Villadom Times Weekly Newpaper Online-March 18, 2009 Issue

Mahwah March 18, 2009 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 3 Township hires engineering ﬁrm to study Olney Road by Frank J. McMahon A contract to conduct a trafﬁc engineering study of Olney Road in Mahwah has been awarded to the Pompton Plains ﬁrm of Rocciola Engineering LLC, which specializes in trafﬁc and transportation engineering and parking design. The contract was approved by the township council in February and was recently conﬁrmed after Rocciola agreed to limit the potential cost of the study not to exceed a maximum of $2,500 plus their attendance at one council meeting. The study, which Council President John DaPuzzo advised will be conducted over the next three or four weeks, depending on the weather, is intended to determine if continuing to allow through trafﬁc on that road, which extends from Miller Road to Stephens Lane near the location of the A&P, creates a safety hazard for residents, pedestrians, and motorists on that roadway. The road narrows in one section just north of its intersection with Snow Drive to a width that does not allow two cars to easily pass each other. The road was closed to through trafﬁc in the spring of 2006 after the New Jersey Department of Transportation approved a township ordinance to close the road. That action was challenged in Superior Court by a Stephens Lane resident. In an oral ruling from the bench, Judge Jonathan N. Harris ordered the road to be reopened last September. At a recent public meeting when the council discussed the proposals for the trafﬁc study, Councilman Allan Kidd voted against the award of the trafﬁc study contract, saying he was not sure what Judge Harris said in court when he ordered the road to be reopened, because there is no transcript of the court hearing. DaPuzzo pointed out that Judge Harris did not overturn the township’s ordinance on its merits. The councilman suggested that, if the township could provide sufﬁcient objective evidence, such as trafﬁc counts, an analysis of the speed of trafﬁc on the road, or veriﬁcation by objective reports, that there are legitimate concerns for pedestrians in the area, there was nothing that would prohibit the township from renewing its effort to close the road. In his ruling, however, Judge Harris cited a report by Mahwah Police Chief James Batelli in which the chief indicated he did not think it was necessary to close the road from a safety standpoint. Judge Harris also cited a report by Lieutenant Robert Sinnaeve, the township’s trafﬁc safety ofﬁcer, who offered the opinion that indicated the safety concerns expressed by residents were unfounded based on a limited trafﬁc count study he performed on the roadway. Kidd asked what would happen if the engineering study concluded the road should be closed even though the township’s police chief is in favor of keeping it open. Nilufer DeScherer, the township’s associate attorney, responded that the closing of the road was approved by the New Jersey Department of Transportation. She also pointed out that Judge Harris had indicated that his ruling was based on the fact that the township had not presented sufﬁcient objective information to the court to sustain the action by the township council to close the road, and it was under that guidance that the trafﬁc engineering study proposals were obtained. Councilman Samuel Alderisio, the township’s former police chief, has consistently maintained that the planning board never intended to make Olney Road a through street when it approved the site plan for the homes on Stephens Lane, but that restriction was inadvertently left out of the resolution memorializing the approval of that housing development. DaPuzzo said the council would not pursue the matter if the study concludes the road is safe. “If the engineer says it’s acceptable, then it’s done,” he said. The Mahwah Regional Chamber of Commerce will hold a business card exchange on Thursday, March 26, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Tuxedo Park School, about 20 minutes north of Mahwah. Enjoy light refreshments while learning about the school’s programs and network with members of the Tuxedo business community. The school is located on Chamber plans networking event Mountain Farm Road in Tuxedo Park, New York. The cost is $15 for Chamber members and $30 for nonmembers. Prepaid registration is required; an additional $5 processing fee will be charged if paid the day of event. Register online at www.mahwah.com or call the Chamber ofﬁce at (201) 529-5566. �� Red by Marc Ecko �� DIET CENTER OF RAMSEY ® �� 246 N. Franklin Tpke #2 with DIET CENTER® Call Now & Kiss Those Pounds Goodbye! 20-30-40 POUNDS OR MORE 201-818-LOSE...the weight (5673) LOSE ��