Please be advised of the following change in traffic patterns that could effect Stone Harbor residents:

Due to road construction, between Monday May 4, 2015 at 8:00 PM and Tuesday May 5th, 2015 at 5:00 AM the Garden State Parkway will be shut down to all traffic in both the north bound and south bound directions between exit 8, Shellbay Avenue and Exit 11 Crest Haven Road. Also during that time Stone Harbor Boulevard will be shut down to all traffic between Bayberry Drive and Brighton Road. Traffic heading south bound on the GSP will have to exit at Exit 11 and use Route 9 south bound to Shellbay Avenue to regain access to the GSP S/B. Traffic coming out of Stone Harbor will be detoured south on Bayberry Drive where they can access the GSP south bound at Shellbay or use Route 9 north to Crest Haven Road to access the GSP N/B. Detours will be posted.

Please plan accordingly.

Just a reminder that the Stone Harbor Chamber of Commerce will be hosting the

“Spring Tide Festival” ~ Saturday, May, 2^nd.

Come enjoy the music, food & entertainment offered throughout the day.

The festivities take place on 96th Street between Second and Third avenues. Expect a big boat display; food vendors with anything from BBQ to seafood to crepes; an artisan tent with ocean-themed creations such as glass art, paintings and photography; a touch tank with critters compliments of the Wetlands Institute; a kids’ bracelet-making stand with Historic Cold Spring Village and more.

The big fun, however, is provided by Valhallas Pirates, a “real” pirate troupe who will perform on stage and also meander their way through the street to interact with the crowd, particularly with kiddies. Enjoy the beer and wine tent sponsored by the Chamber and the Mighty Parrot Band playing Jimmy Buffett-type tunes and island music throughout the day.

Come Join in the Fun!

(Rain date is May 3^rd)

The Borough of Stone Harbor has been Awarded

“Bronze Certification”

The Borough of Stone Harbor has met the rigorous requirements to achieve Sustainable Jersey certification.  Our town is now one of the 152 towns out of 419 participating municipalities that have attained bronze certification.

To become Sustainable Jersey certified, Stone Harbor’s Go Green Committee submitted documentation to show it had completed a balance of the required sustainability actions, meeting a minimum of 150 action points to be certified at the bronze level.

“Becoming Sustainable Jersey certified is a significant achievement,” said Pam Mount, chair of the Sustainable Jersey Board of Trustees. “The certified towns demonstrate tremendous leadership and are a testament to how much we can accomplish with impressive sustainability initiatives in New Jersey.”

The Borough has excelled in areas such as improving energy efficiency and health and wellness, reducing waste, sustaining local economies, protecting natural resources, and addressing diversity and equity.

The Go Green Committee’s goal is to provide information and educate our community on the importance of preserving our natural resources.

Stone Harbor Borough has been selected to receive a 2014-2015 Sustainable Jersey Small Grant in the amount of $2,000. The grant money received is intended to assist the Go Green Committee as they lead and coordinate the sustainability activities within our community.

 The Stone Harbor Police Department invites local residents to participate in the “Spring Clean Your Medicine Cabinet” day on Saturday April 25, 2015. As part of the police department’s ongoing partnership with Project Medicine Drop, residents are encouraged to bring their expired or unused medicine to the Stone Harbor Police Department to safely dispose of medications that are commonly abused.  While this Saturday, April 25, 2015 has been designated as a national day to dispose of unused or expired medications the Stone Harbor Police Department is available to accept these items on a daily basis.

On Tuesday, April 7^th, 2015 the Stone Harbor Borough Council officially adopted the 2015 Municipal and Water/Sewer Utility budgets.  Council President/Chairman of Administration and Finance, Barry Mastrangelo thanked all the employees, Department Heads and Council Committees for their tireless efforts to craft a budget that provides a high level of service to the residents, businesses and visitors of Stone Harbor while keeping the tax increase to a minimum. With a unanimous 6-0 vote council approved a $14.6+ million operating budget and a $3.4+ million Water/Sewer budget.  The Municipal tax rate will rise slightly by 0.7 cents.  The new municipal rate for 2015 will be 23.9 cents per one hundred dollars of assessed valuation. An owner of a home assessed at $1.5 million will pay $3,585 in local taxes this year, up $105.00 from 2014.

Borough Administrator Jill Gougher and Chief Financial Officer James Craft provided a power point presentation to the Public that highlights important aspects of the 2015 budget.  Council Committee chairs gave brief summaries which highlighted various increases and in most instances decreases in their respective functional areas.

