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TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON, WARREN COUNTY
Regular Meeting
June 15, 2004
The regular meeting of the Township Committee was held this date at the Municipal/Police Building locate on Little Philadelphia Road. The meeting was called to order at 7:32 p.m. by Mayor John A. Horensky.
SUNSHINE LAW COMPLIANCE - The Deputy Mayor noted that this meeting was being held in compliance with the Open Public Meetings Law of 1975 in as much as a notice had been published in the Star Gazette, transmitted to the Express Times and posted at the municipal building.
ROLL CALL: Dempski, present; Kovacs, present; Mueller, present; Strunk, present. Township Attorney Edward J. Glynn and Township Clerk Mary Ann O’Neil were also present. Horensky was absent.
SALUTE TO FLAG
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Dempski asked that the Executive Minutes be held for correction during Executive Session.
Kovacs made a motion to approve the Regular Minutes of May 18, 2004, Dempski seconded.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes; Strunk, yes.
PROCLAMATION
The Deputy Mayor read a Proclamation Honoring President Reagan.
ORDINANCES
Kovacs made a motion to open Ordinance 04-08 Ordinance Amending Chapter 72 of the Code of the Township of Washington entitled “Fire Prevention (Transferring Washington Township Fire Official and Fire Inspector to Washington Township Fire District #1) (as amended) to the public, Dempski seconded. All were in favor. Nobody from the public wished to be heard. Kovacs made a motion to close the public hearing on Ordinance 04-08, Strunk seconded. All were in favor. There was discussion on whether the changes made in the ordinance since last meeting were minor or major changes. Glynn said they were minor changes. Kovacs made a motion to adopt Ordinance 04-08, as amended, on second reading, Dempski seconded.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes; Strunk, no.
Kovacs made a motion to approve Ordinance 04-09 Ordinance on Amendment to Collection of Vegetative Waste on first reading, Dempski seconded.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes; Strunk, yes.
Public Hearing and second reading will be July 20, 2004.
RESOLUTIONS
The Deputy Mayor advised that any item for discussion should be removed prior to approval. Otherwise, one motion will cover all items on Consent Agenda. Kovacs made a motion to approve Resolutions 04-73 up to and including Resolution 04-76 Strunk seconded.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Strunk, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes.
04-73 Renewal of Liquor License, Washington Township Liquors, Inc. t/a Ocina
04-74 Renewal of Liquor License, Daya Wine & Liquors
04-75 Renewal of Liquor License, Roaring Rock Inn
04-76Renewal of Liquor License, ALE (formerly Michael’s Family Restaurant)
PUBLIC QUESTIONS & CONCERNS
George Braun, 34 Pohatcong Drive said there is a culvert between the adjoining properties. The culvert is clogged. The stormwater runoff runs up over the culvert and has been flooding his basement, but now it is effecting the neighbors property. The Township came in and piled stone in his driveway and around the culvert to try to back the silt and sediment up from the rest of the development. Braun asked what the next step would be, because right now he has a pile of stones in his driveway that he has to drive around. There had been talk about getting the Fire Department to come over and blow the clog out of the culvert. Strunk said about a month ago, there was a lot of rain. The next morning he received a call from Pete de Boer, Public Works Manager, and there was going to be a meeting with himself, Robert Miller, Township Engineer and Mark Demelia. The water had overflowed and siltation had gone into his swimming pool. Demelia was interested in what the Township was going to do about the situation. They looked at the issue and Strunk directed the Township Road Department to put the stones in the driveway to act as a diffuser, to try and stop the thrust of the water. Braun said it stopped the debris coming down the road and pushed it down into the culvert, which is now backed up. Strunk said that Demelia wanted other things done, but he was concerned about taking township equipment on to private property to do any type of improvements. Strunk said he personally delivered some top soil to help the situation. Strunk said he received a call from de Boer that this pipe is clogged now. Braun said during the recent rain the water overflowed over the pile of stones.
