Borough of Point Pleasant Beach Borough of Point Pleasant Beach
Council Meeting Minutes
February 4, 2020
The Governing Body reserves its right to amend and supplement the purposes of executive session by motion at the public meeting.
Mayor Kanitra called the meeting to order at 7:30PM. Present were Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Cortes, Santanello and Migut. 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 Migut to approve the January 21, 2020 and January 29, 2020 Council meeting minutes was seconded by Councilman Santanello and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Cortes, Santanello, Migut…YEA
CEREMONIAL OATH OF OFFICE was administered to Councilwoman Caryn S. Byrnes by the Municipal Clerk.
Councilwoman Byrnes: is honored to represent the people – PPB is a special place for its schools beaches and businesses, but it’s fabulous folks make it a community – came for an extended visit in 2009 when her cousin Maggie was battling breast cancer – quickly felt welcome and became enchanted with the school system – her daughter Jackie graduated in 2015 and her daughter Sophia is a currently a senior, while her son Louis went to school in Jersey City and Warren Twp. – her appetite for politics became clear years ago in her hometown of Jersey City, serving as a committee person in her district, election after election – she set her sights on quality of life issues and is proud of what she attained – is grateful for this opportunity and will worked very hard – thanked everyone.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Vitale: congratulated Antrim Teacher of the Year, Kimberly Carr and PPBHS Teacher of the Year John Polumbo; the College Board selected PPBHS, one of 30 high schools to receive the AP Computer Science Principles Female and Diversity Award, which honors schools that are engaging more female students in computer science courses; met with the Fire Truck Committee last week about the fire truck and equipment they want to purchase – is identifying possible grants to fund it; gave the Police report since last meeting – training included Canine, SWAT, Firearms Application Registration System and a Field Training Officer Course – there were arrests for Possession of CDS and drug paraphernalia, DWI and other motor vehicle offenses, simple assault, disorderly conduct and contempt of court – the first meeting of the Neighborhood Partnership Initiative is February 26th – invited all – he and Det. O’Neill worked on this new program which will focus on safety issues and bolstering communication with residents and visitors – goal is to have monthly meetings and for residents and the Police to exchange information – are working on a social media page to be launched before the meeting – Dept. is hiring additional SLEO I's and Parking Enforcement Officers for the 2020 summer season – take great pride in selecting the best candidates – residents will see an increase in patrols on residential streets in Districts 3 and 4, targeting quality of life issues and criminal activity – Canine Officer Loki is retiring due to medical issues and will live with PFC Drew – the DePacos will fund a replacement dog; the Recreation Committee met on Monday – 20 people attended, which is up from about 5 – lot of ideas – will hire a Summer Park Program Director first, then Counselors; is working on a cyber security initiative – met with BA/CFO Riehl and the IT vendor to get a better understanding of PPB’s computer systems and is currently writing cyber security policies and a training program for Borough employees.
Councilwoman Testa: Arts Committee gala is March 21st, 7-11PM at the White Sands – $65 tickets can be purchased at www.ptbeacharts.com; Arts Committee’s dinner and movie will be March 7th at 6PM at PPB Fire Company No. 2 – showing Ferris Bueller's Day Off – partnering with Surf Taco and sponsored by Barefoot Realty – $5 donation – bring chair – all welcome; been corresponding about her Street Smart initiative – will meet with BA/CO Riehl, Det. O’Neill and Lt. Kowalewski; congratulated the PPBHS/Manasquan Co-Op Boys Swim Team on their 200 free style relay win.
Councilman Cortes: recognized February employee anniversaries – Mike Fioretti 25 years, Pete Andreyev 25, Marc Distelcamp 23, Bob Kowalewski 17, Andy Meany 17, Chris Mosca 17, Joseph Gippetti 16, Robert Berg 1, Shane Bomenblit 1; the new Beautification Committee Chair is Mary Steiner – Committee has 6 new members – have reviewed barrel and garden assignments and removed the Christmas garland and swag downtown – Committee is asking for a budget increase to $5,500 to replace disintegrating garland (Mayor Kanitra: asked BA/CO Riehl to look for some, as she did an amazing job on selecting the snowflakes); congratulated Councilwoman Byrnes, who will replace him as liaison to the Shade Tree Commission – Commission is maintaining 56 trees planted in the last 5 years – a new tree was knocked down by a delivery truck on Broadway – Commission filed their required annual report with the State.
