VENTNOR – The Board of Commissioners Thursday, Aug. 15 announced it is applying for a grant to assist Ventnor Plaza owner Mark Greco with the cost of installation of a new traffic signal on Wellington Avenue.
Because Wellington Avenue is a county roadway, when the Atlantic County Planning Department reviewed the Plaza project it required an additional traffic signal at the newly named Osprey Place location. Osprey Place is formerly an unnamed paper street located between the Atlantic City side of the Ventnor Plaza shopping center and the Dollar General store.
The costs for installation are significant, Commissioner of Public Works Lance Landgraf said. The city enlisted the help of grant consultant James Rutala of Rutala Associates of Linwood to apply for a grant to help fund the project, which is estimated to cost $875,000.
“We can apply for a grant to help with that,” Landgraf said. “The light will make the intersection safer and improve access.”
The road improvement will be located on the Atlantic City side of the Plaza, which has been substantially improved. Three new businesses are opening on the north side of the shopping center’s existing main entrance, including Starbucks, Greens and Grains and Burger King. The intersection will have ingress and egress and serve that side of the Plaza.
“It helps with bus traffic too,” Landgraf said.
The project required New Jersey Transit to relocate its pick-up and drop-off spot to the north side of the development from in front of the Acme Market. NJ Transit and the U.S. Postal Service, which is also located in that section, will offer letters of support for the grant.
“The Plaza has become a great welcoming entrance to the city,” Mayor Tim Kriebel said.
Greco has spent millions of dollars to improve the shopping center experience. He raised the parking lot several feet to prevent flooding during major storm events and high tides and secured new tenants for some of the vacant stores.
In other business, the board appointed Quyen A. Harvey to the position of assistant comptroller. Harvey has worked in the Finance Office for several years and recently received certification as a finance officer. She will support Chief Finance Officer Amy Stover.
It also announced plans to make improvements to the C-Shore Park beachfront playground. The city will use a $50,000 recreation grant to fund about half of the cost to refurbish the playground. The last time C-Shore Park was improved, it cost more than $90,000, officials said.
The city is also working to finalize the design of the boardwalk replacement project, Landgraf said.
The question at hand is how to replace the decking – either straight boards or place them diagonally. Installing straight boards will reduce labor costs by about 20%, but the diagonal placement could extend the life of the boards.
The city was previously granted more than $7 million for restoration of the boardwalk from Gov. Phil Murphy’s $100 million Boardwalk Preservation Fund. The project must be completed by 2026.
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