Strunk said that de Boer had asked if he could get authorization from the fire company to take the tanker and flush the pipe to see if they could dislodge any of the materials in the culvert.
Mark Demelia, 36 Pohatcong Drive, said that every time it rains the culvert overflow on the property. The last big rain storm the water came down with such force it was like a river running through. It dug ruts in his property about two feet deep and went directly into his inground swimming pool. He lost all the mulch from his flower beds, flowers and the dirt. He had to pay $520 to have the pool totally drained and the 2" of silt and mud from the bottom of the pool was removed. He said they want to bring this problem again before the Committee, regardless of the lawsuit going on with the seller. He thinks that Braun and himself have been very patient over the years for a resolution to this problem. Demelia said the Township is responsible for the water run off, regardless of what a developer did years ago, the Township took ownership of the roads, you own it, you own the problem. Strunk said even with the stone diffuser put in, there is a potential of having a storm worse than the last one that could overflow what was done and again flood the pool.
Kovacs asked if Miller has looked at this problem and he has. Strunk said the solution is additional piping and drainage in the Pohatcong Terrace Area. He said part of the difficulty is going to be the outflow, which is going to go into Pohatcong Creek. However, with the change in ordinances, the permitting process is going to be arduous. Kovacs asked if the Township owns any of this property and Strunk said we do not, so this is private property.
Dempski asked what the next step would be and Strunk said that the Committee could either do something with the piping, do nothing with the piping or wait to see about the resolution with Frasella. These are the options, take the problem on or don’t take the problem on or see if somebody else is going to take it on. Demelia said that he would like to see the fire company go to the culvert and try to clean it out and possibly the street sweeper could come up and clean up the silt and dirt on the road. Fire Chief Jim Vergos said that de Boer should call him to arrange having the culvert worked on.
Mayor Horensky came into the meeting at 8:55 p.m. and took over the meeting.
Richard Cotton, Asbury Farms/Hawk Pointe Golf Course, said that as long as the Committee was in a mood to be helpful, he was here to request, as part of the ongoing discussion with taxes, golf course and issue that has been going on for the last 3 years with the board, with their tax counsel will somehow help them in setting up a meeting so they can try to come to some kind of resolution. This has drug on and on and has caused them a lot of financial hardship, as well as with the municipality and it seems to be at an inpass that the governing body really needs to get involved and decide what they/we are going to do. Cotton said he was at the meeting for help, to find out if the board, with counsel can sit down and come up, through some kind of negotiations or sit down and try to understand what the issues are, that is what he is requesting. The Mayor asked Cotton if his counsel knew he had come before the Committee to make this presentation/request, Cotton said yes. The Mayor said, to get the facts straight, Cotton was asking the Committee if they would be interested in sitting down with him and his counsel and Township Attorney to try to come up with a settlement. Cotton said absolutely, it has gone on in a ridiculous way and the Township is wasting a lot of money and they are wasting a lot of time and money. Cotton said, ultimately, they are here to be a good business in the Township and to pay the taxes and want to make more investments in the Township and move forward. Cotton said it would benefit everybody to try to work together. The Mayor asked if there was any comments from the Committee. Kovacs said this should be discussed later and get back to Cotton with an answer. The Mayor said this would be discussed in Executive Session. Cotton said he would wait for a while, but could not stress enough the importance of this big issue. Cotton said the project is going along well and has the potential to be great and be a positive benefit and he would like to keep moving in that direction. Glynn said, Martin Allen is Special Tax Counsel for the Committee with regard to the pending litigation and he would not be here tonight and any decision the Committee would make would require Allen’s input. Glynn said that he did not know if the Committee would have an answer tonight and he was not sure what kind of answer Cotton was looking for other than some indication that the Committee may be willing to have settlement discussions. Glynn said, there already has been a number of either settlement conferences in court or private meetings between Cotton’s attorney and the Committee’s special counsel that have not resulted in any settlement. Cotton said it would behoove the Township and some members of the governing body to be involved in that process, because it has gone on long enough and it is economically not going anywhere. Cotton said the input of the Committee, which ultimately has the decision anyway is imperative. Glynn said the Allen would not be able to attend a Committee Meeting, due to a prior commitment on that evening, so a special meeting may be necessary. Kovacs said that either there would be a special meeting or appoint two members of the Committee to get together with the other three parties, which could be done without a special meeting and he would be glad to serve on the Committee.
