Borough of Point Pleasant Beach MINUTES
The Mayor and Council of the Borough of Point Pleasant Beach met at 6:36 PM with Mayor Barrella and Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon and DiCorcia present. The Municipal Clerk read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
Department head memos and correspondence were discussed; contract for Public Works uniforms was held until it can be determined if funds were included in the 2008 budget.
Councilman Dixon presented an alternative parking plan: met with Mayor Barrella and Councilmen Mercun for input – puts quality of life before revenue – objective is to grant residents summer parking relief, prohibiting those without permits from parking on certain streets between 9 AM and noon – will push people into Silver Lake lot earlier and garner additional revenue – one zone with stickers and hanger permits, no parking boxes – includes metering of Broadway, Channel Drive and Borden’s lot – proposes season pass for non-residents – Capt. O’Hara and Chief DePolo suggest adding a winter plan to steer bar crowd to Silver Lake lot – gives all residents opportunity to park in Beach Zone, does not discriminate against taxpayers who are not full-time residents, eliminates need for unsightly, noisy pay boxes in residential neighborhoods, does not burden those in Green Zone to find parking for visiting friends and family, clarifies who can park in different zones and the need for multiple signage, protects taxpayers who own homes in bungalow area and do not have parking, eliminates parking problems at Municipal Building, St. Peter Church, Pleasure Park, VFW, Woman’s Club and Antrim School – winter plan will add revenue and give District 3 and 4 residents a better quality of life (Councilman DiCorcia: asked about meters on Ocean Avenue between Aquarium and Central; Mayor: permits are meaningless where there would be paid parking, because people can pay and park any time; Councilman Loughran: asked where a family coming to the beach can park, if lots are full on a Saturday morning) that’s the problem with both plans – haven’t added any parking (Mayor: kinks in any proposal must be worked out – feel some parts of plan will work and questions others – hopes they can continue to meet to come up with something agreeable – asked about seasonal renters) owner of seasonal rental should be able to give hanger pass to those they’re renting to (Councilwoman Tooker: thanked Councilman Dixon – takes a lot of work – Mayor and Council have put many hours in – need to be responsible and act – things have changed exponentially in town – many small municipalities have resident, permit and paid parking – change is hard – taking in all e-mails, calls and other plans – work in progress).
Marilyn Burke: commended Councilman Dixon’s plan and concern about quality of life in Districts 3 and 4 – asked how many signs were involved.
Anthony Lombardo: has rental units – seasonal renters are held to different standard than year-round renters – costs them more money to operate – would appreciate one hanger/unit.
Joe Lemma: been kicking this around for years – good start with Borden’s parking lot, but there is another lot on Arnold Avenue, that holds 200+ cars – should be boxes there and in the mini lot near Rudy’s – cars parked there all day – should meter every municipal lot.
Joel Wolber, 211 Parkway: urged Council to be careful about charging to park downtown.
Mr. Favato: owns two homes in town, one in Beach Zone that his son uses in summer and weekends year-round – asked what permits he would be entitled to.
Discussion was held on bonding options for parking infrastructure improvements, as Council is still working on a plan.
Motion by Councilman DiCorcia, to enter closed session to discuss possible pending litigation (2), and contractual (1) matters, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA
Councilman Mercun left the room.
Closed session started at 7:05 P.M. and ended at 7:31 P.M.
Mayor Barrella called the regular meeting to order at 7:37 P.M. Present were Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon and DiCorcia. Councilman Mercun left meeting at 8:52PM due to illness. The Municipal Clerk again read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
Mayor Barrella requested a moment of silence for Ellen Talbot, who passed suddenly last week; Councilwoman Tooker: dear friend and wonderful asset to community – served on Beautification Committee for about six years – tireless worker – real gem – will be sorely missed.
Motion by Councilman DiCorcia, to approve the minutes of the January 5, 2008 Council meeting, was seconded by Councilman Dixon and carried by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA
Fire Chief DeMillio: gave Fire Department overview – first 2 months of 2008 slower than previous years – 34 calls in January and February with apparatus running 100 times – 550 man hours and over 260 man hours of training by all-volunteer Department – already six calls this month – Board of Fire Officers looking to revise 5-year plan to give Council a better idea of future needs – started 5 new members in Firefighter One Academy – working with Catherine from “The Ocean Star” to provide monthly reports on services Department provides – always looking for new members – if anyone knows someone who wishes to be a Firefighter or Fire Policeman in town, contact him on the Internet (Mayor: thanked him for all he does).
Ordinances 2008-02 (Establish Handicap Park Space by High School), 2008-03 (Increase Certificate of Occupancy Fees), 2008-04 (Establish Late Fees for Mercantile Licenses), 2008-05 (Establish Late Fees for Annual Fire Registration) and 2008-06 (Increase Building Fees) were introduced on first reading. Motion by Councilman DiCorcia, seconded by Councilman Loughran and carried by the following roll call vote, Ordinances 2008-02, 2008-03, 2008-04, 2008-05, and 2008-06 were approved on first reading. The public hearings will be held on March 18, 2007.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA
Ordinance 2008-01 (No Parking on Portion of River Avenue) 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 2008-01 was adopted on second reading.
