Middletown Launches New Website

Middletown Township launched its new website this morning.  The site, which works well on mobile devices as well as desktop/laptop computers, is sure to win even more accolades than the Township’s previous award winning site which set the standard for municipal governments communicating with residents and businesses.

Check it out. 

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Middletown Police Seeks Public Support in Locating Driver Who Dragged and Robbed Gas Station Attendent

The Middletown Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the driver of white, 4 door Toyota Corolla LE (2000-2012) with tinted windows who robbed a gas station attendant and dragged him 35 feet before heading north on Route 36 in Belford on Saturday evening August 15.

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West Front Street Bridge To Close For Two Weeks In August

The newly constructed West Front Street Bridge, also known as the Hubbard Bridge, will be closed to motor vehicle traffic from 6 a.m. on Wednesday August 12 through Wednesday August 26, according to a statement by Freeholder Tom Arnone.

The bridge connects Middletown and Red Bank over the Swimming River.  It will be open to pedestrian traffic during the two week period.

The purpose of the closure is to allow utility workers to move overhead power lines off of the old bridge to newly constructed underground facilities, and to the contractor to reconstruct intersections on both the Red Bank and Middletown sides of the span.

Arnone said the other option was to have the contractors work in stages, over a twelve week period, which would have kept the bridge open but slowed traffic considerably for three months.  The chosen schedule, made in consultation with elected and administrative officials in both Red Bank and Middletown, will allow the bridge to reopen prior to the Labor Day Weekend and before the start of school.

“This schedule allows motorists to make adjustments to their travel plans for two weeks,” Arnone said.

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Oceanic Bridge to close overnight Sunday-Monday, Lanes narrowed Tuesday-Friday

The Oceanic Bridge, the span that connects Middletown and Rumson over the Navesink River, will be closed overnight starting at 10:30 p.m. on Sunday August 9 through Monday morning August 10 at 6:30 a.m.

The bridge will be closed for needed work on the bascule span, according to a release from Freeholder Tom Arnone.

“Unfortunately, the work on the moveable section of the bridge must be performed while the bridge is closed to public use,” said Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone. “We are closing the bridge at the tail end of the weekend to reduce the impact on businesses and local commuters.”

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Fossil hunt 72 million years in the making

MIDDLETOWN-72 million years is a long time to be buried but it only took a few minutes to find. Finlay Reid, 8, from Collegeville, PA. dug in the cold stream with a small trowel and dug up a fossilized oyster. Poricy Brook has history washed down its banks after every storm unearthing fossils that were alive… Read the rest of this entry »

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Hit and Run Driver Arrested

Toni Marletta
photo via facebook

Middletown Police have charged Toni Ann Marletta, 49 of the Leonardo section of the Township, in the hit and run motor vehicle crash that resulted in the death in Marissa Procopia, 15 of Atlantic Highlands.

Marletta was charged with Leaving the Scene of a Motor Vehicle Accident, Failing to Report a Motor Vehicle Accident, No Insurance, Unsafe Tires and Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Motor Vehicle Accident. She is being held on $150,000.00 bail with no 10% option set by Judge Honora O’Brien-Kilgallen of the Monmouth County Superior Court.

Marletta is not listed yet as an inmate on the Monmouth County Sheriff’s website, as of 1 p.m.

Charles Webster, spokesperson for the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, told MMM that Marletta was being held in Middletown where she was unable to post bail.  Webster said she in custody and being transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution.

Cynthia Scott, spokesperson for the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office, told MMM that Marletta was booked into the Correctional Institution at about 1:30 p.m.

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Atlantic Highlands Girl, 15, Succumbs To Hit And Run Injuries

UPDATED: As of Thursday morning, Marissa is still on life support at Jersey Shore Medical Center

A 15 year old Atlantic Highlands girl who was struck by a hit and run driver Tuesday evening on Route 36 in the Leonardo section of Middletown died as a result of her injuries this afternoon, according to a report in The Two River Times.

Marissa Procopio was crossing the highway at the intersection of Ave D at approximately 8:25 pm when she was stuck by a light grey compact car traveling west.  The car fled the scene before police arrived.  Marissa was transported via Medivac helicopter to Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune.  She succumbed to her injuries at 3:46 this afternoon.

A review of videotape of provided by local business owner Michael D’Alessio resulted in the Middletown Police to announce that the vehicle which struck Marissa was driven by Toni Marletta, 49, of Leonardo.

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In Middletown, Presidential campaigns have to pay police overtime or go without protection

Democratic and Republican candidates for President of the United States will have to reimburse Middletown taxpayers for police overtime if they want the Township’s finest to control traffic and provide security for their fundraisers, according to Township Committeeman Tony Fiore.

The Township was left with an overtime bill of about $14,000 in 2008 when Barack Obama held a fundraiser at Jon Bon Jovi’s Navesink home, according to Fiore.  That won’t happen again.  “The Township Committee will not approve the expense.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, is coming to Bon Jovi’s house today for a $1000 per head soiree, according to Star Ledger columnist Mark Di Ionno.

In 2008, the township requested reimbursement from the rocker, but didn’t have a prayer to collect.  Today, Fiore says the Police Department will not be present for the event unless Bon Jovi agrees upfront to cover the costs.

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The Oceanic Bridge Is Open

Right on schedule, the Oceanic Bridge opened to traffic between Rumson and Middletown this morning.

Working around the clock, in 12-hour shifts, Harms Construction Co. Inc. of Howell has performed repair and restoration work on all four of the bridge’s main bearings that are used to support the bascule and flanking spans on the bridge approaches.

The bridge was closed on May 26 due to the needed repairs that were discovered during an overhaul that was to have been completed in April.  The construction of the emergency repairs was scheduled to allow the bridge to open during the last two weekends.

“We appreciate the patience of the local residents, business owners and visitors while we conducted this necessary repair,” said Freeholder Tom Arnone who “The Oceanic Bridge is an important connector in the Two River area. We need to keep the bridge open and operational as we plan for its eventual replacement.”

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Police officer, public works employee nabbed in massive drug sting

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