Mayor: town hall set to open May 5

‘It feels pretty good’ DiDonato says

by Gabe Donio, Gazette Staff Writer

THG/Gabe Donio
Mayor John DiDonato and the town’s IT specialist Nick DeStefano review plans in the new council chambers inside the new town hall on Vine Street.

HAMMONTON—On January 1, 2006, Mayor John DiDonato and the Hammonton First-led town council voted unanimously to move the town hall site to the corner Central Avenue and Vine Street and bond to build a new town hall at the site, move and renovate the Historical Society of Hammonton museum, demolish the existing town hall, build parking improvements and build a lake community center for $5.9 million.
Today, bids are being received by the town for the demolition of the old town hall. A $400,000 grant has been received for renovation of the lake building into a community center. The old town hall is scheduled to be closed on April 30, May 1 and May 2, and the new town hall is scheduled to be open for business on May 5.
Moving from the old town hall to the new town hall will be conducted on April 30, May 1 and May 2, DiDonato said. Police dispatchers will be moved from the old building the following week, so there is no discontinuation of service, he said.
Because of the move, there will also be an extension for payment of property taxes, water and sewer, DiDonato said. Residents will now have until May 16, 2008 to pay their taxes, water and sewer without penalty, according to the town clerk’s office.
Standing in a conference room on the third floor on April 5, looking out an arched window at the soon-to-be-closed old town hall beneath him and the town common with its clock, fountain, churches, park, post office and St. Joseph High School, DiDonato was asked how he felt about the opening of the new building.
“Putting it simply, it feels pretty good,” DiDonato said.
Earlier in the day, DiDonato reviewed plans with Nick DeStefano, who handles the information technology duties for the building, in the new courtroom and council chamber. The cherry dais for the council had been installed, and behind the dais, sun streamed through the stained-glass window with the town’s blueberry seal.
DiDonato said the public and the employees had waited long enough for the building, and the final weeks of preparation were here.
“The town staff is ecstatic. They already have their boxes packed and they’re ready to move. The police department is extremely excited to finally move out of the basement,” DiDonato said.
The mayor praised the team of professionals and volunteers who worked on the project.
“I think we had an excellent contractor on the job that did a great job of building what the architects and engineer planned out,” DiDonato said.
Dolan Construction was the construction firm on the town hall. Harry Harper was the architect, with Joseph Piccari taking the lead role regarding the building’s design. The McCloud Group was the construction management firm. Stephen DiDonato and Kristin Colasurdo were the co-chairs of the building committee.
“We were extremely fortunate to have the caliber of people on the building committee who were able to keep this quality project moving,” DiDonato said.
The budget for the building was spoken about often during the 2005 Hammonton First campaign. Will the project be completed for the $5.9 million budgeted figure?
“We’re tight, but hopefully we’ll end right where we need to be,” DiDonato said.
Last week, a large communications tower and a communications shed were placed next to the building, part of what DiDonato called “a total upgrade of police communications.” It was another component that made the new town hall significantly better than the current facility, and provided increased services to the public, DiDonato said.
“We’re going to have much better police communications than we had in the past,” DiDonato said.
As he looked at the third-floor window, DiDonato was already looking past the opening date on May 5 to the summer, when the demolition of the old town hall is expected to occur.
“When this front building is demolished, at that point we can stand at the town clock or across the street in front of St. Joseph High School, and look at this building and see the amount of parking, and the landscaping. It’s going to make everyone in the community proud to be a Hammontonian,” DiDonato said.
Some public officials, town employees and members of the general public who have seen glimpses of the exterior or interior of the building have been impressed, DiDonato said.
“People who have already been in the building walk in the front doors and say, ‘Wow!’” DiDonato said.
On May 5, the building will be open to the public, and everyone will have the chance to see it for themselves.