Councilman Santanello: congratulated Councilwoman Byrnes – and asked what she and Councilwoman Testa would like to be called (both said "Councilwoman"); relayed a funny story that he and Mike Fioretti were born on the same date in same hospital; reminded Councilman Vitale to get the Farmers Market and Ladies Auxiliary together to talk about parking (Councilman Vitale: he did – all on the same page); read information about Chill.org, board sport programs for youth – would like to look into it and involve the Recreation Committee once the skateboard park is built in spring; spoke about Ordinance 2020-02, which contains 2 new positions (Quality of Life Director and P/T Maintenance Worker 1 Grounds) concerned about approving this prior to seeing an ordinance creating the positions – uncomfortable lumping them in in the dark of night and being forced to vote “no.”
Motion by Councilman Santanello to pull the 2 new positions from Ordinance 2020-02 and consider them separately was seconded by Councilman Cortes and defeated by roll call vote:
VOTE: Councilmembers Santanello, Cortes….YEA
Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Migut….NAY
Motion by Councilman Santanello to pull Ordinance 2020-02 off the agenda, until the 2 new positions are created as individual ordinances, was seconded by Councilman Cortes and defeated by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Santanello, Cortes….YEA
Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Migut….NAY
Asked that items 1j, 1s and 1t be considered separately (Councilman Cortes: added 1b; 1j, 1s, 1t & 1b to be considered separately as Resolutions 3, 4, 5 and 6).
Councilman Migut: Animal Welfare Committee is working on their spring fundraiser, with a target date of April 5th
Councilman Cortes: it’s awesome that Bob Santelli, Class of 1969, former PPBHS teacher and a professor at Monmouth and is in the Hall of Fame, won an Emmy (Grammy) for co-producing the Best Historical Album – Robert and Dean DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots were the first from PPB to win such an award.
Mayor Kanitra: congratulated Councilwoman Byrnes – nice to see 2 Councilwomen for the first time in a long time – she, like Councilwoman Testa, is here on her own merits – she is connected to the community – her work in the school system and across town has endeared her to him – her passion is incredible and she is a genuine, nice person with an incredible family, which is a testament to her (Councilwoman Byrnes: if her family weren’t such wonderful humans, she would not be able to serve); HGTV's Hometown Takeover helps with downtown façade improvements – Kim Surowicz Allen, Carol Vaccaro, Mike Knapp, Steve Fischer and Greg Cox have worked tirelessly to put something together last minute for submission – Mike Knapp brought his drone – a local guy has some connections – will also use the incredible town footage for a business and economic development video; thanked Chief Michigan and his Dept. for enforcing the dog ordinance on the Boardwalk – this administration is about the small issues and enforcing ordinances; had a productive meeting with Congressman Smith and the Coast Guard Housing Division Captain about the Coast Guard building divestment – expressed its importance to the town’s heritage and history – iconic – Point Pleasant Beach and the Coast Guard Station are inseparable – they were trying to find a method to realize a profit – trying to steer them in a direction where it can be divested through historic means – want to put the Historical Society Museum and Boat Museum there and use it for arts, environmental and activities space, which is sorely needed – are kind of at the top of the list – will be meeting again in July in Washington, DC – they believe that the process should be completed 4 years earlier than expected, by summer/fall 2021; congratulated former Borough Attorney Zabarsky for his excellent job on a dilapidated vacant property on Sanborn Ave. – he was successful in getting a court order for the demolition – this will help to remove a blithe from the community; congratulations to the PPBHS wrestling team, who beat the Boro for the first time since 1998 – will have proclamation at the next Council meeting; the blue benches at the Inlet are rusting – funds were allocated last year to fix that – working on it; introduced Elaine Garcia, PPBHS Student Intern and liaison to the High School – will attend Council meetings, etc. – might task her with spearheading a Student Government Day.
