Middle Owners Have Bike Path Beefs; Rio Grande Crime in Spotlight

COURT HOUSE – Middle Township Committee’s first work session since reorganization took place Jan. 20 with a gathering of about 20 residents who came out to hear a presentation on the proposed last leg of the township bike path.
Due to illness, the township’s engineer was absent, and many expressed displeasure that their questions could not be answered.
Mayor Michael Clark promised another public meeting when the township would be better prepared with detail plans and the engineer would be present.
The issue with this final leg of the bike path that would connect to the yet-to-be-announced Lower Township portion of the path is that it cuts across property that is technically owned by Atlantic City Electric. In all practical sense it provides front yards for many homes along the proposed trail.
Residents whose homes are impacted by the proposal wanted specific answers to questions about location relative to their properties, impacts of the paving on drainage, security and lighting.
A confluence of issues has forced the proposed bike path to be set back further from the road than originally hoped and that fact produces a series of concerns from homeowners.
Committeeman Timothy Donohue, who was mayor during much of the planning stage for the path, and Business Manager Constance Mahon explained that the county was supplying the funding for the connector through county open space funds.
The county would not approve any plan that puts the bike path adjacent to the road without mandating a chain link fence to provide security for bikers moving near traffic.
When the design of the path thus had to set-back further from the road, the utility objected to any plan that would place the path too close to its power distribution poles. Since much of the land to be used by the path would be on right of way controlled by the utility and require a license from the electric company, the utility approval of any plan was an absolute requirement.
The proposal, unveiled for the first time at the meeting, has gained utility approval, but its placement of the path further in from the road is what now infringes on property fronting the residences along the route.
The connector runs from Satt Boulevard across Route 47 and to the juncture point where it is expected to link to Lower Township’s path still being planned.
A number of residents see the proposal as one that negatively impacts their homes and property values. They wanted specifics and could not get them from the township or the representatives of ACE who attended the meeting.
“These are our yards,” was a refrain heard from many who cited 40 and more years of living in the area. They acknowledged that the right of way that makes up part of their yards is electric company property, but noted that it is the property owners who have cut the grass, shoveled the snow and maintained the property.
Charles Jackson owns a home impacted by the proposal. He made the trip from Tennessee to attend the meeting, and expressed dismay that no one was present to represent the engineer and no detailed plans were available to show exactly where the eight-foot wide path would go relative to specific homes.
Deputy Mayor Jeffrey DeVico said that he had just been given the agenda two days prior and that was the first time he knew this issue was to be discussed.
Clark apologized to the public noting that he was embarrassed that the township did not have the “proper documentation” available for the meeting. 
“We do care how you feel,” he said. Responding to citizens who felt they were being presented with a fait accompli, Clark assured the audience that this was the beginning of a process and a dialogue, not the end of one.
Several asked why the path could not follow the old railroad lines and avoid impacting homes. Donohue and Mahon explained that that land is licensed to an individual through the state Department of Transportation and that the township had no rights to its use.
Electric company representatives seemed perplexed that they were coming under fire in the meeting. From its perspective, the utility is trying to accommodate a township plan while still protecting its infrastructure from safety violations and access problems.
With the county, which controls the funding, pushing the path back off the road and the utility needing to set it back from its poles, the proposal now faces rough sailing with area residents, and at least one more public hearing has been promised by the mayor.
Rio Grande Crime
The meeting also provided an opportunity for Donohue to report on progress in a series of meetings he, Mahon, and Police Chief Christopher Leusner had undertaken with various agencies and officials in order to get a better understanding of what Donohue has elsewhere termed “breeding ground for crime” in the Rio Grande area.
What Donohue was referring to is the high concentration of crime in Rio Grande where “voucher motels” often house numbers of paroles, recently released offenders and a number of “bad actors.”
Donohue acknowledged that the agencies they have met with have laudable missions and that the services they provide are needed, but he is seeking a better understanding of how the confluence of those services in Rio Grande may be contributing to the rising crime rate.
Leusner noted that the rate of crime in the area is actually a bit lower than it was in 2012 which he uses as a baseline in his data system that tracks crimes and helps establish the best use of police resources. The problem is that 2013 saw a significant drop in the area crime rate which has been rising again through 2014 and 2015.
Leusner said two issues are big contributors to crime in the area.  The high levels of shoplifting at area merchants and, most importantly, what he termed “the heroin problem.”
Donohue said that the township team had met with agencies that manage parole and probation, with county Social Services, with the Department of Corrections and with organizations who provide help to the homeless.
With respect to the homeless, Donohue went so far as to say “the county is in denial about the problem.” He added “There are homeless here and the county has no homeless shelter.”
One objective of the meetings was to understand why so many individuals with criminal backgrounds are released to or paroled to Middle Township.
Donohue said that if the goal was rehabilitation of individuals through jobs and a chance at a normal life, the practice makes no sense. “What chance does an individual have if he is released to this area in January and February when there are no jobs?”
Donohue said his goal is soon to have the representatives from these agencies and other parties at some form of public event. “We are doing the legwork now,” he said. He plans next to talk with hotel and motel owners. According to Donohue, a public forum on the matter is not far off.
Leusner expressed optimism that proper policing can positively impact crime in the area. He cited a three-prong approach that involved increased police presence and enforcement coupled with intervention programs for drug uses along with education and prevention efforts.
Now, he said, police are cracking down on the drug problem and doing sweeps of the area. “The word will get out that Middle Township is not the place to go,” he said.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.