A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 7:36 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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 to honor the brave men and women serving in our nation’s armed forces, all our first responders, and especially for our Ridgewood Police Officers.

 

2. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

There were no comments from the public.

 

3. VILLAGE CLERK – CERTIFICATION OF PETITION – ONE VILLAGE, ONE VOTE

 

Mr. Rogers stated that it has always been custom and practice for the Village Council not to comment on pending litigation.  A decision came down after 5:00 P.M. today, and he needs time to review it and will talk with all of the members of the Village Council tomorrow with regard to the next steps.

 

4. MANAGERS REPORT

 

Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey – Ms. Mailander stated that Welcome Back to Ridgewood includes outdoor dining and free music all day Saturday and Sunday on East Ridgewood Avenue from Broad Street to Walnut Street and the side streets of Oak, Chestnut, and Prospect Streets.  Everything is closed to cars in that area and it creates a pedestrian mall.

 

Hudson Street Garage – Ms. Mailander stated that the first floor is open for business, it is $1.00 per hour to be paid at the kiosk at the Hudson Street entrance and is a three hour limit.

 

Labor Day – On Monday, September 7^th, Village Offices will be closed.  Recycling and Sanitation pickup services are suspended and the Recycling Center will also be closed.

 

September 11^th Memorial – To honor the memory of the 12 Ridgewood residents lost on 9/11, portraits of each resident are displayed in the Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium for the month of September.  The Library is open seven days a week and offers a place for reflection.

 

                                                                                                                                      

U.S. Census – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has increased to an 83% response rate, and she asked that residents please fill out the census online or by phone no later than September 30^th as we have our goal of a 100% response rate.

 

Rear Yard Garbage Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that rear yard garbage pickup resumed in July, so residents no longer need to bring their garbage cans to the street.

 

Election – Ms. Mailander stated that election season is upon us and election signs or any other signs may not be placed in the planting strip between the curb and sidewalk or on any public property.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the General Election will be primarily vote by mail.  Voters may mail back their ballots to the County via U.S. Mail or they may put it in the ballot box outside of the Village Hall lobby, or may bring it to their polling location.  You can also vote by provisional paper ballot at the polling location.  There will be ADA voting machines available in the polling locations, but they would only be used for those unable to mark the mail in ballots.

 

Resident Volunteers – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village Council is seeking resident volunteers to serve on Boards and Committees.  These include the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Central Business District Advisory Committee, Ridgewood Community Center Advisory Board, Ridgewood Arts Council, Shade Tree Commission, Green Ridgewood, Ridgewood Green Team, and the Open Space Committee.  The deadline to apply is September 8^th.  Please submit the Citizen Volunteer Leadership Form, which is found on the website under Forms, page 2, it says Village Clerk, and then you will see the form.  Also, submit a resume or biography of your accomplishments or what you have done in life and a cover letter indicating which Boards you would like to serve on. 

 

Cancellations of Events – Ms. Mailander stated that due to COVID-19, there are various cancellations of events.  The Chamber of Commerce Car Show, scheduled for 9/11, has been canceled, as has Coffee with the Council which was scheduled for 9/12, and then the Parks and Recreation Street Fair was also canceled which was scheduled for 9/20.

 

Chamber of Commerce – Ms. Mailander stated that the Chamber of Commerce will host their Sidewalk Sale Days inside and out on October 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd.

 

Household Hazardous Waste Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that the Bergen County Utilities Authority will be holding their Household Hazardous Waste collection on September 12^th from 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. at Bergen County Campgaw Reservation in Mahwah. 

 

Upcoming Village Council Meetings – Ms. Mailander stated that the upcoming Village Council meetings are all televised live and are on Zoom.  September 9^th is the Village Council Public Meeting, September 23^rd is the Village Council Public Work Session, and October 7^th is a Village Council Public Work Session.

 

Social Security Administration – Ms. Mailander stated that on behalf of the Social Security Administration, during the Coronavirus Pandemic, they continue to provide help to anyone who may need social security help.  You can apply for disability, Medicare benefits, check the status of an application or appeal, request a replacement social security card, print a benefit verification letter, and much more services are provided online.  They know that many people want to converse with someone, so they do have phone help.  There will be information about this posted on the Village website

 

5. COUNCIL REPORTS

 

Chamber of Commerce – Councilwoman Perron stated that the next meeting is September 9^th, although work has been getting done over the past month, especially with respect to the pedestrian mall.

 

Green Ridgewood – Councilwoman Perron stated that Green Ridgewood will meet on Thursday at 7:00 P.M. and it is open to the public.

 

Open Space – Councilwoman Perron stated that Open Space met on August 20^th and Rob Kearny who is an employee of the Ridgewood Water Utility presented.  He is going for a Graduate Degree in GIS Mapping, so it was really interesting how you map natural resources.  He is urging people to help him draft an Environmental Resources Inventory for the town, and she signed up to do the Dunham Trail.  They are looking for more volunteers to help with that endeavor, which overlaps with his membership in Green Ridgewood.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if people interested in participating in the Inventory could email Councilwoman Perron directly.  Councilwoman Perron stated yes, adding that her email is pperron@ridgewoodnj.net.

 

Central Business District Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the CBD Advisory Committee is really trying to help the downtown businesses thrive during this difficult time.  The Pilot Program for “Grab and Go” parking spaces is up and running and they are all really excited about that.  There are ten spaces throughout town on the North/South streets.  Those are free, 15-minute parking spaces for people who are either picking up contactless delivery from a restaurant or they can run a very quick errand in that time.  She encouraged people to look for those signs and use those spots.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that they are also considering a Visitors Bureau for the Central Business District in the form of a website, so that people from Franklin Lakes or Glen Rock can see what is going on in Ridgewood.  They are continuing to work on handouts and literature for potential tenants in the multi-family housing complexes, to again provide coupons to businesses downtown, invite them to look around the Village and see what’s attractive, and if they want to move here.

 

Planning Board – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the Planning Board met last night and reviewed the final draft of the first section of the Master Plan – Our Village, Our Future.  It was a huge step in the right direction for the Master Plan.  There was going to be a Hopper Ridge Condominium Association application but it was moved to October 6^th.

 

Citizen Safety Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they will be meeting on September 17^th, and they hopefully will be meeting in person but that will be announced in the future.

 

Welcome Back, Ridgewood – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she hoped everyone was able to take advantage of the concerts on Saturdays and Sundays at Van Neste downtown as they have been fabulous.

 

Green Team – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that tomorrow at 7:30 P.M. the Green Team will meet via Zoom.

 

Kasschau Shell – Mayor Knudsen pointed out that the Kasschau Shell ended their season and she gave a great shoutout to the Kasschau Shell Committee, Parks and Recreation, and especially Gail McCarthy for her leadership this fabulous season and all of that hard work, energy, and effort are greatly appreciated.

 

6. DISCUSSION

             

1. Ridgewood Water

 

1. Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is for two of the facilities.  Three quotes were obtained.  This is the third year of continuing these improvements.  There were eleven roof structures improved in 2018, eight were improved in 2019, and two are scheduled for this year.  American Construction Chimney and Roofing Specialist of Cliffside Park had the lowest quote of $25,800.  So, the recommendation is to award it to this company and the funding is established in the Water Utility capital budget.

 

2. Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment & Associated Projects

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in June of this year, Mott MacDonald, our consultant, completed the PFAS Planning and Treatment Study.  The Study mapped out a master plan of alternatives to reconfigure some of the treatment systems to eliminate concentrations of PFAS.  The primary focus of the plan is to centralize treatment for efficiency and to take advantage of sites that have more space for the required treatment equipment.  Ridgewood Water would like to proceed with the preliminary design and four of the thirteen proposed treatment plans.  So far, treatment has been installed and is operational at the Carr Treatment Plant.  Design evaluations are underway for the Marr Ravine, Irving/Linwood, Upgraded Carr, and Twinney Plants.  All of these plants serve the largest pressure zone for the system which is a low pressure zone.  The focus for the next preliminary design is to design treatment plants in other operational zones, such as the intermediate and high zones, and one other geographical location in the low.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in addition to the preliminary design services, Mott MacDonald with assist with the treatment plant at Carr, evaluate all of the raw water pipeline that are required for the new system buildout, and participate in the rate making analysis with our hired rate professional and attend meetings with NJDEP to lay out the compliance schedule for meeting the new PFAS regulations.  Mott MacDonald was previously Hatch Mott MacDonald, and so they have been involved with numerous projects with Ridgewood Water for decades.  Based on their past project experience and working knowledge of our system, they will be best suited to perform this professional engineering service.  The recommendation is to award it to Mott MacDonald of Iselin in an amount not to exceed $277,600.  Funding for this is in the Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if these were the types of costs that the Village is asking for reimbursement in the pending litigation.  Mr. Calbi stated that yes, they were.

 

3. Award Contract – Replacement of Water Mains

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is on Jefferson Street and Salem Lane.  Bids were received yesterday, and there were 22 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 15 bids.  They range from a low of $814,290 to a high of $1,821,750.  The low bid received was from On Cue Technologies of Oradell.  They submitted a complete bid package and all necessary information, and they have also successfully worked for the Village in the past.  This will be funded from the Ridgewood Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked with a spread of $1 million between bids, if are we missing something, and could they come back with change orders later on in the project.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is a huge spread, and the low bidder did put a number of items where they bid a minimal amount of $1, which are the items that were in the bid that they may or may not use.  They are taking a gamble that they will not use them.  Mr. Rutishauser knows that the contractor is very eager to start work, and the high bidder has plenty of work and put out a what is it worth to me number, which is why they were so high.  He added that the second bidder was around $830,000.

 

4. Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates

 

Ms. Mailander stated that on August 28^th, proposals for the Professional Services for the Risk and Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates were received.  Mott MacDonald of Iselin provided the lowest quote in an amount not to exceed $37,750.  Funding for this project is in the Ridgewood Water operating budget.  This is required under the America’s Water Infrastructure Act.  They have done the Emergency Response Plan and it has been updated periodically and it is time to update it again.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that this really gives her reassurance to see that Ridgewood Water is getting this design for risk assessment and an emergency response plan.  She had been wondering about this with regard to climate change.  She didn’t realize that the law had changed in 2018 such that the Water Utility had security measures for physical breaches and for cyber-attacks.  She was wondering what is it with resiliency to climate change and this answers her question.  She is glad this planning is happening.

 

2. Parking

 

1. Discuss Parking on Colonial Road

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that there has been ongoing issues on Colonial Road, specific to one resident having some difficulties backing out of her driveway, and because of the narrowness of the road and configuration of the limited time parking on the South side of the road versus the no parking on the North side of the road.  This particular resident has a driveway that is on a steep hill and coupled with the narrow roadway, when she backs out if someone is parked immediately on the opposite side of her driveway, she often runs into problems.  When Mayor Knudsen visited the location and had the opportunity to speak to the resident, it occurred to her that a number of years ago she recalled another resident who backed out of her driveway similarly situated and hit a tree.  When they look at the homes along the north side of the road, about six of them are high on the hill.  Their driveways are rather narrow and when they are backing out, it is difficult to maneuver.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that upon visiting the site, it occurred to her that one option might be to simply flip the no parking on the north side to the south side and the timed parking from the south side to the north side.  She added that it might be prudent to have the Police Department look into that and have Mr. Rutishauser possibly send letters to all of the residents to see if that is a solution they would be willing to work with.  It would be at least something that begins some work towards a solution there.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that if this was the same road she was thinking about, several years ago there was a fatality with a car backing out.  Mayor Knudsen stated that was a different road.  She added that there are six homes on a hill and they have narrow driveways with concrete retaining walls which make it uncomfortable to back up their driveways and pull out straight.  Flipping the parked cars along the street in that section might offer a simple solution to their struggles, and in particular this one resident.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that she didn’t know if Mr. Rutishauser or Sergeant Chuck had looked at this location before.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he has looked at the location and has spoken to a number of residents in confidence, and they are not particularly fond of this one resident who is making this request.  They have had some vandalism of Village property on that street, consisting of someone painting their own curb yellow which required the Village to spend a considerable amount of effort with the Traffic, Signal, and Water Pollution crew to scrub the yellow paint off the curb.  There is a Police report with a certain resident threating to relocate No Parking signs for her convenience, so the history on this is kind of murky.  Mayor Knudsen stated to that point, she and Mr. Rutishauser have had this conversation, and it really speaks to whether or not the other folks would at least be receptive to just making this flip if it helps and resolves a neighborhood issue.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they could send out the survey letters, and he would talk to Ms. Mailander and Ms. Jackson about preserving the confidentiality of the replies with regards to OPRA.

 

Sergeant Chuck stated that the Police Department would definitely suggest that they do the entire roadway as it would get too confusing to have many different sections.  Ms. Mailander agreed.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks CSAC hasn’t seen this yet and the resident that sent everyone an email, emailed back and forth, and the recommendation that Councilwoman Walsh had given her was to first meet with CSAC and talk about the problem there.  In the past, Colonial Road came up when Stevens Field was finished and that’s why there was this change in parking back then because there were so many people parking on Colonial Road because of Stevens Field.  She added that she thinks they have to bring that into the conversation because she knows that was one of the challenges a few years back.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that Stevens Field has been out of service for at least the last month and a half, so that has reduced the parking demand.  When he has been on the street, there are cars parked there.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that her thought is that she doesn’t necessarily think it’s a CSAC issue, per say, because it is just one of those things that it doesn’t impact the decisions that were made as a result of Stevens Field.  It maintains the same parking configurations and is merely flipping it.  It is likely because of COVID-19 and people having cars home may be part of the issue, but there was one accident that had some significant damage.  They should first establish if the residents are open to this and if there is going to be some pushback, then at least there is a starting point.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks the benefit of CSAC is that you bring the residents together and they can have a conversation, as opposed to here are the results of a survey take it or leave it.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the survey would take into consideration everyone on the block, and she is sure that not everybody is going to come to a CSAC meeting or speak, and they may only be the three or four people that want it the most or don’t want it the most.  Mayor Knudsen suggested that maybe they send out the resident survey and ask them for an email address.  Then if there is a desire to have a conversation at least they have those email addresses and before any final decision is made, they can email everyone and invite them to the CSAC meeting and this would just be a preliminary step. 

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon asked if they could put the date for the next CSAC meeting in the survey letter they send out, so if somebody gets the letter they know this is a topic of discussion and if they are interested they could come to the next CSAC meeting.  Councilwoman Walsh and Mayor Knudsen agreed.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that it was September 17^th, but they don’t know where it is yet.  Ms. Mailander stated that they should know by next week.

 

3. Budget

 

1. Quarterly Financial Statements

 

Robert Rooney, Chief Financial Officer, stated that he provided the Village Council with revenue and expense reports through June 30^th for the Current Fund, Water Fund, and Parking Utility Fund.  Tax collection through three quarters are slightly above what they did last year, which is very promising.  On sheet one of the revenues, he put asterisks by those revenues that will be in jeopardy this year.  The significant ones are municipal court, the recreation fees and permits, and uniform construction code, because of COVID those will be challenged this year and hopefully they can come close to what they anticipate.  Some of the other challenges are the timing of billing.  Overall, the revenues of the General Fund are about 46% of what they anticipate which is good news under the circumstances.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on the appropriations side, some of the COVID expenses are recorded in the specific line items where they have been incurred, such as Signal, Building Maintenance, and then there is a catchall where they are holding expenses for COVID that have not hit these appropriations.  Those are the ones they are going to have to take a look at as they get closer to the end of the year to determine how they are going to fund those to move forward.  They have submitted requests to FEMA and to CARES for reimbursement for those expenses the Village has incurred related to COVID.  This would include overtime for the Police Department and any other Departments, so they are waiting to hear back on that.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked for those line items that aren’t timing, when would we be able to realize what the potential loss would be for that total dollar amount.  Mr. Rooney stated that probably by the end of September he would be in a better position to let them now if that is going to be in jeopardy.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that the Water Department has received 43% of their anticipated revenues, but Rich Calbi states in their conversations that July was a banner month.  There were a lot of billings because of the heat and the use of water.  We are past what he would call the hot part of the year where they have to be concerned about the purchase and usage of water.  Under appropriations for water, we have spent about 41% of what we have budgeted and they do have some capital outlay funds that are projects that are ongoing and haven’t kicked in full stream yet because of COVID.  He anticipates they are going to be ratcheting up by the end of the year.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that regarding Parking Utility Fund, they are at 31% as of June 30^th.  They have suspended parking meter enforcement, so that is down, in addition to interest on investments interest rates dropped drastically as a result of COVID.  Through August, parking meter revenue has been up roughly to about 33%.  The key is commuters going back to the city, businesses start to get back in action, so we are going to keep an eye on this one.  For appropriations, they are about 38% for what they budgeted and probably have about $100,000 that they can cancel by the end of the year for other expenses that they may not have a use, for so that will temper the problem.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on Monday, the State passed a bill, A3971, which allows the municipalities and counties and authorities to issue short term or long term, five years to ten years, of debt to compensate for the shortage of revenues and any COVID expenses that they have incurred, after reimbursement from FEMA or CARES.  Local Government will be coming out probably by the end of next week with some guidance and regulations as to how to proceed with this.  This will assist in preventing deficits in these funds that will have to be raised in future years and levelling the cost of these out.  Under circumstances like this, you can issue a special emergency which is similar to what they do for the Master Plan which allows the cost to be spread over five years.  Under this bill you would be given one year free without any interest or appropriation to put in for next year and then it’s five years after that.  They are trying to help balance these shortfalls to make sure that this doesn’t impact taxes drastically next year.  Mr. Rooney stated that hopefully by the end of September they will have all the guidance they need and he will be able to present the Village Council with a plan with his recommendation as to how to move forward and they can mitigate these issues that they are faced with right now.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it looked like the Parking Utility was going to be in the deficit, but they could issue the bonds and then spread it out so they wouldn’t then have to cover the deficit as it has been done in the past through taxation.  Mr. Rooney stated that was correct, and under this scenario this bill would also apply to any utility.  So, if they anticipate a shortfall in these revenues which are COVID related, they will be able to issue financing to cover that so it will not impact the tax rate next year.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the numbers meant they were anticipating an $800,000 loss or was her math off.  Councilwoman Walsh stated on the Parking Utility Fund, they should get at least 70% of the revenues.  Mr. Rooney stated no, up through August they are about 33% of what they anticipate for parking.  As far as any deficit, that remains to be seen as to what he is going to get in through September.  Right now, he is looking at a potential deficit.  There has to be an increase in volume to be able to move forward, but there is a vehicle that they can put in place moving forward so that it will not impact the General Fund.

 

2. Declare Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle – Signal Division

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is a 2007 Nissan Xterra that was seized by the Police Department.  They have obtained a New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Certificate of Title for this abandoned vehicle.  The request is to declare it surplus so that it can be auctioned.  Councilwoman Perron asked when the vehicle was seized.  Sergeant Chuck stated 2014.  Councilwoman Perron asked when it was forfeited.  Sergeant Chuck stated about two months ago, it was a long court process and after that the defendant passed away.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what the value of it was.  Sergeant Chuck stated almost nothing, and actually there is some sort of trigger on it so they can’t start the car.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it is probably in really bad shape from sitting all these years.  Sergeant Chuck stated that it probably needs another coat of paint and definitely some vacuuming inside.

 

3. Award Contract – 2021 Ford Escape – Parking Enforcement

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they have had only one vehicle for the PEO’s for over a year, and sometimes there are multiple tasks that they have to accomplish and it requires more than one car.  There are also days when the one car that they have is in service and therefor it is out of service.  They are also trying to move towards the License Plate Reader system of enforcement, so therefore they will need a second car for that, as well.  This would be from Mahwah Ford which was the lowest bidder of three quotes at a cost of $29,000.  They are also requesting to add the same warning lights as the current car which is $2,500 from Regional Communications in Paramus, and striping from American Graphics in Fair Lawn which costs $2,500.  There are already standing contracts for Regional Communications and American Graphics, so the total cost of the vehicle would be $34,000.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked why is it that they never look at the more utility type vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they did a trial with an electric model last summer.  They ran into two problems.  When it rained they weren’t getting much rain protection and the equipment that the PEO’s were using wasn’t able to recharge in that vehicle.  Also, a couple of their responsibilities took them over the highway and roadways that are over 25 mph.  The Cushman’s are low speed vehicles only, so there are a few places where they can’t travel with that vehicle.  Mayor Knudsen asked what the cost is for one of those vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the Cushman was about $18,000.  They also looked at two door Smart cars, which are more expensive.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked about other electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they didn’t look that deeply into it as the fuel economy on this Escape is pretty good.  They hybrids are normally a little more expensive to purchase, and the problem they ran into this year is that most State contracts expired, so they are pretty much just buying what is out there and its driving the costs up a little more.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked about the license plate reader, and if there was a specific setup for it, or could they use it in a sedan as opposed to an SUV.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the difference between the sedan and the SUV was $1,100, and then they lose 4 wheel drive capabilities.  Also, the set up takes a little more space inside the car and the sedan is a little tighter, so it may have been more uncomfortable for the driver.  They don’t want to install a $20,000 license plate system in a car that they would be getting maybe 6 months out of because then they would have to take all that equipment out and put it in another reused car.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked since they were in a deficit with the Parking Utility was it prudent to be buying a new vehicle or should they wait until the Spring.  Mr. Rooney stated that these funds have already been passed in capital through last year’s capital budget so they have been funded already.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if the license plate reader was coming soon, and also if it goes in the front seat or the back seat.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they have it in place already, and it just started last week.  The cameras are outside the car, with two cameras on the roof and two on the back of the car.  The computer system that runs the cameras, one part is in the trunk and then the part that the operator uses is attached to the car, half in the passenger seat.

 

4. Award Contracts – Tree Plantings in Area D and Various Locations

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there were approximately 12 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 7.  There were 3 bidders that each presented the lowest price for specific trees and the general instructions indicated that they could make partial awards based on the bid results.  Therefore, they are recommending that portions of the tree planting in form of proposal solicitations be awarded to three lowest bidders, described as the lowest bid for those particular trees.  Faircut Services LLC of Little Falls, will supply 44 Yellow Wood and 40 Saw Tooth Oak, for a total of $43,832.  Downes Tree Service of Hawthorne, will supply 33 Persian Iron Wood, 24 Sugar Maple, and 23 Trident Maple, for a total of $42,320. Clarke Moynihan Landscaping and Construction LLC of Andover, will supply 13 Japanese Tree, Lilac, Maple Amoricaya, and Swamp Tooth Oak, for a total of $23,570.  The grand total of the award is $109,722 for 218 trees to be planted in the Village.  Funding for this work is in a capital ordinance.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if all of those trees are native.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they were all trees that were recommended for the Village.  Declan Madden, the Village Arborist was intimately involved in the selecting species that they put into the bid documents.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked about the species, because she looked up a couple of them and she doesn’t know for sure but it looks like some of the branches are going to be low and that would obviously be a problem.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that there were two type of species they were looking at.  They were looking for trees that are suitable for under utility wire locations, and trees for locations that don’t have any utility wires that would compromise them as they grow.  Low growing trees would go under areas with utility wires.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that if they are under utility wires, they are going to be in areas where trucks are driving.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are trying to talk to people to plant the trees not between the curb and the sidewalk in the strip, but behind the sidewalk on the property to remove them further from the travel lane where their growth could be impeded.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they could tell people where the trees need to be planted, or only suggest.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department works with the people both on the species and where it gets planted.  They also have to look at a mark out as it is ill advised to plant a tree right on top of somebody’s sanitary sewer, water service, or gas service because they may be struck during the digging.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if this was an effort to move planting the trees out of the grass strip, and do they have the ability to make that as a requirement.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department talks to the residents and tries to convince them to plant on the inside of the sidewalk away from the parkway strip, particularly if it is very narrow.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what they would do if someone said they didn’t want it on their part of the grass.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was up to the arborist, if he and the homeowner cant come to an agreement then maybe they will move onto the next location.  This is in Area D, and if they get all these trees planted great, but if not everybody wants a tree they will move onto other sections.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would like to make a request that the arborist’s time is freed up while this planting is going on because they have had issues in the past where people were improperly planting trees or just tossing them in the ground.  Seeing that this is an investment with costs of $500 per tree, he would hate to see these dying because they weren’t being planted correctly.  He would like to see the arborist out there supervising these plantings.  Councilwoman Perron asked what the maintenance is on these trees.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he thinks the Parks Department has a flyer that they give the homeowners that discusses the maintenance and care of the trees.  Councilwoman Perron asked if the homeowners are given gator bags and stakes to help the trees stay straight up.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the trees are staked and he believes they are supplied with a gator bag; however, the resident is asked to fill the gator bag.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked since there is only watering two days a week, is there any kind of exception if they are getting a tree and allowed to water more often.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the gator bags are there and can be filled with a hose any time and that is not a restricted item under the stage two requirements.  For an exemption to the irrigation restrictions, they would have to contact the Water Company and present their case.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if these plantings were for this Fall.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is intended for this Fall.  That’s why if the Council is in favor of what is presented, and it is approved next week, he will start issuing the contracts right away.  Each of the three vendors will be lined up to get their trees ordered and then get ready to plant them once they’re in a dormant state.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the Village ordinance states that if you have a new tree planted you are permitted to water it.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that you are always permitted to hand water.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated not between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M., which a lot of people don’t know.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that they could pull a hose out to it and water for a half hour once a week and that should be enough.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the watering instructions are on the flyer the resident will get when the tree is planted.  Councilwoman Perron asked that when this comes up next week, can they be reminded where Area D is.  Ms. Mailander stated that over the last three years they have completed Areas A, B, and C.

 

5. Award Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Tri-Plex Industries of South Amboy successfully performed the renovation and upgrades of the restrooms at Graydon Pool.  Their workmanship was satisfactory and they asked Tri-Plex to provide a quote for a number of items that were not in the original bid documents.  The attached change order request has been approved by the architects Connolly and Hickey.  The Change Order Number 2 to Tri-Plex Industries would be for $5,372.88.  There is sufficient funding in a capital account.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked when they were figuring this original project, why stainless steel ADA complaint grab bars, or stainless steel tamper resistant toilet paper dispensers weren’t in the plan as it seems like those are things would have to put in by an architect to be up to code.  Ms. Mailander stated that she could go to Connolly and Hickey and ask why those things weren’t included.

