Borough of Point Pleasant Beach Council Meeting Minutes
July 19, 2022
Held in-person at Borough Hall Council Chambers, 416 New Jersey Avenue, Point Pleasant Beach.
Live streamed via https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCflODKbSFakXUEKiyxSYdUA/live
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 regular meeting to order 7:30PM. 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.” Present were Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Ramos and Migut. Councilwoman Crowley was absent.
FLAG SALUTE, INVOCATION
APPROVAL OF COUNCIL MINUTES:
Motion by Councilman Ramos to approve the July 5, 2022 Council meeting minutes was seconded by Councilwoman Byrnes and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Testa, Byrnes, Ramos, Migut….YEA
Councilman Vitale….ABSTAIN
Councilwoman Crowley….ABSENT
PROCLAMATION:
Mayor Kanitra presented a proclamation to the Point Pleasant Beach High School Garnet Gulls Boys Varsity Baseball Team in recognition of their Central Jersey Group State Championship.
DEPARTEMENT HEAD MEMO:
Mayor Kanitra addressed the curb cut request at 310 Woodland Road: because of the driveway location switching and being next to a neighbor’s property, the Borough Administrator sent out 8 notices to neighbors contiguous to the property – only one response was received and it was positive – combining that with the professional’s opinion that there was nothing wrong with it, we have at least secured ourselves from making sure that another resident isn’t going to be upset by it – added to agenda as item 1v.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Vitale: wished Councilman Ramos a Happy Birthday; recognized July employee anniversaries – Michael Allegretta 2 years, Jeffrey Latshaw 2, Tyler Zukowitz 2, Megan Palmer 2, Terry O’Conner 17, Brian Patton 8, Kristin Troncone 1; gave the Police Chief’s report since last meeting – there were 24 arrests, 59 Borough Ordinances – Police Camp began Monday through July 26th with fun activities, physical and defensive tactics training and military drill – a great opportunity to develop a positive relationship with the campers and give them an idea of what the Police and other departments do in our community; Recreation Committee kicked off the Summer Concert Series last Wednesday with Dr. Cheeko – great success – big shout out to DPW Super. Trout and DPW for cleaning up the vandalism at the Bandshell – a Jazz Ensemble, sponsored by the Manasquan Music Academy, is scheduled for July 29th, and Anthony DiDio, Sinatra impersonator, will be on August 17th – Summer Camp is in its 2nd week and going great with 213 kids – held a successful football camp a few weeks ago – thanked Coaches Zaccone, McGee, Wagner, Bower and Yates, Joe Leone’s, Jersey Mike’s and Thrive Spine & Sports Rehab – fall events are being planned, such as the Bonfire, Fishing Derby and Tug-of-War – looking for volunteers.
Councilwoman Testa: the Arts Committee Beach Party is Thursday, 4PM-8PM on Bay Ave. with music, Senior Committee show, kid’s crafts and 45 artists – looking for members; Beautification is doing a fantastic job with planters and watering; shout out to the First Aid Squad who do an amazing job, especially in summer with all the visitors – are always out – all volunteer – are lucky to have them.
Councilwoman Byrnes: the Shade Tree Commission will be assessing trees around Little Silver Lake again to provide an updated list of tree health; the Golden Gulls had a free Ice Cream Social last Tuesday with 67 residents – Hoffman’s donated the ice cream and there was a movie – August 25th is a fireworks boat cruise – details to follow.
Councilman Ramos: as school is out, the Bd. of Education buildings are getting renewed and ready for the new school year; the concert series was amazing – about 150 residents, dancing under the stars, an incredible night – great event – fantastic location – urged all to attend the next one.
Councilman Migut: the Animal Welfare Committee met – are happy to report, for the first time in years, that no cats are currently housed in the cat trailer – a testament to their 12 years of work – Trap, Neuter & Release maintained and controlled the feral cat population – Committee members heard Muskrat Jack is retiring in November (BA/CFO Riehl: he didn’t express that to her) suggested, if he does, and a contract is being prepared for a new Animal Control, it might need to be tweaked, as the Committee will have to rely on the Animal Control Officer a little, due to resignations and out-of-town moves (BA/CFO Riehl: if we end up doing that, will do an RFP for professional services) suggested negotiating a reduced rate for emergencies like a rabid racoon or snapping turtle (BA/CFO Riehl: part of the appropriations from bond ordinance passed at the last Council meeting is to upgrade the trailer – money is in place when ready to move forward) will let them know (Mayor Kanitra: a big accomplishment – asked Councilman Migut to thank the Committee) Committee hopes to approve some new members and hopes the fundraiser at Last Wave in September will draw people out – some elderly members had to resign (Mayor Kanitra: new blood is important – will do a Career Fair this winter).
