Mayor & Council Regular Meeting, May 24, 2016

Mayor & Council Regular Meeting, May 24, 2016

The regular meeting of the Mayor and Council of the Borough of North Caldwell was held on Tuesday, May 24, 2016at the Borough Hall, Gould Avenue, North Caldwell, New Jersey and began at 7:42pm.

Roll Call indicated the following present:

Mayor Alessi

Present: Council President Santomauro,Councilman Astorino, Councilman Chiaia,

Councilman Raymond

Absent: Councilman Kessler, Councilman Rees

Also present were:David M. Paris, Borough Attorney, Mel Levine, Borough Administrator, Frank Zichelli, Borough Engineer, Mark Deuer, Police Chief, Nancy Bretzger, Borough Clerk

Mayor Alessicalled the meeting to order announcing that notice was provided in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 231, P.L. 1975.

Mayor Alessiasked Councilman Chiaia to lead the Pledge of Allegiance.

MAYOR’S REPORT

The Mayor wished everyone a Happy Memorial Day Weekend. He spoke about the unveiling of the plaque at the Newark Courthouse in honor of Mr. Samuel Brummer. Mr. Brummer was a resident of North Caldwell and the 2009 Grand Marshall of the Memorial Day Parade. This year’s parade begins at 9:30am with Raymond DiGuilio of Fairfield serving as Grand Marshall. Prior to the parade, the VFW will host a ceremony at the Oval located at One Provost Square in Caldwell.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Council President Santomauro moved to accept the minutes from the Executive Session of April 12, 2016, seconded by Councilman Astorino, with Councilman Raymond abstaining. Said motion was passed.

Council President Santomauro moved to accept the minutes from the Regular Meeting of April 26, 2016, seconded by Councilman Astorino. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to accept the minutes from the Executive Session of April 26, 2016, seconded by Councilman Raymond, with Councilman Chiaia abstaining. Said motion was passed.

Council President Santomauro moved to accept the minutes from the Conference Meetingof May 10, 2016, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauromoved to accept the minutes from the Executive Session of May 10, 2016, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

LEGAL AND ORDINANCE

An update on Walker’s Pond was given by Borough Engineer, Frank Zichelli. He stated due diligence is being done. The environmental consulting company retained by the Borough has found two locations of elevated levels of chlordane. It was suggested that Licensed Site Remediation Professionals (LSRP) be consulted to further investigate. The LSRP has submitted a proposal with a prescribed course of action.

Council President Santomauro moved to Open the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-5-16 – An Ordinance Amending Chapters 77-7A(1) and 78-3B(1) of the Code of the Borough of North Caldwell Regarding the Placement of Receptacles and Materials at Curbside, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously. Seeing no one from the public coming forward, Council President Santomauro moved to Close the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-5-16 – An Ordinance Amending Chapters 77-7A(1) and 78-3B(1) of the Code of the Borough of North Caldwell Regarding the Placement of Receptacles and Materials at Curbside, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Adopt Ordinance O-5-16-An Ordinance Amending Chapters 77-7A(1) and 78-3B(1) of the Code of the Borough of North Caldwell Regarding the Placement of Receptacles and Materials at Curbside, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Open the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-6-16 – An Ordinance to Provide for Various Capital Items as Enumerated Within For the Borough of North Caldwell, County of Essex and to Provide for the Funding Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously. Seeing no one from the public coming forward, Council President Santomauro moved to Close the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-6-16 – An Ordinance to Provide for Various Capital Items as Enumerated Within For the Borough of North Caldwell, County of Essex and to Provide for the Funding Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Adopt Ordinance O-6-16-An Ordinance to Provide for Various Capital Items as Enumerated WithinFor the Borough of North Caldwell, County of Essex and to Provide for the Funding Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Open the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-7-16 – Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements In and For the Borough of North Caldwell, In the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $732,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $695,400 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously. Seeing no one from the public coming forward, Council President Santomauro moved to Close the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-7-16 – Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements In and For the Borough of North Caldwell, In the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $732,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $695,400 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Adopt Ordinance O-7-16-Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements In and For the Borough of North Caldwell, In the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $732,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $695,400 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Open the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-8-16 – Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements and Purposes for the Swimming Pool Utility in and for the Borough of North Caldwell, in the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $45,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $45,000 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously. Seeing no one from the public coming forward, Council President Santomauro moved to Close the Public Hearing for Ordinance O-8-16 – Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements and Purposes for the Swimming Pool Utility In and For the Borough of North Caldwell, In the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $45,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $45,000 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Council President Santomauro moved to Adopt Ordinance O-8-16-Bond Ordinance Authorizing Various Improvements and Purposes for the Swimming Pool Utility In and For the Borough of North Caldwell, In the County of Essex, New Jersey, Appropriating $45,000 Therefore and Authorizing the Issuance of $45,000 Bonds or Notes to Finance Part of the Cost Thereof, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Resolution R-103-16 - A Resolution Authorizing the Execution of a Municipal Services Agreement with the Hidden Ridge Condominium Association, Inc. was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by CouncilmanRaymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

PERSONNEL AND ADMINISTRATION

Resolution R-104-16 - Appointment of Gregory Karol as Manager of the Borough of North Caldwell Municipal Pool for the 2016 Season was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Resolution R-105-16 - Appointment of Kristyn Sheehy as Assistant Manager of the Borough of North Caldwell Municipal Pool for the 2016 Season was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Resolution R-106-16 - Authorization to Hire Seasonal Employees for 2016 – Municipal Pool was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by Councilman Raymond. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Resolution R-107-16 Establishing 2016 Employee Salaries was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by Councilman Chiaia. Said motion was carried unanimously.

