20180328- Village Counciil Work Session

A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD IN THE PATRICK A. MANCUSO SENIOR CENTER OF THE RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE HALL, 131 NORTH MAPLE AVENUE, RIDGEWOD, NEW JERSEY ON MARCH 28, 2018 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

1. CALL TO ORDER – OPEN PUBLIC MEETINGS ACT – ROLL CALL – FLAG    SALUTE

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 7:32 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act. At roll call the following were present: Councilman Hache, Deputy Mayor Sedon, Councilman Voigt, and Mayor Knudsen. Also present were Heather Mailander, Village Manager/Village Clerk; Matthew Rogers, Village Attorney; Donna M. Jackson, Deputy Village Clerk; and Eileen Young, Village Clerk’s Office. Councilwoman Walsh was not present.

Mayor Knudsen led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag as well as a Moment of Silence to honor the men and women serving our Nation, our first responders and all those who have suffered from senseless violence.

1. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

Linda McNamara, 575 Knickerbocker Road, stated that she wanted to say a few words about Leonard Eisen who passed away March 18^th at the age of 90. He graduated from Syracuse University and served four years in the Navy as a Lieutenant, serving as Navigator, and Executive Officer on diplomatic chores in the Middle East. He loved his family, religion, reading, photography, the outdoors, and was a walker. Mr. Eisen was a frequent attendee and contributor at Board of Education and Village Council meetings, always speaking for the people and giving a National and global perspective. Ms. McNamara stated that she was so thankful she could call him a friend and he was really like a teacher to her.

Ms. McNamara stated that regarding the skateboard park, she heard at one of the meetings about instituting a charge or permit for use of the skateboard park, and then she heard Boyd Loving’s comment. She was thinking that since she was one of the original people involved when the skateboard park was put in, she wanted to say that she was hoping that the Village would not need to charge for the use of the skateboard park when a municipal alliance, the ROIC, the Ridgewood Youth Council, raises over $40,000 for the community center and put aside $5,000 for moveable equipment for the skateboard park to give the kids a safe and legal place to skate.

Ms. McNamara stated that at that time, the kids were often using any available ramps, stairs, and/or curbs. The park can serve that purpose. She would hate to alter the positive outcome by instituting a charge that they may not be able to pay or won’t, as skate park kids are not generally rule followers. Having had two of them, she knows their behavior.

Lastly, Ms. McNamara stated that regarding artificial turf at Maple Field, for many years she forwarded information and studies regarding artificial turf and she took some highlights from statements that appear in documented sources. One being “Athletes prefer playing on real grass, students, professional athletes alike prefer grass and believe that playing on synthetic turf increases injury and exposes them to health concerns.” Two, “cost of grass versus synthetic turf, synthetic turf costs more to install, almost as much to maintain, and has to be replaced when it wears out. The myth, artificial turf requires little to no maintenance, replacement every 8 to 10 years at approximately $500,000 to $600,000.” Mayor Knudsen stated that Ms. McNamara could forward the information to the Village Council, which she knew they all had and was welcome to come back at the end of the meeting.

Russell Forenza, 228 Emmett Place, stated that regarding the Mayor and nepotism which he read about in the newspaper, that personally he did not see any problem, with her three sons working for the Village of Ridgewood. They have to pass tests, go through the Police Academy, become recommended, and they have the right to have a job like everyone else. If the Village Council thinks that there is a problem, then the Village Council should speak up, but personally, he does not think there is a problem with this, or anything else, concerning these children.

Mr. Forenza stated there should be no problem with the Mayor voting on the budget or Police and Fire. He has worked on many Budgets over his years and in the process he was familiar with, the Project Directors put them together, they then presented it to the Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer, and the Village Manager, and then they all went over the Budgets. After the Budgets were finished, it went to the Mayor and Council. Mr. Forenza stated that for anyone presuming that the Mayor has influence in the Budget’s is incorrect. It is the Village Clerk that is presenting this Budget and he doesn’t think she is compromised at all. He has known the Village Clerk for many years and her integrity is of the utmost and it always has been. So, he does not believe that she would do anything dishonest as she goes strictly by the book on everything that she does.

Mr. Forenza stated that the Mayor has every right to vote on the Budget. The Police Budget and the Fire Budget are mostly made up of steps and the most they are doing is putting increases in for the steps. The other portion is the Operating portion of the Budget, whatever gets in have to go with, but there are five people on this Council with five votes, the Mayor is not the only vote on this Council.

Mr. Forenza stated that he had no skin in this game and he didn’t care who lost come May, as there are four people running, and he wanted to set the record straight as he sees it.

Mr. Forenza stated that regarding Our Lady of Mount Carmel the Academy of Our Lady, the Mayor won $25,000. Congratulations! As he has been in that raffle for many years and never won a penny. He added that why should she have to return money that she won in a raffle that is conducted for a school and has nothing to do with the Church, is beyond his imagination and why anyone would bring that up. In his opinion there is nothing wrong with that and in fact anyone should be able to take a chance and be able to win.

Mr. Forenza stated that as far as the Lady of Mount Carmel meeting, where three Council people were present, they didn’t call the meeting but rather went to the meeting. He has been at many municipal convention meetings in Atlantic City, sometimes the whole Council of every city is sitting at that meeting and they don’t tell everyone they’re going to have a general meeting. He reiterated that he felt there was no conflict of interest, and if there is a conflict of interest there is a Village Attorney who will say that there may be a conflict of interest. How would anybody know who is attending these meetings unless they called up and talked to each other and said they were going to discuss Village business at this meeting. It wasn’t like that. It was Our Lady of Mount Carmel conducting a meeting for those interested in the parish and anyone can go as it’s an open meeting.

Mr. Forenza stated that as far as residency requirements, most towns and cities in this state have residency requirements. Mayor Knudsen stated that Mr. Forenza’s time was up and she was going to comment on his statements.

Sarubh Dani, 390 Bedford Road, stated that he wanted to thank the Village Council for the transparency binders as they are very helpful and he has more complaints and some issues. He stated that there is a Resolution #18 which says that the Council is approving specifications for a quotation for replacement of a door. Does the Council have a copy of the specifications that are being approved because that is not in the binder. He asked that when there is going to be an approval of specifications, if those could also, be included in the binder.

Mr. Dani also stated that last time when the $6,000 to $40,000 range of quotations were brought up, the CFO and Village Manager agreed that quotations would go out to all the bidders at the same time. So, if the process now is that an email goes out to 3 or 4 bidders, he would like for that email to be included with the specifications, also. One of the concerns raised was that the last bidder usually receives the quote and that is happening again today. Also, they are all bidding on three different brands. Mr. Dani stated he would ask if the bid specification can be included so he could see if they are all bidding on the same thing, as well as the emails so that it can be seen if they all went out on the same day or not.

Pamela Perrin, 123 Kenilworth Road, stated that she wanted to commend the Council for having the yellow binders as they are very helpful; however, it is hard to stand up and read them and if two more chairs could be put there it would be wonderful. She stated that she would also suggest that the Village consider hiring an audio engineer for the sound in the room, as there would be a more robust democratic process if more people could hear what was going on.

There were no additional comments from the public.

Mayor Knudsen stated that Mr. Eisen was a friend and a supporter who very often whispered words of encouragement to her and, she believes, to Deputy Mayor Sedon as well. Those words of encouragement resonate everyday and he will be missed as a very important and treasured member of our community.

Mayor Knudsen addressed Mr. Forenza’s comments regarding the hiring process in the Village of Ridgewood and her sons, stating that her sons have been defamed in letters to the editor and her sons are highly qualified members of the Police and Fire Department. One of her sons was a 6 or 7 year volunteer firefighter for the Village of Ridgewood before taking the Civil Service test and coming out number three, number one was a Veteran who comes out on top regardless of score. Her other two sons took a test in 2013 before she ever considered running for Village Council. The lies and attacks have to end. Mayor Knudsen stated that she really works very hard to restore civility and decency to these meetings and to the public conversation. It is unfortunate that in order to win an election or to have an election, mud slinging and lies is the first order of business. She appreciates Mr. Forenza as he is absolutely right, and she believes that the Village Attorney will attest to that. Counsel reached out to the Local Finance Board, about two years ago, regarding the Budget.

