Residents urge action on power outages, bench vandalism and broadband gaps; Committee to invite JCP&L

Several residents used the public‑comment period on Jan. 12 to push the Township Committee for action on utility reliability, park vandalism and broadband availability.

Resident Joe Wenner described slow response times from Jersey Central Power & Light during outages and highlighted an intersection he described as dangerous because it lacks stop or yield signage. In response, Committee members said they will invite a JCP&L representative to a future meeting to discuss tree‑clearing policies, outage prioritization, feeder redundancy and storm‑rated pole replacement, and they will request a list of streets with the most outages.

Resident George Trongone reported a vandalized commemorative bench at Tunnel Field; the Committee agreed that Department of Public Works will inspect the bench and coordinate repairs or replacement as needed. Trongone also asked about fiber and cable availability; the Committee said Planet Networks is preparing a deployment plan but requires demonstrated resident interest and advised residents to register addresses on the provider’s website to show demand.

Resident Dailbor Rubil raised concerns about recent changes to shooting regulations and the lack of prior notice for a December hearing. Committee members did not take immediate policy action on that issue at the meeting.

The Committee did not adopt new policies at the meeting but directed staff to follow up: DPW to inspect Tunnel Field bench and propose repairs, and the Clerk’s office to invite a JCP&L representative to discuss outage and pole‑replacement information at an upcoming meeting.