 

6. Additional Award – Disposal of Ground Yard Waste

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they previously awarded a contract to B and B of West Milford for $17.00 per cubic yard for disposal of yard waste.  Nature’s Choice was $20.00 per cubic yard for disposal of grass clippings.  An additional award to B and B in the amount of $30,000 for yard waste removal is now needed.  The previous award was in the amount of $50,000.  The reason the additional yard waste was generated and needed to be disposed was due to Tropical Storm Isaias.  The good news is the expenditure for disposal of grass clippings is significantly less than what was anticipated.  The Village has spent approximately $4,950 out of a budget of $50,000, so they can actually put that money towards the disposal of yard waste.  The Village is prohibited from disposing of its yard waste materials in our leaf compost facility by our permit from the NJDEP.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she was curious why the grass clippings was so far off, and suggested it was because of less rain this year.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it depends on the growing season how much the trucks collect off the street, and it depends what residents landscapers take with them or whether they leave it at the curb.  Sometimes the loads are not always pure grass and then B and B has accepted them, and they are trying to direct materials to B and B because there is a $3 difference.

 

7. Additional Award – Project Closeout Services – Hudson Street Garage

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has been dealing with the contaminated soils encountered during the excavations for footings for the garage and the structural soil for the Hudson Street tree planting with the assistance of First Environment.  First Environment has been providing Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) and material removal services for the garage.  They gave a proposal and an award was made in the amount of $13,600.  Since then, additional effort has been needed primarily with the structural soil that was installed for the shade trees along Hudson Street estimating that it will be another $11,800 to close out the environmental items for the garage site.  Mr. Rutishauser is recommending an award of $15,000 with this final closeout change order.  Money is available in that project construction account.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if this was for documentation of the close out as this seems like a lot for that, or is it actual substantive changes.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is substantial.  One of the things they have to do is a deed notice because there is residual contamination in place, and the LSRP also has to satisfactorily demonstrate to the DEP that the Village has put a satisfactory barrier between any residual contaminated material and the public as an institutional barrier, and for the garage that is the concrete floor.  Councilwoman Perron asked if they were paying for the professional services of the LSRP to get the final sign off from NJDEP.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was correct.

 

8. Award Cooperative Purchasing Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System – Fire Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they were going to discuss this previously but it was removed from the agenda because they didn’t have a funding source.  A general capital ordinance was introduced which included the compressor to fill the bottles, for $29,990 under NPP.GOV Contract, which is a cooperative purchasing contract.  They will pay for it from the Operating Budget until the Capital Account becomes available.  The award is to Air & Gas Technologies of Cliffwood Beach.

 

4. Policy

 

1. Discussion of Suspended CBD Ordinances

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that over the past couple of months, Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey has been meeting and during the course of that time a number of ordinances have been suspended to help facilitate the Pedestrian Plaza to accommodate on-street dining to add balloons and other such things.  She thought it was important to put together a list of all the ordinances that have been suspended as she thinks it should be handled through a resolution by the Village Council.  In the interim, one of the things that came up was the opportunity to bring the west side of West Ridgewood Avenue/Wilsey Square into this and encourage shoppers and diners to go to that side of the train tracks, and conversely to the east side of the pedestrian plaza.  One of the suggestions was to add lights to the top of the buildings along Wilsey.  The building owner has ordered lights and they would test them on one building and then they would continue to do the entire run of Wilsey and continue onto West Ridgewood Avenue.  Mayor Knudsen stated that if the Village Council is in favor of suspending ordinances that would be required in order to keep those lights there.  

 

Mayor Knudsen referred to the Village Code Chapters, and added that the Planning Board took a look at this last night and determined that it was a positive impact and something worthwhile looking at and allowing to happen.  She asked if the Village Council was willing to do a resolution next week, and in the interim if they do the lights tomorrow night as a test run, they would allow them to leave those up until the resolution has passed.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if it was a string of lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they are string lights that are going to be a warm yellow light to give a glow over on Wilsey.  There is some signage that would appear as you are walking into the tunnel encouraging folks to visit the West side and way finder stickers to put on the ground.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she has those lights on her back deck and they are very nice.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she didn’t circulate the letter from the Planning Board, but she read the contents of the letter to the Village Council.  It is really a review and trying to give some attention to that other side of the railroad tracks.  If everybody is agreeable and they are going to do that, then they would allow the building owner to keep the lights up.  Over Zoom Councilwoman Reynolds showed some documents from the Planning Board to the Village Council.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if each property owner does their own.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they are going to work together to accomplish this so it all appears as a seamless effort.  Councilwoman Perron stated that she had been going to the Subcommittee meetings twice a week for this, and basically it is two landlords for all of those shops and one of them also owns the property where Smoked is located, which would look great with some lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that the Planning Board recommended expanding on this along Garber and West Ridgewood Avenue, as well.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that the important piece is that they are open and agreeable to suspending that ordinance temporarily and then looking at whether or not down the road there is an ability to rethink that ordinance entirely.  The Village Council was agreeable to that.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they would have a list of the other ordinances compiled by next week.  They did a pilot of expanding Steel Wheel and S. Egidio into the parking spaces temporarily to allow them to participate in the pedestrian plaza, but the thought was to allow them to leave it there as the restaurants increase to 25% capacity.  Felina and Sook also wanted to give it a shot, so two of them have decided they would do a pilot program and it has been successful.  This piece is very temporary and they have worked with the Police Department.

 

5. Operations

 

1. Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Cooperative Purchasing Program

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there was a memo from Mr. Rooney stating that they are always trying to reduce costs and provide services to our residents.  The Village has used various Cooperative Purchasing Programs and currently participates in 14 of them.  This allows them to find cost savings and expand on valuable resources.  Omnia Partners Public Sector is another cooperative purchasing program that will add numerous vendors to our database.  It is free for the Village to join.

 

2. Authorize Online Auction Service – GovDeals – Sourcewell

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has participated in the Cooperative Purchasing through Sourcewell.  GovDeals, Inc. is an authorized auction site through Sourcewell, and the Village has used them in the past.  Municibid was used over the past year as it is now under State Contract.  GovDeals is nationwide and has greater traffic, and there is also more customer service with them.  This is a resolution to authorize the use of GovDeals to auction surplus property when MuniciBid is ineffective, and it is also an additional resource to dispose of Village property so that they get the greatest return for the taxpayer.

 

7. REVIEW OF SEPTEMBER 13, 2020 PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

 

Proclamations: Fire Prevention Week; Gold Star Mother’s Day; National Breast Cancer Awareness Week; and Proclaim September National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction for Ridgewood Water.

 

There are no ordinances for public hearing for Ridgewood Water.

 

Resolutions for Ridgewood Water include: Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities; Title 59 Approval – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Contract – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment and Associated Projects; and Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction.

 

Ordinances for public hearing include: Amend Chapter 265 – Vehicles and Traffic – Placement of Stop Signs in Hudson Street Garage; Amend Village Code to Allow Additional Village Employees to Perform General Code Enforcement Duties; Amend Chapter 190 – Land Use and Development – Allow Accessible Ramps on One-Family and Two-Family Dwellings to be Reviewed by the Site Plan Exemption Committee; Bond Ordinance – General Capital; Bond Ordinance – Supplemental Appropriation for Front End Loader; and Bond Ordinance – Circle Avenue Drainage Improvements.

 

Resolutions include: Award Contract – Purchase of 2021 Ford Escape – Police Department; Award Contract – Additional Award – Disposal of Yard Waste; Award Contract – Hudson Street Lots – Additional Environmental Technical Support for Project Closeout; Award Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System; Title 59 Approval – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Contract Under Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Program – On-line Auction Services for Surplus Property; Authorize Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool Bathrooms; Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Public Sector Cooperative Purchasing Program; and Declare Property Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle.

 

8. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Boyd Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that he is eagerly awaiting the reopening of Graydon Pool this coming Saturday, as it was closed Monday through Friday because of the unavailability of lifeguards.  He thanked the Village Council for pushing to have the pool open this year as it has been absolutely delightful.  There were many communities that did not open their pools this year and he is thankful that the Council made the decision to open ours.  The water quality has been the best he has ever seen, and he wanted to thank the staff that are taking care of the pool.  As far as he knows, there have been no virus outbreaks at the pool and it has been an absolute delight to be over there.

 

Mr. Loving stated that Mr. Rooney talked about revenue which brings to mind that they have the Airbrook space that was vacated and he has heard no discussion during open meetings about what is being done to fill that space as it was a significant revenue loss when that space was vacated.  There was also some talk about parking, and his concerns were they ever going to get back to a demand that meets or exceeds what happened pre-pandemic or do they have too much parking inventory now.  Obviously, they have to wait and see, but there is a possibility that exists that people will not be commuting to the City as much and there may not be a need for all this parking.  Mr. Loving stated that he hopes an evaluation takes place at some point regarding the parking.  Possibly they have too much parking and can turn some of this into a ratable in some fashion.

 

Mr. Loving stated that effective this past week, the Board of Education returned to in-person meetings.  They are not allowing the public to attend the meetings, but they are meeting in-person and taking comments via phone and email.  As they have seen this evening, there are still some glitches with respect to Zoom, and he hopes that the Village Council considers at least them meeting in person someplace so that we are done with those technical glitches.  Schools are back in session, and he thinks it is time that the Village Council starts to meet again in-person.

 

Matthew Lindenberg, 165 Claremont Road, stated that on behalf of the entire One Village One Vote committee of petitioners he wanted to thank their supporters throughout the Village.  They are thrilled that the question of consolidating Ridgewood’s Village Council and Board of Education elections to November will be put to the voters on this Novembers ballot.  They are committed to spending the next two months until election day continuing to educate the community on the benefits, especially the historically significantly higher voter turnout in November.  They believe this ensures better representation on all Board of Education matters and Village Council matters, including the budgeting processes, as well as the ability to save tens of thousands of dollars or more per year.  They know and respect the fact that some members of the community disagree with them and they are happy to continue to engage in fact based discussions on this issue.  He added that it is important to share the facts and the data behind their efforts.  In an effort to do so, they have shared all of their data and sources on their webpage onevillageonevote.com.  Mr. Lindenberg stated that they encourage everyone in the community to vote yes on this important ballot question when they vote this Fall and join them in helping to make this progress.

 

Laurie Weber, 235 South Irving Street, stated that putting a question on the ballot that seeks to remove a voting right on the school budget requires five times the signatures that were stated on the petitions circulated by the One Vote campaign.  She added that every allegation made on the One Vote website, including the ones that Mr. Lindenberg cited in his comments can be factually disputed.  Ridgewood statistics support that our local elections have enjoyed a larger turnout in the Spring than the Board of Education enjoyed in November.  She stated that the school safety issues, and other issues can all be addressed.  What disturbs her about the way that this process has proceeded is that now they are trying to put this directly on the ballot, completely bypassing the opportunity for a public hearing where the Village Council gets to have a reading of this and the community gets to have a vigorous and thorough discussion of this.

 

Ms. Weber stated that this attempt by the One Vote campaign to bypass the laws that exist to protect voter rights, to propagate misinformation, and now to bypass the entire public participation process and move this to a vote is beyond offensive.  She would sincerely hope that the Village Council and the Village Attorney stand up for the rights of the entire community of voters here and not just for five of them who have managed to convince 500 of promises they will not be able to keep.  

 

Lauren Riker, 224 South Irving Street, stated that she would like to echo what Ms. Weber just said and the right to have the vote on the school budget when it’s a meaningful time is important to her and her family.  She has a son that is in the Ridgewood School System and she thinks it is important that she retains that right and she does not think it’s fair that the proper process is being bypassed by going to a court and not having a public hearing regarding this.

 

Deborah Steinbaum, 295 Grandview Circle, stated that she is one of the One Village One Vote petitioners and she appreciates all the spirited discussion about the ballot initiative.  She thinks it is really important for us to sit down with a deep breath and realize the best way for people to have their say in the matter is to put it to a vote.  It is something that people do care deeply about and truly what better way for people to have a full community airing of this topic than by letting them go to the ballot.  November will be the perfect time for us to address this and she appreciates that everyone cares deeply about our community, as does she, and she thinks this is going to be a really productive discussion among people who care about Ridgewood.  She stated that they would encourage everyone to come out and they are more than willing to discuss the facts that they have put on the website, as there is nothing that is alternative or questionable about them, and interpretation may differ.  She thinks it is important that they come to a community determination of them.  

 

Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she thinks at this point everyone should be on the same page that no matter what your vote would be in November there is a public question.  They spent the past 18 months engaging with the community, Board of Education, and the Village Council.  Every time they issue a fact, all of their facts are submitted directly to the Village Council and the Board of Education.  If there is any discrepancy or something that they are promoting, they do feel that including the Village Council as public officials with their messaging would be the perfect opportunity, if there was a mistake, the Council would let them know.  Ms. Winograd stated that there is no doubt there is a question and the best place for a question such as this is on the ballot.  She added that it is important for the people who are listening to this, they are a group of citizens who motivated to do this, but the Village Council could have placed the question there.  Since they have been writing about this for almost two years, and several of their requests have gone unresponded to, they are motivated to do this.

 

Ms. Winograd stated that she thinks at this point, in time to move forward, they should all acknowledge there is going to be a question and how people want to answer it is up to them.  People can vote their will and their way, and all of us should want that.  She said that if they got something wrong, the Village Council gets emails from them every time they issue a fact, and they would welcome an email if they got something wrong, rather than comments from the dais that something is wrong.  They could have made a mistake some way but they feel that their facts are cited, thorough, and vetted.  There is a question and there is no better place to answer it than on the ballot this November.

 

Linda Tarzian, 576 Highland Avenue, stated that she wanted to make a comment in support of maintaining the citizen taxpayer right to vote and the need to adhere to all appropriate protocols and not eliminate them in the face of pressure tactics to remove our civic duty to vote.  She encouraged the Board of Education to disregard this nefarious motion to remove the right to vote and to take seriously the responsibility to us as taxpayers.

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that she is calling to say that they have been doing great work in the downtown to help support the businesses and she is very happy that they are moving to the west side and to the businesses over there.  She has concerns about the east end of Ridgewood Avenue as they seem to be quite neglected and she hopes that they will do something in that important area, as well.

 

Ms. Loving stated that regarding One Village One Vote, she is completely opposed to it because it would take away their legal right to vote on the Board of Education budget.  She added that it is really outrageous, possibly hilarious, that they are proposing that we have a vote on denying us our right to vote.  Her opinion on this initiative is not really the main concern here; this group has put forth false information during their petition drive and their lawyer gave false information to the Judge.  This is disgraceful and she sincerely hopes that the Judge’s decision is going to be challenged by our government. 

 

There were no additional comments from the public, and Mayor Knudsen closed public comment.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she has expressed her concerns repeatedly that the information shared relative to the cost savings by election consolidation the numbers are inaccurate and she will certainly be happy to detail those next week.  She added that a few weeks ago they were told $100,000 and now its tens of thousands of dollars, she thinks it is important to note the savings to the Village taxpayers by maintain those elections is far greater than $100,000 and she will outline that significant savings to not consolidating next week during the Public Meeting.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she looked at the figures that One Village One Vote has put forward and it comports with what she has seen in our budget figures so far so she hasn’t seen so far that their facts are inaccurate.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she will detail the figures next week, but reiterated that it is a significant savings to Ridgewood taxpayers to maintain the Spring vote on the budget, a long term tax savings to the taxpayers.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked Mr. Rogers about at the beginning of the meeting how he talked about the litigation and is there an opportunity for the Village Council to get a special meeting so that they can talk maybe before the next meeting.  Mr. Rogers stated that the Village Council could schedule a special meeting according to the Open Public Meetings Act and he doesn’t know when they could fit that it.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that because all of this is going on and they have not been able to meet as a Council to even discuss it, she would feel more comfortable if the five Village Councilmembers could get together to discuss it.  Mr. Rogers stated that unfortunately it can’t be done without the Open Public Meetings Act being satisfied, and it would be difficult with the next meeting a week away and the holiday weekend.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if they could set it for Tuesday.  Mr. Rogers stated that they could talk to Ms. Mailander to see if that could be done.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it was a great point and they would see what they could do with that.

 

9. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilwoman Walsh, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 9:31 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                                      Susan Knudsen                         

                                                                                                              Mayor                                    

 

 

 

 

______________________________

              Donna M. Jackson

           Deputy Village Clerk

 A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 7:36 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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 to honor the brave men and women serving in our nation’s armed forces, all our first responders, and especially for our Ridgewood Police Officers.

 

2. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

There were no comments from the public.

 

3. VILLAGE CLERK – CERTIFICATION OF PETITION – ONE VILLAGE, ONE VOTE

 

Mr. Rogers stated that it has always been custom and practice for the Village Council not to comment on pending litigation.  A decision came down after 5:00 P.M. today, and he needs time to review it and will talk with all of the members of the Village Council tomorrow with regard to the next steps.

 

4. MANAGERS REPORT

 

Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey – Ms. Mailander stated that Welcome Back to Ridgewood includes outdoor dining and free music all day Saturday and Sunday on East Ridgewood Avenue from Broad Street to Walnut Street and the side streets of Oak, Chestnut, and Prospect Streets.  Everything is closed to cars in that area and it creates a pedestrian mall.

 

Hudson Street Garage – Ms. Mailander stated that the first floor is open for business, it is $1.00 per hour to be paid at the kiosk at the Hudson Street entrance and is a three hour limit.

 

Labor Day – On Monday, September 7^th, Village Offices will be closed.  Recycling and Sanitation pickup services are suspended and the Recycling Center will also be closed.

 

September 11^th Memorial – To honor the memory of the 12 Ridgewood residents lost on 9/11, portraits of each resident are displayed in the Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium for the month of September.  The Library is open seven days a week and offers a place for reflection.

 

                                                                                                                                      

U.S. Census – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has increased to an 83% response rate, and she asked that residents please fill out the census online or by phone no later than September 30^th as we have our goal of a 100% response rate.

 

Rear Yard Garbage Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that rear yard garbage pickup resumed in July, so residents no longer need to bring their garbage cans to the street.

 

Election – Ms. Mailander stated that election season is upon us and election signs or any other signs may not be placed in the planting strip between the curb and sidewalk or on any public property.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the General Election will be primarily vote by mail.  Voters may mail back their ballots to the County via U.S. Mail or they may put it in the ballot box outside of the Village Hall lobby, or may bring it to their polling location.  You can also vote by provisional paper ballot at the polling location.  There will be ADA voting machines available in the polling locations, but they would only be used for those unable to mark the mail in ballots.

 

Resident Volunteers – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village Council is seeking resident volunteers to serve on Boards and Committees.  These include the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Central Business District Advisory Committee, Ridgewood Community Center Advisory Board, Ridgewood Arts Council, Shade Tree Commission, Green Ridgewood, Ridgewood Green Team, and the Open Space Committee.  The deadline to apply is September 8^th.  Please submit the Citizen Volunteer Leadership Form, which is found on the website under Forms, page 2, it says Village Clerk, and then you will see the form.  Also, submit a resume or biography of your accomplishments or what you have done in life and a cover letter indicating which Boards you would like to serve on. 

 

Cancellations of Events – Ms. Mailander stated that due to COVID-19, there are various cancellations of events.  The Chamber of Commerce Car Show, scheduled for 9/11, has been canceled, as has Coffee with the Council which was scheduled for 9/12, and then the Parks and Recreation Street Fair was also canceled which was scheduled for 9/20.

 

Chamber of Commerce – Ms. Mailander stated that the Chamber of Commerce will host their Sidewalk Sale Days inside and out on October 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd.

 

Household Hazardous Waste Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that the Bergen County Utilities Authority will be holding their Household Hazardous Waste collection on September 12^th from 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. at Bergen County Campgaw Reservation in Mahwah. 

 

Upcoming Village Council Meetings – Ms. Mailander stated that the upcoming Village Council meetings are all televised live and are on Zoom.  September 9^th is the Village Council Public Meeting, September 23^rd is the Village Council Public Work Session, and October 7^th is a Village Council Public Work Session.

 

Social Security Administration – Ms. Mailander stated that on behalf of the Social Security Administration, during the Coronavirus Pandemic, they continue to provide help to anyone who may need social security help.  You can apply for disability, Medicare benefits, check the status of an application or appeal, request a replacement social security card, print a benefit verification letter, and much more services are provided online.  They know that many people want to converse with someone, so they do have phone help.  There will be information about this posted on the Village website

 

5. COUNCIL REPORTS

 

Chamber of Commerce – Councilwoman Perron stated that the next meeting is September 9^th, although work has been getting done over the past month, especially with respect to the pedestrian mall.

 

Green Ridgewood – Councilwoman Perron stated that Green Ridgewood will meet on Thursday at 7:00 P.M. and it is open to the public.

 

Open Space – Councilwoman Perron stated that Open Space met on August 20^th and Rob Kearny who is an employee of the Ridgewood Water Utility presented.  He is going for a Graduate Degree in GIS Mapping, so it was really interesting how you map natural resources.  He is urging people to help him draft an Environmental Resources Inventory for the town, and she signed up to do the Dunham Trail.  They are looking for more volunteers to help with that endeavor, which overlaps with his membership in Green Ridgewood.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if people interested in participating in the Inventory could email Councilwoman Perron directly.  Councilwoman Perron stated yes, adding that her email is pperron@ridgewoodnj.net.

 

Central Business District Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the CBD Advisory Committee is really trying to help the downtown businesses thrive during this difficult time.  The Pilot Program for “Grab and Go” parking spaces is up and running and they are all really excited about that.  There are ten spaces throughout town on the North/South streets.  Those are free, 15-minute parking spaces for people who are either picking up contactless delivery from a restaurant or they can run a very quick errand in that time.  She encouraged people to look for those signs and use those spots.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that they are also considering a Visitors Bureau for the Central Business District in the form of a website, so that people from Franklin Lakes or Glen Rock can see what is going on in Ridgewood.  They are continuing to work on handouts and literature for potential tenants in the multi-family housing complexes, to again provide coupons to businesses downtown, invite them to look around the Village and see what’s attractive, and if they want to move here.

 

Planning Board – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the Planning Board met last night and reviewed the final draft of the first section of the Master Plan – Our Village, Our Future.  It was a huge step in the right direction for the Master Plan.  There was going to be a Hopper Ridge Condominium Association application but it was moved to October 6^th.

 

Citizen Safety Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they will be meeting on September 17^th, and they hopefully will be meeting in person but that will be announced in the future.

 

Welcome Back, Ridgewood – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she hoped everyone was able to take advantage of the concerts on Saturdays and Sundays at Van Neste downtown as they have been fabulous.

 

Green Team – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that tomorrow at 7:30 P.M. the Green Team will meet via Zoom.

 

Kasschau Shell – Mayor Knudsen pointed out that the Kasschau Shell ended their season and she gave a great shoutout to the Kasschau Shell Committee, Parks and Recreation, and especially Gail McCarthy for her leadership this fabulous season and all of that hard work, energy, and effort are greatly appreciated.

 

6. DISCUSSION

             

1. Ridgewood Water

 

1. Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is for two of the facilities.  Three quotes were obtained.  This is the third year of continuing these improvements.  There were eleven roof structures improved in 2018, eight were improved in 2019, and two are scheduled for this year.  American Construction Chimney and Roofing Specialist of Cliffside Park had the lowest quote of $25,800.  So, the recommendation is to award it to this company and the funding is established in the Water Utility capital budget.

 

2. Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment & Associated Projects

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in June of this year, Mott MacDonald, our consultant, completed the PFAS Planning and Treatment Study.  The Study mapped out a master plan of alternatives to reconfigure some of the treatment systems to eliminate concentrations of PFAS.  The primary focus of the plan is to centralize treatment for efficiency and to take advantage of sites that have more space for the required treatment equipment.  Ridgewood Water would like to proceed with the preliminary design and four of the thirteen proposed treatment plans.  So far, treatment has been installed and is operational at the Carr Treatment Plant.  Design evaluations are underway for the Marr Ravine, Irving/Linwood, Upgraded Carr, and Twinney Plants.  All of these plants serve the largest pressure zone for the system which is a low pressure zone.  The focus for the next preliminary design is to design treatment plants in other operational zones, such as the intermediate and high zones, and one other geographical location in the low.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in addition to the preliminary design services, Mott MacDonald with assist with the treatment plant at Carr, evaluate all of the raw water pipeline that are required for the new system buildout, and participate in the rate making analysis with our hired rate professional and attend meetings with NJDEP to lay out the compliance schedule for meeting the new PFAS regulations.  Mott MacDonald was previously Hatch Mott MacDonald, and so they have been involved with numerous projects with Ridgewood Water for decades.  Based on their past project experience and working knowledge of our system, they will be best suited to perform this professional engineering service.  The recommendation is to award it to Mott MacDonald of Iselin in an amount not to exceed $277,600.  Funding for this is in the Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if these were the types of costs that the Village is asking for reimbursement in the pending litigation.  Mr. Calbi stated that yes, they were.

 

3. Award Contract – Replacement of Water Mains

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is on Jefferson Street and Salem Lane.  Bids were received yesterday, and there were 22 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 15 bids.  They range from a low of $814,290 to a high of $1,821,750.  The low bid received was from On Cue Technologies of Oradell.  They submitted a complete bid package and all necessary information, and they have also successfully worked for the Village in the past.  This will be funded from the Ridgewood Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked with a spread of $1 million between bids, if are we missing something, and could they come back with change orders later on in the project.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is a huge spread, and the low bidder did put a number of items where they bid a minimal amount of $1, which are the items that were in the bid that they may or may not use.  They are taking a gamble that they will not use them.  Mr. Rutishauser knows that the contractor is very eager to start work, and the high bidder has plenty of work and put out a what is it worth to me number, which is why they were so high.  He added that the second bidder was around $830,000.

 

4. Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates

 

Ms. Mailander stated that on August 28^th, proposals for the Professional Services for the Risk and Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates were received.  Mott MacDonald of Iselin provided the lowest quote in an amount not to exceed $37,750.  Funding for this project is in the Ridgewood Water operating budget.  This is required under the America’s Water Infrastructure Act.  They have done the Emergency Response Plan and it has been updated periodically and it is time to update it again.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that this really gives her reassurance to see that Ridgewood Water is getting this design for risk assessment and an emergency response plan.  She had been wondering about this with regard to climate change.  She didn’t realize that the law had changed in 2018 such that the Water Utility had security measures for physical breaches and for cyber-attacks.  She was wondering what is it with resiliency to climate change and this answers her question.  She is glad this planning is happening.

