A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON JANUARY 6, 2021 AT 7:30 P.M.
-
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. Deputy Mayor Sedon read a required announcement regarding the remote meeting format. At roll call the following were present: Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen. Also present were Heather Mailander, Village Manager/Village Clerk; Donna Jackson, Deputy Village Clerk; and Matthew Rogers, Village Attorney.
Mayor Knudsen led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag as well as in a Moment of Silence for our men and women serving our nation, and our First Responders.
-
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC
Jan Philips, 234 Union Street, asked what the procedure and protocol was to fly a flag on the flagpole located in Van Neste Square in the public free speech area. Mayor Knudsen stated that they would get back to her on that.
Neil Sullivan, 335 East Ridgewood Avenue, stated that he plays pickleball and loves the sport and thanked the Village Council and Parks and Recreation for putting in the pickleball courts. The last meeting he listened to, the Village Council had spoken about pickleball for a long period of time and it was concentrated on the noise level in the road or on the street, but he didn’t hear anyone say that they were in the houses. Apparently there are three houses where they claim it is really bad and the other houses in proximity to the pickleball court haven’t said anything, so, he guesses they are alright. He asked if anyone went into the houses that were complaining about the noise when pickleball was being played.
Mr. Sullivan stated that he was sympathetic to homeowners if the noise level is that bad, but he would like to establish objectivity. He suggested members of the Village Council and possibly some pickleball members go to these houses with the windows closed when pickleball is in play as an objective way of determining the noise level. He added that the experts who put in the sound barriers for $20,000, have they been contacted to possibly come in to make some suggestions to remediate the situation.
Mr. Sullivan added that if, in fact, the noise level is that loud, it would be a shame to have spent close to $100,000 with the courts and the sound barriers and let them be fallow. Most people are seniors who play in the morning, so he suggested that the time be cut to between 8:00 A.M. and 1:00 P.M. If someone lives in a house that it near a tennis court or grammar school, at this point his three minute time allowance had expired.
Beth Creller, 719 Belmont Drive, stated that she is a recent Ridgewood resident and wanted to comment on the establishment of a Government Energy Aggregation Program that is on the Policy portion of the agenda this evening. She has a 20 year career in energy and she really feels like they have nothing to lose by trying out this opportunity. The Village is not “out of pocket” to Gable and Associates and this contract would be for a finite period of time. Residents can opt out if they are not comfortable with it, and if you happen to sell or move your home this contract does not follow you. We may end up with a lower rate, but even if we pay a little more, this is making capital investment in future green energy alternatives. These are sustainable and they are needed to reach lower emission rates. Ms. Creller stated that overall, this is an opportunity to be an early adopter, not a guinea pig. Neighboring towns are already doing this, so we are not the first ones to try this out. Overall, she feels this reinforces our commitment to Sustainable Jersey.
Judy Mac, 330 Eastbrook Road, stated that she wanted to reply to Mr. Sullivan’s earlier comment. She lives in the neighborhood around Glen School, not directly around the court, but a block away. There are seven to eight houses that are 45 feet away from the pickleball court. She is very good friends with one of neighbors who moved, and she has been at her house which is one of the ones right around the court. Her friend had paid about $37,000 for triple pane commercial grade windows and when she was in the house and she can clearly hear the pickleball courts with all the windows closed. Ms. Mac stated that at her house, across the street from her friend’s house and on the side of the house that is facing away from the courts when she has her windows open she can clearly hear the pickleball courts. She does not want to be restrained and trapped inside her house. She has a big yard and pays a lot of taxes, and does not want to not be able to use her yard. She added that it wasn’t fair for people to come into her neighborhood and have fun and make noise and then go back to their quiet neighborhoods.
Ms. Mac stated that having over 80 people outside of town come and go as they wish is totally unfair. She is very thankful that he is sympathetic and understands, and she hopes that everybody can have fun but they are suffering here. People can go back to their home and enjoy the quietness, but the neighbors have to constantly hear this. As soon as she opens her door to her garage she can hear the pickleball. She added that there are houses across the soccer ball field that can hear the noise constantly, as well.
Dan Gioia, 447 Fairway Road, stated that he was calling about the Glen School pickleball facility and respectfully asking that it be reopened immediately while we discuss what the long term solution is here. Closing the facilities early without any notice to the appropriate parties he thinks is inappropriate and was a rug pulled out from under peoples’ feet without any discussion. Evidently there was a discussion with people in the neighborhood but not with any of the people who are playing pickleball. The pickleball community as well as the town should understand the breadth and specifics and complaints of the neighbors.
Mr. Gioia stated that Ms. Mac was talking about the noise of the pickleball, and he said she should stop by his house near Vets Field on Fourth of July. On Father’s Day there is no parking for the entire neighborhood because people are parking for the soccer tournament. He stated that when they moved in they understood that there was a park near them and that there would be some inconveniences because of it and they are dealing with it. He also asked if the people in that neighborhood heard Route 17, adding that it isn’t a quiet neighborhood.
Mr. Gioia stated that they would like to see some actual engagement from the Council and the Mayor with the people who play pickleball. His understanding is there are some people who tried to create a group but can’t seem to get any mind share and discussion going from the Village Council. As a taxpayer he would expect, and now he demands that happens. At the end of the day it is a community and some of the ideas that happened a few weeks ago on the call of having one or two courts here or there doesn’t really work. It’s a communal activity and multiple courts is much more part of the game.
Mr. Gioia stated that a couple ideas he had on a path forward is to reduce the number of hours. At this point, Mayor Knudsen stated that Mr. Gioia had run out of time.
The following emails were received and read aloud by Donna Jackson.
Bob Upton, 172 West Glen Avenue, wrote that he wished to add to his comments at the last meeting about Renewable Government Energy Aggregation Agreements, a topic they will be discussing tonight. He informed the Village Council that Green Ridgewood wanted the Council to consider the benefits of these programs in reducing dependence on fossil fuels and their associated impact on climate change. At their subsequent Green Ridgewood meeting, the Committee voted unanimously to recommend that the Council move ahead with the process of passing an ordinance and seeking bids, recognizing that if no acceptable bids are received, there is no obligation on the Village to proceed and no direct cost to the Village. It should also be noted that bids can be required to include modest cost savings for residents and that residents can opt-out at any time, before or after the contract begins.
Gene Solomon, 648 Spring Avenue, wrote asking the Village Council to please reopen the pickleball courts, what are they waiting for. Since the unilateral decision to padlock the dedicated pickleball courts until March 22nd, the members of the Village Council have received a great deal of specific information which should warrant reassessing the situation. The players have offered many short and long term suggestions on how to appease the neighbors and mitigate the situation. With the new policy of the courts being used only by Ridgewood residents and the reduction in the hours of play, attendance and usage will be significantly decreased. He wrote that the Parks and Recreation Department has received immediate solutions from the manufacturer of Acousti-block to help the noise abatement.
Mr. Solomon wrote that it appears there is no sense of urgency on the part of the Councilmembers to resolve this issue. For the players, many of whom are seniors, there is a tremendous sense of urgency. The next cold and pandemic restricted months will surely bring increased isolation for them, so time is of the essence. He asked what they are waiting for, and to please just reopen the courts on February 1st. This would give them a week to list the new fee schedule and rules. Then they will witness the difference the reduced attendance brings, and most importantly see the joy, excitement, and appreciation of the Ridgewood citizens who just want to spend some time doing physical activity and having social interaction.
Linda McNamara, 575 Knickerbocker Road, wrote that at the last Village Council meeting, Nancy Bigos was prepared to show a PowerPoint presentation that was put together by the Parks and Recreation staff that could not be shown because the Village Council had not seen it prior to the meeting. She is hoping it can be shown so that residents can be made privy to that information. She has taken a small, informal survey of about 100 people regarding the status of the HealthBarn and pickleball courts. Everyone in her survey, and also listening to comments made at Council meetings, are almost unanimously in favor of continuing the lease for the HealthBarn and keeping the pickleball program open for maximum use. Residents have not been part of the conversation regarding the HealthBarn issues and she believes a public meeting on the subject would be beneficial. Most of the early-on concerns have been mitigated and residents who had originally voiced concern are no longer against the location of HealthBarn. Ms. McNamara wrote that we get many benefits from this tenant including renovation of the house and rental fees.
Ms. McNamara wrote that regarding pickleball, there are muted paddles and balls that have been purchased, lessening the noise significantly and informal decibel tests have been taken showing minimal noise during the game itself. Parks and Recreation is in the process of formulating programs for special needs children, and seniors love it. Hours can be adjusted to best suit everyone’s needs, in fact, they are ready to be implemented as soon as they are permitted to do so. She asked that they continue moving forward with the continuation of the HealthBarn at its current location, and a robust pickleball program. We operate on a belief that majority rules, and she believes that in the above two cases the majority has spoken in large numbers.
Drewanne Rodney, 125 South Maple Avenue, wrote that she was writing concerning the pickleball courts at Glen School. This is the second email that she has sent, and as a 30 plus year resident of Ridgewood she is disappointed that she has not received any reply. As she mentioned earlier, they want to have the courts opened and/or a plan to open them. Unilaterally closing the courts without any open discussion seems unreasonable, when can our voices be heard?
There were no additional written comments, but one more public comment.
Walter Sohigian, 31 Ridge Road, stated that he was upset with the lack of transparency in the operation of the Village Council. He doesn’t know who voted which way on the issue, he doesn’t know what they have been considering, and he has heard from others in favor of continuing with the pickleball they have not been able to get through. This is inappropriate. He has another problem with the Village Council even dealing with this issue, last year the tennis courts on Pleasant Avenue were resurfaced. The far court has so many dead spots that its unplayable. He doesn’t know what the role of the Village Council was in the payment, approval, and supervision but it can’t be good. Mr. Sohigian stated that for the future we need more transparency from the Village Council on what’s going on. He feels that improper attention is being given to the homeowners without taking the rights of the pickleball players into account. He added that the pickleball players should not have to consider instituting a lawsuit in order to get transparency from the Council, that should be forthcoming.
There were no additional comments from the public.
Mayor Knudsen stated that in response to Jan regarding the flag pole in the public forum space, it is something they will be revisiting at a later date. Presently there is no ordinance for any rules or regulations pertaining to that. It was discussed several times by Village Council but they have come to no decision. She stated that regarding the last comment about transparency, she thinks this Village Council is here week in and week out discussing these matters. The public has every opportunity to call in and comment, there is nothing that is hidden from any member of the public and she thinks it is a remarkable and unfair comment. She added that this Village Council is incredibly transparent and they will continue to do that good work.