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA
Clerk Ellsworth added items to Consent Resolutions; Attorney Gertner: change order for Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project will provide update of TV monitoring, to allow contractors to see what they’re doing – original taping done in 1999; Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue: was told by former Council they were working on fixing trunk lines – when we spend money on things and don’t follow through, the next Council has to start over again.
Motion by Councilman Loughran, seconded by Councilman DiCorcia, resolutions covering the items listed below were carried by the following roll call vote:
CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:
a) Approval of MAC spring town-wide garage sale on 5/3/08 with waiver garage sale permits requirement for participants
b) Payment to Long Branch for K9 dog ($4000)
c) Approval of Payroll #5 ($246,626.41)
d) Payments to CMX from escrow accounts ($1703.50)
e) Scheduled Payment to PPB Board of Education ($774,676)
f) Payment to R Molner General Contracting for work on dispatch area ($2066)
g) Payment to Clayton Block Co for concrete mixer ($2951.40)
h) Payment to JW Scott Equipment for repairs to vehicle lift ($3038.49)
i) Payment to Pedroni Fuel Co for no-lead gasoline thru pricing co-op ($22,460.40)
j) Approval of computer generated vouchers ($104,207.23)
k) Payment to Barnegat Bay Jr. Wrestling League for league dues ($200) league dues
l) Payment to R Molner General Contractor for work completed in the police dept ($6480)
CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:
a) Petition Governor & State Legislature for local option tax authority
b) P O to Motorola for portable radio equipment ($3319)
c) Payment to Eagle Point Gun for police ammunition ($1192)
d) Payments to American Uniform & Supply for dispatch uniforms ($2573.70)
e) Payment to Alarm Distributors for base station ($755)
f) Payment to Alarm Distributors for punch down block & cable ($516.95)
g) Payment to Dell for computer and equipment ($1229.60)
h) Payment to VanWickle for auto supplies ($156.07)
i) Payment to TSI/A J Abrams for portacount plus ($7,629.05)
j) Scheduled Payment to PPB Board of Education ($744,676)
k) Establish April 29, 2008 as hearing date for ABC License renewal
l) Change order for Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project, not to exceed $7,000 – Closed Session Item
VOTE: Council Members Mercun, Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA
Mayor Barrella: resolution being sent to Legislators, Governor and League of Municipalities requesting Local Tax Option authority, to enable us to raise revenue from items such as beach badges and parking fees, and to extend Hotel/Motel Tax to short-term seasonal rentals – follow up on prior conversations with Senator Ciesla – trying to move forward with ability to generate alternative revenue sources from tourism; met with Councilmen Mercun and Dixon on Sunday to review Councilman Dixon’s parking ideas – comfortable with some things – dialogue should continue – hopefully, we’ll get a resolution and compromise – raise revenue for Pt. Pleasant Beach, provide relief for residents during summer and improve quality of life; appointed Bill Reilly, Mike Vuocolo, George Loder, Sal Pepe, Dotti Daly, and Sharon Cadalzo to Tourism Committee and Councilman Loughran as Council Liaison to NPP Committee.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Mercun read from a prepared statement, summarized as follows: Although not the chair of the Finance Committee, my membership on that committee is one the most important duties that I have been asked to undertake. Furthermore, my participation on this Committee and the recommendations it makes will have a direct impact upon Borough Departments for which I am the Council liaison. Therefore, my view as to what is confronting the operations of our government is important for you, as citizens of this town, all Borough Departments, their supervisors and employees as well as the Mayor and remaining Council members to know and therefore mandates comment by me…..during comments made by me at the first budget workshop, I used the expression "smoke and mirrors" regarding the budget process….comment was motivated by sense of personal frustration and exhaustion that I initially developed as a participant in the arduous budget process….should have been more circumspect in my choice of words so no one would misconstrue my personal views on the condition of our financial affairs. Mayor Barrella opined that the financial situation now facing the Borough was three years in the making. I disagree….my disagreement is not motivated by political party loyalty – it is solely based upon research and conclusions I independently made as a result of my first time participation as a member of the finance committee. I have no doubt in my mind that members of preceding councils, not just the past three, firmly believed that they engaged in the process and approved budgets that were appropriate as well as legally and financially sound….my only opportunity to actually witness what the budget process was all about came last year after I was elected to the Council. Everyone on last year’s Council had an opportunity to ultimately participate in and finally approve last year’s budget….for anyone of us, elected public official, public employee or resident of this town, alike, to decide to rest blame upon former Mayor Vogel, former Council members Corbally, DiCicco, Dyer, Liotta and Walsh, as well as all other former council members and Mayors for the present state of this Borough’s financial affairs is irresponsible and an insult to the public service of all who have preceded us on this Council and in no way positively ameliorates the situation we now face. …I have no intention, as a Councilman, to make decisions related to the duties of my office with the intent to further my political career…. I will continue to serve and take action in such a way to demonstrate consideration, openness, fairness, and most importantly respect for all responsible viewpoints expressed by our residents, public officials, public employees and my fellow members on the Council….when I used the phrase "smoke and mirrors" I in no way meant to denigrate the efforts of all those who preceded me on this Council, but based it upon what I have taken away from trying to understand and participate in formulating a municipal budget this year….with no formalized education in municipal accounting, all I could bring to the table was my previous involvement in trying to develop a budget for the County Prosecutor’s Office, the management of my business and personal finances and common sense. However, I have come to learn that formulating a budget to run all the departments in a municipality and provide services to its citizens are subject to statutory and institutionalized guidelines as well as certain public entity financial mandates making it a unique animal….also learned that formulation of a budget relies upon a degree of clairvoyance and fortune telling coupled with the nagging realization that the best made assumptions can be undercut or overturned by circumstances that could not be reasonably foreseen. Over the years, the formulation of budgets for municipalities in New Jersey have spawned innovative and lawful techniques which have become an institutionally accepted way to run the business of local government in this State….however, these commonly accepted practices in developing municipal budgets would not ordinarily be the way individuals would develop their personal budgets or conduct their individual financial affairs, which led to my personal observation that the municipal budget process in this State looks like an exercise in "smoke and mirrors"….during the process, increased revenues are predicted or planned for while there is hope that spending for municipal services can be kept in check. Sometimes the predictions for increased revenues never come to fruition, due to unforeseen circumstances, but we can count on the fact that cost for municipal services will increase.