 

2. Parking

 

1. Discuss Parking on Colonial Road

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that there has been ongoing issues on Colonial Road, specific to one resident having some difficulties backing out of her driveway, and because of the narrowness of the road and configuration of the limited time parking on the South side of the road versus the no parking on the North side of the road.  This particular resident has a driveway that is on a steep hill and coupled with the narrow roadway, when she backs out if someone is parked immediately on the opposite side of her driveway, she often runs into problems.  When Mayor Knudsen visited the location and had the opportunity to speak to the resident, it occurred to her that a number of years ago she recalled another resident who backed out of her driveway similarly situated and hit a tree.  When they look at the homes along the north side of the road, about six of them are high on the hill.  Their driveways are rather narrow and when they are backing out, it is difficult to maneuver.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that upon visiting the site, it occurred to her that one option might be to simply flip the no parking on the north side to the south side and the timed parking from the south side to the north side.  She added that it might be prudent to have the Police Department look into that and have Mr. Rutishauser possibly send letters to all of the residents to see if that is a solution they would be willing to work with.  It would be at least something that begins some work towards a solution there.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that if this was the same road she was thinking about, several years ago there was a fatality with a car backing out.  Mayor Knudsen stated that was a different road.  She added that there are six homes on a hill and they have narrow driveways with concrete retaining walls which make it uncomfortable to back up their driveways and pull out straight.  Flipping the parked cars along the street in that section might offer a simple solution to their struggles, and in particular this one resident.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that she didn’t know if Mr. Rutishauser or Sergeant Chuck had looked at this location before.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he has looked at the location and has spoken to a number of residents in confidence, and they are not particularly fond of this one resident who is making this request.  They have had some vandalism of Village property on that street, consisting of someone painting their own curb yellow which required the Village to spend a considerable amount of effort with the Traffic, Signal, and Water Pollution crew to scrub the yellow paint off the curb.  There is a Police report with a certain resident threating to relocate No Parking signs for her convenience, so the history on this is kind of murky.  Mayor Knudsen stated to that point, she and Mr. Rutishauser have had this conversation, and it really speaks to whether or not the other folks would at least be receptive to just making this flip if it helps and resolves a neighborhood issue.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they could send out the survey letters, and he would talk to Ms. Mailander and Ms. Jackson about preserving the confidentiality of the replies with regards to OPRA.

 

Sergeant Chuck stated that the Police Department would definitely suggest that they do the entire roadway as it would get too confusing to have many different sections.  Ms. Mailander agreed.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks CSAC hasn’t seen this yet and the resident that sent everyone an email, emailed back and forth, and the recommendation that Councilwoman Walsh had given her was to first meet with CSAC and talk about the problem there.  In the past, Colonial Road came up when Stevens Field was finished and that’s why there was this change in parking back then because there were so many people parking on Colonial Road because of Stevens Field.  She added that she thinks they have to bring that into the conversation because she knows that was one of the challenges a few years back.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that Stevens Field has been out of service for at least the last month and a half, so that has reduced the parking demand.  When he has been on the street, there are cars parked there.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that her thought is that she doesn’t necessarily think it’s a CSAC issue, per say, because it is just one of those things that it doesn’t impact the decisions that were made as a result of Stevens Field.  It maintains the same parking configurations and is merely flipping it.  It is likely because of COVID-19 and people having cars home may be part of the issue, but there was one accident that had some significant damage.  They should first establish if the residents are open to this and if there is going to be some pushback, then at least there is a starting point.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks the benefit of CSAC is that you bring the residents together and they can have a conversation, as opposed to here are the results of a survey take it or leave it.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the survey would take into consideration everyone on the block, and she is sure that not everybody is going to come to a CSAC meeting or speak, and they may only be the three or four people that want it the most or don’t want it the most.  Mayor Knudsen suggested that maybe they send out the resident survey and ask them for an email address.  Then if there is a desire to have a conversation at least they have those email addresses and before any final decision is made, they can email everyone and invite them to the CSAC meeting and this would just be a preliminary step. 

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon asked if they could put the date for the next CSAC meeting in the survey letter they send out, so if somebody gets the letter they know this is a topic of discussion and if they are interested they could come to the next CSAC meeting.  Councilwoman Walsh and Mayor Knudsen agreed.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that it was September 17^th, but they don’t know where it is yet.  Ms. Mailander stated that they should know by next week.

 

3. Budget

 

1. Quarterly Financial Statements

 

Robert Rooney, Chief Financial Officer, stated that he provided the Village Council with revenue and expense reports through June 30^th for the Current Fund, Water Fund, and Parking Utility Fund.  Tax collection through three quarters are slightly above what they did last year, which is very promising.  On sheet one of the revenues, he put asterisks by those revenues that will be in jeopardy this year.  The significant ones are municipal court, the recreation fees and permits, and uniform construction code, because of COVID those will be challenged this year and hopefully they can come close to what they anticipate.  Some of the other challenges are the timing of billing.  Overall, the revenues of the General Fund are about 46% of what they anticipate which is good news under the circumstances.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on the appropriations side, some of the COVID expenses are recorded in the specific line items where they have been incurred, such as Signal, Building Maintenance, and then there is a catchall where they are holding expenses for COVID that have not hit these appropriations.  Those are the ones they are going to have to take a look at as they get closer to the end of the year to determine how they are going to fund those to move forward.  They have submitted requests to FEMA and to CARES for reimbursement for those expenses the Village has incurred related to COVID.  This would include overtime for the Police Department and any other Departments, so they are waiting to hear back on that.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked for those line items that aren’t timing, when would we be able to realize what the potential loss would be for that total dollar amount.  Mr. Rooney stated that probably by the end of September he would be in a better position to let them now if that is going to be in jeopardy.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that the Water Department has received 43% of their anticipated revenues, but Rich Calbi states in their conversations that July was a banner month.  There were a lot of billings because of the heat and the use of water.  We are past what he would call the hot part of the year where they have to be concerned about the purchase and usage of water.  Under appropriations for water, we have spent about 41% of what we have budgeted and they do have some capital outlay funds that are projects that are ongoing and haven’t kicked in full stream yet because of COVID.  He anticipates they are going to be ratcheting up by the end of the year.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that regarding Parking Utility Fund, they are at 31% as of June 30^th.  They have suspended parking meter enforcement, so that is down, in addition to interest on investments interest rates dropped drastically as a result of COVID.  Through August, parking meter revenue has been up roughly to about 33%.  The key is commuters going back to the city, businesses start to get back in action, so we are going to keep an eye on this one.  For appropriations, they are about 38% for what they budgeted and probably have about $100,000 that they can cancel by the end of the year for other expenses that they may not have a use, for so that will temper the problem.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on Monday, the State passed a bill, A3971, which allows the municipalities and counties and authorities to issue short term or long term, five years to ten years, of debt to compensate for the shortage of revenues and any COVID expenses that they have incurred, after reimbursement from FEMA or CARES.  Local Government will be coming out probably by the end of next week with some guidance and regulations as to how to proceed with this.  This will assist in preventing deficits in these funds that will have to be raised in future years and levelling the cost of these out.  Under circumstances like this, you can issue a special emergency which is similar to what they do for the Master Plan which allows the cost to be spread over five years.  Under this bill you would be given one year free without any interest or appropriation to put in for next year and then it’s five years after that.  They are trying to help balance these shortfalls to make sure that this doesn’t impact taxes drastically next year.  Mr. Rooney stated that hopefully by the end of September they will have all the guidance they need and he will be able to present the Village Council with a plan with his recommendation as to how to move forward and they can mitigate these issues that they are faced with right now.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it looked like the Parking Utility was going to be in the deficit, but they could issue the bonds and then spread it out so they wouldn’t then have to cover the deficit as it has been done in the past through taxation.  Mr. Rooney stated that was correct, and under this scenario this bill would also apply to any utility.  So, if they anticipate a shortfall in these revenues which are COVID related, they will be able to issue financing to cover that so it will not impact the tax rate next year.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the numbers meant they were anticipating an $800,000 loss or was her math off.  Councilwoman Walsh stated on the Parking Utility Fund, they should get at least 70% of the revenues.  Mr. Rooney stated no, up through August they are about 33% of what they anticipate for parking.  As far as any deficit, that remains to be seen as to what he is going to get in through September.  Right now, he is looking at a potential deficit.  There has to be an increase in volume to be able to move forward, but there is a vehicle that they can put in place moving forward so that it will not impact the General Fund.

 

2. Declare Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle – Signal Division

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is a 2007 Nissan Xterra that was seized by the Police Department.  They have obtained a New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Certificate of Title for this abandoned vehicle.  The request is to declare it surplus so that it can be auctioned.  Councilwoman Perron asked when the vehicle was seized.  Sergeant Chuck stated 2014.  Councilwoman Perron asked when it was forfeited.  Sergeant Chuck stated about two months ago, it was a long court process and after that the defendant passed away.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what the value of it was.  Sergeant Chuck stated almost nothing, and actually there is some sort of trigger on it so they can’t start the car.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it is probably in really bad shape from sitting all these years.  Sergeant Chuck stated that it probably needs another coat of paint and definitely some vacuuming inside.

 

3. Award Contract – 2021 Ford Escape – Parking Enforcement

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they have had only one vehicle for the PEO’s for over a year, and sometimes there are multiple tasks that they have to accomplish and it requires more than one car.  There are also days when the one car that they have is in service and therefor it is out of service.  They are also trying to move towards the License Plate Reader system of enforcement, so therefore they will need a second car for that, as well.  This would be from Mahwah Ford which was the lowest bidder of three quotes at a cost of $29,000.  They are also requesting to add the same warning lights as the current car which is $2,500 from Regional Communications in Paramus, and striping from American Graphics in Fair Lawn which costs $2,500.  There are already standing contracts for Regional Communications and American Graphics, so the total cost of the vehicle would be $34,000.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked why is it that they never look at the more utility type vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they did a trial with an electric model last summer.  They ran into two problems.  When it rained they weren’t getting much rain protection and the equipment that the PEO’s were using wasn’t able to recharge in that vehicle.  Also, a couple of their responsibilities took them over the highway and roadways that are over 25 mph.  The Cushman’s are low speed vehicles only, so there are a few places where they can’t travel with that vehicle.  Mayor Knudsen asked what the cost is for one of those vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the Cushman was about $18,000.  They also looked at two door Smart cars, which are more expensive.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked about other electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they didn’t look that deeply into it as the fuel economy on this Escape is pretty good.  They hybrids are normally a little more expensive to purchase, and the problem they ran into this year is that most State contracts expired, so they are pretty much just buying what is out there and its driving the costs up a little more.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked about the license plate reader, and if there was a specific setup for it, or could they use it in a sedan as opposed to an SUV.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the difference between the sedan and the SUV was $1,100, and then they lose 4 wheel drive capabilities.  Also, the set up takes a little more space inside the car and the sedan is a little tighter, so it may have been more uncomfortable for the driver.  They don’t want to install a $20,000 license plate system in a car that they would be getting maybe 6 months out of because then they would have to take all that equipment out and put it in another reused car.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked since they were in a deficit with the Parking Utility was it prudent to be buying a new vehicle or should they wait until the Spring.  Mr. Rooney stated that these funds have already been passed in capital through last year’s capital budget so they have been funded already.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if the license plate reader was coming soon, and also if it goes in the front seat or the back seat.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they have it in place already, and it just started last week.  The cameras are outside the car, with two cameras on the roof and two on the back of the car.  The computer system that runs the cameras, one part is in the trunk and then the part that the operator uses is attached to the car, half in the passenger seat.

 

4. Award Contracts – Tree Plantings in Area D and Various Locations

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there were approximately 12 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 7.  There were 3 bidders that each presented the lowest price for specific trees and the general instructions indicated that they could make partial awards based on the bid results.  Therefore, they are recommending that portions of the tree planting in form of proposal solicitations be awarded to three lowest bidders, described as the lowest bid for those particular trees.  Faircut Services LLC of Little Falls, will supply 44 Yellow Wood and 40 Saw Tooth Oak, for a total of $43,832.  Downes Tree Service of Hawthorne, will supply 33 Persian Iron Wood, 24 Sugar Maple, and 23 Trident Maple, for a total of $42,320. Clarke Moynihan Landscaping and Construction LLC of Andover, will supply 13 Japanese Tree, Lilac, Maple Amoricaya, and Swamp Tooth Oak, for a total of $23,570.  The grand total of the award is $109,722 for 218 trees to be planted in the Village.  Funding for this work is in a capital ordinance.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if all of those trees are native.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they were all trees that were recommended for the Village.  Declan Madden, the Village Arborist was intimately involved in the selecting species that they put into the bid documents.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked about the species, because she looked up a couple of them and she doesn’t know for sure but it looks like some of the branches are going to be low and that would obviously be a problem.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that there were two type of species they were looking at.  They were looking for trees that are suitable for under utility wire locations, and trees for locations that don’t have any utility wires that would compromise them as they grow.  Low growing trees would go under areas with utility wires.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that if they are under utility wires, they are going to be in areas where trucks are driving.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are trying to talk to people to plant the trees not between the curb and the sidewalk in the strip, but behind the sidewalk on the property to remove them further from the travel lane where their growth could be impeded.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they could tell people where the trees need to be planted, or only suggest.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department works with the people both on the species and where it gets planted.  They also have to look at a mark out as it is ill advised to plant a tree right on top of somebody’s sanitary sewer, water service, or gas service because they may be struck during the digging.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if this was an effort to move planting the trees out of the grass strip, and do they have the ability to make that as a requirement.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department talks to the residents and tries to convince them to plant on the inside of the sidewalk away from the parkway strip, particularly if it is very narrow.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what they would do if someone said they didn’t want it on their part of the grass.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was up to the arborist, if he and the homeowner cant come to an agreement then maybe they will move onto the next location.  This is in Area D, and if they get all these trees planted great, but if not everybody wants a tree they will move onto other sections.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would like to make a request that the arborist’s time is freed up while this planting is going on because they have had issues in the past where people were improperly planting trees or just tossing them in the ground.  Seeing that this is an investment with costs of $500 per tree, he would hate to see these dying because they weren’t being planted correctly.  He would like to see the arborist out there supervising these plantings.  Councilwoman Perron asked what the maintenance is on these trees.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he thinks the Parks Department has a flyer that they give the homeowners that discusses the maintenance and care of the trees.  Councilwoman Perron asked if the homeowners are given gator bags and stakes to help the trees stay straight up.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the trees are staked and he believes they are supplied with a gator bag; however, the resident is asked to fill the gator bag.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked since there is only watering two days a week, is there any kind of exception if they are getting a tree and allowed to water more often.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the gator bags are there and can be filled with a hose any time and that is not a restricted item under the stage two requirements.  For an exemption to the irrigation restrictions, they would have to contact the Water Company and present their case.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if these plantings were for this Fall.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is intended for this Fall.  That’s why if the Council is in favor of what is presented, and it is approved next week, he will start issuing the contracts right away.  Each of the three vendors will be lined up to get their trees ordered and then get ready to plant them once they’re in a dormant state.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the Village ordinance states that if you have a new tree planted you are permitted to water it.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that you are always permitted to hand water.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated not between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M., which a lot of people don’t know.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that they could pull a hose out to it and water for a half hour once a week and that should be enough.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the watering instructions are on the flyer the resident will get when the tree is planted.  Councilwoman Perron asked that when this comes up next week, can they be reminded where Area D is.  Ms. Mailander stated that over the last three years they have completed Areas A, B, and C.

 

5. Award Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Tri-Plex Industries of South Amboy successfully performed the renovation and upgrades of the restrooms at Graydon Pool.  Their workmanship was satisfactory and they asked Tri-Plex to provide a quote for a number of items that were not in the original bid documents.  The attached change order request has been approved by the architects Connolly and Hickey.  The Change Order Number 2 to Tri-Plex Industries would be for $5,372.88.  There is sufficient funding in a capital account.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked when they were figuring this original project, why stainless steel ADA complaint grab bars, or stainless steel tamper resistant toilet paper dispensers weren’t in the plan as it seems like those are things would have to put in by an architect to be up to code.  Ms. Mailander stated that she could go to Connolly and Hickey and ask why those things weren’t included.

 

6. Additional Award – Disposal of Ground Yard Waste

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they previously awarded a contract to B and B of West Milford for $17.00 per cubic yard for disposal of yard waste.  Nature’s Choice was $20.00 per cubic yard for disposal of grass clippings.  An additional award to B and B in the amount of $30,000 for yard waste removal is now needed.  The previous award was in the amount of $50,000.  The reason the additional yard waste was generated and needed to be disposed was due to Tropical Storm Isaias.  The good news is the expenditure for disposal of grass clippings is significantly less than what was anticipated.  The Village has spent approximately $4,950 out of a budget of $50,000, so they can actually put that money towards the disposal of yard waste.  The Village is prohibited from disposing of its yard waste materials in our leaf compost facility by our permit from the NJDEP.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she was curious why the grass clippings was so far off, and suggested it was because of less rain this year.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it depends on the growing season how much the trucks collect off the street, and it depends what residents landscapers take with them or whether they leave it at the curb.  Sometimes the loads are not always pure grass and then B and B has accepted them, and they are trying to direct materials to B and B because there is a $3 difference.

 

7. Additional Award – Project Closeout Services – Hudson Street Garage

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has been dealing with the contaminated soils encountered during the excavations for footings for the garage and the structural soil for the Hudson Street tree planting with the assistance of First Environment.  First Environment has been providing Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) and material removal services for the garage.  They gave a proposal and an award was made in the amount of $13,600.  Since then, additional effort has been needed primarily with the structural soil that was installed for the shade trees along Hudson Street estimating that it will be another $11,800 to close out the environmental items for the garage site.  Mr. Rutishauser is recommending an award of $15,000 with this final closeout change order.  Money is available in that project construction account.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if this was for documentation of the close out as this seems like a lot for that, or is it actual substantive changes.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is substantial.  One of the things they have to do is a deed notice because there is residual contamination in place, and the LSRP also has to satisfactorily demonstrate to the DEP that the Village has put a satisfactory barrier between any residual contaminated material and the public as an institutional barrier, and for the garage that is the concrete floor.  Councilwoman Perron asked if they were paying for the professional services of the LSRP to get the final sign off from NJDEP.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was correct.

 

8. Award Cooperative Purchasing Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System – Fire Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they were going to discuss this previously but it was removed from the agenda because they didn’t have a funding source.  A general capital ordinance was introduced which included the compressor to fill the bottles, for $29,990 under NPP.GOV Contract, which is a cooperative purchasing contract.  They will pay for it from the Operating Budget until the Capital Account becomes available.  The award is to Air & Gas Technologies of Cliffwood Beach.

 

4. Policy

 

1. Discussion of Suspended CBD Ordinances

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that over the past couple of months, Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey has been meeting and during the course of that time a number of ordinances have been suspended to help facilitate the Pedestrian Plaza to accommodate on-street dining to add balloons and other such things.  She thought it was important to put together a list of all the ordinances that have been suspended as she thinks it should be handled through a resolution by the Village Council.  In the interim, one of the things that came up was the opportunity to bring the west side of West Ridgewood Avenue/Wilsey Square into this and encourage shoppers and diners to go to that side of the train tracks, and conversely to the east side of the pedestrian plaza.  One of the suggestions was to add lights to the top of the buildings along Wilsey.  The building owner has ordered lights and they would test them on one building and then they would continue to do the entire run of Wilsey and continue onto West Ridgewood Avenue.  Mayor Knudsen stated that if the Village Council is in favor of suspending ordinances that would be required in order to keep those lights there.  

 

Mayor Knudsen referred to the Village Code Chapters, and added that the Planning Board took a look at this last night and determined that it was a positive impact and something worthwhile looking at and allowing to happen.  She asked if the Village Council was willing to do a resolution next week, and in the interim if they do the lights tomorrow night as a test run, they would allow them to leave those up until the resolution has passed.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if it was a string of lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they are string lights that are going to be a warm yellow light to give a glow over on Wilsey.  There is some signage that would appear as you are walking into the tunnel encouraging folks to visit the West side and way finder stickers to put on the ground.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she has those lights on her back deck and they are very nice.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she didn’t circulate the letter from the Planning Board, but she read the contents of the letter to the Village Council.  It is really a review and trying to give some attention to that other side of the railroad tracks.  If everybody is agreeable and they are going to do that, then they would allow the building owner to keep the lights up.  Over Zoom Councilwoman Reynolds showed some documents from the Planning Board to the Village Council.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if each property owner does their own.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they are going to work together to accomplish this so it all appears as a seamless effort.  Councilwoman Perron stated that she had been going to the Subcommittee meetings twice a week for this, and basically it is two landlords for all of those shops and one of them also owns the property where Smoked is located, which would look great with some lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that the Planning Board recommended expanding on this along Garber and West Ridgewood Avenue, as well.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that the important piece is that they are open and agreeable to suspending that ordinance temporarily and then looking at whether or not down the road there is an ability to rethink that ordinance entirely.  The Village Council was agreeable to that.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they would have a list of the other ordinances compiled by next week.  They did a pilot of expanding Steel Wheel and S. Egidio into the parking spaces temporarily to allow them to participate in the pedestrian plaza, but the thought was to allow them to leave it there as the restaurants increase to 25% capacity.  Felina and Sook also wanted to give it a shot, so two of them have decided they would do a pilot program and it has been successful.  This piece is very temporary and they have worked with the Police Department.

 

5. Operations

 

1. Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Cooperative Purchasing Program

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there was a memo from Mr. Rooney stating that they are always trying to reduce costs and provide services to our residents.  The Village has used various Cooperative Purchasing Programs and currently participates in 14 of them.  This allows them to find cost savings and expand on valuable resources.  Omnia Partners Public Sector is another cooperative purchasing program that will add numerous vendors to our database.  It is free for the Village to join.

 

2. Authorize Online Auction Service – GovDeals – Sourcewell

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has participated in the Cooperative Purchasing through Sourcewell.  GovDeals, Inc. is an authorized auction site through Sourcewell, and the Village has used them in the past.  Municibid was used over the past year as it is now under State Contract.  GovDeals is nationwide and has greater traffic, and there is also more customer service with them.  This is a resolution to authorize the use of GovDeals to auction surplus property when MuniciBid is ineffective, and it is also an additional resource to dispose of Village property so that they get the greatest return for the taxpayer.

 

7. REVIEW OF SEPTEMBER 13, 2020 PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

 

Proclamations: Fire Prevention Week; Gold Star Mother’s Day; National Breast Cancer Awareness Week; and Proclaim September National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction for Ridgewood Water.

 

There are no ordinances for public hearing for Ridgewood Water.

 

Resolutions for Ridgewood Water include: Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities; Title 59 Approval – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Contract – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment and Associated Projects; and Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction.

 

Ordinances for public hearing include: Amend Chapter 265 – Vehicles and Traffic – Placement of Stop Signs in Hudson Street Garage; Amend Village Code to Allow Additional Village Employees to Perform General Code Enforcement Duties; Amend Chapter 190 – Land Use and Development – Allow Accessible Ramps on One-Family and Two-Family Dwellings to be Reviewed by the Site Plan Exemption Committee; Bond Ordinance – General Capital; Bond Ordinance – Supplemental Appropriation for Front End Loader; and Bond Ordinance – Circle Avenue Drainage Improvements.

 

Resolutions include: Award Contract – Purchase of 2021 Ford Escape – Police Department; Award Contract – Additional Award – Disposal of Yard Waste; Award Contract – Hudson Street Lots – Additional Environmental Technical Support for Project Closeout; Award Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System; Title 59 Approval – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Contract Under Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Program – On-line Auction Services for Surplus Property; Authorize Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool Bathrooms; Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Public Sector Cooperative Purchasing Program; and Declare Property Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle.

 

8. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Boyd Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that he is eagerly awaiting the reopening of Graydon Pool this coming Saturday, as it was closed Monday through Friday because of the unavailability of lifeguards.  He thanked the Village Council for pushing to have the pool open this year as it has been absolutely delightful.  There were many communities that did not open their pools this year and he is thankful that the Council made the decision to open ours.  The water quality has been the best he has ever seen, and he wanted to thank the staff that are taking care of the pool.  As far as he knows, there have been no virus outbreaks at the pool and it has been an absolute delight to be over there.

 

Mr. Loving stated that Mr. Rooney talked about revenue which brings to mind that they have the Airbrook space that was vacated and he has heard no discussion during open meetings about what is being done to fill that space as it was a significant revenue loss when that space was vacated.  There was also some talk about parking, and his concerns were they ever going to get back to a demand that meets or exceeds what happened pre-pandemic or do they have too much parking inventory now.  Obviously, they have to wait and see, but there is a possibility that exists that people will not be commuting to the City as much and there may not be a need for all this parking.  Mr. Loving stated that he hopes an evaluation takes place at some point regarding the parking.  Possibly they have too much parking and can turn some of this into a ratable in some fashion.

 

Mr. Loving stated that effective this past week, the Board of Education returned to in-person meetings.  They are not allowing the public to attend the meetings, but they are meeting in-person and taking comments via phone and email.  As they have seen this evening, there are still some glitches with respect to Zoom, and he hopes that the Village Council considers at least them meeting in person someplace so that we are done with those technical glitches.  Schools are back in session, and he thinks it is time that the Village Council starts to meet again in-person.

 

Matthew Lindenberg, 165 Claremont Road, stated that on behalf of the entire One Village One Vote committee of petitioners he wanted to thank their supporters throughout the Village.  They are thrilled that the question of consolidating Ridgewood’s Village Council and Board of Education elections to November will be put to the voters on this Novembers ballot.  They are committed to spending the next two months until election day continuing to educate the community on the benefits, especially the historically significantly higher voter turnout in November.  They believe this ensures better representation on all Board of Education matters and Village Council matters, including the budgeting processes, as well as the ability to save tens of thousands of dollars or more per year.  They know and respect the fact that some members of the community disagree with them and they are happy to continue to engage in fact based discussions on this issue.  He added that it is important to share the facts and the data behind their efforts.  In an effort to do so, they have shared all of their data and sources on their webpage onevillageonevote.com.  Mr. Lindenberg stated that they encourage everyone in the community to vote yes on this important ballot question when they vote this Fall and join them in helping to make this progress.