Mr. Rogers stated that there was an issue that was raised at the time and he did have a conversation with a Local Finance Board at the Department of Community Affairs. The response was that Councilwoman Knudsen, at that time, could vote on the Budget with her sons on the Police and Fire Departments and it was not a problem at all and did not create a conflict of interest. They looked at it as an obligation. So, at that time he advised her that it was not a problem.

Mayor Knudsen stated that she was proud of not just her sons but every First Responder, Police Officer and Firefighter. When people are making defamatory comments they need to remember, as part of their jobs before they leave the house, her sons strap on a bullet proof vest, and one of her sons will have to run into a burning house to protect residents. She is proud of all of the Village’s First Responders, and this nonsense has to end.

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that Ridgewood is a Civil Service town and if there is going to be a Police Department and a Fire Department, it is a requirement that there is a residency requirement for Police and Fire in a Civil Service town as that is State regulations. That has nothing to do with any decision that the Council could make, the decision regarding any residency requirement that was made at that time was for civilian jobs. Police and Fire were never considered because that is a regulation.

Mayor Knudsen added that Civil Service is the department of personnel for the Village. By nature of its design and structure, Civil Service eliminates any discrimination and nepotism including discrimination against her family members. The Council did not change or vote on any public safety titles, it was civilian jobs. Her comments were in support of civilian positions, clerk typist, bookkeeping, mechanic, receptionist, on behalf of the Village residents and Ridgewood taxpayer funded positions for Village residents. It made sense to her then and it makes sense to her now, and she fought and has been skewered as if she voted to enrich her family. The vote was about residency requirement for civilian positions and there is enough documentation and the Council is comfortable with that, but these baseless accusations must stop.

1. PRESENTATION

 

1. Special Projects Task Force – Report on SEM Energy Rate Cost Savings

 

Mayor Knudsen introduced Brian Lahey, John Cavanaugh and Rei Shinozuka, and stated that the Special Projects Task Force was actually the reorganized Financial Advisory Committee. The Council reorganized the Financial Advisory Committee and renamed it the Special Projects Task Force which allows for a broader scope of study areas and tonight the Council is thrilled because she knows how hard they worked on this.

Mr. Lahey, Mr. Cavanaugh, and Mr. Shinozuka introduced themselves. Mr. Lahey stated that in the fall, the Task Force was asked to undertake a project in conjunction with the Village staff looking at the energy savings that the Village was receiving or projected to receive through its participation in the New Jersey SEM, Sustainable Energy Joint Meeting. He stated that it effectively works by the SEM organizing or grouping together different municipalities that wanted to join it and by bundling their energy requirements. They go out to different energy suppliers to see if they could get a better rate and deliver the better rate to the municipalities that were participating in it. Mr. Lahey stated that it was related to the supply of the gas and electric, as the delivery still is done by PSE&G and the Village was able to opt out as many can in their own residences as someone else can do the supply. He stated that this was going on for a number of years, and the Village wanted to better understand what were the economics and savings of going through the program.

Mr. Lahey stated that the Task Force got together with Village staff and started to take a look at the bills to get some sense of the billing that goes on in the Village for energy. They sat at a conference table, and it was filled with envelopes that ranged from 3 inches to a foot and a half high of bills for about two years’ worth of bills from 2016-2017. Mr. Lahey stated that each property in the Village gets its own bill each month, and a property can be something as small as a traffic light. As each gets a delivery and supply bill, and if a SEM is used, it gets bills from one or two other providers. So, there is a massive amount of bills that the Village staff put together.

Mr. Lahey stated that to get a representative sample of what the economics were to the town over this period, they focused on Village Hall as it makes up about 20% of the annual energy costs for the Village. It is a fairly large representative sample, and was one of the easier buildings to look at because of the single meter, as opposed to other buildings with multiple meters. This building is relatively straightforward, and the bills were taken for the period January 2016 through August 2017, for both gas and electric. Then were able to determine how much gas or electric was provided by either PSE&G or the third-party provider through the SEM, and then compare what that rate was to the rate that would have been used had the alternate provider been used during that period.

Mr. Lahey stated that the memo that was provided shows Attachment A which is the gas supply comparison and focusing on the top row for January 2016, the actual supplier that was used through the SEM was Direct Energy and the rate is shown. The amount of gas used was 203 so the invoice coming from Direct Energy for that month for the supply was $1,164.52. In order to get a comparison to how that rate would compare to PSE&G, they were able to source rates from PSE&G’s external website which lists comparable rates, and for that same period, the bill for PSE&G had their supply been used was $929.52. The PSE&G rate was cheaper by $235, and summing that all down some months are higher, lower, cheaper, more expensive, and the SEM changed the provider for 2017. Over that period the Village paid $11,812.59, and had PSE&G been providing the gas through the same period it would have been $10,674.90 which works out to an 8.8% cost differential using PSE&G over that same period.

Mr. Lahey stated that Attachment B showed a similar analysis on the electrical supply. The one difference with electrical during the period, is that the supply actually came from PSE&G for that period as they were the actual supplier. He added that interestingly enough PSE&G was not the supplier to all of the Village buildings during that period, and he added that he didn’t understand all of the mechanics of the SEM but it seemed that certain buildings could be opted in at certain times. So, for each of the analyzed months, the Task Force was able to locate a South Jersey Energy bill which is the SEM provider to a different Village property and compare their rates to the PSE&G rates. Mr. Lahey stated that each month was a little different, but looking at the totals the amount paid to PSE&G was $85,606.32, and the SEM rate would have been $91,235.57, with the SEM having potentially been $5,629.25 or a savings of 6.2% going through PSE&G.

Mr. Lahey stated that PSE&G was anywhere from 6-9% cheaper over that period. Based on the Task Force looking at that as a representative sample over 20 months, and with no guarantees for what it might look like over different periods with different usage and market rates, their recommendation would be for the Village to explore opting out of the SEM going forward as it looks like PSE&G rates during this period were substantially cheaper. Mr. Lahey added that it was important for the Task Force’s viewpoint to mention to the Council that using the SEM creates a tremendous amount of burden on the Village Finance staff because it means the staff is receiving another set of bills for all of the hundred-odd properties that are coming in each month and it is changing without any notice. So, then there are more reconciliations, different account numbers, and it is a very big process. Mr. Lahey stated that there was the hard cost but also the soft cost for the Village Staff from having to deal with the changing providers.

Mr. Cavanaugh pointed out that if the Village opts out and gets a SEM provider, that doesn’t mean that the Village doesn’t get a PSE&G bill, as a PSE&G bill is received for the delivery anyway, so the invoices are multiplied by two.

Mr. Lahey stated that the other recommendation of the Task Force as they went through this process, is that it would probably be very helpful if the Village could find a way to track some of this usage the way that the Task Force did on a going forward basis. They were able to see on a going-forward basis if the energy market is changing to try to get a better sense of whether it makes sense in the future. There were five properties making up roughly 85% of the Village energy cost, and working on Village Hall, Water Pollution Control, Traffic and Signal Parks, and Fire Headquarters, would give a lot of value to tracking on a going forward basis.

Councilman Voigt thanked the Task Force for doing the analysis, stating that the $6,000 was over 20 months for one building and that was about 20%. So, making a rough estimate, it was overall roughly $30,000 total savings and would be a savings of $18,000 per year. In essence, if the Village opted out it would save $18,000 per year. Mr. Cavanaugh stated that assuming the rough economics that would be correct.

Deputy Mayor Sedon thanked the Task Force for their presentation.

