Economic Development Grants

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: December 5, 2018

Contact: Matt Holt, Freeholder Director

jmholt@co.hunterdon.nj.us

Economic Development Grants Awarded To

Frenchtown and Raritan Township MUA

The Hunterdon County Freeholder Board approved the first grants under the new economic development local grant program to Frenchtown and the Raritan Township Municipal Utilities Authority (RTMUA), at the November 20th Freeholder meeting.

Freeholder Board Director Matt Holt, in announcing the grants, stated, “A primary goal of the economic development initiative has always been to partner with our municipalities, develop programs in conjunction with them, and to provide tools to help them achieve economic growth. These grants help us strive toward that goal.”

Frenchtown will receive a grant of $6750 to assist the Borough’s zoning review, which is being conducted to ensure that local zoning rules reflect the current economic environment needed to attract and maintain local businesses. Frenchtown provided a 10% match for the grant.

Hunterdon County will conduct a waste flow study on the behalf of the RTMUA that examines the potential long-term solutions to the Authority’s wastewater collection and treatment system capacity issues. The RTMUA will be responsible for a 10% match for the cost of the project.

The study will look to find the best strategy to accommodate future economic growth in the Township and County, Hunterdon Economic Development Director Marc Saluk told the Freeholder Board.

The grants are available on an annual basis to Hunterdon communities looking to implement projects and programs consistent with the goals and objectives of the county’s economic development initiative and was created to enhance the ability for the county to partner with municipalities on projects that positively impact the future of Hunterdon.

In 2017, the county agreed to fund the procedural review project in Clinton and Clinton Township, which is an ongoing study set to wrap in 2019. The study evaluates local ordinances, policy, and procedures and will make recommendations to the two towns on better aligning those with their joint economic development goals.

Saluk added, “Since the grant program was announced, a number of communities have expressed a strong interest in partnering with the county in a similar manner… both on projects like the Clinton/Clinton Township procedural review, as well as others project types that are fundamental to the success of the overall economic development effort.”

Saluk noted that he is meeting with local officials and discussing projects that could potentially lead to extensive utilization of the grant program in 2019.

For more information, please contact Hunterdon Economic Development Director Marc Saluk at msaluk@co.hunterdon.nj.us or at 908-399-1108.