Councilman Matt Adams | July 28, 2023

This summer is moving quickly.  I cannot believe that it is almost August already! 

Before you know it, we will be talking about Back-to-School preparations and all the exciting happenings that the change of seasons brings.  Time sure does fly!  

This summer, unlike any other that I have experienced in recent memory, blew by at lightning speed.  Especially with all that is being accomplished at Town Hall right now on recreation, downtown revitalization, and more, the days feel like hours and the weeks feel like days. 

We are now planning for National Night Out, set for Tuesday.

Since 1984, the first Tuesday of August has been celebrated as National Night Out, a community event that we proudly celebrate every year in Scotch Plains to reaffirm and renew the strong bonds between the residents of our community and our fantastic police department.  

As the liaison to the Scotch Plains Police Department from the governing body and the son of a retired police chief, this is an especially important event to me.  As I recently shared with our Police Department’s leadership when I had the privilege of swearing in recently-promoted officers to their new positions of leadership within the department, ensuring that our police have all the state-of-the-art equipment and training that they need to perform their valuable function for our community has been one of the great personal pleasures of my time in office.    

National Night Out was first introduced by the National Association of Town Watch (NATW), responding to then increasing crime rates nationally and a growing sense of disconnection among neighbors.  In communities like ours, it sure has worked, because our Township remains a very safe place to live, work, and play.  

Moreover, as recent events like Pride in the Park, our Juneteenth Celebration, and the Independence Day fireworks demonstrate, community engagement is at an all time high.  Scotch Plains residents really enjoy strengthening their neighborly bonds through active engagement in all of our Township’s wonderful public events.  

Another guy named Matt was the founder of National Night Out. He believed that if people in his hometown of Lower Merion, Pa. could get to know each other better and form strong relationships, they would be better equipped to address local crime and safety concerns. Matt had a simple ask: neighbors asking neighbors to turn on their porch lights, sit in front of their homes and interact with one another.  That simple concept has evolved into the festival like atmosphere that is now celebrated in town squares and greens, simultaneously on the evening of August 1, all across the country.

The first National Night Out involved 2.5 million residents across 400 communities in 23 states. Thirty-nine years later, National Night Out now includes 38 million residents in 17,000 communities across the United States.  Scotch Plains is proudly one of them on an annual basis.

There are nearly 200 municipalities in New Jersey that celebrate the night. I am pleased that children are an integral part of the celebration, with games and fun activities organized to engage them positively and instill values of safety and community responsibility.

In Scotch Plains, our police department uses this annual opportunity to increase awareness of the many programs and services that are offered, such as drug prevention, community policing, pedestrian safety and the latest in local anti-crime efforts.  

As someone who works in the criminal justice system every day, there is nothing more important than positive police-community interactions for fostering the type of community that Scotch Plains residents want.  This annual summer event is a constant reminder that when people come together, they can create safer, stronger and more vibrant neighborhoods.  It is only fitting that the location of our Township’s annual National Night Out celebration is right next to the site of what will become the anchor of the exciting downtown renaissance that is about to occur in Scotch Plains.

I hope you will join town leaders, our police department, and all of our Township’s first responders at the Alan Augustine Village Green on Tuesday, Aug. 1 from 6-9 p.m. As is the tradition, our police will be providing demonstrations of various equipment – including some of the equipment my colleagues and I have added in recent years to keep them on the cutting edge of modern policing.  This is always a very popular exhibition for the children, who are awestruck as they get to pretend that they are actually riding in a police car, or get to pose for an unforgettable picture on the department’s Harley Davidson motorcycle.

In addition to building relationships, National Night Out promotes awareness of crime prevention strategies and safety measures that our police are undertaking, including their high tech response to the rising number of auto thefts throughout the region.  As the event has grown over the years, it has become a powerful tool for local crime prevention.

To share information, the police will be joined by the fire department and the rescue squad, as well as informational tables from the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, the Municipal Alliance and the TRHT Committee.

Don’t miss this big block party, featuring games, a dunk tank, live music,  hot dogs, ice cream, and, as always, tons of other giveaways.

Please attend National Night Out with your family and friends, as we work together to further enhance the relationship between neighbors and our first responders, while nurturing a true sense of community.

To learn more about National Night Out – and its positive impact across America – I encourage you to visit natw.org.

I hope to see you on the Village Green for this remarkable annual event that brings people together, promotes community safety, and builds strong neighborhood bonds throughout Scotch Plains.  

Also, as summer begins to sadly comes to a close, please note the following important dates in our calendars: 

• August 5: Free skin cancer screenings at Ponderosa Farm Park on Cooper Road.
• August 12: The Recreation Department’s annual DOGust celebration at Jerseyland Park, a day of activities for four-legged Scotch Plains residents.
• September 9: The East Second Street block party and car show, to celebrate this vibrant business corridor and invite residents to explore all that is new.
• September 11: Our Township’s annual 9/11 memorial service, solemnly commemorating the terrorist attacks that changed the world and tragically took the lives of three Scotch Plains residents and 2,993 other souls.
• November 7, 2023: Election Day 2023!  While there are no municipal government seats on the ballot this year, there are critical state and county races, as well as a very important local referendum question pertaining to Brookside Park on the ballot.  Turnout is critical to ensuring that we have strong leadership at the state and county level to continue the amazing trajectory in which our community is heading.  It is also critical that the community turn out and vote on the proposed Brookside Park revitalization plan.  If the public question is defeated, it will jeopardize our ability to make any improvements to the park for the foreseeable future.

For a full calendar of all our wonderful Township happenings and events, please visit the community calendar at www.scotchplainsnj.gov