September 6, 2022 - Borough of Point Pleasant Beach

Council Meeting Minutes

September 6, 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 caucus to order at 7PM. Present were Councilmembers Vitale, Testa Ramos, Crowley and Migut. Councilwoman Byrnes was absent. The Municipal Clerk read the notice indicating compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act: “Adequate notice of the time and place of this meeting was given under the provisions of the Open Public Meetings Act and was posted and sent to the officially designated newspapers in compliance with the law.”

CAUCUS: FLOOD INSURANCE ASSESSMENT

Construction Official Thulen: distributed to the Governing Body his Flood Insurance Assessment presentation – a breakdown to earn more points in the CRS system – had a CRS visit in Aug. – cycle renews every 3 years – PPB is a Class 6 town in the system (1 is best/10 is worst) – those in PPB’s Special Flood Hazard Zone receive @20% discount on annual flood insurance premium – in the past, had 2,162 points – goal is to do better this year – are losing about 510 of those points this cycle – PPB is one of 3 NJ towns that are 3-ft. above Base Flood Elevation – standards are high and we got lot of points for it, but this is twilighting in Apr. 2023, due to Federal regulation – new ordinance gives an opportunity to do a lot – have 10-12 items on our list – this presentation is worth 15 points – can get 100+ if we create an insurance Committee – good idea but there are other things to tackle first (Mayor Kanitra: asked how many points it would be and who would be on it) @130 points – Council creates the committee of volunteers, including insurance brokers – the insurance information he has is from FEMA – there a are a couple of conflicts in the data – he is trying to get answers – per the Tax Assessor, there are 3,404 parcels in town – of those, to his knowledge, there are 2,235 houses in the flood zone – 62% of those have flood insurance – a pretty good number – will never hit 100%, as people own their houses outright, PPB is an affluent town, and there are generational owners – showed a map – most of town is in a Special Flood Hazard Zone – went over the data he got from FEMA – there are $2,265,485.00 in flood insurance premiums coming out of PPB every year – taking out the X-Zone policies/Standard & Preferred, the rest should, in theory, get a 20% CRS discount – PPB should be saving residents $424,808.00/year (Mayor Kanitra: that savings would have been lost when FEMA was going to zero-out what we were doing a couple years ago) – the 8-unit condo association at 159 Ocean Ave. has @$1K discount on their insurance every year, so everyone is saving a couple hundred bucks even on those tiny condos – 38% of homes/@ 535 houses in our Special Flood Hazard Area don’t have insurance – still have @40 properties on our Substantial Damage List and they are not allowed to do any permitted work until they get off it, either by proving that they came back into compliance without spending 50% of the home’s value at the time of Sandy, or they buy the house and lift it or knock it down – plan to reach out to those people – DCA is asking towns to forcefully do something about these houses – aside from Substantial Damage claims, there are also 80 Repetitive Loss properties – want to do help them also – have 533 floodplain permits through our system so far – has plans to increase our points – continuing to notify residents about flood insurance and protection through tax mailings, the quarterly newsletter, Facebook and public events – would like to utilize billboards and digital signs in town for flood notices (Mayor Kanitra: just got equipment for the new radio station – can maybe do something on that; Councilman Ramos: schools, BA/CFO Riehl: library) – could tweak our ordinance to have real estate agents, if house is in a Special Flood Hazard Zone, make it part of the listing and note that a mortgage will require insurance – that will get us points – he and Bldg. Clerk Harth will make sure it’s happening – wants to put brochures in more spots, such as the Inlet bathroom with a weatherproof brochure holder, the public Fire buildings, and the Aquarium for more points (Mayor Kanitra: asked when our review period closes) have until Nov. 1^st – need to submit information by Sept. 15^th (Mayor Kanitra: asked for a motion for the Atty. to draft an update the Floodplain Ordinance) he will get the language needed and see if it will jump into the cycle (Mayor Kanitra: asked for a motion, pending discussion between the Borough Atty. and the CO, to update the Floodplain Ordinance accordingly for the FEMA discount; Atty. Riordan: don’t’ need a motion; added as Item 2C) – savings is @$280/household – made the entire Substantial Flood Hazard Zone a Repetitive Loss Area – Floodplain Committee hasn’t met since the new year – wants to meet quarterly – there is a public information program that we utilize through that Floodplain Committee – that’s a multiplier to increase points – hopes to get to the Substantial Damage Grant by the end of the year (Councilman Vitale: invited him to set up a table at all Recreation events; Bldg. Clerk Harth: when she started last year, people were not happy about this process – the more they educate people, the more they get it – education, knowledge, conversations help people understand – tells them it’s for their own good; Mayor Kanitra: appreciates what she is doing and thanked CO Thulen for staying on top of it) – the Forerunner website has gone through some reiterations – there is a link on our website under Floodplain Management to Forerunner, where you can put in your home address and see if it ever had a Substantial Damage Letter – the information is public – good tool (Mayor Kanitra: that’s going to be an issue for someone who is looking to do major renovations) buyers won’t be able to touch the house, after the sellers renovate, for 5 years, unless they lift it (Mayor Kanitra: asked if a hot water heater and an air conditioning unit count toward the threshold) 100% (Mayor Kanitra: you could be at the threshold and have something go, and you’re looking at $100K house raising) exactly – $7K-$14K is the average replacement price of a furnace – will give the permit, but the permit is open until they give plans to lift their home (Mayor Kanitra: asked if it’s the same for commercial properties) instead of having to lift, commercial properties have to floodproof.

