NORTH BERGEN – Mayor Nicholas Sacco, township commissioners and other local officials held a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday marking the grand opening of North Bergen’s new Municipal Court Building at 4225 Bergen Turnpike. The structure will house the court along with the Parking Authority, which will resume operations at the new facility as of July 23. The building offers the agencies far more space along with state of the art features that the old location lacked.
“This new building will give residents a safer, more convenient experience at both the court and the Parking Authority while freeing up much-needed space in the Township Hall complex,” said Mayor Sacco. “The older facilities were proving to be inadequate for giving our residents the level of service they deserve and we’re very excited to transition to this brand new building.”
The building that now houses the municipal court and the parking authority was purchased by the township in May 2010. The property was formerly a TD Bank branch which had been closed. It is in close proximity to Township Hall with easy access to Tonnelle Avenue. Both the Municipal Court and the Parking Authority had overgrown their previous facilities – the court was sharing a building with the Police Department and the Parking Authority had leased space on Bergenline Avenue. The new building will feature full handicapped accessibility, modernized security systems, a closed circuit camera system, more teller windows for servicing residents and dedicated visitor parking.
The building cost approximately $2.2 million to acquire and $4 million to renovate. It has 12,000 square feet of space, with the Parking Authority leasing approximately 40 percent of the building from the township. The new Municipal Court will have nearly triple the space of the old court facility. – Vanessa Cruz