JCP&L Begins Work to Boost Reliability for Thousands in Ocean and Burlington Counties
HOLMDEL, N.J., July 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has begun prepping land in central New Jersey for infrastructure upgrades that will enhance the regional power grid and improve service reliability for thousands of residents and businesses in Ocean and Burlington counties.
The project involves clearing brush along 14 miles of existing right-of-way to make room for new utility poles that will support a high-voltage power line. The line will help enhance the efficiency and reliability of electricity delivery while providing a backup power source to keep the lights on if wires or equipment on the region's primary line are damaged or must be taken out of service. The work will span multiple communities, including North Hanover Township, New Hanover, Plumsted Township and Jackson Township, benefiting customers across these areas and their surrounding communities.
Construction is scheduled to begin in early September. Helicopters will be used to install equipment and string power lines in areas that are difficult to access by ground. This approach offers a safe, efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to using heavy equipment, which would otherwise require building roads or clearing large paths. By flying in materials and placing them with precision, helicopters minimize landscape disruption, enhance worker safety and accelerate the construction process. The project is expected to be completed in June 2026.
Doug Mokoid, FirstEnergy's New Jersey President: "As energy needs continue to grow and evolve, we're keeping pace by strengthening our grid, adding additional capacity and using innovative tools like helicopters to build a more resilient system that keeps the power flowing, even during storms or unexpected outages."
As part of the work, new and existing overhead high-voltage lines along the project route will be upgraded to stronger, thicker wire that can better handle increased capacity and is more resilient during storms.
This project is part of Energize365, FirstEnergy's grid evolution program focused on investing $28 billion between 2025 and 2029 across its six-state footprint to create a smarter, more secure grid that delivers the power customers depend on today while also meeting the challenges of tomorrow.
JCP&L serves 1.1 million customers in the counties of Burlington, Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren. Follow JCP&L on X @JCP_L, on Facebook at facebook.com/JCPandL or online at jcp-l.com.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving more than six million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy on X @FirstEnergyCorp or online at firstenergycorp.com.
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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.
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Forbes
12 minutes ago
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How McDonald's franchises identify and cultivate top talent
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Shortly after hiring Nicolas Montealegre as a crew member at a McDonald's franchise restaurant in Manville, New Jersey, his supervisors knew he was special. Montealegre was just 17 when he moved to America from Colombia with his mother in 2016. A few months later, after turning 18, he started working at the McDonald's Manville franchise location, initially in maintenance. 'When I met Nico, the first thing he did was ask me, in very broken English, about the kitchen department,' said Jack Scari, the franchise's owner. 'And I thought, 'Wow, he's asking about something that isn't falling into his job scope right now.'' Scari later mentioned the exchange to the area supervisor, who replied, 'He is a sponge. All he wants to do is learn, and he is obsessed with this business.' That's all Scari needed to hear before putting Montealegre on a fast track. 'If you want to learn and you work hard, there's definitely a spot for you in McDonald's,' Scari said. So, he asked the team, 'What does Nico need to be able to handle more responsibility within the company?' The answer? English as a second language classes to help Montealegre communicate better with staff and customers. He started with eight weeks of 'English Under the Arches,' an Archways to Opportunity program, and then used tuition assistance to continue studying English at nearby Raritan Valley Community College. Montealegre quickly became fluent enough to begin studies in computer science, while continuing to work full time and support his family, which now includes a wife and baby. He plans on earning his bachelor's degree from Colorado Technical University in late 2026. Thanks to his growing proficiency in English and strong work ethic, Montealegre has more than lived up to his bosses' high expectations of him. For the past nine years, he has applied his business instincts and creativity to help the franchise grow as he grew: The Scari Organization now comprises 18 restaurants, up from just two when Montealegre joined. 'A lot of the growth we've had, he's played a huge role in,' Scari said. As a result, Montealegre recently took on a big new role as people experience lead — basically, director of human resources — for all 18 locations. 'I'm able to communicate with my coworkers, to teach, to learn, to speak freely,' Montealegre said. 'ESL changed my life here in the U.S., to be honest.' Having advanced so far at a young age, where does he go from here? Montealegre says he'd love to be director of operations one day — a position Scari says is definitely within his reach. 'He's a self-starter and an out-of-the-box thinker,' Scari said. 'I sent him to an event in Pennsylvania for a rally, and he came back with a whole new way of doing employee reviews and a whole new way of doing onboarding.' For now, Montealegre is focused on how to get the most out of the franchise organization's fast-growing team. 'I want to give back by making sure all the hires who are showing potential are getting the same tools and opportunities I did,' he said. 'I want to make sure we develop all those future leaders.' Quontisha Chisholm hopes her personal turnaround story will help others who think their life is lost. 'You're not in a race with anybody,' she said. 'You finish when you finish.' As a single teenage mom, raised by a great aunt who couldn't afford to support another child, Quontisha Chisholm had to quit school at 15 to care for her infant son. During her first job, as a waitress, she carried him to work in a car seat on the bus. The future looked bleak. 'I didn't have a high school diploma. My parents were out on the streets, so I didn't have them to guide me. And I had a baby,' she said. 'So, where do you go from there?' Where Chisholm went was a McDonald's restaurant in Millsboro, Delaware, because it was hiring. Although she didn't know it at the time, it was the first step in a journey that would change her life. By then 18 years old and newly married, Chisholm started as an opener, getting the store ready for business and then handling drive-thru orders and other tasks from 4 a.m. until noon. It was a job she kept for the next half-dozen years, during which time she had two more children, until unexpected life events forced Chisholm and her family to move away from Millsboro. For the next several years, Chisholm worked at a series of jobs at other companies before returning to a McDonald's restaurant (this one in Milford, Delaware) in 2019 as an opening manager. By then, her McDonald's franchise was encouraging employees to take advantage of Archways to Opportunity. Seeing this as a chance to pursue her lifelong passions, Chisholm applied. 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Chisholm is deeply grateful for the support Archways to Opportunity provided when she needed it most. Having worked for the last three years at a satellite location of Nemours Children's Health in Milford, Chisholm is experiencing personal and professional fulfillment beyond what her younger self ever expected. 'I look at my son every day and I think, 'You were like my little brother, having to drag you everywhere. And now look at us.' We have a big house, and I'm married and happy. We're not struggling.' This outcome has shown Chisholm's kids that with hard work and determination, anything is possible. Her son, now 20, is studying to be a nurse, while her daughter, 15, wants to be a cosmetologist. 'My son came to me and said, 'Mom, you're my best friend. You're my inspiration.' And just hearing those words, and where he plans to go in life, is everything.' Next up for Chisholm: becoming a paramedic. 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Yahoo
39 minutes ago
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Vulcan misses quarterly estimates as adverse weather dampens construction
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