MAYOR’S REPORT:
Mayor Kanitra: recognized former Councilman Cavagnaro’s birthday; are sending a commercial crew to the Beach Party to get a couple seconds of video for Committees to attract families to PPB year-round; had a great conversation with the Federal Government about 2 weeks ago about the Coast Guard Station – has been frustrated with the stagnation of the archaeological study that’s been slowing it down – they said we should have resolution on that within the next month or so; another great initiative that Councilman Vitale has been spearheading for a year and a half is the plaques that have finally been ordered – applause to the Fisher Family Fund – focus on the town’s history will be in your face with beautiful bronze plaques, which are about $1K each, going on 13 buildings or so downtown, with QR codes that will create a historic walking tour of PPB, hopefully let building owners know that they have something worth putting money; applause to QOL Dir. O’Rourke for last night’s informative SID meeting – had experts from around the State and the head of Downtown NJ – information was pertinent, fact-based, data-driven – talked about return on investment – answered a lot of common sense questions – Councilwomen Byrnes and Testa were there – had a slide about dispelling misconceptions – took a ton of work – she is an example of great government in action – her presentation itself was well-spoken, well-stated and well-presented; the newsletter should be arriving in mailboxes tomorrow – full of good information; talked to a friend on the Sister Cities Board, who is reaching out to the French Embassy to try to shake things forward with relationship with Bonifacio, now that the pandemic has waned; have a contract awaiting review for free electric chargers, which will be great for the town, as we don’t have any.
ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT:
BA/CFO Riehl: been working through the lead service lines report we had to submit to DEP by Friday, the 22nd – it was submitted today – have roughly 1,300 households that we need to identify or not identify as having lead service lines – is also working through the NJEIT financing program for any associated expenses – that is the low-interest, principal forgiveness loan; working on next year’s Budget – our insurance broker anticipates potentially a 22% increase in health insurance costs – trying to work through a claim’s summary to see if there are other options available – different plan, different company; on this agenda is to work with the Borough Attorney on commercial parking loading and unloading zones – were focused on one area, but decided to broaden it to see if we can incorporate other areas in town, such as street-ends off Ocean Ave., where delivery trucks pull in and block pedestrians or traffic – to see if we can control or regulate that in some better manner and keep traffic moving (Mayor Kanitra: asked about making requested Boardwalk repairs – railing, boards, screws, etc.) railing is done – believes it’s all finished – are taking a stab at the graffiti – won’t come off with a power washer – will try a sander (Mayor Kanitra: looks greasy near the food stalls – funnel cake stuff gets caked on – asked if there is anything we can do) that’s why we bought the sander – decking material is like a sponge – went down several levels with the sander – it’s better, but not gone (Atty. Riordan: the consideration at the time was that the wood we used to have gets replaced more regularly than this stuff – that’s why this was chosen over the wood, but it has other unintended consequences; Mayor Kanitra: asked that we reach out to the board supplier for the manufacturer’s cleaning recommendations) can try; stated, for the record, that Point2Point Shuttle is important to PPB – his personal opinion – don’t have the trolley right now – were questions raised by Code Enforcement and other departments about the logistics – he reached out to the MVC heads – awaiting a ruling – is very optimistic – hopes to find a resolution.
Clerk announced additions to the agenda (Mayor Kanitra: asked if 2h is in addition to those recently hired; Chief Kowalewski: yes – a new officer).
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 7:58PM
Mayor Kanitra: clarified that this public participation period is for everything on agenda and any ordinances on first reading – discussion about ordinance on for second reading will be at the end of the meeting – there is nothing on for first reading, so this is for agenda items only.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway, PPB: thanked all the for the good wishes; asked if 1v affects parking spaces (Mayor Kanitra: no); asked about 1s – where it’s going from and to (Atty Riordan: Dukes; Mayor Kanitra: to the Boatyard that’s opening soon).