-
MANAGERS REPORT
COVID-19 Vaccine – Ms. Mailander stated that they encourage residents to register and inquire with as many vaccine outlets as possible. The new State phone number just went live on Monday, January 25th, and is 855-568-0545. It is staffed with 250 agents from 8:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. When people tried to call on Monday it was overwhelmed and a recorded message was given, it may have died down by now, so you can always call that number if you need information about vaccine sites or possible information that you have to give to get a vaccine.
Ms. Mailander stated that if you are a Ridgewood resident and 65 or older, you can email covid@ridgewoodnj.net. You do have to fit into the qualification of having that age, underlying health condition, or being a healthcare worker. They encourage residents to register for as many sites for the vaccine, as the Village has a limited supply of the vaccine and they are doing their best to administer it as quickly as possible. If the Village can schedule an appointment for you, they will email you. This can take several weeks and they cannot guarantee you an appointment. It all depends on how much vaccine they get week to week.
Annual Parking Permits – Ms. Mailander stated that they are currently selling annual parking permits at the reception desk in Village Hall. They are selling the permits Monday through Friday between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 12:00 P.M., and then 1:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M. at the customer service window which is located to the left of the lobby doors. If you have any questions or can’t make it during those hours, please call the receptionist at (201) 670-5500, extension 200. To date they have sold 24 Premium Permits, and 13 Non-Premium Permits. Usually by this time the Premium Permits are sold out and the Non-Premium Permits are higher than 13.
Chamber of Commerce Restaurant Week – Ms. Mailander stated that the Chamber of Commerce Restaurant Week ends tomorrow night. With reduced costs this is a good way to sample restaurants in Ridgewood’s Central Business District.
Christmas Tree Pickup – Ms. Mailander stated that the Parks Department will be doing its final pickup of Christmas trees on the west side, curbside, on January 28th between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 3:00 P.M. Please remove all ornaments and lights and do not place the tree in a plastic bag. If you wish to drop off your Christmas tree at the Graydon Pool parking lot you may do so. There is a place that is coned off and you may drop it any time through January 29th. If you need additional information please call the Parks Department at (201) 670-5565.
Complimentary Parking Spaces – Ms. Mailander stated that there are complimentary parking spaces in the Central Business District. These 15-minute spots are located on Oak Street, Chestnut Street, North Broad Street, off of East Ridgewood Avenue, and then also on Wilsey Square. These parking spaces are limited to 15-minutes only. They are free of charge to anyone and can be used to do a quick errand, pickup food, or visit a business nearby. She added to please be aware that if you remain in these spaces for more than 15-minutes you subject yourself to possibly receiving a summons. These spaces have been generously donated and sponsored by several local businesses and Ridgewood residents and those sponsors are acknowledged on the 15-minute parking signs.
Food Recycling Pilot Program – Ms. Mailander stated that the Food Recycling Pilot Program is still accepting applications for their program. As you know, food is one of the largest parts of our solid waste stream and we pay to send food trash to the landfill and costs are increasing. Those who participate in the program will be given a 5-gallon food scrap collection container. The participants will then take that container to the Recycling Center to empty it every week and also provide a weekly data entry to Ridgewood’s Recycling Division so they can monitor how much is being recycled and how much is not going into our solid waste stream. Anyone interested can sign up on the Ridgewood Recycling website. There are about 85 residents signed up, and the application deadline is January 31st. The program will begin a few weeks after that date, and the participants are requested to be in the program for at least 9 months.
Snow and Ice Reminder – Ms. Mailander stated that as a reminder, if snow or ice is forecasted please remember to bring your garbage cans to the end of your driveway so that Village employees are safe and don’t become injured trying to get to the backyard. They will continue to have it curbside until there is a clear path to your garbage cans. Please remember to keep cars off the streets so plows can do their work.
Super Science Saturday – Ms. Mailander stated that Super Science Saturday will be held March 6th in a virtual format. There will be more information forthcoming when we get closer to that date.
Cancellations – Ms. Mailander stated that the Annual Baseball Parade and Family Fun Day Event and Earth Day Fair, Daffodil Festival, and Dog Parade have been canceled, which are in April.
Upcoming Village Council Meetings – Ms. Mailander stated that the upcoming Village Council meetings are broadcast live on YouTube, streamed on the Village website, and on the public access channels. They will be on February 3rd which is a Work Session at 7:30 P.M., February 10th is a Village Council Public Meeting at 8:00 P.M., and February 24th is a Village Council Work Session at 7:30 P.M. These are all noted on the Village Calendar as well as on the Village website. There is a 7:30 P.M. meeting before a Public Meeting which anyone can attend, however, if you want your comments to be recorded in the main part of the meeting, wait until 8:00 P.M. for the Public Meeting.
-
COUNCIL REPORTS
Open Space Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the Open Space Committee met and noted that their suggestion was taken up that each of our open spaces be highlighted in turn on social media. Deanna Schablik has taken the labor on that and they want to thank her. She did the feature on Grove Park and it is really delightful. If you haven’t been to Grove Park, it is one of our gems. Also, they are seeking to extend members’ terms on the committee from one year to two years and she expects that will be on for discussion at next week’s Council meeting.
Central Business District Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the Central Business District Advisory Committee met and had a presentation from Greenridge Wealth Management regarding innovations and disruptions that one might anticipate from the business world in 2021. They also discussed other ongoing matters such as what will happen with the pedestrian mall once we get into spring, and hopefully it comes back, and also Village budgeting was discussed.
Planning Board – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the Planning Board met on January 19th. They listened to an application for 2-4 Garber Square for a minor site plan approval and a parking variance relief to permit a restaurant on the ground level and a 6-room inn on the second floor. There is already a tailor and a salon on the first floor, so the remainder of the first floor would be the restaurant. The basement would be used for storage for the restaurant, the kitchen, and for patron bathrooms. They decided to bifurcate the application into two parts, so they heard one part on January 19th which was the parking variance and they voted to grant them variance relief. They will hear the site plan application on February 16th.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they also heard an application for Piccolo Bistro on Chestnut Street. They are going to replace their awning, and that was granted. They reviewed an ordinance incorporating the New Jersey DEP’s requirements for storm water management, which the Village Council is going to be reviewing this evening. The next Planning Board meeting is February 2nd.
Councilwoman Perron asked about the application for Garber Square with a restaurant on the first floor and an inn above. Councilwoman Reynolds said yes, six rooms. Mayor Knudsen added that it is a boutique inn and looks beautiful.
Mayor Knudsen added that the parking variance that was granted is due to the historic nature of our downtown buildings, and the building owner had contacted a number of downtown businesses to see how they could handle the parking. It really looks like a fabulous project and they are really excited that this is going to happen downtown.
Citizens Safety Advisory Committee (CSAC) – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that CSAC met on January 21st. It was a fairly quiet meeting because not a lot of progress is being made on items they are working on due to COVID-19. One thing that was mentioned by Sergeant Chuck is that the Police Department has gotten some complaints regarding New Jersey Transit buses traveling on Ridgewood Avenue in the CBD. He suggested that the plans to move the bus station to the train station area be looked at again. He noted that when it was first discussed there were objections, but now he feels there is less traffic and congestion at the train station as more people are working from home and also that the parking garage has been completed.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that Fair Lawn is rolling out a Street Smart New Jersey Campaign to increase pedestrian safety and they will be looking into this a discussing it at the next meeting which is February 18th.
Parks and Recreation – Councilwoman Walsh stated that Parks and Recreation met last night for a long meeting. There were a lot of people voicing their concerns. There was a presentation by Stacey Antine from HealthBarn and she explained what HealthBarn does in their calendar year. They work with seniors, individuals with special needs, children, teenagers, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts. They discussed the topic of food insecurity, they work with Bergen County Commission Tracey Zur, and it was an overview of everything that HealthBarn does.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that the conversation turned to pickleball and they had a lot of individuals expressing their concerns about pickleball and she wanted to give a little bit of a timeline because there are a lot of people who are either confused about how everything came to be or are playing a game of telephone and the story is changing. The Council had three meetings in January when the Mayor, Village Manager, Director of Parks, and herself met on December 17th when they were determining what they could do to give the five member Village Council a chance to really review it and make decisions. They knew that they were having three meetings in January. They had not sold any badges yet. They knew that the price of the badges was going to remain the same, but they had not determined whether they were going to sell to residents and non-residents, or if they were going to change the hours. At that point, they realized that it really had to come to a conversation of all five Councilmembers with the Parks Director and the Village Manager and all the input by the public. This will be their third meeting talking about it in the public.
Councilwoman Walsh said that they want to be fair to everyone involved. They made some suggestions at the January 6th meeting, and they will have a meeting tomorrow with some pickleball individuals, so they are trying to gather as much information as possible and to make the smartest decision. They have had residents write in both pro and con, they have had individuals make suggestions, and the Director of Parks is in touch with Commissioner Hache about some courts that have been unused by the County that we may be able to share use there and turn them into pickleball. Councilwoman Walsh added that they are really trying their best to listen to all sides and to make a fair decision. She stated that they do want pickleball in Ridgewood, but they also want to be fair and make the right decision.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that since Earth Day is cancelled they really want everybody to remember that you can still do something around your own home to celebrate Earth Day.
Mayor Knudsen added that regarding pickleball, it is unfortunate when there is a suggestion that something has not been done in the public because they work so hard to really be transparent and they really want to be considerate of the public at large, but also the Village neighbors in the immediate area. She thinks it is important and is confident they are going to come up with a solution, and will reopen and everyone will be back playing pickleball in the near future.
Community Center Advisory Board – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that tomorrow at 5:00 P.M. the Community Center Advisory Board will meet via Zoom.
Ridgewood Arts Council – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that at 7:30 P.M. tomorrow the Ridgewood Arts Council will meet.
Community ACCESS Network – Mayor Knudsen stated that ACCESS met last Thursday via Zoom. She updated members on the status of the special needs affordable units at 275 East Ridgewood Avenue. The applications will be available late February/early March. It is important to keep checking back at BergenUnitedWay.org to see when those applications are available. She wanted to thank Tom Toronto for updating the website to make sure that everyone was aware of the timing on those applications.
Mayor Knudsen stated that the special needs community also discussed their concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine availability, especially as it impacts the special needs community and caregivers. These members of our community are not capable of traveling significant distances to access appointments out of this general area, so it really has been a benefit to have access to the Ridgewood Vaccine Clinic. She knows that the Village Manager and Dawn Cetrulo from the Health Department have been working tirelessly on this along with Dylan Hansen to get as much information out as quickly as possible.
Mayor Knudsen added that the group is also interested in a local database of members of our special needs community so that when our First Responders encounter a member of our special needs community they understand the type of disability, communication issues that might exist, or any issues that may come up with a member of the special needs community encounter a member of Law Enforcement, Fire Department, or EMT’s. They are likely going to reach out to Councilwoman Walsh on Stigma Free to see how they can organize that as it is very similar to one that the County had at one time.
