7 p.m. at the Verona Municipal Building, 600 Bloomfield Ave. Township Manager Joe Martin said the project have been going on for more than a decade and this phase will include three new recreation fields as well as passive walking trails. Centennial Field was constructed during the first phase six years ago, he said. The second phase will add a shared softball and baseball field and a full-sized utility field to house soccer, football and girls and boys lacrosse games, Martin said. “All three will be turf fields, which will meet Verona's recreational needs for years to come,” said …
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Verona Civic Center
600 Bloomfield Ave, Verona, NJ
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Tuesday, October 2, 2012
The Township of Verona scored a 44 out of 50 on a Best Practices Survey, allowing the town to receive 100 percent of its state aid.
The Township of Verona scored a 44 out of 50 on its Best Practices Survey, the council announced at its Monday night meeting. The state survey is required for a municipality to receive its state aid. “This year, 50 questions covered a range of municipal topics,” said Township Manger Joseph Martin. “You need at least a 40 to get 100 percent of your state aid. Verona scored a 44.” The town has scored progressively better in each of its three participating years, he said, calling the survey a “praiseworthy initiative.” The township is required to answer yes, no, prospective or not applicable for each of the 50 questions. The council succeeded in areas including sharing services with other municipalities, posting ordinances on the town website…
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Verona Civic Center
600 Bloomfield Ave, Verona, NJ
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Monday, October 1, 2012
TV star Jacqueline Laurita shops for charity and several important board meetings are on tap this week in Verona and Cedar Grove.
Celebrity visits, Walk to School Day and township council meetings are only a few of the events in a busy first week of October in Verona and Cedar Grove. Jacqueline Laurita, star of the hit Bravo TV show, “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” will be attending a charity Fall Harvest Shopping Extravaganza for Cedar Grove resident Frank Napolitano on Wednesday. Wednesday is also Walk to School Day in Verona, part of the Verona Environmental Commission's Idle Free Verona campaign. Both the Cedar Grove and Verona township councils will be meeting tonight for their first regularly scheduled meetings of the month. Both meeting agendas are attached to this article. The Cedar Grove Planning Board is scheduled to meet on Tuesday. A meeting agenda …
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Verona Town Council adopts scientific method to test pesticides as well as the NIXLE system for treatment notifications.
The issue of whether to use pesticides on Verona’s athletic fields has not yet been resolved. So the council has agreed to try an experiment – use pesticides on one field, use only organic treatment on another, and leave a third field as the control to measure against the others. Over the course of the year they will measure the results, said Township Manager Joseph Martin. The council will also look into hiring a third-party expert to assess the results of each of the three fields. The decision, which was made on Tuesday night, is the latest on the issue of using pesticides on local athletic fields, an issue the township has been grappling with for months. Local parents and children have attended several meetings in past months to urge …
40.83186
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Verona Civic Center
600 Bloomfield Ave, Verona, NJ
/articles/pesticides-dominate-verona-council-meeting
744273
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