It will be hard to find anyone more excited or prouder when Middletown Township celebrates the grand opening of its new Town Hall, tomorrow, Wednesday, July 5 than Mayor Tony Perry.
The gala event, which will include food, fun games, entertaining music, exciting giveaways, and more, marks the culmination of more than five years of planning, design and construction. The celebration, which begins at 6 p.m., concludes with fireworks at 9 p.m.
For Perry, it is the highlight of the five years he has already served on the governing body since first elected to the Township Committee in 2017, making him the longest serving mayor in more than 50 years. And this week’s dedication, he said, will always remain one of his proudest moments heading up the township in which he takes great pride.
Looking back at the town hall where he first served, and comparing it to the new facility, Perry sees it as something in which every resident can take pride, and every resident and employee will be far better served.
He is particularly proud of the state-of-the-art facilities for the township Police Department, recalling when the previous town hall was built the department was smaller, amenities were fewer, and no considerations were made for female officers since there were none. The new police department facility, he said, offers fitness facilities, separate bath facilities and more and improved space for a department that is second to none.
Perry is also pleased with the amount of shared services the township offers and provides for other municipalities, seeing it as tax savings for all; the new construction will enable the township to expand on shared services as well.
But Perry is most proud that Town Hall represents a superior work environment for its employees as well as a government site where the residents are welcome and will have greater access to information and records that they want.
“I want the residents to feel as proud of this building as I do,” the mayor said, “and more importantly, realize that this Town Hall is representative of the township as a whole, one building with all its amenities and offices under one roof, drawing the entire township together as the one large and wonderful township that it is.”
Perry also noted the building was not constructed for 2023 or 2025, but rather “this is a building that is state of the art today, tomorrow, and will be from here on in. I expect that this town hall will outlast me and so many of us here now.”
It has been an exciting five years as Mayor and part of the planning of the building, he said, and recognizing all the time and effort that has gone into the design that “reflects everything that is so great about Middletown.”
After the ribbon cutting ceremony, township employees will also be offering open house tours and residents will be given the chance to participate in a community mural.
Parking will be available in the large gravel lot and there will also be a free shuttle at the Middletown Arts Center (36 Church Street). The rain date is July 7.
