Borough of Point Pleasant Beach MINUTES
he Mayor and Council of the Borough of Point Pleasant Beach met at 6:37 PM with Mayor Barrella and Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino and Dixon present. Councilman DiCorcia was absent. The Municipal Clerk read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
Department head memos and correspondence were discussed with items moved to agenda for action; Councilman Cervino: asked Council to consider amending Ordinance 2008-03, assuming it passes, with the stipulation that hotel/motel operators with efficiency units will have to pay only one charge for efficiencies instead of a charge for each – was not the intent to have additional cost incurred on top of hotel/motel taxes.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, to enter closed session to discuss (1) contractual and (3) personnel matters, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon…YEA
Closed session started at 6:43 P.M. and ended at 7:21 P.M.
Mayor Barrella called the regular meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. Present were Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino and Dixon. Councilman DiCorcia was absent. The Municipal Clerk again read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, to approve minutes of the February 5, 2008 Council meeting, was seconded by Councilman Loughran and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon,…YEA
Mike English, 111 Cornell Drive: claimed that revised Open Public Meetings Act states that anytime the Governing Body votes, be it a first or final reading, there must be a portion where the public can voice concerns before the vote is taken [not aware of change – public has the opportunity to comment (on first reading) during public participation, and to further comment at second reading]; Governing Body decided to allow the public to speak on all three ordinances at this time.
Mayor Barrella, with aid of Councilman Dixon, explained all three ordinances and outlined proposed parking plan; Councilman Mercun: chief concern about plan was the disparate treatment between resident and non-resident taxpayers – voiced concern and that portion has been changed; Councilman Loughran: asked if it would affect first reading if Borden’s parking lot was pulled from Ordinance 2008-07 and made a separate ordinance (introduce by title only on first reading); Councilman Cervino: not easy to strike a balance between different groups – plan is not about being anti-tourist, anti-boardwalk or anti resident – striking a balance is about doing what’s best for the town – asked for indulgence and reminded all of the “Three C’s”: Civility, Courtesy and Collegiality – fine to disagree, but let’s disagree correctly and properly; Councilman Dixon: main problem is that there hasn’t been enough public input on these ordinances, only short talks in budget and caucus session – final ordinance came out Friday night with only 2 days to review – major plan and changes to residents’ lifestyles.
Mayor: opened discussion to public and asked all, for the purpose of clarity and the record, to state names and address and indicate which ordinance they’re commenting on.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, to table all ordinances on first reading, and schedule something so people have opportunity to be heard, was seconded by Councilman Dixon and defeated by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Dixon….YEA
Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino….NAY
The following individuals spoke in opposition to Ordinance 2008-07:
Patrick English, 200 Atlantic Avenue John Gelson, Orchard Avenue
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue
Mike English, 111 Cornell Avenue Monica Paradise, 202 Chicago Avenue
Joel Wolber, 211 Parkway Daryl Day, 307 Yale Avenue
Stan Ageloni, 500 Chicago Avenue Ron Politowski, 415 Yale Avenue
Anne Lightburn, 307 New Jersey Avenue Vince Castin, 15 Trenton Avenue
Jaimie Paradise, 119 Randall Avenue James Ward, 106 Ocean Avenue
John McManus, 114 Randall Avenue
The following individuals spoke in opposition to Ordinances 2008-07 through 2008-09:
John Fernicola, 202 Arnold Avenue
Edward McGlynn, representing Jenkinsons and McStorman
The following individuals spoke in opposition to Ordinances 2008-07 and 2008-09:
Andrea Baum,103 Arnold Avenue Teresa Perone, 202 Arnold Avenue
Joe Lemma, 203 St. Louis Avenue: favored placing parking boxes in Borden’s lot.
Edward McGlynn, Counsel for Jenkinsons: asked that the April 1st meeting be held at school.
Marilyn Burke, Central Avenue: questioned who in Districts 3 and 4 asked for this plan and how much of it was Councilman Dixon’s; asked for a public meeting, as talking about a major change.
Chris Albers, 111 Central Avenue: teenagers who work at Boardwalk are taking spaces and will park further back because they can’t afford paid lots – suggested putting employees in school lots and shuttling them (don’t have school lots) or using state property west of tracks.
Ben Dispoto, 311 Parkway: asked about cost structure and worst/best case scenarios.
Curt Leach, 315 Curtis Avenue: commented on Ordinance 2008-09 – on back door of every hotel, says “Rate not to Exceed” – maybe less difficulty if you post a “Rate not to Exceed”; there is a property on Newark Avenue worth $350,000 – $400,000 (on ROSI and can only be sold to finance another open space acquisition). Michael Binacci, 111 Niblick Street: 3-hour window doesn’t help those of us who cannot find anywhere to park when coming home from work.