BA/CFO Riehl: second budget meeting will be held in the next week to focus on the capital budget and individual requests; are back to square one on the streetlight LED surveys – person in charge retired (Mayor Kanitra: new rules will be coming in about 6 months, so the sooner, the better); should have approval for an award of pavers outside Borough Hall at the next Council meeting (Mayor Kanitra: storage space is ready in the basement – can tell the Environmental, Arts and Recreation Committees) has been too cold to paint it, but they can store things there; is meeting with DEP on Monday on the dune project wrap-up, maintenance and future issues (Mayor Kanitra: will be a separate meeting to talk about the Lake of the Lillies grant application – thanked her for spearheading) in two weeks, will meet on a grant application for a nanobubbler, and an algae bloom grant – almost $85K in funding; will be going out for RFP for an IT consultant/computer services – was authorized in January – hasn’t been issued yet, but when it is, will work with Councilman Vitale on interviewing companies about issues including responsiveness, maintenance, spam emails, computer crashes and such.
The Municipal Clerk announced revisions to the agenda.
PULIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 8:18PM
Dave Cavagnaro, PPB: welcomed Councilwoman Byrnes; thanked Councilman Cortes on behalf of the Beautification Committee for removing garland; asked if item1d is a new event and about resolutions 1j/4, 1u and 1x.
Vince Castin, PPB: agrees with Councilman Santanello on item 1t, asked about item 1c, the Coast Guard Station and if stores are still selling Kratom, as he has seen it in Nobles.
PULIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 8:31PM
Motion by Councilman Migut to close Public Participation and approve the items listed below was seconded by Councilman Vitale and carried by roll call vote
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
1a Approval of payment of Payroll #3 ($284,712.46)
1b CONSIDERED SEPARATELY AS RESOLUTION 3 PER COMMITTEE REPORTS
1c Designation of PPB as an Ocean County Stigma-Free Zone
1d Approval of S/E app for Fulfill 5K run in the bandshell/boardwalk area on 4/11
1e Approval of S/E app for Chamber Festival of the Sea on 9/19 (rain: 9/20, 9/26 or 9/27)
1f Approval of S/E app/fee waiver for Chamber Festival of the Sea 5K on 9/19 (rain: 9/20, 9/26 or 9/27)
1g Approval of S/E app & fee waiver for Chamber Sidewalk Sale 5/14-16, 8/13-15 & Ladies Night 7/9
1h Approval of S/E app & fee waiver for Chamber Christmas Tree Lighting on 11/27 (rain: 11/28)
1i REMOVED PRIOR TO MEETING
1j Approval of amended Res 2019-1203/1i-2 to reflect free bulk drop off, except concrete/tree stumps/tires
1k Approval of ABC S/A app for Elks charity event for a local special needs child on 2/23
1l Approval of refund to K. Freeland, Matawan NJ, for unused rental CO at 330 Rte 35($150)
1m Authorization to extend MOAEC program for participating residents
1n Approval of payment to Mitchell Humphrey for 2020 annual Fast Track fees ($5,700)
1o Auth for Administrator to apply for 2020 CDBG Program – Imp. to Ocean Ave. Pedestrian Access
1p Authorization to advertise for Dir., Asst. Dirs & Counselors for Rec Summer Park Program
1q Approval of payment to M. Woszczak for emergency repair on New York Ave ($4,281.62)
1r Approval of PO to Hudson County Motors for 2020 sanitation truck parts ($3,500)
1s CONSIDERED SEPARATELY AS RESOLUTION 5
1t CONSIDERED SEPARATELY AS RESOLUTION 6
1u Approval of PO to Fernbrook Nursery for 10 trees ($3,250)
1v Approval of PO to Liberty Elevator Corp for monthly service & service call encumbrance ($3,500)
1w Approval of LOA for employee #000047053
1x Approval of Committee Appointments
1y Approval of payment to Sprague Resources for 2600 gallons of diesel fuel for DPW ($5,404.36)
CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
2a Approval of payment of computer-generated vouchers ($2,648,195.09)
2b Approval of membership in Ocean Fire Company No 1 for B. Brooks, Point Pleasant Beach
2c Auth for Fire Co 1 Ladies Aux to accept parking donations Sun. 5/24-9/6/Mem. Day/Jul 4/Labor Day
2d Approval of S/E app & fee waivers for Fire Co 1 raffle sales/trailer on Bdlwk, 5/4-9/15
2e Approval of pymt to Motorola Solutions for annual maintenance of police equipment ($16,676.98)
2f Approval of PO to Motorola for all band consolettes and mobile radios for PD ($27,562.90)
