As we come to the end of 2025 and look forward to the new year, here’s a look back at Palmyra’s top stories.
Palmyra mayor Gina Tait speaks at the River LINE meeting on Nov. 13.
River LINE update
In efforts to “strengthen and enhance the future” of the River LINE light rail system, NJ Transit has assumed all responsibility for the operation of the service by the end of the year.
NJ Transit and Alstom – the current River LINE operator – released a joint statement about changes that began on Sept. 3.
“NJ Transit and Alstom are committed to providing safe and reliable service for our customers on the River LINE,” the statement noted, adding that the two agencies have worked closely together to assess the line’s conditions.
“This mutually-agreed decision reflects the evolving investment needs of the service,” the statement added, “which have grown beyond the current scope of Alstom’s contract covering River LINE operations and maintenance. This transition will enable NJ Transit to be best positioned to shape and implement the next steps that will strengthen and enhance the future of the service.”
Along with Palmyra, the River LINE runs 10 stations in the county: Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, Florence, Burlington City, Burlington Township, Beverly, Delanco, Edgewater Park, Delran, Riverside and Riverton.
A second public meeting on Nov. 13 was hosted by state Sen. Troy Singleton service reliability, accountability, communication and safety. NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri was in attendance.
A plaque dedicated this year to Matthew Dickerson, who tragically lost his life when he was hit by a train in 2024.
Special dedication
Legion Field was buzzing on a Saturday night in October.
Some of the best women soccer players in Palmyra High School history finished their annual alumni game under the lights. Players then gathered for a group photo at the west goal. Camera flashes illuminated dinosaurs behind the fence.
And as some 250 people made their way to look at the colorful, kid-friendly creatures, they participated in a special dedication.
Palmyra got a $60,000 Local Recreation Improvement Grant (LRIG) to expand the Legion Field playground with a nature-inspired park for children ages 2 to 5, colorful climbing structures and a winding concrete walkway through mature trees. Those features are designed to spark creativity and help little ones develop important motor skills, officials said.
The children’s park was completed in September. On Oct. 11, it was officially named in honor of Matthew Dickinson, a young Palmyra student who tragically lost his life when he was hit by a train in 2024.
The dedication was a consensus of the Palmyra PTA and the Palmyra Riverton Soccer club.
“We wanted to do something to bring the community together and have a permanent memorial for Matthew,” explained Sonya Hart, PTA vice president, as she helped organize the presentation officially dedicating the new Matthew Dickinson Children’s Park.
Matthew’s father, Jim, thanked everyone for coming to the dedication.
“…Through tragic circumstances, we learned a lot about the town we live in,” he observed. “Our family received so much support. Thank you all very much.”
Palmyra will receive a national award for the Route 73 redevelopment project. Officials broke ground on Phase II in 2023.
A transformation
The Route 73 South corridor has transformed into “a significant community asset” of warehouses and affordable housing units.
It was in 2003 that the site was first declared a Brownfields Development Area by the Department of Environmental Protection. The largest sites of the Route 73 project area consist of 65 acres for the National Amusements Inc. site and 104 acres of the Fillit Corporation landfill site.
And for the transformation, Palmyra received the 2025 Phoenix Award for Region 2 through the program Brownfields 2025 Sustainable Communities Start Here.
“Your team and nomination exemplify excellence in brownfield redevelopment and we look forward to celebrating your success,” Emily Sparks, community director for Brownfields 2025, wrote in a letter to Mayor Gina Ragomo Tait and Business Administrator John Gural.
“The projects nominated this year are especially impressive, and a testament to the impact of transforming a site into a significant community asset.”
Tait accepted the award at the National Brownfields Conference in Chicago on Aug. 7.
With all the construction going on in the district, Interim Superintendent Mark Pease presented new Superintendent Florencia Norton with a hard hat at a board of education meeting on April 9.
New but familiar
Palmyra has a familiar face leading its school district.
The board of education voted unanimously to confirm Florencia Norton – the district’s director of curriculum and instruction and preschool principal – at a meeting on April 9. Board member Cara Broadbelt abstained.
The vote was met with applause and a construction hard hat of all things.
“I get to recognize someone who I believe is an outstanding educator and a true leader,” said Interim Superintendent Mark Pease, who had led the district for the past two years and previously served as principal at Charles Street School.
“I’m excited for this individual to take on responsibilities of leading this school district,” he added. “I know she’ll do a phenomenal job. I know she has support of this board, the administration team and teachers of this district.”
Pease, who served the district until the end of June, presented Norton with a nameplate, and instead of passing a torch, offered a construction hard hat as a reference to “all the (referendum) construction going on.”
“We are proud of all the hard work that’s going to take place,” Pease noted, “and I expect an invite on any ribbon cuttings after I leave here.”
With a hug and a nod, Norton accepted Pease’s request.
Valerie (left) and Celeste “Bernie” Flournoy are the daughters of Payton Flournoy Sr., a Palmyra High sports legend and trailblazer who became the first African American police chief in the U.S. and the first in the borough. They spoke at a Black History Month event on Feb. 5.
Big shoes to fill
The Sacred Heart School gymnasium was packed as cheerleaders revved up the crowd for a game against rival Riverton Elementary School in 1970.
Leading the way for Sacred Heart under the boards were Payton “Chipper” Flournoy Jr. and Timothy Flournoy, with players like Michael DeVece, Tim Richman and Michael Grace rounding out one of the best teams in the Burlington County Catholic League.
Big and strong for their ages, the Flournoy brothers were trailblazers as the only African American students in the eighth- and seventh-grade classes. On the court, they were treated as equals and recognized for their play by classmates.
They had big shoes to fill: Their father, Payton Flournoy Sr., was a trailblazer all his life who became the first African American police chief in their hometown of Palmyra – and in the U.S.
“He was always there if I needed to talk to him,” said Timothy Flournoy while listening to a presentation by his sisters during a Black History event on Feb. 5 at the borough community center. “He was always open to what I said, and taught me right from wrong.”
Born in 1923, Chief Flournoy graduated from Palmyra High in 1942, the captain of the football team and a track star. His two sisters showed slides of him jumping over a hurdle at a meet and running through defenders on the football field.
As World War II raged in Europe and the Pacific, Flourney went to North Carolina as a member of the first African American unit to be integrated into the service. Upon his return to Palmyra, he met Ivy Mae Buchanan. They fell in love and were soon married. They raised five children in their Palmyra home: Bernie, Valerie, the late Vanessa, Chipper and Timothy.
Meanwhile, Flourney’s trailblazing journey continued as the first African American to attend the state police academy. He joined the Palmyra police department in 1950, and became chief in 1959.