Vince Castin, 15 Trenton Ave., PPB: asked about 1g (BA/CFO: fundraiser bike cruise); asked about 1q (Mayor Kanitra: identified an opportunity to save town a good bit of money on a regular basis – are advertising and will be interviewing applicants soon for that position) Engineer is great (Mayor Kanitra: agreed); asked about 1t (Atty. Riordan: found an area of the law that he is not an expert at – it’s called redevelopment – Mr. Nelson is – Borough is going to talk to Mr. Nelson rather than him because he doesn’t know enough); the film at Golden Gulls social was cool – stuff like that is exciting to residents – great job (Mayor Kanitra: good feedback – is glad he and 50 other people came – are thrilled to have so many great volunteers making sure seniors were happy – didn’t have a senior committee a couple of years ago – many wouldn’t have anything to do otherwise – thanked him for recognizing).
Marilyn Burke, PPB: asked of 1a is an increase or decrease from Payroll #13 (BA/CFO Riehl: have to approve every payroll – overtime by department is approved as well – can get her particulars – are on every agenda).
John Bezerra, 400 Niblick St. PPB: asked about 1q – been a lot of complaints about the Building Dept. or Engineer – he has a lot of complaints about them too from clients – this is a great idea, but there is a major backlog of engineering that needs to be looked at – about a week ago, the Engineer went on vacation, so everything stopped – looking at least 2 months+ before a set of plans gets looked at – no reason Colliers couldn’t assign another engineer to do the work – not rocket science – a lot of people want their house built before winter and closed up – asked that something be passed to help the situation – get a couple more engineers to clear out the backlog – used to take 2-3 weeks to release permits and engineering – 2 months is too much time (Mayor Kanitra: a dedicated person will have more time – a lot of professionals share with other municipalities – been that way in PPB for 30 years since John Walsh was the in-house Engineer – to the Bldg./Code Dept.’s defense, there is an unprecedented influx of building and construction permits, construction – pandemic saw so many houses sold and turned over – most were smaller houses getting turned into bigger houses – people moving from their primary residence up north and relocating here full-time – is a member of the Barrier Islands and Ocean County Mayor’s Associations and is a Board Member of the NJ Conference of Mayors – they’re all dealing with it) understands the workload, but there is no reason not to hire 2 more engineers – asked if homeowners are paying (Atty. Riordan: no; BA/CFO Riehl: have an engineering firm and one principal engineer – looking to bring principal in house to be a full-time employee and use the outside firm for items to go out to bid or larger projects – is aware of backlog in the Bldg. Dept., but maybe this will move things forward) asked for help in the meantime (BA/CFO Riehl: will look into it).
E.J. Geiger 115 Arnold Ave., PPB: asked about 1t – if primarily dealing with SID (Atty. Riordan: don’t know the answer to that yet – he is the expert and will help us).
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 8:08PM
Motion by Councilman Vitale to close public participation and approve the items listed below was seconded by Councilwoman Byrnes and carried by roll call vote.
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
1a Approval of payment of Payroll #14 ($367,174.33)
1b Approval of payment to the State of NJ for employee & retiree health benefits for July ($124,786.01)
1c Memorialization of appointments of C. Savage & C. DeLorenzo as Counselors in Summer Park Program
1d Approval of payment to M. Woszczak for emergency water main – 1305 Ocean Ave. ($5,987.88)
1e Approval of payment to OCUA for 3rd quarter sewerage payments ($318,071.25)
1f Approval of payment of hand checks from various accounts
1g Approval of S/E application for Priority Bicycles Cruise the Coast Summer Tour, 7/27 at Ocean & Inlet
1h Approval of S/E application for Athletic Trainers Society of NJ 5K, 11/13 at Bandshell & Bdwlk area
1i Approval of salary adjustment for J. Johnston for passage of course leading to certification
1j Approval of ABC S/A application for Elks Member Assistance Fundraiser, 8/13
1k Approval of payment to Ocean County Treasurer for County tax levy – 3rd quarter ($2,459,646.28)
1l Approval of pymt to the Community Endowment Fund for Senior Budget ($3,500)
1m Approval of pymt to Forerunner Industries for floodplain management software ($8,500)
1n Approval of pymt to PPB Parking Authority for 2022 contribution ($60K)
1o Approval of S/E application for PPB Surf Club Team Practice, 2x/week, 9/8-10/31, MD Ave Beach
1p Authorization for Borough Atty to amend ordinance as it pertains commercial loading & unloading zones
1q Authorization to hire an in-house Borough Engineer
1r Approval of payment to Hudson County Motors for emergency repairs to GT ($8,958.81)
1s Approval of Person-to-Person Transfer of ABC License #1525-33-011-006
1t Appointment of B. Nelson & Firm of Archer & Greiner PC – Freehold, NJ as Special Projects Atty for redevelopment counsel pursuant to contract attached
1u Approval of S/E application for PP First Aid & Emerg. Squad Monster Dash, 10/29, Bdwlk area
1v Approval of curb cut at 310 Woodland Rd., per recommendation of the Zoning Officer – PER DH MEMO
11 CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
2a Approval of payment of computer-generated vouchers ($4,138,387.82)
2b Approval of payment to Hutchinson Plumbing for Police air conditioner repair ($9,175)
2c Approval of PO to Winner Ford for Police interceptor vehicle ($32,263)
2d Approval of payment to Skyland Area Fire Equipment for 5 PPE sets – Morning Pride ($19,876.30)
2e Approval of membership for J. Leonard in Fire Co 1 and the NJ State Firemen’s Assoc.