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Cortes, Santanello (except 2e, 2f),
Migut (except 2a,2b,2c,2d).…YEA
Councilmembers Santanello (2e, 2f), Migut (2a,2b,2c,2d)….ABSTAIN
RESOLUTION 3: Approval of pymt of Pay Cert 1 to Earle Asphalt-Imp to St Louis/Ph II ($358,116.99)
Attorney Riordan: contractor provides a certification for payment to the Borough Engineer – if Engineer certifies the work is done, the prompt payment statute kicks in three is an obligation to pay – if Engineer had not certified the work to be done satisfactorily, would not have an obligation to pay (BA/CFO Riehl: pay request submitted was for $75K more than this – they need to come back in the spring and finish the punch list – amount was withheld as an impetus for them to come back promptly; Mayor Kanitra: asked the ramifications if Council votes no) must pay interest to the contractor and can be responsible for attorney’s fees and additional costs – Engineer agreed that what he saw is not satisfactory (Councilman Cortes: asked if Borough would be penalized for holding payment for 2 more weeks) would have to look at the time period and compare it to the statute (Councilman Santanello: BA/CFO Riehl did a good job, but wondered why Engineer signed off at all) Engineer’s obligation is to approve work that is completed satisfactorily and pay that and only withhold for the work that is not (Mayor Kanitra: putting foot down in terms of negligent work from contractors – sending a message that contractors will give us our money’s worth or there will be hell to pay).
Motion by Councilman Cortes to HOLD Resolution 3 for 2 weeks and have Attorney research was seconded by Councilman Santanello and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Cortes, Santanello, Migut….YEA
Attorney Riordan: BA/CFO Riehl noted that the Engineer’s certification was January 21, 2020, so standing on firm ground.
RESOLUTION 4: N/A (Request to consider item 1j separately as Resolution 4 was rescinded upon explanation during public participation)
RESOLUTION 5: Approval of 2020 professional services contracts as drafted
Councilman Santanello: contracts indicate Borough Administrator and Borough Attorney reviewed – thought Council signed off on Attorney’s bills (Mayor Kanitra: that’s just what is in the ordinance) – concerned that last year, Borough Attorney Zabarsky’s not to exceed amount was $75K and this year, Attorney Riordan’s is $140K and asked what happens if it goes over, as it has in the past (BA/CFO Riehl: required to indicated a not to exceed amount – another resolution would be required to authorize exceeding that) asked if the Riordan Law Firm would submit monthly bills – in the past, there was a bill submitted after 6 months of none – hopes it doesn’t happen again; had $580K additional surplus – tonight, are spending an extra $70K on attorney’s fees, hiring people for $70K and $30K, so the $580K is already down to $410K – as a Libertarian, would like to see his people get some tax relief (Mayor Kanitra: not expecting to spend an extra $100K on attorney’s fees; Attorney Riordan: would expect they will be in line with what was spent during the last 3 years) is skeptical (Councilman Cortes: asked why there are 12 Special Project Attorneys, 4 Alternate Prosecutors and 4 Public Defenders; Attorney Riordan: Public Defenders were at the request of the Municipal Court – often, a number of defendants, all of whom need a different Public Defender, are involved in the same incident; Mayor Kanitra: none of the Special Attorneys are guaranteed any sort of payment – ran on a platform of more accountability in town – part of that is making sure there is a specialized individual for a specialized case – have tried to make pools – all per-hour rates were essentially the same – can dole things out individually – stands by this 100% – asked if all contracts must be done at once: Attorney Riordan: money is not spent by approving contracts; Mayor Kanitra: asked if not to exceed amounts are often exceeded; BA/CFO Riehl: keep professional services the same even though the budget line item might be different – won’t use all of them – alleviates the need for further resolutions) should put in realistic numbers to reflect what is done in the past – doesn’t like emergency resolutions at the end of the year (Mayor Kanitra: no appetite to go up in expenditures – maybe engineering because of the Master Plan; Attorney Riordan: legal costs should remain the same – there are a number of lawsuits).