 

Laurie Weber, 235 South Irving Street, stated that putting a question on the ballot that seeks to remove a voting right on the school budget requires five times the signatures that were stated on the petitions circulated by the One Vote campaign.  She added that every allegation made on the One Vote website, including the ones that Mr. Lindenberg cited in his comments can be factually disputed.  Ridgewood statistics support that our local elections have enjoyed a larger turnout in the Spring than the Board of Education enjoyed in November.  She stated that the school safety issues, and other issues can all be addressed.  What disturbs her about the way that this process has proceeded is that now they are trying to put this directly on the ballot, completely bypassing the opportunity for a public hearing where the Village Council gets to have a reading of this and the community gets to have a vigorous and thorough discussion of this.

 

Ms. Weber stated that this attempt by the One Vote campaign to bypass the laws that exist to protect voter rights, to propagate misinformation, and now to bypass the entire public participation process and move this to a vote is beyond offensive.  She would sincerely hope that the Village Council and the Village Attorney stand up for the rights of the entire community of voters here and not just for five of them who have managed to convince 500 of promises they will not be able to keep.  

 

Lauren Riker, 224 South Irving Street, stated that she would like to echo what Ms. Weber just said and the right to have the vote on the school budget when it’s a meaningful time is important to her and her family.  She has a son that is in the Ridgewood School System and she thinks it is important that she retains that right and she does not think it’s fair that the proper process is being bypassed by going to a court and not having a public hearing regarding this.

 

Deborah Steinbaum, 295 Grandview Circle, stated that she is one of the One Village One Vote petitioners and she appreciates all the spirited discussion about the ballot initiative.  She thinks it is really important for us to sit down with a deep breath and realize the best way for people to have their say in the matter is to put it to a vote.  It is something that people do care deeply about and truly what better way for people to have a full community airing of this topic than by letting them go to the ballot.  November will be the perfect time for us to address this and she appreciates that everyone cares deeply about our community, as does she, and she thinks this is going to be a really productive discussion among people who care about Ridgewood.  She stated that they would encourage everyone to come out and they are more than willing to discuss the facts that they have put on the website, as there is nothing that is alternative or questionable about them, and interpretation may differ.  She thinks it is important that they come to a community determination of them.  

 

Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she thinks at this point everyone should be on the same page that no matter what your vote would be in November there is a public question.  They spent the past 18 months engaging with the community, Board of Education, and the Village Council.  Every time they issue a fact, all of their facts are submitted directly to the Village Council and the Board of Education.  If there is any discrepancy or something that they are promoting, they do feel that including the Village Council as public officials with their messaging would be the perfect opportunity, if there was a mistake, the Council would let them know.  Ms. Winograd stated that there is no doubt there is a question and the best place for a question such as this is on the ballot.  She added that it is important for the people who are listening to this, they are a group of citizens who motivated to do this, but the Village Council could have placed the question there.  Since they have been writing about this for almost two years, and several of their requests have gone unresponded to, they are motivated to do this.

 

Ms. Winograd stated that she thinks at this point, in time to move forward, they should all acknowledge there is going to be a question and how people want to answer it is up to them.  People can vote their will and their way, and all of us should want that.  She said that if they got something wrong, the Village Council gets emails from them every time they issue a fact, and they would welcome an email if they got something wrong, rather than comments from the dais that something is wrong.  They could have made a mistake some way but they feel that their facts are cited, thorough, and vetted.  There is a question and there is no better place to answer it than on the ballot this November.

 

Linda Tarzian, 576 Highland Avenue, stated that she wanted to make a comment in support of maintaining the citizen taxpayer right to vote and the need to adhere to all appropriate protocols and not eliminate them in the face of pressure tactics to remove our civic duty to vote.  She encouraged the Board of Education to disregard this nefarious motion to remove the right to vote and to take seriously the responsibility to us as taxpayers.

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that she is calling to say that they have been doing great work in the downtown to help support the businesses and she is very happy that they are moving to the west side and to the businesses over there.  She has concerns about the east end of Ridgewood Avenue as they seem to be quite neglected and she hopes that they will do something in that important area, as well.

 

Ms. Loving stated that regarding One Village One Vote, she is completely opposed to it because it would take away their legal right to vote on the Board of Education budget.  She added that it is really outrageous, possibly hilarious, that they are proposing that we have a vote on denying us our right to vote.  Her opinion on this initiative is not really the main concern here; this group has put forth false information during their petition drive and their lawyer gave false information to the Judge.  This is disgraceful and she sincerely hopes that the Judge’s decision is going to be challenged by our government. 

 

There were no additional comments from the public, and Mayor Knudsen closed public comment.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she has expressed her concerns repeatedly that the information shared relative to the cost savings by election consolidation the numbers are inaccurate and she will certainly be happy to detail those next week.  She added that a few weeks ago they were told $100,000 and now its tens of thousands of dollars, she thinks it is important to note the savings to the Village taxpayers by maintain those elections is far greater than $100,000 and she will outline that significant savings to not consolidating next week during the Public Meeting.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she looked at the figures that One Village One Vote has put forward and it comports with what she has seen in our budget figures so far so she hasn’t seen so far that their facts are inaccurate.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she will detail the figures next week, but reiterated that it is a significant savings to Ridgewood taxpayers to maintain the Spring vote on the budget, a long term tax savings to the taxpayers.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked Mr. Rogers about at the beginning of the meeting how he talked about the litigation and is there an opportunity for the Village Council to get a special meeting so that they can talk maybe before the next meeting.  Mr. Rogers stated that the Village Council could schedule a special meeting according to the Open Public Meetings Act and he doesn’t know when they could fit that it.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that because all of this is going on and they have not been able to meet as a Council to even discuss it, she would feel more comfortable if the five Village Councilmembers could get together to discuss it.  Mr. Rogers stated that unfortunately it can’t be done without the Open Public Meetings Act being satisfied, and it would be difficult with the next meeting a week away and the holiday weekend.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if they could set it for Tuesday.  Mr. Rogers stated that they could talk to Ms. Mailander to see if that could be done.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it was a great point and they would see what they could do with that.

 

9. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilwoman Walsh, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 9:31 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                                      Susan Knudsen                         

                                                                                                              Mayor                                    

 

 

 

 

______________________________

              Donna M. Jackson

           Deputy Village Clerk

 A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 7:36 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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 to honor the brave men and women serving in our nation’s armed forces, all our first responders, and especially for our Ridgewood Police Officers.

 

2. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

There were no comments from the public.

 

3. VILLAGE CLERK – CERTIFICATION OF PETITION – ONE VILLAGE, ONE VOTE

 

Mr. Rogers stated that it has always been custom and practice for the Village Council not to comment on pending litigation.  A decision came down after 5:00 P.M. today, and he needs time to review it and will talk with all of the members of the Village Council tomorrow with regard to the next steps.

 

4. MANAGERS REPORT

 

Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey – Ms. Mailander stated that Welcome Back to Ridgewood includes outdoor dining and free music all day Saturday and Sunday on East Ridgewood Avenue from Broad Street to Walnut Street and the side streets of Oak, Chestnut, and Prospect Streets.  Everything is closed to cars in that area and it creates a pedestrian mall.

 

Hudson Street Garage – Ms. Mailander stated that the first floor is open for business, it is $1.00 per hour to be paid at the kiosk at the Hudson Street entrance and is a three hour limit.

 

Labor Day – On Monday, September 7^th, Village Offices will be closed.  Recycling and Sanitation pickup services are suspended and the Recycling Center will also be closed.

 

September 11^th Memorial – To honor the memory of the 12 Ridgewood residents lost on 9/11, portraits of each resident are displayed in the Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium for the month of September.  The Library is open seven days a week and offers a place for reflection.

 

                                                                                                                                      

U.S. Census – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has increased to an 83% response rate, and she asked that residents please fill out the census online or by phone no later than September 30^th as we have our goal of a 100% response rate.

 

Rear Yard Garbage Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that rear yard garbage pickup resumed in July, so residents no longer need to bring their garbage cans to the street.

 

Election – Ms. Mailander stated that election season is upon us and election signs or any other signs may not be placed in the planting strip between the curb and sidewalk or on any public property.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the General Election will be primarily vote by mail.  Voters may mail back their ballots to the County via U.S. Mail or they may put it in the ballot box outside of the Village Hall lobby, or may bring it to their polling location.  You can also vote by provisional paper ballot at the polling location.  There will be ADA voting machines available in the polling locations, but they would only be used for those unable to mark the mail in ballots.

 

Resident Volunteers – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village Council is seeking resident volunteers to serve on Boards and Committees.  These include the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Central Business District Advisory Committee, Ridgewood Community Center Advisory Board, Ridgewood Arts Council, Shade Tree Commission, Green Ridgewood, Ridgewood Green Team, and the Open Space Committee.  The deadline to apply is September 8^th.  Please submit the Citizen Volunteer Leadership Form, which is found on the website under Forms, page 2, it says Village Clerk, and then you will see the form.  Also, submit a resume or biography of your accomplishments or what you have done in life and a cover letter indicating which Boards you would like to serve on. 

 

Cancellations of Events – Ms. Mailander stated that due to COVID-19, there are various cancellations of events.  The Chamber of Commerce Car Show, scheduled for 9/11, has been canceled, as has Coffee with the Council which was scheduled for 9/12, and then the Parks and Recreation Street Fair was also canceled which was scheduled for 9/20.

 

Chamber of Commerce – Ms. Mailander stated that the Chamber of Commerce will host their Sidewalk Sale Days inside and out on October 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd.

 

Household Hazardous Waste Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that the Bergen County Utilities Authority will be holding their Household Hazardous Waste collection on September 12^th from 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. at Bergen County Campgaw Reservation in Mahwah. 

 

Upcoming Village Council Meetings – Ms. Mailander stated that the upcoming Village Council meetings are all televised live and are on Zoom.  September 9^th is the Village Council Public Meeting, September 23^rd is the Village Council Public Work Session, and October 7^th is a Village Council Public Work Session.

 

Social Security Administration – Ms. Mailander stated that on behalf of the Social Security Administration, during the Coronavirus Pandemic, they continue to provide help to anyone who may need social security help.  You can apply for disability, Medicare benefits, check the status of an application or appeal, request a replacement social security card, print a benefit verification letter, and much more services are provided online.  They know that many people want to converse with someone, so they do have phone help.  There will be information about this posted on the Village website

 

5. COUNCIL REPORTS

 

Chamber of Commerce – Councilwoman Perron stated that the next meeting is September 9^th, although work has been getting done over the past month, especially with respect to the pedestrian mall.

 

Green Ridgewood – Councilwoman Perron stated that Green Ridgewood will meet on Thursday at 7:00 P.M. and it is open to the public.

 

Open Space – Councilwoman Perron stated that Open Space met on August 20^th and Rob Kearny who is an employee of the Ridgewood Water Utility presented.  He is going for a Graduate Degree in GIS Mapping, so it was really interesting how you map natural resources.  He is urging people to help him draft an Environmental Resources Inventory for the town, and she signed up to do the Dunham Trail.  They are looking for more volunteers to help with that endeavor, which overlaps with his membership in Green Ridgewood.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if people interested in participating in the Inventory could email Councilwoman Perron directly.  Councilwoman Perron stated yes, adding that her email is pperron@ridgewoodnj.net.

 

Central Business District Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the CBD Advisory Committee is really trying to help the downtown businesses thrive during this difficult time.  The Pilot Program for “Grab and Go” parking spaces is up and running and they are all really excited about that.  There are ten spaces throughout town on the North/South streets.  Those are free, 15-minute parking spaces for people who are either picking up contactless delivery from a restaurant or they can run a very quick errand in that time.  She encouraged people to look for those signs and use those spots.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that they are also considering a Visitors Bureau for the Central Business District in the form of a website, so that people from Franklin Lakes or Glen Rock can see what is going on in Ridgewood.  They are continuing to work on handouts and literature for potential tenants in the multi-family housing complexes, to again provide coupons to businesses downtown, invite them to look around the Village and see what’s attractive, and if they want to move here.

 

Planning Board – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the Planning Board met last night and reviewed the final draft of the first section of the Master Plan – Our Village, Our Future.  It was a huge step in the right direction for the Master Plan.  There was going to be a Hopper Ridge Condominium Association application but it was moved to October 6^th.

 

Citizen Safety Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they will be meeting on September 17^th, and they hopefully will be meeting in person but that will be announced in the future.

 

Welcome Back, Ridgewood – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she hoped everyone was able to take advantage of the concerts on Saturdays and Sundays at Van Neste downtown as they have been fabulous.

 

Green Team – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that tomorrow at 7:30 P.M. the Green Team will meet via Zoom.

 

Kasschau Shell – Mayor Knudsen pointed out that the Kasschau Shell ended their season and she gave a great shoutout to the Kasschau Shell Committee, Parks and Recreation, and especially Gail McCarthy for her leadership this fabulous season and all of that hard work, energy, and effort are greatly appreciated.

 

6. DISCUSSION

             

1. Ridgewood Water

 

1. Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is for two of the facilities.  Three quotes were obtained.  This is the third year of continuing these improvements.  There were eleven roof structures improved in 2018, eight were improved in 2019, and two are scheduled for this year.  American Construction Chimney and Roofing Specialist of Cliffside Park had the lowest quote of $25,800.  So, the recommendation is to award it to this company and the funding is established in the Water Utility capital budget.

 

2. Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment & Associated Projects

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in June of this year, Mott MacDonald, our consultant, completed the PFAS Planning and Treatment Study.  The Study mapped out a master plan of alternatives to reconfigure some of the treatment systems to eliminate concentrations of PFAS.  The primary focus of the plan is to centralize treatment for efficiency and to take advantage of sites that have more space for the required treatment equipment.  Ridgewood Water would like to proceed with the preliminary design and four of the thirteen proposed treatment plans.  So far, treatment has been installed and is operational at the Carr Treatment Plant.  Design evaluations are underway for the Marr Ravine, Irving/Linwood, Upgraded Carr, and Twinney Plants.  All of these plants serve the largest pressure zone for the system which is a low pressure zone.  The focus for the next preliminary design is to design treatment plants in other operational zones, such as the intermediate and high zones, and one other geographical location in the low.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in addition to the preliminary design services, Mott MacDonald with assist with the treatment plant at Carr, evaluate all of the raw water pipeline that are required for the new system buildout, and participate in the rate making analysis with our hired rate professional and attend meetings with NJDEP to lay out the compliance schedule for meeting the new PFAS regulations.  Mott MacDonald was previously Hatch Mott MacDonald, and so they have been involved with numerous projects with Ridgewood Water for decades.  Based on their past project experience and working knowledge of our system, they will be best suited to perform this professional engineering service.  The recommendation is to award it to Mott MacDonald of Iselin in an amount not to exceed $277,600.  Funding for this is in the Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if these were the types of costs that the Village is asking for reimbursement in the pending litigation.  Mr. Calbi stated that yes, they were.

 

3. Award Contract – Replacement of Water Mains

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is on Jefferson Street and Salem Lane.  Bids were received yesterday, and there were 22 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 15 bids.  They range from a low of $814,290 to a high of $1,821,750.  The low bid received was from On Cue Technologies of Oradell.  They submitted a complete bid package and all necessary information, and they have also successfully worked for the Village in the past.  This will be funded from the Ridgewood Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked with a spread of $1 million between bids, if are we missing something, and could they come back with change orders later on in the project.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is a huge spread, and the low bidder did put a number of items where they bid a minimal amount of $1, which are the items that were in the bid that they may or may not use.  They are taking a gamble that they will not use them.  Mr. Rutishauser knows that the contractor is very eager to start work, and the high bidder has plenty of work and put out a what is it worth to me number, which is why they were so high.  He added that the second bidder was around $830,000.

 

4. Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates

 

Ms. Mailander stated that on August 28^th, proposals for the Professional Services for the Risk and Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates were received.  Mott MacDonald of Iselin provided the lowest quote in an amount not to exceed $37,750.  Funding for this project is in the Ridgewood Water operating budget.  This is required under the America’s Water Infrastructure Act.  They have done the Emergency Response Plan and it has been updated periodically and it is time to update it again.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that this really gives her reassurance to see that Ridgewood Water is getting this design for risk assessment and an emergency response plan.  She had been wondering about this with regard to climate change.  She didn’t realize that the law had changed in 2018 such that the Water Utility had security measures for physical breaches and for cyber-attacks.  She was wondering what is it with resiliency to climate change and this answers her question.  She is glad this planning is happening.

 

2. Parking

 

1. Discuss Parking on Colonial Road

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that there has been ongoing issues on Colonial Road, specific to one resident having some difficulties backing out of her driveway, and because of the narrowness of the road and configuration of the limited time parking on the South side of the road versus the no parking on the North side of the road.  This particular resident has a driveway that is on a steep hill and coupled with the narrow roadway, when she backs out if someone is parked immediately on the opposite side of her driveway, she often runs into problems.  When Mayor Knudsen visited the location and had the opportunity to speak to the resident, it occurred to her that a number of years ago she recalled another resident who backed out of her driveway similarly situated and hit a tree.  When they look at the homes along the north side of the road, about six of them are high on the hill.  Their driveways are rather narrow and when they are backing out, it is difficult to maneuver.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that upon visiting the site, it occurred to her that one option might be to simply flip the no parking on the north side to the south side and the timed parking from the south side to the north side.  She added that it might be prudent to have the Police Department look into that and have Mr. Rutishauser possibly send letters to all of the residents to see if that is a solution they would be willing to work with.  It would be at least something that begins some work towards a solution there.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that if this was the same road she was thinking about, several years ago there was a fatality with a car backing out.  Mayor Knudsen stated that was a different road.  She added that there are six homes on a hill and they have narrow driveways with concrete retaining walls which make it uncomfortable to back up their driveways and pull out straight.  Flipping the parked cars along the street in that section might offer a simple solution to their struggles, and in particular this one resident.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that she didn’t know if Mr. Rutishauser or Sergeant Chuck had looked at this location before.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he has looked at the location and has spoken to a number of residents in confidence, and they are not particularly fond of this one resident who is making this request.  They have had some vandalism of Village property on that street, consisting of someone painting their own curb yellow which required the Village to spend a considerable amount of effort with the Traffic, Signal, and Water Pollution crew to scrub the yellow paint off the curb.  There is a Police report with a certain resident threating to relocate No Parking signs for her convenience, so the history on this is kind of murky.  Mayor Knudsen stated to that point, she and Mr. Rutishauser have had this conversation, and it really speaks to whether or not the other folks would at least be receptive to just making this flip if it helps and resolves a neighborhood issue.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they could send out the survey letters, and he would talk to Ms. Mailander and Ms. Jackson about preserving the confidentiality of the replies with regards to OPRA.

 

Sergeant Chuck stated that the Police Department would definitely suggest that they do the entire roadway as it would get too confusing to have many different sections.  Ms. Mailander agreed.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks CSAC hasn’t seen this yet and the resident that sent everyone an email, emailed back and forth, and the recommendation that Councilwoman Walsh had given her was to first meet with CSAC and talk about the problem there.  In the past, Colonial Road came up when Stevens Field was finished and that’s why there was this change in parking back then because there were so many people parking on Colonial Road because of Stevens Field.  She added that she thinks they have to bring that into the conversation because she knows that was one of the challenges a few years back.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that Stevens Field has been out of service for at least the last month and a half, so that has reduced the parking demand.  When he has been on the street, there are cars parked there.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that her thought is that she doesn’t necessarily think it’s a CSAC issue, per say, because it is just one of those things that it doesn’t impact the decisions that were made as a result of Stevens Field.  It maintains the same parking configurations and is merely flipping it.  It is likely because of COVID-19 and people having cars home may be part of the issue, but there was one accident that had some significant damage.  They should first establish if the residents are open to this and if there is going to be some pushback, then at least there is a starting point.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks the benefit of CSAC is that you bring the residents together and they can have a conversation, as opposed to here are the results of a survey take it or leave it.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the survey would take into consideration everyone on the block, and she is sure that not everybody is going to come to a CSAC meeting or speak, and they may only be the three or four people that want it the most or don’t want it the most.  Mayor Knudsen suggested that maybe they send out the resident survey and ask them for an email address.  Then if there is a desire to have a conversation at least they have those email addresses and before any final decision is made, they can email everyone and invite them to the CSAC meeting and this would just be a preliminary step. 

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon asked if they could put the date for the next CSAC meeting in the survey letter they send out, so if somebody gets the letter they know this is a topic of discussion and if they are interested they could come to the next CSAC meeting.  Councilwoman Walsh and Mayor Knudsen agreed.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that it was September 17^th, but they don’t know where it is yet.  Ms. Mailander stated that they should know by next week.

 

3. Budget

 

1. Quarterly Financial Statements

 

Robert Rooney, Chief Financial Officer, stated that he provided the Village Council with revenue and expense reports through June 30^th for the Current Fund, Water Fund, and Parking Utility Fund.  Tax collection through three quarters are slightly above what they did last year, which is very promising.  On sheet one of the revenues, he put asterisks by those revenues that will be in jeopardy this year.  The significant ones are municipal court, the recreation fees and permits, and uniform construction code, because of COVID those will be challenged this year and hopefully they can come close to what they anticipate.  Some of the other challenges are the timing of billing.  Overall, the revenues of the General Fund are about 46% of what they anticipate which is good news under the circumstances.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on the appropriations side, some of the COVID expenses are recorded in the specific line items where they have been incurred, such as Signal, Building Maintenance, and then there is a catchall where they are holding expenses for COVID that have not hit these appropriations.  Those are the ones they are going to have to take a look at as they get closer to the end of the year to determine how they are going to fund those to move forward.  They have submitted requests to FEMA and to CARES for reimbursement for those expenses the Village has incurred related to COVID.  This would include overtime for the Police Department and any other Departments, so they are waiting to hear back on that.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked for those line items that aren’t timing, when would we be able to realize what the potential loss would be for that total dollar amount.  Mr. Rooney stated that probably by the end of September he would be in a better position to let them now if that is going to be in jeopardy.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that the Water Department has received 43% of their anticipated revenues, but Rich Calbi states in their conversations that July was a banner month.  There were a lot of billings because of the heat and the use of water.  We are past what he would call the hot part of the year where they have to be concerned about the purchase and usage of water.  Under appropriations for water, we have spent about 41% of what we have budgeted and they do have some capital outlay funds that are projects that are ongoing and haven’t kicked in full stream yet because of COVID.  He anticipates they are going to be ratcheting up by the end of the year.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that regarding Parking Utility Fund, they are at 31% as of June 30^th.  They have suspended parking meter enforcement, so that is down, in addition to interest on investments interest rates dropped drastically as a result of COVID.  Through August, parking meter revenue has been up roughly to about 33%.  The key is commuters going back to the city, businesses start to get back in action, so we are going to keep an eye on this one.  For appropriations, they are about 38% for what they budgeted and probably have about $100,000 that they can cancel by the end of the year for other expenses that they may not have a use, for so that will temper the problem.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on Monday, the State passed a bill, A3971, which allows the municipalities and counties and authorities to issue short term or long term, five years to ten years, of debt to compensate for the shortage of revenues and any COVID expenses that they have incurred, after reimbursement from FEMA or CARES.  Local Government will be coming out probably by the end of next week with some guidance and regulations as to how to proceed with this.  This will assist in preventing deficits in these funds that will have to be raised in future years and levelling the cost of these out.  Under circumstances like this, you can issue a special emergency which is similar to what they do for the Master Plan which allows the cost to be spread over five years.  Under this bill you would be given one year free without any interest or appropriation to put in for next year and then it’s five years after that.  They are trying to help balance these shortfalls to make sure that this doesn’t impact taxes drastically next year.  Mr. Rooney stated that hopefully by the end of September they will have all the guidance they need and he will be able to present the Village Council with a plan with his recommendation as to how to move forward and they can mitigate these issues that they are faced with right now.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it looked like the Parking Utility was going to be in the deficit, but they could issue the bonds and then spread it out so they wouldn’t then have to cover the deficit as it has been done in the past through taxation.  Mr. Rooney stated that was correct, and under this scenario this bill would also apply to any utility.  So, if they anticipate a shortfall in these revenues which are COVID related, they will be able to issue financing to cover that so it will not impact the tax rate next year.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the numbers meant they were anticipating an $800,000 loss or was her math off.  Councilwoman Walsh stated on the Parking Utility Fund, they should get at least 70% of the revenues.  Mr. Rooney stated no, up through August they are about 33% of what they anticipate for parking.  As far as any deficit, that remains to be seen as to what he is going to get in through September.  Right now, he is looking at a potential deficit.  There has to be an increase in volume to be able to move forward, but there is a vehicle that they can put in place moving forward so that it will not impact the General Fund.

 

2. Declare Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle – Signal Division

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is a 2007 Nissan Xterra that was seized by the Police Department.  They have obtained a New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Certificate of Title for this abandoned vehicle.  The request is to declare it surplus so that it can be auctioned.  Councilwoman Perron asked when the vehicle was seized.  Sergeant Chuck stated 2014.  Councilwoman Perron asked when it was forfeited.  Sergeant Chuck stated about two months ago, it was a long court process and after that the defendant passed away.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what the value of it was.  Sergeant Chuck stated almost nothing, and actually there is some sort of trigger on it so they can’t start the car.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it is probably in really bad shape from sitting all these years.  Sergeant Chuck stated that it probably needs another coat of paint and definitely some vacuuming inside.