Councilman Hache stated that it was eye opening because a lot of companies market the benefits of going to these individual suppliers through the PSE&G network but at the end of the day there is some sort of cost benefit. So, it is a realization for the Village and also residents who might be marketed these types of services that at the end of the day the savings are simply not there. He stated that South Jersey Energy was used for electricity and again for the gas as well as Direct Energy and he questioned if there was any sense of how much of the market they controlled. He didn’t know what the selection process was if the Village was getting the cheapest provider on the radar screen or the most popular kit around. Councilman Hache stated that the benefit would have been to theoretically shop around for the lowest rate which obviously didn’t happen here. Is there was any way that the Task Force could shed some light on how the Village could get access to those doing it cheaper.

Mr. Cavanaugh stated that the Task Force did learn that the municipality has the decision to opt in or out of the SEM. The control over the decision making over what energy provider they get for what period or what rate is done by the SEM. So, they don’t give choices, rather they do the work of figuring out and pitching that they will give a better rate. Councilman Hache questioned if there was a way to hold their feet to the fire and say that they told the Village there would be a benefit to this and in retrospect there wasn’t, who’s going to pony up the difference.

Ms. Mailander stated that what the SEM does is they aggregate all of the municipalities that have opted in and then they go to the market and get the best rate at that time. So, Ridgewood as an individual municipality should certainly share this information with them but there is nothing that can be done to say that Ridgewood decided to opt in and what happens is they can come back and say this is what was posted and will be used for the next three or six months. This information will be shared with the SEM and this has been an experience.

Councilman Hache stated that he questioned if the SEM was really looking out for the cheapest provider or if they were looking for any alternative other than PSE&G. Ms. Mailander stated that the SEM was supposed to be looking for the cheapest provider at the time in the market. Mayor Knudsen stated that it certainly didn’t seem that way and one has to wonder that there must be some fee or percentages involved with the sense that they are looking at, not necessarily the best outcome for who they are providing that service to; but maybe the best outcome for themselves. So, presumably there has to be a cut there.

Mayor Knudsen questioned whether the conversion to therms was accurate. Mr. Lahey stated that he would have to get back to the Mayor in an email. The Task Force researched it, but that it could be researched on the internet. Mayor Knudsen questioned whether the Task Force was confident that there was a high level of accuracy. Mr. Lahey stated that there was a specific calculation for that conversion.

Mayor Knudsen stated that there is another suggestion, going back to the amount of paperwork that is generated to go through this process which seems like it is more staff time, as well. Mr. Lahey stated absolutely, and even if the economics were the same, it was probably still not worth it because of the amount of demands that are placed on the staff time paying double the bills, reconciling the bills, chasing different providers, figuring out how to reconcile that bill to the old bill and the next bill to make sure that the Village wasn’t overpaying things.

Mayor Knudsen stated that all things being equal or even PSE&G being marginally higher, that tradeoff is worth sticking with even marginally higher because the staff time is making up that difference and asked whether that was a fair conclusion. Mr. Lahey responded that it was. Ms. Mailander agreed stating that that reason alone was a reason to not continue with the SEM because of all of the time that the Village staff contributes because the account numbers are different.

Mayor Knudsen asked whether Mr. Cavanaugh would tell the Council everyone who worked on the project and everyone on the Special Projects Task Force. Mr. Cavanaugh stated it was the three individuals presenting, as well as Alex Kislevich, David Hoff, and Rob Koch. Mayor Knudsen thanked everyone involved because she has to say at one point when the Council was meeting as having tasked this as the first project she felt bad realizing how much paperwork was involved. It was a daunting task but the outcome is incredible and so it really is appreciated and it’s a true service to the Village and for the Council.

1. DISCUSSION

1. Ridgewood Water

 

1. Yearly Renewal of Mapping Software – Geographic Information System (GIS)

 

Ms. Mailander stated that up for discussion was the Annual renewal of the mapping software Geographic Information System (GIS). The Village has been using Bentley Systems, Incorporated for Ridgewood Water since 1989, and they maintain the backbone for all utility infrastructure data. This data and mapping system is supported through Bentley Select Subscription software licenses, and includes data for all properties served, water mains and appurtenances. It is used by GIS, Distribution, Treatment, Metering and Customer Service groups each day, and is updated with relevant field information daily.

The Bentley software serves as the basis for all asset management functions, as well, including the determination of the useful life of specific infrastructure, capital planning, the mapping software and associated licenses that can be accounted for in the operating budget.

1. Reject Bid – 2018 Well Improvements

Ms. Mailander stated the bid for the 2018 Well Improvements which went out on February 22, 2018 was to be rejected as the one received at $830,000 exceeded the consulting engineers cost estimate of $528,500, which was a $300,000 difference. The project will be revised and republished for bidding.

1. Budget

 

1. Update of Status of New Tub Grinder

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the tub grinder is currently shared with Glen Rock, with Ridgewood paying two thirds of the cost on the maintenance and repairs and Glen Rock paying one third. When it was bought originally, the determination was based on the usage by the two municipalities. Ms. Mailander stated that Ridgewood has a tub grinder out for bid, and W.E. Timmerman Co., Inc., of Whitehouse, New Jersey was the low bidder at $365,580. The Village would like to award a contract for that. Ms. Mailander met with Glen Rock and the DPW Staff and they have decided they do not wish to purchase the new tub grinder with the Village. However, they may choose to purchase the old tub grinder taking into account they would pay two thirds of the appraised value of the tub grinder. If they choose not to do that, the Village will sell it and the revenue would be split.

Ms. Mailander stated that at this point, she thought the Village could move forward and purchase the tub grinder. There have been a lot of issues with the current tub grinder. She believes it is 12 years old and this year, in particular, there have been issues with parts. Ms. Mailander stated that the tub grinder is currently up and running well, but given its age and what it goes through during leaf season, she really believes the Village should go with a new tub grinder.

1. Award Contract – Replacement of Interior and Exterior Main Entrance Doors at Village Hall

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this contract is to replace the lobby doors and the doors off the patio at Village Hall which was discussed during the Budget meeting. The Village has received three written quotes from three different contractors. Automatic Door Systems, LLC provided the lowest quote at $29,000 and the other quotes were Cap Electronics at $30,620 and All Class Glass at $33,345. Ms. Mailander stated that funds for this work were already allocated in the previous capital budget, so the Village can move forward with this if the Council is in agreement.

Mayor Knudsen stated that it seemed to her that the $33,345 bid had items listed on it that aren’t listed on the lower priced bid. So, she wanted to find out if all things were equal or if there was actually something more that was included in that higher bid because she would hate to see that there were add-ons in the end.

Ms. Mailander stated that she would take a look at it and get an answer for Mayor Knudsen, but asked if they were all the same would it be acceptable to move forward, to which there was agreement. Ms. Mailander stated that there were problems with the current doors opening and closing improperly, which is bad for efficiency and there are issues with the patio doors also not closing completely.

Mayor Knudsen stated that she has a video of the doors opening and closing in the middle of the night. She wanted to point out that they are dangerous when a door swings out towards her very quickly as she walks towards it. So, she thinks they have to be replaced quickly.

1. Emergency Temporary Appropriation

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the emergency temporary appropriation resolution was needed because of additional funding needed within the Budget to be able to fund everything the Village does up until the time that the Budget its adopted. This is routine and something that the Village does, so it can continue to pay its bills and employees.

 

1. Approve Shared Services Agreement – Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Services – Ridgewood Board of Education

Ms. Mailander stated that this Shared Services Agreement was with the Ridgewood Board of Education for vehicle maintenance and repair services. Many years ago, the Village did do vehicle maintenance and repair through the central garage for the Board of Education and now they are resuming the process. Labor costs are between $45 and $65 an hour, which depends on the size of the vehicle and the engine. Preventive maintenance programs are flat fees anywhere between $195 to $390 and that is based on the gross vehicle weight. Parts are at cost plus 10% administrative fee.

