Borough of Point Pleasant Beach MINUTES
The Mayor and Council of the Borough of Point Pleasant Beach met at 6:40PM, in the Antrim School Auditorium, with Mayor Barrella and Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon and DiCorcia present. The Municipal Clerk read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act – change of venue was posted in several locations at the municipal building, on the town’s web-site, and sent, as a public service announcement, to radio stations servicing the area.
Department Head memos and correspondence were discussed with many items moved to the agenda for action; Councilman Loughran: first year that permits and paid parking are in effect in railroad lot, which is used by Deborah for their flea market – need signage, ahead of time, alerting public that they will not be able to use permits that day.
Jay Bayliss, Point Pleasant First Aid Squad addressed Council regarding need for changes to LOSAP Program Guidelines.
Councilman Mercun confirmed with Counsel that a motion to withdraw the parking plan ordinance would have the same effect as it being defeated through roll call vote; as member of Finance Committee, went over operating budget with Police, investigating possibility of reductions to cover cost associated with hiring 25th officer – have asked CFO to prepare hard numbers and disseminate to Council for review.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to enter closed session to discuss (3) personnel matters, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Closed session started at 6:58 P.M. and ended at 7:23 P.M.
Mayor Barrella called the regular meeting to order at 7:31 P.M. Present were Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon and DiCorcia. The Municipal Clerk again read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
Motion by Councilman DiCorcia, to approve minutes of the February 19, 2008 Council meeting, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Ordinance 2008-07 (Parking Plan) was considered on second reading.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to withdraw Ordinance 2008-07, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Mayor Barrella: Ordinances 2008-11 and 2008-12 are tangentially related to Ordinance 2008-07; as line striping for existing spaces still needed, was decided to introduce that ordinance at amended rate of $25,000 instead of $50,000.
Ordinance 2008-11 (Parking Striping Amendment to Capital Budget)
was introduced on first reading, with a total amount of $25,000 allocated for striping.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-11 was approved on first reading. The public hearing will be held on April 15, 2008.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Ordinance 2007-12 (Amendment to Bond Ordinance 2003-06) was introduced on first reading.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to approve Ordinance 2007-12 on first reading, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and defeated by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino….YEA
Council Members Mercun, Dixon, DiCorcia….NAY
Clerk Ellsworth added several items to Consent Resolution 2; Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway, asked if elimination of County Construction Department affected the Borough and what it would eliminate (electrical inspection): Marilyn Burke, 118 Central Avenue asked about recycling grant (not associated with recycling revenue).
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilwoman Tooker, resolutions covering the items listed below, were approved by the following roll call vote:
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
a) Opposition to elimination of Ocean County Construction Inspection Department
b) Authorization for free bulk-item pick-up for participants in MAC Town-wide Garage Sale on first garbage pick-up day after May 3, 2008.
c) Authorization to apply for and execute $3,000.00 DEP Green Communities Grant to fund Community Forestry Management Plan
d) PO to Pt Pleasant Beach Little League for yearbook ad ($100.00)
e) Payments to Schulman, Wiegmann & Associates from Bd. of Adjustment escrow accounts ($450.00)
f) Payments to CMX from escrow accounts ($6,175.25)
g) PO to Metric Group Inc. for case of high temp paper for use in Silver Lake Lot parking machines 1-23 ($10,000.00)
h) Payment to Sensus Metering Systems for upgrade ($14,062.00)
i) Payment to Eagle Point Gun for Speer 53955 ($3,100.00)
j) Payment to Allister Business Solutions for annual Network Connectivity Support and Copier Maintenance Agreements ($2,762.79)
k) Payment to Greenline Data for storage cabinets for police weapons ($4,710.60)
l) Payment to Klien for return of dewatering bond ($500.00)
m) Payment to Motorola, Inc. for XTS2500 radio, trunking, encryption, 2-year encrypted express service and battery ($3,319.00)
n) Payment to Pedroni Fuel Company for diesel fuel purchased under the Ocean County Cooperative Pricing System ($10,047.67)
o) Reimbursement to Michael Gardner for NJ Div. of Fire Safety Certification renewal ($45)
p) Approval of Payroll #7 ($218,679.86)
q) Approval of computer generated vouchers ($483.924.29)
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
a) Emergency Appropriation to 2008 Temporary Budget
b) Approval of 2008 pension fund payments ($660,117)
c) Authorization for Mayor to execute recycling grant agreement with Ocean County ($9394)
d) Award of contract to Earle Asphalt for roadway improvements to Sanborn Ave/ Water St
e) Approval of membership in Fire Co #2
f) Scheduled payment to PPB Board of Education ($774,676)
g) Adjustments to W/S bills (11 accounts)
h) Reimbursement for purchase of 2 Motorola DES-XL/DES-OFB Encryption Boards ($320 for a savings of $1049)
i) Authorization for Boro Attorney to draft ordinance establishing electrical sub-code fees
j) Award of contract to Cambria Automotive for purchase of sanitation truck ($199,375)
k) Approval of Cystic Fibrosis special event application for Great Strides walk on 5/18/08 – denial of parking fee waiver request
l) Approval of Pt Pleasant Chapter Deborah Hospital Foundation special event application for flea market on 6/14/08
m) Authorize Boro Attorney to amend LOSAP guidelines
n) P O to Festival of Atlantic for ad journal ($650)
VOTE: Council Members Mercun (Items ‘a-l’ and ‘n’), Loughran, Tooker, Cervino,
Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Councilman Mercun (Item ‘m’)….Abstain
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Mercun: Continuing to work on the Budget along with Council Members Tooker and Loughran.