2f Approval of payment to Web Alliance Int’l for new Police Dept website ($3,960)
2g Approval of payment to Fire & Safety Services for repairs to 4303 ($8,445)
2h Approval of A. Hodge to the position of SLEO II – PER BA/CFO
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Ramos (except 1j,2d,2g), Migut (except 2a,2d,2e,2g)….YEA
Councilmen Ramos (1j,2d,2g), Migut (2a,2d,2e,2g)….ABSTAIN
Councilwoman Crowley….ABSENT
ORDINANCE:
Ordinance 2022-16 (Creation of a Special Improvement District) was considered further for final passage. Atty. Riordan: to recap, had the ordinance up for second reading, had the public hearing, closed the public hearing and then chose to hold the ordinance until tonight, to have a public form, which he understands was last night – at this point, are ready to vote on this ordinance – can put the second public comment now and then do the ordinance or could have a second public comment on the ordinance and then pass it and then have a second public comment (Mayor Kanitra: then we’ll take a vote). Motion by Councilman Vitale to adopt Ordinance 2022-16 was seconded by Councilwoman Testa and carried by roll call vote.
VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Byrnes, Ramos….YEA
Councilman Migut*….NAY
Councilwoman Crowley….ABSENT
* Not a good time to hit the businesses with a new tax.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 8:13PM
Rob Moreau, 622 Trenton Ave., PPB: what he saw at the public forum was an excellent beginning, with the Mayor calling for all to have an open mind – wished he would have too – presentation was excellent – would have hoped for someone to say it isn’t a good idea or an answer to how you recognize a SID that’s going wrong – hard to have an open mind when flooded by one side – at the end were people in support of the SID – one was a non-shareholder, a Mayor from another town, the second was definitely a shareholder – not a single other business property owner voiced support – all said we don’t need this, timing is wrong, they like PPB the way it is – what you did tonight was over the advice and consent of the stakeholders – you knew better – his mind was changed – he wants to get in on it and isn’t even in the district – idea is great, but timing is wrong – none of the Governing Body have skin in the game – now that we have a 501(c)(3), donation is tax-free (Mayor Kanitra: will donate the first $1K) have said, by your vote, that you know more than the stakeholders and you have no skin in the game (Mayor Kanitra: now we do).