Ms. Mailander stated that there is some income coming in, and Mr. Calbi had done a preliminary estimate of revenue from the Board of Education possibly around $5,000 for the entire year, which is a rough estimate. This is in addition to the Washington Township Agreement which was approved this month in the public meeting.

Mayor Knudsen stated that she meets monthly with Superintendent Dr. Fishbein and Board of Education President Vince Loncto, along with Ms. Mailander, and Councilman Hache who is the liaison for the Board of Education. There was a lot of conversations and a lot of effort to have this come to fruition, so she thinks it is a benefit to the taxpayers, and probably a savings to the Board of Education, and will make a little bit for the Village on the other end.

Ms. Mailander thanked Mr. Calbi for pursuing this and getting it done.

 

1. Operations

 

1. Declare Property Surplus – Miscellaneous Equipment – Police Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this resolution was to declare property surplus of miscellaneous equipment for the Police Department which includes everything from radar units to light bars to scanners and lights and sirens which are no longer needed or have outlived their useful life.

 

1. Declare Property Surplus – 1998 Auto Packer – Streets Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this resolution was for declaring property surplus of the 1998 Auto Packer for the Streets Department. It requires more work than it is worth, so it will be used for parts until it is sold as-is.

 

1. Increase Fees for Correcting State Records

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Dawn Cetrulo, Director of Health, requested an ordinance to amend corrections to vital records which includes birth, marriage, death, and civil union certificates. Currently the Village charges a fee of $25 for birth corrections and $10 marriage, death and civil union corrections. The charge for the corrections was last increased in 2009, and it is quite time consuming to process these corrections. Ms. Cetrulo is asking that the Village increase the fees to $50 per correction. Ms. Mailander stated that the fees at some municipalities that have hospitals where there are births include Teaneck which charges $45, Hackensack charges $30, and Englewood $27.

Ms. Mailander stated that corrections are needed because of the result of the person giving the information; and/or proofreading the record, or a decision to change a child’s name after the record was created.

Mayor Knudsen stated that she wanted to point out that what she learned from Ms. Cetrulo is that a child’s name can be changed up to seven years after they are born by just changing the record and not going through a costly court process to legally change a name.

Councilman Voigt stated that it sounded to him like a pretty good deal, as Ms. Cetrulo had mentioned it was thousands of dollars to change a name in court, and it would be $50 in the Village. He questioned if it should be higher.

Ms. Mailander stated that this would be double the charge that it currently is and that she thinks the Village could see and perhaps not wait nine years to increase the fee again if need be.

 

1. Memorandums of Understanding – Health Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Ms. Cetrulo was going to explain to the Council the Memorandums of Understanding for the Health Department.

Ms. Cetrulo stated that there were a few Memorandums of Understanding and a lot of them were because she is the Health Officer and Ridgewood is not under Fair Lawn’s jurisdiction. She stated that the first Memorandum of Understanding was to have Carol Wagner, Health Officer for Fair Lawn, cover when she is on vacation and have herself cover for Ms. Wagner when she went on vacation. Ms. Cetrulo stated that this was usually done already, but she couldn’t cover for Ms. Wagner if a Health Officer was needed. The comments from the State are that the Health Officers are on-call 24/7 and if the State calls them with a communicable disease they have to call within two hours or could lose their license. As a result, it is very important that there is someone covering.

Ms. Cetrulo stated that the other three Memorandums of Understanding are for Bioterrorism, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis control. Those are requirements of the Public Health Process Standards that the Village is required to do, but Ridgewood does not have the means to do them, so the County covers them. Ridgewood was under the jurisdiction of Fair Lawn, but now that the Health Department is stand-alone, the Memorandums have to be done through Ridgewood.

Ms. Cetrulo stated that the last Memorandum of Understanding was for lead, which had been explained in the Budget meeting, where the action level for lead poisoning investigation dropped from 10 ug/dl to 5 ug/dl. Whereas Paterson has always been doing Ridgewood’s Public Health under Fair Lawn, but now the Village is doing the Memorandum separately for Ridgewood. Ms. Cetrulo stated that the process for the lead is that Public Health Nursing does Case Management and then she goes out and does the investigating and the follow-up.

Mayor Knudsen questioned whether the lead issue was something that is being publicized on the website regarding the change in the number and if it was something that parents need to be concerned about. Ms. Cetrulo stated that the pediatricians are supposed to be testing for lead in the same way they have been, but if the lead level comes back at a five, the Health Department would act on it. Ms. Cetrulo stated that with the grant, they are trying to increase the number of people that have their children tested. Unfortunately, even though it is a requirement for ages one and two, only about 30 to 35% of kids are being tested. She added that their goal in Public Health is prevention and to try to encourage parents to test. Ms. Cetrulo stated that the Health Department works with the nursery schools, puts articles in the paper, places Facebook posts, and sends information to pediatricians in the area as well, and then her job is to go in after the fact if a child is elevated.

Ms. Mailander requested that Ms. Cetrulo mentioned some of the ways there is lead being ingested and how it is affecting these children. Ms. Cetrulo stated that it is usually assumed a child has lead poisoning from the paint on the walls from an older house, but there have been cases where there is a spice from the county of Georgia. She had two separate cases. In one case the babysitter brought a spice home from the country of Georgia and the other was the family lives in Georgia and the kids were there and brought the spices home. The level for it to be considered to have lead in it is 5 ug/dl and the first case had 24,000 ug/dl about two years ago. The most recent case had about 14,000 ug/dl. Ms. Cetrulo stated that was something that people didn’t know. When she first found out about it, she did a presentation for the Maternal and Child Health Consortium talking to them about it to make people aware because they had to look in their cabinets and pull things out because they couldn’t find out where the lead was coming from.

Ms. Cetrulo added that another thing she found was an antique trunk that was being used as a coffee table with a greyish blue paint on it. The child was taking cars and driving them on it, then touching it to his mouth and that’s where his lead poisoning came from. So, they have to really look at different sources of lead. She added that there have been recalls for toys with lead in them in addition to foods that aren’t properly labelled as they have different regulations in other countries.

Ms. Cetrulo stated that with the first case she had, she used a Consumer Product Analyzer machine which was brought in which Paterson had borrowed. The Health Department would take a teacup or toy and put it in the machine and it would say if it had lead. Out of curiosity she brought something she owned which was a bowl that she had purchased at K-mart and it was loaded with lead. A children’s teacup set also had lead in it. These are things that parents wouldn’t think of, so it shows we have to be really careful with what children are putting in their mouths.

 

1. Planning Board Recommendation for Master Plan Visioning Processing Consultant

 

Ms. Mailander stated that next was the Professional Services Award of Contract for the Master Plan Visioning Process, and that the Council did have a letter from the Planning Board Secretary Michael Cafarelli regarding this. She added that Mayor Knudsen would speak to this as she was involved in the various sub-committees that interviewed consultants.

Mayor Knudsen stated that she thought this was the most exciting issue presently in the Village of Ridgewood as the Master Plan is currently 35 years old, is outdated, and not reflective of appropriate development patterns or how the future would be envisioned for Ridgewood. Last year money was budgeted for a new Master Plan and the Planning Board assembled a Master Plan Advisory Committee to look at the entire process. It was very new for the Council to wrap their heads around the logistics of getting a Master Plan done. The first part of a Master Plan process is a Visioning, and that allows the community members, residents, and stakeholders, to come together in meetings. Then there is a big public outreach so that everyone has input as to how they think the Village will look 30, 40, or 50 years from now. Mayor Knudsen stated that the Visioning would really look into the future as to of how the community wants to see Ridgewood exist 50 years from now and what kind of Ridgewood will there be for future generations.