Councilman Loughran: has been discussion about whether to hire 25th Police officer and resident concerns on whether 24 officers are sufficient.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to authorize Administrator Riehl to formulate RFP for professional to perform non-binding staffing study for the Police Department, was seconded by Councilman DiCorcia and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Councilwoman Tooker: announced dates for Miss Point High and Animal Welfare Committee meeting; Environmental Commission will host meeting on ‘Non-Point’ Bay pollution on April 30th; Shade Tree Committee working on grant for free trees for those living on County roads and new shade tree ordinance (Borough Attorney was authorized to draft ordinance); Recycling Committee is meeting with businesses to get them on board – reminded residents that single-stream paper recycling is in effect; announced that NPP Coordinator will attend meeting sponsored by Renewable Energy Committee; Recreation Committee sent out a questionnaire regarding programs for seniors.
Councilman Cervino: Beautification Committee is considering nominees for business that have beautified the town – placing a bench at the bird sanctuary in memory of recently deceased member, Ellen Talbot; spoke with Public Works regarding graffiti on street signs and litter along railroad tracks (Administrator will look into utilizing County jail work crew); Tourism Advisory Committee is preparing a mission statement; working on increasing fees and fines associated with road openings, as current $25 fee is minimal and there are serious problems with some roads caused by these openings; Chamber of Commerce will host “Meet the Mayors” on May 14th at the Lobster Shanty; current digging in the street is part of the I&I remediation process; looking into using substance on Public Works garage roof instead of replacing it; have contacted Freeholder Lacey about basin clean-up on Ocean Avenue; thanked all who contacted Council regarding parking issue; town is facing a true fiscal problem – anyone who has ideas to generate additional revenues should contact members of the Governing Body.
Councilman Dixon: April is Autism Awareness Month – autism strikes 1 in every 150 children in the United States and one in every 94 in New Jersey; due to financial situation, should look into selling two town properties that house decommissioned wells (Attorney Gertner: explained that there is a process that must be followed to prove they are no longer useful); flyers are almost ready for Neighborhood Watch Program that will be starting soon.
Councilman DiCorcia: thanked all who became involved with parking issues – public participation is the key to democracy; thanked Lynn Aber, Sgt. Otto, and the Police Department for work on street light outage problem – reminded all to provide pole number when contacting town offices; parking meters are needed in the Broadway area.
Motion by Councilman DiCorcia to reconsider Ordinance 2007-12 (Amendment to Bond Ordinance 2006-03) on first reading, was seconded by Councilman Loughran. Clerk Ellsworth read title and Administrator Riehl explained that these programs were already covered by an existing bond – not issuing new debt, just reappropriating funds among current programs.
Ordinance 2007-12 was approved on first reading by the following roll call vote. The public hearing will be held on April 15, 2008.
VOTE: Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia…YEA
Councilman Mercun….Abstain (as he lives on Trenton Avenue)
Councilman Cervino: have received calls about having 3-hour parking limit being policed and complaints about tickets not being given.
