Category: Public Info

Union County, NJ – Union County residents who are interested in becoming a certified Home Health Aide may be eligible to join a low cost, state-certified Home Health Aide training program.

Applicants must be Union County residents 18 years of age, U.S. citizens or otherwise qualified by their immigration status, and proficient in English. They must be able to perform tasks such as helping patients out of bed, giving bed baths, and otherwise assisting persons who have limited mobility.

To find out if you are eligible, contact Donna Farrell, Union County Division on Aging and Disability Resource Connection, at 908-527-4858 or dfarrell@ucnj.org.

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Union County, NJ  –  Gardening and houseplant enthusiasts in Union County can add to their store of horticultural knowledge in September and October, by attending the free Fall Speakers Series presented by the volunteer Rutgers Master Gardeners of Union County.

“The Fall Speaker Series is just one of many ways in which the Master Gardeners are helping to enhance our Union County communities,” said Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh. “The Freeholder Board is very proud to support this project and all of their efforts.”

The Rutgers Master Gardeners of Union County is an all-volunteer program run by the Rutgers Cooperative Extension, supported in part by the Freeholder Board. It joins Union County in a nationwide system designed to deliver useful, science based information to local communities.

The next session in the Fall Speaker Series will be “Fall Bulb Planting” on Thursday, September 24, at 7:00 p.m.  Master Gardener Joanne Krueger will explain the ins and outs of a successful fall bulb planting program. 

On Tuesday October 6 at 7:00 p.m., Master Gardener Debra Stuart will present “Happy Healthy Houseplants.” Ms. Stuart will provide guidance on indoor locations, soils, pest control and other elements of a flourishing houseplant collection.

Both sessions will take place at Rutgers Cooperative Extension headquarters on the second floor of the Union County Colleen Fraser Building, located in the county services complex at 300 North Avenue East in Westfield.

Admission is free but attendees are required to pre-register by emailing Julie Morris at Rutgers Cooperative Extension, jmorris@ucnj.org, or call 908-654-9854, and press “option 2” to speak with Judi Laganga.

No previous experience is needed to join the Rutgers Master Gardeners of Union County. Any Union County resident who loves gardening and would like to share their knowledge can take a Rutgers training course and become a certified Master Gardener. The next certification course begins soon. To obtain an application form email jmorris@ucnj.org or call 908-654-9854 (press “option 2).

For more information on all Rutgers Cooperative Extension programs in Union County, including 4-H Clubs and Master Tree Steward program, visit online at ucnj.org/rce.

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Union County, NJ — Union County Freeholder Al Mirabella, who recently walked the “Rock the Skyline” fundraiser in Jersey City for the Love Hope Strength cancer foundation, met up with two remarkable people for this photograph: Welsh Rock Star Mike Peters (of the Alarm) and a founder of Love Hope Strength, and Susan Striffolino of Kenilworth.

Ms. Striffolino signed up for the International Bone Marrow Registry through Love Hope Strength at Union County Musicfest in 2008, and as a result, wound up making a donation that saved someone’s life. She was called by Delete Blood Cancer as a possible match in June of 2012 and scheduled to donate stem cells in November, the Monday after Hurricane Sandy hit, which made the logistics a bit challenging. She wound up donating at Georgetown University Hospital anonymously to a Leukemia patient in Scotland, and then did a second donation of “T” cells for him in June of 2013. As a result, the man is now in remission.   For information on her story, please go to: http://www.lovehopestrength.co.uk/2013/08/my-lhs-story-susan-striffolino/

For more information on Love Hope Strength, please go to: http://lovehopestrength.org/

Union County, NJ – Voting is set to continue this week for Union County’s first-ever Art Outside the Box program.

The selections available for this round of voting will cover traffic control boxes in Elizabeth at the intersections of South Broad Street and South Street, Rahway Avenue and Elizabeth Avenue, and Broad Street and Caldwell Place.

Participants can vote online at www.ucnj.org/artoutsidethebox/vote.

Art Outside the Box is a new county-wide creative placemaking project created to support Union County visual artists by offering a nontraditional exhibition opportunity that broadens and diversifies public exposure to art murals.