Mayor Knudsen stated that NV5 was really an outstanding candidate for this particular process. They will develop the Village webpage and will perform an extensive outreach through social media, newspapers, email, calls, and cold calls. They have a very extensive outreach to the community with two or three sessions where residents can come in and go to different areas and participate in different areas of the Master Plan that are of particular interest to them. She reiterated that NV 5 was really an outstanding candidate and that the sub-committee was very excited when they were interviewed as NV 5 really had an outstanding program and process that they would allow the Village to engage in.

Mayor Knudsen added that she was not at the Planning Board meeting when they voted on the recommendation of NV 5, however Councilman Voigt was and based on the information that he had to review he voted affirmative. Councilman Voigt added that he was looking forward to this process and he thought it was going to be fun. Mayor Knudsen added that it was an exciting opportunity.

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it was long overdue and could memorialize what the Village has and is probably one of the most forward-looking things that could be done by the Council. Mayor Knudsen stated that the Planning Board meetings are on Tuesday evenings twice a month and in order to really get this process together and get through and understand everything, the Master Plan Advisory Committee was meeting every single Tuesday of a Planning Board night. So, she really needed to thank Melanie McWilliams, Joel Torielli, and Richard Joel and the Council really owes a debt of gratitude for their time, energy and effort.

1. Authorize NJDEP Treatment Work Permit Application Processing for Carr Well Facility

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the next item was authorizing the execution for NJDEP Treatment Works Approval. The Ridgewood Water Company’s Carr Well Facility is in the process of constructing a granular activated carbon treatment system as part of their treatment cycle for which the towers are visible. Some of the backwash water has to go into the Village’s sanitary sewer collection system and has to be treated by the Water Pollution Control Facility. The quantity of the discharge is such that a Treatment Works Approval is required from the NJDEP related to the sanitary sewer discharge.

Ms. Mailander stated that the TWA requires an authorized representative of the Village to review and then sign the permit application. She added that Mr. Rutishauser would be designated to do so. The quantity of the discharge will trigger the Village EDU Ordinance with a fee due to the Village in the range of $30,000 per year based on the quantity discharged, so that would be coming from Ridgewood Water to the Village of Ridgewood.

 

1. Declare Property Surplus – Graydon Pool Inflatable WIBIT Aquatrak

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the next resolution was to declare property surplus of the Graydon Pool Inflatable WIBIT. It was damaged by vandals while still in place at Graydon Pool and it was also removed from the waterfront and stored in the Parks Division yard at the end of the 2012 summer season. Several large slits were found in the individual pieces. The equipment was inspected by the vendor and it was suggested it be replaced rather than repaired.

Ms. Mailander stated that the WIBIT was purchased for approximately $11,500. Additional staffing is necessary for someone to watch the WIBIT specifically, so there were some safety concerns with the WIBIT. Ms. Mailander stated that a replacement was not in the Budget that she was aware of for this year to be replaced but at this point what Recreation wants to do is to declare it surplus and get rid of it.

Mayor Knudsen questioned how many seasons the Village got out of the WIBIT. Ms. Mailander stated that it was purchased in 2011, and it was damaged at the end of the second season. Mayor Knudsen stated that the Village basically got 6 months out of it, to which Ms. Mailander agreed.

 

1. Site Access Agreement – North Walnut Street Parking Lot

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this was a Site Access Agreement for the North Walnut Street Parking Lot. Geographic Services, Inc., is working for 32 Cottage Place and they are requesting access to the North Walnut Street lot. It has been included in the investigation area for the subsurface contamination effecting 32 Cottage Place. They would like to be able to sample the groundwater monitoring wells for the Village parking lot and Geographic Services, Inc. will share, with the Village, any data generated by the investigation.

Councilman Voigt stated that there seemed to be some kind of a stream that was flowing underneath North Walnut Street and all the way down to Cottage Place and it is contaminated. Ms. Mailander agreed and stated that it looked like it was dry cleaner contamination. Councilman Voigt questioned what that meant. Ms. Mailander stated that it meant allowing the company that is working on the contamination to look at the monitoring wells. Councilman Voigt stated that he understood that, but he felt it sounded like it was contaminated and needed to be combed up. Ms. Mailander stated that was what this company was doing.

Mr. Mehandzic stated that this has been a recognized underground plume of contaminated water that has come down for a number of years and goes right through a number of properties right along Franklin and into the Village North Walnut Street parking lot. He added that the DEP has monitored it and given the Village certain requirements to take care of, one of which is the placement of monitoring wells. The monitoring wells are often a remedy the DEP uses to make sure that certain levels aren’t exceeded, there’s no further contamination other than what is existing there, and the effort to try and clean it up would start up top. This access has to do with investigating and going in to see the monitoring wells that are along in the North Walnut Street parking lot which is at the bottom of the plume. Mr. Mehandzic stated that this was not actually the cleanup of the contamination, that is occurring and there is a separate aspect of this that goes on for that at the top of the plume. He’s not exactly sure of all of the parameters but Mr. Rutishauser has the requirements from DEP regarding that.

Councilman Voigt questioned whether Mr. Rutishauser could come in and talk to the Village Council about what is going on here, as it seems to be concerning. Ms. Mailander stated that this situation has been ongoing for years. Councilman Voigt stated that he is aware of it, but this seems to be worse than anticipated or imagined. Mr. Mehandzic stated that the status has been the same for a long time but suggested that Mr. Rutishauser would contact Councilman Voigt regarding this as he is trying to dispel the alarm but at the same time give the Councilman the answer that he needs. Ms. Mailander stated that she would have Mr. Rutishauser contact Councilman Voigt.

Deputy Mayor Sedon questioned whether the Village would lose any parking spaces because of the wells. Ms. Mailander stated that the wells are already present, and that this Site Access Agreement was just granting Geographic Services, Inc., access to those monitoring wells. Mr. Mehandzic added that if anything is done while the company is there they will be responsible for it.

 

1. Liquor License Transfer – Rocco Berardi to BB Ridgewood LLC t/a Bareburger

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this liquor license transfer was between Rocco Berardi who has held a pocket liquor license with no licensed premise for years and he has found a buyer in BB Ridgewood LLC, trading as Bareburger. They have filed a person to person and place to place transfer application, which has been investigated by the Police Department and the applicants and owner of this entity have been investigated and finger printed. The Police Department has signed off on it, so as long as the Council is okay with it, the resolution regarding the transfer of this liquor license will be considered on April 11^th at the Public Meeting.

 

1. MANAGER’S REPORT

 

Ms. Mailander stated that she wanted to thank all of the Village Staff and First Responders who have been called upon several times this winter through various storms and Nor’easters. Their dedication, support, and professionalism are appreciated in keeping the entire Village safe.

One Time Special Pickup of Branches and Limbs – Ms. Mailander stated that the Parks Department and Streets Department would be picking up the branches and limbs that came down in the March 7^th Nor’easter. Section A and AA has been completed and A and B will begin today, and A and C will begin April 2^nd, and once that area is cleared then they will move on to Section D. If residents are able to bring their limbs and branches to the Graydon Pool parking lot, they can be brought there to a barricaded area. Regarding trees on private property, homeowners are responsible. Ms. Mailander added that once this pickup has taken place, there will be no additional pickups of limbs and branches. The Village asks that residents do not place yard waste out with limbs and branches as yard waste pickup actually begins April 16^th and will not be picked up at this time.

Restoration Work on Stairs from Corsa Terrace to Pease Library – Ms. Mailander stated that the restoration work on the stairs from Corsa Terrace to Pease Library began on March 27^th and continues through March 28^th. The stairs will be closed during this time and means that pedestrian traffic must walk down Corsa Terrace to West Ridgewood Avenue while the work is being done. This restoration work will continue on a daily basis, including weekends, weather permitting. The stairs were not in good shape and she is sure that those who use it every day are glad that they are being replaced.

