title
Resolution Authorizing the Submittal of a Preserve New Jersey Capital Level II Grant Application for the Project “Rehabilitation of a Historic Stone Arch Bridge at the Mountain Lakes Preserve, Committing to the Dedication of $157,335 in Matching Funds, and Authorizing Municipal Representatives to Sign the Assurances Documentation
end
body
WHEREAS, the seventy-eight-acre Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Preserve (Preserve) is owned by the Municipality of Princeton and maintained by the Friends of Princeton Open Space (FOPOS) for public passive recreation opportunities including hiking on its miles of trails; and
WHEREAS, the Princeton Ice Company (ID#4716), a designated historic site on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, operated an ice production, harvesting and storage operation within the lands now encompassed by the Preserve in the late 1800s and early 1900s; and
WHEREAS, in 2012 and 2013, the former Township of Princeton undertook an award-winning multi-million-dollar project to dredge two lakes and reconstruct the Upper Setting Pond Dam, the Upper Mountain Lakes concrete and argillite Dam, and the Lower Earthen Dam at the Preserve; and
WHEREAS, there is a Concrete and Argillite Arched Footbridge (Footbridge) on the Preserve’s Red Trail that was not individually listed as a contributing resource when the Princeton Ice Company was designated as a historic site; however, it appears to use the same materials and construction methods employed in the historic Upper Mountain Lakes concrete and argillite Dam; and
WHEREAS, the Footbridge was identified to be in structurally poor condition due to varying degrees of erosion at the arched bridge footings, substandard parapets, leaning and / or misaligned spandrel walls, and other surficial mortar issues; and
WHEREAS, on April 12, 2021, the Municipality of Princeton contracted with French & Parrello Associates, P.A., the consulting firm which designed the Mountain Lakes Dams reconstruction project, to prepare the permitting and construction plans for the rehabilitation of the Footbridge; and
WHEREAS, the Princeton Historic Preservation Commission endorsed the submittal of a grant application entitled “Rehabilitation of a Historic Stone Arch Bridge at the Mountain Lakes Preserve” for this Footbridge at its meeting on April 19, 2021.
WHEREAS, the Municipality of Princeton sought and obtained a grant of $395,218.00 from the New Jersey Historic Trust to offset some of the estimated design and construction costs associated with the rehabilitation of the Footbridge through the acquisition of grant funds from the New Jersey Historic Trust Preserve New Jersey Capital Level II Historic Preservation Fund program; and
WHEREAS, the Municipality of Princeton awarded a construction contract to Colonelli Brothers Inc. in April 2025 for the “Rehabilitation/Replacement of Two Pedestrian Bridges in the Mountain Lakes Preserve,” which included replacement of a second footbridge, for an amount not to exceed $947,200.00, $648,300 of which was for the Red Trail Bridge; and
WHEREAS, unforeseen conditions of the footings and stone arch below ground resulted in a change order for an additional $314,670 to Colonelli Brothers to construct new footings and a modified concrete arch to relieve stress on the historic stone arch; and
WHEREAS, the Municipality of Princeton seeks to offset some of the additional construction costs associated with the unforeseen conditions and additional rehabilitation of the Footbridge through the acquisition of grant funds from the New Jersey Historic Trust Preserve New Jersey Capital Level II Historic Preservation Fund program; and
WHEREAS, the Municipality of Princeton commits to providing the required minimum 1:1 match to the Level II grant funds up to $157,335.00; and
WHEREAS, the Chief Financial Officer has certified that sufficient funds are available in the account 04-215-24-014-076-336; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Mayor and Council of Princeton as follows:
1. The Municipal Engineer is authorized to file a New Jersey Historic Trust Preserve New Jersey Capital Level II Historic Preservation Fund grant application for the “Rehabilitation of a Historic Stone Arch Bridge at the Mountain Lakes Preserve” under the project entitled “Rehabilitation/Replacement of Two Pedestrian Bridges in the Mountain Lakes Preserve”.
2. The Mayor and Municipal Engineer are authorized and directed to sign the assurances and acknowledge the certification contained in said assurances.
3. The Mayor and Municipal Engineer are authorized to execute such other agreements on behalf of the Municipality of Princeton, as may be required for submittal of the grant application and execution of future grant agreements in connection herewith.
4. The required minimum 1:1 match (up to $157,335) to the requested grant funds is hereby appropriated out of the account 04-215-24-014-076-336 to pay for the “Rehabilitation of a Historic Stone Arch Bridge at the Mountain Lakes Preserve” within the required grant timeframe.
5. The Footbridge shall be nominated as a contributing resource to the Princeton Ice Company historic site as required.
6. The Municipality shall abide by “The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties With Guidelines for Preserving, Rehabilitating, Restoring & Reconstructing Historic Buildings” in performing funded work.