May 22, 2020 – MidJersey.News – reviewthickandthin.com

May 22, 2020

NORTH HANOVER TOWNSHIP, NJ (BURLINGTON)–On May 7, 2020 the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs canceled flag placement at the Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Cemetery due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (See COVID-19 notice from their web page below)

Usually on the Friday afternoon-evening before Memorial Day weekend hundreds of Boy Scouts, veterans and volunteers place flags on the cemetery to honor veterans but was canceled by Governor Murphy’s COVID-19 executive orders. This year’s date was May 22, 2020 for the flag placement.

Permission was granted for the flag placement so The American Legion, VFW-Veterans Of Foreign Wars, and volunteers from other organizations including some Scouts got together and placed 47,000+ flags for Memorial Day that is a time honored tradition today.

“Believing that the tradition of honoring our fallen and deceased veterans is one of our most important missions and could be safely conducted, she had several communications with the leadership of the State Department of Military & Veterans Affairs leading the VFW to be granted approval to place the flags on the graves. Our Commander (State Commander Barbara Kim-Hagemann) has also reached out to our brothers and sisters in The American Legion, DAV & the Marine Corps League and invited them to participate as a joint project. We all have the same mission and desire to honor our fallen.” -from VFW flyer about the placement.

Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Cemetery. 47,000 Veteran graves now have Flags in honor of Memorial Day. Thanks to past Post 6063 Commander, Department Commander Barbara Kim Hagemann for spearheading this mission and getting over 100 volunteers including VFW, American Legion and other Veterans organizations to assist with honoring all our veterans and their families. Truly appreciate each and everyone who was able to participate.

Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the leadership of our Department, in the best interest and safety of all who would have attended, has cancelled our proposed May 22, 2020 Friday – Flag Night & May 23, 2020, Memorial Day Ceremony at Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Memorial Cemetery.

May 22, 2020

TRENTON, NJ (MERCER)–Trenton Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association FMBA Locals 6 & 206 and Buzzetta Catering provided hundreds of meals today for employees and city residents. The event was held in the parking lot of City Hall from 11 am to 2 pm. The “Food-A-Thon” event was held as a kick off to Memorial Day weekend.

As participants checked in they were given a mask if they did not have one, encouraged to stand 6 feet apart and practiced social distancing rules for the food distribution.

Buzzetta’s Food Truck was on scene cooking up their famous cheesesteaks, burgers, chicken tenders, fried Oreos, funnel cakes and more.

Trenton Water supplies 217,000 people in Trenton, Ewing, Hamilton, Hopewell and Lawrence Townships.

May 22, 2020

TRENTON, NJ (MERCER)–Hamilton Mayor Jeff Martin released a statement today about NJ Department of Environmental Protection taking legal action against the City of Trenton.

Trenton Water Works provides water for a significant portion of Hamilton Township.

“I applaud DEP for its leadership in ensuring safe and clean drinking water for all of Trenton Water Works’ customers. Legal action is a necessary but unfortunate step to take. We will join, and work with, DEP in its legal action and will not stop fighting until we are satisfied that all necessary steps are taken.” Hamilton Township Mayor Martin Said.

Full letter from NJ DEP Commissioner below.

MidJersey.News has reached out to Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora’s office for comment but has not received a reply at the time of this publishing. Once we receive a reply we will update it here.

Dear Mayor and Council President,

As you know, for over the past two years, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been working both to press for and to support the City of Trenton’s efforts to meet its obligations under the Safe Drinking Water Act and two 2018 DEP Administrative Consent Orders (ACOs) requiring, among other things, improvements to the operations of Trenton Water Works (TWW), replacement of lead service lines, and renovating Trenton’s uncovered reservoir to prevent contamination of the drinking water supply.

At the time of my last letter to you dated February 20, 2020 (attached), DEP was encouraged by the City’s recent progress in meeting its obligations, and by the Mayor’s proposed capital improvement plan and rate ordinance changes needed to support those improvements. And, as I shared in February, DEP is pleased to offer more state water infrastructure funding to support the City’s efforts, adding to the state funds we previously provided to the City.

I was deeply disappointed to learn that, on May 7, 2020, the City Council inexplicably rejected funding for crucial measures necessary to enable TWW to come into and maintain compliance. To be clear, the Council’s inexplicable failure to adopt these measures will prevent TWW from meeting critically overdue legal requirements of the ACOs and the Safe Drinking Water Act.

These requirements are necessary to ensure a safe and reliable water supply, not only for the City of Trenton, but also for the 217,000 people served by TWW in Ewing, Hamilton, Hopewell and Lawrence Townships.

The Council’s unreasonable action has left DEP no choice but to seek judicial intervention to help ensure that the City will comply with the requirements of the ACOs and the Safe Drinking Water Act. Regrettably, DEP has requested that the Attorney General take appropriate action before the courts.

Ensuring safe and reliable drinking water is a critical public health priority, and it is imperative that the City’s recent progress toward meeting its obligations not be lost. While DEP must now take the unfortunate step of seeking judicial intervention, we also recognize that Mayor Gusciora
has proposed appropriate actions to enable TWW to make the necessary improvements to its water supply system. The City Council’s refusal to provide the necessary financial support to achieve these legally required public health obligations simply leaves us no other choice.

DEP will, of course, continue to provide TWW with technical compliance assistance, as we do for all water systems. And, I invite you to contact me directly if you would like to discuss these matters.

Catherine R. McCabe NJDEP, Commissioner

Trenton Water Works on Route 29

Trenton Water Works Plant on State Highway 29 in Trenton Serves 217,000 people in Trenton, Ewing, Hamilton, Hopewell and Lawrence Townships.

The following is a statement from Hamilton Township Mayor Jeff Martin:

Hamilton Township Mayor Jeff Martin

Hamilton Township Mayor Jeff Martin

DEP Letter Page 1
DEP Letter Page 2
Catherine R. McCabe NJDEP, Commissioner

Letter sent to Trenton Mayor and Council President from Catherine R. McCabe NJDEP, Commissioner planing legal action.

Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora
Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora

Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora

May 22, 2020

Update to yesterday’s story: BREAKING: Bloodbath In Trenton Continues, 1 Dead 1 Critical In Another Shooting

Photos and video by: Brian McCarthy, OnScene News

TRENTON, NJ (MERCER)–The Mercer County Homicide Task Force is investigating a homicide that occurred in Trenton Thursday afternoon. At approximately 4:15 p.m., Trenton police responded to 900 block of Parkside Avenue on a report of multiple shots fired. Upon arrival, officers observed a silver Jeep Commander with the hood up and the flashers on. Officers located two victims with multiple gunshot wounds. The first victim, identified as Raheen McKinnon, 19, of Hamilton, suffered gunshot wounds to the armpit, arms, legs and back. The second victim, a 17-year-old male from Trenton, suffered gunshot wounds to the neck and thigh. Both victims were transported to the hospital where McKinnon was pronounced dead. The second victim remains in critical condition.