Borough seeks grant for accessibility projects $125K would fund ramps, automatic doors at boro hall BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer WEST LONG BRANCH - - The borough will apply for a grant to fund improvements to the municipal building, including construction of a new ramp accessible to people with disabilities. At the June 6 meeting, the Borough Council unanimously agreed, 5-0, to apply for a county Community Development Block Grant to fund an estimated $125,000 municipal project. The borough hall improvements project is a component of a larger borough project to construct a new police headquarters building at the current borough hall site at 965 Broadway. "The things we are trying to do are things that need to be done for the borough," said Councilwoman Barbara Ruane after the meeting. "When the ramp was first constructed, it was ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] compliant, but there are different regulations now," she said. "If we should get this grant," Ruane explained, "this is money already included in our police building project that we would then save." The borough's $2.75 million project to construct a new police building is under way and will include renovations to the current borough hall building, according to Ruane. "We cannot wait for the block grant to come through first, because we won't know until the fall," Ruane said. "And we can't hold up the police building." She explained that the improvements to the borough hall building are included in the overall project and if the borough receives the grant, the money will be reimbursed to the borough. "I don't know if we will go through with all the improvements if we don't get the grant," she said, adding, "but we will do as much [to be] ADA [compliant] as possible." At the meeting, Bob Stetz of the borough's engineering firm, T&M Associates, Middletown, presented plans for the improvements to borough hall during a public hearing on the grant. The plan calls for building a new accessible ramp to replace the current ramp that fronts the main entrance at the municipal building. Additionally, a new vestibule and new lobby doors will be constructed at the main entrance of the building and will be ADA-compliant. The project also entails landscaping and construction of a ramp at the rear of the building to provide access for employees with disabilities. "The doors [at the entrance of borough hall] are a problem in the winter with the cold when the doors open," Stetz said. Ruane added, "It is difficult if you are in a wheelchair to make the turn in the ramp. "And you have to have someone open the doors to the building," she said. "We would like sliding or automatic doors." Stetz said, "The grant will pay for this part of the project and then the borough will not have to budget for this as part of the police building project." The West Long Branch Community Development Citizen Participation Group met prior to the council meeting to discuss the application for the grant, according to Stetz. "Some residents said they wanted sliding doors and would like a sensor for doors to open automatically," Stetz said. "They want us to look at the railings [on the ramp] to make sure they are the proper height and to also look at the turn [in the ramp] in case of an emergency and there is a stretcher." The application deadline is June 30, according to Stetz, who said the borough should know by November if it will receive all or part of the requested grant money. The borough is requesting the full $125,000 for the project and Stetz said the county will issue grants up to $250,000. If the borough receives the grant, it has a year and a half to complete the project, according to Stetz. If West Long Branch is awarded the full $125,000 and the total project cost turns out to be less, the remaining funds are sent back to the county. Ruane explained that the area the borough is allowed to improve with the block grant funds is dictated by the Monmouth County development group. "It is not like we can use that money for any part of the town," Ruane said. "We are trying to utilize this money the best we can. "[Monmouth County development group] felt very strongly that we were looking for Americans with Disabilities Act requirements," Ruane added. The community block grants are spread across municipalities throughout the county for various projects, but towns are only eligible for awards every other year. The borough is applying for the grant from the Monmouth County Community Development Authority under the "architectural barrier removal" section of the community block application, according to Stetz. The borough received a community block grant two years ago to fund the "tot lot" in the borough, according to Ruane, who said the borough can now apply for the grant again for other improvements.