Matt Noctor, 66 Coleman Hill Road, Fire District Commissioner, didn’t understand the ordinance that was voted on regarding the Fire Officials going over to the Fire District. He asked if the requested changes were made and Glynn advised they had been made. Mueller said approximately 5 changes had been made. Strunk said he voted no, because when there is an inspector out there, there may be a citizens complaint and if he was a citizen, the first place he would go would be the Township. Strunk said any employee should have direct responsibility from the Township Committee. Strunk said he felt the employee should be accountable to the Township Committee for their actions, because that is who the taxpayers will be coming to complain. Noctor said that if people have complaints the about the inspectors, they should address their complaints to the Fire District, who meets once a month. (Ended 8:10 p.m.)
OLD BUSINESS
1. Status of Policy Manual - Dempski said he had a conversation with Sharon Cooper of Brown and Brown. She told him about a course to take to get a small reduction in the premium for insurance. Cooper said if the Township does not have the completed handbook that meets their requirements, the rates go up considerably in terms of deductible Co-Pays and what the Township would be responsible for in terms of loss. Dempski said the Policy and Procedure Manual is due by July 1st and if it is not received the rates will go up considerably. Glynn said the notebook and cd had been given to him a few months ago which contains a number of policies and procedures, most of which are mandatory and as long as those policies and procedures are adopted, then the Township would qualify for the lower rates. Glynn said his secretary was printing everything from the cd that was given to her and a resolution was prepared for the Mayor’s signature tonight that would adopt the Personnel and Policy Procedures that were recommended by Brown and Brown, which would make the Township qualified. Glynn said the concern that has to be addressed is that there is a mandatory policy that talks about the hiring of a personnel administrator to maintain all the personnel files of all township employees. There are a number of steps that need to be done on a periodic basic by that person. Glynn said this does not need to be in place by July 1st if the procedure is adopted. Glynn said it would involve a fair amount of time and work for the person designated as Personnel Administrator.
There was discussion on the Employee Evaluation that is part of the manual. Dempski said this is something that he would like to review. The Mayor asked if the Committee would be bound by the evaluation that is being proposed. The Mayor asked on the resolution passed tonight, would it need an effective date and could it be amended. Glynn said they it would be in effect and sets the procedure in motion to comply with them in an ongoing basis. The Mayor said he would like to see the manual before it is adopted. Glynn said the Committee is adopting the Policies and Procedures that the insurance consultant had explained to the under the Alliance Fund. Glynn said that almost every one in the section of Managing and Supervising Procedure, as well as policies, are all mandatory. So, if the Committee is going to qualify for the low rate, the Township has to adopt those policies and procedures that are being dictated to the Township. Dempski said the policies must be in place by July 1st. Glynn said the personnel procedures are mandatory and there may already be someone that handles the employee personnel records. There was some discussion on who would be named. Kovacs made a motion to approve Resolution 04-77, Policy and Procedure Manual as requested by Insurance Company, Mueller seconded. Glynn asked for a signed copy of resolution to forward to Brown and Brown.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Mueller, yes; Dempski, yes; Kovacs, yes; Strunk, yes.;Horensky, yes.
