Bedminster Rents Its Courtroom to Bernards Township for This Fall

Bedminster and Bernards Township had previously discussed merging their municipal courts on a permanent basis. While those discussions didn't work out, it didn't stop Bedminster from allowing Bernards to temporarily move its court to the Bedminster facility during the months while the room in Bernards is being overhauled.

The Bedminster Township Committee has approved an agreement that would allow the Bernards municipal judge and that township's police to hold court in Bedminster, at 1 Miller Lane, on Mondays for three times a week starting in September. Special sessions may be added if needed.

Bedminster will charge Bernards $500 a month for the arrangement, said Bedminster Administrator Judy Sullivan.

Bernards generally holds its municipal court on Tuesdays, but that's Bedminster's regular night to hold its own municipal court. The first scheduled court date for Bernards is Monday, Sept. 9.

The agreement approved by the Bedminster Township Committee runs through Dec. 16, although Bernards Township Administrator Bruce McArthur said previously he hopes the work will be finished by around Thanksgiving.

Starting in September, Bernards Township is renovating its combined municipal court and main meeting room to upgrade the facility in multiple ways as part of a $355,000 project, including additional technical capabilities and the ability to move furniture to make the room a command center during an emergency.

In preparation for the renovations, Township Committee meetings set for Sept. 10 and 24, and Oct. 15 and 29 are being moved to the Bernards Townshp Library, Township Clerk Denise Szabo announced on Tuesday. All of those meetings are scheduled to begin at 8 p.m.

The meetings are scheduled to be held in program room B in the library, located at 32 S. Maple Ave. in downtown Basking Ridge.

The state must approve any changes in an official courtroom, but McArthur said he doesn't expect any objections to the township's plans.

But during the fall months, and potentially into December, McArthur said that the municipal court will be relocated to Bedminster's court facilities. However, he said that Bernards Township's usual court hours will be changed from Tuesday to Monday, starting at 10 a.m., since Bedminster's court hours are held on Tuesday afternoon.