Borough of Point Pleasant Beach Borough of Point Pleasant Beach
Council Meeting Minutes
December 17, 2019
The Governing Body reserves its right to amend and supplement the purposes of
executive session by motion at the public meeting.
Council President Vogel called the meeting to order at 7:30PM. Present were Councilmen Vogel, Cortes, Kanitra, Toohey, Migut and Santanello. Mayor Reid was absent. The Municipal Clerk read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act: “Adequate notice of the time and place of this meeting was given under the provisions of the Open Public Meetings Act and was posted and sent to the officially designated newspapers in compliance with the law.”
Flag Salute, Invocation
Motion by Councilman Toohey to approve the December 3, 2019 Council meeting minutes was seconded by Councilman Kanitra and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmen Vogel, Cortes, Kanitra, Toohey…YEA
Councilmen Migut & Santanello…ABSTAIN
Mayor Reid….ABSENT
POLICE AWARDS PRESENTATIONS:
A moment of silence was observed for Jersey City Detective, Joseph Seals, who was killed in the line of duty.
Chief Michigan presented the following awards: Lifesaving Award to Officers Kyle Boturla & Antonio Garcia; Letter of Commendation to Communications Operator Megan Palmer for their parts in saving the life of resident, Diane Cucci on October 28, 2019. Wished Mrs. Cucci, who could not be in attendance, a speedy recovery, all the best, and a Merry Christmas to her family.
Mrs. Cucci's daughter read words of thanks, written by her mother. Police liaison Councilman Santanello and Council President Vogel offered a few words of praise.
PROCLAMATIONS:
Council President Vogel presented a proclamation to the Point Pleasant Beach High School Boys Varsity Soccer Team.
Councilman Santanello presented proclamations to outgoing Councilman Thomas Toohey and outgoing Council President Thomas Vogel (Council President Vogel: thanked Mayor Reid for his efforts over his term on the Governing Body as well – all appreciate the hard work and heart he put into his job – it's about all working together – has had the privilege of working with great people during his 12 years on the Governing Body – praised Borough employees who work for the town day in and day out – some of the hardest working out there – some have spent almost their whole lives dedicated to the Borough of PPB – are quick to get blamed and slow to be praised; Councilman Toohey: agreed – it is a team effort – listening to the people around him made his an incredibly easy job – there isn’t a single thing he did or said over the last 6 years that he wouldn’t stand behind – he did what he thought was right – had great people on the dais and working in municipality – thanked all).
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Vogel: thanked ZO Petrillo, who is retiring at the end of the year – a long-term employee – looks forward to her replacement living up to her – thanked Fire Official Martin, who does a great job – Personnel Committee brought in some new blood; wished all Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Holidays.
Councilman Cortes: will miss Councilman Vogel’s expertise, as Mayor, Councilman and an open-minded person, about the town, past ordinances, and how things run, as well as his advice and hard work for the residents; Councilman Toohey is most articulate – appreciates his work on the Finance Committee and the budget – he always asks the right questions – his expertise in his day job in the school system was a God-send here; Mayor Reid got him started in politics – served with him as Councilmen and as Mayor – recognized what he brought back to the town – the trolley, Tug-of-War and boat race, and his love for the town – he is a lifer – will miss all 3; the paving base coat on St. Louis is down – water is moving; kudos to Water/Sewer Clerk Brown – was a negative comment on social media – she handled it professionally – new meters are phenomenal.
Councilman Kanitra: echoed Councilman Cortes’ comments about Councilmen Vogel and Toohey and Mayor Reid – takes a lot to step up to the plate on Council – on behalf of the Borough and Council, he thanked them for their willingness to serve and their time; the Arts Committee will have new Chair, Lauren Goldfarb Edwards, who sits on the board at the Count Basie Theater – will take things to the next level, in terms of fundraising, events and opportunities for residents – current Chair Laurie Vicari will continue to stay very involved as Secretary; congratulated the Environmental Commission on recertifying their bronze status with Sustainable Jersey – looking to attain silver status next year; $6M in State grant monies was made available for algae blooms in the lakes – first grant will be used to look underground at the water/sewer infrastructure, to see if it’s contributing to the oxygenation of the lake – is meeting with Save Barnegat Bay leadership tomorrow – looking to partner on this new opportunity that is this is tailor-made for Lake of the Lillies, to fix the underlying root problems; thanked the Fire Department for working with him when Congressman Smith’s office reached out and identified new grant opportunities – they have a 20-year old truck and are looking for a new one – wants to try to offset that with Federal grant opportunities – also had discussions with the USDA – based on PPB’s size, may qualify as rural for some additional opportunities; there is a lot of excitement about PPB’s committees next year – lots of new members – will see volunteerism rachet up quite a bit; looking forward to unveiling a plan for Point Beach 2020 Vision in a couple of weeks.