2. Status on Pacesetters Field/Meeting with Residents - Dempski passed out minutes from the meeting held on May 26 at 7:00 p.m. to review the field layout and address any concerns of the field and the surrounding neighborhood. Dick Flint, Steve Fritts, Dempski and several residents were at this meeting. There are about 25 large boulders that form a boundary around 2 sides of the field. Dempski said there was concern about the size of the goals and the size of the field itself. The boundaries of the field is not known yet. The only thing being installed on the fields would be trash cans. The field can be used by anybody on an informal basis. There was major concern about liability and insurance and how the Township would fit into it. Dempski said that rules and times need to be clearly posted on the property, which includes No Trespassing Signs along the boundaries by Jockey Hollow. Also, there should be screening, which could be done by creating a berm on the field, tree barrier or excavating the field down. The berm itself, the engineering would cost about $1700 and a 5' tall berm would not be high enough, so it is ruled out. Dropping the field down would be impossible, because the field is not of good quality. So, there could be a seedling barrier or use a mature tree barrier. This could run between $2100 and $3000 to get installed. The Recreation Commission felt there is no need for this field right now. In the future, it will be a practice field.
Dempski said the Committee must come to an agreement on what they want to do in terms of reducing the impact to the neighborhood. The field cannot be used for formally scheduled for practices or games, per the Recreation Commission. No goals will be installed and the fields will mowed on a regular basis.
The Mayor said a farmer had approached him and indicated that he had concerns because he had equipment on his property and had seen people on his property. The Farmer had asked the Mayor if they are considering a buffer, that his area be done as well. His concern was safety and didn’t want people going on to the farm. Dempski said, once the field is surveyed that no trespassing signs can be put up, then people would know where the boundaries were for the field. Dempski said the rules need to be posted and no trespassing signs be put up now. Strunk asked if this needed to be voted on. Kovacs said it is in the Recreation Commission Budget, they would handle it.
Nick Bonsignore , 7 Jockey Hollow Road, said he has made no bones about not wanting this field He requested that Dempski continue with his good work and thanked him for what had been done. Bonsignore said they will support them in whatever they decide and would work with them in whatever way that he can. Bonsignore said there are some neighbors that share his concerns and there are some that do not care, because it is not in their back yard.
Terry Brandunas 15 Jockey Hollow Road, said he believed the proposed trees are more than privacy, he thinks it is a safety issue. It is a hill into rocks. Brandunas said the responsible thing to do is to start now with small trees and get up a natural fence.
NEW BUSINESS
1 & 7 Kovacs made a motion to approve the appointment of Claire Tondreau and Robert Klingel to the Open Space Advisory Committee to fill unexpired terms, Strunk seconded.
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Strunk, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes; Horensky, yes.
2.James Vergos, Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company, said that tonight when he came home from work he was wondering why he was being besieged by Channel 69 News and Easton Express. Vergos asked that Agenda Item 2[1] be changed that the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company was not succeeding from the Union or 911 Center and did not know where this came from because his e-mail to the Mayor was seeking support from the Council. On May 20, 2004 the Warren County Fire Chiefs Association had their bi-monthly meeting at the Tri-County Fire House. At that time, Brian Burke, Safety Works Director, came to that meeting and told them of a proposed change that he was going to institute, which would effect all Fire Departments and Rescue Squads. At the present time, the pagers were being tested on a nightly basis, Monday through Sunday. Burke’s proposal was to go to Mondays and Thursdays. It was an unanimous vote by the fire chiefs not to approve that proposed change and was endorsed by Warren County First Aid Council. Burke decided to institute this, regardless of what the fire chiefs thought. Vergos said, on page 15 and 16 of the Interlocal Agreement that was signed by Mayor Michael Kovacs, on July 18th, it clearly states that any proposed changes have to be in written form and presented to the 911 Committee (fire chiefs, first aid council, police) and if it was endorsed, then it would have to be approved by the Board of Chosen Freeholders. None of this policy was followed. Vergos said he e-mailed Mayor Horensky and asked for his support from the committee with a letter to the Warren County Freeholders asking the paging be instituted back to 7 days a week. In the interim, Vergos said he made a telephone call to Freeholder Gardner, who was not aware there was a problem. Shortly after the telephone call the policy was reinstituted. Vergos said that the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Department is a non-profit organization and as chief of the department he had been elected by the members to protect the citizens of the community. Vergos said it also irked him that he had to fill out an OPRA Form and pay $7.50 for information. Kovacs asked if this was for copies he requested, Vergos said yes. Kovacs made a motion that Jim Vergos be reimbursed the $7.50 he paid for information from the Township under OPRA, Strunk seconded. Strunk further stated that when he requested information from the Clerks Office he has had to pay, which is under OPRA. All were in favor.