“We are proud to see this project gain traction and involve the community in an organic selection process,” said Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh. “We recognize that the only way to engage our residents is by involving them in choosing the aesthetic that will symbolize and represent their neighborhoods.”

The theme for the 2015 Art Outside The Box  program was diversity, and art was sought that not only represented the community at-large, but that was uplifting, colorful, and appropriate for people of all ages. 

Offered as part of Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh’s Building A Community of the Arts initiative, a total of thirteen original artworks will be selected to cover traffic control boxes in Elizabeth, Linden, Rahway, and Plainfield, NJ. Each artwork will be reproduced on a special vinyl adhesive film and professionally applied to the exterior of the pre-selected traffic control boxes. 

Funded by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, details about the project are available online at www.ucnj.org/artoutsidethebox.

For additional information please contact the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs at 908-558-2550.

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Union County, NJ — Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi is pleased to report that a record increase in property transaction revenues during the winter and spring has continued through the summer season and into the fall. The trend reflects improvement in the Union County economy and housing market, resulting in Clerk revenues in excess of $24 million to date.

“The activity in our Recording Division continues to reflect Union County’s long term recovery from the recession sparked by the 2008 financial crisis,” said Rajoppi. “This increased activity provides additional funds to the County budget to offset taxes, and it also helps to fund programs designed to assist local families who are still struggling to find their footing.”

In 2008, Rajoppi’s Recording Division collected revenues of more than $25 million from January through August. That September, a global economic crisis occurred, marked in the U.S. by the stock market crash. Recording Division collections for the same eight-month period dived to less than $15 million in 2009 and never recovered to the 2008 high.

Collections, however, have been trending upwards in recent years and are close to meeting the 2008 high. In 2015, revenues collected by the Recording Division from January to August totaled $24.2 million.

The Business Division, which primarily handles passport applications, trade name registrations and notary transactions, also reflects an improved economy. Its 2015 January to August revenues totaled $426,292, surpassing the previous high of $384,298 set in 2008.

“Despite the increased influx of documents for recording, my staff is keeping current and up-to-date, resulting in same day recording and posting to the public website within two days,” Rajoppi said.

County Clerk and Recorder offices in all 21 New Jersey counties are mandated to record property transactions, and to collect fees for each transaction. Part of the fee is distributed to the state, and a smaller portion is distributed to the county. A 2009 state law permits a surcharge of $3.00 per transaction to be set aside in a Homeless Trust Fund, which the County of Union began collecting in May 2010.

Programs approved for funding through the Homeless Trust Fund include vouchers designed to help at-risk families weather a temporary financial crisis without losing their homes. Funding also goes to support services to prevent homelessness, and to help homeless families obtain a home.

For information on all County Clerk programs and services visit ucnj.org/county-clerk.

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Union County, NJ  –  The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders is pleased to announce a major renovation and expansion of Watchung Stable, the county’s public riding facility. The project includes a new indoor riding ring to enable year-round use of the stable, bringing in additional revenue while providing more Union County residents with affordable access to a popular sport.

The Freeholder Board voted to approve the project during its regular public meeting on Thursday, September 10.

“The dream of year-round riding at Watchung Stable has been percolating for almost 30 years, and now we have the opportunity to open up this unique sport to more County residents,” said Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh. “Horseback riding teaches valuable life lessons, and on behalf of the Freeholder Board we are proud to preserve and improve this longstanding Union County tradition.”

Watchung Stable is located in the Watchung Reservation, on Summit Lane in Mountainside. Currently the facility has no indoor riding ring, limiting its use to seasonable weather from April 1 to November 1.

The stable’s Watchung Mounted Troops youth program currently serves approximately 700 children yearly, many of whom volunteer at the stable and perform related community service projects when they are not riding.

Watchung Stable also offers classes and programs for adults and casual riders, activities for non-riders, and boarding services for privately owned horses.

“The many volunteers who have supported Watchung Stables over the years have been inspirational, and they highlight how this valuable community asset has enriched Union County over the years,” said Freeholder Sergio Granados who is the Freeholder Board’s liaison to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

Three volunteer groups raise funds for equipment and help staff activities and programs at the stable: Watchung Stable Auxiliary, Watchung Jr. Hunt Club, and Watchung Riding and Driving Club. The Auxiliary also includes a subcommittee called School Horses of Watchung Retirement Program, which arranges new homes for horses that are too old for stable work.

