BERKELEY – The township received a $130,528.71 Clean Communities Grant from the State of New Jersey, part of which they will use to fund clean-up efforts by local groups.
Perhaps you’ve seen signs where a scout troop or other community organization has adopted a spot or adopted a road. This means that the group has applied through the township to clean it up, and they received state grant funding funneled through Berkeley to pay for any items that were needed.
“The $130,528 Department of Environmental Protection Clean Communities Grant award is good news for Berkeley taxpayers and local non-profit, civic and community groups,” Mayor Carmen Amato said. “The Township will use a portion of this grant to offset salaries of employees that clean and maintain our parks and beaches along with the funding of mini-grants to local non-profit civic and community groups that take advantage of our ‘Adopt a Spot’ or ‘Adopt a Road’ program.
“Any non-profit civic or community group in the township that signs up to participate in our ‘Adopt a Spot’ or ‘Adopt a Road’ project will receive a $500 mini-grant for their organization,” he said. “It’s a win-win situation for our township. Nonprofit community groups take advantage of the funding and the township benefits that we are able to get areas of our town cleaned up.”
In 2018, the town made some changes to the clean communities programs. Now, if you want to adopt a spot or a road, you must have a location pre-approved through an application process. Any organization is limited to a maximum of two mini-grants, and they must be at two separate locations. However, if the township has any leftover funding, a group can reapply.
“This is an effort to accommodate as many local groups and locations as possible and to ensure funds are available for the group,” Amato said.
“These clean-ups provide a valuable service in keeping our township clean. The funding also provides for equipment related to the clean-ups, education and enforcement of litter laws. We plan on using some of these groups to help tidy up our streets and areas along the maritime areas,” he said. “I would like to once again thank the State for their commitment in funding this vital grant program.”
Any nonprofit organizations in Berkeley that want to participate in the program, should call Public Works at 732-341-1022.