The Mayor asked Glynn to research the OPRA Law to see if governing body officials would have to follow the OPRA Law in getting copies of information.
3.Kovacs made a motion to approve Eric Lucy attending a seminar on Greater Lehigh Valley Baseball Clinic, Strunk seconded. All were in favor.
4.Strunk made a motion from the Panther Football Group to use Meeting Room for Coach’s Clinic on Sunday, June 27th from 3:30 p.m. until 6:00 p.m., Mueller seconded. All were in favor.
5. Riperian Buffer Restoration along Brass Castle Creek - Grace Messinger, North Jersey Resource Conservation and Development Council (NJRC&D) said they are a non-profit organization that works in Warren County. They offer mini grants to municipalities and different organizations to repair buffers in the watershed. They have been offering up to $20,000 for groups to install and repair buffers, which is the area along the stream to protect the stream from potential sources of pollution and shade the stream, because a cooler stream has better water quality. Messinger said she had talked with Dempski recently and there are some items coming up in the town based on DEP Enforcement issues. They are willing to hear what the issues are and have a representative from the Division of Watershed Management, take those issues and direct them to DEP Enforcement to see if they would be able to resolve them. They would work within the different regulations to protect the stream bank and take out the invasive species that is at Meadow Breeze Park and replace it with trees and shrubs. Messinger said the Natural Resource Conservation Service Standard is 1/3 of the flood plain, which is minimum 35 feet. They are willing to work within those areas for the ultimate goal of protecting the stream. Messinger said that if the sites are nominated for this funding source, it is taken to a Repair and Advisory Committee. They grant conditional approval and they take notes and information from the site visits, along with a representative from DEP and give NJDEP / Non Point Source Staff, who are the ones originally giving the money, time to comment. During that time they can investigate at the site to make sure nothing will come back to the Township in the future on enforcement issues. There is up to $20,000 available once the site is approved by the Advisory Committee and DEP. Once the approvals are received, they would come in and meet with the Township Committee, Recreation Commission, Department of Public Works and Environmental Commission to give a power point presentation as to what they have done on other projects, what a Riparian Buffer is and how it protects the stream just to increase everyone’s knowledge and get the municipalities understanding of what they are trying to showcase. Strunk said he would like to have himself and Kovacs meet with the representative prior to the meeting with the Assemblyman. Messinger said they do require a 25% match. which could be in kind service, which could be volunteers planting or Department of Public Works helping if necessary. Chief Mc Donald said that the Warren County Jail has a program where nonviolent offenders, in lieu of going to jail, have projects similar to this and they could be used. Messinger said they would probably be able to grant conditional approval by August and maybe plan for a spring planting. Strunk will be working with Messinger on this.
6. Messinger said that Dempski had also asked her in behalf of North Jersey RC&D if they were considering putting in a proposal for the 319 Non Point Source Grant to DEP. They have contacted the DEP and found out that it is very in-depth and more than their organization can handle at this time.
8. Monthly Report/Robert Miller - The Mayor asked if the Committee had any questions on the report. Strunk said that he thought there would be an issue coming up on the salt shed. Strunk said he has something in his mind on the existing facility.
9. Dempski asked if the Committee was going to vote on the Kathy Enz Resolution. Enz wants to preserve her property in the SADC. Kovacs made a motion to approve Resolution 04-78, Resolution Granting Approval of the Purchase of a Development Easement on the Kathleen Enz Farm, Block 3, Lot 2 and is eligible for purchase, Dempski seconded
ROLL CALL: Kovacs, yes; Dempski, yes; Mueller, yes; Strunk, yes; Horensky, yes.
A break was taken from 9:25 p.m. until 9:38 p.m.