Library Board of Trustees – Mayor Knudsen stated that the Library Board of Trustees met last night. A number of issues were discussed, but one important topic was the Author Luncheon which will take place in April most likely as a virtual event. She thinks it is challenging with the number of people that have attended in the past, and the discussion is to whether or not to do an online auction. Board Members are also reviewing the Reimagine application to see if there is any path forward to better understand what the positives and negatives were with the application to see if there is a way to rethink and advance Reimagine.
The Pease Library lease is almost up, and the one tenant is looking to scale back on the space they are utilizing so they will be looking for a new tenant which will come back to the Village Council.
Mayor Knudsen congratulated our Village Attorney for being reappointed as the Library Attorney, as well.
Jamboree 2021 Mission Impossible – Mayor Knudsen stated that this will be a virtual musical review extravaganza 2021. Producers wish to thank the Village of Ridgewood, and especially the Village Manager. Without her help, this year’s show would not be possible. This show was entirely filmed at locations downtown and really highlights all the really wonderful places of Ridgewood and its great talent. Visit RHSJamboree.org, and it is a virtual show February 4th-8th.
Fastachi – Mayor Knudsen stated that Monday evening they did the Grand Opening for Fastachi which is on Wilsey Square. It is nuts and mixed nuts, homemade chocolates, and she encouraged everyone to visit and support our local businesses.
-
PRESENTATION – NONE
-
DISCUSSION
-
Ridgewood Water
-
Award Contract – Annual Laboratory Analysis Services
Ms. Mailander stated that this is an annual contract. One bid specification was picked up with one bid being received from Aqua Pro-Tech Labs of Fairfield. The bid price is a reduction from the prior year’s pricing. Aqua Pro-Tech has performed successfully and 2021 will mark their 8th year as the service lab for Ridgewood Water. Funding for this is in the 2021 Water Utility Operation Budget.
-
Water Utility Interest Rates for Delinquent Accounts
Ms. Mailander stated that this is the same amount charged for non-payment of taxes, which is 8% per annum on the first $1,500 and 18% per annum on the balance over $1,500. For the non-payment of bills beyond the due date for all bills in excess of $50, there is a 30 day grace period. Any delinquency in excess of $10,000 is 6% per annum penalty.
Councilwoman Perron said that she had a question about the interest and penalties of this resolution. Ms. Mailander stated that it was set by statute and every year it’s the same.
-
Water Administrative Maintenance Fees
Ms. Mailander stated that this is an annual resolution which indicates the total amount of tax paid on Ridgewood Water owned land, based on the assessed value of the land. This amount is paid as an administrative maintenance fee to the Village of Ridgewood.
-
Bond Ordinance – Well Rehabilitation and Treatment Improvements
Ms. Mailander stated that Ridgewood Water wants to reactivate the Ravine Well and pumping the yield from the Marr Test Well to the Ravine Treatment Facility. The Ravine Well is located at 451 Goffle Road in Ridgewood, and in 2018 Ridgewood Water purchased the residential property and house located on the lot fronting the well house at 451 Goffle Road. The purchase was made to facilitate the installation of treatment for the Ravine Well and Marr Well. In 2020, Ridgewood Water completed a PFAS treatment feasibility study and it recommends prioritizing this project so the Ravine Well can be placed back into service and meet the requirements of the prior USEPA consent order. The bond order is for $602,000 and is to fund the design of the new treatment facility and the new treatment facility will provide 1,000,000 gallons of treated water into the system that is currently inactive and unavailable.
Councilwoman Walsh asked what is the timing on the well in terms of when it would be up and running. Mr. Calbi stated that current schedule anticipate two years, about a year of design and then a year of construction. All in total it is going to be a $3 million project. They pushed the design ahead of this year’s capital budget to get started on it sooner.
-
Parking
-
Grab and Go Parking Spaces
Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that some businesses on South Broad Street are having some difficulty with parking and there are a lot of parking issues there. Sook has taken up a lot of parking spots with the setup they have outside on the street. He wanted to gauge the Village Council’s opinion to see if there was another way of looking at this, perhaps adding a Grab and Go spot in the first spot on Hudson Street on the garage side. He thinks it would be the easiest since they couldn’t use the Sook side and it might be difficult to use the garage, it might be the best option for some of the businesses in that area.
Councilwoman Perron stated that she thinks that would be interesting, not only for the businesses on South Broad but also those on Prospect, which have pickups and have no place for their customers to stop. She didn’t know who would sponsor it, but if it is just designating they could always see if anyone wants to sponsor it, they can. She added that she would like to hear from Sergeant Chuck as to whether it was safe enough as it is a parallel parking spot. Deputy Mayor Sedon added that they could designate it and the businesses could figure it out, but first it needs to be designated. He added he would like to hear what Sergeant Chuck has to say, as well.
Mayor Knudsen stated that the image from Google Earth isn’t current, but she thinks the first spot is in the same space. She asked if they were talking about the first spot or two spots. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she thinks they should start with one, and asked Councilwoman Perron that when they were doing the Grab and Go originally she had asked about doing a spot on Broad Street but it came back that no one was interested. Councilwoman Perron stated that is what she heard from Paul Vagianos because he polled the businesses on South Broad. Generally, the most active one is Sook, and they were more interested in having a corral than having a Grab and Go spot.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked Deputy Mayor Sedon if any businesses had approached him about having a Grab and Go. Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he has had discussions with Bamboo House and the large majority there of their business is pick up and go and with Sook has their corral there. It was already a tough spot, so to alleviate that issue and help out some of the other businesses he thinks it would be good to start with that first space on Hudson Street. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she thinks that area needs a Grab and Go but originally they had heard that the businesses weren’t interested, but maybe they need to check around again.
Mayor Knudsen asked if maybe the members of CBDAC should be surveying the area businesses as that may be beneficial to have a community representative. Councilwoman Perron said that it wouldn’t be a problem to go door to door. Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that maybe they could designate the space and if nobody sponsors it, then it wouldn’t be a Grab and Go space, but if it is already designated and there was no interest, they wouldn’t need it. If there was an interest then they could move right into it. Mayor Knudsen stated that the original point of this conversation was to designate the first one or two spaces so that if there were sponsors they would just be able to move forward.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that she had an unlucky occurrence when she visited her kids’ dentist on South Broad, and she was coming down Broad and there was a car parked illegally in front of Sook and a car parked illegally in front of the Wine Seller. She was stopped because the car parked illegally in front of the Wine Seller was parked in the lane, there was a car in the other direction that stopped, a car turning from Hudson, and none of them could move. They had to all wait until the person came out and got in their car and drove off. It was a log jam for 5 minutes. She doesn’t think they are going to eliminate that bad behavior by putting the Grab and Go’s on Hudson. If the spots were on Broad then people will know it’s there, because she doesn’t think as many people are coming down Hudson.
Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would think it would be on the business, that when someone calls to pick something up the business can say there is a convenient Grab and Go spot on Hudson Street. Mayor Knudsen stated that it always strikes her that it is one of the most active illegal parking spots in the Village and the worst spot for it too, because it is so tight right there at that intersection. They started with some enforcement and maybe that is another thing that needs to be started up again because the only way to at least stop it is to let people know they are going to enforce. She suggested maybe looking at Broad but farther south where the parking spaces are usually empty anyway.
Ms. Mailander stated that since Sergeant Chuck is here, maybe they could hear from him and what his thoughts are on this spot. Sergeant Chuck stated that if the Village Council thinks the grab and Go spot is going to benefit the community, they have ample parking downtown so they could take advantage of those. They want to keep away from forcing a parallel parking action when possible, so if they are asking Broad Street or Hudson Street, he believes Hudson Street is the better answer. He believes there are two parking spots on the left that are shorter and easier actions than someone on Broad Street trying to stop right next to the dining. He thinks the restaurants there have such strong customer base that those customers are going to immediately realize that there is the free Grab and Go on Hudson Street. Sergeant Chuck added that he agreed with putting parking spots going North on Broad Street although not the worst parking area to do it in, it would encourage a lot of U-turns right in the road. As far as safety, they started putting cones out as a suggestion and they have seen that if people really want to illegally park they are going to work hard at it. Parking Enforcement first tries to educate people, if the car is vacant they are ticketing it. He thinks the cones have had a good response.
Sergeant Chuck added that this intersection is kind of dark so he has a great solution, which is something that Engineering and Traffic and Signal have been working on. Mr. Hansen displayed photos of “Operation Light Up” with strong directional lighting being put up downtown. There are only two lights lighting up the entire intersection showing the entire crosswalk and people across the street. He thinks that will make the intersection a lot safer, so if they do the Grab and Go spots there he thinks the lights would be a good addition. They have the ability to mount the lights on a pole and it is something they should certainly add if they are going to do this.
Mayor Knudsen asked about the spots on Hudson Street did he mean on the North side of the street or the South side. Sergeant Chuck stated that he thinks on the South side in front of the Knights of Columbus. Mayor Knudsen asked if instead of doing both on the same side what if they did one on the North and one on the South opposite each other. Sergeant Chuck stated that could do that, but pairs are visually easier to see. Mayor Knudsen asked how the Knights of Columbus side is better. Sergeant Chuck stated that there is a large yellow zone in front of those spots and you have the driveway behind the spots. Mayor Knudsen stated that left side, you are going into the left turn lane, so does that cause a conflict with turning. Sergeant Chuck stated that he understood, and the volume on that road is traditionally not that great, so trying to sneak across to the right turn lane isn’t going to be that dramatic an issue.
Mayor Knudsen stated that most of the restaurants are north of that corner, so if they put them on the south side, they are actually causing pedestrians to make two crossing movements as opposed to just one. Sergeant Chuck stated that they aren’t crossing twice, they may just cross Broad Street and then walk on the sidewalk on Broad Street, and the north crosswalk of that intersection goes right into the Sook area so they are actually walking into an obstruction. Mayor Knudsen stated that she misspoke, if someone is on the north side of the street and going to businesses on the east side of South Broad then they don’t have to cross at all and then if somebody is going to businesses on the west side of Broad they only have to cross once, so it leaves less pedestrian conflict for her. Sergeant Chuck stated that he was more concerned about them crossing Broad Street than he is about them crossing Hudson Street, as crossing Hudson Street is not an issue. The volume is not there and if they add these lights it is going to be very bright. If they are crossing on the north side, they are crossing with a view obstruction in mind because they have the barriers there and the Sook setup.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked if the crosswalk is on the garage side or on the Knights of Columbus side. Sergeant Chuck stated that it was on both. Mayor Knudsen asked the Village Councilmembers which side they wanted the parking on. Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would go with whatever Sergeant Chuck says. Councilwoman Perron stated that he was concerned about these lights as they seem to be very bright, and asked whether they were planning to have them at the intersection of Ridgewood Avenue and Broad and Hudson and Broad. Sergeant Chuck stated that the photos show their current location. They put them at Ridgewood and Broad, Ridgewood and Chestnut, and Ridgewood and Prospect Street, and Ridgewood and Oak Street. There are tremendous improvements. They look bright because he made the camera get into the view on purpose, but they are actually aiming down. They would like to add a set of those lights at this intersection where they have actually had safety issues before, so if they are going to encourage crossing there, he thinks they should add them no matter what.
