Barnegat Police Vehicles Go High Tech

Barnegat Township will soon take delivery of two new police vehicles that are now scheduled to be outfitted with enhanced video cameras, according to administrator David Breeden.

An ordinance was introduced at Monday’s meeting to reapportion balances from other General Capitol Projects totaling $85,000 to pay for the cameras and additional equipment to be installed at police headquarters.

“There is tremendous value having video equipment in police cars as it provides solid evidence to an incident. Rapid advances in technology have occurred over the past several years with mobile video equipment and the Township would like to enhance their law enforcement video capabilities in order to improve upon the quality of video recordings,” said Breeden afterward.

The Township’s Police Department has had a mobile video system in place since 2008, and the two systems will be operated simultaneously until the older one is eventually phased out, he added.

The ordinance is scheduled for its second reading and final vote at next month’s meeting.  

In other public safety news, the committee approved an ordinance to amend the township's Vehicles and Traffic code. The amendment addresses access and egress of the Walgreens drug store at the corner of West Bay Avenue and Barnegat Boulevard North.

Left turns to and from Barnegat Boulevard in and out of the Walgreens parking lot will no longer be allowed. The county will erect the No Left Turn signs and enforcement will be up to township police.

Another ordinance was introduced to raise the fees for new water and sewer connections to $1000 each.

These fees have not been raised for about 20 years or more, according to Breeden. The current rates are $600 per connection. There will be a second reading and vote on the ordinance next month.

The township and the bonding company for Kara Homes, which went bankrupt in 2006, have come to an agreement for the final phase of the site improvements at the Horizons development. Horizons is 162 unit adult community located west of the Garden State Parkway off of Bay Avenue. Kara abandoned Horizons and a single family development in the township, Sterling Woods, in the bankruptcy.

A total of $24,000 will be used to make repairs to storm drainage basins at Horizons.

Substantial improvements at Sterling Woods have also be completed, said the administrator.