Shred Day – Ms. Mailander stated that Shred Day was coming up on Saturday, April 7^th, rain or shine, in the Graydon Pool Parking Lot from 9:00 A.M. to 12:30 P.M. for Village of Ridgewood residents.

Bergen County Street Work – Ms. Mailander stated that Bergen County would begin their street work in early April and will be milling and paving East Ridgewood Avenue in Ridgewood, Racetrack Road, a small section of West Saddle River Road, and Bogert to East Saddle River Road. They will also be paving East Ridgewood Avenue from Route 17 to Paramus Road and then Paramus Road from East Ridgewood Avenue to Century Road. Ms. Mailander added that although Paramus Road is not in Ridgewood it is a well-travelled route and they are looking at closing down to one lane and also may have other detours. So, if residents normally use Paramus Road there will be a two-week period where it is under construction and to expect delays and possibly find alternate routes.

GOV Deals – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village of Ridgewood in the last month has continued to use the online auction service and have auctioned three vehicles for a total of $10,891 in revenue to the Village. Next week, three more vehicles will be put up for surplus disposal. If any resident is interested in bidding on a Village vehicle, it is at GovDeals.com.

Holocaust Memorial Service – Ms. Mailander stated that the Holocaust Memorial Service, sponsored by the Interfaith Committee, has changed the date of the Memorial Service to Sunday, April 8^th at 7:30 P.M. at Temple Israel, 475 Grove Street. She added that this is a change from the Village calendar and will be on the website as well.

Village Council Work Session – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village Council Work Session scheduled for April 4^th has been cancelled. The Regular Public Meeting will be held on April 11^th, and then the next Work Session will be held on April 25^th.

Introduction of 2018 Municipal Budget – Ms. Mailander stated that the introduction of the 2018 Municipal Budget as well as introduction of the Capital Bond Ordinances will take place at the Village Council Regular Public Meeting on April 11^th. The Public Hearings in consideration for the option of the Budget and the Capital Bond Ordinances will take place at the Village Council’s Regular Public Meeting on May 9^th.

Village Office Closure – Ms. Mailander stated that all Village Offices would be closed on March 30^th in observance of Good Friday. There will be no garbage or recycling pickup on this day and the recycling center will be closed. The Police Department will be open. The recycling center will be open on Saturday from 8:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.

West Saddle River Road, Ho-Ho-Kus – Ms. Mailander stated that today she heard from the Administrator in Ho-Ho-Kus they are beginning a two-month long drainage road project involving West Saddle River Road. She knows that a lot of Ridgewood residents use this as a cut through to Hollywood Avenue, and the road will be closed as well as neighboring roads daily for this project. Travelling in the area, residents should please consider alternate routes.

Mayor Knudsen questioned how this would affect residents on the other side of West Saddle River Road by Racetrack Road, because Bogert was also receiving paving. Ms. Mailander stated that the Village was going to work with their contractor so that the whole road is paved. Mayor Knudsen stated that she spoke with County Executive, Jim Tedesco regarding the triangle area in this location and she was appreciative of the initiative for taking care of that.

 

1. COUNCIL REPORTS

 

Open Space Committee – Councilman Voigt stated that the Open Space Committee met on March 15^th, and one of the items of discussion was the diversion issue and trying to identify property that is not appropriately or adequately identified on the Recreation and Open Space Inventory, or ROSCI. He stated that a couple of parcels were identified that the Village may be able to talk to Green Acres about, and a conversation was scheduled for March 29^th about potentially putting these locations on the ROSCI and satisfying that diversion issue so that the Village can in turn start working with Green Acres again in purchasing Open Space land. As well, he believes they are holding some money belonging to the Village and hopefully Open Space can get that back, as well.

Planning Board – Councilman Voigt stated that the Planning Board met on March 20^th and had discussions on 200/210 South Broad Street which is South of the Dayton Development or the Brogan area. The applicant is seeking to renovate 200 South Broad Street and make it into medical office space for specialty practices. They are looking to share parking with 210 South Broad which would allow for a combined in total, 30 to 31 parking spaces for them. However, they need 38 parking spaces based on the size of the property that they are looking to develop, so they are short a number of spaces. The contention by the applicant is that those additional spaces could be found on South Broad and some of the feeder streets. However, they are still in discussion on that and it is an ongoing issue as it relates to that particular property.

Library Board of Trustees – Councilman Voigt stated that the Library Board of Trustees met March 27^th. The Annual Authors Luncheon on April 25^th at Seasons Restaurant in Washington Township, put on by The Friends of the Library is filling up quickly with 300 seats sold to date and capacity is 425. So, he urged anyone interested to go to RidgewoodLibrary.org/Friends. He added that these luncheons are usually a lot of fun and there is a silent auction.

Councilman Voigt stated that May 11^th is the Friends Appreciation Day for Friends and Donors, there is going to be a reading of the play called ‘Art’ which will take place in the library auditorium that evening.

Knights of Columbus – Councilman Voigt added that on March 24^th the Knights of Columbus had their Annual Saint Patrick’s Day event in the school gym on Passaic Street across from Mount Carmel Church, featuring bagpipers, Irish dancers, the band Celtic Cross, and one of Ridgewood’s own Irish crooners ,Pat Mullen, who does a great rendition of ‘Danny Boy.’ Guinness, corned beef and cabbage were provided, and he extended special thanks to The Best of Everything for the food they provided. Over $8,000 was raised which all will go to charity. There was a winner of the Ireland trip raffle and there was also a winner of the $850 and $425 50/50 raffle, which generously the people who won the 50/50 gave it practically all back to the Knights of Columbus. Next year’s event will be held on March 23^rd. The pictures from the event are up on the Knights of Columbus Facebook page.

Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee and the Green Team – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that the Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee and the Green Team met March 20^th and a topic of discussion was that there are several things through Sustainable Jersey that have to deal with the Master Plan and zoning and sustainability. So, for the visioning process they are guaranteed a group of residents that are interested in participating and there will be a number of topics they will be bringing up.

Deputy Mayor Sedon added that the Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee teams up with the Ridgewood Conservancy for Public Lands for the Earth Day Festival at Van Neste Square Memorial Park on April 22^nd from 11:00 A.M. until 2:00 P.M. The park is filled with vendors, people, dog parades, daffodils and everything green. It is always a fun day rain or shine.

Community Center Advisory Board – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that the Community Center Advisory Board met on March 22^nd and working with Age Friendly Ridgewood they have identified four potential spots in the Central Business District for benches. They are working through some of the details with Engineering so benches can be put in spots around the Central Business District for older people, or anyone walking around, who want to take a rest.

New tables will also be brought in for the Community Center and they will try one out to see how well it works. They will, potentially, bring in 9 to 10 tables that are 36 by 36 inches, like card tables, but much sturdier.

Board of Education – Councilman Hache stated that there was a very lively discussion at the Board of Education monthly meeting, and he would hope by now that being the second time they have met since the unfortunate events in Parkland that they would have gotten further along with the SRO discussion, but there is still some resistance to the Board of Education paying for half of the SRO. What the Village is proposing is giving them an officer which would be dedicated to the Board of Education for 180 days out of a 260 day work year so they are getting 70% of that officer at half the cost. That still seems to be a problem as they had offered to pay for 34%. He is hoping that next time around they get further along, as it is something that is very important, and they need to get on top of it as quickly as possible.

Councilman Hache stated that there was also a discussion about the Board of Education elections and the fact that there was very little information about what happens around the elections and there is apparently one seat coming up. There is no information about it and apparently the County is now responsible for enforcing the information. One of the things that the Council suggests is that the Board of Education is not prohibited from providing that information so maybe they could provide a bit more clarity as to what the schedule of the seats that are coming up are and when are the deadlines to register as a candidate.