Mayor Barrella: Ordinance 2007-12 puts money in place for parking meters, should Council vote to place them on Channel Drive near restaurants; concept of parking was one that was advanced during campaign, as part of overall plan to garner revenue from tourism – surprised that postcard was sent to town residents by Political Action Committee of National Realtors Association; appointed Council Members Tooker and Dixon to committee to study parking issue, including permit parking; been lobbying for authority to pass local option taxes – Democratic Assemblyman Greenwald in favor – met in Trenton regarding this topic and shared services, along with representatives from Bay Head and Manasquan – local option taxes would place the burden on seasonal visitors, not with Beach taxpayers – Manasquan in a similar situation and this is the kind of coalition that needs to be built up and down the coast, as those forces opposed to change are well financed and have political clout, both inside and outside of Point Pleasant Beach; town’s liaison to the County, Dan Hennessy, was asked to speak with the County about Bay Avenue and Broadway traffic calming, more specifically, placing a traffic light at Broadway and Boston, and prohibiting trucks over 4 tons on Bay Avenue.
Administrator Riehl: regarding I&I changes, some areas don’t need work, so working with Engineer and Water Supervisor Broyles to incorporate some of the areas that were going to be addressed in Phase II, since obligated for full amount that was financed through EIT (asked Administrator to arrange meeting between two Council members and O’Donnell, Stanton).
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD OPENED AT 8:45 P.M.
Max Gagnon, 304 Parkway: in light of fact that House is scheduled to vote on saving coastal lands from development, Council should take a close look at the oceanfront and change zoning; spoke with Mr. McGill about using his 80-space lot, near borderline with Point Pleasant, for parking on weekends – town would need to provide insurance and stripe it – could coordinate with taxi service to shuttle people to oceanfront.
Mike English, 111 Cornell Drive: Ordinance 2008-12 could have been amended to lessen bond debt, instead of re-appropriating money for parking meters – complained that public was not allowed to speak on first reading.
Barbara Dervan, 320 Broadway: asked Council to consider removing allocation for meters in bond ordinance and to contact owners of derelict Channel Drive properties about leasing same for parking.
Marilyn Madden, 208 Philadelphia Avenue: suggested removing Patrolman from schools and putting him on the street to relieve Department staffing shortage – claimed officer in school was not utilized during bullying incident.
Kathleen McGuiness, 97 St. Louis Avenue: asked if Council would hire an Officer until study comes back (either in budget or not); against any additional meters on Channel Drive; asked that something be done abut corner of Route 35 and Broadway (temporary staging area during 4-year bridge project).
Donna Maria Adelizzi-Diaz, 711 Atlantic Avenue: school budget presentation at Antrim PTO meeting on Thursday; in favor of Cops in School program – students didn’t go to Officer during bullying incident because this was a new officer and students were just beginning to build rapport with him.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway: thanked Council for withdrawing parking ordinance; previous administration had pre-reading of ordinances before introduction; asked if someone from Public Works had been trained on spraying; asked if town could inform public about where and when I&I work was to be performed (Councilman Mercun: asked about putting list on town’s radio station and web-site – will research reverse 911 prices).
Patti McAndrews, 322 Broadway: thanked Councilman Loughran for suggesting non-binding study – need to retain Police force; asked if town could collect on performance bond if permitee doesn’t carry through with building plans; need objective team to look into parking; asked who Assemblyman Greenwald was to town (Chair of Assembly State Budget Committee – need to speak with those type of legislators to garner support for local option tax authority).
Agatha Takruda ,306 Forman Avenue: spoke regarding grafitti – should ask Brave New World to refrain from selling stickers – New York City fines those whose names are on them.
Catherine Dyson, 403 New Jersey Avenue: disagreed with fining store owners for stickers used for graffiti; in favor of Cops in Schools; recommended appointing a Council parliamentarian; made right decision on parking plan.
Larry Beresik, 118 St. Louis Avenue: would have been responsible to not charge residents under parking plan; asked where money would come from for next budget and who was to blame for this one.
Jim Aiosa, 316 Cooks Lane: need to get Public Works project moving – recycling taking up 30 pay spaces in railroad lot; Sea Coast Oil site is another potential source of income – complained that the vinyl fence has not been erected there.