Councilman Toohey: no report.
Councilman Migut: Planning Board met on Wednesday – one application – concerned the basement of the Wine Outlet – owner was leasing it to a plumber and a t-shirt company for storage – storage is not a permitted use in the zone – matter was tabled by the Planning Board and referred to the Zoning Board for a variance; saying goodbye to two great gentlemen – has known Councilman Vogel for the better part of 30 years – used to do a Firemen’s Fair and a children’s Christmas in July together – used to meet in the parking lot and shake hands after each event – doesn’t know how long it’s been since they shook hands and that’s unfortunate – would aim to correct that in the New Year (Councilman Vogel: saw a girl who had cancer when they first starting doing Christmas in July – she now has kids of her own – they still remember it and Councilman Migut’s efforts) – Councilman Toohey, while working as a lifeguard 10 years ago, saved him from drowning – won’t let a difference on policy issues negate his love for him – hopes they don’t leave with hardened hearts and that they all return to Council one day; said Merry Christmas.
Councilman Santanello: spoke about Mayor Reid – was really good at raising money – a public/private partnership eased the burden on taxpayers – things like re-doing the Little League building and Inlet playground and all the sponsored events around town brought PPB back after 8 years of neglect – he stood up for banning plastic bags, which has been a struggle – brought back the trolley and boat parade; Recreation Committee holiday light contest was judged last night – invited all to view the winners – 1st Place: 508 Forman Ave., 2nd Place: 201 New York Ave. and 3rd Place: 303 Atlantic Ave.; got $20,668.00 from the Tug of War fundraiser that didn't cost taxpayers a dime – thanked the Chamber, DPW and Police for making it a safe and wonderful event – $5K will go toward playground equipment for the Newark Ave. Park – the rest will go to the Recreation Committee for new programs and to help keep costs down for residents who use them; wished a Very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New year to the Borough employees, the Police Department – they work a thankless job year-round and they work really hard – to Attorney Zabarsky, whom he will miss and all the constituents – hopes the joy of the season makes it a special time for all.
BA/CFO Riehl: dune grass planting and liming is being done in town – hope to be complete before the end of January; in July, had requested that DOT put additional signage and markings on Route 35S, approaching Arnold Ave. and to make accommodations for left-turn signage – they issued a work order on August 2nd and just emailed that they are now prepared to install a 60'x30' sign, about 150 feet from the intersection on the left-hand side, because of low clearance and awnings and such; heard from DOT in reference to their removal of 7 pear trees on Route 35S, from Arnold to Philadelphia Aves. – they now want to remove 21 pear tree stumps on Route 35S between River and Philadelphia Aves. – the stumps are between the sidewalk and curb – they will locate the stumps, grind, remove grindings, top soil and seed, remove and replace pavers and bricks – some stumps will be left on the side of the road for the Borough to take – has a map from them, with exact locations if anyone is interested – they plan to start shortly.
Clerk added item to agenda.
PULIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 8:14PM
Dave Cavagnaro, PPB: asked about 1n – if materials are custom to PPB (Councilman Toohey: they pre-cast – they don’t pour on-site; Councilman Kanitra: has only seen only one invoice for @$1500 for pre-purchased materials; BA/CFO Riehl: understands the rest will be poured concrete – construction documents were sent over – they are just required to provide evidence of purchase, which they did – they sent pictures of the materials that were purchased – contract stated pre-payment upon receipt of the construction documents – all of that information has been sent to the Borough Attorney and Mayor and Council; Attorney Zabarsky: per the contract, as they do certain things, they get paid for it; Councilman Vogel: for example, when fire apparatus is built, there are progress payments).
Susan Carey, PPB: thanked BA/CFO Riehl, the Governing Body and DPW for getting her street, Holly Avenue, paved.
PULIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 8:17PM
Motion by Councilman Migut to close Public Participation and approve the items listed below was seconded by Councilman Cortes and carried by roll call vote.