 

3. Award Contract – 2021 Ford Escape – Parking Enforcement

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they have had only one vehicle for the PEO’s for over a year, and sometimes there are multiple tasks that they have to accomplish and it requires more than one car.  There are also days when the one car that they have is in service and therefor it is out of service.  They are also trying to move towards the License Plate Reader system of enforcement, so therefore they will need a second car for that, as well.  This would be from Mahwah Ford which was the lowest bidder of three quotes at a cost of $29,000.  They are also requesting to add the same warning lights as the current car which is $2,500 from Regional Communications in Paramus, and striping from American Graphics in Fair Lawn which costs $2,500.  There are already standing contracts for Regional Communications and American Graphics, so the total cost of the vehicle would be $34,000.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked why is it that they never look at the more utility type vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they did a trial with an electric model last summer.  They ran into two problems.  When it rained they weren’t getting much rain protection and the equipment that the PEO’s were using wasn’t able to recharge in that vehicle.  Also, a couple of their responsibilities took them over the highway and roadways that are over 25 mph.  The Cushman’s are low speed vehicles only, so there are a few places where they can’t travel with that vehicle.  Mayor Knudsen asked what the cost is for one of those vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the Cushman was about $18,000.  They also looked at two door Smart cars, which are more expensive.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked about other electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they didn’t look that deeply into it as the fuel economy on this Escape is pretty good.  They hybrids are normally a little more expensive to purchase, and the problem they ran into this year is that most State contracts expired, so they are pretty much just buying what is out there and its driving the costs up a little more.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked about the license plate reader, and if there was a specific setup for it, or could they use it in a sedan as opposed to an SUV.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the difference between the sedan and the SUV was $1,100, and then they lose 4 wheel drive capabilities.  Also, the set up takes a little more space inside the car and the sedan is a little tighter, so it may have been more uncomfortable for the driver.  They don’t want to install a $20,000 license plate system in a car that they would be getting maybe 6 months out of because then they would have to take all that equipment out and put it in another reused car.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked since they were in a deficit with the Parking Utility was it prudent to be buying a new vehicle or should they wait until the Spring.  Mr. Rooney stated that these funds have already been passed in capital through last year’s capital budget so they have been funded already.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if the license plate reader was coming soon, and also if it goes in the front seat or the back seat.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they have it in place already, and it just started last week.  The cameras are outside the car, with two cameras on the roof and two on the back of the car.  The computer system that runs the cameras, one part is in the trunk and then the part that the operator uses is attached to the car, half in the passenger seat.

 

4. Award Contracts – Tree Plantings in Area D and Various Locations

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there were approximately 12 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 7.  There were 3 bidders that each presented the lowest price for specific trees and the general instructions indicated that they could make partial awards based on the bid results.  Therefore, they are recommending that portions of the tree planting in form of proposal solicitations be awarded to three lowest bidders, described as the lowest bid for those particular trees.  Faircut Services LLC of Little Falls, will supply 44 Yellow Wood and 40 Saw Tooth Oak, for a total of $43,832.  Downes Tree Service of Hawthorne, will supply 33 Persian Iron Wood, 24 Sugar Maple, and 23 Trident Maple, for a total of $42,320. Clarke Moynihan Landscaping and Construction LLC of Andover, will supply 13 Japanese Tree, Lilac, Maple Amoricaya, and Swamp Tooth Oak, for a total of $23,570.  The grand total of the award is $109,722 for 218 trees to be planted in the Village.  Funding for this work is in a capital ordinance.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if all of those trees are native.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they were all trees that were recommended for the Village.  Declan Madden, the Village Arborist was intimately involved in the selecting species that they put into the bid documents.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked about the species, because she looked up a couple of them and she doesn’t know for sure but it looks like some of the branches are going to be low and that would obviously be a problem.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that there were two type of species they were looking at.  They were looking for trees that are suitable for under utility wire locations, and trees for locations that don’t have any utility wires that would compromise them as they grow.  Low growing trees would go under areas with utility wires.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that if they are under utility wires, they are going to be in areas where trucks are driving.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are trying to talk to people to plant the trees not between the curb and the sidewalk in the strip, but behind the sidewalk on the property to remove them further from the travel lane where their growth could be impeded.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they could tell people where the trees need to be planted, or only suggest.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department works with the people both on the species and where it gets planted.  They also have to look at a mark out as it is ill advised to plant a tree right on top of somebody’s sanitary sewer, water service, or gas service because they may be struck during the digging.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if this was an effort to move planting the trees out of the grass strip, and do they have the ability to make that as a requirement.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department talks to the residents and tries to convince them to plant on the inside of the sidewalk away from the parkway strip, particularly if it is very narrow.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what they would do if someone said they didn’t want it on their part of the grass.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was up to the arborist, if he and the homeowner cant come to an agreement then maybe they will move onto the next location.  This is in Area D, and if they get all these trees planted great, but if not everybody wants a tree they will move onto other sections.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would like to make a request that the arborist’s time is freed up while this planting is going on because they have had issues in the past where people were improperly planting trees or just tossing them in the ground.  Seeing that this is an investment with costs of $500 per tree, he would hate to see these dying because they weren’t being planted correctly.  He would like to see the arborist out there supervising these plantings.  Councilwoman Perron asked what the maintenance is on these trees.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he thinks the Parks Department has a flyer that they give the homeowners that discusses the maintenance and care of the trees.  Councilwoman Perron asked if the homeowners are given gator bags and stakes to help the trees stay straight up.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the trees are staked and he believes they are supplied with a gator bag; however, the resident is asked to fill the gator bag.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked since there is only watering two days a week, is there any kind of exception if they are getting a tree and allowed to water more often.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the gator bags are there and can be filled with a hose any time and that is not a restricted item under the stage two requirements.  For an exemption to the irrigation restrictions, they would have to contact the Water Company and present their case.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if these plantings were for this Fall.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is intended for this Fall.  That’s why if the Council is in favor of what is presented, and it is approved next week, he will start issuing the contracts right away.  Each of the three vendors will be lined up to get their trees ordered and then get ready to plant them once they’re in a dormant state.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the Village ordinance states that if you have a new tree planted you are permitted to water it.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that you are always permitted to hand water.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated not between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M., which a lot of people don’t know.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that they could pull a hose out to it and water for a half hour once a week and that should be enough.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the watering instructions are on the flyer the resident will get when the tree is planted.  Councilwoman Perron asked that when this comes up next week, can they be reminded where Area D is.  Ms. Mailander stated that over the last three years they have completed Areas A, B, and C.

 

5. Award Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Tri-Plex Industries of South Amboy successfully performed the renovation and upgrades of the restrooms at Graydon Pool.  Their workmanship was satisfactory and they asked Tri-Plex to provide a quote for a number of items that were not in the original bid documents.  The attached change order request has been approved by the architects Connolly and Hickey.  The Change Order Number 2 to Tri-Plex Industries would be for $5,372.88.  There is sufficient funding in a capital account.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked when they were figuring this original project, why stainless steel ADA complaint grab bars, or stainless steel tamper resistant toilet paper dispensers weren’t in the plan as it seems like those are things would have to put in by an architect to be up to code.  Ms. Mailander stated that she could go to Connolly and Hickey and ask why those things weren’t included.

 

6. Additional Award – Disposal of Ground Yard Waste

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they previously awarded a contract to B and B of West Milford for $17.00 per cubic yard for disposal of yard waste.  Nature’s Choice was $20.00 per cubic yard for disposal of grass clippings.  An additional award to B and B in the amount of $30,000 for yard waste removal is now needed.  The previous award was in the amount of $50,000.  The reason the additional yard waste was generated and needed to be disposed was due to Tropical Storm Isaias.  The good news is the expenditure for disposal of grass clippings is significantly less than what was anticipated.  The Village has spent approximately $4,950 out of a budget of $50,000, so they can actually put that money towards the disposal of yard waste.  The Village is prohibited from disposing of its yard waste materials in our leaf compost facility by our permit from the NJDEP.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she was curious why the grass clippings was so far off, and suggested it was because of less rain this year.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it depends on the growing season how much the trucks collect off the street, and it depends what residents landscapers take with them or whether they leave it at the curb.  Sometimes the loads are not always pure grass and then B and B has accepted them, and they are trying to direct materials to B and B because there is a $3 difference.

 

7. Additional Award – Project Closeout Services – Hudson Street Garage

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has been dealing with the contaminated soils encountered during the excavations for footings for the garage and the structural soil for the Hudson Street tree planting with the assistance of First Environment.  First Environment has been providing Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) and material removal services for the garage.  They gave a proposal and an award was made in the amount of $13,600.  Since then, additional effort has been needed primarily with the structural soil that was installed for the shade trees along Hudson Street estimating that it will be another $11,800 to close out the environmental items for the garage site.  Mr. Rutishauser is recommending an award of $15,000 with this final closeout change order.  Money is available in that project construction account.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if this was for documentation of the close out as this seems like a lot for that, or is it actual substantive changes.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is substantial.  One of the things they have to do is a deed notice because there is residual contamination in place, and the LSRP also has to satisfactorily demonstrate to the DEP that the Village has put a satisfactory barrier between any residual contaminated material and the public as an institutional barrier, and for the garage that is the concrete floor.  Councilwoman Perron asked if they were paying for the professional services of the LSRP to get the final sign off from NJDEP.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was correct.

 

8. Award Cooperative Purchasing Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System – Fire Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they were going to discuss this previously but it was removed from the agenda because they didn’t have a funding source.  A general capital ordinance was introduced which included the compressor to fill the bottles, for $29,990 under NPP.GOV Contract, which is a cooperative purchasing contract.  They will pay for it from the Operating Budget until the Capital Account becomes available.  The award is to Air & Gas Technologies of Cliffwood Beach.

 

4. Policy

 

1. Discussion of Suspended CBD Ordinances

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that over the past couple of months, Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey has been meeting and during the course of that time a number of ordinances have been suspended to help facilitate the Pedestrian Plaza to accommodate on-street dining to add balloons and other such things.  She thought it was important to put together a list of all the ordinances that have been suspended as she thinks it should be handled through a resolution by the Village Council.  In the interim, one of the things that came up was the opportunity to bring the west side of West Ridgewood Avenue/Wilsey Square into this and encourage shoppers and diners to go to that side of the train tracks, and conversely to the east side of the pedestrian plaza.  One of the suggestions was to add lights to the top of the buildings along Wilsey.  The building owner has ordered lights and they would test them on one building and then they would continue to do the entire run of Wilsey and continue onto West Ridgewood Avenue.  Mayor Knudsen stated that if the Village Council is in favor of suspending ordinances that would be required in order to keep those lights there.  

 

Mayor Knudsen referred to the Village Code Chapters, and added that the Planning Board took a look at this last night and determined that it was a positive impact and something worthwhile looking at and allowing to happen.  She asked if the Village Council was willing to do a resolution next week, and in the interim if they do the lights tomorrow night as a test run, they would allow them to leave those up until the resolution has passed.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if it was a string of lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they are string lights that are going to be a warm yellow light to give a glow over on Wilsey.  There is some signage that would appear as you are walking into the tunnel encouraging folks to visit the West side and way finder stickers to put on the ground.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she has those lights on her back deck and they are very nice.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she didn’t circulate the letter from the Planning Board, but she read the contents of the letter to the Village Council.  It is really a review and trying to give some attention to that other side of the railroad tracks.  If everybody is agreeable and they are going to do that, then they would allow the building owner to keep the lights up.  Over Zoom Councilwoman Reynolds showed some documents from the Planning Board to the Village Council.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if each property owner does their own.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they are going to work together to accomplish this so it all appears as a seamless effort.  Councilwoman Perron stated that she had been going to the Subcommittee meetings twice a week for this, and basically it is two landlords for all of those shops and one of them also owns the property where Smoked is located, which would look great with some lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that the Planning Board recommended expanding on this along Garber and West Ridgewood Avenue, as well.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that the important piece is that they are open and agreeable to suspending that ordinance temporarily and then looking at whether or not down the road there is an ability to rethink that ordinance entirely.  The Village Council was agreeable to that.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they would have a list of the other ordinances compiled by next week.  They did a pilot of expanding Steel Wheel and S. Egidio into the parking spaces temporarily to allow them to participate in the pedestrian plaza, but the thought was to allow them to leave it there as the restaurants increase to 25% capacity.  Felina and Sook also wanted to give it a shot, so two of them have decided they would do a pilot program and it has been successful.  This piece is very temporary and they have worked with the Police Department.

 

5. Operations

 

1. Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Cooperative Purchasing Program

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there was a memo from Mr. Rooney stating that they are always trying to reduce costs and provide services to our residents.  The Village has used various Cooperative Purchasing Programs and currently participates in 14 of them.  This allows them to find cost savings and expand on valuable resources.  Omnia Partners Public Sector is another cooperative purchasing program that will add numerous vendors to our database.  It is free for the Village to join.

 

2. Authorize Online Auction Service – GovDeals – Sourcewell

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has participated in the Cooperative Purchasing through Sourcewell.  GovDeals, Inc. is an authorized auction site through Sourcewell, and the Village has used them in the past.  Municibid was used over the past year as it is now under State Contract.  GovDeals is nationwide and has greater traffic, and there is also more customer service with them.  This is a resolution to authorize the use of GovDeals to auction surplus property when MuniciBid is ineffective, and it is also an additional resource to dispose of Village property so that they get the greatest return for the taxpayer.

 

7. REVIEW OF SEPTEMBER 13, 2020 PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

 

Proclamations: Fire Prevention Week; Gold Star Mother’s Day; National Breast Cancer Awareness Week; and Proclaim September National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction for Ridgewood Water.

 

There are no ordinances for public hearing for Ridgewood Water.

 

Resolutions for Ridgewood Water include: Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities; Title 59 Approval – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Contract – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment and Associated Projects; and Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction.

 

Ordinances for public hearing include: Amend Chapter 265 – Vehicles and Traffic – Placement of Stop Signs in Hudson Street Garage; Amend Village Code to Allow Additional Village Employees to Perform General Code Enforcement Duties; Amend Chapter 190 – Land Use and Development – Allow Accessible Ramps on One-Family and Two-Family Dwellings to be Reviewed by the Site Plan Exemption Committee; Bond Ordinance – General Capital; Bond Ordinance – Supplemental Appropriation for Front End Loader; and Bond Ordinance – Circle Avenue Drainage Improvements.

 

Resolutions include: Award Contract – Purchase of 2021 Ford Escape – Police Department; Award Contract – Additional Award – Disposal of Yard Waste; Award Contract – Hudson Street Lots – Additional Environmental Technical Support for Project Closeout; Award Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System; Title 59 Approval – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Contract Under Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Program – On-line Auction Services for Surplus Property; Authorize Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool Bathrooms; Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Public Sector Cooperative Purchasing Program; and Declare Property Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle.

 

8. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Boyd Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that he is eagerly awaiting the reopening of Graydon Pool this coming Saturday, as it was closed Monday through Friday because of the unavailability of lifeguards.  He thanked the Village Council for pushing to have the pool open this year as it has been absolutely delightful.  There were many communities that did not open their pools this year and he is thankful that the Council made the decision to open ours.  The water quality has been the best he has ever seen, and he wanted to thank the staff that are taking care of the pool.  As far as he knows, there have been no virus outbreaks at the pool and it has been an absolute delight to be over there.

 

Mr. Loving stated that Mr. Rooney talked about revenue which brings to mind that they have the Airbrook space that was vacated and he has heard no discussion during open meetings about what is being done to fill that space as it was a significant revenue loss when that space was vacated.  There was also some talk about parking, and his concerns were they ever going to get back to a demand that meets or exceeds what happened pre-pandemic or do they have too much parking inventory now.  Obviously, they have to wait and see, but there is a possibility that exists that people will not be commuting to the City as much and there may not be a need for all this parking.  Mr. Loving stated that he hopes an evaluation takes place at some point regarding the parking.  Possibly they have too much parking and can turn some of this into a ratable in some fashion.

 

Mr. Loving stated that effective this past week, the Board of Education returned to in-person meetings.  They are not allowing the public to attend the meetings, but they are meeting in-person and taking comments via phone and email.  As they have seen this evening, there are still some glitches with respect to Zoom, and he hopes that the Village Council considers at least them meeting in person someplace so that we are done with those technical glitches.  Schools are back in session, and he thinks it is time that the Village Council starts to meet again in-person.

 

Matthew Lindenberg, 165 Claremont Road, stated that on behalf of the entire One Village One Vote committee of petitioners he wanted to thank their supporters throughout the Village.  They are thrilled that the question of consolidating Ridgewood’s Village Council and Board of Education elections to November will be put to the voters on this Novembers ballot.  They are committed to spending the next two months until election day continuing to educate the community on the benefits, especially the historically significantly higher voter turnout in November.  They believe this ensures better representation on all Board of Education matters and Village Council matters, including the budgeting processes, as well as the ability to save tens of thousands of dollars or more per year.  They know and respect the fact that some members of the community disagree with them and they are happy to continue to engage in fact based discussions on this issue.  He added that it is important to share the facts and the data behind their efforts.  In an effort to do so, they have shared all of their data and sources on their webpage onevillageonevote.com.  Mr. Lindenberg stated that they encourage everyone in the community to vote yes on this important ballot question when they vote this Fall and join them in helping to make this progress.

 

Laurie Weber, 235 South Irving Street, stated that putting a question on the ballot that seeks to remove a voting right on the school budget requires five times the signatures that were stated on the petitions circulated by the One Vote campaign.  She added that every allegation made on the One Vote website, including the ones that Mr. Lindenberg cited in his comments can be factually disputed.  Ridgewood statistics support that our local elections have enjoyed a larger turnout in the Spring than the Board of Education enjoyed in November.  She stated that the school safety issues, and other issues can all be addressed.  What disturbs her about the way that this process has proceeded is that now they are trying to put this directly on the ballot, completely bypassing the opportunity for a public hearing where the Village Council gets to have a reading of this and the community gets to have a vigorous and thorough discussion of this.

 

Ms. Weber stated that this attempt by the One Vote campaign to bypass the laws that exist to protect voter rights, to propagate misinformation, and now to bypass the entire public participation process and move this to a vote is beyond offensive.  She would sincerely hope that the Village Council and the Village Attorney stand up for the rights of the entire community of voters here and not just for five of them who have managed to convince 500 of promises they will not be able to keep.  

 

Lauren Riker, 224 South Irving Street, stated that she would like to echo what Ms. Weber just said and the right to have the vote on the school budget when it’s a meaningful time is important to her and her family.  She has a son that is in the Ridgewood School System and she thinks it is important that she retains that right and she does not think it’s fair that the proper process is being bypassed by going to a court and not having a public hearing regarding this.

 

Deborah Steinbaum, 295 Grandview Circle, stated that she is one of the One Village One Vote petitioners and she appreciates all the spirited discussion about the ballot initiative.  She thinks it is really important for us to sit down with a deep breath and realize the best way for people to have their say in the matter is to put it to a vote.  It is something that people do care deeply about and truly what better way for people to have a full community airing of this topic than by letting them go to the ballot.  November will be the perfect time for us to address this and she appreciates that everyone cares deeply about our community, as does she, and she thinks this is going to be a really productive discussion among people who care about Ridgewood.  She stated that they would encourage everyone to come out and they are more than willing to discuss the facts that they have put on the website, as there is nothing that is alternative or questionable about them, and interpretation may differ.  She thinks it is important that they come to a community determination of them.  

 

Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she thinks at this point everyone should be on the same page that no matter what your vote would be in November there is a public question.  They spent the past 18 months engaging with the community, Board of Education, and the Village Council.  Every time they issue a fact, all of their facts are submitted directly to the Village Council and the Board of Education.  If there is any discrepancy or something that they are promoting, they do feel that including the Village Council as public officials with their messaging would be the perfect opportunity, if there was a mistake, the Council would let them know.  Ms. Winograd stated that there is no doubt there is a question and the best place for a question such as this is on the ballot.  She added that it is important for the people who are listening to this, they are a group of citizens who motivated to do this, but the Village Council could have placed the question there.  Since they have been writing about this for almost two years, and several of their requests have gone unresponded to, they are motivated to do this.

 

Ms. Winograd stated that she thinks at this point, in time to move forward, they should all acknowledge there is going to be a question and how people want to answer it is up to them.  People can vote their will and their way, and all of us should want that.  She said that if they got something wrong, the Village Council gets emails from them every time they issue a fact, and they would welcome an email if they got something wrong, rather than comments from the dais that something is wrong.  They could have made a mistake some way but they feel that their facts are cited, thorough, and vetted.  There is a question and there is no better place to answer it than on the ballot this November.

 

Linda Tarzian, 576 Highland Avenue, stated that she wanted to make a comment in support of maintaining the citizen taxpayer right to vote and the need to adhere to all appropriate protocols and not eliminate them in the face of pressure tactics to remove our civic duty to vote.  She encouraged the Board of Education to disregard this nefarious motion to remove the right to vote and to take seriously the responsibility to us as taxpayers.

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that she is calling to say that they have been doing great work in the downtown to help support the businesses and she is very happy that they are moving to the west side and to the businesses over there.  She has concerns about the east end of Ridgewood Avenue as they seem to be quite neglected and she hopes that they will do something in that important area, as well.

 

Ms. Loving stated that regarding One Village One Vote, she is completely opposed to it because it would take away their legal right to vote on the Board of Education budget.  She added that it is really outrageous, possibly hilarious, that they are proposing that we have a vote on denying us our right to vote.  Her opinion on this initiative is not really the main concern here; this group has put forth false information during their petition drive and their lawyer gave false information to the Judge.  This is disgraceful and she sincerely hopes that the Judge’s decision is going to be challenged by our government. 

 

There were no additional comments from the public, and Mayor Knudsen closed public comment.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she has expressed her concerns repeatedly that the information shared relative to the cost savings by election consolidation the numbers are inaccurate and she will certainly be happy to detail those next week.  She added that a few weeks ago they were told $100,000 and now its tens of thousands of dollars, she thinks it is important to note the savings to the Village taxpayers by maintain those elections is far greater than $100,000 and she will outline that significant savings to not consolidating next week during the Public Meeting.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she looked at the figures that One Village One Vote has put forward and it comports with what she has seen in our budget figures so far so she hasn’t seen so far that their facts are inaccurate.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she will detail the figures next week, but reiterated that it is a significant savings to Ridgewood taxpayers to maintain the Spring vote on the budget, a long term tax savings to the taxpayers.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked Mr. Rogers about at the beginning of the meeting how he talked about the litigation and is there an opportunity for the Village Council to get a special meeting so that they can talk maybe before the next meeting.  Mr. Rogers stated that the Village Council could schedule a special meeting according to the Open Public Meetings Act and he doesn’t know when they could fit that it.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that because all of this is going on and they have not been able to meet as a Council to even discuss it, she would feel more comfortable if the five Village Councilmembers could get together to discuss it.  Mr. Rogers stated that unfortunately it can’t be done without the Open Public Meetings Act being satisfied, and it would be difficult with the next meeting a week away and the holiday weekend.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if they could set it for Tuesday.  Mr. Rogers stated that they could talk to Ms. Mailander to see if that could be done.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it was a great point and they would see what they could do with that.

 

9. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilwoman Walsh, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 9:31 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                                      Susan Knudsen                         

                                                                                                              Mayor                                    

 

 

 

 

______________________________

              Donna M. Jackson

           Deputy Village Clerk

 A REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 7:36 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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 to honor the brave men and women serving in our nation’s armed forces, all our first responders, and especially for our Ridgewood Police Officers.

 

2. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

There were no comments from the public.

 

3. VILLAGE CLERK – CERTIFICATION OF PETITION – ONE VILLAGE, ONE VOTE

 

Mr. Rogers stated that it has always been custom and practice for the Village Council not to comment on pending litigation.  A decision came down after 5:00 P.M. today, and he needs time to review it and will talk with all of the members of the Village Council tomorrow with regard to the next steps.

 

4. MANAGERS REPORT

 

Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey – Ms. Mailander stated that Welcome Back to Ridgewood includes outdoor dining and free music all day Saturday and Sunday on East Ridgewood Avenue from Broad Street to Walnut Street and the side streets of Oak, Chestnut, and Prospect Streets.  Everything is closed to cars in that area and it creates a pedestrian mall.

 

Hudson Street Garage – Ms. Mailander stated that the first floor is open for business, it is $1.00 per hour to be paid at the kiosk at the Hudson Street entrance and is a three hour limit.

 

Labor Day – On Monday, September 7^th, Village Offices will be closed.  Recycling and Sanitation pickup services are suspended and the Recycling Center will also be closed.

 

September 11^th Memorial – To honor the memory of the 12 Ridgewood residents lost on 9/11, portraits of each resident are displayed in the Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium for the month of September.  The Library is open seven days a week and offers a place for reflection.

 

                                                                                                                                      

U.S. Census – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has increased to an 83% response rate, and she asked that residents please fill out the census online or by phone no later than September 30^th as we have our goal of a 100% response rate.

 

Rear Yard Garbage Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that rear yard garbage pickup resumed in July, so residents no longer need to bring their garbage cans to the street.

 

Election – Ms. Mailander stated that election season is upon us and election signs or any other signs may not be placed in the planting strip between the curb and sidewalk or on any public property.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the General Election will be primarily vote by mail.  Voters may mail back their ballots to the County via U.S. Mail or they may put it in the ballot box outside of the Village Hall lobby, or may bring it to their polling location.  You can also vote by provisional paper ballot at the polling location.  There will be ADA voting machines available in the polling locations, but they would only be used for those unable to mark the mail in ballots.

 

Resident Volunteers – Ms. Mailander stated that the Village Council is seeking resident volunteers to serve on Boards and Committees.  These include the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Central Business District Advisory Committee, Ridgewood Community Center Advisory Board, Ridgewood Arts Council, Shade Tree Commission, Green Ridgewood, Ridgewood Green Team, and the Open Space Committee.  The deadline to apply is September 8^th.  Please submit the Citizen Volunteer Leadership Form, which is found on the website under Forms, page 2, it says Village Clerk, and then you will see the form.  Also, submit a resume or biography of your accomplishments or what you have done in life and a cover letter indicating which Boards you would like to serve on. 

 

Cancellations of Events – Ms. Mailander stated that due to COVID-19, there are various cancellations of events.  The Chamber of Commerce Car Show, scheduled for 9/11, has been canceled, as has Coffee with the Council which was scheduled for 9/12, and then the Parks and Recreation Street Fair was also canceled which was scheduled for 9/20.

 

Chamber of Commerce – Ms. Mailander stated that the Chamber of Commerce will host their Sidewalk Sale Days inside and out on October 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd.

 

Household Hazardous Waste Collection – Ms. Mailander stated that the Bergen County Utilities Authority will be holding their Household Hazardous Waste collection on September 12^th from 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. at Bergen County Campgaw Reservation in Mahwah. 

