Children playing on unlit street irks some residents
BY TOYNETT HALL Staff Writer

HOWELL - There was a time when darkness fell, street lights came on and children knew playtime was over.

That is not the case for residents in the Ramtown section of Howell. There are no lights on Memorial Drive, an access road into Pine View Estates, an agerestricted community.

Residents who live near Memorial Drive say a lack of lighting on the street is creating a safety hazard.

Residents who live along Jacob Drive said they have complained since the road was opened that it is dangerous, useless and has been transformed into a skateboarder's paradise.

David Milanowycz has lived in the area with his wife and two children for a decade. He said he is concerned that Memorial Drive will turn into a drag strip.

"I am concerned for the children in this neighborhood. There are no speed bumps along this road, no crosswalks, no fire hydrant and no lights," Milanowycz said.

"I am not opposed to the road being open; however, there are safety issues that need to be addressed. Safety precautions should not be tossed out because the cost of the road ran over budget," he added.

Resident Albert Rizzolo shared Milanowycz's sentiment.

"The road should have never been opened without street lights. This road is going to cause a lot of problems and I do not want to see anyone get hurt," Rizzolo said.

Mayor Joseph DiBella said Memorial Drive was constructed by Howell to provide additional access to the residents of Pine View Estates. Some area residents were in favor of seeing the road built and some people strongly opposed its construction.

"The original budget did not account for lights on that road. It's a financial issue," the mayor said. "There are major portions of roads in our community that do not have lights. To put lights onto every rural road is not practical for the town."

DiBella said his primary concern is children playing in the streets, especially at night. He said the roads are for cars, not for children's play, and he asked parents to keep their children out of the streets, particularly at night.

Pine View Estates was constructed on a parcel of land that was in Wall Township near the Garden State Parkway, however, the primary access to the development was from Howell and initial emergency responses (police, fire, first aid) to the adult community would have been from Howell agencies.

Because of those factors, Wall Township did not object to a plan that saw Howell officials annex Pine View Estates and make it a part of Howell.