Councilwoman Perron asked would they be prorated to run concurrent with the six month plan that they have going now. Ms. Mailander stated she thinks that is what they should do so it didn’t run longer than the current period. Councilwoman Perron stated that they were three months into this. Mayor Knudsen and Ms. Mailander agreed that they would prorate it. Ms. Mailander added that the lights at that intersection would be good too once people use the garage more, because it would let people coming to and from the garage to be seen better. She added that they have had pedestrian and car conflicts at that intersection several times.
Ms. Mailander asked about enforcement of that crosswalk area, adding that she knows that the Police are out there doing that but they have to be vigilant in that area. Sergeant Chuck stated that they would stay on top of it.
-
Budget
-
Interest Rate for Delinquent Taxes and Non-Payment of Other Municipal Liens
Ms. Mailander stated that this is the annual resolution for property taxes and other municipal liens, same amount of interest, same amounts that it is based on. This is set by statute and in this case it is a ten day grace period.
-
Interest Rate for Other Significant Sewer Discharger Fees
Ms. Mailander stated that this is the same percentages and it is a 30 day grace period in this case.
-
Award Contract – New Leasing/Maintenance Program for Police Vehicles
Ms. Mailander stated that they have had leasing of Police vehicles from Enterprise over the past six years. They lease five administrative and detective cars and would like to continue with the program. The leasing has saved them over $140,000 in costs over the last three years. Instead of purchasing the vehicles, they continue with equity lease agreements where at the end of the term they return the cars back to Enterprise, they sell them at open auction, and the Village gets a large percentage of the profits. When the Village returns the current cars they will net at least $2,000 per car. In 2017 when they traded in the old cars they brought in $21,000. They are paying a percentage of the cost of the vehicles while utilizing them for the same amount of time.
Ms. Mailander stated that the second part is to utilize the service agreement. They will pay for all services needed on the vehicles for a monthly fee. Paying for this service saved the Village almost 80% of the estimated cost incurred by Fleet Services for the Village for a car they would normally service. The Village has also been able to extend this to a Tahoe, which is not a pursuit-rated vehicle, with great results and return on their investment. Leasing is now available under Sourcewell. It is a streamlined process where they can initiate the leasing and return of the cars. This year they are hoping to replace the administrative and detective cars with three mid-size SUVs, two Durangos, a Jeep Cherokee, a Subaru Legacy, and a Dodge Van. They are similar to the ones that they currently have. Estimated yearly costs for these five vehicles, plus one extra vehicle for the service contract is $41,000. If they were to purchase these vehicles they would need about $191,000.
Councilwoman Perron asked what is an administrative car. Sergeant Chuck stated that the administrative cars are assigned to Captain staffing and the Chief staffing. Mayor Knudsen asked who that would be. Sergeant Chuck stated the Chief.
-
Award Contract – Mobizent & E-Ticketing for Police
Ms. Mailander stated that this is about the E-ticketing. Ridgewood’s Police Department have been using Mobizent’s ticket works program for E-ticket purposes for the last two years and have been working with them for the last five years. The application TicketWorks has been built for the Ridgewood Police Department by the department with Law Enforcement in mind. This application has been built from the ground up using input from our Police Officers who use it daily. They use the program in vehicles, on computers, and on Parking Enforcement cellphones. Chief Luthcke is going to summarize the positive aspects of this application, give a brief history of the approvals that had to be obtained during this process. She added that it has been a journey and it has taken a long time to get to this point.
Chief Luthcke stated that this has been a long journey and Sergeant Chuck and Mr. Hansen will back that up. Every step took a long time, in part because they had to work with the State and the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). Just getting that permission took a lot of hoops to jump through. The company Mobizent has been incredibly responsive to them all along the way. This platform didn’t exist in New Jersey yet, so this was really built by us and for us, for ease of Law Enforcement use. They have a back office portion of this called TicketWorks which allows Officers, the Court, and Supervisors to be able to look at the data in a variety of ways. Chief Luthcke stated that it prints from the cars and from the handheld cell phones that the Parking Enforcement Officers use, in addition to being able to print in headquarters. They can scan a license and it auto populates. They have Mobizent working right now with another vendor, so that the information can feed from their system right into our reporting system which is another ease step for the Officers.
Chief Luthcke stated that right now, they want to sign a contract with Mobizent regarding hosting of their services, which means we become home base and as they sell their product to other Departments, they go through our server because we already have the proper permissions set up to go through the AOC. It gives them the benefit of sales and we get the benefit of hosting contract services.
Ms. Mailander stated that they would set up a Shared Services Agreement to host it, adding that the individual towns would have to buy their own equipment. Mr. Hansen stated that they would buy their own portable handheld computers and printers, but they would connect to our server as the host. Chief Luthcke stated that means that while they are inputting the information and getting the driver information, and verifying that the information is correct for the tickets, those communications go back and forth with the AOC.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked if Ridgewood benefits financially at all. Chief Luthcke said yes. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if there are any estimates, or is it a percentage. Mr. Hansen stated that he believes it was a per device fee and it was either monthly or yearly. Chief Luthcke stated that there is the cost to set up the device and then the maintenance aspect of being hooked up to our server. There are many towns that have been waiting for this type of technology from another vendor, so they think that it will be fairly easy to get additional towns on board with it, but that estimate is based on how many towns sign up.
Councilwoman Perron asked if our Code Enforcer could use this. Chief Luthcke stated that they are working with Mobizent right now to input our ordinances and there may be another way to make a transition. She doesn’t know if it is the same forms, but it actually is something they can look at down the line. Councilwoman Perron said under the Benefits of TicketWorks, it says responsive customer service whenever issues arise, and asked if they could give her an example of an issue that may arise. Chief Luthcke stated that since this was built from scratch, so they had numerous issues, everything from updating the platform to an out of state license, to a new make and model of vehicle that comes out from the AOC code that until they run into it as an issue they don’t know it, but Mobizent is willing to handle whatever it is that they throw at them.
Mayor Knudsen stated that there were some typos and incorrect dates in the contract, and she would highlight it and send it back to Ms. Mailander, Councilwoman Perron agreed. Ms. Mailander stated that this has been an ongoing process and Mr. Rogers has reviewed it several times and given his blessing to the contract. Mr. Rogers stated that from a content standpoint, it is a good form.
-
Amend Towing Ordinance and Fee Schedule
Ms. Mailander stated that this is an amendment to the towing ordinance and fee schedule. It enables the Police Department to have approved tow operators available when they are in need and at established rates. The Village’s fee structure for towing has not been updated in five years. Sergeant Chuck stated that Officer Turino managed the entire project. They haven’t updated this in a long time, and some of the highlights are that they updated and organized the application structure for the towers. Fees were not up to par, so those were upgraded. The State put out a huge change in towing fees based on the Parkway and Turnpike. Officer Turino evaluated what the most common calls for service are, and they adjusted the pay structure in a way that is more responsive to the community. Not everyday occurrences pay structures are going to be in line with the State structures.
Mayor Knudsen asked what a decoupling fee was. Sergeant Chuck stated that was when there is an attachment to the machines and you have to let go. Mostly that is involved with large trucks when they have to take apart the drive shafts. Ms. Mailander thanked Mr. Rutishauser for putting it into the proper format so it could amend the current towing ordinance. Councilwoman Perron stated that it looks reasonable.
-
Sewer Fees for Significant Dischargers – 2021 Wastewater Collection System
Ms. Mailander stated that this establishes a fee structure based upon equivalent dwelling units that are commercial/industrial minor and significant dischargers to the Village’s sanitary sewage collection system. Non-profit and tax-exempt properties are billed for the sewage treatment services they receive. The rate has been set at $4.27 per 1,000 gallons of flow in excess of 109,500 gallons per year discharged from commercial properties as measured by water meter consumption during the two winter quarters. Non-profits are billed from the first gallon of water they consume. The recommendation is to leave it at $4.27 per 1,000 gallons for 2021.
-
Policy
-
Pledge Supporting NJ Wildlife Action Plan
Ms. Mailander stated that this is a pledge supporting the NJ Wildlife Action Plan. This is something that they have adopted in the past and is for our Sustainable Jersey application. It is a comprehensive action agenda for the conservation of native wildlife, the restoration of important lands and water, and public education targeting the needs of rare wildlife in New Jersey.
Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that this is the first of some of the resolutions that they are going to have to start passing for this year’s delayed Sustainable Jersey application for Silver Certification. It was passed previously and it notes a lot of things that we are already doing. We have lost a bunch of points through Sustainable Jersey so they really need the points.
-
NJDEP Required Amendments to the Village’s Stormwater Management Regulations
Ms. Mailander stated that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has issued requirements that communities amend their ordinance governing stormwater protection. The current regulations were adopted by the Village and had an effective date of February 6, 2007. An ordinance incorporating the NJDEP’s requirements went to the Planning Board and is now coming to the Village Council. The ordinance has been prepared by the Village Planner Maryann Bucci-Carter with input from Mr. Rutishauser. The Planning Board has recommended that the Village Council adopt the ordinance. They want them adopted by March, so they would have to be introduced at the February meeting.
-
Street Opening Permit Regulations
Ms. Mailander stated that Mr. Rutishauser had noticed in the Code that a Village Department can perform work in the public right of way without any need to notify the Village’s Public Works Inspector. Our Public Works Inspector is tasked with tracking excavations and is responsible for them including, backfill settlement, patch paving, final resurface restoration, etc. Mr. Rutishauser is concerned that this creates a problem in that it removes the Engineering Division’s ability to track excavations in the Village’s streets. This has been an issue in litigation matters in determining what entity may be culpable when a claim arises, as well as when the excavation’s backfill materials settle and cause a depression or a final pavement restoration is not completed. This proposed ordinance would require notification by Village Departments proposing to excavate in the public right of way to the Engineering Division of the Department of Public Works in accordance with the Street Opening Permit process.
Mr. Rutishauser added that it is a problem with a recent litigation that he has been working with the Village Attorney on where they had a claim against the Village and a question came up with which entities worked in the area most recently and whether they could be enjoined. That led to research in the Code and the realization that if a Village Department works in the street they may have no way of knowing they had done that work. That could possibly diminish our defense.
-
Authorizing the Establishment of a Government Energy Aggregation Program
Ms. Mailander stated that they had a presentation earlier at a previous Council Meeting and this is based on that presentation.