Max Gagnon, 304 Parkway: suggested, 4-6 weeks ago, that fees in lots be raised $1/hour – would have fixed this.
Frank Kineavy, Frankies Bar & Grill: asked how ordinances will change downtown parking.
Ed McGlynn, Counsel for Jenkinson’s: raised 3 legal issues – (1) there are a number of consent decrees between the DEP and the Borough of Point Pleasant Beach, which accentuate the availability of parking and the necessity to have parking, (2) what you are doing, by way of a parking plan, is in fact changing the Zoning Ordinance – that should be reviewed by the Planning Board as it’s a change to the Master Plan, and (3) there is a rush to push this through.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to remove section on paid parking in Borden’s lot from Ordinance 2008-07 and to consider matter separately as Ordinance 2008-10, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon….YEA
Ordinance 2008-07 (Parking Plan) was introduced on first reading.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-07 was approved on first reading. The public hearing will be held on April 1, 2008.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun*, Loughran, Tooker….YEA
Council Members Cervino, Dixon.…NAY
*Councilman Mercun: voted ‘yes’ to move the process forward – in the next 2 weeks, should contact members of Council to express your viewpoints – can e-mail him at johnmercun@comcast.net or call him at home before midnight – no politician will ever succeed in office if they continue to talk about raising taxes – parking plan is the Mayor’s effort to keep taxes in check – by voting ‘yes,’ am giving him the opportunity to present this plan, with bipartisan input – in two weeks, I may vote ‘no’ or move to table – some people might prefer an increase in taxes –easy way out – trying to do my job and the mayor is trying to do his job.
Ordinance 2008-08 (Permit Parking Off Season) was introduced on first reading.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to approve Ordinance 2008-08 on first reading, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and defeated by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran….YEA
Council Members Tooker, Cervino, Dixon…NAY
Ordinance 2008-09 (Post Parking Fees) was introduced on first reading.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, to approve Ordinance 2008-09 on first reading, was seconded by Councilman Loughran and defeated by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran….YEA
Council Members Tooker, Cervino, Dixon…NAY
Ordinance 2008-10 (Establish Paid Parking in Borden’s Lot) was introduced on first reading.
Motion by Councilman Cervino, to approve Ordinance 2008-10 on first reading, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and defeated by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Cervino….YEA
Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Dixon….NAY
Mayor Barrella called a five minute recess at 10:33 pm and reconvened the meeting at 10:43 pm. Present were Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino and Dixon.
Ordinance 2008-02 (Establish Handicap Parking Space by High School) was considered on second reading. Public hearing was opened, held, and closed with no member of the public wishing to be heard.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-02 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon.…YEA
Ordinance 2008-03 (Increase Certificate of Occupancy Fees) was considered on second reading.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway: – no problem with fee increases, but should be amended to “rental license,” not “certificate of occupancy” – unfairly holds rental properties to be in compliance with building code, that changes from year to year, affecting their occupancy ability and forcing upgrades to their properties, that other homes in Point Pleasant Beach never have to deal with – unfair and discriminatory.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-03 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun*, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino**, Dixon.…YEA
*Councilman Mercun: voting ‘yes’ with proviso that we’re adopting an amendment
**Councilman Cervino: without amendment, it punishes a group of people who already feel punished.
Ordinance 2008-04 (Establish Late Fees for Mercantile Licenses) was considered on second reading. Public hearing was opened, held, and closed with no member of the public wishing to be heard.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-04 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon.…YEA
Ordinance 2008-05 (Establish Late Fees for Annual Fire Registration) was considered on second reading. Public hearing was opened, held, and closed with no member of the public wishing to be heard.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-05 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon.…YEA
Ordinance 2008-06 (Increase Building Fees) was considered on second reading. Public hearing was opened, held, and closed with no member of the public wishing to be heard.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilwoman Tooker and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinance 2008-06 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Dixon.…YEA
Councilman Cervino….NAY
Clerk Ellsworth added several items to Consent Resolution 2; Councilman Mercun and Ben Dispoto, 311 Parkway, asked questions about payment to Lexis Nexus.