 

Upcoming Village Council Meetings – Ms. Mailander stated that the upcoming Village Council meetings are all televised live and are on Zoom.  September 9^th is the Village Council Public Meeting, September 23^rd is the Village Council Public Work Session, and October 7^th is a Village Council Public Work Session.

 

Social Security Administration – Ms. Mailander stated that on behalf of the Social Security Administration, during the Coronavirus Pandemic, they continue to provide help to anyone who may need social security help.  You can apply for disability, Medicare benefits, check the status of an application or appeal, request a replacement social security card, print a benefit verification letter, and much more services are provided online.  They know that many people want to converse with someone, so they do have phone help.  There will be information about this posted on the Village website

 

5. COUNCIL REPORTS

 

Chamber of Commerce – Councilwoman Perron stated that the next meeting is September 9^th, although work has been getting done over the past month, especially with respect to the pedestrian mall.

 

Green Ridgewood – Councilwoman Perron stated that Green Ridgewood will meet on Thursday at 7:00 P.M. and it is open to the public.

 

Open Space – Councilwoman Perron stated that Open Space met on August 20^th and Rob Kearny who is an employee of the Ridgewood Water Utility presented.  He is going for a Graduate Degree in GIS Mapping, so it was really interesting how you map natural resources.  He is urging people to help him draft an Environmental Resources Inventory for the town, and she signed up to do the Dunham Trail.  They are looking for more volunteers to help with that endeavor, which overlaps with his membership in Green Ridgewood.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if people interested in participating in the Inventory could email Councilwoman Perron directly.  Councilwoman Perron stated yes, adding that her email is pperron@ridgewoodnj.net.

 

Central Business District Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Perron stated that the CBD Advisory Committee is really trying to help the downtown businesses thrive during this difficult time.  The Pilot Program for “Grab and Go” parking spaces is up and running and they are all really excited about that.  There are ten spaces throughout town on the North/South streets.  Those are free, 15-minute parking spaces for people who are either picking up contactless delivery from a restaurant or they can run a very quick errand in that time.  She encouraged people to look for those signs and use those spots.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that they are also considering a Visitors Bureau for the Central Business District in the form of a website, so that people from Franklin Lakes or Glen Rock can see what is going on in Ridgewood.  They are continuing to work on handouts and literature for potential tenants in the multi-family housing complexes, to again provide coupons to businesses downtown, invite them to look around the Village and see what’s attractive, and if they want to move here.

 

Planning Board – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the Planning Board met last night and reviewed the final draft of the first section of the Master Plan – Our Village, Our Future.  It was a huge step in the right direction for the Master Plan.  There was going to be a Hopper Ridge Condominium Association application but it was moved to October 6^th.

 

Citizen Safety Advisory Committee – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that they will be meeting on September 17^th, and they hopefully will be meeting in person but that will be announced in the future.

 

Welcome Back, Ridgewood – Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she hoped everyone was able to take advantage of the concerts on Saturdays and Sundays at Van Neste downtown as they have been fabulous.

 

Green Team – Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that tomorrow at 7:30 P.M. the Green Team will meet via Zoom.

 

Kasschau Shell – Mayor Knudsen pointed out that the Kasschau Shell ended their season and she gave a great shoutout to the Kasschau Shell Committee, Parks and Recreation, and especially Gail McCarthy for her leadership this fabulous season and all of that hard work, energy, and effort are greatly appreciated.

 

6. DISCUSSION

             

1. Ridgewood Water

 

1. Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is for two of the facilities.  Three quotes were obtained.  This is the third year of continuing these improvements.  There were eleven roof structures improved in 2018, eight were improved in 2019, and two are scheduled for this year.  American Construction Chimney and Roofing Specialist of Cliffside Park had the lowest quote of $25,800.  So, the recommendation is to award it to this company and the funding is established in the Water Utility capital budget.

 

2. Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment & Associated Projects

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in June of this year, Mott MacDonald, our consultant, completed the PFAS Planning and Treatment Study.  The Study mapped out a master plan of alternatives to reconfigure some of the treatment systems to eliminate concentrations of PFAS.  The primary focus of the plan is to centralize treatment for efficiency and to take advantage of sites that have more space for the required treatment equipment.  Ridgewood Water would like to proceed with the preliminary design and four of the thirteen proposed treatment plans.  So far, treatment has been installed and is operational at the Carr Treatment Plant.  Design evaluations are underway for the Marr Ravine, Irving/Linwood, Upgraded Carr, and Twinney Plants.  All of these plants serve the largest pressure zone for the system which is a low pressure zone.  The focus for the next preliminary design is to design treatment plants in other operational zones, such as the intermediate and high zones, and one other geographical location in the low.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that in addition to the preliminary design services, Mott MacDonald with assist with the treatment plant at Carr, evaluate all of the raw water pipeline that are required for the new system buildout, and participate in the rate making analysis with our hired rate professional and attend meetings with NJDEP to lay out the compliance schedule for meeting the new PFAS regulations.  Mott MacDonald was previously Hatch Mott MacDonald, and so they have been involved with numerous projects with Ridgewood Water for decades.  Based on their past project experience and working knowledge of our system, they will be best suited to perform this professional engineering service.  The recommendation is to award it to Mott MacDonald of Iselin in an amount not to exceed $277,600.  Funding for this is in the Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if these were the types of costs that the Village is asking for reimbursement in the pending litigation.  Mr. Calbi stated that yes, they were.

 

3. Award Contract – Replacement of Water Mains

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is on Jefferson Street and Salem Lane.  Bids were received yesterday, and there were 22 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 15 bids.  They range from a low of $814,290 to a high of $1,821,750.  The low bid received was from On Cue Technologies of Oradell.  They submitted a complete bid package and all necessary information, and they have also successfully worked for the Village in the past.  This will be funded from the Ridgewood Water capital budget.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked with a spread of $1 million between bids, if are we missing something, and could they come back with change orders later on in the project.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is a huge spread, and the low bidder did put a number of items where they bid a minimal amount of $1, which are the items that were in the bid that they may or may not use.  They are taking a gamble that they will not use them.  Mr. Rutishauser knows that the contractor is very eager to start work, and the high bidder has plenty of work and put out a what is it worth to me number, which is why they were so high.  He added that the second bidder was around $830,000.

 

4. Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates

 

Ms. Mailander stated that on August 28^th, proposals for the Professional Services for the Risk and Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan Updates were received.  Mott MacDonald of Iselin provided the lowest quote in an amount not to exceed $37,750.  Funding for this project is in the Ridgewood Water operating budget.  This is required under the America’s Water Infrastructure Act.  They have done the Emergency Response Plan and it has been updated periodically and it is time to update it again.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that this really gives her reassurance to see that Ridgewood Water is getting this design for risk assessment and an emergency response plan.  She had been wondering about this with regard to climate change.  She didn’t realize that the law had changed in 2018 such that the Water Utility had security measures for physical breaches and for cyber-attacks.  She was wondering what is it with resiliency to climate change and this answers her question.  She is glad this planning is happening.

 

2. Parking

 

1. Discuss Parking on Colonial Road

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that there has been ongoing issues on Colonial Road, specific to one resident having some difficulties backing out of her driveway, and because of the narrowness of the road and configuration of the limited time parking on the South side of the road versus the no parking on the North side of the road.  This particular resident has a driveway that is on a steep hill and coupled with the narrow roadway, when she backs out if someone is parked immediately on the opposite side of her driveway, she often runs into problems.  When Mayor Knudsen visited the location and had the opportunity to speak to the resident, it occurred to her that a number of years ago she recalled another resident who backed out of her driveway similarly situated and hit a tree.  When they look at the homes along the north side of the road, about six of them are high on the hill.  Their driveways are rather narrow and when they are backing out, it is difficult to maneuver.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that upon visiting the site, it occurred to her that one option might be to simply flip the no parking on the north side to the south side and the timed parking from the south side to the north side.  She added that it might be prudent to have the Police Department look into that and have Mr. Rutishauser possibly send letters to all of the residents to see if that is a solution they would be willing to work with.  It would be at least something that begins some work towards a solution there.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that if this was the same road she was thinking about, several years ago there was a fatality with a car backing out.  Mayor Knudsen stated that was a different road.  She added that there are six homes on a hill and they have narrow driveways with concrete retaining walls which make it uncomfortable to back up their driveways and pull out straight.  Flipping the parked cars along the street in that section might offer a simple solution to their struggles, and in particular this one resident.

 

Ms. Mailander stated that she didn’t know if Mr. Rutishauser or Sergeant Chuck had looked at this location before.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he has looked at the location and has spoken to a number of residents in confidence, and they are not particularly fond of this one resident who is making this request.  They have had some vandalism of Village property on that street, consisting of someone painting their own curb yellow which required the Village to spend a considerable amount of effort with the Traffic, Signal, and Water Pollution crew to scrub the yellow paint off the curb.  There is a Police report with a certain resident threating to relocate No Parking signs for her convenience, so the history on this is kind of murky.  Mayor Knudsen stated to that point, she and Mr. Rutishauser have had this conversation, and it really speaks to whether or not the other folks would at least be receptive to just making this flip if it helps and resolves a neighborhood issue.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they could send out the survey letters, and he would talk to Ms. Mailander and Ms. Jackson about preserving the confidentiality of the replies with regards to OPRA.

 

Sergeant Chuck stated that the Police Department would definitely suggest that they do the entire roadway as it would get too confusing to have many different sections.  Ms. Mailander agreed.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks CSAC hasn’t seen this yet and the resident that sent everyone an email, emailed back and forth, and the recommendation that Councilwoman Walsh had given her was to first meet with CSAC and talk about the problem there.  In the past, Colonial Road came up when Stevens Field was finished and that’s why there was this change in parking back then because there were so many people parking on Colonial Road because of Stevens Field.  She added that she thinks they have to bring that into the conversation because she knows that was one of the challenges a few years back.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that Stevens Field has been out of service for at least the last month and a half, so that has reduced the parking demand.  When he has been on the street, there are cars parked there.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that her thought is that she doesn’t necessarily think it’s a CSAC issue, per say, because it is just one of those things that it doesn’t impact the decisions that were made as a result of Stevens Field.  It maintains the same parking configurations and is merely flipping it.  It is likely because of COVID-19 and people having cars home may be part of the issue, but there was one accident that had some significant damage.  They should first establish if the residents are open to this and if there is going to be some pushback, then at least there is a starting point.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she thinks the benefit of CSAC is that you bring the residents together and they can have a conversation, as opposed to here are the results of a survey take it or leave it.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that the survey would take into consideration everyone on the block, and she is sure that not everybody is going to come to a CSAC meeting or speak, and they may only be the three or four people that want it the most or don’t want it the most.  Mayor Knudsen suggested that maybe they send out the resident survey and ask them for an email address.  Then if there is a desire to have a conversation at least they have those email addresses and before any final decision is made, they can email everyone and invite them to the CSAC meeting and this would just be a preliminary step. 

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon asked if they could put the date for the next CSAC meeting in the survey letter they send out, so if somebody gets the letter they know this is a topic of discussion and if they are interested they could come to the next CSAC meeting.  Councilwoman Walsh and Mayor Knudsen agreed.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that it was September 17^th, but they don’t know where it is yet.  Ms. Mailander stated that they should know by next week.

 

3. Budget

 

1. Quarterly Financial Statements

 

Robert Rooney, Chief Financial Officer, stated that he provided the Village Council with revenue and expense reports through June 30^th for the Current Fund, Water Fund, and Parking Utility Fund.  Tax collection through three quarters are slightly above what they did last year, which is very promising.  On sheet one of the revenues, he put asterisks by those revenues that will be in jeopardy this year.  The significant ones are municipal court, the recreation fees and permits, and uniform construction code, because of COVID those will be challenged this year and hopefully they can come close to what they anticipate.  Some of the other challenges are the timing of billing.  Overall, the revenues of the General Fund are about 46% of what they anticipate which is good news under the circumstances.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on the appropriations side, some of the COVID expenses are recorded in the specific line items where they have been incurred, such as Signal, Building Maintenance, and then there is a catchall where they are holding expenses for COVID that have not hit these appropriations.  Those are the ones they are going to have to take a look at as they get closer to the end of the year to determine how they are going to fund those to move forward.  They have submitted requests to FEMA and to CARES for reimbursement for those expenses the Village has incurred related to COVID.  This would include overtime for the Police Department and any other Departments, so they are waiting to hear back on that.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked for those line items that aren’t timing, when would we be able to realize what the potential loss would be for that total dollar amount.  Mr. Rooney stated that probably by the end of September he would be in a better position to let them now if that is going to be in jeopardy.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that the Water Department has received 43% of their anticipated revenues, but Rich Calbi states in their conversations that July was a banner month.  There were a lot of billings because of the heat and the use of water.  We are past what he would call the hot part of the year where they have to be concerned about the purchase and usage of water.  Under appropriations for water, we have spent about 41% of what we have budgeted and they do have some capital outlay funds that are projects that are ongoing and haven’t kicked in full stream yet because of COVID.  He anticipates they are going to be ratcheting up by the end of the year.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that regarding Parking Utility Fund, they are at 31% as of June 30^th.  They have suspended parking meter enforcement, so that is down, in addition to interest on investments interest rates dropped drastically as a result of COVID.  Through August, parking meter revenue has been up roughly to about 33%.  The key is commuters going back to the city, businesses start to get back in action, so we are going to keep an eye on this one.  For appropriations, they are about 38% for what they budgeted and probably have about $100,000 that they can cancel by the end of the year for other expenses that they may not have a use, for so that will temper the problem.

 

Mr. Rooney stated that on Monday, the State passed a bill, A3971, which allows the municipalities and counties and authorities to issue short term or long term, five years to ten years, of debt to compensate for the shortage of revenues and any COVID expenses that they have incurred, after reimbursement from FEMA or CARES.  Local Government will be coming out probably by the end of next week with some guidance and regulations as to how to proceed with this.  This will assist in preventing deficits in these funds that will have to be raised in future years and levelling the cost of these out.  Under circumstances like this, you can issue a special emergency which is similar to what they do for the Master Plan which allows the cost to be spread over five years.  Under this bill you would be given one year free without any interest or appropriation to put in for next year and then it’s five years after that.  They are trying to help balance these shortfalls to make sure that this doesn’t impact taxes drastically next year.  Mr. Rooney stated that hopefully by the end of September they will have all the guidance they need and he will be able to present the Village Council with a plan with his recommendation as to how to move forward and they can mitigate these issues that they are faced with right now.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it looked like the Parking Utility was going to be in the deficit, but they could issue the bonds and then spread it out so they wouldn’t then have to cover the deficit as it has been done in the past through taxation.  Mr. Rooney stated that was correct, and under this scenario this bill would also apply to any utility.  So, if they anticipate a shortfall in these revenues which are COVID related, they will be able to issue financing to cover that so it will not impact the tax rate next year.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the numbers meant they were anticipating an $800,000 loss or was her math off.  Councilwoman Walsh stated on the Parking Utility Fund, they should get at least 70% of the revenues.  Mr. Rooney stated no, up through August they are about 33% of what they anticipate for parking.  As far as any deficit, that remains to be seen as to what he is going to get in through September.  Right now, he is looking at a potential deficit.  There has to be an increase in volume to be able to move forward, but there is a vehicle that they can put in place moving forward so that it will not impact the General Fund.

 

2. Declare Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle – Signal Division

 

Ms. Mailander stated that this is a 2007 Nissan Xterra that was seized by the Police Department.  They have obtained a New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Certificate of Title for this abandoned vehicle.  The request is to declare it surplus so that it can be auctioned.  Councilwoman Perron asked when the vehicle was seized.  Sergeant Chuck stated 2014.  Councilwoman Perron asked when it was forfeited.  Sergeant Chuck stated about two months ago, it was a long court process and after that the defendant passed away.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what the value of it was.  Sergeant Chuck stated almost nothing, and actually there is some sort of trigger on it so they can’t start the car.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it is probably in really bad shape from sitting all these years.  Sergeant Chuck stated that it probably needs another coat of paint and definitely some vacuuming inside.

 

3. Award Contract – 2021 Ford Escape – Parking Enforcement

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they have had only one vehicle for the PEO’s for over a year, and sometimes there are multiple tasks that they have to accomplish and it requires more than one car.  There are also days when the one car that they have is in service and therefor it is out of service.  They are also trying to move towards the License Plate Reader system of enforcement, so therefore they will need a second car for that, as well.  This would be from Mahwah Ford which was the lowest bidder of three quotes at a cost of $29,000.  They are also requesting to add the same warning lights as the current car which is $2,500 from Regional Communications in Paramus, and striping from American Graphics in Fair Lawn which costs $2,500.  There are already standing contracts for Regional Communications and American Graphics, so the total cost of the vehicle would be $34,000.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked why is it that they never look at the more utility type vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they did a trial with an electric model last summer.  They ran into two problems.  When it rained they weren’t getting much rain protection and the equipment that the PEO’s were using wasn’t able to recharge in that vehicle.  Also, a couple of their responsibilities took them over the highway and roadways that are over 25 mph.  The Cushman’s are low speed vehicles only, so there are a few places where they can’t travel with that vehicle.  Mayor Knudsen asked what the cost is for one of those vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the Cushman was about $18,000.  They also looked at two door Smart cars, which are more expensive.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked about other electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they didn’t look that deeply into it as the fuel economy on this Escape is pretty good.  They hybrids are normally a little more expensive to purchase, and the problem they ran into this year is that most State contracts expired, so they are pretty much just buying what is out there and its driving the costs up a little more.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked about the license plate reader, and if there was a specific setup for it, or could they use it in a sedan as opposed to an SUV.  Sergeant Chuck stated that the difference between the sedan and the SUV was $1,100, and then they lose 4 wheel drive capabilities.  Also, the set up takes a little more space inside the car and the sedan is a little tighter, so it may have been more uncomfortable for the driver.  They don’t want to install a $20,000 license plate system in a car that they would be getting maybe 6 months out of because then they would have to take all that equipment out and put it in another reused car.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked since they were in a deficit with the Parking Utility was it prudent to be buying a new vehicle or should they wait until the Spring.  Mr. Rooney stated that these funds have already been passed in capital through last year’s capital budget so they have been funded already.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if the license plate reader was coming soon, and also if it goes in the front seat or the back seat.  Sergeant Chuck stated that they have it in place already, and it just started last week.  The cameras are outside the car, with two cameras on the roof and two on the back of the car.  The computer system that runs the cameras, one part is in the trunk and then the part that the operator uses is attached to the car, half in the passenger seat.

 

4. Award Contracts – Tree Plantings in Area D and Various Locations

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there were approximately 12 plan holders eligible to bid and they received 7.  There were 3 bidders that each presented the lowest price for specific trees and the general instructions indicated that they could make partial awards based on the bid results.  Therefore, they are recommending that portions of the tree planting in form of proposal solicitations be awarded to three lowest bidders, described as the lowest bid for those particular trees.  Faircut Services LLC of Little Falls, will supply 44 Yellow Wood and 40 Saw Tooth Oak, for a total of $43,832.  Downes Tree Service of Hawthorne, will supply 33 Persian Iron Wood, 24 Sugar Maple, and 23 Trident Maple, for a total of $42,320. Clarke Moynihan Landscaping and Construction LLC of Andover, will supply 13 Japanese Tree, Lilac, Maple Amoricaya, and Swamp Tooth Oak, for a total of $23,570.  The grand total of the award is $109,722 for 218 trees to be planted in the Village.  Funding for this work is in a capital ordinance.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if all of those trees are native.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they were all trees that were recommended for the Village.  Declan Madden, the Village Arborist was intimately involved in the selecting species that they put into the bid documents.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked about the species, because she looked up a couple of them and she doesn’t know for sure but it looks like some of the branches are going to be low and that would obviously be a problem.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that there were two type of species they were looking at.  They were looking for trees that are suitable for under utility wire locations, and trees for locations that don’t have any utility wires that would compromise them as they grow.  Low growing trees would go under areas with utility wires.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated that if they are under utility wires, they are going to be in areas where trucks are driving.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that they are trying to talk to people to plant the trees not between the curb and the sidewalk in the strip, but behind the sidewalk on the property to remove them further from the travel lane where their growth could be impeded.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if they could tell people where the trees need to be planted, or only suggest.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department works with the people both on the species and where it gets planted.  They also have to look at a mark out as it is ill advised to plant a tree right on top of somebody’s sanitary sewer, water service, or gas service because they may be struck during the digging.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked if this was an effort to move planting the trees out of the grass strip, and do they have the ability to make that as a requirement.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the Parks Department talks to the residents and tries to convince them to plant on the inside of the sidewalk away from the parkway strip, particularly if it is very narrow.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked what they would do if someone said they didn’t want it on their part of the grass.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was up to the arborist, if he and the homeowner cant come to an agreement then maybe they will move onto the next location.  This is in Area D, and if they get all these trees planted great, but if not everybody wants a tree they will move onto other sections.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that he would like to make a request that the arborist’s time is freed up while this planting is going on because they have had issues in the past where people were improperly planting trees or just tossing them in the ground.  Seeing that this is an investment with costs of $500 per tree, he would hate to see these dying because they weren’t being planted correctly.  He would like to see the arborist out there supervising these plantings.  Councilwoman Perron asked what the maintenance is on these trees.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that he thinks the Parks Department has a flyer that they give the homeowners that discusses the maintenance and care of the trees.  Councilwoman Perron asked if the homeowners are given gator bags and stakes to help the trees stay straight up.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the trees are staked and he believes they are supplied with a gator bag; however, the resident is asked to fill the gator bag.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds asked since there is only watering two days a week, is there any kind of exception if they are getting a tree and allowed to water more often.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the gator bags are there and can be filled with a hose any time and that is not a restricted item under the stage two requirements.  For an exemption to the irrigation restrictions, they would have to contact the Water Company and present their case.  Councilwoman Reynolds asked if these plantings were for this Fall.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is intended for this Fall.  That’s why if the Council is in favor of what is presented, and it is approved next week, he will start issuing the contracts right away.  Each of the three vendors will be lined up to get their trees ordered and then get ready to plant them once they’re in a dormant state.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if the Village ordinance states that if you have a new tree planted you are permitted to water it.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that you are always permitted to hand water.  Councilwoman Reynolds stated not between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 6:00 P.M., which a lot of people don’t know.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that they could pull a hose out to it and water for a half hour once a week and that should be enough.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that the watering instructions are on the flyer the resident will get when the tree is planted.  Councilwoman Perron asked that when this comes up next week, can they be reminded where Area D is.  Ms. Mailander stated that over the last three years they have completed Areas A, B, and C.

 

5. Award Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool

 

Ms. Mailander stated that Tri-Plex Industries of South Amboy successfully performed the renovation and upgrades of the restrooms at Graydon Pool.  Their workmanship was satisfactory and they asked Tri-Plex to provide a quote for a number of items that were not in the original bid documents.  The attached change order request has been approved by the architects Connolly and Hickey.  The Change Order Number 2 to Tri-Plex Industries would be for $5,372.88.  There is sufficient funding in a capital account.

 

Mayor Knudsen asked when they were figuring this original project, why stainless steel ADA complaint grab bars, or stainless steel tamper resistant toilet paper dispensers weren’t in the plan as it seems like those are things would have to put in by an architect to be up to code.  Ms. Mailander stated that she could go to Connolly and Hickey and ask why those things weren’t included.

 

6. Additional Award – Disposal of Ground Yard Waste

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they previously awarded a contract to B and B of West Milford for $17.00 per cubic yard for disposal of yard waste.  Nature’s Choice was $20.00 per cubic yard for disposal of grass clippings.  An additional award to B and B in the amount of $30,000 for yard waste removal is now needed.  The previous award was in the amount of $50,000.  The reason the additional yard waste was generated and needed to be disposed was due to Tropical Storm Isaias.  The good news is the expenditure for disposal of grass clippings is significantly less than what was anticipated.  The Village has spent approximately $4,950 out of a budget of $50,000, so they can actually put that money towards the disposal of yard waste.  The Village is prohibited from disposing of its yard waste materials in our leaf compost facility by our permit from the NJDEP.

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she was curious why the grass clippings was so far off, and suggested it was because of less rain this year.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it depends on the growing season how much the trucks collect off the street, and it depends what residents landscapers take with them or whether they leave it at the curb.  Sometimes the loads are not always pure grass and then B and B has accepted them, and they are trying to direct materials to B and B because there is a $3 difference.

 

7. Additional Award – Project Closeout Services – Hudson Street Garage

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has been dealing with the contaminated soils encountered during the excavations for footings for the garage and the structural soil for the Hudson Street tree planting with the assistance of First Environment.  First Environment has been providing Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) and material removal services for the garage.  They gave a proposal and an award was made in the amount of $13,600.  Since then, additional effort has been needed primarily with the structural soil that was installed for the shade trees along Hudson Street estimating that it will be another $11,800 to close out the environmental items for the garage site.  Mr. Rutishauser is recommending an award of $15,000 with this final closeout change order.  Money is available in that project construction account.

 

Councilwoman Perron asked if this was for documentation of the close out as this seems like a lot for that, or is it actual substantive changes.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that it is substantial.  One of the things they have to do is a deed notice because there is residual contamination in place, and the LSRP also has to satisfactorily demonstrate to the DEP that the Village has put a satisfactory barrier between any residual contaminated material and the public as an institutional barrier, and for the garage that is the concrete floor.  Councilwoman Perron asked if they were paying for the professional services of the LSRP to get the final sign off from NJDEP.  Mr. Rutishauser stated that was correct.

 

8. Award Cooperative Purchasing Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System – Fire Department

 

Ms. Mailander stated that they were going to discuss this previously but it was removed from the agenda because they didn’t have a funding source.  A general capital ordinance was introduced which included the compressor to fill the bottles, for $29,990 under NPP.GOV Contract, which is a cooperative purchasing contract.  They will pay for it from the Operating Budget until the Capital Account becomes available.  The award is to Air & Gas Technologies of Cliffwood Beach.