To engage in cuts for municipal services has the very real potential of raising issues regarding the ability of government to adequately protect the health, safety and welfare of its citizenry and businesses and therefore must be engaged in cautiously…. need for caution is underscored by Governor Corzine’s budget plan, which includes the elimination of all State aid to towns with a population of 5,000 or less….an effort by the State to promote the concept of shared services by smaller municipalities… Who saw this coming? Members of this Council are engaged in the process of formulating a budget and haven’t a clue as to when and how much State aid will be cut. Do you see what I mean by "smoke and mirrors"? The time is now upon us to engage in circumspection and we may be faced with hard decisions that none of us want to make, including the possibilities of a tax increase and "layoffs" of Borough employees; occurrences which could have a host of devastating adverse effects.
The Finance Committee is now in the process of scheduling meetings with the heads of the municipal departments to discuss their proposed budgets. For the 2008 budget, the Finance Committee, used as a starting point the 2007 Municipal Budget for the various departments, making further reductions to those budgets by not replacing a police officer as well as a downward adjustment in the Public Works Department’s budget in contemplation of the retirement of Public Works Director Robert Meany….2008 budgets, requested by departments, exceeded their respective 2007 budgets…am sure each department head has developed and submitted a budget, which reflects their belief how their department services can be optimized. However, all items in a government agency’s budget must be open to discussion and possible negotiation.
In the past I supported Police Chief DePolo’s request to replace the officer financed for in his 2007 budget….involved in law enforcement for 30 years, starting my career as a Prosecutor’s Investigator….carried a weapon, worked on investigations and made arrests until graduation from law school….became an assistant prosecutor and spent 28 years prosecuting criminal defendants….developed a respect for police officers committed to meet and exceed the level of public service required of them by the law and society. Until recently I supported, without question, the financial necessity to give our police whatever they wanted and promised that to them as member of the Council. I now know that as a Councilman it is wrong for me not to question budget requests by the police or any other municipal department. In my zeal to demonstrate that I could set aside my prejudicial desire to give the police what they wanted, I began to question the need for the replacement officer and unfairly questioned police operations, drew conclusions and expressed opinions about those operations. The reason that this conduct on my part was unfair and unjust is that I never engaged the Chief of Police or any member of his staff in any type of discussion regarding police operations. I was wrong and I admit it.
Unfortunately, I have now opened myself to criticism with respect to any decision I make with respect to the police budget…. having learned this bitter lesson I am going on the record to state that I cannot nor will I make any promises to municipal department heads except that I will listen with an open mind to facts supporting the justification and need for their departmental budget requests, will not express any opinions or conclusions with respect to department budgets until the department heads have had an opportunity to be beard and questioned and will remain open to constructive criticism and efforts to show that my personal observations and conclusions made about any department’s operations were incorrect and should be reconsidered….but will continue to question and scrutinize….as a member of the Finance Committee , will closely re-examine the budget to insure that all was done that can be done. As I continue my learning process and research to develop a municipal budget, I vow to the people of Point Pleasant Beach, our employees and the Mayor and Council that I will be guided by integrity, due diligence, understanding, openness, caution, and what I believe to be fiscally responsible conduct on my part, in order to assist in the preparation of a responsible and reasonable budget this year and develop ways to deal with future budgets, including bringing in outside experts to independently assess and report upon the effectiveness and efficiency of our government operations….will adopt, as guide in the discharge of my Council duties, a statement from Father Theodore Hesburgh, the former President of the University of Notre Dame who said: "My basic principle is that you don’t make decisions because they are easy; you don’t make them because they are cheap; you don’t make them because they are popular; you make them because they are right."