FINANCE

Councilman Astorino offered the Collector’s Report for the month of April 2016 in the amount of $2,553,646.69.The water account collected $77,078.65and the pool account collected $16,756.88. Councilman Astorino moved that the Collector’s Report be accepted, seconded by Council President Santomauro. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Resolution R-108-16–Approval to Pay Bills – Approval to pay bills in the amount of $3,242,532.92 was read. Motion was made by Councilman Astorino, seconded by Council President Santomauro. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Councilman Astorino explained that the Borough’s budget is not like a federal or household budget. There is a capital budget for items such as building maintenance and new trucks and an operations budget which is used for items such as salaries. Councilman Astorino stated he has met with the Borough’s CFO to explore the financial capacity of what else can be done by the Borough.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Councilman Chiaia stated that North Caldwell Sgt. Carl Strodthoff was off duty when he witnessed a house fire in Fairfield. He immediately ran and alerted the residents in the house. The house was quickly engulfed in flames. If it had not been for the efforts of Sgt. Strodthoff, this could have ended tragically. Councilman Chiaia said this is just another one of the many wonderful stories to be told of our Police Department.

Councilman Chiaia offered the Police Department Public Safety Report for
April 2016. There were 991 calls to dispatch for the month. There were 119 traffic summons issued. The Detective Report states there were seven juvenile matters at West Essex High School, one theft and one burglary. There were six motor vehicle accidents during the month of April. There were 20 requests for police assistance by residents during the month. There was 151 hours of overtime for the Police Department in April, of which 106 hours were reimbursable by PSE&G, West Essex High School, etc.

PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES

Councilman Chiaia offered the April 2016 Construction Report. For the month of April, 48 permits were issued bringing the year-to-date total to 166. Fees collected for permits issued for the month was $11,849.00 bringing the yearly total to $57,755.00.

Councilman Chiaia offered the April Recycling Report stating recycling for the month was at 24.22% which is slightly down from the monthly average of 30%.

CouncilmanChiaia read the Animal Control Report for the month of April2016. There were seven calls during the month. One call resulted in an animal being euthanized.

RECREATION

Councilman Raymond offered the May/June 2016 Recreation Report. There are currently 277 boys and girls participating in baseball/softball for the season. Spring youth classes which include Quickstart Tennis, Multi-Sport, Kiddie T-Ball and Petite Soccer are all underway. Spring youth Track and Field for grades 4 through 8 is also underway. A new program for adults this year, Cardio Tennis, currently has eight participants.

The Senior Bus Trip to the Culinary Institute of America was a great success. Twenty-four senior attended. Pool improvements are underway. An AED (Automated External Defibrillator) has been purchased for the pool. A TV has been purchased and cable installed. To date, there are 145 memberships.

The baseball/softball post-season party is scheduled for Monday, June 6 with a rain date of June 8.

Resolution R-109-16 – Fixing Fees Pertaining to Recreation Programs – Tennis Membershipwas read. Motion was made by Councilman Raymond, seconded by Councilman Chiaia. Said motion was carried unanimously.

CITIZENS TO BE HEARD

John Rapkin- 35 Willowbrook Drive andJosh Lightner - 4 Coventry Lane. Since last month’s meeting, they have given some thought as to what they feel needs to be done regarding field and facility improvements. Their plan is to hopefully work in partnership with the town. Currently, there are two dozen households that are willing to get involved. They also said some residents areplanning on becoming active with the non-profit recreation fund in order to help attain their goals. Mr. Rapkin and Mr. Lightner have met with Councilman Raymond and Recreation Director, Bill Maranz. They have had preliminary discussions on how to improve the fields and facilities. They would like to receive more input from the town and then begin evaluating the projects and prioritize them. Their goal is to share their plans with the Council in the hopes of gaining the Council’s support. They have discussed a possible fundraiser this fall. Councilman Raymond thanked the residents for their interest and commitment. Councilman Astorino suggested they prioritize the projects in order of being vital, important and nice. He suggested this because as he said at last month’s meeting there is a different between the capital budget and operating budget.

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Resolution R-110-16 - Authorization for Executive Session for Certain Specified Purposes - Contract Negotiations –(1) Caldwell Sewer Utility; (2) Traffic Signal Cost Sharing Agreement; B. Litigation – (1) COAH Declaratory Judgement C. Anticipated Litigation – (1) Tenancy of Borough Owned Residence D. Liquor License (1) Return of Deposit (2) New Bid Dates (3) New Price was read. Motion was made by Council President Santomauro seconded by Councilman Astorino. Said motion was carried unanimously.

Re-opened to Public Meeting at 9:15pm.

There being no other matters to be addressed by the Governing Body at this time, a motion was made by Council President Santomauro, seconded by CouncilmanAstorinothat this meeting be adjourned at 9:17pmpm. This motion was carried unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,

Nancy A. Bretzger, Borough Clerk

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