Street Redesign Threatens Neighborhood Safety
Call for a Public Meeting
August 3, 2023
(Carteret, NJ ) A new road configuration to service the proposed ferry terminal in Carteret will destroy the character of the neighborhood and pose safety hazards to people living in the community and children at a nearby school, say residents who are just learning some of the details about the drastic changes coming to their doorstep.
Wayne and Floria, who have lived in the Meridian Square Apartments for more than 10 years, say the borough plans to take property in their complex to create a new street: Carteret Avenue Extension at Roosevelt Avenue to provide access to a planned ferry terminal. The borough also plans to realign streets in the neighborhoods that could increase motor vehicle and pedestrian accidents. (Last names are being withheld for now.)
The residents say the ferry traffic and the new road configuration will dump more cars and trucks into their quiet neighborhood, which includes the Columbus Elementary School at 1 Carteret Avenue.
“The new road that the town wants to build will completely change the character of our neighborhood forever and make us less safe,” says Wayne and Floria, who added that only recently have more residents becoming aware of the changes that will made to the area.
“Our peaceful neighborhood will be inundated with hundreds of cars and trucks zipping down our streets day and night to get to the ferry,” said the residents.
Besides the ferry terminal, residents are also concerned with about the impact of the construction of a 40,000 square-foot building with a bar, restaurant, and hotel rooms that has emerged as part of the plan according to recent article.
“That’s a lot of activity and a lot of noise to dump on this neighborhood,” say the residents.
“We moved here because it was a quiet, safe, diverse and friendly place. I doubt it will be like that much longer if the town’s changes go through as planned,” said Floria.
A WELL-KEPT SECRET
The residents say the coming drastic changes to their neighborhood have been a well-kept secret. There has been no direct communication from the mayor or other borough officials about the property condemnation of the street running through the Meridian Square Apartments or the loss of parking spaces for the complex. Changes that will impact the entire neighborhood are proposed street redesigns and realignments that are being made to handle a greater volume of traffic for the waterfront redevelopment. That increased traffic will run past a nearby elementary school and playground, which has residents concerned.
What little residents learned about the road changes and the property condemnation has come from observing and talking to surveyors and engineers on the street and people who work at nearby businesses.
“No one from the town bothered to send us a letter letting us know that this drastic change is coming to our community,” says Wayne. “The town did not call a public meeting to explain to us what is happening to our neighborhood. In fact, they never told us why Carteret needs a ferry in the first place.”
CALL FOR A MEETING
Wayne says it would be a good idea for the mayor to call a meeting for the neighborhood so people can get direct information about the borough’s plans.
“At the very least the people of this neighborhood are entitled to have their voices heard at a meeting where we can get answers from the town about the ferry development and the road realignment. This is not the kind of change that the government should just spring on people,” he said.
Wayne said he began to inquire about the changes to his neighborhood several years ago when he saw surveyors assessing the area and leaving their markers on the street. He called the mayor several times and on September 2, 2020 he finally got the opportunity to talk to Mayor Daniel Reiman on the telephone.
The mayor informed him that the street redesign was being done by the apartment complex owners. Wayne contacted his landlord who assured him that it was not the property owners who were doing the work or wanted the street realigned.
The owners of the 190-unit complex — Carteret Terrace LLC — are fighting the eminent domain condemnation of their property and the road reconfiguration. Documents have been filed in Middlesex County Superior Court.
“I drive for a living; I know safe streets and I know unsafe streets. What the town is trying to do will dump a lot of traffic onto unsafe streets in the middle of residential neighborhood,” said Wayne. “Who would put old people and children at risk?”
.While the residents are unsure about the need for a ferry in Carteret, if it must be built, they say, then access to the terminal should come from Industrial Highway.
“Why not route the traffic to the ferry to a road that is already built to handle a high volume of cars and trucks? It’s called its industrial Highway for a reason,”
Statement from Wayne J. For Residents of Carteret Terrace:
We are deeply troubled about the borough planning to build a new commuter road through our complex. It will create a dangerous unnecessary traffic pattern. The road extension will impact all the people living in the neighborhood including the Columbus School. The plan to add a heavier traffic flow will endanger the children, parents, teachers and school administrators. It will generate unwanted noise in the community, shrink available parking on the complex property, interrupt the quality of life that families that attracted all of us to move here. Many of us are longtime residents of Carteret – not transients. We are part of the community!
It seems that the town is thinking more about the people who will be visiting Carteret rather than the ones who actually live here, and that is not sitting well with a lot of people in the neighborhood.
A lot of families came here, rented an apartment in this complex, tested out the community and decided to buy a home in Carteret. If the town goes against the renters and homeowners, it will send a negative message that, “You can live here, rent or purchase a home here, but Carteret will change whatever it wants whether it’s necessary or not and whether or not you like it.”
As more people are learning about the town’s plan to take property from our complex and build a road to the river, they are becoming alarmed and angry. There are about 1,000 people living in this immediate neighborhood, and several hundred parents sending their children to the Columbus school.
The road extension plan is a giant waste of taxpayer money. There are other routes to the proposed ferry that are far better, cheaper and would disturb no one. Why is the town insistent on wasting taxpayers’ money on a project that no one wants?
I hope the town of Carteret reconsiders this plan. Industrial Highway serves as a high traffic road for entering & exiting this area. It is more than sufficient to accommodate the anticipated volume and flow of traffic that the borough envisions.
Please view Google and see that constructing a road into our complex is unnecessary and serves no purpose at all! Traffic can flow freely and safely by being directed on Industrial Highway as it was made to do. We hope that the town of Carteret reconsiders this project and will leave this beautiful community quiet, safe and peaceful; the way we all love it.
Thank You,
Wayne