MIGUEL JUAREZ staff       Visitors to Pier Village in Long Branch were joined by Santa Claus during an old-fashioned carriage ride Saturday. More ... Notes       Family Game Night will be held at the Ocean Township Branch of the Monmouth County Library, 701 Deal Road, on Jan. 3 at 6:30 p.m. Please bring games to share. There is no charge. The Young Adult Book Club will meet to discuss “The Golden Compass” by Philip Pullman Jan. 9 at 5 p.m. Books are a... More ... Code, construction offices to remain at Poplar Ave. Munson: Moving offices would raise cost of new police HQs BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer       WEST LONG BRANCH — Plans are moving forward to relocate the police department to a new facility on Broadway, but other municipal offices will remain on Poplar Avenue. More ... Eatontown police on the lookout for drunk drivers ‘You Drink, You Drive, You Lose’ program in effect through Jan. 2 BY SUE MORGAN Staff Writer       EATONTOWN — Borough police are increasingly on the prowl for impaired motorists who might have reveled in too much holiday cheer. More ... SPCA must expand to meet growing need Shelter seeks zone change to allow for addition BY LAYLI WHYTE Staff Writer       EATONTOWN — The Monmouth County SPCA is seeking a zoning change that would allow the shelter to undertake a major expansion. The MCSPCA animal shelter has been located on 3.5 acres on Wall Street for more than 60 years. The shelter is located in a residential zone, where it is not a... More ... Former city resident enters guilty plea BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer       A former Long Branch resident has pleaded guilty to a shooting that occurred almost two years ago in Asbury Park. Antonio Williams, 30, pleaded guilty Dec. More ... MIGUEL JUAREZ staff       Sean Sanderson, 11, Eatontown, pays a visit to Santa at the Oceanport post office Saturday. Carrier Roy Townsend fills in for Santa. More ... Tarantolo: Future of downtown hinges on fort Boro accepts two options for future development BY LAYLI WHYTE Staff Writer       EATONTOWN — The Borough Council went through the motions of accepting a vision plan for the downtown last week while acknowledging the future is clouded by uncertainty over the future of the real estate Fort Monmouth sits on. More ... Operation Sleighbells needs gifts, donors BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer       LONG BRANCH –– As it has for almost a century, Family & Children’s Service (FCS) on Bath Avenue is again making the holiday brighter for disadvantaged children and their families through its Operation Sleighbells program. The annual holiday gift program began back in 1909 as a way to ... More ... Sea Bright, Highlands at odds with DOT on bridge Resolutions oppose demolition of span, fixed replacement BY LIZ SHEEHAN Correspondent       Sea Bright and Highlands, the two towns that are connected by the 74-year-old drawbridge that spans the Shrewsbury River, have sent a clear message to the state that they do not want the bridge replaced. More ... Questions unanswered about Blair’s removal Concordance mum on reasons for ending tenure of exec. director BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer       As the Long Branch Concordance (LBC) plans for an infusion of state grant funds, questions remained unanswered last week on the sudden removal of the group’s executive director. Terri S. Blair was removed from her post as LBC executive director on Nov. 4, with no “meaningful explana... More ... IJ gets OK to join MTOTSA appeal City asked court to deny law firm co-counsel status BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer       The Institute for Justice (IJ) has won the right to be a part of the legal team representing a group of Long Branch residents in an ongoing legal battle to save their homes from condemnation by the city. The public interest law firm that specializes in defending private property rig... More ...