Mayor: no question as to the financial condition we are in – a budget crisis – looking at substantial tax increase – asked Councilman Mercun if he believes this crisis suddenly appeared 60 days ago.
Councilman Mercun: every Council person before has tried to engage in this process and did the best job they thought possible – a lot has come about – 100% pension funding – 80% medical funding – Police salaries will likely to up – Governor has gutted state aid to municipalities – past is past – to point blame at anyone is irresponsible and means nothing – committed to doing budget and continuing to ask questions – just worried about doing my job – made a commitment and will work with Mayor, despite differences.
Mayor: has not ascribed blame to any member of this Council, nor any former Mayor or Councilperson – where we are now is a result of a bi-partisan effort – read his statement from the January 5th minutes regarding the need for Council to abandon short-term budgeting, to bring financial stability to Point Pleasant Beach – believes Councilman Mercun will work hard for the people – has done so, having participated in every budget meeting at the Mayor’s request – have reviewed the budget 3 or 4 times – the last time on February 26th when Administrator Riehl said we were $195,000 over the appropriations cap and we looked to squeeze what we could – state’s proposed cut is $127,000 from our aid – thanked Councilman Mercun – understands what his problem was – will move forward to try and solve the problems of Pt. Pleasant Beach.
Councilman Loughran: has known Councilman Mercun for over a year and has a great deal of respect for him – have been personally involved in 15 budget processes, with good and bad budgets – every Governing Body believes the budget they present is good, or as good as they can make it without jeopardizing residents – revenue depends on weather and sometimes revenue projections don’t match – from a political perspective, every Governing Body would like a budget with minimal tax increase, to help their candidates – in past 3 years, we’ve had practically no tax increase at the municipal level and every incumbent has lost – so, just do what’s right, what you believe, and you can sleep at night; reported on Police activities – no noteworthy events in past 2 weeks – would like to believe this is related to Motel Owners meeting two weeks ago – things have quieted immensely down there – in February, there were 240 motor vehicle stops, 122 non-parking violations, 22 parking violations, 31 adult arrests, 12 Borough ordinance violations and 19 warrants issued – quiet couple of weeks – Police needed that after December and January.
Councilwoman Tooker: Councilman DiCorcia and she met with School Board officials – have come far with recycling in schools in past couple years – plugged single stream paper process – town pays $70/ton for garbage and gets back $17/ton for paper; announced High School play, “Grease,” this weekend; Miss Point High is on April 5th; Shade Tree Committee is once again applying for Ocean County Tree Grant – got lots of trees last year – are being planted all over town, especially at High School – available to residents who live on a County Road – must go on curbline between sidewalk and street – contact Committee if you would like one; met with State and County representatives and our Engineers about Lake of the Lillies – lot of good ideas – very optimistic – can’t say much else due to litigation (Councilman Mercun: have received materials from other interested parties, which Committee is considering – not saying anything publicly until plan has been developed and reviewed with legal counsel for consideration by judge); dropped in Historical Preservation meeting last night – there are openings on that Committee – would like an inventory of buildings and a Historical Preservation Ordinance to protect them going forward – Committee is wonderful and works hard; appointed extra people to Recreation Committee this year, specifically to help seniors – Karen Mills has been working on a survey for seniors on what kind of programs they might be interested in; new Animal Welfare Committee met unofficially with Board of Health Officer Mills, Muskrat Jack, and a few members of the public – a lot accomplished – first official meeting will be next month – e-mail her if interested – talked about helping feral cat colonies – identifying, neutering, etc. – reapplying for permit to addle geese eggs – hasn’t been done for last couple of years – Muskrat Jack is capable of doing this, running dogs, and setting off pyrotechnics – all things that are non-lethal – has done in many communities – we pay him a monthly contract and he’s said he’d take on this job – knows the lakes, where the nests are – an expert who’s grown up here and performed this job for other towns – no reason to spend a lot of money to have presentations and fancy companies come in when our Animal Control Officer can do it – he doesn’t even want a raise – he reminded the Committee that it is illegal to harass any animal – he’s going to work with the newspaper and try to get articles printed – a good man – can call him with questions – would like Council to consider opening the Maryland Avenue Beach, which we own, for our four legged friends – Manasquan and Mantoloking allow dogs with leashes, off-season, as long as you clean-up – could install signage and post a punitive fine – current ordinance not being enforced – can’t expect our Police Officers to walk the beach, so it would be a nice thing to do.
Councilman Cervino: essence of democracy is disagreement and Councilman Mercun’s very passionate remarks point up that disagreement is acceptable – values working with him; will be roughly 13 people, with an additional Restaurant representative, on the Tourism Advisory Committee – will be meeting on the third Monday of each month with the first meeting on St. Patrick’s day – resurrecting the Committee to get a sense of goals and town vision – concerning revenue, would like to look at town’s shoulder season, spring and fall – hope Committee will point us in the right direction, so town is not seen just as a summer edifice, as referenced in the Tourism Advisory Report; introduced Ordinance establishing late fee for mercantile licenses, given town’s financial situation and the fact that some might take advantage; he and Councilman Dixon have been working on seasonal rental fees; would like to look into a formal complaint procedure – should be a triplicate form – one for who received it, one for who it went to, and one to go back to who complained – people need to know that their town government is responsive to their concerns; received a letter from JCP&L – can’t put signs on their poles – they have a right to address that forcefully with substantial fines; town of Helmetta is having a meeting on March 8th regarding Governing Corzine’s cut of all aid to small towns.