REPORT FROM OFFICIALS
Barry Mueller had nothing to report.
R.J. Strunk said that the drainage issue had already been discussed. He had a discussion with the Fire Inspector and had some questions on his undedicated funds, which he transmitted to the CFO and copied the Committee.
Michael Kovacs had nothing to report on the Road Department. Strunk said that on Lock Street there are a number of drains that are clogged and he asked de Boer to check it the matter.
David Dempski said that on COAH, he had a copy of the Annual Report for everyone and gave a copy to the Clerk for the files. Dempski said that the Township is down 13 units for rehabilitation.
On the Recreation Commission, they are planning a Field Scheduling Meeting on July 16th 7:30 p.m. at the Police/Municipal Building. On the Pavilion, there are some repairs to the roof that need to be done and there are some cracks in the floor. Flint proposed that each member of the Commission be assigned a section of the park. Flint had asked Dempski to write a letter to Chief Mc Donald about several issues in the park, one of which was lowering the speed limits on Meadow Breeze Lane and Kayharts Lane within the park properties. Chief Mc Donald recommended the speed limit be changed on the entire length. Dempski will do the ordinance on the speed reduction and have ready for the July meeting Flint said he had talked to de Boer about speed bumps in the park and de Boer said it is not a good idea, it would interfere with snow plowing. Dempski said that people would like to use their telescopes in the park, but there is an ordinance about people being in the park after dusk.
On Open Space, Dempski said that tonight they appointed two new members and their next meeting is July 15th and they will be meeting the third Thursday of every month. The first big project will be the digital open space inventory of the Township and all property will be put into GIS and put into a plan that DEP can look at. Also, there will be big input into the Open Space Recreation Plan.
The Youth Association will be rescheduling their Field Day for June 21st. So far in the program, there has been a big increase into Introduction Soccer over last year.
The Needs Assessment Meeting will be either July 7th or 21st at the Administration Building. Dempski passed out a Summary of the Washington Township Building Authority in 2003.
There was discussion on getting a machine that would record the speed and also be able to have messages on them for people. Dempski suggested that this may be something that can purchased from the money received from the DMV Grant and put in budget for next year.
Mayor John Horensky said he attended the DARE Graduation, which was very well received. The children are really enthused about it and the key is to make sure that it is constantly reinforced, not only by the police, but the parents as well.
The Mayor said he had recently talked with Freeholder Gardner and about the Hampton Bridge Project. Gardner indicated that he had spoken with the residents and they were interested in providing him with additional information. The Mayor also asked him if he would be willing to host a meeting that they could sit down and discuss the matter. The Mayor said he has done some investigating and you cannot construct a one lane bridge with the funding sources. He was also made aware that if the municipality’s roadways approaching the bridge were smaller than the width of the bridge, they would not be required to expand the width of the bridge or roadway. Nor, is the Township required to improve the roadway and they would not be held liable for that, as long as the roadway itself was not engineered. The Mayor said that portion of the road approaching the bridge was never engineered. The Mayor said that a suggestion was that the road be posted as a one lane road, or a sign that said yield to oncoming traffic. Jeff Cooper, Public Works Department, said the road had been widened a bit, but there was no engineering involved. Dempski said the residents want to work with the County, they know the bridge needs to be repaired, but did not like the way this had been handled. Kovacs asked Chief Mc Donald if the Township could put a weight limit on the road, Chief said it could be done if it is a Township Road. Dempski said his concern was that this road will become a short cut for people.
The Mayor had a meeting with the Block Watch Group in Pacesetters I and they had a very good informal conversation with the people. There is a lot of interest in understanding more about the municipality. As a result of this meeting, he came away with a stronger feeling for a project that he would like to move on, which is to get community input process going. There would be residents coming together to help look at what the municipality is doing now, do a visionary process, get the input from residents as to what they are looking for in the municipality, what the strengths and weaknesses are. They would work forward on this having a process whereby they could enlist citizen participation in the municipality. The Mayor said it is important that citizens know that their voice can be heard and should be heard. The Mayor would like to go forward with this process and convening meetings with groups of interested residents of the municipality. Dempski said, under the Land Use Board Regulations, they could create a Citizens Advisory Committee. Kovacs said doing this would limit the amount of people and that the Mayor was looking for discussion from different neighborhoods to get their input. The Mayor would like to have a Core Group of people that could serve as the governments of the process. This would help run the meetings, convene the meetings and the keeping of minutes of what goes on, the ideas and process and set up focus groups of senior citizens, young families, teenagers and get the various points of view.
