Roxbury Water Company Owner Jack Hosking, right, and employee Wayne Hathaway work on new water main
A photo of Hercules Park shortly after it's creation. North Hillside Ave. is to the left, former Roxbury High School in foreground.
New fire hydrants for Hercules Park
Roxbury Water Company Owner Jack Hosking, right, and employee Wayne Hathaway work on new water main
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By Fred J. Aun
Published July 22, 2015 at 2:15 AM
ROXBURY, NJ – The sound of jackhammers is rattling off houses in the historic Hercules Park section of Kenvil this summer as a crew replaces water lines installed when Theodore Roosevelt was president.
The project will bring modern water supply, including firefighting-capable hydrants, to the quaint neighborhood nestled between North Hillside Avenue and Kenvil Avenue.
Composed of Corwin Street, Nixon Drive, Chase Street, Bent Street, Hunt Street and North Hillside Avenue, the tree-lined development was built by the Hercules Powder Co. shortly after the turn of the century to house employees.
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The water system is owned by Roxbury Water Co. Its 4-inch-diameter water mains and antique hydrants are being replaced by 6-inch pipes and bigger hydrants, said water company owner Jack Hosking and Roxbury Department of Public Works Director Richard Blood.
“The current system is not capable of handling the fire equipment we have currently,” said Blood. “Back when they built those homes, they probably had really small firetrucks. Now, firetrucks pump 1,000 gallons a minute and they have 5-inch lines that attach to hydrants. Hydrants are usually six to eight inches in diameter.”
The water company is currently laying new pipes on all of Nixon Drive to Corwin Street, said Hosking. He said he's doing the work “in house” instead of hiring an outside contractor. Doing it with his own crew will take a lot longer, but will help the company keep it's water rates from increasing, said Hosking.
“Roxbury Water is going to do this in pieces,” said Blood. “It chould take three seasons. They may do two sessions next year and that would complete it. Or they might go into the spring of 2017 before they finish.”
Hosking said hopes to be able to do Bent Street later this year.
After the water lines are replaced, New Jersey Natural Gas is going to upgrade its system in the neighborhood, said Blood. The existing sewers are not in need of replacement, he said.
The township wants to further improve Hercules Park by repaving its crumbling roads and possibly doing additional “streetscape” upgrades including sidewalk work. Many of the sidewalks in the area are heaved and broken.
“As far as the sidewalks are concerned, we are not firm as to what the plan is for that,” said Blood. “It’s still in the works. One of the scenarios being talked about is to leave sidewalks on the sides with the majority of the utility poles and put shade trees in on other side.”
Blood said the township is probably not going to tackle the streetscape project until it secures some state and/or federal grants to offset the cost, estimated to be as much as $800,000. “The township has been and will continue to purse grants for this,” he said. “It’s an expensive undertaking.”
Blood said the roads will be paved no matter what, a project now slated for late 2017.