Councilman Dixon: reported on February Building Department activies: 24 warnings given for garbage blocking sidewalks, parking on front lawns, etc. – 1 summons issued –Department is still very busy – work load has not lessened due to economy; asked people to call if they suspect work is being done without proper permits and he’ll check into it; thanked Chief DePolo for taking care of the parking situation at Chicago and Broadway.
Councilman DiCorcia: thanked Councilman Cervino for remarks – owe most of our knowledge not to those with whom we’ve agreed, but to those with whom we’ve disagreed; also thanked him for his suggestion about complaint form – former Councilman Lurie came up with that several years ago – time to re-institute it – can have it here at Borough offices – saves a lot of time because, by the time you get to a Council Meeting, Council will have a response; thanked Councilman Loughran for appropriate response to Councilman Mercun’s statement – Mayor agreed we’re all on the same line in working together in the best interest of our town; thanked Councilwoman Tooker, Cathy and Ben – asked Ben (Dispoto) to further discussion about recycling during public participation; met with Board of Education and discussed public grounds with Superintendent – going through budget process – tough year – will address the Governing Body and public so we can get an idea of what they’re facing; thanked Fire Chief for sharing what the Fire Companies do – they go beyond being Firemen – invited all to stop by the Elks Lodge on the last Wednesday in July and watch the Fireman, First Aiders and Police Department work with disabled kids – glad they explained what they do and how they bring this community together; Fisherman’s light at Loughran Point has been taken care of; working on connecting new lights from Elks to Cramer Avenue – phase 3 of project.
Councilman Loughran: if you look at Federal, State, County and Local levels of Government, we’re always the one left holding the bag – doesn’t think there’s a Senator, Governor or Freeholder who loses sleep over the budget – we’re the ones who have to struggle, are most prudent, and try to save every dime – sure that’s not happening at any other level.
Mayor Barrella: will be attending an emergency meeting of the League of Municipalities dealing with State cuts and municipal aid – Commissioner Doria will be there – rest assured, he will hear Point Pleasant Beach’s position.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD OPENED AT 8:39 P.M.
Donna Maria Addellizzi-Diaz, 711 Atlantic Avenue: announced that Superintendent and Dr. Savage will present budget at Antrim PTO’s April 3rd meeting – open for public questions.
Anthony Lombardo, 309 Arnold Avenue: spoke on need to save money by eliminating pensions and health insurance for new employees and State Legislators – ran a business for 30 years and saved for retirement through 401K – 20 years ago, retirees were living 10-12 years – today, they’re living 40 years; suggested having someone come in and determine how many Police we need – Mayor Barrella is going to go to Trenton and talk to Legislators about getting tourism help for our expenses – if they say we need more Police, someone else has got to pay for that, not us; no reason why people should not be paying for their own health insurance.
Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway: asked Council to consider importance of parking plan and the number of people it’s going to impact – suggested no more meetings be held during workshops or caucus sessions where public doesn’t have right to speak – should have a public meeting, advertised in newspaper – asked that more hanger permits be issued to those living east of the tracks, as sticker pass might not help if they have company – stickers will negatively impact large number of rentals, especially in bungalow community – when those people are coming into town at 11:00 am to noon, their ability to park on the street is going to be made impossible; asked if anyone has considered recording meetings and putting them on TV – Brick Township is very aggressive – have them online and on Comcast – perhaps someone can investigate what Brick is doing and Point Pleasant Beach could copy it, so that more people could be aware of what’s going on; heard on TV that parking meters need to be certified for accuracy, and if not done every three years, any ticket can be challenged – asked if our meters are generally checked (will ask Administrator to follow up; will explore taping meetings).
Larry Beresik, 118 St. Louis Avenue: commented on e-mail he received about parking system – believes it was written by Mr. Ward, but some of his facts are not true – mainly amount of revenue generated by meters – Mayor’s plan, would save each household at least $500.
Joe Lemma, 203 St. Louis Avenue: suggested eliminating Parking Committee and doing something with the Planning Board, which has not been making good decisions – giving sanction to Risden’s to build houses – it says in our constitution and by-laws that you have to supply parking and bathrooms – it was on the front page and in the editorial of the “The Asbury Park Press” – doesn’t hear anyone saying they’re right (since Risden’s application is pending before Planning Board, it would be inappropriate to comment) stated that the morning after attending a meeting here, he found two BB holes in his windshield – a week ago, his garbage pail was found in the middle of the street and he reported it to the Police – it’s somebody who doesn’t like what he says, because he speaks the truth, but that’s won’t stop him from talking.