Robert White (2022 President of NJ Realtors & Managing Broker for Coldwell Banker in Spring Lake) doesn’t live in town: here to speak about Ordinance 2021-33/Short-term Rental Ordinance – questions have gone unanswered – Section 13-18 loosely defined and on the line of discrimination – asked that it be looked at – where it defines “agent” for the landlord – he, along with 62,000 other practicing NJ real estate agents, can list, sell or do rentals anywhere across the State – are not allowing them to do business in PPB with this ordinance – asked who is better to be named as an out-of-town landlord than a real estate professional – are vetting tenants and representing landlords – in his office, it took 4 times to get a CO application approved – found out 2 weeks later the tenants received a violation for putting garbage in the wrong colored bag – a neighbor is not going to tell the tenant that, but a real estate agent would – asked that the ordinance be reconsidered to allow a real estate agent, without an office in town, who is governed by the NJ Legislature under Real Estate Commission License Law, to represent that tenant or be the designated agent for that landlord – many other Ocean and Monmouth towns with short-term rental ordinances allow this (Atty. Riordan: nothing prevents him from being the real estate agent inaudible in PPB – doesn’t matter where your office is – you can be the rental agent who finds the tenant and does all the ordinary services from your office anywhere in the world – but, in addition to you, the landlord has to have somebody else – we use the word “agent” – that lives in town) are using the term “agent” for the landlord and only allowing that person to remain as the designee for the landlord if they have an office in town or if they live in town – finds that discriminatory (Atty. Riordan: can do everything you do as a professional real estate agent, but there has to be an agent who lives in town in addition to you) understands he can rent property in the Borough – is asking Mayor and Council to look at the ordinance and change it, so a real estate professional can be classified as the designee for landlord because they will be more responsible than a next-door neighbor (Atty. Riordan: can look into that).
James Ward, Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living: thinks it’s an unintended consequence that the homeowners he represents, many for longer than anybody’s been sitting here, are being told by this administration they can’t name him as the emergency contact – ridiculous – lacks clarity – should be looked at – no good reason there can’t be something in place to give them that allowance – discredits him and his clients – unacceptable and outrageous – there is an easy solution, especially for someone like him who is an emergency contact – asked that it be figured out.
Ken Freeman, 93 Norwalk Ave, Whiting (Realtor with office Pt. Pleasant): asked the purpose of having someone in town – that’s the clarity needed – asked if it is because of a fire – ordinance doesn’t stipulate why someone has to be a local resident to represent a home – he has a client in Vermont and he is the representative – if they need something, they call him (Atty. Riordan: it was the recommendation of the Bldg. Dept. – this was discussed at great length in December when the ordinance was passed – his recollection is that the Building Dept. had an explanation for that).
John Bezerra, 400 Niblick St., PPB: wished there was an open session tonight for the SID (Mayor Kanitra: we did, last night) has been on committees – knows how much work all have done – is open minded and for this thing – major stakeholders are building owners and business owners and secondary are the town members (Atty. Riordan: should probably be talking to the Mayor and Planner – in terms of what the members are, he just wrote what they asked) board gets appointed by the Mayor – doesn’t believe there should be a Councilmember on there – maybe a liaison (Atty. Riordan: required by statute) asked if they have voting power (Atty. Riordan: yes) doesn’t think the Chamber and resident members should have voting power – last night, people from different towns said we can create whichever board of directors we choose and it doesn’t need to match a set of rules – should be voted on – should be a liaison – Mayor of Maplewood said something important – the elephant in the room is the Chamber and they have to stay in their own lanes – they don’t have someone on the Chamber on their board – should be comprised of more business owners and property owners – doesn’t know if it’s going to be enough money for all they want to do – hopes it will do great things – if there are problems, the will go to the board – great presentation – should be a separation of powers.
Kristen Lewis, Brick (works for Coldwell Banker, 1112 Third Ave, Spring Lake): is one of the people who had her landlord’s application denied – sold a house in PPB about 5 years ago to a client who trusts and relies on her – is here all the time checking on the house – they have a strong relationship – if there was an emergency, she is around the corner – it’s about the relationship you build with the landlord.
