Page 16 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • July 31, 2013 Town to seek additional funds for Spruce Street work The Highwood/Spruce Street recon- struction project in Midland Park is now anticipated to be completed in three phases, and borough officials are hopeful of getting a grant for Phase No. 2 from the 2014 NJ Transportation Trust Fund Municipal Aid Program. The borough received $150,000 from the trust fund this year, but officials said that amount is not enough to complete what needs to be done to the busy street, used as a link between Prospect Street and Glen Avenue. The entire project is expected to cost nearly $500,000. Borough Administrator/Clerk Addie Hanna said the town will hold off work on the first phase and do both phases together if the additional funds are awarded. The grant award specifies the first phase funds must be used by the end of 2014. Hanna said curbs and drainage are needed along all of Highwood Avenue and part of Spruce to control flooding. New curbs will delineate the edge of the pavement for added safety and to control storm water flow. “We’ll see how much we can get done with the grant funds we get,” Hanna said. DPW Foreman Rudy Gnehm said lack of storm drains in the lower Spruce Street area causes serious flooding of roadway and private property between Milling- ton Drive and College Road as the water rushes down Highwood with no place to go. Storm drains have already been installed up street on Spruce through the years. The major thoroughfare through the development known as “The Estates,” Spruce Street was built after World War II as the continuation of Highwood Avenue with no storm drainage system and irreg- ular road widths. A third phase would include the resur- facing of the entire roadway to a 22-ft. width, Hanna said. The narrower width was selected to keep down the speed on the road and to reduce the encroachment into residents’ front yards. “We’d need one foot at most from any house,” the administrator said. Road resurfacing alone would be $190,000, she said. No new sidewalks are proposed because of the limited width of the street and the additional cost. The existing side- walks on both sides of Spruce between Pine and Prospect streets will remain. Cotz directs ‘rogerandtom’ Nicholas Cotz, a graduate of Midland Park High School who honed his the- ater skills with Midland Park Players, is now directing “rogerandtom.” This play, which has been described as “mind-bend- ing” and a “brain-twisting puzzle,” will be performed now through Aug. 24 at the main stage at the HERE Theater, 145 Sixth Avenue in New York City. (Enter on Dominick Street.) Playwright Julien Schwab’s comedy employs a clever twist: Two of the char- acters realize they are in a play, while one does not. Cast members include Suzy Jane Hunt, Eric T. Miller, and Richard Thieriot. The show has been receiving excellent reviews, and The New York Times was due to weigh in with its own opinion this month. For ticket information, visit here.org or call (212) 352-3101.