VILLAS – Lower Township Council introduced an ordinance that would designate certain parking spaces as being for disabled veterans and Purple Heart recipients.
“We have other ways of honoring our veterans,” Mayor Frank Sippel said. “This is just another way.”
Ordinance 2023-09 designates two parking spaces at 12 different locations in the township for a total of 24 parking spaces.
Designated spaces include two at the Lower Township Municipal Complex on Bayshore Road, two each at the police department and municipal court, two at the recreation center, two at the Clem Mulligan Complex, two each at Rotary Park, Mindy Park, David C. Douglass parking lot, Freeman Douglas Jr. Memorial Park, Diamond Beach Park, Jonathan Hoffman Park (also known as Mitnick Park) and two spaces at the Millman Community Center.
The ordinance allows parking for not more than 24 hours provided the driver has a disabled veteran or Purple Heart recipient license plate or placard issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.
While there are currently no parking meters in Lower Township, the ordinance exempts disabled veterans or Purple Heart recipients from paying any municipal parking fees.
Anyone caught violating the ordinance is subject to a $100 fine for the first offense and $200 for the second and subsequent offenses. There will be a second reading and public hearing May 1 at 5 p.m. in the Township Hall Meeting Room.