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A $325,000 Transit Village grant awarded by the NJ Department of Transportation [NJDOT] will be used to fund a wayfinding signage and construction project, city officials announced via a written news statement Tuesday.

“We’re thrilled to be awarded this Transit Village Grant and look forward to creating wayfinding signage that is not only functional, but also attractive,” Mayor John Moor [at right] said in the written announcement. “With the grant, we’ll be able to create branded signage [along] Main Street, Memorial Drive and Springwood Avenue, with the goal of [extending] the designs in other areas of the City.”

The newly branded signs will be designed with public input and offer motorists and pedestrians directions in the aforementioned areas within a 1/2 mile radius of the municipal owned train station.

“A key component to this project will be the public input sessions, which will ensure that our residents’ voices will be heard,” Councilman Jesse Kendle said. The project’s timing will be determined by the NJDOT.

The grant comes on the heels of Asbury Park becoming the state’s 33rd Transit Village municipality; a designation issued in July by the NJDOT, NJ Transit, and seven other state agencies that make up the Transit Village Inter-Agency Task Force.

The designation is given to municipalities that show a commitment to revitalization and redevelopment that encourages the use of public transportation, particularly where infrastructure is already in place and where multi-modal transportation options are readily available, Michele Alonso has said. Another important factor is the advancement of sustainable programs that focus on reducing auto-dependency.

As a Transit Village, Asbury Park was eligible to apply for NJDOT funding for this non-traditional, transportation-related improvement project, which results in taking the burden off of the taxpayers, officials said.

“Our vision for the area surrounding the transit station is a vibrant, walkable, bikeable community, and this grant will help us take steps towards these goals,” Councilwoman Yvonne Clayton said. “The signage will provide a much needed amenity for residents and visitors, and will reflect the spirit of Asbury Park.”

The signage project falls in line with other infrastructure related and development projects in the region slated to come on line within the next year or so.

Current projects within the Transit Village designation include the 63-unit Renaissance from the Michaels Group; Interfaith Neighbor’s 20-unit Parkview AP, an owner occupied duplex with adjacent income property; the 104-unit Boston Way project; a 40-rental unit sustainable project at 201 Memorial Drive; the recently completed five-unit work/live units at 301 Memorial Drive and a nearby planned 76 rental unit project; and Interfaith Neighbors previously proposed 47,000 square foot JAMS Performing Arts Center on Springwood that would feature a 200-seat performance/lecture hall, gallery space, theater, lounge and restaurant.

Alonso has said The Renaissance, Park View Ap  and Boston Way should be completed within the next year, while the Memorial Drive units should begin construction this year. The long awaited JAMS project may take two years for approvals and construction to begin.

The award falls in line with the Main Street Road Diet changes, funded in part through a $237,000 streetscape TAP grant, for the state owned roadway; its recent NJDOT Local Bicycle and Pedestrian Planning Assistance Program; and its West Side Choice Neighborhoods Transformation Plan that will help revitalize the southwest community, funded by a $500,000 Housing and Urban Development [HUD] grant.

For more information about NJDOT Transit Village Initiatives, click here. For more about the City, visit cityofasburypark.com. 

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