Council OKs crosswalk, increase in UEZ funds BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer LONG BRANCH -- The City Council approved plans last week for a pedestrian crosswalk in front of the New Anastasia School on Seventh Avenue. The council also moved to increase funding to the city's Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ) Business Development and Marketing project on Broadway. At the Oct. 24 municipal meeting, the council adopted ordinance 22-06 to construct a mid-block crosswalk in front of the school for safety reasons, according to the ordinance. According to the resolution, the N.J. Department of Transportation (DOT) conducted a field investigation into creating a crosswalk at the Seventh Avenue site on Sept. 21 at the request of the Long Branch Police Department. "All streets need a designated [crosswalk] area," Councilman David Brown said, adding, "especially where there is a school." The crosswalk will be located 74 feet south of the southerly curb of Park Place and will extend 10 feet in a southerly direction, according to the ordinance. The council also adopted resolution 320-06, amending resolution 22-06, to increase funding for a UEZ program by $15,000. UEZ funds are deposited in the UEZ assistance fund and are credited to the account of the City of Long Branch. At the request of the local UEZ board, the council approved a resolution to recommend that the state UEZ board authorize the additional funding for a Broadway business development project. According to the resolution, UEZ officials recommended that the council spend $186,000 for a UEZ marketing project. The amendment calls for increasing that amount by $15,000, for a total project cost of $201,000. The project will include publishing a newsletter, as well as matching funds for the Greater Long Branch Chamber of Commerce to purchase a mobile kiosk. "The completion of this project will, in fact, provide job creation, economic development opportunities and improvement projects which will benefit residents and business owners in Long Branch," the resolution reads.