Mayor Knudsen stated that regarding the School Resource Officer, there can’t be a price put on safety and especially children’s safety. There is a Police Officer that is actually beginning training as an SRO so it’s important that the issue of who is paying for what is not going to stop the Village from moving forward. The issue is that the SRO becomes a full time Police Officer for the schools and the Village subsequently loses one if its Police Officers on the road. The Village has to replace that officer and pay him or her so it is important to note its not that the SRO isn’t going to happen. Haggling over who is paying for how much is not important as it’s all taxpayer dollars at the end of the day. It is important to know that the SRO is beginning training in April with the County.

In the meantime what the Village has done so because they know that there is a heightened concern about school safety and the safety of our children. Right now, officers are being rotated throughout the schools and the Council feels there is a tangible benefit to that. By allowing Police Officers to rotate in and out, they become more familiar with the faces of our students and the students are becoming more familiar with the Police Officers. The more familiarity they have with the Village Police Officers the more comfortable they are seeing something, saying something or confiding in those Officers and bringing important information forward. Mayor Knudsen added that the Council is very comfortable that the schools are covered, and the SRO will be moving forward as it is something the Council has been working hard to get taken care of.

 

1. REVIEW OF APRIL 11, 2018 PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there are several proclamations on the agenda, Proclaim April as Tree Planting Month and April 27, 2018 as Arbor Day, Proclaim April 28, 2018 LAX Day in Ridgewood, Proclaim May 6-12, 2018 National Drinking Water Week, Proclaim May as Building Safety Month.

Ordinances for Ridgewood Water includes: Water Utility Capital Ordinance.

The scheduled Ridgewood Water public hearings include: Re-establish Water Rates and Fees – 2010-2017, and Amend Water Rates and Fees – 2018.

Resolutions for Ridgewood Water include: Approve Contract – Annual Renewal of Mapping Software for GIS, Reject Bid – 2018 Well Improvements, and Authorize NJDEP Treatment Work Permit Application Processing for Carr Well Facility.

The following Ordinances are scheduled for introduction: Establish a CAP Bank, General Capital Ordinance, Parking Utility Ordinance, and Increase Fees for Corrections to Vital Records.

The scheduled public hearings include: Amend Chapter 212 – Parks and Recreation – Establish Rules and Regulations for Seasonal Skatepark, Establish Policies for Use of Level One Rooms – Village Hall, and Amend Chapter 145 – Fees – Fees for Use of Level One Rooms – Village Hall.

2018 Budget Resolutions include: Approve 2018 Municipal Budget and Set May 9, 2018 as the Date for the Public Hearing Thereon.

Resolutions include: Approve Temporary General Capital Budget, Approve Temporary Water Utility Capital Budget, Approve Temporary Parking Utility Capital Budget, Approve Emergency Temporary Budget Appropriations, Title 59 Approval – Tub Grinder, Title 59 Approval – Replacement of Interior and Exterior Main Entrance Doors at Village Hall, Award Contract Under Cooperative Purchasing Contract – Turf Field for Maple Park, Award Professional Services Contract – Planning Services for Visioning Process for Update to Master Plan, Authorize Shared Services Agreement – Vehicle Maintenance and Repairs (Ridgewood Board of Education), Approve Memorandums of Understanding – Health Department, Declare Property Surplus – Various Equipment – Police Department, Declare Property Surplus – 1998 Auto Packer – Streets Department, Declare Property Surplus – Graydon Pool Inflatable WIBIT Aquatrack, Authorize Site Access to North Walnut Street Parking Lot, Approve Liquor License Transfer – Rocco Berardi to BB Ridgewood, LLC t/a Bareburger, 15 East Ridgewood Avenue, Appointments to Planning Board, Appointments to Ridgewood Environmental Advisory Committee (REAC), Appointments to Ridgewood Green Team Advisory Committee, Appointments to Community Relations Advisory Board, Appointments to Shade Tree Commission, and Appointments to Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Board.

 

1. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

Kevin Mattessich, 836 Morningside Road, stated that he wanted to give his views on the garage proposal for Hudson Street as he thinks it is a really bad idea. He has looked at the plans and listened to various meetings, and it doesn’t fit there, it will be bad for traffic, but he really thinks it’s a bad idea because he hasn’t heard anyone explain why the Village needs a garage in that spot. He hears a lot of complaints about not being able to find parking on Friday night for restaurants, but he hasn’t heard anyone come out and say this is why the Village needs this garage and to risk taxpayer dollars to put this structure in that place, and it is very concerning.

Mr. Mattessich stated that from a historical perspective, McHugh’s and Sealfons were two of the best stores that Ridgewood ever had with some of the best parking that any store in Ridgewood ever had and they both eventually failed with the passage of time. What the Village has done now is built up this restaurant base and he has heard people say that this parking needs to be built so that the restaurants have space on Friday and Saturday night. He thinks for the Village to prop up failed business models for all of these restaurants to be in town now is a mistake. He added that the Council needs to ask questions such as, why did FISH fail, because it wasn’t very good or because of parking. When a restaurant is superb people will find a space and park down the street but when a restaurant stinks people won’t go.

Mr. Mattessich stated that other uses need to be found for these buildings, and the free market must decide what goes into these buildings. Trying to socially engineer and prop up businesses that will be failing, the Council and residents will be taking tax dollars from residents, stealing from themselves, and giving that money to failed businesses. The other reason that he has heard articulated is that the new multi-family housing will need parking for the residents or their guests. He has an interest in the multifamily housing, but for the Council to cave and to build the garage for the developers is frankly insulting and stealing from ourselves, is taking money out of our pockets and giving it to the developers who have come in with failed building plans.

Mr. Mattessich stated that another reason he heard was for parking for out of towners so that they have parking at the Ridgewood Train Station, so they have access. He stated let Wyckoff build a parking lot in Glen Rock, let Franklin Lakes build a parking lot in Glen Rock, let them pay for it and put their tax dollars at risk so their residents can park somewhere else by a train station. For the Village to say it should be done for out of town commuters who may come in to shop, doesn’t and won’t happen. So far, he hasn’t heard a good reason to build the garage, but he has heard a lot of bad reasons. He seriously believes that if the Village puts the garage in for any of the reasons he just articulated the Village is being moronic and taking money out of resident’s pockets and giving it to failed enterprises, failed businesses, failed ideas, if so, then the Village does deserve to lose millions of dollars to the proposition.

Linda McNamara, 575 Knickerbocker Road, stated that this was a continuation from her earlier comments when she was speaking about the myth that there was no maintenance involved with artificial turf. Through the years it has proven over and over not to be true, not to mention the single biggest expense being the carpet after 8 to 10 years which is anywhere from $500,000 to $600,000. There are also costly repairs of seams and tears, and costly disposal charges at time of replacement, somewhere in the upward of $130,000 which does not include transportation and landfill charges. This is becoming a real issue because there are massive amounts to be recycled and there is no market for it anymore so there are charges. Ms. McNamara stated that Maple Field floods regularly, so it is an active flood plain and it destroys the performance of the turf field in a single incident and while not always having that be the case, the potential for that happening is always there.

Another site said that if anyone is planning to install artificial turf in a flood plain, or has made the mistake of doing it, using natural grass or another vegetative source would be preferable to crumb rubber, which in the case of the Village, goes right into the brook. So, there are huge environmental concerns. Asking the kids what they prefer would really give the Village some answers as they are the ones that are driving the residents to be more environmentally friendly and she is sure that is something that they would like to have a say in.

Ms. McNamara stated that she found on the internet Nike crumb rubber which is apparently a different brand from regular old tire rubber which is taking old Nike sneakers and using that in place of crumb rubber. Nike sneakers material has less chemical additives because the kids wear it, but it is not totally safe and still goes into the brook and becomes a concern. She added that if she could have her way, and have natural grass there, the Village would need a Cost to Rebuild Analysis and Environmental Impact Study, not necessarily a big one as she knows years ago REAC was used, and she thinks it should be done before the money is spent on a crumb rubber replacement field. She heard talk about cork and she knows a lot of people in the business and it is moving towards vegetative alternatives and she thinks it would do the Village well to look into that. It is more money but its safer and not as environmentally unfriendly and may be the way to go.

