Montclair’s monthly township newsletter offers residents a roundup of local news, upcoming meetings and community events. We discovered it recently, quite by accident, and the October issue has plenty worth sharing.
Among the updates: PSE&G will appear before the Township Council on Oct. 20 to present its proposal for a new electrical substation on the Municipal Complex property, drivers on Maple Avenue have slowed down since the street was redesigned and several public meetings are scheduled before the end of the month.
How to Get the Montclair Township Newsletter by Email
Residents can receive the newsletter by registering with Everbridge, the system Montclair uses for emergency alerts and other township communications. There is no separate newsletter mailing list, so registration also connects you to township notifications, which may arrive by voice, text or email through the contact information you provide.
The monthly email includes a link to the newsletter, which is published as a designed PDF. The format resembles a printed flyer and may require some zooming on a phone. Registration information appears on the last page of the October issue, in a “Stay informed!” box with a QR code.
If you prefer to read it online, each issue is posted in the News section of montclairnjusa.org and saved on the Township Newsletter archive page, which goes back to January 2025. Residents who need help signing up can email info@montclairnjusa.org.
What’s in the October Issue, From Maple Avenue to the PSE&G Substation
PSE&G will present at the Oct. 20 council meeting on why Montclair needs a new substation and why the utility prefers the Municipal Complex property. The same meeting includes the public hearing on Ordinance O-26-39, the Municipal Complex Redevelopment Plan, which sets the rules for what can be built on that site.
The township distinguishes the redevelopment plan from the substation proposal. It says redevelopment planning began before PSE&G selected the site and that adopting the plan would not approve the substation, choose its location or authorize construction.
On Maple Avenue, average speeds fell from 20 to 16 mph after the township completed safety improvements in August. The changes included enhanced crosswalks, speed humps, wider buffers between pedestrians and traffic and narrower travel lanes. The newsletter puts those results in context with AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety figures: a pedestrian’s likelihood of severe injury when struck is 10% at 16 mph, 25% at 23 mph and 50% at 31 mph.
Upper Mountain Avenue is getting a chicane—an S-shaped shift in the travel lane designed to slow drivers—along with speed humps, new signs and markings for lanes shared by bikes and cars. Temporary Vision Zero demonstrations are also planned this month on Park Street, at Cedar Avenue and High Street and at Claremont Avenue and North Fullerton Street. These demonstrations allow the township to test street changes aimed at eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries before making them permanent.
The street safety work extends to schools. Montclair earned 12 recognitions from New Jersey’s Safe Routes to School program, which recognizes efforts to make walking and biking safer for children. Gold recognition went to the township, Buzz Aldrin Middle School, Charles H. Bullock School and Montclair High School.
Church Street will be car-free for its final scheduled weekend of the year, Oct. 23–25. Activities include cyanotyping—a camera-free printing process that uses sunlight to create blue-and-white images—with the Montclair Art Museum, plus a silent disco with Out Montclair. The township is also surveying residents about the closures and inviting feedback.
Several opportunities to learn more and weigh in are coming up. On Oct. 26, the township holds an information hearing on the 2027 Community Development Block Grant program, which distributes federal funding to local nonprofits and community projects. Applications are due Nov. 30. On Oct. 29, Councilors Aminah Toler and Bill Harrison host a Fourth Ward community meeting covering ward parks, the Station 3 firehouse and upcoming budget hearings.
Other updates connect to stories The Pod has been following:
- The Shuttle Bus Subcommittee released its report, “Should Montclair Become A Shuttle Bus Town?”, exploring a local shuttle linking train stations, shopping districts and grocery stores. Read The Pod’s coverage here.
- Montclair-Boonton Line trains are running to Hoboken instead of New York Penn Station on weekdays through Nov. 14.
- An Oct. 28 meeting will cover the proposed Glenridge Avenue cycle track, a bike lane separated from traffic by a curb or barrier.
- The Nov. 3 ballot includes the vacant Councilor-at-Large seat.
Where to Sign Up and Read Past Issues
Get it by email: Register through the township’s Everbridge signup page. Registration includes the newsletter and emergency alerts.
Read it online: Find new issues in the News section of montclairnjusa.org and past editions in the Township Newsletter archive under Government.
Need help signing up? Email info@montclairnjusa.org.
Image credit: Township of Montclair
