Blogfinger

1. Neighborhood Watch reports that yet another bicycle was stolen recently in Ocean Grove. It was in the area of 20 Seaview Avenue, and it had been left unlocked. Someone also attempted — without success — to steal a locked bike near 50 Bath Avenue by removing the tire. Police also had a recent report of criminal mischief to the bulkhead on the beach near Ocean Pathway.

Ted Bell

2. Ocean Grove’s own Ted Bell — aka Wayne T. Bell Jr. — is the recipient of this year’s Jane G. Clayton Award. The award honors people who have made exceptional contributions to Monmouth County history over a sustained period of time. “Mr. Bell has done an excellent job chronicling the local history of Ocean Grove with a special emphasis on the Great Auditorium,” Monmouth County Clerk M. Claire French said in announcing the award. “It is because of his work in the 1970s that the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting is a National Historic Site.” Bell is an Ocean Grove institution. He is an educator, an environmental researcher, an author and a founding member of the Historical Society of Ocean Grove. His latest book, The Great Auditorium: Ocean Grove’s Architectural Treasure, released in June of this year, traces the history and development of our town’s most famous landmark. Congrats, Ted.

3. Last month we informed you that the controversial red-light camera systems mounted at intersections in many towns across America were likely to go extinct in New Jersey. Well, that was true then, but it’s not true now. These cameras automatically take pictures of cars as they cross intersections, and when a car is seen to have violated a red light it’s registered owner is issued a ticket. In June, the state ordered these systems discontinued at 63 of 85 New Jersey sites, after discovering that the amber lights at those sites might not have been giving motorists enough time to get across before the light turned red. In effect, whether intended or not, these devices could have been acting as speed traps to raise revenue for municipalities. A law suit resulted. But now the state has re-certified all of those systems, which presumably means the flaws were corrected. Although Neptune Township presently has no such red-light cameras, the Township Committee voted in January to study their feasibility at four intersections. Stay tuned, and for background go here.