Small steps are big help for UFRSD Students get physical raising funds for schools, charity BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer       Upper Freehold Regional School District students took a recent walkathon in stride with school spirit and community pride. Students in grades K-7 at the Upper Freehold Regional Elementary/Middle School walked laps around the field behind the school building during their gym classes Oct. 9-12 earn... More ... Rural rockers take on New Jersey Band's side project helps keep young adults drug free through music BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer       Out of western Monmouth County comes a new kind of rock force to be reckoned with. Mixing the winding woods, farmlands and big open skies of the Cream Ridge section of Upper Freehold with the music of bands such as Green Day, Slightly Stoopid, Sum 41 and Plain White T's has spawned a group of rur... More ... Lots of room for work, but little for play New middle school playing fields won't open anytime soon BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       MILLSTONE - The athletic fields at the new middle school may not be ready for use until 2010. Millstone Township Board of Education member Thomas Foley, chairman of the board's Operations Committee, delivered a report about the playing fields during the Oct. 9 meeting. More ... Manslaughter now added to long criminal rap sheet Scott Bennett, 42, charged in death of Edison motorcyclist BY MARK ROSMAN Staff Writer       FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - A township resident with a long history of criminal activity now stands accused of killing a resident of Edison. Scott Bennett, 42, remained in the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, this week after being charged with aggravated manslaughter and a host of other crimes i... More ... Carjacking reported in Allentown BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       ALLENTOWN - A crime more common in urban areas happened for the first time in the downtown Oct. 5. The first carjacking on record in Allentown occurred that Friday night. No one was injured in the incident, according to the police report. More ... October 2007: Conspiracy of memories GREEN SCENE       Agarden is a commitment. When your roses succumb to our Mid-Atlantic heat and humidity, when slugs eat holes in your hosta leaves and in anything else that grows close to the ground, when vines creep up and smother everything in their path, when insidious ailments attack your prize plants and inse... More ... U.F. in search of a plan wiser than Smart Growth Board rejects transfer of development rights program BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       UPPER FREEHOLD - The phrase "Smart Growth" has caused a division in the community over the past few years. Some residents favor the concept as a landuse planning tool while others have deemed it inappropriate for the township. More ... Jackson horse euthanized after contracting West Nile       Ocean County has recorded its first case of equine West Nile virus since September 2006. A 21-yearold mare from Jackson became sick on Sept. 26 and was euthanized the next day due to deteriorating health conditions. Blood samples later confirmed the presence of the virus. The horse was not vaccina... More ... Thousands walk for cure at annual Komen event BY DAVE BENJAMIN Staff Writer       JACKSON - More than 16,000 people turned out on Oct. 14 at Six Flags Great Adventure, Route 537, with the hope of raising more than $2 million in the fight against breast cancer. They participated as runners, walkers, volunteers and supporters. More ... Supported employment helps to match businesses, workers       Jen Loelius is an employment specialist, or job coach, with the Center for Vocational Rehabilitation (CVR), which has locations in Eatontown and Toms River. Loelius helps mainstream individuals with disabilities into the workforce through a supported employment services program. More ... Organizers pleased with turnout for Latino fest Entertainment, food, fun & great weather helped event succeed BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       FREEHOLD - Visitors to the third annual Latino festival had a chance to see and hear what has become a very real presence in the community - the music and culture of the Latino community in Freehold Borough. After two years at the Park Avenue Elementary School, the festival moved to an open are... More ... U.F. nixes plan for village center on nursery's land Princeton Nurseries says election could alter master plan's direction BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       UPPER FREEHOLD - Since the township's master plan revision process began in early 2005, Smart Growth concepts including village centers have been a major part of the discussion, but that all changed last week. At the Oct. More ... Perrineville Lake Park about to get bigger BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       MILLSTONE - The county seeks to create 92 more acres of parkland in the township. At the Planning Board's Oct. 10 meeting, Monmouth County Park System (MCPS) Attorney Granville Michael Magee gave an update about the park system's acquisition of the 98-acre Kunzler property as part of its Perrine... More ... Public scrutinizes proposed residential changes in U.F. UPPER FREEHOLD BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       UPPER FREEHOLD - The public has its own ideas when it comes to changing the township's master plan. Although the Planning Board had not scheduled a formal public hearing Oct. 12, some members of the public had questions and comments for the board after hearing a proposed draft of the residential... More ... Elected officials' public jobs come under scrutiny Panter, Mallet would push for close look at legislators' other jobs BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer       Democratic state Assemblyman Michael Panter and his running mate Amy Mallet have vowed to focus on the practice of elected officials holding nonelected public jobs and receiving public contracts. According to Mallet, "We're going to do the right thing here. More ... Master plan revisions pick up steam in U.F. New draft proposes equine communities, density transfers BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer       With election season and the possibility of a change in the mayoralty on the horizon, the Planning Board has started the push to get Upper Freehold's master plan revisions completed by the end of this year. The board has been working on trying to revise the plan that regulates land use in town fo... More ... Retirement: the 'third age' Brookdale launches Center for Creative Retirement BY LINDA DeNICOLA Correspondent       There has never been a better time to be retired or be about to retire in Monmouth County. Everyone is beginning to catch on to the fact that retired people have a lot to offer and the time to devote to the possibilities inherent in lifelong learning. More ... Tango: The king of all dances Teacher sees dance as entrée to a cosmopolitan milieu BY LARRY RAPPOPORT Correspondent       Fausto Bermeo knows the steps to happiness. And if you talk to him, you just might agree those steps lead right across a dance floor - more specifically, a tango dance floor. Fausto Bermeo, you see, is an authentic Argentine tango instructor who believes in the power of tango. More ...