DOT: Brick Garden Club Flowers, Water Hydrant Can Stay

Brick, NJ -- The flower beds stay.

A groundswell of calls and emails from Brick Township residents convinced the New Jersey Department of Transportation to reverse its demand that the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority and the Brick Garden Club to remove a water supply hydrant and flower beds on a plot of land at Route 70 and Brick Boulevard.

"Upon further consideration, NJDOT has determined that the utility hydrant and the garden will be permitted to remain, contingent on the receipt of an Adopt a Highway application from Brick Township," Kevin Israel, a spokesman for the state DOT said late Wednesday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the council meeting where Mayor John Ducey raised the issue.

"We ask that all of those tending to the flowers exercise the utmost care and caution when crossing the roads to access the property where the flower arrangements are located," Israel said.

The flower beds have been in place and maintained by the garden club for 16 years, Ducey said Tuesday night.

The beds, on an otherwise unoccupied piece of land that serves to manage traffic at the intersection, drew the attention of the DOT after the township MUA applied for and received a permit to install a utility hydrant so the club's members could water the flowers without having to lug buckets 60 or 70 feet, Ducey said.

The permit for the hydrant was approved in February, Brick Councilman Jim Fozman, who sits on the MUA, said. But in June, a letter from the DOT informed the MUA that the hydrant was a nonconforming use and that it, and the flower beds would have to be removed.

Dozens of Patch readers responded to the situation on Facebook.

"Although I never cared for that spot, it always did look good and they always did a great job with it," Victor Sean Berger said. "Now I care about that spot and will absolutely stand behind the women working to keep it looking nice. We should be proud they've managed to keep it that nice under such a small budget...Imagine if the town had more projects like this. This is just bureaucratic nonsense. Government applying rules just because they can."

"Great use of tax dollars...Don't they have any roads to fix or something?" said Wendy Brown Barczak, echoing a sentiment of several readers, who made reference to the $3.5 billion in projects that have been shut down this week in the wake of an executive order by Gov. Chris Christie halting work while politicians tussle over a proposed 23-cent increase in the state's gasoline tax.

"It just goes to show how a grassroots by our citizens coming together can make a difference," Ducey said. "I am proud to be a part of it."

Ducey said the township will help the garden club with the process of applying for the Adopt a Highway program.