Councilwoman Perron stated that Gable Associates presented that by grouping together our residents, we would be able to get a better price for energy, and also that by getting renewable energy and increasing the amount of renewable energy that residents purchase, we would create more demand for wind, solar, hydro, electric this lets the producers note this is what we want and it expands the industry for renewables. All we have to do is pass an ordinance and then decide who they would want as a consultant. They don’t have to pay the consultant; it is the supplier of the electricity that would pay the consultant and that only happens if we decide that we like the contract. Many towns in New Jersey have tried this and have been able to double the amount of renewable energy that their residents purchase. It is an opt-out program, so everyone would participate except for those who already purchase renewable energy or those with solar panels on their house.
Councilwoman Perron stated that we would need an education period, public meetings to educate the public, but also send out a mailing before it goes into effect allowing people to opt-out. Any time during the contract, which is limited to 24 months, people can make a decision as to whether they want to be in or out. There is also the possibly of joining with other towns that are doing this. There are five towns in Essex County that have joined together. Glen Rock is about to join in with them. Their contract expired in December 2020, so they are looking for their next generation of contract. You have to increase the amount of renewable energy that you are already getting from PSE&G, and right now their content is 23%. She suggested we might want to double that. Glen Rock went for 100% renewable when they first got a contract and now they are changing their focus and want to go in with this other group in Essex County.
Councilwoman Perron added that everything remains the same with billing. PSE&G is still the delivery mechanism, they are just not the supplier. Sometimes the first time you go out to bid you don’t like what you see, so you can wait until the market looks good for you. Sometimes it is difficult to compare because the contract would be for a fixed price whereas PSE&G’s price fluctuates. You aren’t guaranteed a better price, but the experience of most of these towns is that they have had a modest savings for the households that have remained in the aggregation.
Councilwoman Perron stated that Christine Amundson is one of the energy specialists on the Green Team who was there tonight. She is also the Energy Czar for the Board of Education. If there are specific questions that Councilwoman Perron can’t answer, Christine can. Bob Upton, Chair of Green Ridgewood, mentioned in Public Comment that they should try this.
Mayor Knudsen greeted Christine. Ms. Amundson urged the Village Council to consider this proposal because there really is no risk at this point. Once bids come in, that’s when everything gets looked at and a hard decision would have to be made. There is no direct or indirect cost to the Village right now. Gable Associates is a great company, and they worked with them on the Board of Education for gas supply. Risk is not an issue, she thinks. Councilwoman Perron stated that the Village uses a third party supplier, and the beauty of this also is for individual residents this is a little safer as it isn’t hard to opt-out and there is no penalty to do so. Also, we have the benefit of our Village Attorney looking this over so it is more vetted.
Ms. Amundson stated that they are doing something for the environment, which is one of the goals of Green Ridgewood to be helping to combat climate change.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they go ahead and find a contract they like, someone is on for six months and thinks they are going to get a better deal with PSE&G, they can opt-out at any time. Councilwoman Perron said they could at any time. Councilwoman Walsh asked if PSE&G is going to mount a counter campaign to stay with PSE&G and how would that impact our message. Is there going to be a challenge between PSE&G and the message that the Village may put out and how would they navigate that. Councilwoman Perron stated that she didn’t think that would come to pass, what has been happening is PSE&G has been inching up their content of renewable energy. Two years ago, they were providing 21% of their supply as renewable, and now it is 23%. Councilwoman Walsh asked might they be bitter then. Councilwoman Perron stated that they are only delivery, they don’t supply. Ms. Amundson stated that they have a small amount of supply but that’s not their main focus. Energy has been deregulated for years now and so there is not a situation where they are competing with suppliers.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked if anyone has spoken to anyone at Glen Rock and were they happy with what they chose. Councilwoman Perron stated that they had a meeting last night and she was on it, and they were telling her where they stand. They presented to Green Ridgewood about a year ago and she speaks with them pretty frequently. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if their residents were happy, as she finds it strange that everyone is in until they opt-out. There are going to be many people that they may not be able to reach who will be surprised when they get their first bill. Councilwoman Perron stated that she believes they tried for an opt-in but couldn’t get it to work.
Mayor Knudsen stated that if someone opts her into something and she is so busy and now has to do something to opt-out she is going to be really mad at the person who opted her in and made her take the steps to opt-out. She is concerned about the blanket opt-in. As somebody who has changed her supplier on numerous occasions she doesn’t ever recall seeing anything different on her bill, but she would be concerned that she has to take some action to opt-out and the comment that necessarily the rates could be higher and she doesn’t know what that means. She is concerned that they are looking at people who are really strapped and these issues wouldn’t be a benefit to the community at large. Mayor Knudsen asked if Gable Associates every gave the additional information that was requested. Councilwoman Perron stated that she didn’t remember requesting any information.
Mayor Knudsen stated that she went online and did her own analysis and comparison and found that PSE&G rates were actually lower than everyone. She added that she thought they asked for some additional information, including the schedule of rates that they got for other towns. Also, there is the fact that Glen Rock is going into this consortium with Essex County because they didn’t have the buying power evidently to negotiate a good rate. Councilwoman Perron stated that is where the aggregation comes in. Mayor Knudsen stated that the first aggregation is with Village residents as a unified purchasing power, but it is interesting that Glen Rock didn’t have that level to facilitate the purchasing power and now has to move to a larger organization that is doing the bidding on their behalf. She added that she has some serious concerns herself.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that we should be able to talk to Glen Rock and see exactly why they decided to go in a different direction, and were they unhappy with what they chose. Councilwoman Perron stated that she could certainly have Ken Jones come and speak to the Council if they would like to hear from him directly. He was intimately involved in setting up the deal with the past contract in Glen Rock. Also, they were very ambitious in their setup that they wanted 100% renewable energy. You can get a more economical package if you aren’t looking for 100%, and perhaps instead double the current rate of renewables. Mayor Knudsen added that it would cost our residents more, and likely Glen Rock when they did that 100% buy caused their rates to go up and residents probably started opting-out. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they knew the percentage of people who opted-out in Glen Rock. Councilwoman Perron stated that she thinks at one point they were at 70% participation, but they have a lot of people with solar panels and involved in third party contracts, as well. She added that Ken Jones can come and speak to the Council.
Mayor Knudsen reiterated that they did ask for a rate schedule. Ms. Mailander agreed, adding that she doesn’t recall receiving it. Councilwoman Perron stated that she would follow up. She added that in taking classes with the New Jersey League of Municipalities, they made it clear that with the Energy Plan in place now for the State it does behoove the towns to pursue climate action, to reduce emissions, and to preserve our environment, and we have to take the long look rather than the short look. Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they have to do both, because they have to be cognizant of our residents. If we engage in something that causes an added burden, as any added cost that has to be shouldered by residents or businesses that cause them further harm, it is something she is going to take really seriously. So, she has to consider both the short and long term impact and be aware of the impact on residents financially.
Ms. Amundson stated that the reason Glen Rock would be aligning themselves with a group of towns, is simply because they are so small of a town that 70% of their aggregate use is not as attractive to the suppliers. The first project Glen Rock went out on their own, and then for the next renewal of a contract they realized they would be better off aligning themselves with larger towns or a group of towns so the load would be more attractive and the price would be better.
-
Ridgecrest PILOT Program
Ms. Mailander stated that the Village charges an annual service charge instead of Ridgecrest paying property taxes. Mayor Knudsen stated that she wasn’t sure if Rich Barclay was in the queue. Mr. Hansen brought him in.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that the PILOT is a 30 year PILOT and the last time it was discussed was in 1983. She discussed this with Rich and wrote some notes down about their conversation. She felt that the public needed to have some input into the transaction and how this all came to be. They as a group have only had this before them once, although there may have been some things going on behind the scenes before it got to the Village Council.
Councilwoman Walsh asked if Mr. Barclay could explain how it came to be that this group is purchasing Ridgecrest, because when they had the last meeting it was said some local individuals. Mr. Barclay stated that the grand overview of the whole thing was that the mortgage on the property is coming to an end and when that mortgage ends the funding they get as a rent subsidy from HUD will also end and that is not funding they want to lose. They have an Affordable Housing expert consultant that has worked with them for over 20 years, and they asked him what they should do. His response was that most people would sell the property now, and his question was what does that mean and how does that work. They would find a buyer, sell the property, the existing non-profit of Ridgecrest would take the proceeds and be able to create a charitable foundation then they would have a new ownership that would come in, get a new mortgage, do some improvements, get a new PILOT, and the facility would continue on.
Mr. Barclay stated that they asked for names of people who do this, and they did not get a lot of glowing reviews from the people who have done this before. Their other option was to do it themselves. They would get a new mortgage, keep HUD funding, and still have a foundation that would support local charities, instead of bringing people in from outside of Ridgewood they would have it be people who have volunteered and who wouldn’t cut social services. There are about 85 residences that have never had any work done since the building was built, so they plan on renovating those kitchens and bathrooms and bringing the building up to current standards. That way it is a win-win. So, they have the Foundation and the 40 year relationship with the Village goes on.
Councilwoman Walsh asked how much the new mortgage is going to be. Mr. Barclay stated that it is still a little bit fluid because they have to get bids for 85 kitchens and bathrooms and he didn’t have the list exactly, but it would be in the $13 to $14 million range. Councilwoman Walsh stated that it says in the agreement that Ridgecrest sought other investors in the project, and asked if Mr. Barclay could share with them was it offered for sale on the open market outside of the group that is purchasing it or only to current and former Board Members. Mr. Barclay stated that to keep Ridgecrest at heart, that was their first offering and they were able to raise the money, so that is where they stopped. Councilwoman Walsh asked if the mortgage is $14 million, what is the overall value that they have come up with. Mr. Barclay stated that there were two appraisals done. The building appraised at $11 million and $10 million, and then there was the work to be done and there is some cash involved. So, $13 million is roughly the purchase price of the property. Councilwoman Walsh asked if they were getting 100% financing. Mr. Barclay stated that they have to put money in, depending on how much that final mortgage comes in at, that will be calculated by FHA.
Councilwoman Walsh asked if a condition of the mortgage is signing this PILOT, because when they had talked, Mr. Barclay stated that the PILOT doesn’t expire until 2023. Mr. Barclay stated that the mortgage would require a new PILOT. They are not going to give a mortgage knowing that the PILOT would run out in a year. He’s also not sure if it would be transferable to the new ownership. Councilwoman Walsh stated that during their conversation, Mr. Barclay said they would have to set up a new Board. Mr. Barclay stated that there would be a new non-profit Board and the non-profit will be the managing general partner of the renewal entity, so it will be the new Board that functions as the decision makers just like the current Ridgecrest Board functions. They are trying to put non-investors on that Board to keep conflict of interest at bay, especially because that Board will make decisions about how the facility is operating.