CAUCUS ENDED AT 7:25PM.

Mayor Kanitra called the regular meeting to order 7:29PM. 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 Ramos, Crowley and Migut. Councilwoman Byrnes absent.

FLAG SALUTE, INVOCATION

APPROVAL OF COUNCIL MINUTES:

Motion by Councilman Vitale to approve the August 16, 2022 Council meeting minutes was seconded by Councilman Ramos and carried by roll call vote.

VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Ramos, Migut….YEA

Councilwoman Crowley…..ABSTAIN

Councilwoman Byrnes….ABSENT

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

Councilman Vitale: recognized employee anniversaries for September – Christine Riehl 37 years, Thomas Hayes 5, Brianna Marchetti 3, Chris Macomber 13, Robert Balzano 2, Kevin Thompson 5, Brian Martin 4; thanked Chief Kowalewksi and the entire PD, on behalf of him, his family and visitors, for an amazing summer – all families on the Boardwalk, cops were out in force writing tickets – also thanked the Fire Dept. & EMS, who were busy every day and did a great job; gave the Chief’s report – recognized officers’ efforts this summer – a huge challenge to hire SLEOs – those hired were very proactive – zero tolerance for quality of life issues sent a clear message that PPB does not tolerate any type of disruptive behavior – thanked the Boardwalk Officers in Charge – Sgt. Hayes and PO’s Garcia, Latshaw, Zukowitz and Marchetti led by example and did an exceptional job – are in the final planning stages of Seafood Festival and Elksfest and are partnering with several State, local and Federal agencies to provide safety and security – Capt. Grace and Lt. Daniel are in charge of operational planning for the event – first day for public schools is Thurs. – will have extra officers brought in to assist in providing safety and security in and around the schools – 11 SLEO II recruits began the Police Academy on Sept. 2^nd – 5 more will begin on Sept. 23^rd and another 15 in Jan. – PBA event is this Friday at 7-10PM at Martell’s Tiki Bar – tickets are available; the Locals Only Bonfire is 6PM-10PM on the Maryland Ave. Beach this Friday with food and entertainment – are planning the Kids Fishing Derby, Sept. 18^th at the Inlet, with the Berkely Striper Club donating time and a famous TV fisherman supposedly making an appearance – the Manasquan Inlet Tug of War is on Oct.1^st, 11AM-4PM – looking for participants – Recreation Committee is always looking for new members – looking to expand events next year.