Motion by Councilman Mercun, seconded by Councilman Cervino, resolutions covering the items listed below, were approved by the following roll call vote:
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
a) Payment of 1st Quarter installment to OCUA ($144,377.16)
b) Payment to Horizon BCBS for employee health benefits ($129,788.37)
c) Approval of Payroll #6 ($208,548.27)
d) Payments to CMX from escrow accounts ($1248)
e) Waiver of municipal raffle fee for Ocean Fire Company #1
f) Approval of January and February hand checks ($2,336,533.77)
g) Payments to Galvin Law Firm from Board of Adjustment accts ($1905)
h) Refund of dumpster bond ($250)
i) Authorization for Pt Pleasant Women’s Club members to solicit local merchants for auction contributions
j) Approve Clean Ocean Action ‘Spring Beach Sweeps’ on 4/26/08 and ‘Fall Beach Sweeps’ on 10/18/08
k) Payment to Ahern Copy Center from Planning Board escrow accts ($255.20)
l) Payment to Warnock Fleet for 2008 police interceptor ($21,162.79)
m) Payment to Fiemster Bequest ($4746.34)
n) Payment to United Computer for exchange server ($26,675)
o) Payment to Brick Utilities for February bulk water usage ($56,424.94)
p) Payments to Motorola for digital radio MCC 5000 police desk equipment ($166,839.55)
q) Payment to Clayton Block Co for concrete mixer ($2951.40)
r) Progress Payment #2 to A C Shultes for well decommissioning ($75,519)
s) P O to Warnock Fleet for 2008 Dodge Dakota ($16,000)
t) Appointments to Playground Grant Sub-Committee
u) Authorization for PPB Little League members to solicit local merchants for auction contributions
CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
a) Progress Payment #2 to A C Shultes for well decommissioning ($5850)
b) Payment to Lexis Nexis for online charges from 12/06 thru 01/08 ($2320)
c) Award of contract for Borden’s Parking Lot improvements to Lucas Construction ($385,396.43)
d) Payment to State of NJ for NJPDES Permit for roadway improvements to Sanborn Ave and Water St and authorization for Mayor to sign application ($300)
e) Payment of application fee to Ocean County Soil Conservation District Permit for roadway improvements to Sanborn Ave and Water St and authorization for Mayor to sign application ($1400)
f) P O to Best Uniform for public works uniforms as per union contract ($4953.18)
g) P O’s to Rutgers for planning and zoning courses ($1505)
h) Approval of Chamber of Commerce special event application for Car Cruise events
i) Approval to submit permit application to N J Transit for extension of water/sewer service
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon…YEA
Mayor Barrella: announced that copies of the resolution dealing with town’s ability to raise revenue, were available – any pressure that the citizens of Point Pleasant Beach can bring to bear on local legislators would be appreciated – also working with League of Municipalities.
Councilman Mercun: as they represent the lion’s share of the budget, Finance Committee will meet first with Police and Public Works departments; asked if any figures were solicited on cost to take down building at 29 Inlet Drive (trying to get it done by County, under schedule C, which would save a substantial amount of money.)
Councilman Loughran: quiet two weeks, in terms of Police activity, compared to prior two weeks – thanked Police for protecting municipality 24/7 – nothing personal in terms of contractual and budgetary items.
Councilwoman Tooker: Mayor is being very humble and modest – he’s been interviewed by Comcast Newsmakers and will be on TV next week – really making strides with Local Tax Option Authority and being recognized in Trenton – other towns are reaching out to him; Recycling Committee asked that Special Events Application be amended to include a clean-up bond – many groups leave a mess, a lot of work for Public Works – would also like to require groups to order a couple of igloos for Silver Lake lot for each event – provided free by County, which also picks them up for recycling – use a lot of water bottles during walks and there’s no recycling (Attorney Gertner was authorized to amend Special Events ordinance).
Councilman Cervino: thanked law enforcement for all they do for the town; thanked everyone who participated at tonight’s Council meeting – interaction was informative and enlightening; Public Works deserves accolades for cleaning basins – called Freeholder about having County increase street sweeping on Ocean Avenue, and helping to clean storm drains; quality of life issue at DPW building – serious water leaks, in places – very real electrical hazards – asked Administrator to research roof replacement (received quotes last year, but both exceeded bid threshold – if Council chooses to bid project, have money in bond ordinance to cover repairs.)
Motion by Councilman Cervino, to authorize Borough Engineer to prepare bid documents for DPW facility roof replacement, was seconded by Councilman Mercun and carried by following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon…YEA
Tourism Advisory Committee discussed what tourism means and the state of tourism in town – have real concerns, number of days people are staying has gone from 4 to 2 – only 92% of hotel/motel owners have full usage – inappropriate point of view out there that town is not favorable to tourists – committee discussed how to get three components, Boardwalk, downtown area and hotel/motels, more intricately involved – several things were suggested – a Message Sign to highlight cultural and Boardwalk events and emergencies – jitney service to get people from the Boardwalk into town and vice versa – Boardwalk personnel were concerned about downtown area and hotel/motels becoming as productive as possible; concerned that the town doesn’t have a consistent complaint policy – questioned why the town doesn’t require every department to fill out a complaint form, providing copies to respective Council members and the person filing the complaint – expressed need for town to become more user-friendly, not just with complaints, but also with tourists and business owners.