Mayor Knudsen asked who prepared the financial agreement. Mr. Barclay stated that came with the ordinance, so their counsel prepared it at the request of Mr. Rogers and Mr. Rooney after they spoke. The attorney does this all the time and it was easier to get it done this way.
Councilwoman Perron asked if the prior entity is the Ridgewood Senior Citizens Housing Corporation Inc, and the new entity is Ridgecrest Urban Renewal Limited Partnership, is there a reason that they created it as a partnership this time around instead of a corporation. Mr. Barclay stated that the new non-profit, which will take the place of Ridgewood Senior Citizens Housing Corp Inc., is unincorporated and the new entity is a partnership between the non-profit and the investors. It is an urban renewal entity because that is a technical term that needs to be in there in order to qualify for things like the PILOT.
Mr. Barclay encouraged anyone to call him with any questions, as he volunteered there for over 20 years and the whole purpose of this is to do what is right for the community, keep this as affordable housing and upgrade it for the residents who live there. It is a fantastic place and they hope to keep it that way for many years to come.
Councilwoman Walsh asked if the partnership could sell at any point in time. Mr. Barclay stated that he didn’t know if it were prohibited or if there was a time period, but certainly if they did sell they would need a new PILOT, HUD approval, and all of that. He didn’t know if it were prohibited or not but he would get the answers. Mayor Knudsen stated that Councilwoman Walsh may want to look in the financial agreement item number 8. Mr. Barclay stated that paragraph talks about their relationship with the Department of Community Affairs, so this document was created based upon the New Jersey Statutes which is exactly where this paragraph comes from. The statute number is NJSA40A:20-1 and this talks about terminating with the DCA but the real codification to remain affordable is their agreement with HUD which is a Federal Agency and that is where they have a deed agreement with the use restriction. If one were to be able to get the Commission of the DCA to let them out of the agreement they still wouldn’t be out of it because they have an agreement with HUD that they wouldn’t be able to get out of on a Federal level.
Ms. Mailander asked if everyone was ready to move forward with the public hearing and then the adoption on February 10th. Mr. Rogers suggested that they do have another Work Session before February 10th, why don’t they revisit it next week and see if there are any remaining questions to try to get answered. Councilwoman Walsh stated that there were some additional questions that she had for the Assessor.
-
Pickleball Regulations
Ms. Mailander stated that they had a presentation on January 13th prior to the Public Meeting by Nancy Bigos, Director of Parks and Recreation on various aspects of pickleball. They ran out of time that night and at this time she is going to summarize where we are now, and what they are doing next week when they discuss this topic again. They need to agree on hours and days of the week, whether or not it should be rotated between various locations, requirements for paddles and balls, fees for badges, the noise level ordinance, having the County person from Noise Pollution come and measure the decibel levels, court fencing increasing the height and curvature of the top and possibly double wrapped.
Ms. Bigos stated that she didn’t know where we are, but this is a beginning for them to continue. They all have had many conversations within the last week, she has had conversations with their instructional staff, different individuals, she has shared some with our residents, and also sat down with professional staff to be able to present to the Village Council in a synchronized format those areas that the professional staff would like to reintroduce to the Village Council as options for immediate success. She needs their dialogue and guidance as to how they want to move forward on this.
Ms. Bigos stated that one of the things they have all heard is the enforcement, that they can’t eliminate the non-residents unless they have enforcement. They can’t change the playing times unless they have enforcement. They can’t decrease court hours, eliminate non-residents, or enforce the green zone paddles and muted balls unless someone is there to take a look. She can say that this is something that she can do with the seasonal staff that they have on board who are looking for part time employment. She added that enforcement is their greatest concern, but that is something that they can take care of within the Department.
Ms. Bigos stated that after that, they need to be able to absolutely agree on some variables. She would like for them to agree that they need to eliminate the non-residents. Of the 151 pickleball-only badge holders, 82 of them were non-residents. That brings the number down to 69 residents. There will be a few more but that almost cuts the number of players in half. We will be eliminating the non-residents, bringing in enforcement, decreasing the court hours, assessing flexibility with those hours, and using the noise reducing equipment. Then they can move forward next Wednesday at 11:00 A.M. with a demonstration of the two different types of paddles, the three different balls, and have a learning session for themselves to be able to evaluate it. At that time, Maureen Kelly who is working for the Department of Health in Bergen County as their noise pollution consultant, has agreed to come out to the courts and give them a courtesy review of the before time, evaluate all of the pickleball paddles, the site itself while play is going on, and then do a quick walk around the neighborhood to study the noise. Ms. Bigos stated that this establishes the baseline, which is no play, and just common community conversation, traffic, Route 17, birds, whatever the noise consists of at that time. Then, we put the pickleball players on the court to be able to measure.
Ms. Bigos stated that those are the immediate solutions that she would like to be able to start with, knowing that this conversation is one that is going to continue as they enter into month number 12 of this pandemic. Last night at the Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Board, they talked about just how pleased they are with the amount of our residents recreating. They are seeing residents out and about all the time. Last Thursday after work, Ms. Mailander asked her to stop by up at Crestview and take a look and she was really taken aback because while she was there. A young adult was sitting on the wall by himself, there were two women and three children walking from Crest Road to the View, there was a couple parked in the driveway of one of the residents, and there were two sets of adults walking with their dog up the hill. To see that much activity out and about was something that she took awareness of because our residents are out and trying to stay healthy during this pandemic. They are walking more, biking more, they are trying also to avoid this COVID weary feeling that is creeping in on all of us and getting out of doors every opportunity they have.
Ms. Bigos stated that she thinks that our residents need this opportunity for active participation for our mature adults, she doesn’t know how many other options they have out there. With the Community Center closed as well as some of the facilities and programs that they would be engaging in, they are not able to participate, so this is important to them. They will continue to research best practices. She added that Councilwoman Perron is working on a noise ordinance that she is studying with different types of maintenance equipment, and she knows that they have to be thinking long-term with where they go from here. She reached out to a company and will have a price on the installation of additional courts to be able to discuss that topic with them when it comes time for capital budget. Ms. Bigos stated that they are working forward to different solutions to the problem, but she wanted to leave it up to the Village Council and ask them for their recommendation. She added that it is important for her staff to be able to administratively begin the registration process for Graydon, tennis, and pickleball. They are behind already a month and this is the busiest pre-season planning time of the year for them.
Ms. Bigos asked the Village Council to help her find a solution for this, so that they can move forward. Mayor Knudsen thanked her for going to the View as there are two residents who appreciate it being looked at. Her thought is that when they go on the 3rd to test out the rackets, they should have a flavor for the experience prior to pickleball. She thinks they should also add tennis racket and tennis balls into the mix so they can gauge the difference. The one thing she wanted to point out as they are talking about noise ordinances and the noise that the folks in the neighborhood are complaining about is that it is not necessarily the loudness but the duration of the pop-pop-pop. It is constant. So, there were two tennis courts with eight players and two balls, and now there are four pickleball courts with sixteen players and four balls. They should focus on testing out the noise, but why are they thinking about taping up the other tennis courts. Ms. Mailander stated that is subject the Village Council’s decision as they need to know what exactly it is they are doing.
Mayor Knudsen stated that the same way they did the original test of those locations, she thought they were going to redo that to utilize those locations as pickleball courts. She suggested they be in test mode and then if the sound is mitigated enough, they could at least open up for two days a week at the Glen courts. Ms. Mailander stated that she needs an agreement from the majority of the Village Council to get to that point. Once they agree, they also want 200 foot notices sent out. So, until there is a concise plan as to what they are doing she can’t send out notices or tape up the courts because she didn’t know if they all wanted to rotate it or not.
Ms. Mailander asked if the Village Council agreed that they didn’t want to allow non-residents to play pickleball. There was an agreement from the Village Council. They have an ordinance that they can introduce February 10th which will allow for that. She asked if the Village Council agreed to have the seniors pay $20 for the whole year, this is a minimal amount but this allows them to register and to go into CommunityPass and reserve. Ms. Bigos has told her that none of the seniors she has spoken with have a problem with $20 for the year. Ms. Mailander stated that the guest pass was $10, and she asked if the Village Council was okay with that amount. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if a guest pass can be a non-resident how does one get the pass and who is going to keep track. Ms. Bigos stated that the way it works is they have a dropdown feature on CommunityPass that the non-resident are not able to purchase guest passes, only the residents can purchase guest passes which is a drop down on the site. You are able to then print out that pass for the day. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they could be playing though and not have a guest pass. Ms. Bigos added that number one is enforcement and none of this will work unless they have enforcement.
Councilwoman Reynolds asked how they would know that there were only 69 resident pickleball players. She knows how they got to that number, but her question is prior to all of this they used to have to make a time schedule that they were going to play, so if someone were playing with four people, one person would sign up and did they list the four people or just sign up themselves. Ms. Bigos stated that was correct. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that there could have been many people that they didn’t know about that were playing. When she was growing up her parents were big tennis players, and her mom would call to book the court a week in advance. She played with three other people but she was always the one making the appointment, what she was getting at is that there could be another hundred pickleball players in Ridgewood that they really don’t know about. Ms. Bigos stated that unless they were playing illegally. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if anyone ever checked badges. Ms. Bigos stated that there are full time staff that are checking badges on a weekly basis, primarily on the weekends. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they tended to find people who were playing without badges. Ms. Bigos stated that in the beginning maybe, she added that once the players became familiar with themselves, they started to self-enforce.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she really does feel having four courts at the Glen School, they are not going to be able to mitigate the noise with 16 people. She visited the court and a woman she plays tennis with recognized her, and she was saying that at 9:00 A.M. that morning all four courts were taken and there were 20 people waiting to play. That is 36 people. If they had two pickleball courts at Glen, the sound level would hopefully be acceptable. She doesn’t think the complaints started until there were four courts, and of course COVID and they were booked from the time they were open to the time they were closed. The only way to alleviate that is to offer other courts. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she knows the plan B was to rotate courts, but she still doesn’t think that would be helpful because it is only two pickleball courts per day and she thinks they need four pickleball courts per day. She added that she isn’t necessarily in agreement with no pickleball on Sunday because it is a day when everybody can get out and play. She thinks the hours should be limited on a Sunday, and if they gave each of those locations four days, they could have four courts every single day of the week.
Ms. Bigos stated that she understands eliminating half of the courts at Glen, but she is not certain with regards to court rotating. Ms. Mailander stated that she is saying on Monday you would have Glen and Bellair, Tuesday maybe Glen and North Monroe, so each day there are two courts in play at two locations for pickleball. Ms. Bigos asked why they couldn’t just take the one tennis court at North Monroe and make it two pickleball courts and let them just play seven days a week. Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks the whole point to this exercise is that they want residents to be able to go out and play pickleball, so the point in it is to not subject one neighborhood to seven days a week of nonstop pop-pop-pop. If you have two pickleball courts at each of those locations and rotate so there are two courts at different locations open at the same time, you have the four pickleball courts to satisfy the need. She added that they appreciate that people want to play pickleball and they are trying to come up with a viable solution without imposing this solution on our neighbors. They need to be creative, systematic, and efficient.
