1.Over $1 Million in Federal Dollars Secured for Collinsville

Last Friday, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill visited the Collinsville Playground to announce an additional $500,000 in federal funding for the Collinsville Playground Reconstruction Project. Coupled with over $500,000 in American Rescue Plan funds already budgeted for the project, Morris Township is budgeting over $1 million in federal funding to help make this dream into a reality.

Why it Matters: This is a once-in-a-generation moment, to help shape what our recreational facilities in the Collinsville neighborhood will look like for decades to come. This federal funding takes a significant financial burden off our taxpayers.

• We will be holding an open public meeting to unveil the proposed design plans on Wednesday, March 8th, 7:00pm at the Unity Charter School.

Go Deeper:

• We are tapping every resource we can to ensure the upgrades we’ll be making meet the mark. In addition to federal funding, we are also seeking grant funding through the NJ Department of Community Affairs, as well as the state Green Acres Program.

The Bottom Line: We are allocating significant resources to modernize our recreational facilities in Collinsville to make them the center of the community once again.

2.Recognizing the Collinsville Civic and Improvement League

This February, the Township Committee recognized the contributions of the Collinsville Civic and Improvement League has had on the community over its 75+ year history.

Pamela Watson, a volunteer on our Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee and representative of the organization, highlighted the sense of community Collinsville has had over the decades in addition to discussing key milestones in the neighborhood’s history.

Go Deeper: You can read the proclamation recognizing the League here. Thank you to Deputy Mayor Bud Ravitz for penning this proclamation.

3.Congresswoman Sherrill Visits Fire Headquarters

As a suburban community, Morris Township is often at a disadvantage when competing for formula grants at the state and federal level.

• Thanks to the advocacy work of Congresswoman Sherrill, towns like ours were provided enhanced flexibility to quickly utilize the federal funding we received as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP).

Why It Matters: The protocols required when receiving grant funding can be a burden on municipal resources and often delay projects. Provisions in the ARP provided the flexibility for our fire department to receive our new ladder truck less than a year after we signed the paperwork - a huge feat in an environment where deliveries can take up to twice that amount of time.

Go Deeper: Using federal funds to replace our aging ladder truck at Woodland Hook & Ladder Co. with a quint ladder truck provides our firefighters with greater flexibility on the firegrounds and enables the department to reduce the size of our fleet down the road to cut down on long-term maintenance costs. 

4.2023 Pool Membership Registration Now Open

Pool registration is now open for returning members.

• Township residents who did not have a pool membership in 2022 may start applying April 1st
• Early bird rates run through April 30th



Renewals may be completed on-line through CommunityPass, by mail, or by dropping off a completed application with a check, payable to Morris Township Swim Pools at the Municipal Building. If paying by cash, we ask that you have the exact amount.

5.2023 Budget Nearing Completion

Our Township professionals and members of the Township Committee are preparing to introduce our 2023 budget at our March 15th meeting, with a public hearing on Wednesday, April 19th.

Background: Our budget can’t be finalized until we receive key data from the state, which is why our annual budgets are not adopted until the spring. Included with this data is the amount of state aid we receive.

Go Deeper: Municipalities across the state are facing headwinds with increased health insurance costs and continued inflationary pressures. Our governing body continues to advocate to state leaders for relief for municipalities by restoring our Energy Tax Receipts. Since 2008, over $18 million has been diverted to the state’s general fund rather than being transferred to Morris Township.

This time last year, we illuminated our Municipal Building in Blue and Yellow in solidarity with the Ukrainian people. This demonstration of support continued through 2022 and remains in-place today.

Thank you for reading my monthly newsletter. Please be sure to follow Morris Township by signing up for our Municipal Messenger, liking our Facebook page and following us on Instagram.

Best,

Mark