Councilman Dixon: thanked Public Works for fixing Boardwalk by Jenkinsons and Martell’s and thanked Jenkinsons for donating materials; looking into starting a Neighborhood Watch Program through the Police Department – been in contact with Dr. Ravally about putting out fliers and sending information home with students.
Mayor Barrella: need to authorize Bond Counsel to draft a bond ordinance that will reclassify certain monies to allow us to make street improvements, should Council pass the parking ordinance – Administrator indicated $50,000 would do, but there are components of it for Channel Drive – asked Administrator for recommendation (there are two bond ordinances with sufficient money – could re-appropriate use of that money or start brand new) is needed to pay for those improvements and for improvements at Channel Drive and Broadway – otherwise, would have to cut stuff out of the budget to pay for things like street striping, because we’re at the appropriations cap (with interest rates continuing to drop, another option may be to re-appropriate and refinance everything; can amend ordinance to use it for a different purpose; Councilman Mercun: asked if this would be to finance the parking plan implementation, if it were to pass) Mayor: what we’ve got here, is striping which is needed, and parking boxes, if we decide to go that way, at Broadway/Channel Drive area (Councilman Mercun: understand urgency to get ordinance moving, but it’s putting the cart before the horse because we don’t know what’s going to happen on 2nd reading and are already talking about bonding – should wait until after the April 1st meeting) Mayor: understands that if we have a bond ordinance voted on at first reading on April 1st and adopted on April 15th, will be May before money can be spent, because we have to wait 20 days – if we wait for the next meeting, we’re into the end of May, almost Memorial Day, and we’ve got signs going up around Memorial Day – if we don’t pass the parking ordinance, and motion is made to put the boxes up on Channel Drive and Broadway, we won’t have money to put them there – need to put money in place – need money to get street striped.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, to authorize Bond Counsel to draft ordinance to re-appropriate monies in existing bond ordinances, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote.
VOTE: Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino…..YEA
Council Members Mercun, Dixon….NAY
Administrator Riehl: started I&I improvements on Monday – 1 of 3 phases – started in 1998 with the videotaping of the lines and progressed to this point – identified 19 streets and 51 locations in need of total replacements or repairs – met with engineers who informed us that, through subsequent videotaping, seven areas, that previous engineer indicated needed either total replacement or repairs, were fine (Mayor Barrella: find that very troubling) being financed through infrastructure trust loan and are obligated to borrow that money – thanked Jim Broyles who identified areas, slated for Phase 2, that can be added to enable us to spend that money in Phase 1 – residents will be notified before work is started on their streets.
Councilman Mercun: asked Clerk to make copies of the parking plan ordinance available for public.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD OPENED AT 11:19 P.M.
Captain Kevin O’Hara, Point Pleasant Beach Department: read from the following prepared statement, on behalf of each regular Police Officer: “We wish to make it a matter of public record, that we are not in support of a pending proposal that officially declines to replace regular police officers who have separated from the police department. We believe that such actions, if they were to occur, would be contrary to the best interests of the residents of Point Pleasant Beach. There has been much incomplete, inaccurate and even misleading information circling in the public domain regarding the operations of personnel within the police department. Unfortunately, meetings such as these, because of time constraints will not facilitate a complete disclosure of factually-based, accurate information that the general public would benefit from. Accordingly, we have scheduled a public information sharing session to be conducted on Tuesday, March 25, 2008, beginning at 7pm, at the VFW Hall on St. Louis Avenue. We invite all residents and business owners to attend what we believe will be a very informative session”; extended personal invitation to members of the governing body.
Mayor Barrella: issue arises on whether or not Governing Body can attend en mass; Attorney Gertner: Council Members, even as individuals, should not be placed in a position that they are speaking on behalf of Council – your intent to go to that meeting wouldn’t be to act as a Council and take action – you need to be cognizant of that when you’re engaging in any communication; Mayor: asked, if it was just three of the seven, would they be in a better position to interact and exchange information than with a full complement of Council members (yes) – mentioned decisions/actions in statement, implying plural – there is no plural, talking about one situation, not an ongoing, continued policy.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway: requested microphone be elevated for easier use and stated that all ordinances, on first reading, should be read and voted on separately.
Max Gagnon, 304 Parkway: Police Department should not be decreased – Boardwalk businesses need to help offset Police staffing expenses.
Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue: can sell his property and get more in interest than rent; would like to see how many Police Officers are really needed and settle this – signs belong by Senator Ciesla’s office – Trenton should send us more money if we need more Police.
Mike Loundy, 312 Atlantic Avenue: just found out that Council is salaried – if you really want to help and did this for free, you could replace an officer and possibly get another.
Curt Leach: seems paltry – Police Officers came tonight to show their support – a very tight knit group of professionals; asked for clarification about the state participating in parking revenues; inquired about DPW construction work and re-start date.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD CLOSED AT 11:43 P.M.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:44 p.m.