Andrea Bowne, 103 Arnold Ave., PPB: Bandshell is underutilized – remembers when there were concerts there every Thursday night – asked about permit restrictions for events – event on July 2nd was atrocious – this is the second time it’s been so loud she can’t even sit on her porch and she is far from the Bandshell – didn’t want to call the Police (Mayor Kanitra: received complaints; Chief Kowalewski: got complaints – spoke with performers and will take that into consideration if they apply again next summer) doesn’t care who performs, but the base was turned up so loud, her house was shaking; (Mayor Kanitra: we have a noise ordinance; Chief Kowalewski: under the Board of Health code – were trying to work with them – they had a Special Event application and the event was approved – had them stop earlier than 10PM) they were still performing – they just lowered the volume at 8PM because at 8:01 she called because she had enough – her neighbors couldn’t get their babies to sleep (Chief Kowalewski: will be noise from any concert) event the other night was fine (Mayor Kanitra: asked if application can be amended to set a decibel level that events are not to exceed – have to quantify it – got a complaint from someone on Parkway – Governing Body hears her loud and clear and agrees with her – will try to quantify that as much as possible); she heard that Uber is no longer picking up at Jenkinson’s at closing (Mayor Kanitra: they are) had people laying on her lawn waiting for their Uber pickup at 2AM (Mayor Kanitra: asked if she called the Police) no (Mayor Kanitra: have every right, under the ordinance, to express inconvenience to Police, so they can react at that moment – it takes getting the ticket to resonate – only way to squash it, proactively – Recreation Committee has 3 scheduled concerts this year – Arts Committee has asked to do some as well – should have full slate of concerts next year) asked if events can use the Bandshell instead of setting up a portable stage 50 yards from her bedroom window (Mayor Kanitra: sometimes they request that – have an appetite to let the Breast Cancer folks keep doing that because of the impact it makes for the community – the 4th largest fundraiser for breast cancer in the country – looks at everything individually and Chief gives recommendation); appreciates stopping parking on Arnold Ave., as they tailgate in front of her house at 6AM (Mayor Kanitra: please call).
Rob Sorenson, 89 Chicago Ave., PPB & Matt Luongo, 130 Randall Ave., PPB (co-owners Point2Point Shuttle): Mr. Sorensen: thanked the Mayor for his comments – helpful for residents trying to bring something good to the community – looking for transparency, communication, a path forward – knows the business model may be novel to the town – last 2 weeks have been painstakingly difficult – zero communication – tried coming to the Borough to talk to folks directly, tried calling and emailing to find options to operate a small business in town – frustrating – this is the key time for this business to support businesses, seasonal people and residents – been extremely well-received – losing the capacity to bring a phenomenal service to people – spoke to the MVC as well – hopefully the Mayor will receive the same information they got – a town issue that needs to be resolved (Mayor Kanitra: someone accused him of having a financial stake as he is so supportive – must ensure residents and riders are safe, that not opening floodgates to hundreds of these things, that we are working with aesthetics and everything on the books – will work on it (Atty. Riordan: his office has been in constant communication with these gentlemen’s attorneys – Borough has been in constant communication with these folks and their attorneys, trying to explain what the issues are and how to deal with them – the State of NJ, DMV and Superior Court Judge has to resolve this (Mayor Kanitra: if we get that documentation, that may fix everything); Mr. Luongo: has been one-way communication – received very little from the town, Attorney, Zoning Official – have tried every avenue and been denied – have retained an attorney – are 2 local residents, trying to open a local business for the community – even if this doesn’t come through, they just want an explanation – unfortunately, have to come to the Council to ask for that – been going to the Town Hall looking for an explanation and have gotten road blocks (Mayor Kanitra: are proactively working on it and expending our own time to try and resolve it; Atty. Riordan: been acting as these gentlemen’s attorney at Mayor Kanitra’s request – trying to find a path for them – been in constant communication with their attorney – is disappointed the don’t think we are talking to them – understands that they haven’t been able to talk to government officials because the communication has to be between the attorneys; Mayor Kanitra: hopes all get where we need to be); Mr. Sorensen: appreciates Council’s support – Mayor has participated in some rides around town – really appreciate that – looking for a path forward – real problem is that communication has fallen flat (Atty. Riordan: real problem was their counsel was on vacation) not contesting the State statute, but the interpretation.
Vince Castin, 15 Trenton Ave., PPB: event at the Bandshell was the loudest he’s ever heard.
Catherine Toten, 3 Water St., PPB: owned her home for 37 years – family has home on Brunswick Row for 45 years – startup of the shuttle was one of the greatest things that happened this summer – enables them to be part of the town – once you’ve brought your car down, you can’t move, so you are not accessible to the restaurants – you brought your food down and stayed in your house all weekend – didn’t go downtown shopping or anything – this shuttle has made life wonderful – one weekend, 5 homes on her street took it to restaurants because it’s so easy – great thing –really helps homeowners along the Boardwalk to get out and be part of the community – urged that it get running again (Mayor Kanitra: appreciates her coming – must go through steps and do it the right way) you see this in other towns.