Aleta Fedoruk -Weinstein, 43 Parkway and Harborhead: thanked Council for plan to bring revenue into town; every week Boardwalk bar crowd cause mess in neighborhood, urinate and defecate on our property – can’t sleep due to rowdiness of drunkards, although Police are helpful – if they can’t park there at certain times, would help – when parking meters were placed in area surrounding Lincoln Center, it did not affect value of property I owned across the street.
Sharon Cadalzo, 302 Atlantic Avenue: Community Endowment Fund received its 501C status last week – anyone can make a donation to it and receive a tax credit.
John Helm, 708 McLean Avenue: would have liked to see this crowd at Board of Education budget hearing – asked all to come out to vote and pass the school budget.
Daniel Hennessy, 619 New Jersey Avenue: first 90 days of new administration has not been boring; how refreshing that you tried to accomplish what you promised during your campaign – special interests are fighting you tooth and nail; biggest budget costs are personnel – not replacing the DPW Director was an economical move; the more tourism grew, the more need there was for extra Police Officers, but residents shouldn’t be supporting or footing the bill for tourism; commended Governing Body for its efforts – residents looking to Council for effective economical government.
Marilyn Burke, 118 Central Avenue: asked which projects were sponsored by bond ordinance and if money has been fully utilized.
Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue: thanked Mayor Barrella for reaching out to Assembly Budget Committee Chair Greenwald; asked who was responsible for County trees planted in front of home (property owner); thanked Councilman Loughran for moving forward with Police staffing study; expressed concerns with Building Department allowing adjacent property owner to bring in tons of dirt affecting drainage – want to be able to live in my house without flooding or rattling from pile driving – thinks they should work on weekends.
Patti McAndrew, 322 Broadway: asked if there was a venue to bring creative revenue ideas (either e-mail Council members or bring to Municipal Clerk and she will disseminate).
Tom Perry, 19 Central Avenue: complained about Joey Tomatoes staying open, after bar closings, until 3:30 am – people littering on way to their cars and causing noise – Boardwalk deliveries trying to beat light at 6 AM by trundling down Central Avenue – u-turns have become a problem with cars flying into driveways to turn around – asked about designating some streets as one-way during the summer.
Joe Lemma, 203 St Louis Avenue: 18-wheeler parking in Southern House lot during weekends – building should be replaced after 5 years – needs to be spruced up; 3 municipal lots, east of tracks, that can be metered – only 3-hour parking and vehicles parked there 10 to 15 hours a day – need to get cops to mark tires.
Jeff Dyer, 108 New Jersey Avenue: commended Governing Body for tabling parking ordinance; as former Councilman, knows how hard it is to come up with budget; think Police do perfect job – asked how much revenue was generated by Police ticketing – commented that taxes would go much higher if some of that revenue was lost – staffing study may cost same as cost of extra Officer for the rest of the year – recommended not proceeding with the study once the decision has been made.
John Szafranski, 319 Yale Avenue: DCA providing study for Marlboro; ticket revenue should be used to defray taxes – additional Police should be covered by tourism dollars, not our taxes; should institute 3-part form, for use by residents, to get answers to questions (contact memos available at town hall and should be made available at Council meetings).
Ben Dispoto, 311 Parkway: forefront issue in town is Risden’s Planning Board application – must get in front of it and Planning Board must get message; expansion of Patio Bar will make parking horrendous; asked if any progress was made on establishing reward system for information on violent crime; right decision was made on parking plan – should issue arise again, it should be put on referendum.
Sue Paradise, 202 Chicago Avenue: people not apathetic in this town and many have creative ideas – suggested an interactive web-site (if more than 3 members of the Governing Body participate, will constitute a violation of the Open Public Meetings Act – contact individually via e-mail).
Elaine Hennessy, 619 New Jersey Avenue: suggested fining those who take down trees in public right of way; as an eighth grade school teacher, am a firm supporter of Cops in Schools; graffiti ruining town – should have a certain time to get rid of it or be fined.
Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue: claimed he sent out a certified letter 2 months ago and never got an answer (was addressed).
Barbara Dervan, 320 Broadway: asked if there was a list of properties that the town owns – oceanfront lot is lucrative (on town’s ROSI).
Eileen Levis, 301 Parkway: thanked Council for withdrawing parking plan; support Cops in Schools and replacing retired Police Officer; suggested implementing strong littering fines.
James Malone, 106 St. Louis Avenue: complimented Council on actions this evening.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD CLOSED AT 10:29 P.M.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:30 p.m.