The Mayor said the CERT Program just started was a good step in doing this. Strunk said he would like to see a proposal drawn up before he would lend support, which would give him a better understanding of what is being proposed. Dempski agreed.
Chief Mc Donald said that on the subject of Neighborhood Watch programs and CERT Program, there was legislation passed, through Home Security, that there is going to be a lot of funds available to municipalities. However, they were designed to be run through the Sheriffs Department, who are out of touch with the municipalities. This will have to be worked out. The Chief said that Washington Township is ahead of all the municipalities in Warren County and had the first CERT Program in Warren County.
Chief Mc Donald asked that the Committee consider passing a Nuisance Ordinance for the Township. His department has a problem, because they are called out to answer Nuisance Calls and the ordinance the Township has is not a good one. The Chief had a copy of an ordinance from another municipality and asked that it be written for the Township and introduced at the next meeting. Dempski had two things that he would like to see put into the ordinance, that under enforcement, the Zoning Officer should be included and under (H) be very careful that farmers are not prohibited using manure on their fields. The Mayor said the Township has a Right to Farm Law. The ordinance was given to Glynn to revise and prepare.
PAYMENT OF BILLS
Mueller made a motion to approve the bill list, Strunk seconded,
ROLL CALL; Mueller, yes; Strunk, yes; Dempski, yes; Kovacs, abstain;
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Strunk made a motion to go into Executive Session at 10:15 p.m., Kovacs seconded. All were in favor.
The doors were opened. Strunk made a motion to come out of Executive Session at 12:05 a.m., Strunk seconded. All were in favor.
Kovacs made a motion to approve the Executive Session Minutes from May 18, 2004 , as amended, Dempski seconded..
Glynn asked that the record reflect, that with regard to insurance coverage of a police officer, Glynn will send a letter to Cathy Gangaware, CFO, indicating the Committee’s interpretation that a previous waiver pertained only to health care, and while still valid, the same did not pertain to dental coverage, which coverage will now be provided. Glynn said, with regard to the Asbury Farms matter, following discussion about possible settlement of pending litigation, Glynn will ask Martin Allen to write to the plaintiff’s attorney offering a stipulated number of acres, in order to resolve that issue while not admitting that the stipulated acreage is correct. Glynn will also ask Allen to consider filing a Motion to Dismiss for refusal to allow Michael Schmidt, Tax Assessor, and the Township’s appraiser to have access to the golf course. A special meeting will be scheduled prior to the September trial date so that Allen can review the case with the Committee. Finally, Allen will communicate that any meetings or settlement discussion will be between himself and the plaintiff’s counsel and will not involve the Committee or any of its members.
On the Tarsi matter, he will follow up with another letter to Attorney Lee taking him up on his offer to get an updated prognosis by July 1st as well as an indication indicating whether Tarsi is in fact returning and if so when will she be returning to the position of employment.
Also, there is the issue of the $9300+ that needs to be spent in emergency appropriation for a new police vehicle. Mayor Horensky is going to discuss this matter with the Township’s auditor, as well as Gangaware, CFO and coordinate the steps involved in making that payment.
There being nothing further to come before the Committee, Kovacs made a motion at 12:15 a.m. to adjourn, Strunk seconded. All were in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Ann O’Neil RMC/CMC
Township Clerk
[1]Agenda Item 2 was listed per e- mail received from Fire Chief Vergos asking, Can you please put
me on the agenda for the next Township Meeting; Subject-discontinued service from 911 Center.
