Politics & Government

'Save It...Don't Pave It' Petition Started For Lacey Rail Trail

Cream Ridge resident Marc Covitz has created a petition urging the state Department of Environmental Protection to deny Lacey Township's application for a CAFRA permit for a proposed roadway on the Barnegat Branch Trail.

Here is the petition:

Ocean County has purchased the right of way of the Central NJ Railroad corridor in municipalities to the North and South of Lacey Township through its Ocean County Natural Lands Trust (open space tax fund program) and is in the process of creating the "Barnegat Branch Trail" linear County Park. When completed, the park will extend through 5 municipalities and will be over 15 miles in length.

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Lacey Township owns the sandy, 4+/- miles center portion of the tree-lined corridor within its border and has proposed to construct a 2+/- mile roadway on the corridor (between Lacey Road and Cedar Ave), with an adjacent sidewalk to connect the Barnegat Branch Trail in their community. The Township contends the roadway is necessary to relieve traffic congestion on Route 9 . However, recent improvements to the intersection of Route 9 and Lacey Road have alleviated the congestion on Route 9, even during peak hours.

We, the undersigned, believe these improvements to the Route 9-Lacey Road intersection have eliminated the need for the proposed roadway on the Barnegat Branch Trail in Lacey Township and request the NJ DEP deny Lacey Township's application for a CAFRA permit to construct the roadway.

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This issue dates back to the year 2000 when Lacey Township first began lobbying for the roadway along the rail corridor. In that same year, the Lacey Rail-Trail Environmental Committee was founded as a grassroots, 501(c)(3)non-profit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to watershed improvement, habitat protection, ecological stability and pedestrian safety issues in Ocean County.

In 2001, Lacey Township placed a non-binding referendum question on the ballot asking voters whether to preserve the corridor as a trail only or build a road with a wide sidewalk adjacent to it. Voters rejected the road combination and a majority chose preservation of the trail. Lacey officials ignored the vote for preservation and proceeded with a pro-road and pro-development agenda.

After years of contentious local Township meetings and with no trail preservation options ever pursued by the Township committee, in 2005 the pro-road Township Committee submitted an application to the NJ DEP for a Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA) permit to construct approximately 8/10 of a mile of the proposed roadway. Requests for additional information were made by the NJ DEP on the application. Support for the road was given by NJ DOT and Ocean County, a local public hearing was held and extensive public comments were submitted on the application.

The Lacey Rail-Trail Environmental Committee retained experts in the field of traffic analysis, planning, storm water, and environmental review to comment on the application. Numerous environmental organizations supported the preservation of the trail. The Central Jersey Rail Coalition also supported preservation of the trail for possible future rail service restoration. After thorough review, the NJ DEP issued a DENIAL on the Township's road CAFRA application in April 2006. 

Lacey Township Committee members could not reach a consensus to appeal the NJ DEP's decision and instead chose to yet again place a non-binding referendum question on the ballot in the fall of 2006. The pro-road ballot question had the support of tens of thousands of dollars to promote it. This time the ballot question asked if residents wanted a road built on the right-of-way to relieve traffic on Route 9. The ballot question DID NOT give the voters the option to preserve the trail. They were only offered traffic relief or nothing. A majority of voters chose "traffic relief". These results have prompted the Lacey Township Committee to "listen to the will of the voters" and proceed with a pro-road agenda. 

The ballot question does nothing to change the decision of the NJ DEP. However, with the "blank check" given by the voters, the Township has moved forward with re-submitting a new CAFRA application for 2+/- miles of roadway - authorizing spending to date of close to a million dollars of local taxpayer money to move forward on a multi-million dollar road project that, if approved, will also be paid for with local tax dollars.

The Lacey Rail-Trail Environmental Committee remains steadfast in their trail preservation advocacy and pedestrian safety efforts and once again challenges the information in the new CAFRA road application.

Save It...Don't Pave It!!! 
On a Path for a Greener Future.

To sign the petition, click here: http://chn.ge/1wie0o5




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