Gougher explained that the total increase in appropriations s over 2014 was $538,748.  Salaries were actually down $156,697.00.   Capital projects/Capital Improvement Fund contributions were up $488,500.00.  The next biggest increase was in Insurance cost, up $111,686.00.  To offset these increases the Borough was able to utilize an additional $153,633 of Fund Balance $28,765 in other revenues.  The balance of the appropriation increase will be offset by an additional amount to be raised by taxation of $354,350.   According to Gougher the increase in the amount to be raised by taxation is a direct result of the $488,500 increase for capital projects.  In fact $300,000 is directly attributable to the down payment required for the $6,000,000 dredging project.

Knowing that the Borough had to cover the expenses involved in such a large project such as the dredging the borough was very fiscally conservative in its spending elsewhere in the budget.  The Borough was well below the 5% levy CAP and 3.5% spending CAP allowed by statute.

Chief Financial Officer James Craft highlighted that the Borough currently maintained the 4th lowest municipal tax rate in Cape May County and 2nd lowest of the shore communities.   Craft further highlighted that even though the Borough was utilizing an additional $153, 643 of its Fund Balance in 2015, they are still able to maintain 10% of appropriations in reserve as fund balance.  This puts the Borough in a strong financial position when seeking short and long term funding for capital projects.  Moods Investor Services, one of the major Bond Rating Services recommends having between 5-10% of your current year appropriations in fund balance reserve.

To view the full Power Point Presentation and 2015 Adopted Budget click on links below:

2015 Budget Adoption Presentation

STONE HARBOR – ADOPTED BUDGET 2015

The Borough of Stone Harbor is joining in a new effort to help the state’s communities get on the path to active living and healthier lifestyles through the Mayors Wellness Campaign (MWC). The town has developed a free 10-week wellness program for their community that runs February 18 through May 6, 2015.

One element of the campaign features the ‘Wellness Wednesday’ lecture series. Each week, MWC highlights a health and wellness topic; from nutrition to stress management and everything in between. The MWC is honored to announce that the final guest speaker will be Four-Time Olympian, NJ Hall of Fame Inductee, Class of 2013, and New Jersey resident, Joetta Clark Diggs, on Wednesday, April 29th 5:30pm-6:30pm in The Reeds at Shelter Haven Ballroom, Stone Harbor, NJ.

Joetta Clark Diggs is an Olympic athlete who has made an indelible impact in sports and within the community. In her legendary 24-year elite career as a half-mile runner, Clark Diggs represented the United States of America at the 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympic games. She has also made her contribution to society as an inspiring motivational speaker, respected businesswoman, critically acclaimed author, noted television personality and advocate for children’s health & fitness initiatives. “I am excited to participate in the event,” said Clark Diggs. “It is important to remember to promote the value of being healthy and fit. Health and wellness encourages self esteem and empowers a community.”

On April 29th, Clark Diggs will deliver a motivational speech to not only Stone Harbor’s MWC, but to residents and student-athletes of Cape May County. She will highlight notes from her acclaimed book, Joetta’s “P” Principles for Success: Life Lessons Learned From Track & Field. Joetta’s autographed book will be available for purchase at a reduced price exclusively for attendees of the event. There is no cost for admission. Organizers strongly recommend individuals, teams and coaches RSVP to this highly anticipated event. RSVP www.StoneHarborRecreation.com or (609) 368-1210.

“I am overwhelmed and encouraged by such a wonderful program. For a small beach community to attract such a large audience for the Mayors Wellness Campaign Seminar in the off-season, is a great accomplishment. Our town is fortunate to have so many residents and employees that take an active interest in their health,” stated Dr. Tara Vogdes, founder of Harbor Family Practice in Stone Harbor and MWC’s guest speaker on Wednesday, March 11th. Bonnie Kratzer, RN, CSN, Coordinator of the parish nurses from Our Savior Lutheran Church and Life Style Management for Cape Regional Health System, complimented Dr. Vodges lecture about “knowing your numbers” by offering free health screenings to all participants. The parish nurses tested over forty participants’ blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol. “We were truly impressed with the program Stone Harbor has developed,” shared Bonnie Kratzer. “The members were extremely supportive of each other and eager to have their screenings. For the most part, our results concluded that Stone Harbor has been paying attention to their health. Offering a platform where residents and employees can exercise together as a group, proves to yield results!”

One challenge of the MWC is to track the number of steps taken on a daily basis (with pedometers supplied by the campaign) and submit their results weekly. With the campaign three-weeks underway, MWC theoretically walked from Stone Harbor to Charleston, South Carolina in week 1 to Tuscaloosa,Alabama in week 2 and now vacationing in sunny San Antonio, Texas in week 3.
For complete information about Stone Harbor’s Mayors Wellness 10-week Campaign, please visit www.stoneharborrecreation.com. To read more about Joetta Clark Diggs and her inspiring journey, please visit www.joettasportsandbeyond.com.