Councilwoman Testa: a great summer – echoed Council President Vitale in thanking the Chief, PD, FD & First Aid for outstanding job; the Arts Committee is excited to have a Scarecrow Contest on Arnold and Bay – can register to adopt a streetlamp pole and design your own scarecrow, which will be provided – $20 fee –will start on Oct. 1^st, with the winner announced on Oct. 30^th – visitors will pick the winner – 1^st Prize is $100, 2^nd is $75, 3^rd is $50 – more information is on pointbeacharts.com – information on the Homegrown Festival on Bay Ave. to come; thanked the Beautification volunteers for keeping the planters and gardens watered during the extremely hot summer – getting ready for the Scarecrow Contest with Antrim School at the Gazebo – more information to come; she and BA/CFO Riehl spoke about bicycle safety – this summer, she witnessed 2 kids get hit on a bike – was not the vehicle’s fault – the child was going the wrong way – thank God he was ok – a flyer will be going out in the tax bill to remind people about bike safety – not everybody knows Rte. 35 is one-way, so look both ways to keep kids safe.

Councilman Ramos: echoed sentiment to the PD, FD, EMT, Council President Vitale, Mayor & Council, Chief and Administrator for coming up with the perfect solution for the pop-up party problem by going after them legally and scaring them into submission – thinks other towns will emulate that; students are returning to Antrim and PPBHS on Thur. – teacher breakfast and start-up meetings today and tomorrow – are welcoming 13 new teachers – only 1 F/T custodial position is available – every other position has miraculously been filled – the first home football game is Fri. vs. Keansburg – come out and cheer; the Environmental Commission continues to work diligently on 2022 Sustainable Jersey initiatives – the anti-idling resolution is on the agenda – thanked MJ Gradel for taking the lead – a great proposal, working with other Commission members – Commission appreciates the positive responses received by Council, Administration and Dept. Heads – will give significant points toward their goal.

Councilwoman Crowley: great summer – thanks to Chief, PD, FD and EMS for keeping us safe; spoke with DPW Super. Trout today – still 2 weeks left in summer schedule – preparing for a few special events, including the Seafood Festival and Elksfest – a big responsibility for them – on the agenda, they have a truck, replacing a 2005 truck, and a backhoe, replacing a 1999 truck – kudos to them for keeping the town clean in the summer.

Councilman Migut: Parking Authority will meet tomorrow, finalizing bid language for the remote teller kiosk, to be built in Borden’s Lot – Atty Bogan advised that the anticipated income from that project, makes it necessary to bid – hope to award in Oct. – whoever wins will go to the Planning Board.

MAYOR’S REPORT:

Mayor Kanitra: echoed what everyone else said – one of the best summers he can remember in PPB – indications are that we are on par, financially, with last year, which was up 30% – anticipated a little more this year and blew that out of the park – will help with the Budget and to keep taxes low, while still providing all the services residents are looking for – huge that we anticipated it properly and that, despite rampant inflation, people still are choosing to come here and spend their money – it’s needed validation – the pop –up party was the biggest scandal and it never happened – so, there were no issues – it was family-friendly – if you didn’t listen to the rules, you got a Borough ordinance violation – families continue to come back in droves – he and Alora ride around almost every weekend to make sure there was no trouble – it was so good this year – parking lots looked fantastic – Police focused on quality of life issues – Jenkinson’s and Martell’s had big years, in terms of bar and club business, with few detrimental effects on residents – Police were even enforcing in the lines – residents were happy – things were addressed quickly – great job by PD and DPW this summer; continued thanks to Cong. Smith for staying on top of the Inlet shoaling issues – have a commitment for increased monitoring and testing to find out the source of the sand – the irony is that it seems beach replenishment is creating the shoaling – spoke with a Long Beach Island Mayor who said their Inlet had closed due to shoaling and beach replenishment – it’s a problem to stay on top of and get an understanding from the Corps; watched the film “Drift” – the Environmental Commission partnered with Save Barnegat Bay on this – it’s about the origins of the Bay and its importance in communities – a great use for our amphitheater – was well-attended – kudos to the Environmental Commission; Officers Michael Allegretta and Brianna Marchetti were honored for their DWI work this month – a detriment of all the liquor licenses in town and people coming here is that some still drive intoxicated – the Police and Police Committee understand how important it is to stay on top of that and they’ve exemplified these efforts – teaching all not to come to PPB and drink and drive – spend the money on a taxi, Uber or Lyft; NJTransit is staging and getting ready – thanked QOL Dir. O’Rourke and BA/CFO Riehl – were relentless – the station needed a lot of TLC – were able to get them to come to town – they are assessing – residents should expect a nice spruce-up of the entire lot area; Chamber reminds all about the Seafood Festival on Sept. 17^th and the Restaurant Tour on Sept. 23^rd, which has sold out; Councilwoman Byrnes asked him to announce that the Little Red Library will be the point of distribution for ICE packets that seniors can pick up on Sept. 10^th , 10AM-1PM.

ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

BA/CFO Riehl: listed ongoing projects – use of the ARP funds, Pleasure Park, Inlet access, Ocean Ave., vulnerability assessment and DOTGOV – have meeting with our IT and our website IT; received the first $11K+ settlement payment for the Opioid lawsuit – perhaps more coming; the 4^th quarter tax bills are being mailed out with supplementary information for CRS, flood, FEMA, bike safety (Mayor Kanitra: asked if our Municipal Alliance Committee can use the opioid money) thinks it was more geared toward the PD; are working through beach renourishment with the Corps and DEP – they plan to go out to bid late this year or early next year and then start – the contribution from the town is due in Feb.

Clerk announced additions and revisions to the agenda.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BEGAN AT 7:55PM

Dave Cavagnaro, 118 Parkway, PPB: regarding 1l, asked that names be on the agenda (no objection).

Mary Steiner, 423 Yale Ave., PPB: asked if you now have to pay to park in Borden’s lot (Mayor Kanitra: no – it’s kiosk for the bank); asked about getting new benches (BA/CFO Riehl: got 30; Mayor Kanitra: and have a couple old ones – they weren’t sturdy, so got the new ones for free) asked if old cement ones will be taken away (BA/CFO Riehl: no – replacing plastic benches that were breaking – a slight charge because we went with a larger bench and put our seal on it; Mayor Kanitra: asked about the Hennessy family’s barrels on Rte. 35; BA/CFO Riehl: told Kristen and Sean we could remove them or they could take over the care – they said they’d like to take over – one was broken – Beautification said they could have a half barrel to replace it).

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION ENDED AT 7:59PM

Motion by Councilman Ramos to close public participation and approve the items listed below was seconded by Councilman Vitale and carried by roll call vote.

CONSENT RESOLUTION 1:

1a Approval of pymt of Payroll #17 ($388,238.95)

1b Approval of salary adjustment for Asst. Camp Dir.

1c Approval of W/S relief request

1d Denial of ABC Extension of Premises permit app for Chef’s Int’l/Frankie’s Bar & Grill 9/17 (rain 9/18)

1e Approval of payment to MAXR for 25 replacement benches ($3,867.50)

1f Approval of payment to Integrated Technical Systems for thermal paper rolls/spare part ($5,086.38)

1g Approval of salary adj for B. Martin for passage of course leading to certification & obtaining certificate

1h Approval of payment to BTMUA for July bulk water usage ($189,292.74)

1i Approval of payment to GRQ Building for windows at DPW ($2,800)

1j Approval of Change Order 1 to Lafayette Utility Const for Ocean Ave Water Main Rplcmnt ($398,214.50)

