Garwood Council Tuesday Agenda: Resolution Supports Direct Train From Garwood to NYC

Garwood Council will meet for its first February meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall.

Tuesday night's agenda includes a resolution recently discussed by council (13-167) that advocates for NJ Transit's recently tested dual-powered trains to be deployed on the Raritan Valley line, which runs through Garwood.

According to Councilman Bill Nierstedt, these trains would provide a one-seat ride to New York Penn Station because they convert from diesel to electric power to go through Hudson River passenger rail tunnels. Currently, Raritan Valley riders have to transfer to an electric train in Newark to get to Manhattan. According to the ordinance, "a study by the Regional Plan Association estimated that every minute saved on the morning commute to Manhattan increases nearby home values by $3,000." (Read the resolution in full in our gallery, right.)

To read all the resolutions on Tuesday's agenda, see the PDF in our gallery, right.

Previous meeting recap: Council's last meeting included discussion between council members on Garwood's property taxes, the council's recreation committee, bulk pick-up and an argument between Mayor Quattrocchi and Councilman Jim Mathieu over a letter she wrote to the Westfield Leader regarding the borough's Athletic Field Complex. Mathieu also questioned Quattrocchi on whether the council was in violation of its bylaws for not appointing a three-member recreation committee.

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