 

4. Policy

 

1. Discussion of Suspended CBD Ordinances

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that over the past couple of months, Welcome Back to Ridgewood, New Jersey has been meeting and during the course of that time a number of ordinances have been suspended to help facilitate the Pedestrian Plaza to accommodate on-street dining to add balloons and other such things.  She thought it was important to put together a list of all the ordinances that have been suspended as she thinks it should be handled through a resolution by the Village Council.  In the interim, one of the things that came up was the opportunity to bring the west side of West Ridgewood Avenue/Wilsey Square into this and encourage shoppers and diners to go to that side of the train tracks, and conversely to the east side of the pedestrian plaza.  One of the suggestions was to add lights to the top of the buildings along Wilsey.  The building owner has ordered lights and they would test them on one building and then they would continue to do the entire run of Wilsey and continue onto West Ridgewood Avenue.  Mayor Knudsen stated that if the Village Council is in favor of suspending ordinances that would be required in order to keep those lights there.  

 

Mayor Knudsen referred to the Village Code Chapters, and added that the Planning Board took a look at this last night and determined that it was a positive impact and something worthwhile looking at and allowing to happen.  She asked if the Village Council was willing to do a resolution next week, and in the interim if they do the lights tomorrow night as a test run, they would allow them to leave those up until the resolution has passed.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked if it was a string of lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they are string lights that are going to be a warm yellow light to give a glow over on Wilsey.  There is some signage that would appear as you are walking into the tunnel encouraging folks to visit the West side and way finder stickers to put on the ground.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she has those lights on her back deck and they are very nice.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she didn’t circulate the letter from the Planning Board, but she read the contents of the letter to the Village Council.  It is really a review and trying to give some attention to that other side of the railroad tracks.  If everybody is agreeable and they are going to do that, then they would allow the building owner to keep the lights up.  Over Zoom Councilwoman Reynolds showed some documents from the Planning Board to the Village Council.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if each property owner does their own.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she thinks they are going to work together to accomplish this so it all appears as a seamless effort.  Councilwoman Perron stated that she had been going to the Subcommittee meetings twice a week for this, and basically it is two landlords for all of those shops and one of them also owns the property where Smoked is located, which would look great with some lights.  Mayor Knudsen stated that the Planning Board recommended expanding on this along Garber and West Ridgewood Avenue, as well.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that the important piece is that they are open and agreeable to suspending that ordinance temporarily and then looking at whether or not down the road there is an ability to rethink that ordinance entirely.  The Village Council was agreeable to that.  Mayor Knudsen stated that they would have a list of the other ordinances compiled by next week.  They did a pilot of expanding Steel Wheel and S. Egidio into the parking spaces temporarily to allow them to participate in the pedestrian plaza, but the thought was to allow them to leave it there as the restaurants increase to 25% capacity.  Felina and Sook also wanted to give it a shot, so two of them have decided they would do a pilot program and it has been successful.  This piece is very temporary and they have worked with the Police Department.

 

5. Operations

 

1. Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Cooperative Purchasing Program

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there was a memo from Mr. Rooney stating that they are always trying to reduce costs and provide services to our residents.  The Village has used various Cooperative Purchasing Programs and currently participates in 14 of them.  This allows them to find cost savings and expand on valuable resources.  Omnia Partners Public Sector is another cooperative purchasing program that will add numerous vendors to our database.  It is free for the Village to join.

 

2. Authorize Online Auction Service – GovDeals – Sourcewell

 

Ms. Mailander stated that the Village has participated in the Cooperative Purchasing through Sourcewell.  GovDeals, Inc. is an authorized auction site through Sourcewell, and the Village has used them in the past.  Municibid was used over the past year as it is now under State Contract.  GovDeals is nationwide and has greater traffic, and there is also more customer service with them.  This is a resolution to authorize the use of GovDeals to auction surplus property when MuniciBid is ineffective, and it is also an additional resource to dispose of Village property so that they get the greatest return for the taxpayer.

 

7. REVIEW OF SEPTEMBER 13, 2020 PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

 

Proclamations: Fire Prevention Week; Gold Star Mother’s Day; National Breast Cancer Awareness Week; and Proclaim September National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction for Ridgewood Water.

 

There are no ordinances for public hearing for Ridgewood Water.

 

Resolutions for Ridgewood Water include: Award Contract – Roof Repairs to Various Ridgewood Water Facilities; Title 59 Approval – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Contract – Water Main Replacement – Jefferson Street and Salem Lane; Award Professional Services Contract – Preliminary Design Services for PFAS Treatment and Associated Projects; and Award Professional Services Contract – Risk Resilience Assessment and Emergency Response Plan.

 

There are no ordinances for introduction.

 

Ordinances for public hearing include: Amend Chapter 265 – Vehicles and Traffic – Placement of Stop Signs in Hudson Street Garage; Amend Village Code to Allow Additional Village Employees to Perform General Code Enforcement Duties; Amend Chapter 190 – Land Use and Development – Allow Accessible Ramps on One-Family and Two-Family Dwellings to be Reviewed by the Site Plan Exemption Committee; Bond Ordinance – General Capital; Bond Ordinance – Supplemental Appropriation for Front End Loader; and Bond Ordinance – Circle Avenue Drainage Improvements.

 

Resolutions include: Award Contract – Purchase of 2021 Ford Escape – Police Department; Award Contract – Additional Award – Disposal of Yard Waste; Award Contract – Hudson Street Lots – Additional Environmental Technical Support for Project Closeout; Award Contract – Compressor Breathing Air Filling System; Title 59 Approval – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Partial Contract – Tree Planting – Area D and Various Locations; Award Contract Under Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Program – On-line Auction Services for Surplus Property; Authorize Change Order – Renovation and Upgrades – Graydon Pool Bathrooms; Authorize Joining Omnia Partners Public Sector Cooperative Purchasing Program; and Declare Property Surplus – Abandoned Vehicle.

 

8. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Boyd Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that he is eagerly awaiting the reopening of Graydon Pool this coming Saturday, as it was closed Monday through Friday because of the unavailability of lifeguards.  He thanked the Village Council for pushing to have the pool open this year as it has been absolutely delightful.  There were many communities that did not open their pools this year and he is thankful that the Council made the decision to open ours.  The water quality has been the best he has ever seen, and he wanted to thank the staff that are taking care of the pool.  As far as he knows, there have been no virus outbreaks at the pool and it has been an absolute delight to be over there.

 

Mr. Loving stated that Mr. Rooney talked about revenue which brings to mind that they have the Airbrook space that was vacated and he has heard no discussion during open meetings about what is being done to fill that space as it was a significant revenue loss when that space was vacated.  There was also some talk about parking, and his concerns were they ever going to get back to a demand that meets or exceeds what happened pre-pandemic or do they have too much parking inventory now.  Obviously, they have to wait and see, but there is a possibility that exists that people will not be commuting to the City as much and there may not be a need for all this parking.  Mr. Loving stated that he hopes an evaluation takes place at some point regarding the parking.  Possibly they have too much parking and can turn some of this into a ratable in some fashion.

 

Mr. Loving stated that effective this past week, the Board of Education returned to in-person meetings.  They are not allowing the public to attend the meetings, but they are meeting in-person and taking comments via phone and email.  As they have seen this evening, there are still some glitches with respect to Zoom, and he hopes that the Village Council considers at least them meeting in person someplace so that we are done with those technical glitches.  Schools are back in session, and he thinks it is time that the Village Council starts to meet again in-person.

 

Matthew Lindenberg, 165 Claremont Road, stated that on behalf of the entire One Village One Vote committee of petitioners he wanted to thank their supporters throughout the Village.  They are thrilled that the question of consolidating Ridgewood’s Village Council and Board of Education elections to November will be put to the voters on this Novembers ballot.  They are committed to spending the next two months until election day continuing to educate the community on the benefits, especially the historically significantly higher voter turnout in November.  They believe this ensures better representation on all Board of Education matters and Village Council matters, including the budgeting processes, as well as the ability to save tens of thousands of dollars or more per year.  They know and respect the fact that some members of the community disagree with them and they are happy to continue to engage in fact based discussions on this issue.  He added that it is important to share the facts and the data behind their efforts.  In an effort to do so, they have shared all of their data and sources on their webpage onevillageonevote.com.  Mr. Lindenberg stated that they encourage everyone in the community to vote yes on this important ballot question when they vote this Fall and join them in helping to make this progress.

 

Laurie Weber, 235 South Irving Street, stated that putting a question on the ballot that seeks to remove a voting right on the school budget requires five times the signatures that were stated on the petitions circulated by the One Vote campaign.  She added that every allegation made on the One Vote website, including the ones that Mr. Lindenberg cited in his comments can be factually disputed.  Ridgewood statistics support that our local elections have enjoyed a larger turnout in the Spring than the Board of Education enjoyed in November.  She stated that the school safety issues, and other issues can all be addressed.  What disturbs her about the way that this process has proceeded is that now they are trying to put this directly on the ballot, completely bypassing the opportunity for a public hearing where the Village Council gets to have a reading of this and the community gets to have a vigorous and thorough discussion of this.

 

Ms. Weber stated that this attempt by the One Vote campaign to bypass the laws that exist to protect voter rights, to propagate misinformation, and now to bypass the entire public participation process and move this to a vote is beyond offensive.  She would sincerely hope that the Village Council and the Village Attorney stand up for the rights of the entire community of voters here and not just for five of them who have managed to convince 500 of promises they will not be able to keep.  

 

Lauren Riker, 224 South Irving Street, stated that she would like to echo what Ms. Weber just said and the right to have the vote on the school budget when it’s a meaningful time is important to her and her family.  She has a son that is in the Ridgewood School System and she thinks it is important that she retains that right and she does not think it’s fair that the proper process is being bypassed by going to a court and not having a public hearing regarding this.

 

Deborah Steinbaum, 295 Grandview Circle, stated that she is one of the One Village One Vote petitioners and she appreciates all the spirited discussion about the ballot initiative.  She thinks it is really important for us to sit down with a deep breath and realize the best way for people to have their say in the matter is to put it to a vote.  It is something that people do care deeply about and truly what better way for people to have a full community airing of this topic than by letting them go to the ballot.  November will be the perfect time for us to address this and she appreciates that everyone cares deeply about our community, as does she, and she thinks this is going to be a really productive discussion among people who care about Ridgewood.  She stated that they would encourage everyone to come out and they are more than willing to discuss the facts that they have put on the website, as there is nothing that is alternative or questionable about them, and interpretation may differ.  She thinks it is important that they come to a community determination of them.  

 

Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she thinks at this point everyone should be on the same page that no matter what your vote would be in November there is a public question.  They spent the past 18 months engaging with the community, Board of Education, and the Village Council.  Every time they issue a fact, all of their facts are submitted directly to the Village Council and the Board of Education.  If there is any discrepancy or something that they are promoting, they do feel that including the Village Council as public officials with their messaging would be the perfect opportunity, if there was a mistake, the Council would let them know.  Ms. Winograd stated that there is no doubt there is a question and the best place for a question such as this is on the ballot.  She added that it is important for the people who are listening to this, they are a group of citizens who motivated to do this, but the Village Council could have placed the question there.  Since they have been writing about this for almost two years, and several of their requests have gone unresponded to, they are motivated to do this.

 

Ms. Winograd stated that she thinks at this point, in time to move forward, they should all acknowledge there is going to be a question and how people want to answer it is up to them.  People can vote their will and their way, and all of us should want that.  She said that if they got something wrong, the Village Council gets emails from them every time they issue a fact, and they would welcome an email if they got something wrong, rather than comments from the dais that something is wrong.  They could have made a mistake some way but they feel that their facts are cited, thorough, and vetted.  There is a question and there is no better place to answer it than on the ballot this November.

 

Linda Tarzian, 576 Highland Avenue, stated that she wanted to make a comment in support of maintaining the citizen taxpayer right to vote and the need to adhere to all appropriate protocols and not eliminate them in the face of pressure tactics to remove our civic duty to vote.  She encouraged the Board of Education to disregard this nefarious motion to remove the right to vote and to take seriously the responsibility to us as taxpayers.

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that she is calling to say that they have been doing great work in the downtown to help support the businesses and she is very happy that they are moving to the west side and to the businesses over there.  She has concerns about the east end of Ridgewood Avenue as they seem to be quite neglected and she hopes that they will do something in that important area, as well.

 

Ms. Loving stated that regarding One Village One Vote, she is completely opposed to it because it would take away their legal right to vote on the Board of Education budget.  She added that it is really outrageous, possibly hilarious, that they are proposing that we have a vote on denying us our right to vote.  Her opinion on this initiative is not really the main concern here; this group has put forth false information during their petition drive and their lawyer gave false information to the Judge.  This is disgraceful and she sincerely hopes that the Judge’s decision is going to be challenged by our government. 

 

There were no additional comments from the public, and Mayor Knudsen closed public comment.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that she has expressed her concerns repeatedly that the information shared relative to the cost savings by election consolidation the numbers are inaccurate and she will certainly be happy to detail those next week.  She added that a few weeks ago they were told $100,000 and now its tens of thousands of dollars, she thinks it is important to note the savings to the Village taxpayers by maintain those elections is far greater than $100,000 and she will outline that significant savings to not consolidating next week during the Public Meeting.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she looked at the figures that One Village One Vote has put forward and it comports with what she has seen in our budget figures so far so she hasn’t seen so far that their facts are inaccurate.  Mayor Knudsen stated that she will detail the figures next week, but reiterated that it is a significant savings to Ridgewood taxpayers to maintain the Spring vote on the budget, a long term tax savings to the taxpayers.

 

Councilwoman Walsh asked Mr. Rogers about at the beginning of the meeting how he talked about the litigation and is there an opportunity for the Village Council to get a special meeting so that they can talk maybe before the next meeting.  Mr. Rogers stated that the Village Council could schedule a special meeting according to the Open Public Meetings Act and he doesn’t know when they could fit that it.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that because all of this is going on and they have not been able to meet as a Council to even discuss it, she would feel more comfortable if the five Village Councilmembers could get together to discuss it.  Mr. Rogers stated that unfortunately it can’t be done without the Open Public Meetings Act being satisfied, and it would be difficult with the next meeting a week away and the holiday weekend.  Councilwoman Walsh asked if they could set it for Tuesday.  Mr. Rogers stated that they could talk to Ms. Mailander to see if that could be done.  Mayor Knudsen stated that it was a great point and they would see what they could do with that.

 

9. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Deputy Mayor Sedon, seconded by Councilwoman Walsh, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Work Session was adjourned at 9:31 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                                      Susan Knudsen                         

                                                                                                              Mayor                                    

 

 

 

 

______________________________

              Donna M. Jackson

           Deputy Village Clerk

 

 

A SPECIAL PUBLIC MEETING OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON JULY 8, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 8:43 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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. 

 

1. INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCE 3803 – Amend Chapter 265 Vehicles and Traffic – Allow Changes to Parking Regulations in Hudson Street Parking Garage and on Streets

 

Mayor Knudsen moved the reading of ordinance 3803 by title on first reading and that the Public Hearing thereon be opened.  Councilwoman Reynolds seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

The Village Clerk read ordinance 3803 by title:

 

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 265 OF THE CODE OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD, VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC, AT SECTION 265-18, “REGULATIONS NOT EXCLUSIVE” AND SECTION 265-19, “PARKING PROHIBITED AT ALL TIMES”

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon moved that ordinance 3803 be adopted on first reading and that August 5, 2020 be fixed as the date for the hearing thereon.  Councilwoman Walsh seconded the motion.  

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

2. RESOLUTIONS

 

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTIONS, NUMBERED 20-201 THROUGH 20-205, WERE ADOPTED BY A CONSENT AGENDA, WITH ONE VOTE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Councilwoman Walsh, seconded by Councilwoman Perron, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Special Public Meeting was adjourned at 8:47 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                        Susan Knudsen                                                                                                                                                                                     Mayor            

 

 

 

______________________________

          Donna M. Jackson

        Deputy Village Clerk

A SPECIAL PUBLIC MEETING OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON JULY 8, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 8:43 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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. 

 

1. INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCE 3803 – Amend Chapter 265 Vehicles and Traffic – Allow Changes to Parking Regulations in Hudson Street Parking Garage and on Streets

 

Mayor Knudsen moved the reading of ordinance 3803 by title on first reading and that the Public Hearing thereon be opened.  Councilwoman Reynolds seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

The Village Clerk read ordinance 3803 by title:

 

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 265 OF THE CODE OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD, VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC, AT SECTION 265-18, “REGULATIONS NOT EXCLUSIVE” AND SECTION 265-19, “PARKING PROHIBITED AT ALL TIMES”

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon moved that ordinance 3803 be adopted on first reading and that August 5, 2020 be fixed as the date for the hearing thereon.  Councilwoman Walsh seconded the motion.  

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

2. RESOLUTIONS

 

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTIONS, NUMBERED 20-201 THROUGH 20-205, WERE ADOPTED BY A CONSENT AGENDA, WITH ONE VOTE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Councilwoman Walsh, seconded by Councilwoman Perron, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Special Public Meeting was adjourned at 8:47 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                        Susan Knudsen                                                                                                                                                                                     Mayor            

 

 

 

______________________________

          Donna M. Jackson

        Deputy Village ClerkA SPECIAL PUBLIC MEETING OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD VIA ZOOM, DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, ON JULY 8, 2020 AT 7:30 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Knudsen called the meeting to order at 8:43 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  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. 

 

1. INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCE 3803 – Amend Chapter 265 Vehicles and Traffic – Allow Changes to Parking Regulations in Hudson Street Parking Garage and on Streets

 

Mayor Knudsen moved the reading of ordinance 3803 by title on first reading and that the Public Hearing thereon be opened.  Councilwoman Reynolds seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

The Village Clerk read ordinance 3803 by title:

 

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 265 OF THE CODE OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD, VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC, AT SECTION 265-18, “REGULATIONS NOT EXCLUSIVE” AND SECTION 265-19, “PARKING PROHIBITED AT ALL TIMES”

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon moved that ordinance 3803 be adopted on first reading and that August 5, 2020 be fixed as the date for the hearing thereon.  Councilwoman Walsh seconded the motion.  

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:             Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh, and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:        None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

2. RESOLUTIONS

 

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTIONS, NUMBERED 20-201 THROUGH 20-205, WERE ADOPTED BY A CONSENT AGENDA, WITH ONE VOTE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Councilwoman Walsh, seconded by Councilwoman Perron, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Special Public Meeting was adjourned at 8:47 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                        Susan Knudsen                                                                                                                                                                                     Mayor            

 

 

 

______________________________

          Donna M. Jackson

        Deputy Village Clerk

A REORGANIZATION MEETING OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE VILLAGE OF RIDGEWOOD HELD IN THE SYDNEY V. STOLDT, JR. COURT ROOM OF THE RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE HALL, 131 NORTH MAPLE AVENUE, RIDGEWOOD, NEW JERSEY ON JULY 1, 2020 AT 12:00 P.M.

 

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

 

Mayor Hache called the meeting to order at 12:01 P.M. and read the Statement of Compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act.  At roll call the following were present: Councilmembers Knudsen, Sedon, Voigt, Walsh, and Mayor Hache.  Also present were Heather Mailander, Village Manager/Village Clerk; and Matthew Rogers, Village Attorney. 

 

Mayor Hache led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag as well as in a Moment of Silence to honor the brave men and women serving in our armed forces, and all our first responders.

 

2. INVOCATION – REVEREND MONSIGNOR RONALD J. ROZNIAK – OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL CHURCH

 

The invocation was given by Reverend Monsignor Ronald J. Rozniak of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Roman Catholic Church who blessed the Councilmembers. 

 

3. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, thanked Mayor Hache for four years of service and wished him all the best moving forward.  She also thanked everyone who took the time and put in the effort to run for Village Council, and congratulated Lorraine Reynolds and Pamela Perron on being elected to the Village Council.  In addition, Ms. Loving congratulated Councilwoman Walsh who has been elected to her third term, which is true dedication and much appreciated.

 

There were no additional comments from the public.

 

4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

 

Mayor Hache moved that the Village Council meeting minutes of October 2, 2019, and February 5, February 21, February 26, March 4, April 15, April 22, May 6, May 13, May 21, May 27, June 3, June 10, and June 17, 2020 having been reviewed by the Council and now available in the Village Clerk’s office be approved as submitted.  Councilwoman Walsh seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Knudsen, Sedon, Voigt, Walsh, and Mayor Hache

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      None

5. REMARKS BY COUNCILMAN JEFFREY VOIGT

 

Councilman Voigt stated that he has enjoyed his four years on the Village Council and has a number of people to thank.  He thanked the people who helped him get elected, including Kevin and Carol Mattessich, Jack Chadwick, Sergio Alegre, Wendy Dougherty, Dana Glazer, and his wife Patty.  He thanked the residents who voted for him, and he said that he would look out for their best interests, including spending their money wisely.  He tried his best to live up to those promises, he enjoyed and respected everyone’s perspectives, even when they disagreed.  He thanked Ramon Hache and Bernie Walsh for their stability and willingness to listen.  He thanked those in Village Hall for their work on his behalf, including Heather Mailander, Donna Jackson, Eileen Young, Beth Spinato, Chris Rutishauser, Rich Calbi, Nancy Bigos, Janet Fricke, Dawn Cetrulo, Sue, Deanna Schablik, Margie Downes, Chief Luthcke, Sergeant Chuck, Chief Van Goor, Bob Rooney, Nancy Greene, and the entire Library staff.  He then listed all of the people that he enjoyed working with throughout the Village.

 

Councilman Voigt thanked the Bolger family for their generosity with the renovation of the Library.  He empathized with past elected Councilmembers and had a majority of conversations understanding the issues they faced, how they dealt with them, and advice they had given.  They may not always agree, but they always look forward to their next conversation.  He added that he appreciated the Village residents who had gotten themselves involved in the Village issues, and he listed the individuals including Paul Vagianos, John Saraceno, Rurik Halaby, Jeannie Theisen, Hans Lehman, Jeanne Johnson, Leo Ferrante, Bob Hutton, and Denise Lima.  He asked them to continue their activism to provide another perspective on issues.  They most especially need this activism at the Village Council meetings, which have become myopic.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that according to the Constitution, good government is intended to provide a public and political arena in which arguments about opposing and different viewpoints can continue in a considered fashion.  Without this decision making, they would be making faulty and biased determinations.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that he wanted to take the opportunity to recount some worthy and notable successes.  He is proud of the fact that they finally built the garage, but he wishes that the foot dragging on this initiative hadn’t taken three years, as due to the foot dragging it cost the town another $1.8 million in additional debt payments based on higher bond rates.  The garage should have been job one for the Village Council in 2016, and unfortunately it was not, costing the Village additional money it didn’t have to spend.  They were also able to provide a park for the east side of town at the Schedler property, and he knows the residents appreciate their efforts.  He added that he was proud of the way they increased the Emergency Medical Services revenues by over $300,000 which he helped put in place, based on his expertise in healthcare reimbursement.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that he was proud of the Financial Advisory Committee as they had extremely talented and accomplished people on this committee.  Committees like this do important work, however, all of the members of this committee resigned when their tasks became administrative in nature after it was taken over by others for oversight.  He doesn’t blame them for resigning, and ironically they could be helping now, given the challenges that the Village faces given the budget shortfalls and expense appropriations.  He said the same about the Community Relations Advisory Board (CRAB), which was ultimately disbanded for political reasons.  This board provided useful insights to those who felt disenfranchised, which is an important purpose of government to help those on the margins of society.  He was glad they were able to reorganize and reassemble, and he only wishes them well.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that the key to effective leadership is to embrace differences and include them in decision making, not discard them.  Regarding public safety, the work on the West Glen sidewalks from Oak Street to North Monroe Street should improve the safety of our pedestrians.  Additionally, the speed sign on North Walnut Street solves an issue of speeding and has made the neighborhood safer.  Likewise, allocating money in this year’s budget for an intersection upgrade to the intersection of North Monroe Street and West Glen Avenue should improve the safety of the intersection.  Councilman Voigt is pleased to have worked closely with Citizen Safety Advisory Committee members, which he regards as one of the more productive and useful committees in the Village.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that before finishing, he wanted to share his thoughts on the unfinished business of the town, and specifically how we communicate with each other.  There are members of the town who have come together to support residents who have been disenfranchised, and this has made the Village a better place.  This includes the LGBTQ community, Martin Luther King, and our military.  He will miss this aspect of Village Council responsibilities. 

 

One of his main concerns relates to social media.  Recently, a member appointed by the Village Council to an important volunteer committee, used Facebook to publicly make ugly, defamatory, and life threatening remarks about a resident and incited similar remarks from others.  These actions by the Committee member were referred to the Village Council, and unfortunately nothing was done, as it turned into a political issue.  Those chosen to serve on committees are a reflection of the Councilmembers and the Village, they are a mirror of character and ethics.  He feels that this committee member should have been removed from their committee position, and he found this a poor reflection of who we are as a Village.  Councilman Voigt stated that they, as a Village Council, failed miserably for this resident who was called names, as one of the responsibilities of government is to protect citizens when they are most vulnerable, which did not happen here.

 

Councilman Voigt stated that what he has found as it relates to social media, is that the biggest problem is not maliciousness, but ignorance.  Discussion and knowing are key to solving this.  This takes sharing information, spending time with what one doesn’t understand, and being the voice of the oppressed.  He quoted Elie Wiesel, stating that “what hurts the victim most is not the cruelty of the oppressor, but the silence of the bystander.”  We all have a responsibility to speak up about this type of behavior as it hurts not only us, but how others perceive us.  We are a better town than these types of people.  Councilman Voigt stated that he was optimistic about some of the initiatives that are being undertaken by citizens to ensure better and more transparent government.  One such initiative, is One Village, One Vote, by a group of dedicated citizens who want to see government back in the hands of voters through voting in November for off-cycle elections, which increases turnout to over 50% and saves the Village over $150,000.  The Village is one of the few towns in New Jersey that continues off-cycle elections.  He encouraged all residents to vote to move elections to November on this year’s November ballot, as it will make the Village a better place to live.

 

Councilman Voigt wished the newly elected Councilmembers, Bernie Walsh and Pam Perron, much luck in their duties as he is highly confident that they have the best interest of our residents at heart and will serve them well.  He thanked everyone for the opportunity to serve.