Attorney Gertner: appreciates Mr. Lemma raising the issue – whatever occurs, people should go to Planning Board meetings and voice their opinions – this is the incorrect forum for that – one of issues raised was existing and pending regulations – folks should look at NJAC 7:7E-8.11 and NJAC 7:7E-8.11a – talks about public trust doctrine and rights, including the right to perpendicular and linear access, public access ways and public access areas, allowing public to pass and use lands and waters – recognize that these are enforced by the DEP and not necessarily the municipalities – Mr. Lemma should raise these issues, at the Planning Board meeting, so he can put them on the record.
Marilyn Burke, 118 Central Avenue: asked what services Council is considering sharing with other municipalities, in response to Governor Corzine’s cut in state aid (Administrator has had conversations with surrounding municipalities – Governor’s real objective is consolidation turning our small community into a much larger, regional-type community – misguided approach in Trenton that larger government is better – can’t get their own house in order, so they keep pushing the problem to local government – exploring shared services with the School Board and Point Pleasant – shared services is just one issue in town – cannot cut without seriously impacting services that both we, and those who come to Point Pleasant Beach, receive – would not be very easy to balance budget if Local Finance Board denies us the waivers we need – if we don’t get those waivers, need to cut – unfortunately, only places to cut would be in the services area – may involve public safety and sanitation) suggested reducing winter trash collection from 4 days/week to 1 day/week (would probably mean laying off somebody) have to decide what we need, as people can’t afford to be taxed much more – shared services could be a good way of cutting expenses; asked Councilwoman Tooker to quantify how much money we expect to get from recycling and how many tons we collected last year (inadvertently left last year’s report at home – suggested she call Town Hall for those figures).
Max Gagnon, 304 Parkway: parking plan is a tremendous start, but needs rounding out – headed committee, 5 years ago, that tried to put together a plan very close to this one, but got nowhere because the Council did not back us – think it’s terrific and should be implemented with a few minor changes; happy to have such a good turn-out tonight – when people show, thing get done – when they don’t, things don’t happen; asked all to show up next Monday night.
Joel Wolber, 211 Parkway: served on FEMA Committee, headed by former Councilman DiCicco, which was intended to get town back into Flood Insurance Management program – will save homeowner 5% to 40% on insurance – asked if this was still being pursued (approved by FEMA – could mean considerable savings for roughly 5,000 homes, thanks to the efforts of Construction Official Gardner and George Loder – will hear in May or November that has been reinstated after being omitted for all these years) whoever was involved should be congratulated.
Chris Albers, 111 Central Avenue: parking discussions should be a more public –doesn’t think it was intentional that they weren’t – feels all meetings should be clearly posted on web site (last week’s workshop was an advertised special meeting, publicized by “The Ocean Star” article encouraging people to come – parking discussion was listed in caucus session of agenda that was posted on the web) traffic plan wasn’t posted on the web, which is very easy to do; live close to beach and only two times you can park on our streets, before Jenkinson’s employees get to work and after the bar goers go home at 2 AM –main thing is to make it available to just residents – commended Council on this plan, which is less alarming than what we read about in the newspaper – thinks a couple of refinements could be made – if problem is generated by Boardwalk, why is there no talk about trying to get Boardwalk to provide more parking? – as good as the plan is, 2 stickers and 2 hanging passes would not allow much leeway for people who have a party – paid parking in all lots is the first step – Red Bank has no free slots, and they seem to be doing well; don’t want beautiful town filled with signs – asked that they be limited.
John Szafranski, 319 Yale Avenue: asked about Boardwalk condition and what we’re doing – it’s sagging and we shouldn’t have to pay for it – our right-of-way is in bad shape, if you put a yellow strap around it, couldn’t use it (will follow up with Administrator Riehl and DPW Director Meany – there is a stretch of public portion slated for repair) needs more than just boards replaced – needs something underneath – asked who’s going to take care of this – heard someone had a discussion with Boardwalk people and they won’t contribute (had one meeting – discussed contributing to overall cost of tourism in context of Special Police Officers – they indicated concern of that patch and offered to provide materials to facilitate repair – did not discuss maintenance of right-of-way) don’t we have a right to shut it down if we feel it’s unsafe? (will defer to Attorney Gertner – there was a resolution passed in 1976 or 1979 dealing with the upkeep of center part of Boardwalk) have already replaced Boardwalk from Aquarium north, and that’s our easement, so we already know what we have to do – should take a stand and say that we’ll shut the Boardwalk down if they won’t help, because we can’t afford it – they get the benefit from it; Howell Township has a similar budget problem – they have $1,000,000 to $2,000,000 in Police overtime – asked what our Police overtime is (little over $100,000 last year) does this mean we don’t have enough people, or we have to supply people because of the entertainment on the Boardwalk ? (if Chief were here, we’d have him explain; a good part of it is when Police Officers have to appear in court) our Police force goes from 26 to 86 in the summertime and we wind up paying for it.
