JACKSON – Jackson is getting built up and some of the county roads weren’t made to handle this kind of traffic, township officials said.
Council Vice President Andrew Kern explained a recent resolution authorizing road widening which he said involved a number of county roadways “that need to be widened and set up for future use.
“The County really needs to step up and be able to set up these roadways so there is not traffic – the likes of which we haven’t had in this township since I’ve been here,” he said. Only the county can make changes to county roads.
“Everything from Route 571 to 527 and 528 and 547 – all those different roadways that need to be widened need to be addressed now before the town gets more densely populated,” Kern added.
Resident Elenor Hannum agreed, saying “this town at its inception did not anticipate this growth. A road such as Cedar Swamp Road by Route 527, how would this town or County possibly widen that road without basically widening the road and breaking into people’s front doors?”
“If they have to, they will,” Council President Martin Flemming responded. “They usually swing the road side to side to alleviate as much as possible.”
Flemming added, that dualizing the roads is a long-term county plan. Anticipating Hannum’s next question he added, “Imminent domain is possible.”
“I’d never say that it won’t be if the County decides it is for the public good that this needs to happen but there is always as a last resort,” he added. “They’ll move the road and …they will do as little damage as possible.”
“What this resolution is doing is offering up township property for the County. That is what this is allowing. We have nothing to do with County planning or County engineering. We are offering anything up that we own to make it easier for them,” Flemming explained further.
“How long would residents be given notice? My concern is Cedar Swamp Road and I know how close those homes are and we are talking about a lot of families,” Hannum asked.
Flemming referred that to Township Attorney Gregory McGuckin but he did say, “I don’t see it as a fast process, you have engineering to go through the Pinelands (Commission) to go through, environmental to go through you have a lot of hoops to jump through.”