1k Approval of S/E app for Rec Cmte Skateboarding Lessons, most Sundays 9/18-11/13 (rain 11/20 & 27)

1l Appointment to & removal from Committee/Commission

1m Approval of payment to Integrated Technical Systems for hardware/software for parts ($27,450)

1n Approval of PO to Lifeforce USA for AED Package ($15,022.24)

1o Approval of pymt to State of NJ for employee & retiree health benefits for September ($123,946.43)

1p Support for adoption of a strong anti-idling policy by gov’t agencies/schools/businesses/other orgs

1q Approval of PO to Cambria Truck Center for sanitation truck ($320,109)

1r Approval of PO to Cherry Valley Tractor Sales for 4wd Tractor Loader Backhoe ($94,648.96)

1s Approval of payment to Glenco Supply for sign posts ($4,425)

1t Approval of payment to Motorola Solutions for Motorola radios and charges ($10,415.38)

1u Approval of payment to Cherry Valley Tractor Sales for emergency repairs/refuse scooter ($12,080.16)

1v Authorization to hire John Mele as Borough Engineer, pending contract review by Borough Attorney

1w Auth to split Tug of War vendor application proceeds; 50% to Rec Committee, 50% to Arts Committee

1x Auth for Rec Cmte promotion/registration for MMDA Little Mozarts-Rec gets 25% of every $199 reg fee

1y Approval of payment to Foveonics for Bldg Dept offsite scanning ($5,130)

1z Authorization for Administrator to apply for the NJDEP Stormwater Competitive Grant for the Inlet Park Walkway & Parking Lot Improvements Project, execute agreement & amendment and act as correspondent

CONSENT RESOLUTION 2:

2a Recognition of Suicide Prevention Month

2b Recognition of Hunger Action Month

2c Authorization for Borough Attorney to draft an amendment to the Floodplain Ordinance, pending discussion between the Borough Attorney and the Construction Official – ADDED PER CAUCUS

CONSENT RESOLUTION 3:

3a Approval of pymt of computer-generated vouchers ($1,534,503.97)

3b Approval of jr. membership for J. Lando, PPB, in Fire Company No. 2

3c Approval of membership for A. Lando, PPB, in Fire Company No. 2

3d Approval of pymt to Ocean Fire Company No. 1 for annual contribution ($18K)

3e Approval of pymt to PPB Fire Company No. 2 for annual contribution ($18K)

3f Approval of membership for K. Speidel, PPB, in Fire Company No. 1

3g Approval of PO to American Fire Supply for 5” Storz Hyd Converter for Fire Co. 1 ($19,080)

3h Approval of PO to NJ Fire Equipment for replacement hose for FD ($24,981.00)

3i Approval of PO to Skyland Area Fire Equip for turnout gear for Fire Co. 2 ($31,814.18)

3j Approval of 5 SLEO IIs

3k Approval of Fire Dept & First Aid Squad request to charge for parking in lots during Seafood Fest

3l Approval of payment to All Covered for IT maintenance for August, including for the PD ($4,985.47)

VOTE: Councilmembers Vitale, Testa, Ramos (except 1b, 3b-i), Crowley, Migut (except 3a, 3b-i, 3k)…YEA

Councilmen Ramos (1b, 3b-i), Migut (3a, 3b-i, 3k)….ABSTAIN

Councilwoman Byrnes….ABSENT

Mayor Kanitra: read the resolutions 2a and 2b.

ORDINANCES:

ORDINANCE 2022-19 (Amend Ch. IX – Loading Zone on Laurel Court) was considered on second reading.

Atty. Riordan: ordinance arose out of a conversation between come business owners and some Borough officials – after a further meeting, the recommendation is to pull it (Mayor Kanitra: continuing to talk and work with them.)

Motion by Councilman Vitale to TABLE Ordinance 2022-19 was seconded by Councilman Migut and carried by roll call vote.