Revitalization goals for '07 to be discussed
Coalition wants input from residents on visions for Jamesburg's future
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

JAMESBURG - The borough Revitalization Coalition is hoping to get more of the community involved in the town's resurgence.

The group's first year of existence will culminate on Dec. 4, when it will hold a public meeting to review plans for the year ahead, set up elections for officers and ratify its constitution.

"We are laying the foundation for what Jamesburg will be over the next 10 years and beyond," said Elliott Stroul, chairman of the coalition's organizing committee. "The mission is to get input and participation from every nook in the community - residents, business, government, education and religion, so that we can improve our image, attract more business and visitors to our town. This will not happen overnight and we are in this for the long haul. Everyone is a stakeholder in the future of Jamesburg."

The grassroots organization is seeking the vision of community members so that it can represent their interests in the outcome of the revitalization efforts, according to group member and Borough Councilman John Longo Jr.

"We want them to be the ones to direct decisions on what Jamesburg should be in the next 10 years and beyond," Longo said.

Starting in January, graduate students from Rutgers University's Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy will begin drafting a plan for the borough's revitalization. A representative of the student group, whose focus is urban planning, has been in attendance at each of the meetings so far, taking input from the community.

At a meeting during the second week of February, the coalition will try to get 20 to 30 people from the town to participate in a three- to five-hour work session with the student group. The community members will fill out paperwork and discuss ideas to give the students a better feel for what their goals are for Jamesburg.

"The community's landscape is changing; we are very diverse," Longo said. "We have all different ethnicities in town, we have a number of different churches in town, and they have different views on what they'd like to see in the town. They all should feel they're a part of this community, and that's what we're trying to do."

In mid-March, they are hoping to gather several hundred people for a presentation by the students, identify the assets of the town and determine how they can be used in the revitalization efforts.

In May, the students will present their final plan to the Borough Council and Land Use Board. The final plan will consist of recommendations and will be flexible, Stroul said. With the recommendations of the plan in mind, the coalition will seek out funds through government grants and from the private sector in order to bring them to fruition.

"We're right where we need to be," said coalition member Teddy Ehmann, who is co-owner of Family Framers.

The goal at this point is to incorporate as a nonprofit organization and elect officers in order to become more organized, Ehmann said. The second goal is to get more of the "stakeholders" in the community involved. The coalition's first meeting was very well-attended, but at subsequent meetings attendance has dwindled, Ehmann said.

"We want the town to have an identity," Stroul said. "We want the town to be a destination, and not just somewhere to pass through."

The Dec. 4 meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the borough hall. For more information, call Stroul at (732) 512-7417.