Motion by Councilman Migut to approve Resolution 5 was seconded by Councilman Vitale and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Cortes, Migut….YEA
Councilman Santanello….NAY
RESOLUTION 6: Authorization to advertise for and hire 2 DPW Laborers
Motion by Councilman Santanello to hire 3 DPW laborers and no part-time person died for lack of second. (Mayor Kanitra: having ownership of that person in town hall is important to cleaning up the town, as DPW people get pulled away to do other things and are lost to other towns – this is a small expenditure in terms of the overall aesthetic; Councilman Cortes: asked if the 2 new DPW laborers are replacements; BA/CFO Riehl: yes – one left in December and one is for the Meter Shop).
Motion by Councilman Migut to approve Resolution 6 was seconded by Councilwoman Testa and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Cortes, Migut….YEA
Councilman Santanello….NAY
ORDINANCES
Ordinance 2020-01 (Amend Ch IX, Sched XXI-Add Handicap Space) was introduced on first reading. Motion by Councilman Migut to approve Ordinance 2020-01 on first reading was seconded by Councilman Cortes and carried by roll call vote. The public hearing will be held February 18, 2020.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Cortes, Santanello, Migut….YEA
Ordinance 2020-02 (Amend Salary Ordinance) was introduced on first reading.
Attorney Riordan: there will be no ordinances creating additional titles (Mayor Kanitra: the notion that this is something being sneaked through is not true – urged all to move forward; Councilman Santanello: asked if dept. heads will still report to BA/CFO Riehl or to the Quality of Life Director; Mayor Kanitra: job description was amended based on discussion last meeting – other dept. heads will not report to the Quality of Life Director, but will work with; Councilman Cortes: asked why Maintenance Worker 1 Grounds is listed under Public Works; BA/CFO Riehl: makes no difference where it is listed; Councilman Cortes: doesn't say part-time; BA/CFO Riehl: it is part-time – salary ordinance does not authorize hire or duties, just gives a title and range should Council choose to fill position) those things would come up when the individual is on the agenda to be hired (Councilman Cortes: asked if the Confidential Secretary is the Police secretary and pointed out that the part-time Code Enforcement Officer makes the same as a Code Enforcement Officer Trainee; Councilman Santanello: asked if the part-time worker is union – if not, can expect objections from the unions; BA/CFO Riehl: no, but part-time is not recognized by the union; Councilman Cortes: these responsibilities have been taken care of forever – has a lot of respect for the other employees – pains him to vote the way he feels he needs to – DPW picks up trash and volunteers pick weeds – already have an ordinance that says property owners are responsible – Mayor Kanitra’s campaign promise was to enforce ordinances).
Motion by Councilman Migut to approve Ordinance 2020-02 on first reading was seconded by Councilwoman Testa and carried by roll call vote. The public hearing will be held February 18, 2020.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Migut….YEA
Councilmembers Cortes, Santanello….NAY
Ordinance 2020-03 was removed from the agenda.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 8:59PM
Vince Castin, PPB: asked about the Nobles lawsuit.
Dave Cavagnaro, PPB: asked about the metal dune wall, how beach entrances will be sealed and about the height of the sand dune in front of the Risden’s building; asked about reducing, suspending or eliminating the Open Space tax.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 9:04PM.
Motion by Councilman Cortes to close public participation and adjourn was seconded by Councilman Migut and carried by consent of Council. Meeting was adjourned at 9:04PM.
ATTEST: _______________________________
Eileen A. Farrell, RMC
Municipal Clerk