Mayor Knudsen stated that at least temporarily they would tape out these other two locations, Monroe and Bellair, into two pickleball courts and encourage feedback from the residents. This way they can gauge whether or not they are creating another situation where they are denying people the opportunity for some break. Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he agreed they need to do something, as right now they are just speculating on things that they really don’t have any answers too. It is probably a good idea to split them up as two courts in two different location to cut the group of people at each location in half. That, coupled with eliminating non-residents, would help tremendously in those locations, allowing for some relief in areas. Until they finally agree on something and try it, nothing is going to happen. Right now, this is something good to try to get feedback and move on from there.
Mayor Knudsen suggested the sooner they test out these rackets and how they are going to stop the pop-pop-pop all day, the sooner the courts are open. If they can do this on Wednesday, February 3rd, they could be opening at least two courts on February 4th a few times a week and they get people out playing. The sooner they accelerate this, the sooner they can find a solution that is successful. Ms. Mailander stated that she was hearing at least three Councilmembers agree on this.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that from the meeting that they had last night, there was a lot of input from pickleball players and they are having another meeting tomorrow. One of the things that came up in the meeting last night was that they need to retrofit the panels that were put up and raise them a little higher, which may help the situation. With the three courts, Glen could be Monday, Tuesday Saturday, North Monroe could be Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday, and Bellair Wednesday, Friday, Thursday. That way everyone is getting three days, each court is alternating so there could be people playing at all those courts. She recalled from the last meeting that they wanted to tape up the courts, and she believes that they should open Glen so that people can get back to playing. She mentioned last night in the meeting, they have to make sure that Ms. Bigos is going to have the budget to retrofit those courts and probably sound panels there, as well. Even though they are limiting the amount of badges, she thinks it is growing and there will be more players.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that plan wouldn’t give them four courts each day. Councilwoman Walsh stated that if you did Glen on Monday and Tuesday, North Monroe Tuesday, and Wednesday, and then Bellair Wednesday and Friday, and then you have Saturday, Sunday, and Thursday that you could put on any of those courts, so each court gets three days but alternating. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that there are only three courts, and if you are giving them each three days that only takes care of six slots. Councilwoman Walsh stated that she was assuming they wouldn’t have Sunday play. Ms. Mailander stated that if they didn’t do a day it would probably be Monday. Councilwoman Walsh stated that it would be three days for each court on alternating days so that there is always courts in play but giving each location a break every other day. Mayor Knudsen stated that in the absence of this testing they are going to be doing on February 3rd, they may have successfully mitigated the sound enough that they could do the four courts, but she didn’t know until they do that test. It could be such that the paddle, balls, and altering of the panels resolve that issue.
Ms. Mailander stated that it will be on the agenda for next week on Wednesday so they can discuss what they found out that day. She would like to hold off on the taping of the courts so that they can save the expense and time just in case it has been mitigated. Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they should get it done because they want everyone to get in there and play pickleball and she thinks they should put all the irons in the fire.
Councilwoman Perron stated that the idea of rotating to different courts around town, she has heard the pickleballers says that’s ridiculous and that the Village Council just doesn’t understand that the 20 people on line would be rotating into all four games. Councilwoman Reynolds added that was why they should have all four courts in one spot because it’s just not fair to have 36 people. Councilwoman Perron added that she would like to try these initial measures first and see if it comes in under 65 decibels and comply with the State law before they start shuttling people all around town. On the other hand, if it still comes in at above 65 decibels then by all means they should try splitting it up. To the pickleballers who say that Council doesn’t know what the game is like, they are looking for a compromise. On February 3rd, if they are having someone come to test, if the homeowners are willing to have the tester come into their homes they should arrange for that.
Mayor Knudsen stated that it is not the decibel level, they are probably going to find that it is not in excess of 65, but it is in our noise ordinance and in the common law nuisance it is clear that the noise isn’t just about decibels, it’s about the duration. It is not the decibels as much as it is pop-pop-pop from sun up until sun down. They have to stop focusing on this idea that somehow the decibel level is the solution if that’s not the problem. In the Village Code and the common law nuisance from the State, it is not just the noise level but it is a noise that is so constant that the duration of the noise becomes the issue.
Councilwoman Perron stated that she hasn’t heard from the pickleballers what hours of play that are most important to them. They have just talked about making it 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M., but is it more important to them in the morning or afternoon to play, and what days are more important to them. She hasn’t heard from the homeowners what time of day is the most painful to them to hear this sound. Mayor Knudsen stated that she was going to go back to the original idea that they have to work on two tracks here, one is noticing the 200 feet and taping out, and the other is to do the test and look at what the options are. If they are saying they will only play on four courts, that is their prerogative, and everyone is going to feel a little pain in a compromise. They need to figure out the best way forward as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Ms. Mailander asked Ms. Bigos what are the hours of the day that are played the most as they heard someone say today that it is from 8:00 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. Ms. Bigos stated that she would believe it is 11:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M., but she is certain that all they really need to be able to do is ask them. Ms. Mailander stated that they can ask them tomorrow at the meeting. Once they hear from them, they will set the hours based on the meeting tomorrow. Councilwoman Reynolds asked who is at the meeting tomorrow. Ms. Mailander stated Mayor Knudsen, Councilwoman Walsh, Ms. Bigos, and herself.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated they were going to ask the pickleball players, but shouldn’t the homeowners also be asked. Ms. Mailander agreed that they could ask the homeowners, too. Mayor Knudsen stated that they could send an email as the homeowners aren’t in the meeting tomorrow and they are just going to hear the groups thoughts on this. Councilwoman Perron asked why not have a meeting with the residents and pickleball players together. Councilwoman Walsh stated that as insight, they had already had meetings with the resident and they expressed some of their grievances. She knows that the pickleballers were trying to set up some meetings to give their ideas and grievances as well, so they wanted to have an open dialogue as opposed to confrontational dialogue with everyone all in. The meeting tomorrow is to allow the pickleballers to give their full insight, and they have listened to the meeting tonight and will be able to give some feedback. Mayor Knudsen added that they are trying to find a good solution that allows the pickleball courts to reopen, but the residents can enjoy their property, and she is sure they will get there.
Ms. Mailander stated the schedule for introduction and future dates. She asked about the $10 for guest passes. Mayor Knudsen stated that if there are roughly 70 residents that are playing pickleball, if they add to that even 20% guest passes they are inching their way up to those higher numbers. Her feeling is that she is more interested in getting people back in playing as quickly as possible so she was almost inclined to step back from the guest passes. Ms. Mailander stated that they would have to do it by ordinance, she added that some of the pickleballers played with their college age children who came home for break and they did that with guest passes. Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that they could go ahead with the guest passes and if it becomes a problem they could suspend that portion of the ordinance.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that Ms. Bigos needs to be able to start selling the passes, so are they opening the Glen courts as of Monday then. Ms. Mailander stated that they have to have the demonstration and decide exactly what days they are doing so she can send out to notice to the 200 foot list. Councilwoman Walsh stated that Glen are already operational courts, so maybe they open them for Mondays and Tuesdays. Mayor Knudsen stated that they don’t know how the rackets and balls will be yet, and they are testing them on February 3rd. Councilwoman Walsh asked if Ms. Bigos would have to prorate the badge sales. Ms. Mailander stated that it was $20 or $40 for the year, they are not going to prorate it as it is very reasonable for an entire year.
Councilwoman Perron asked if there was a limit on guest passes, such as a person only having three a day. Ms. Bigos stated that she didn’t know about a limit, the majority of residents have resident badges and it would only be for guests, so she didn’t know. If you have three children that are home from college and you want to play with them, or you have company visiting, she isn’t sure about a limit. Ms. Mailander stated that if they wanted to put a limit on the guest number, they could do that. Mayor Knudsen stated that Deputy Mayor Sedon was right and they could always suspend it. Deputy Mayor Sedon agreed, adding that he didn’t see that as being a huge, ongoing problem. Mayor Knudsen agreed.
Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she thought they had said they were going to take one court from Bellair and North Monroe and tape it out, but now she thinks Ms. Mailander just said they aren’t doing that until they are discussing it again. Ms. Mailander stated that now that four of the Village Council had said they would like to do that, they are going to, but she needs to also know the days and times which they won’t know until the meeting with the pickleballers and then email the residents as they need their feedback to determine the times and days that it is going to be. Then she wants to be able to send out to residents within 200 feet, the hours and days they would be at the court, and to ask for feedback. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she understands that, so they were going to take input from the residents and pickleballers.
Mayor Knudsen stated they will meet with the group tomorrow, do some outreach to the neighbors, come up with a schedule, do the testing on the 3rd, and by that point when they come back to Village Council they should be able to have a schedule, have established the noise issue, get the Glen courts back open by Thursday on a part time schedule, hopefully, and get this done.
-
Operations
-
Habernickel Park – 1057 Hillcrest Road
Ms. Mailander stated that they have received a profit and loss analysis, a home inspection report, and a structural engineers report on 1057 Hillcrest Road, which are voluminous. She asked Mr. Rutishauser and Paul Kalksma to review the reports and provide a summary of their determinations. All of this will be discussed at the February 3rd Work Session, after the Village Council has had a chance to really read all of the material. At this time, they are not going to discuss it. If anyone had specific questions they can email her and she would have the appropriate individual respond.
-
Propose Revisions to Dining Corral Concept
Ms. Mailander stated that they created dining corrals in the parking spaces in front of some of the areas such as Steel Wheel, Sook and S. Egidio, the next step would be to make then semi-permanent by installing removable pipe bollards. They are installed into a socket in the pavement to create a delineation around the dining area. When the bollards are not being used they can be removed from the sockets and stored by the restaurants. The sockets are then covered by a metal plate that creates a secure surface for traffic and pedestrians. The bollard corrals could be used year round as long as the weather cooperated. CBDAC was in favor of this concept, as was the management team of the Police Department.
The bollards can be ordered in black or five other colors with reflective materials. Mr. Rutishauser suggested that the parking bollards be allowed to occupy Village parking spaces only on select streets and those streets would be selected by the Traffic Bureau. He also suggested each business utilizing corrals pay the rate for each parking space that they occupy. Each bollard would cost approximately $450, either they could have the restaurants purchase them or the Village could purchase them in bulk and then the businesses could purchase from them. The Village can plan for the installation and then the businesses would pay for the number of bollards required for their corral. Each restaurant would be responsible for managing their bollards in accordance with an approved plan.
