NJBWC has been working with The Pinnacle Companies, a forward-thinking, transportation-oriented developer, to create an alternative transportation program for Montclair, as an exemplar for other New Jersey towns. The press release below, issued by the Montclair Township, announces the first component of the program, a Bike Depot for the Bay Street station. NJBWC and The Pinnacle Companies are proud to be partnering with the township to obtain this grant and create this program.
Montclair Awarded $20K Sustainable Jersey Grant
Grant will fund a Bay Street station bike depot for commuters.
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Sustainable Jersey representatives yesterday awarded Montclair a $20,000 Sustainable Jersey Small Grant at a ceremony held in Camden, NJ city hall. The Township is one of just four state municipalities to receive the highest level of Small Grant awards.
The grant will provide funding to construct a “Bike Depot” at the Township’s Bay Street train station. The depot will be an enclosed, weatherproof, and secure access and storage area for commuters who ride their bicycles to the station.
“Montclair has seen a growing number of commuters who prefer bicycling to their commuting stations,” said Montclair Sustainability Coordinator Gray Russell. “They find it to be not only a more convenient transportation option, but also a much more healthful one. The depot will now allow them to also see cycling as a consistent and reliable option as well.”
The Township wants to expand access to its six train stations by encouraging a variety of alternative transportation options within the town – which will also be accessible to surrounding towns. The bike depot will be an integral part of these improvements.
“As Montclair is becoming a more sustainable community, we’re improving the quality of life for our residents and ensuring that our environmental, economic and social objectives are balanced,” said Mayor Robert Jackson. “This project will achieve those goals by protecting clean air and reducing emissions, conserving tax dollars, and encouraging our health and wellness.”
The grant project is being coordinated with assistance from the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition, a statewide bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organization, and The Pinnacle Companies, who are also helping sponsor the total funding required for construction. The Township will be working with both of these partners to create the Bike Depot.
“We look forward to working with those partners, along with Bike&Walk Montclair, to further Montclair’s alternative transportation goals,” said Russell.
The Sustainable Jersey Small Grants Program, funded by the PSEG Foundation, is providing $200,000 in grants to local governments for sustainability projects. Since 2009, Sustainable Jersey has distributed approximately $1,375,000 in grants to New Jersey municipalities to help towns make their communities more livable, environmentally friendly, and prosperous.
The other winners of the grants have projects that provide sustainable solutions to everyday challenges. Curbside organic waste recycling, sustainability ordinances, hawk habitat restoration, a water conservation tax credit, rain gardens, and more have been added to the list of initiatives that the Sustainable Jersey Small Grants program is funding.
“PSEG is committed to being a steward of the environment and making meaningful contributions to communities we serve,” said Ellen Lambert, president of the PSEG Foundation and Director of Corporate Responsibility. “We are proud to support this program and to fund projects that will make life better in neighborhoods throughout New Jersey.”
Currently, 72% of NJ’s municipalities participate (406 towns across all 21 counties) and have registered to become Sustainable Jersey-certified; Montclair achieved re-certification in 2013.
“The impact that these projects will make is incredible,” said Pam Mount, Chair of the Sustainable Jersey Board of Trustees. “Aiding towns and Green Teams to achieve their sustainability goals by funding green initiatives will have a ripple effect that will benefit us all.”
ABOUT SUSTAINABLE JERSEY
Sustainable Jersey, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that provides tools, training and financial incentives to support communities as they pursue sustainability programs. Currently, over 406 of New Jersey’s 565 municipalities are participating in the sustainability certification program. Sustainable Jersey is one hundred percent voluntary and each town can choose whether it wants to get certified and the actions it wants to do in order to achieve enough points to get certified. In 2014 the Sustainable Jersey for Schools program will be launched in partnership with New Jersey School Boards Association and other statewide educational organizations.