County to Seek Proposals on Commonwealth Boulevard Drainage Project

The Ocean County Freeholders will soon be seeking proposals for a stormwater management project for Commonwealth Boulevard in Manchester.

“In recent years we had a number of issues with some flooding out there. Turns out we have almost no drainage system in Commonwealth Boulevard,” County Engineer Frank Scarantino said at the Freeholders’ pre-board meeting.

Scarantino called the project a “safety enhancement” to a main road in Manchester Township.

The pre-board meeting included a review of the engineering department’s agenda for the Board meeting of Wednesday, May 1. The department will recommend the board go out to bid for the drainage project.

The project, which includes the installation of 2,500 feet of new drainage pipe along Commonwealth Boulevard, is expected to receive Freeholder approval, according to a news release from the county.

The new drainage system would be installed from the area of Burnside Street to approximately Hannibal Street, Scarantino said. The project will not entail any road reconstruction or resurfacing.

The upgraded system will alleviate the ponding of water along low-lying sections of the roadway, Freeholder Deputy Director James F. Lacey, liaison to the Ocean County Road Department, said.

“Again, this is an effort to keep water off the road and enhance safety along the road,” he said.

The upgrades will also meet state Department of Environmental Protection water quality standards, he said.

Construction is expected to begin in the summer at an estimated cost of $700,000.