State Awards $150K Grant to Westwood For Road Project

The New Jersey Department of Transportation has awarded a Local Aid grant to Westwood for a project on Pascack Road.

The road, located off Sand Road, is currently in "pretty bad shape," according to Mayor John Birkner. The plan is to repave the road, and also to replace the subsurface and fix some drainage issues.

"Anytime that we can find a grant to help with the considerable costs of infrastructure, we go after it pretty aggressively," Birkner said.

The DOT gave the borough a $150,000 grant, though the whole project is expected to cost more than $300,000, according to Birkner.

Borough Engineer Stephen Boswell recommended they do the project the same way they did a similar project on Fairview Avenue, which was done in several phases.

Boswell noted that not every town in Bergen County gets these grants, so it would be best to use the whole sum this year.

"It gets competitive," he said.

Birkner said the borough would likely apply again next year to pay for the rest of the project.

"It's our obligation to reduce the burden on our local taxpayers," Birkner said.

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