Kings Road Project Awarded for $329K

The Chatham Borough Council awarded the Kings Road Pedestrian Safety Improvements project to Topline Construction Corp. at its Monday meeting.

Topline's proposal for the project was the only bid received by the borough, and totaled $328,582.69. Borough Engineer Vincent J. DeNave said after the $315,000 in grant money the borough has won for the project, the final out-of-pocket expense will be less than $14,000.

The project includes sidewalk installation on the north side of the road (closest to Main Street and along the back of the Chatham Mall), a narrowing of the roadway and the installation of permanent flashing speed limit signs which light up when the 25-mph speed limit is broken.

DeNave said he has already been in contact with Topline, and he expects the project to begin after Labor Day.

Work will still be ongoing after school starts on Sept. 9.

The Chatham Borough Council has worked through multiple committees on planning this project. They sent a survey to the residents of Kings Road, set up speed limit sting operations and applied for grants for the project over the course of many months. 

Councilman James Collander said the project "literally took years," more than any other project he knows of except perhaps the construction of the sewer plant. "This has been years in the making. It took a lot of patience from residents, and a lot of work."

DeNave said the project will be closely watched by the state Department of Transportation. His contact there "is really excited because of all the traffic-calming things we're trying," he said.