Ms. Mailander stated that Mr. Rutishauser does have a plan to regulate it, and it would be part of the outdoor café ordinance.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that the one thing that she has been comfortable about when driving past these corrals is that it feels like there is a barrier between pedestrians sitting on the street and automobiles. She thinks she would feel less comfortable with this type of a bollard. She didn’t know whether the establishments have the money to be paying for this. At Steel Wheel you would probably need ten of these, whereas there is currently something in place that isn’t going to cost them anymore. If they are pinching pennies she didn’t know that this would be the way to move forward.
Mr. Rutishauser stated that the barriers are taking a beating and getting wear and tear. They just spoke with the restaurant owners regarding using a brine solution so they don’t freeze and it is working very well and is the lowest cost solution that they can implement so that the people with the corrals don’t have that high cost. He believes the pedestrians will feel safe, as the streets these are being proposed on have speed limits of 25 miles an hour or less. They are looking at working them out with the Police Department, doubling up in critical areas and a spacing of no more than four feet apart.
Mayor Knudsen asked what the cost was to install. Mr. Rutishauser stated that he would estimate probably in the range of $100. Mayor Knudsen stated that was in addition to the cost of each bollard. Mr. Rutishauser agreed, adding that those are approximations because the price is lower the more they buy. Mayor Knudsen stated that she was looking at Model R 7902, is that cap piece hinged so if you pull the bollard out it just flips down. Mr. Rutishauser stated that is the intention. Mayor Knudsen asked what happens to the padlock. Mr. Rutishauser stated that the padlock could be taken away with the bollard and stored. Mayor Knudsen asked who would be removing and storing the bollard. Mr. Rutishauser stated that the intention is for the businesses to remove and store them, but if they didn’t want to do that he would have to charge them for the efforts of our staff, similar to what they did for the Pedestrian Mall.
Mayor Knudsen asked if the bollards were heavy. Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are heavy. Councilwoman Reynolds asked if she is driving down the street and has a medical episode and drives into a bollard, is the bollard going to tip over. Mr. Rutishauser stated depending on how fast she is going, if she is in excess of 25 mph she will probably hit a couple bollards and rip the sockets out of the pavement. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that as a consumer she doesn’t know that she would ever sit in an area like that.
Mayor Knudsen stated that no doubt there is a much cleaner look, however, if she had little kids she would be unhappy because that to her would be totally vulnerable. She read that you can put flower boxes between them but that keeps increasing the costs. Mr. Rutishauser stated that if a restaurant chooses they can put flower boxes between the bollards as long as it didn’t extend the footprint past the parking space, they could put a chain between the bollards as well. He added that the driver for this is our current pandemic situation and they have no idea at this time when people will be allowed to dine again in a restaurant. More importantly, when will people feel comfortable enough to dine inside. With the corrals, they are creating an environment that people are enjoying going out and eating out. They also have the bubbles.
Mayor Knudsen asked what the spacing is on the bollards. Mr. Rutishauser stated that he would like to have about a 4 foot spacing between the bollards and a tighter spacing at critical corners in discussion with the Police Department. Mayor Knudsen asked if this came from Central Business District Advisory Committee (CBDAC). Councilwoman Perron stated that Mr. Rutishauser brought this to CBDAC and they liked the idea. Mr. Rutishauser stated that he has seen this other places, specifically in Europe. He added that this is a great way to give a boost to our businesses. Mayor Knudsen stated that just a couple agenda items back they were talking about all of the U-turns and double parking and vehicular activity going on, so she shared Councilwoman Walsh’s and Reynold’s concerns about the vulnerability aspect and also about the driving that is being observed downtown. Mr. Rutishauser stated that as far as he is concerned, they haven’t had any issues with corrals and vehicles out on our streets.
Mayor Knudsen asked when Mr. Rutishauser was at CBDAC and this was presented, how many businesses and restaurant owners were there and what was the feedback from those individuals. Mr. Rutishauser stated that he isn’t sure how many restaurant owners were there, but he knows Paul Vagianos polled the current restaurants that have corrals and they were all in favor of going to a bollard corral. Councilwoman Perron stated that Randy Carson from Park West Tavern loved the idea.
Mayor Knudsen added that they are nice and look so clean, she would love to see them in black. Mr. Rutishauser suggested black with reflective material. Councilwoman Reynolds stated that people see orange when they are driving and when it blends in, somebody is going to hit it. Mr. Rutishauser stated that they come in black, but you can get a multitude of colors and that also is a decision that the Village Council can make, such as allowing restaurants to choose their own color. Mayor Knudsen stated that offering various colors may add significantly to the cost. Councilwoman Reynolds asked that what we have now works, is it just for a visual appearance that people want to do this and mentioned that she never heard anyone complain about the existing barriers. Councilwoman Perron stated that she thinks they are ugly, and this will make installation and removal much less labor intensive.
Mr. Rutishauser stated that currently it is a basic jersey barrier, and it gives every appearance of a temporary construction site. The bollards are a permanent corral and look more permanent and like it belongs in the streetscape. Councilwoman Perron asked if they could try it in one area and see how it goes. Mr. Rutishauser stated that they could reach out to one and do them as a pilot study. Mayor Knudsen asked what happens after they do that and decide they don’t like it. Mr. Rutishauser stated they could fill it like a pothole.
Councilwoman Walsh stated that she has spent a lot of time on Citizen Safety with Mr. Rutishauser and all she can keep thinking is how many bollards they had to replace at Linwood and North Walnut because people were just turning and driving over them. She is still concerned that the visibility, even if they are orange, we have put them in front of the Starbucks and people literally dragged them down the street. They put them in front of the High School and people just drive over them. Mayor Knudsen stated that they are a different material and are not placed in the street, and are in that sleeve. Councilwoman Walsh stated that they aren’t filled with anything, they are just hollow. Mayor Knudsen asked what the weight is on them. Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are schedule 40 steel pipe and are about 31 pounds each. Mayor Knudsen stated that seemed like nothing. Councilwoman Reynolds said that would be versus an SUV. She added that the listed height is 36 inches, and the base diameter is 4 3/8 inches.
Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that the current set up wouldn’t really stop a car anyway, and it’s not permanent. Maybe if they were reflective and it was less expensive to get basic black ones and wrap them in reflective tape then people can see them. He said maybe they should just try it out in one location and see how it works instead of all or nothing.
Mayor Knudsen stated that she thought someone had shared a place where they saw them. Councilwoman Perron stated that was in Dover. Mayor Knudsen asked if that was the same setup. Mr. Rutishauser stated that they didn’t use them as a dining corral, they used them to block off a street that had previously been a cut through at a property that they purchased and redeveloped. Mayor Knudsen stated that is a different situation and she is going to say she isn’t comfortable with it as a safety issue. Ms. Mailander stated that they have three who are not comfortable with it, so that’s a majority.
Mayor Knudsen asked Mr. Rogers if they were to do this and permit this and then there was an accident that resulted in any injury, by virtue of permitting this what is their liability. Mr. Rogers stated that he hasn’t seen all of the paperwork and data that is being put out there with regard to the bollards, but as long as they put them in the way they are designed and designed for, they would have that going for them from a liability standpoint. If they have any inkling that this is really not safe, or anything that it shouldn’t be used alongside a lane of traffic, then they have to take issue with that and he wouldn’t recommend they go ahead and use them. Mr. Rogers stated that he thinks they have very limited liability in that instance.
Mayor Knudsen stated that it says to make or pronounce statement on your entry to your streetscape, business, park, school, or stadium. It’s making a statement on entry according to the general description, it is not being described as a mechanism to block off part of a street. Mr. Rogers stated that there is probably more information about them, so he thinks they have to look further into it to decide whether or not if they are installed the way they are meant to be installed are they going to be safe for this situation that they have proposed. Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks she wants additional information that would come from the manufacturer recommends this item for this use and considers it to be safe. She would like to know what the recommended usage is and isn’t. Mr. Rogers stated he would say that is a good plan. Ms. Mailander stated they would contact the manufacturer.
-
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC
Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she wanted to call in earlier but missed the window and wanted to talk during public comment about public comment. Since October, she has been increasingly frustrated with how the public has shown up and people are writing letters, and in her opinion there hasn’t been as much of a response as she would like to see. She added that people come to public comment to be heard, but most people come because they want to see something happen. There has been a rally cry for HealthBarn and for the discussion to occur in public and tonight it is both in public and in private. Jan Philips called about the flag and the answer was that there is no request mechanism, and that made her even more concerned because for two years since the flag was installed she submitted multiple requests. With pickleball they are seeing that they need to wait for an ordinance change.
Ms. Winograd stated that she has made two requests and the silence is deafening. Pride is looming and people are asking how they make that request and there is no answer. They also have the fact that during this time they were requesting the government placed their own flag on the forum flag pole. This is an opportunity for that public comment to turn into an agenda item and that just isn’t happening. She added that on social media, people have been calling for three years and it can’t move past public comment.
Ms. Winograd stated that regarding HealthBarn and pickleball, people were getting silence. When they come to public comment, people want to be heard, and since Ramon Hache has left they are not getting a response. She doesn’t know if they can speak to this after public comments close, but the issues she would like to see some forward momentum on would be the flagpole and why have none of the requests that have been submitted been responded to. She also asked where they are with the social media policy, and how many times are people going to call in and be told it’s in the works and then not have a deliverable.
Ms. Winograd stated that regarding pickleball, it is very important when they give the 200 foot notice that the Bellair courts back up to Orchard School and many years ago she was the Orchard safety chair and there are a lot of traffic problems there. Orchard parking is a nightmare, and they should keep that in mind. She added that the only thing that was left out of the pickleball conversation was the cost of fitting these courts and she thinks whatever solution they can present is great but she thinks it was expensive to make Glen permanent pickleball courts and if Ms. Bigos moves forward with this they are going to have to talk about the budget.
Ms. Winograd stated that she really hopes this results in some type of response regarding the two issues, most importantly the flag pole and secondarily the social media policy.
There were no additional comments from the public.
Mayor Knudsen stated that she respectfully disagrees with the comments that were made that suggest that they listen but don’t hear or act. She believes that they have listened, heard, and acted so she thinks those comments are unwarranted and wrong. Regarding pickleball they have listened and are taking action; social media is on the February 3rd agenda. She added that they have a social media policy, and have had one all along. It is in their HR manual and has been there, exists, and is concise, and it is what our JIF requires us to do. That policy may or may not need to be expanded upon, and that is something they are going to take up next week.
Mayor Knudsen added that when Ms. Philips commented, she responded that she understood and it was something they should take up in the near future.
-
RESOLUTION TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION
Deputy Village Clerk, Donna Jackson read Resolution #21-16 to go into Closed Session as follows:
-
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilwoman Reynolds, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 11:07 P.M.
