Somerville asks Gov. Murphy to relocate state motor vehicle office

SOMERVILLE - The borough has reached its breaking point with the state Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC).

Frustrated over the lack of any progress in moving the MVC office from Roosevelt Place where it has caused "chronic" neighborhood problems, the borough has decided to go directly to Gov. Phil Murphy and ask him "to take all the necessary steps" to relocate the office.

Veteran Councilman Granville Brady was adamant at Monday's borough council meeting that Somerville has to go to the top.

"This governor said 'I have to be more pro-active because I almost lost the election'," Brady said. "Well, Bucky, this is one way you can be more pro-active."

Mayor Dennis Sullivan also expressed frustration.

"We've tried everything through three mayors," he said.

The mayor said Borough Administrator Kevin Sluka made inquiries about the status of any relocation and discovered the matter is "currently not active."

"That was worse than last time when it was 'still under consideration'," Sullivan said.

"For whatever reason, the site has fallen off Trenton's radar," he said.

More Somerville news: Whitaker steps down as Somerville head coach

Motor Vehicle Commission officials have visited the site three times and have said the commission will undertake the process to find a new site. The state has solicited proposals but no new location has been found.

The MVC lease expired this year and the office is now a month-to-month rental.

Sullivan said the Somerville MVC office is the only location in the state that is near a residential neighborhood.

Dating back into the last century, neighborhood residents repeatedly have complained about traffic, illegal parking, littering, trespassing by MVC customers and noise that they said have affected the quality of their lives.

The state had been looking for a site within these Somerset County communities: Somerville, Raritan, Manville, Bridgewater, Branchburg, Far Hills, Warren or Hillsborough north of Amwell Road. The state is seeking a first-floor space of 5,500 to 6,500 square feet.

Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com

Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Somerville asks Gov. Murphy to relocate state motor vehicle office