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
1a Approval of payment of Payroll #25 ($253,371.50), #26 ($255,794.02) & #26A ($715.11)
1b Approval of Transfer Resolution
1c Approval of payment to Pt. Pleasant Beach for parking meter credit card fees ($61,858.85)
1d Approval of 10 W/S relief requests
1e Approval of payment to All Covered for Clerk’s office installations, December maintenance/ support/warranty, remote back-up, Police fees/upgrade/cabling/onboarding ($37,883)
1f Approval of payment to State of NJ for employee & retiree health benefits ($112,375.42)
1g Approval of payment to BTMUA for November bulk water usage ($62,721)
1h Approval of payment from Bd. of Adjustment escrow accounts
1i Approval of ATSNJ Special Event application for 5K on the streets & Boardwalk, 4/26/20
1j Approval of Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk on Arnold & Baltimore, 9/26/20
1k Authorization for Administrator to execute OC Road Dept 2020 Schedule C Agreement
1l Approval of pay rate adjustment for S. Roe for additional duties
1m Authorization to extend Teamsters contract through 2023
1n Approval of pymt to Spohn Ranch Skateparks for construction docs/pre-built materials ($95K)
1o Approval of PO and payment to Crown Paving for paving of Holly Street ($10,080)
1p Approval of PO and payment to Crown Paving for paving of Municipal Way ($3,250)
1q Approval of PO to Hecht Trailer LLC for 2019 Pace 8.5×16 cargo trailer for DPW ($5,619)
1r Approval of payment to the USPS for postage ($3,500)
1s Approval of payment to Impact Technology Solutions for Court video equipment ($8,982)
CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
2a Approval of payment of computer-generated vouchers ($334,033.80)
2b Approval of PO to Firefighter One for GT-Fire Portable Gas Detector for Fire Dept. ($4,432.05)
2c Approval of PO to Fire & Safety Services for rescue truck repairs for Fire Co 2 ($3,400)
VOTE: Councilmen Vogel (except 2), Cortes, Kanitra (except 1n), Toohey, Migut (except 2),
Santanello (except 1d)…YEA
Councilmen Vogel (2), Kanitra (1n), Migut (2), Santanello (1d)…ABSTAIN
Mayor Reid…ABSENT
ORDINANCES:
Councilman Migut: asked about possible grammatical error after “5-12.5(A)(a)(11)” on page 3 (Councilman Vogel: explained the meaning of the paragraph; Councilman Kanitra: asked Attorney Zabarsky to read original paragraph being replaced and asked about the Elks providing private security guards; Councilman Vogel: ordinance wouldn’t apply to private property; Councilman Kanitra: asked if events are billed for municipal personnel; Councilman Vogel: yes).
Ordinance 2019-18 (Amend Ch. 5-Special Events) was considered on second reading. Council President Vogel opened the public hearing.
Dave Cavagnaro, PPB: asked if this ordinance would cover Jenkinson’s concerts on the beach (Councilman Vogel: no, this ordinance is not for that, but there are other regulations for other events and activities) there was a request for Bon Jovi to perform here at one time and it was denied (Councilman Vogel: there was no ordinance in place at that time).
Motion by Councilman Santanello to close public participation and adopt Ordinance 2019-18 was seconded by Councilman Toohey and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmen Vogel, Cortes, Toohey, Migut, Santanello…YEA
Councilman Kanitra…ABSTAIN
Mayor Reid …ABSENT
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 8:26PM
Three members of the public (residents of Point Pleasant, Freehold and Bradley Beach) spoke against Ordinance 2019-15 (Prohibit Sales of Kratom), which was adopted on December 3, 2019.
Dave Cavagnaro, PPB: thanked Mayor Reid, Councilman Vogel and Councilman Toohey for their service – wished all Merry Christmas (Councilman Toohey: as his last statement, as a matter of public record, he apologized for the campaign run against Mr. Cavagnaro in 2014).
Vivian Drozd, PPB: her curb cut was done but, unfortunately, her sidewalk was damaged during the work – it’s been addressed and hopes it will be rectified tomorrow; commended those leaving Council – great job – has seen changes in town since 1966 – was on the dais in Bergen County for a number of years – respects their positions and commitment.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 8:454PM.
Motion by Councilman Vogel to close public participation and adjourn was seconded by Councilman Toohey and carried by consent of Council. Meeting was adjourned at 8:45PM.
ATTEST: _______________________________
Eileen A. Farrell, RMC
Municipal Clerk
