MOUNTAINSIDE — The Mountainside Board of Education shared some ideas to address its $352,000 deficit before casting the final votes of approval for the 20242025 budget at its meeting on Tuesday.“We currently outsource our mental- health services to Tri-County Behavioral Health,” Superintendent Janet...

CRANFORD — The Cranford Board of Education voted Monday to adopt its 2024-2025 budget as approved by the Executive County Superintendent, in the total amount of $78,788,827, after a public hearing that evening. The proposed tax increase is $206.34 on the average assessed home value of $187,168.A tot...

WESTFIELD — On Monday, the Westfield Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) voted to memorialize its recommendations that two historic homes — one on Elizabeth Avenue and the other on Rahway Avenue — not be torn down. The owners of both properties, Commission Chair Jennifer Jaruzelski said, have sub...

COUNTY — For decades, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) have worked to provide a sense of security and continuity for children who find themselves caught up in the court system as their parents and caregivers attempt to navigate complicated legal challenges.According to information provided ...

AREA — Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-Newark), a progressive, six-term Democrat who was slated to run unopposed in the upcoming June Primary, died suddenly on Wednesday. He was 65.Elected officials who knew Mr. Payne described the Essex County native as a dedicated public servant who will be dearly misse...

SCOTCH PLAINS — The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Board of Education voted to approve its tentative $119,551,636 2024-2025 school budget and authorized it for submission to the Executive County Superintendent of Schools for approval at its regular meeting on Thursday. The tentative budget was presented at t...

COUNTY — The Union County Board of County Commissioners welcomed young poets from across the region to share their award-winning Arbor Day poems on Thursday as part of an ongoing slate of eco-awareness activities that will be held throughout the spring and summer seasons.The Commissioner Board’s ann...

CLARK — By 6 a.m. on Friday morning, Vaccaro’s Bakery was already almost out of brownies, rye bread, pecan rings, crumb cakes and parking spaces as residents from across the region clambered to secure a place in line for the final time.Last week, the bakery’s owners, Eileen and Vinny Vaccaro, announ...

WESTFIELD — Three members of the Westfield Police Department are recovering from injuries sustained during the pursuit of a stolen motor vehicle late last week. Charges ranging from resisting arrest to assaulting a police officer have been filed against a Maryland resident in connection with the inc...

WESTFIELD — Westfield, whose catalog of historic homes spans more than two centuries worth of growth and expansion, has always been something of an architectural chameleon. A walk through town yields everything from Revolutionary War-era farmsteads, generational Dutch Colonials and stately manor hom...