Watchung Stable has been a fixture in Union County since the origin of the County Parks system in 1925.  Along with golf, tennis, swimming and other facilities in County parks, Watchung Stable was established to provide all County residents with access to a popular activity that would otherwise require membership in private clubs and riding facilities.

“With a year-round ring and other improvements, Watchung Stable can provide more programs for more riders, and provide more services for our boarding horses,” said Jalloh. “The additional revenue offers a fiscally responsible pathway for upgrading this very popular facility.”

The original location of Watchung Stable was in Summit, on Glenside Avenue. That site was lost in the 1980’s when the “missing link” of Interstate 78 was constructed. Work on the present facility in Mountainside began in 1983 and largely concluded in 1985. The initial plans called for the construction of an indoor ring.

The main features of the new project are:

• Construction of an energy-efficient indoor ring that requires no heating in winter
• Renovation/construction of three outdoor riding rings and six paddocks
• New surfaces, fencing, and landscaping throughout
• Installation of new barn doors to save energy and prevent heat loss in winter

The September 10 vote formally approved a contract of $2.3 million to JC Landscape Construction & Management Co., Inc. of Pequannock. Construction will begin this month and progress in phases over the next 18 months. The stable is expected to continue normal operations while construction is under way.

For more information about programs and activities at Watchung Stable, visit online at ucnj.org/parks-recreation.

Information on all Union County programs and services is available at ucnj.org.

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Recent scenes from Watchung Stable:

Union County Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh joined Plainfield Mayor Adrian O. Mapp and Plainfield Council President Bridget B. Rivers in reviewing the ‘Art Outside the Box’ artist submissions that will be featured on traffic control boxes at three Plainfield intersections.

In the coming days, we will open up online voting for you to pick your top three favorites. Learn more about the Chairman’s Initiative at https://ucnj.org/artoutsidethebox/. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union)

Patrol officers in eight of Union County’s 21 municipalities will be wearing body-worn video cameras by the end of next month as part of New Jersey’s largest county-funded, multi-municipality pilot program of its kind unveiled to date, Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park said Tuesday in a joint announcement made with the leaders of each of the participating police departments: Elizabeth Police Chief Patrick Shannon and Director James Cosgrove, Plainfield Police Director Carl Riley, Linden Police Chief James Schulhafer, Scotch Plains Police Chief Brian Mahoney, Roselle Park Police Chief Paul Morrison, Mountainside Police Chief Alan Attanasio, Fanwood Police Chief Richard Trigo, and Garwood Police Chief Bruce Underhill.

Taser International will be supplying equipment, installation, and training for each of the participating departments during the coming weeks, including the provision of a collective total of 550 body-worn cameras weighing 3.5 ounces apiece.

All of Union County’s municipal police departments were contacted earlier this summer to gauge their interest in participating in the program, and while the initial goal was to involve a small handful of departments, all of those that expressed interest ultimately were included. The program is being funded by a unique cost-sharing framework – for each participating department, the first-year average cost of approximately $1,350 per officer (approximately $750,000 total) is being covered by Prosecutor’s Office forfeiture funds, supplemented by $125,000 in forfeiture funds from the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, while the departments’ municipalities then are agreeing to multi-year contracts costing an average of $670 per officer, per year thereafter.

The body cameras record at all times, but they only save footage 30 seconds retroactively from the moment of activation. Officers wearing the cameras will be required to activate them – a process that involves simply pressing a large button twice – during any on-duty encounter with a civilian, with several exceptions for certain situations and in sensitive venues such as schools or houses of worship. Circumstances in which the cameras are expected to be in use include those such as traffic stops, vehicle searches, arrests, and more.

During the course of each workday, each officer also will “tag” his or her videos electronically, filing them into different categories. This can be done with a variety of devices, from smart phones to laptops. Once the officer returns to police headquarters following a shift, he or she will take the camera off and place it in a docking station; at that point the footage will be uploaded to cloud storage while the device also recharges automatically.

