Residents, Commissioners Weigh Crest Median Vote

WILDWOOD CREST ─ Voters of Wildwood Crest participated in democracy Jan. 26, as they cast their vote determining the fate of the Pacific Avenue median project.
When the final ballot was counted, the “no’s” secured the outcome: medians on Pacific Avenue, the heart of the Crest, will not be a reality.
Mayor Carl Groon responded to the intelligence with these words: “The end result is clear, we will take that and move on.”
Groon remarked on the administration still having “A job to do on Pacific Avenue.” Groon personalized the public’s decision, “My community did not want the medians.”
Commissioner Don Cabrera, who once described himself as “on the fence” concerning the project, expressed his opinion on the results as well and also three potential options for Pacific Avenue.
The first option would reduce lanes to two and include turning lanes; the second would be similar without a turning lane. The third option would include a bike lane, also without a turning lane.
“We will find a plan that works for everyone,” Cabrera said. Cabrera admitted that although new options would not “be as pretty” as the medians, he accepts the decision. 
“It is America at its best,” said Commissioner Joyce Gould. “It started out as a disagreement between us,” Gould explained, accounting of how residents expressed varying beliefs on the proposed project. Gould hopes the results will bring more people out to commissioners’ meetings and prompt more discussion.
Resident Michael Hawthorne, who opposed the project, said, “I believe it was a vote of no confidence with the borough’s ability to promptly and properly complete the project. The New Jersey Avenue project left a bad taste in many residents’ mouths and I know some feared the same results from the medians.”
Hawthorne continued, “My hope is that we now hold the borough’s officials more accountable. The distraction of the ‘medians’ project has shifted focus away from the growing number of borough-involved lawsuits.”
Hawthorne believes “Some of the borough officials have put the taxpayers of the community in a bad situation with their lack of effective leadership. The $500,000 for medians may pale in comparison to current and upcoming litigation costs.”
To contact Rachel Rogish, email rrogish@cmcherald.com.