Bryan Hutchinson, 727 Oak Glen Road, Howell (CEO of Monmouth Ocean Regional Realtors): has roughly 16,000 agents – 561 of them did a transaction in PPB last year – about 70% are in the close community – ordinance was thoroughly vetted – at times, ordinances need to be re-evaluated – asking Council to re-evaluate the one clause that precludes real estate agents from being the primary point of contact because they don’t have mailing address in PPB – these are people to come and enjoy and work in this community – creating an anti-trust environment – loose definition of “agent” which is not intended to be a real estate agent but, a representative for the town to contact – a mailing address can be forwarded – just because you have that address doesn’t mean you are in PPB – NJ Legislature licenses people who can act as an agent for someone else – attorneys-at-law and real estate agents – town is, by proxy, encouraging non-agents to potentially engage in the practice of real estate-related activities – 561 of people who work with him generated well into the hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue in this community and are precluded from working here as the primary designated agent without a secondary agent who has that address – tends to appear to border on quasi-anti-trust or compulsion to practice real estate without a license – requested re-evaluation to see if there is a mechanism to add the language “licensed real estate agent in the State of NJ or another appointed agent that has an address inside of the town” – that adjustment would make monumental differences to the ability to practice real estate in town (Atty. Riordan: will look into it).
Bruce Shapiro, NJ Realtors, 10 Hamilton Ave., Trenton: spoke with Mayor Kanitra in December before Council adopted this ordinance – Atty. Riordan spoke with one of his previous colleagues a few weeks ago (Atty. Riordan: and he was very accommodating and understood what he said) with any well-intended ordinances, can be unintended consequences – not asking Council to repeal the ordinance – asking for a minor change – to help better the intention of the ordinance – to use licensed real estate agent, who is more likely to contact the property owner and address concerns – hopes Council will reconsider Section 13-8f.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway, PPB: are a growing number of electric bikes, skateboards and scooters on sidewalks and the wrong side of the roads – safety issue (Chief Kowalewski: not just e-bikes – everyone; Atty. Riordan: supposed to operate according to the rules of the roads; Mayor Kanitra: thinks the $400K grant Councilwoman Testa got for pedestrian and bicycle safety will help; Councilwoman Testa: likes the arrow on Marcia in the Boro – suggested them for Rte. 35; Atty. Riordan: it’s terrifying when turning west on Arnold and a bike is coming east in the westbound lane – not looking for it; Councilwoman Testa: she always stops because they are not looking – if you don’t live around here, you don’t know; Mayor Kanitra: some have tried to sneak onto the Boardwalk; Councilwoman Testa: Police do the best they can).
E.J. Geiger, 115 Arnold Ave., PPB: Ubers are parking and waiting for calls – asked if a zone can be set up, like at the airport (Mayor Kanitra: thought about that – is open to it at night; Atty. Riordan: wouldn’t have to do anything other than direct them) suggested the train station (Chief Kowalewski: do direct them to the taxi stand on Ocean Ave. and Jenkinson‘s has been bringing them into the parking lot – not waiting for calls but for passengers) no, they are waiting for calls (Mayor Kanitra: can discuss at Police Committee meeting) Dr. Cheeko concert was great – reiterated about the noise from the concert before that – flagged down an officer but was told they have a permit and they couldn’t do anything about it (Mayor Kanitra: call him or Police Dispatch; Atty. Riordan: don’t call the Mayor – call the Chief).
Kitty Stillufsen, 54 Channel Dr., PPB: at the last Council meeting, she mentioned the short term rental lawsuit – Mayor Kanitra commented that we won and Atty. Riordan said it was dismissed – asked which lawsuit they were referring to (Atty. Riordan: shouldn’t be talking about litigation) lawsuit she was talking about, Selvaggi v. PPB, is still very active – was told she was confused about it (Mayor Kanitra: has a document, a court decision in favor of PPB) asked for what lawsuit (Atty. Riordan: that lawsuit – all a matter of public record – can go on court’s web site and look) just because you requested it be dismissed doesn’t mean you won – asked if it is true that it is still very active (Atty. Riordan: no – it’s not true) that’s a lie right to her face in a public meeting – is certainly not confused about that (Mayor Kanitra: asked her about using Borough social media pages for personal gain or about going and bothering PPB businesses).
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 9:04PM
Motion by Councilman Vitale to close public participation and adjourn was seconded by Councilwoman Testa and carried by consent of Council.
Meeting was adjourned at 9:04PM.
ATTEST: ______________________
Eileen A. Farrell, RMC
Municipal Clerk