Ben Dispoto, 311 Parkway: thanked Council Members Tooker and DiCorcia for support at Board of Education meeting and recycling support – having success at Antrim School and the High School and now trying to work with St Peter School – thanked everyone who helped make single-stream paper successful; thanked DPW crew who are cleaning storm drains – dirty job that must be done every 4-6 months – is helping in District 4; need enforcement of laws regarding how many cars they park in commercial lots – if they’re authorized 200 to 300 cars in the lines, that’s all that they should be allowed, and that will push cars out – if we have permits limiting where people can park in the street, they will go into the town lots – number of cars in lots is authorized by Board of Adjustment and Planning Board when giving site plan approval – enforcement of those limits will help (Attorney Gertner was asked to work on ordinance regulating private lots – one of the most offensive and complained-about things about Point Pleasant Beach’s tourism industry is the random amounts charged for parking – a lot that’s $15 on a Saturday in June becomes $45-50 on July 4th weekend – we cannot tell people how much they can charge, but believe we can require them to file their rates with the Borough as part of the Mercantile process and make them post their rates – what’s posted must conform with what’s on file) suggested stationing Brown Shirt people in lots between 2PM and midnight to count cars and call for cops to come and issue tickets for violations – that’s what will get cars out (must examine whether or not we can issue summons for every car over the limit, as opposed to a single summons for violation – understanding is that, in the past, violation of maximum number of parked cars generated a single ticket – ordinance needs to be amended) agrees with previous gentleman who spoke about train lots – if we do put paid parking in the Borden’s and Medicap lots, should consider that key is giving merchants a discounted rate for validating (some towns allow businesses to lease or buy spots for use by customers and employees) a new interior decorator store, a private entity, has put signs in municipal lot, reserving parking spaces for its customers (illegal) that lot also has a drainage issue (being re-built).
Patrick English, 200 Atlantic Avenue: business on east side of tracks are not addressed in Parking Plan – specifically, 3 real estate offices; spent 31 years in Police Department – this is the first I’ve walked into and have to pick up a phone and cannot see anybody.
Mike Sirchio, 163 Baltimore Avenue: Councilman Mercun’s speech was the best I’ve heard in this Chamber; asked which zone he is in (depends on plan) – would like an escape clause in verbiage, so Borough doesn’t have to buy machines we don’t need; at Festival in Seaside Heights last fall, noticed permit parking signs in front of homes – asked if it’s been researched (plan becoming a bit of a disaster for Seaside because there is no room for anyone else to park – permit parking plan is not about excluding visitors to Point Pleasant Beach, but developing a rational plan to assist in raising revenue, make residents’ life a little easier, and to do so within the confines of existing law – the exclusion of tourists would not serve anyone’s best interests) would be glad to purchase a permit to have a spot when he comes home.
Ed Sirchio, 722 McLean Avenue: sent a parking plan from St. Michaels, Maryland, tourist community – presented it to Council 8 years ago – stickers are given out, red resident stickers are free, green business/employee stickers are $25/semiannually; black stickers for surrounding community are $75/half year, visitors park in the municipal lot – they’re thinking about bringing back meters in business area due to tourist complaints – everyone with a sticker is allowed to park in the business area on the street for 2 hours; on March 7th the NJ DEP will hold a seminar in Atlantic City for beach access and the new DEP rules in effect (a borough employee has been asked to attend) loss of parking and restrooms at Risden’s will go against these DEP and EPA regulations – will cost Point Pleasant Beach a lot of tax dollars in court fees – hope as many people will be at the Planning Board meeting regarding this application.
Nora Fucci, 209 New York Avenue: asked for definition of residential taxpayer under Councilman Dixon’s plan (anyone who owns a home in residential area and is a tax payer) asked about property owners who do not live here year-round (there is a rational distinction in the law between residents and non-residents – up to Council whether or not to use this distinction – in colored zone plan, property owners in Red Zone, who are summer residents get one or two permits; under Councilman Dixon’s plan, everyone is eligible for a free permit).
Thomas Perry, 19 Central Avenue: believes Mayor was quoted in “Star News Group” as saying “Residents who live outside either zone, as well as taxpayers who do not use the Borough as their primary residents will have to pay to park in the Green Zone, the same as visitors and tourists would.” (true about the Green Zone –small area, which includes 9 Central Avenue) asked why the Mayor of this town would implement that (Mayor: looking at increase in amount we need to raise from real property taxes – this is an option to raise a substantial amount of money from something that is confined to a small area that includes Niblick and Baltimore, which is where I live) would rather see taxes raised than deal with situation as a tax-paying, non-resident – a love/hate situation – ‘I love that you pay your taxes, but hate that you’re here for only the summer’ (Mayor: purchased my house in 1985 and did not become a full-time resident until 1994, so fully understand where you are coming from – we make no money from tourism – that’s why I’m going to Trenton and why this resolution was passed today – concept of parking is to raise money from something we have available now, without getting approval of the State – can find fault in either plan – this is what negotiation is about) asked about making it 8am-noon because of between employees and people trying to beat badge collectors at Jenkinson’s (with either plan, if they park there at 8am, they have to move by 9am or get a ticket).