Ms. McNamara stated that for the sports team registration there should be a fee assessed for a designated user fee for maintenance and replacement and this would help significantly to offset the cost to the taxpayer for annual expenditures, similar to what is done at the High School. She thinks a user fee is more practical for situations where majority of the people aren’t paying so it wouldn’t be seen in a tax increase. She thanked the Council for the report about the Board of Education and stated that she has always been a proponent of the SRO’s and she thinks that she heard that the Board of Education had hired a retired Police Officer from February to the end of June to do an analysis.

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that she wished the Council would have mentioned something about Graydon Pool as in three days the discount passes go on sale for the month of April.

Sarubh Dani, 390 Bedford Road, stated that he wanted to say that he completely agreed with Kevin that in these last few months of the garage round there hasn’t been a case made as to why the Village even needs the garage. He added that there were a lot of residents who believed that this garage was going to support primarily the high-density housing or the three or four restaurants that are attached to that specific location, and none of those are putting any money towards the down payment, and there is not good will towards that. Regarding the high-density housing benefit, he still owns a place in Hudson County and at the townhouse they had two parking spaces, a garage, a driveway, and two on the side street. People still complain about the tenants and cars being towed because there were guests and four parking spaces were not enough.  

Mr. Dani added that it may be too late, but if the garage is passed and something could be put there that ensures that it will not be primarily used by the high-density housing residents that will give some assurance that the intentions are good. If it is Friday or Saturday night for the restaurants and night passes have been given to those residents, then restaurants are not going to be able to use those spaces. So, if part of the Ordinance says that any night parking in that specific area cannot start before 11:00 P.M. and that will really tell residents that those spaces will not be occupied Friday and Saturday nights and will add to some confidence.

Boyd Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that it amazes him that there is a $110,000,000 Budget, but there is quibbling over who is going to pay for the SRO. He added that he and his wife had occasion to travel from the Village Hall side of town to South Monroe Street and while they were driving they went through the trestle and around Garber and Wilsey Square which made him think that several months ago Patrol Officer Ray Torino and Sergeant Chuck made a recommendation regarding reconfiguring that area to allow for better traffic flow. So, he was wondering if at some point whether if the Manager could give an update as to where that project stands. Also, while they were driving through there, the thought occurred to him what is going on with the plan to enlarge the parking at the train station as he knows the Village was waiting to hear from the State and again if the Manager could give an update as to where the Village stands with the addition of 30 plus parking spaces there.

Finally, Mr. Loving stated that his final request for an update concerns Parkmobile as he believes that the contract ended at the end of February and there was a verbal request made for an extension. He suggested that be put in writing, and he wanted to know if another vendor had been found or if the Village was staying with Parkmobile. If so, would the rate continue or was the Village able to negotiate a better rate.

Ms. Mailander stated that for Garber and Wilsey Square, the work would be done in the Spring/Summer which is getting rid of the bike lane from Pease Library up to the bend in Pease Library and it will stop there and then continue. Regarding the expansion of the train station, SHIPO needed additional information that was sent to them. They asked for additional information again which was sent to them yesterday or today, so the Village is still waiting to get approval from them. Ms. Mailander stated that lastly, Parkmobile actually was a written request to extend their existing contract to March and the Village has now given one more written request for April. There will be a report on Parkmobile from the Parking Utility Director/CFO at the April 25^th Work Session so at that point the Council will decide what to do and move forward. The Village may have to do one more month into May, and it may be that Parkmobile is selected as they did submit a proposal; however, she has not yet seen the analysis but that will be discussed on April 25^th.

Mayor Knudsen asked if it was ever established what the cost would be to have that field replaced as natural. She understands the desire for turf is that it would allow for more play time and the rest times, but she wonders whether or not it is prudent to at least have a cost analysis done on a grass field. She stated that could presumably done by sodding it, so it would be rolled out and the next day there would be a field.

Mayor Knudsen stated that to be very clear regarding the parking garage, prior to this Council fully being seated the last Council majority spent in excess of about $500,000 on garage plans for garages that hopefully will never be built. One of them was the monster garage that was in the middle of the street, and then the second one that was towering over everything and grossly out of place and inappropriate for the area. What the Council did was utilize a provision in New Jersey statute that allowed the Village to have the lot designated as an area in need of redevelopment and allowed the Village to have garage designs for free. So, based on those garage designs there is a cost analysis and a parking allocation study, but in fact no decision has been made. This Council has not made any decision, has not voted on a garage, has not voted to bond anything, and no decision has been made. They are looking at garage ideas and designs.

Mayor Knudsen and Councilman Hache are in the process, with the Village Manager and the CFO, to negotiate with garage developers, but they are still at a point where they are looking at the pricing and what’s going to be involved. She wanted to reiterate that the Council hasn’t voted on that and it is still being worked through as to how it would actually be funded.

Mayor Knudsen stated that regarding the user fee on the field that Ms. McNamara mentioned, Councilman Hache and herself had just been discussing this, and stated that she agreed that there should be a $5 or $10 fee attached to every Community Pass registration for a sporting event and that money would then come back to the Village. That is something that the Council has to explore and she thinks Councilman Hache is going to take the lead on that.

Councilman Hache stated that another benefit of declaring the current Hudson Street Lot as an area in need of redevelopment is that the Village does not have to put up the 5% required for bonding, which would save the Village the $500,000 or so in funds.

Councilman Hache added that because it was brought up and he can appreciate difference of opinion with residents, businesses, experts, but he is always compelled to correct when there is misinformation out there. There have been plenty of public meetings and the developers were brought in who would potentially be building the garage and there have been many discussions at the Council Meetings. Never were there any discussions that centered around propping up restaurants or failed businesses. Never was there a discussion about building a garage for supporting the multi-family housing parking needs. If anything, what he has always proposed is that overnight parking is not allowed in the garage. As far as building the garage for out of towners, again not even in the assumptions that Walker provided was that included.

Councilman Hache stated that what is being talked about now is that based on the current plan of 240 spaces, 75% of the spaces would be allocated to commuters or monthly parking for employees, and it is important not to have overnight parking as if there is someone parking overnight and there is someone coming in to claim their spot then there would be an issue. He added that overnight parking would then require additional policing from the Police Department. The other comment that was made that the garage didn’t fit on the lot; however, he felt that the Council had gone through painstaking lengths to really make sure that it fits on the lot and it is very different from previous proposals. The experts even came in and talked about how difficult it is to put in the ramping system. The optimal width would be 120 feet whereas the Village is working with 100 feet, but the Village is doing everything possible and stretching the laws of physics and architecture to make sure that it fits on the lot.

Councilman Hache stated that a lot of the misinformation has a way of exploding and making its way around, but none of the things he just stated have been discussed by the Council as part of the plans for the garage. Mayor Knudsen added that she understood what was said about the multifamily housing because it is something that has been discussed at the Planning Board level. The issue is that, for instance, the Dayton site will meet the residential standard for parking per unit, but they are palatial units and if they assign every parking space they have no overflow. So, if even three residents have a Friday night party and require added parking spaces, she thinks that by default they would go across the street and park in the garage. She thinks that is the concern, but then of course it gets into having a new issue that exacerbated the parking problem. It is no secret how she felt and how Deputy Mayor Sedon felt about the high density multifamily housing, so she does not think that the density and the amount of space allocated to their parking needs was nearly enough. Mayor Knudsen stated that the density was entirely too much and the parking was not appropriate, but that is her position.

 

1. RESOLUTION TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION

 

Eileen Young read Resolution #18-75 to go into Closed Session as follows:

 

1. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilman Voigt, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 9:25 P.M.

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                                                                                                Susan Knudsen                                 

Mayor                        

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              Donna M. Jackson

           Deputy Village Clerk