“Certain high-profile events of the last several years in towns and cities small and large, nationwide, have illuminated a broad rift dividing many of our communities and the police who are sworn to protect and serve them. And while body cameras are not a cure-all for this issue, they offer police a valuable tool that can help bridge the gap,” Park said. “These devices help achieve this by acting as an objective witness that produces valuable evidence during interactions between members of law enforcement and members of the public. This naturally generates accountability among both groups – for the officer and the citizen alike.”

During recent years four large police departments in three states (Alabama, Arizona, and California) that performed studies on this topic found that the introduction of body cameras was followed by reductions in citizen complaints of 40 to 90 percent, and reductions in police use-of-force incidents of 35 to 75 percent. The Union County Prosecutor’s Office, in cooperation with the participating police departments, will be monitoring rates of such complaints and incidents as well throughout the course of the pilot program.

Approximately 30 of more than 500 police departments in New Jersey are currently known to use body cameras, while nationwide it is estimated that approximately a quarter of the nation’s more than 15,000 departments use them.

The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders invites residents to participate in free child safety seat inspection opportunities during National Child Passenger Safety Week (September 13-19).

The proper use of child safety seats is one of the simplest and most effective methods available for protecting the lives of young children in the event of a motor vehicle accident.

On Saturday, September 19, as part of “National Seat Check Saturday,” trained technicians from Union County’s Child Safety Seat Inspection Program will conduct child seat inspections at the Babies ‘R’ Us on Rt. 22 in Union from 12:00 noon until 3:00 p.m. This special event is also sponsored in part by AAA Northeast – NJ Division.

Also, Union County’s popular Child Safety Seat Inspection Program is open every Wednesday and Thursday from 7:30 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. and is located at the Garwood Rescue Squad at 401 2^nd Avenue in Garwood.

 “If you have a baby or small child in your care, please come and take advantage of this free program, and make sure your safety seat is properly adjusted,” said Union County Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh. “Our experts can help you get familiar with a new seat, and they can help you spot any problems with an older seat.”

New Jersey’s new child safety seat regulations took effect on September 1. The new State law requires parents to adhere to American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommendations for child passenger safety. 

Under the new child passenger safety law:

• Children under age 2 and weighting less than 30 pounds must be secured in a rear-facing child safety seat that is equipped with five-point harness.
• Children between ages 2-4 and weighing up to 40 pounds must be secured in a child safety seat equipped with a five-point harness, either rear-facing (up to the height and weight limits of the seat) or forward –facing.
• Children between ages 4-8 and less than 57 inches tall (4’9”) must be secured in a forward-facing seat equipped with a five-point harness (up to the height and weight limits of the seat) or in a booster seat.
• Children ages 8 and older must use the vehicle seat belt. The safest place for children under 13 is the back seat.

Union County first launched the Child Safety Seat Inspection Program in 1999, in response to surveys showing that the overwhelming majority of child safety seats are improperly installed, even though most users are confident that they know the correct procedure.

Since 1999, approximately 50,000 Union County residents and visitors have used the Seat Inspection Program. It is staffed by personnel from the County’s Department of Public Safety, who are certified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and by the organization SafeKids. The program is credited with saving at least one life, when a toddler survived a 2008 vehicle rollover shortly after the seat was properly adjusted by County personnel.

The child seat inspection program is provided as a public service by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Union County Police Department, New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety, AAA Northeast – NJ Division, and the Garwood First Aid Squad.

For more information about Union County’s Child Safety Seat Inspection Program visit ucnj.org or call 908-789-6830.

Union County, NJ  –  The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders invites all residents, especially veterans and their families, to gather at the steps of the Union County Courthouse on Friday, September 18 at 11:15 a.m., and join in the annual POW/MIA Remembrance Day ceremony to honor prisoners of war and those missing in action.  New Jersey State Senator Raymond J. Lesniak will deliver the keynote address.

“Please join us in recognizing the sacrifices of our military, and their families and loved ones. Every year, POW/MIA Remembrance Day reaffirms our government’s commitment to ensure that all are accounted for, and to honor those who are no longer with us,” said Freeholder Chairman Mohamed S. Jalloh.

The County Courthouse is located at 2 Broad Street in Elizabeth. In case of rain, the ceremony will be moved inside to Courthouse Rotunda.

For more information about POW/MIA Remembrance Day in Union County, or to confirm your attendance, call the Freeholder offices at 908-527-4100.

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