Donna Maria Addellizzi-Diaz, 711 Atlantic Avenue: asked if Mayor and Council are going to sit together with all plans, hash it out and come up with something different (Open Public Meetings Act requires that notice be given when 3 or more of them meet on town business and the meeting must be open to the public, unless it’s a matter that can go into Closed Session) could be a mesh of plans (Council motto is “Courtesy, Civility, Collegiality” – Collegiality part will be used in solving this matter).
Elizabeth McLaughlin, 212 Central Avenue: still interested in Neighborhood Watch Program program.
Brian Kuhn, 32 Parkway: asked if person who is not a resident, but frequent visitor can obtain a pass under the Dixon plan (yes, that would be opportunity for someone who comes often to park closer to the beach – nothing written in stone – would be a fee and limited number sold, by a certain date – first come/first served) so Mr. Storino could come in and buy 500 of them for his employees and our streets would be owned by them.
Kim Campbell, 1200 Chicago Avenue: live two blocks from beach – have to deal with day and night crews in summer – lives down block from White Sands, which has valet parking – we’re prisoners in our home – good idea until 12:00, but when beach crew leaves, valet parkers park in their spots to accommodate a wedding – crew from Jenkinson’s and Martell’s wakes her family at 2am – beer bottles, broken glass – living by the beach is not a pleasure anymore – has anyone thought about hotels? (Mayor and Councilman Dixon experience same thing – if you shut down streets entirely, people will complain – must strike balance between benefiting residents, being fair to visitors and, most importantly, raising revenue to keep taxes reasonable –sympathize with you, but don’t know if anything will accomplish that now) would gladly pay for permits, if it would keep valet parkers away – if they could be used for residents’ benefit.
Frank Rizzo, 64 Harvard Avenue: thanked Veterans here tonight who he claimed are highly discriminated against in this town; one disabled Veteran, LaBruzza, applied for a job and was first on the list, but the third person on the list was hired – State finally stepped in and said the town had to hire him – town told him he could have the job, but salary goes back to three years ago when he filed his litigation – Mr. LaBruzza was hired in Middletown and took that job, rather than having to fight again; Mr. Sharkey, another Veteran, had to hire an attorney and go to court to get his tax rebates; changed all the certifications and everything to bypass public works veteran and going to hire a guy, whose father worked here originally – nepotism; a Vietnam Veteran in this town applied for a job substitute teaching, quite a few times – they never got back to him; Mr. Sharkey was fighting for spouses of deceased veterans, in this town, to get what was rightfully due them; our Veterans deserve a lot of respect, especially the ones coming home today, for what the did for this country – can come here and salute the flag and can voice our opinion, but when they come home, what respect do they get? Nothing.
Mike Murphy, 209 Central Avenue: realize need to raise money – suggested, when Mayor goes to Trenton, possibility of taxing liquor , etc. – suggested early retirement and outsourcing, so as not to interfere with union; asked if hiring freeze is in effect (Mayor: not per say – have looked at not replacing retiring DPW Director Meany – have also looked at not replacing Police Officer going out on disability – certain issues need to be resolved before hiring people); asked about centralized purchasing – would probably save $50,000-100,000 per year; can’t see why we can’t go for zero based budgeting this year – seems like we’re not far along (have had at least six meeting with CFO Riehl, looked at every expenditure and almost everything, except salaries and wages, gasoline, etc., has been held to either 2007 actual or budgeted levels – will explore additional cuts with department heads – will explore zero based budget – maybe single out a department this year on experimental basis, but to reinvent the wheel at this point doesn’t make sense – not much there); suggested raising mercantile license fee on public lots.
Glenn Paesano, 111 Parkway: asked if merchant could set up valet parking if he were to purchase 500 season passes, at $200 each – parking lots could use passes to swap spots when someone leaves – asked if stickers correlate to the number of registered vehicles one has (depends on plan) concerned about Boardwalk using this as an opportunity to park more cars on the street and push us out and how this will affect property value.
Dominick Fiumano, 210 New Jersey Avenue: don’t want municipal workers to loose their jobs, but want you to start time studying them and bring in an efficiency expert – don’t fire employees, but if they don’t have enough work to do, give them more, and we’ll save a lot of money – thinks there’s a lot of waste in this town.
Anthony Lombardo: thanked Mayor and Council – hope they put a letter in paper to say you’re here to 10 o’clock tonight; regarding Mr. Rizzo’s comments – incident with Building Department cost us $20,000 to give that man the job – wasn’t his job to have.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PERIOD ENDED AT 10:02 P.M.
Motion by Councilman DiCorcia, to enter closed session to discuss contractual (2) matters, was seconded by Councilman Cervino and carried by the following roll call vote:
VOTE: Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon, DiCorcia….YEA.
Closed session started at 10:07 P.M. and ended at 10:22 P.M.
Mayor Barrella called the regular meeting to order at 10:23 P.M. Present were Council Members Loughran, Tooker, Cervino, Dixon and DiCorcia. Councilman Mercun was absent due to illness. The Municipal Clerk again read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:24 P.M.
Transcribed By:
Eileen Farrell
Attest: Maryann Ellsworth, Municipal Clerk