 

6. REMARKS BY MAYOR RAMON M. HACHE, SR.

 

Mayor Hache stated that he couldn’t believe that four years went by so fast.  He thanked his wife, Tina, for the support and helping him perform his responsibilities.  He thanked everyone who contributed to his campaign in terms of their time and effort in getting him elected and all of the hard work that takes.  He thanked the voters for placing their confidence in him and giving him a chance to serve his community.  He also thanked the current Village Council for taking a rookie and helping to show him the ropes and giving him their support.  He appreciated their collaboration and being respectful whenever they didn’t agree on things.  Mayor Hache added that he was also very thankful to the staff for all of the work and support, including the Department Directors and Heather Mailander.  He thanked Mr. Rogers for always being a sounding board and keeping them from doing crazy things sometimes, adding that he appreciated his professionalism.  He thanked Donna Jackson for her work, as well as Bob Rooney. 

 

Mayor Hache stated that all of the Department Directors are really incredible and he was appreciative of all the support that they have given.  He has never felt that they weren’t willing to help at a moment’s notice to get things done, and he was very appreciative of their time and effort.  He thanked the volunteers from the community, the Board and Committee members, as anyone who steps up to serve the community has his respect and he really appreciated the work they were able to accomplish.  He particularly thanked the committees where he has served, the CBD Advisory Committee, the Chamber of Commerce, Parks and Recreation Fields Committee, which was able to accomplish a lot.  He also thanked the Planning Board where he served for the last two years, as he appreciated their professionalism.  He was able to collaborate a lot with Age Friendly.  He also wanted to thank the Library Board for the tremendous amount of work they have done in the last three years and all the planning and work for the renovation project.  He also thanked the Interfaith Community, as it is an amazing group and is one of the highlights of what we can do as a community in the Village.

 

Mayor Hache stated that outside of Ridgewood, meeting once a month with the Bergen County League of Municipalities, where they share a lot of best practices and what they can learn from each other.  Also, the Northwest Bergen Mayor’s Association, which is an amazing peer group that he had.

 

Mayor Hache stated that four years ago, it wasn’t a very peaceful time in the Village as there were a lot of contentious issues on the docket.  He appreciates Mr. Rogers’ guidance through that process, and stated that despite the issues that separated the community at one time, it was good to see the community coming together, showing that we can put behind us whatever is separating us today and move forward to the next phase.  He is very proud of the work they have done these four years as it is moving a lot of work forward, including the parking garage which is a very tangible representation of all of the things they have accomplished.  Mayor Hache added that this also includes Fair Share Housing, and all of the things that they did as a Village Council that pushed a lot of big projects forward.

Mayor Hache stated that he was amazed at all of the things that they, as a Village Council have done, and the fact that they were able to do them.  He never imagined that the Village residents would face this pandemic in the last few months, and that it has been a very taxing time on everybody.  He stated that it is an unprecedented time and in those moments when we face our toughest challenges, is when you see the heart of the community.  When it really matters, the Village residents really come together as a community.  It was a humbling experience to see the outpouring of support from the community for first responders, frontline workers, and for folks in need.  It touched his heart in a special way, and he is so thankful for being part of this community. 

 

Mayor Hache stated that thankfully, things are not as crazy as they were four years ago, and he knows they are in good hands with three seasoned veterans on the Village Council.  He wished the best to the incoming members, Pamela Perron and Lorraine Reynolds, he thanked them for stepping up to serve, and he wished them all the best.  He encouraged a lot of patience and stated that they should do what they believe is right even if not everyone agrees with them, at least they know they did the right thing.  He thanked everyone and stated that he would miss them.

 

Councilwoman Knudsen stated that she, on behalf of the Village of Ridgewood Village Council, would like to thank Councilman Voigt for his service to our community.  While they often disagree, she thinks they all appreciate that the differences actually make us stronger, so they are grateful for his service as a Village Councilmember and as a member of the Board of Adjustment.

 

Councilwoman Knudsen stated that Mayor Hache leaves some big shoes to fill, and she thinks that they would all agree that they will miss him terribly.  He has been the epitome of graciousness, decency, honesty, and truthfulness and has been a true leader during a time of difficulty within our community, our State, and our Nation.  For members of our community, his ever-present comments and reassuring nature on Facebook, social media, by way of email, and at meetings, has been a gift.  A gift of calm, a gift of reassurance, which were much appreciated by the community and Village Council colleagues.  They all look forward to referring to him as Freeholder in the future, so everyone is very excited about that.

 

7. READING OF CERTIFICATE OF ELECTION OF PAMELA PERRON – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander read the Certificate of Election for Pamela Perron, indicating that she was elected to serve a four-year term on the Village Council commencing July 1, 2020 and ending on July 1, 2024.

 

8. OATH OF OFFICE ADMINISTERED TO PAMELA PERRON BY SUSAN CASSELL, ESQ.

 

Susan Cassell, Esq. administered the Oath of Office to Pamela Perron.  Councilwoman Perron then signed the Oath of Office.  There was a round of applause.

 

 

 

9. READING OF CERTIFICATE OF ELECTION OF LORRAINE REYNOLDS – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander read the Certificate of Election for Lorraine Reynolds, indicating that she was elected to serve a four-year term on the Village Council commencing July 1, 2020 and ending on July 1, 2024.

 

10. OATH OF OFFICE ADMINISTERED TO LORRAINE REYNOLDS – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Village Manager/Village Clerk Heather A. Mailander administered the Oath of Office to Lorraine Reynolds.  Councilwoman Reynolds then signed the Oath of Office.  There was a round of applause.

 

11. READING OF CERTIFICATE OF ELECTION OF BERNADETTE COGHLAN WALSH – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander read the Certificate of Election for Bernadette Coghlan Walsh, indicating that she was elected to serve a four-year term on the Village Council commencing July 1, 2020 and ending on July 1, 2024.

 

12. OATH OF OFFICE ADMINISTERED TO BERNADETTE COGHLAN WALSH – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Village Manager/Village Clerk Heather A. Mailander administered the Oath of Office to Bernadette Coghlan Walsh.  Councilwoman Walsh then signed the Oath of Office.  There was a round of applause.

 

13. REMARKS BY COUNCILWOMAN PERRON

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she is so excited to serve the people of Ridgewood, she has been coming to Council meetings regularly over the past 3½ years as an observer for the League of Women Voters.  From what she sees, she has to thank Mayor Hache for modeling to her what good communication with the electorate is, especially during a crisis; how to compromise on difficult issues; and how to pitch Ridgewood’s needs to Trenton.  She also wanted to express her appreciation for Councilman Voigt’s efforts, his willingness to meet with her and educate her on the issues, and his tenacity on key issues.  She encouraged the new Village Council to act on a platform of collegiality and compassion.  They have a lot of work ahead of them and won’t always agree, but they can be respectful of one another and value each other’s opinions.  Councilwoman Perron stated that with the load of work they have ahead of them, especially with this pandemic, she asked they avoid negativity which can distract them from their goals.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she came up with five bullet points of what she would like to see them accomplish over the next term.  First, and fastest, is to reinvent the downtown.  COVID-19 has completely transformed how the Village businesses operate in public.  The Village needs to support the business community, help them survive and thrive, because home values, property taxes, and the quality of the schools are tied to the success of the Central Business District.  She also would like to see the Village Council communicate better with residents and businesses in a more modern way.

 

The next point is, the Village Council must ensure the Village’s financial stability, despite the pandemic.  It is a huge job, because there will be increased costs and diminished revenues.  Another initiative is that the Village must protect the environment.  Councilwoman Perron stated that the Village must plant a lot more trees and reduce the carbon footprint, which is owed to the next generation.  Finally, she was listening to Reverend Mack Brandon speak a few days ago and he mentioned that the African American community in the Village has diminished over the last few decades and she asked what are the systemic or institutional obstacles that keep the African American community from wanting to stay or move into Ridgewood.  This must be investigated to make Ridgewood a more welcoming place to live.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she would like to finish with gratitude for her thoughtful, civic minded team, comprised of Jeanne Johnson, Siobhan Crann Winograd, Janice Willett, Linda McNamara, Susan Cassell, all of the generous contributors to her campaign, all of the voters who voted for her, and all the voters who didn’t vote for her.  She asked all who are watching by Zoom, to continue to attend Village Council meetings, as government functions best when it is watched.  She urged residents to get involved in civic matters, to find out what is going on with neighbors, spend hours and hours doing so and they will be proud of what they have accomplished.  Councilwoman Perron encouraged residents to please call her with any questions they have, any observations, solutions, insight, and complaints (201) 444-4264.   

 

14. REMARKS BY COUNCILWOMAN REYNOLDS

 

Councilwoman Reynolds thanked her husband and three boys for their support not only during the campaign, but during the many years of Village Council meetings, Planning Board meetings, Board of Adjustment meetings, and other meetings that she has been attending.  There were many missed dinners, late nights, collecting signatures, and they were always there to help.  She thanked everyone who voted for her, as she was honored to receive their support.  For everyone who did not vote for her, she will earn their support and respect.  She added that she is sure no one will be happy with her all of the time, but hopefully they will know that she is doing her best in what she feels is right for Ridgewood. 

 

Councilwoman Reynolds stated that she has great hopes that the five Village Councilmembers will work well together, and will have a great two years, and possibly even four years.

 

15. REMARKS BY COUNCILWOMAN WALSH

 

Councilwoman Walsh welcomed guests, friends, and residents watching from home.  She expressed her sincere thanks to all those who reached out to her to offer congratulations on her re-election, and she thanked all those who voted for and supported her during that time.  She truly appreciated their kind words and continued support of her.  This was an historic election in Ridgewood, as it was the first time three women have been elected in a single election and the first time a woman has been elected to a third term on the Village Council.  She finds this fitting in the 100^th anniversary of the ratification of the Amendment to the Constitution allowing women the right to vote. 

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that these last four years on the Village Council have been rewarding and energizing, as there were so many projects and initiatives that have been accomplished.  She knows that four years seems like a long time, but truthfully it goes by in a flash.  She wanted to acknowledge and thank all of those Committee members with whom she worked and shared ideas with, in her most recent term.  The Village thrives when residents can share their ideas freely and collaborate to improve the Village.  The long hours they all spend, show their dedication in helping the Village flourish in quality of life, education, and culture.

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that she also wanted to thank Heather Mailander, Village Manager, and Donna Jackson, Deputy Clerk, Matt Rogers, Village Attorney, and the entire staff who keep the Village running like a well-oiled machine.  Without their professionalism and expertise, the Village Council’s job would be much more difficult. 

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that she wanted to thank her husband and three children for all of their love and support and for sharing her these many years with the Village.  She thanked Mayor Hache and Councilman Voigt for their service to the community, as they have dedicated the past four years to service and made significant contributions to the community.  She wished them both well in their new endeavors and she hoped they will continue to serve the Village.

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that her new assignments are Parks and Recreation, Field Committee, Board of Education, and Stigma Free Ridgewood.  She is also continuing her newly formed Adopt a Senior Program.  Board of Education and Stigma Free will be new Committees for her to work on.  She looks forward to getting to know those members and doing good work for the Village.  Her Adopt a Senior Program has grown because so many residents pitched into support it, and she is looking to support the program with student and resident liaisons to manage the growing need.  As she has said before, when Ridgewood pulls together it really pulls together.

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that she would be remiss if she didn’t say that this reorganization wasn’t bittersweet.  Three weeks ago, her Council colleagues asked if she would accept the nomination of Deputy Mayor, to which she joyfully said yes.  A week after that meeting, Susan Knudsen called to inform her that she had called a new meeting to change that nomination.  Needless to say, it is a great disappointment to her.  She stated that she is proud of her service to this Village, both in her role as Councilwoman, and in the many hats she has worn these past 22 years as a resident.  Councilwoman Walsh stated that she is proud that residents call her the independent voice on the Council, as she truly believes that Councilmembers owe it to the community to speak for themselves, and not as a block. 

 

Councilwoman Walsh stated that in recent years, the term Village Council majority has been deemed derogatory.  She is proud that she won this election with the largest margin in Ridgewood history to the next closest competitor.  It proves that the electorate has spoken and they support her role on this Village Council.  She is proud that she is described as a trusted, respected leader and she pledges to continue to serve in Ridgewood’s best interests and looks forward to a bright future in the community, and on-going collaboration with the residents, as well as her new and current Village Council colleagues, as they hope to make Ridgewood even better.

 

Councilwoman Walsh closed with a quote from then resident, and new Councilwoman Lorraine Reynolds, from the 2014 Reorganization Meeting minutes, “a show of good faith today would go a long way to a good working environment over the next two years, following Ridgewood’s tradition would be a giant step in that direction.  It has been an unwritten rule that the Councilmember with the most votes is offered the position of  Deputy Mayor.  Ms. Reynolds believes the Village Council will have shown respect to the individual who received more votes than any other candidate in Ridgewood history.  People sought change in Village leadership, and their voices were heard loud and clear.  Ms. Reynold’s urged the Councilmembers to cast their vote for the people’s choice.”

 

16. ROLL CALL OF NEW VILLAGE COUNCIL – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander called the roll of the new Village Council: Councilmembers Knudsen, Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, and Walsh. 

 

17. CALL FOR NOMINATION FOR OFFICE OF MAYOR BY HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander called for the nominations for the office of Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood.  Councilman Sedon made a motion for the nomination of Councilwoman Knudsen as Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.  Councilwoman Reynolds seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Knudsen, Reynolds, and Sedon

NAYS:            Councilwoman Perron

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

Councilman Sedon moved that the nominations for Mayor be closed, seconded by Councilwoman Reynolds.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Knudsen, Perron, Reynolds, and Sedon

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there would be a roll call vote on the nomination of Susan Knudsen as Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Knudsen, Perron, Reynolds, and Sedon

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

18. ADMINISTERING OATH OF OFFICE TO MAYOR – MATTHEW S. ROGERS, VILLAGE ATTORNEY

 

Matthew Rogers, Village Attorney, stated that once again he is honored to be able to swear Susan Knudsen in as a Mayor, as he did it once before, four years ago.  He is always impressed by her efforts on behalf of the Village and the time that she spends always trying to do her best.

 

Susan Knudsen stated that she was honored to have Matt Rogers swear her in as Mayor for the second time, as they work closely together, she considers him a friend, and he serves the Village well, as Village Attorney.

 

Mr. Rogers administered the Oath of Office to Mayor Susan Knudsen.  There was a round of applause for Mayor Knudsen.

 

19. CALL FOR NOMINATION FOR OFFICE OF DEPUTY MAYOR BY MAYOR

 

Mayor Knudsen called for the nominations for the office of Deputy Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood.  Councilwoman Reynolds made a motion to nominate Councilman Michael Sedon as Deputy Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.  Mayor Knudsen seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Reynolds, Sedon,  and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            Councilwoman Perron

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

Mayor Knudsen moved that the nominations for Deputy Mayor be closed.  Councilwoman Reynolds seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there would be a roll call vote on the nomination of Michael Sedon as Deputy Mayor of the Village of Ridgewood for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Reynolds, Sedon and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            Councilwoman Perron

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      Councilwoman Walsh

 

20. ADMINISTERING OATH OF OFFICE TO DEPUTY MAYOR – MAYOR SUSAN KNUDSEN

 

Mayor Susan Knudsen administered the Oath of Office to Deputy Mayor Sedon.  There was a round of applause for Deputy Mayor Sedon.

 

21. CALL FOR NOMINATION FOR OFFICE OF PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL

 

Mayor Knudsen called for the nominations for the office of President Pro Tempore of the Village Council.  Councilwoman Perron moved the nomination of Councilwoman Bernadette Coghlan Walsh as President Pro Tempore of the Village Council for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.  Deputy Mayor Sedon seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

Mayor Knudsen moved that the nominations for the office of President Pro Tempore of the Village Council be closed.  Deputy Mayor Sedon seconded the motion.

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

Ms. Mailander stated that there would be a roll call vote on the nomination of Bernadette Coghlan Walsh as President Pro Tempore of the Village Council for a two-year term commencing July 1, 2020.

 

 

Roll Call Vote

 

AYES:            Councilmembers Perron, Reynolds, Sedon, Walsh and Mayor Knudsen

NAYS:            None

ABSENT:       None

ABSTAIN:      None

 

22. ADMINISTERING OATH OF OFFICE OF PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL – HEATHER A. MAILANDER, VILLAGE MANAGER/VILLAGE CLERK

 

Ms. Mailander administered the Oath of Office to Bernadette Coghlan Walsh.  There was a round of applause.

 

23. REMARKS BY DEPUTY MAYOR SEDON

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon stated that it has certainly been an interesting six years serving on the dais and he wanted to thank his son Hunter, because he reminds him of exactly why he does this.  He remembers six years ago on a Friday morning coming to Village Hall to pick up his nomination packet to make a run at a first term for Village Council and then going home and going to Valley Hospital where his son was born later on that day.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon thanked Councilman Voigt for his service, and Mayor Hache for his service and friendship.  He thanked Councilwoman Walsh for serving with distinction, dedication, and honor, and she has done a very good job as a Councilmember and he looked forward to serving with her for the next two years.  He thanked Pam Perron who has proven that she has the strength and dedication to move the Village forward in a positive direction.  He also thanked Lorraine Reynolds who has also been there from the beginning and been involved in different aspects of the community and different things going on, in the Village.

 

Deputy Mayor Sedon also thanked Mayor Knudsen and the entire Knudsen family.  She has been there from the beginning and since that time, she has become an incredible friend to him.  The work that Mayor Knudsen puts in on the Village Council is immense and he is proud to continue to serve with her.  He thanked the Village Manager and Village staff for helping with the details and preparing the meeting packets, and help with their ideas.  He thanked the Committees that he served on, and all of the Committee members who volunteered their time, as a lot of good work has been put in and a lot of good ideas come from Committees.  Each initiative, big or small, helps add to the character and greatness of Ridgewood and the residents who live here.  He is deeply honored to serve in this role, and it helps to hear different opinions.  When people want to say what is on their mind, it makes decision making easier hearing more thoughts and ideas, so he is always grateful for that.

 

24. REMARKS BY MAYOR KNUDSEN

 

Mayor Knudsen thanked her family for being there, her husband, three sons, daughter-in-law, and three little ones.  She thanked them for their support.  In 2010 she was first appointed to the Board of Adjustment, so this is a decade for her serving the Village of Ridgewood in a variety of roles, and it is really an honor to serve.  She said that Ridgewood is a really special community, and while we don’t always agree on everything, the way we disagree has to be done in a more polite, kinder way.  As a rule, the Village Council is collegial, but to be collegial doesn’t mean that you always agree, it really is the delivery in how you treat each other, not just as Council colleagues but as people.  She hopes that going forward, they will be able to put that chapter behind them and move forward.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated that they appreciate everyone who voted, and the candidates who stepped up, to lean in with a willingness to put themselves out there, because it is not always pretty.  We as a community benefit when there is a choice of candidates and when there is a dialogue where issues are brought to the forefront.  She commended Councilwoman Walsh for her third term, Councilwoman Perron and Reynolds, as well as Sergio Alegre during that highly unusual election, which was completely by mail-in ballots and combined the Board of Education and Village Council elections.  She also acknowledged those who ran for the Board of Education.  This gave them an opportunity to understand the issues the community faces and how to move forward.  She disagreed with something that Councilman Voigt pointed out earlier that the off-cycle elections don’t bring out the voters, as it looks like about 33% turnout was there for this election.  One Village, One Vote only requires about 4,000 votes for their petition so we are far past that, because there is a robust conversation going on in the Village and residents are interested in the issues and topics, and making sure that this Village is run properly.

 

Mayor Knudsen stated 730 ballots were rejected which is about 13% and is a significant number of people who went to the post office and mailed a ballot.  Regardless of the outcome, if her ballot wasn’t counted she would be devastated.  The Village filed a lawsuit and prevailed and the County has canvassed those ballots.  These are all important issues and she looks forward to her continued service here as Mayor, and a lot has gone on in the past four years and they are blessed to have had a Village Council that could process the incredibly difficult issues that they faced.  All of these issues have been addressed, so the current Village Council has an opportunity to focus on more quality of life issues that are important.  She agreed with the former Mayor that the Planning Board has been quiet.

 

Mayor Knudsen thanked everyone for the vote of confidence and she looked forward to serving once again in this capacity.  She extended a special thanks to all Village staff who work incredibly hard to keep this Village going.

 

Mr. Rogers stated that he wanted to wish Jeff Voigt success in the next endeavors he chooses.  Also in a professional capacity as Village Attorney, but also personally, he wanted to say that the time he spent with Ramon Hache as a Councilmember and Mayor was something that he will remember, as he found him to be a man with integrity and compassion for the needs of others.  He takes pride in what he does, and how well he does it.  He thanked the Village Council members, and Lorraine Reynolds and Pam Perron for stepping up.

 

Councilwoman Perron stated that she forgot to thank her family, and added that her husband was an incredible help during the campaign and her three children were cheerleaders as well.

 

25. RESOLUTIONS

 

THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTIONS, NUMBERED 20-185 THROUGH 20-200, WERE ADOPTED BY A CONSENT AGENDA WITH ONE VOTE BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL, AND WERE READ BY TITLE ONLY:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

26. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC

 

Laurie Webber, 235 South Irving Street, stated that she wanted to offer her congratulations to the new and continuing Village Councilmembers.  She said that the Village is certainly very lucky to have them all and she feels particularly fortunate to have Susan Knudsen’s leadership once again.  She had hoped that this day could have remained the upbeat occasion it should have been, but unfortunately she must take great exception to the lengthy and bitter rebuke emanating from one outgoing Councilmember, disrespecting fellow Councilmembers and an incoming Councilmember and thousands of constituents, many of whom, like herself, voted for him and displayed his campaign signs on their lawns.  All of this came from a person who has perpetrated a variety of racist harassments and called a member of the public a douchebag from the dais at a public meeting.  It’s a fitting end for Mr. Voigt given his tumultuous four years.

 

Jean Theisen, 354 Fairfield Avenue, stated that she wanted to take this time to say thank you very much to Councilman Voigt for his service, his high level of communication regarding the meeting minutes, and openness to discuss issues at any time was tremendously appreciated.  His support of various members within the community was also tremendously appreciated.  She also wanted to really make sure that Mayor Hache hears, and that everyone hears, that he has set the bar for quality of leadership, for openness to everybody in the Village being included, and the support of the students in our High School being felt.  She was one of many who helped to organize the Pride celebration and it was sad to see that many of the School Board members were not able to make it, and the same with some Councilmembers.  It was disturbing to the students and herself, and many residents came up to her after and said that the Ridgewood Pride celebration was spectacular in that it included the students from the high school.  The representation and support that the high school students received was overwhelming to both residents and non-residents.

 

Ms. Theisen stated that the Attorney General of our State said that they look forward to the Pride celebration in Ridgewood again next year.  She thanked Mayor Hache for being so inclusive and standing up for a large community, and also for attending the Black Lives Matter rally.  His partnership and inclusion of the Village Community and Village business owners has been really appreciated.

 

Rurik Halaby, 374 Evergreen Place, stated that he wanted to thank Councilman Voigt for his service and he had backbone and gumption and stood up to those who did not like him.  He stated that he has great faith in Mayor Hache and he has the talent to be the best former Mayor that the Village has every had.

 

Matthew Lindenberg, 155 Claremont Road, stated that he wanted to join the others who have thanked Councilman Voigt and Mayor Hache for their service, and he appreciates all of the work they have done in service to the community.  He wanted to correct a point that Mayor Knudsen shared about the issues around the local election and One Village, One Vote.  She commented on the strength of the turnout during this local election, and he wanted to make sure that everyone is working on the same page in terms of actual data and facts.  They went back to the data provided from the Village and County Clerk, which does not include this current election, and in 2010 people voting in local elections in off cycle versus November, the number has been 49% higher in November, than an election in April or May.  At the same time, by consolidating the elections in November, there would be a cost savings, and the argument that moving elections to November would be confusing, they provide other communities that have moved to November as examples, because local elections can be done in a separate part of the ballot.  They have also heard that they are taking away people’s right to vote. Although the voters would not be able to vote on the Board of Education budget, they would be able to vote on like-minded individuals to serve on the School Board and then be able to vote them out of office.  Mr. Lindenberg stated that they are open to a data-driven and fact-based cordial conversation about this, and they expect there to be disagreements. 

 

Siobhan Crann Winograd, 274 Ivy Place, stated that she wanted to congratulate the pink wave of Ridgewood.  She wanted to thank Jeff and Ramon, and commented on how Councilman Voigt has listened to her perspective as the daughter of a handicapped man with respect to housing, and she also wanted to thank him for being so kind to her parents during that year.  She thanked him for asking questions about excessive spending and always responding back to her emails, improving his communications, and showing up with his camera.  She thanked Mayor Hache for doing such a great job, in restoring common decency to the dais, and he has truly been lovely to work with in the public setting.  She appreciated his pro-business approach to the downtown and pro-wellness approach as well.  She also appreciated his support of aging in place.   Ms. Winograd stated that she wanted to commend him for how he handled the COVID-19 pandemic with transparency, grace, and kindness.  She thanked him for being a friend and for serving the community.  She is proud of all he has done and he will be missed.

 

Laura Christenson, 421 Ponfield Place, stated that she has been a resident of Ridgewood 24 years, and she is a little disturbed about what she heard in the elections of the Deputy Mayor and the Mayor.  She does executive leadership development and executive team development, and there are a couple of things that are raising the hair on her neck.  Her question is if it was a backdoor decision to take away the Deputy Mayor position that was offered to Councilwoman Walsh.  She was concerned because she didn’t want to head down that same path.  She hopes that the Village Council really takes to heart the decisions that are made and tries their best to not fall down the path of less integrity.  Ms. Christenson thanked Mayor Hache, as she values the contributions he has made to the community.

 

Anne Loving, 342 South Irving Street, stated that regarding the One Village, One Vote, one fact that was presented was that the voters’ ability and right to vote on the proposed school board budget would be taken away if there is only one vote in November.  She thanked him for pointing out that very important fact, as she does not want her right to vote on anything taken away. 

 

There were no additional comments from the public.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

27. ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Village Council, on a motion by Councilwoman Walsh, seconded by Councilman Sedon, and carried unanimously by voice vote, the Village Council’s Reorganization Meeting was adjourned at 1:50 P.M.

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

                                                                                                     Susan Knudsen                             

Mayor                         

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

______________________________

              Heather A. Mailander

      Village Manager/Village Clerk