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Union County News

April 24, 2024

UNION COUNTY, NJ — The county launched its Street Smart NJ pedestrian safety campaign this month at a site where a pedestrian was seriously injured in 2023. The current campaign, consisting of large educational signs and distribution of safety information throughout the municipality, in schools ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The county Board of Commissioners last week introduced a $543.4 million budget for 2024 that increases county-wide taxes by 1.75%. Introducing the budget, fiscal committee chairperson Rebecca Williams said the tax levy increase comes to $373,722,967.17. William said the ...

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ELIZABETH, NJ — A new indoor ice rink being built at county-owned Warinanco Sports Center is estimated to open to the public in three years. The Board of County Commissioners approved an $800,000 contract with USA Architects for “professional architectural services” related to the Warinanco ...

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TRENTON, NJ — The state’s acting comptroller is citing the actions of Union County government to bolster his opposition to a proposed law that he says will enable sneaky payments to public officials. In a recent 7-part post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Acting Comptroller Kevin Walsh pointed ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The county’s mobile trailer that offers free showers, laundry and restrooms is scheduled to return to service April 4, the county announced this week. Known as the Fresh Start trailer, the unit will be placed at the Elizabeth Public Library and the Plainfield Public Library ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The county commissioner board has approved a $20,000 contract with Genova Burns LLC to represent county clerk Joanne Rajoppi in the lawsuit Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Andy Kim has brought against all 21 county clerks over the state ballot design, which he claims is ...

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ELIZABETH, NJ — Twelve-year-old Yohan Lopez, of Elizabeth, has been located, the Union County Prosecutor’s Office said Wednesday afternoon. Lopez had been last seen on Wednesday, March 13, at 7:30 a.m. wearing a blue shirt and blue sweatshirt with khaki pants, the Union County Prosecutor’s ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Residents could face a 1.75% increase in the county portion of their property tax bill this year, after the 2024 budget is presented for a Union County Commissioner board vote in upcoming months.  County Manager Ed Oatman presented a 2024 executive budget with a 1.75% tax ...

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UNION COUNTY 2024, NJ — The county social services director says efforts are underway to address housing instability as data is reviewed from the 2024 Point in Time Count, a yearly census of unsheltered and sheltered individuals. Seven teams made up of county staff, government officials and ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Corporations responsible for the clubhouse at the Ash Brook Golf Course in Scotch Plains repeatedly failed at their duties, resulting in a falling stone veneer façade and safety hazards, according to a lawsuit filed by the county against the companies and architect of the ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Members of a union representing nurses at Cornerstone Behavioral Health Hospital in Berkeley Heights appear to be stalled in negotiations with the county to add more staff into their contract.  The county sold the hospital, formerly known as Runnells Specialized Hospital, in ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — With the selection of “three well-respected Republican leaders at the municipal level” as its slate of candidates for the board of commissioners, the Union County Republican Party is hoping to turn the tide this year in a county known for being a Democratic Party ...

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CLARK, NJ — The Union County Board of County Commissioners would like to invite seniors and their caregivers to the upcoming ASK community events for February. At these events, attendees can meet face-to-face with skilled professionals who offer expert guidance on senior programs and resources, as ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Residents heard about plans to make improvements to three county parks during a Green Acres public hearing at the Jan. 25 Union County Board of Commissioners meeting. Afterward, golfers said a course in Scotch Plains is being neglected.  The county is planning an inclusive ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — In hopes of improving interactions with police, the Union County Prosecutor’s Office has established a new “special needs registry,” which became active on Jan. 16.  The UCPO’s new registry “aims to enhance communication and understanding between law enforcement officers and ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — A historic milestone was reached at Thursday’s Board of Commissioners reorganization meeting: For the first time, two women will hold leadership of the governing body.  Commissioners unanimously elected Kimberly Palmieri-Mouded as commissioner chairperson and Lourdes Leon as ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The County Board of Commissioners approved 3% pay raises for top administrators and 2% raises for its own membership at its Dec. 21 meeting.  A Garwood resident at the meeting criticized raises given to officials in positions cited in a recent state comptroller's report, while ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Residents packed Board of County Commissioners meetings week after week to protest the handling of two issues that touched on history: the process for choosing a new county seal without a depiction of Hannah Caldwell's murder and a request to honor enslaved people burned at the ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The county violated state law by paying $417,772 in stipends to top county officials without following a required public process, an investigation by the state comptroller’s office has found. Outside counsel for the county is contesting the finding of the independent state ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — A former sergeant in the Union County Sheriff's department, who is suing the department for a violation of the whistleblower law, has filed a motion for summary judgment claiming a lieutenant improperly used a system meant to rehabilitate officers as an end run to fire ...

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WESTFIELD, NJ — A packed house celebrated the season with the New Jersey Festival Orchestra Saturday, Dec. 9, at the Presbyterian Church in Westfield at its performance of “The Return of the Three Holiday Tenors.” They clapped along to “Radetzky March” by Johann Strauss and sang along to “Auld ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — The annual hunt of white-tailed deer is underway throughout county parks and in some municipal areas.  While residents should be aware that the deer management program is going on, the county's acting public works director, Joseph Policay, said it will not disrupt their use of ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — As temperatures drop, the statewide Code Blue initiative will increase emergency shelter options in Union County, which a report shows contains 8% of New Jersey’s population of unhoused people. County commissioners on Oct. 26 approved $350,000 to implement the program this ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — A wrongfully convicted Elizabeth man who was imprisoned due to a faulty lie detector test is receiving a $3.2 million settlement in his lawsuit against the county.  Commissioners approved a settlement of an amount not to exceed $3.2 million in the Mervilus case during the Nov.

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UNION, NJ – Robert Constant, a successful children’s book author from Scotch Plains, NJ, will host a panel of speakers and readers at an “Assault on Illiteracy” event presented by the Omicron Chi Chapter of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity at Barnes & Noble (2401 Rte. 22 West in Union, NJ), on ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Democrats were elected to three seats on the county Board of Commissioners, continuing the party’s winning streak which has lasted more than two decades, unofficial results of the Nov. 7 general election show. The results include early voting, machine voting and vote by mail ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — Low-income residents of Union County will have access to free medications and other services by the end of November through a new partnership with a Red Bank-based charitable pharmacy.  Commissioners approved a year-long memorandum of agreement with Ritesh Shah Charitable ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — A program run out of the Union County Sheriff’s Office to help locate missing people with autism, Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders can help in situations like the recent search for a missing autistic teen in Watchung Reservation, county officials say. Sophia Hetrick, ...

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UNION COUNTY, NJ — On Saturday, October 21, Prevention Links, a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing addiction and substance abuse, supporting communities, and strengthening families, held its 25th Annual Union County Red Ribbon Day Family Fun Festival in Nomahegan Park in Cranford. It ...

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SCOTCH PLAINS, NJ — At Monday night’s Union County Vocational-Technical Schools (UCVTS) Board of Education meeting, parents called for the firing of a teacher who shared a non-sanctioned, anti-Israel TikTok video with her students. The video, which was unrelated to course work, was shared via ...

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