JANUARY 5,
2010
A Regular Meeting of the Township Council of the Township of
Roxbury was held on January 5, 2010 at 1715 Route 46, Ledgewood, New Jersey at
7:30 PM.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Adequate notice of
this meeting of the Township Council of the Township of Roxbury was given as
required by the Open Public Meetings Act as follows: Notice was faxed to the Daily Record, the
Newark Star Ledger and the Roxbury Register on December 18, 2009; notice was
posted on the bulletin board in the main hallway of the Municipal Building on
December 18, 2009.
ROLL CALL (Present):
Councilman Gary Behrens, Councilwoman Kathy DeFillippo, Deputy Mayor
Fred Hall, Councilman Martin Schmidt, Councilman Tim Smith, Councilman Richard
Zoschak, and Mayor Jim Rilee
ALSO PRESENT: Christopher Raths, Township Manager; Chris
Woods, Esq., Associate
Township Attorney;
BettyLou DeCroce, Township Clerk; and Amy Rhead, Administrative Aide
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Minutes for
Approval
December 15, 2009, Executive Session
Mr. Zoschak made a motion
to approve the regular meeting minutes as listed above. Mr. Behrens seconded the motion.
Roll Call: Mr. Zoschak ? Yes Mr. Behrens ? Yes
Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes
Mr. Hall ? Yes
Mr. Schmidt ? Yes Mr. Smith ? Yes
Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 7 to
0.
Executive Minutes to Be Released to the
Public
Mr. Smith made a
motion to approve the release of the executive minutes to the public as per the
attached list. Mr. Zoschack seconded the
motion.
Roll Call: Mr. Smith ? Yes Mr. Zoschak ? Yes
Mr. Behrens ? Yes Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes
Mr. Hall ? Yes Mr. Schmidt ? Yes
Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 7 to
0.
PUBLIC PORTION
None
Mayor Rilee amended the order of the agenda
to allow for the following presentations and discussions under ?MATTERS
REQUESTED/REFERRED BY COUNCIL MEMBERS, MANAGER, ATTORNEY OR CLERK:
NOTE: Mr. Smith stepped down from the meeting at
this time due his association with another non-profit organization that
involves Dr. Guberman?s husband.
Berkshire Valley Nutrition
Center
Lease
Representatives
Jessica Guberman. Ph.D., Executive Director, Community Options Enterprises, and
Carly Pogoreelski, a national non-profit agency, were available to discuss the
proposal to lease the building on Mill
Road. They
stated that they would use the location for their School to Employment Program
(STEP), which provides education and assistance regarding daily living skills
and employment to youth with developmental disabilities. Council members asked various questions about
the program and the lease. Dr. Guberman
answered that STEP:
Ø
carries
insurance.
Ø
is
applying to the Morris County Department of Human Services for a Community
Development Block Grant for the renovations needed to the building.
Ø
will use
the kitchen area to teach essential life skills, offices for administrative
functions, and meeting rooms for group sessions.
Ø
operates
during the week (generally, there will not be weekend hours).
Ø
supports
students between seventeen and twenty-four years of age.
Ø
currently
services twenty-four students out of their two locations at Hamilton
and New Brunswick
hospitals.
Ø
anticipates
servicing approximately sixteen-hundred people, which includes students,
families, and school districts, during the course of a five-year lease of the
building.
Ø
provides
job coaches and Employment Specialists at all times.
Ø
transportation
and tuition is funded through the individual school districts and grant monies.
Ø
supports
students from other counties; is trying to expand into Morris County.
Ø
will
provide one-hundred and twenty hours per month of in kind, supervised custodial
(and various other) services to the Township as part of students? job sampling
experience.
Mrs. Decroce,
Township Clerk, stated that, prior to executing the lease agreement, all issues
about insurance coverage must be reviewed and approved by the Township?s Joint
Insurance Fund.
Mr. Hall made a
motion to continue the negotiations concerning the conditions of a lease with
Community Options contingent upon the successful awarding of the grant
monies. Mrs. DeFillippo seconded the
motion.
Roll Call: Mr. Hall ? Yes Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes
Mr. Behrens ? Yes Mr. Schmidt ? Yes
Mr. Zoschak ? Yes Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 6 to
0.
NOTE: Mr. Smith returned to the meeting at this
time.
Recognition of Roxbury High School 2009 State
Football Champs
This presentation
was carried from the prior Council meeting due to the absence of the football
team at the previously scheduled presentation.
Roxbury High School football team members missed
the meeting for a second time. Mayor
Rilee presented a congratulatory sign to Roxbury coach Mr. Frank Misurelli.
Mayor Rilee returned to the order of the
agenda.
REPORTS OF COUNCIL
LIAISON REPRESENTATIVES, COUNCIL COMMITTEES, AND NEW BUSINESS/OLD BUSINESS
Mr. Zoschak thanked the Department of Public Works for doing
a great job with snow removal.
Mr. Zoschak asked if the high school band would be receiving
a sign like the one presented to the football team. Mr. Raths stated that they would.
Mr. Hall stated that the equality of the type of recognition
should be considered when presenting awards, certificates, signs, and/or
plaques to different organizations/groups upon acknowledgement of
accomplishments.
Although the congratulatory sign was presented tonight,
Mayor Rilee asked Mr. Raths to send another invitation to the football team so
that the plaque can be presented to the players. He also asked Mr. Raths to ensure that the
high school band gets a congratulatory sign, as they already received a plaque.
Mr. Smith stated that the Open Space Committee closed on the
Dufford property.
Mr. Smith stated that the Water/Sewer Committee met and the
issues affecting their finances will be discussed later in the meeting.
Mr. Smith stated that the Open Space Committee is working on
their new open space plan. The Land
Conservancy has requested committee members to document their ideas in a rubric
they provided. The next meeting is scheduled
for January 20, 2010.
Mr. Smith stated that the Economic Development Committee is
meeting at the end of the month and asked Council members to forward him
thoughts or ideas they would like incorporated into the goal setting process
they will be working on.
Mrs. DeFillippo asked Mr. Smith to forward the Economic
Development Committee memo asking for input, to the Clerk?s office to be
distributed to the entire Council.
Mrs. DeFillippo requested that a presentation be scheduled
detailing the usage of current Township owned properties obtained through open
space, as well as information about new possible acquisition
opportunities. Mr. Smith stated that the
Council needs to approve any plan, so when it is completed, it will be
presented. Mayor Rilee stated that the Township has acquired most of the prime
real estate that had been targeted. Mr.
Smith spoke about a few other properties that the Township has considered in
the past and attempted to acquire.
Mr. Hall recommended reading the article in the recent Municipalities
magazine about limiting states mandates.
Mr. Hall reported on
the status of the Recreation Master Plan.
They are approximately halfway done with interviewing the various
recreation/club teams. Upon completion
of the documentation of the findings, Mr. Hall stated that it might be a good
idea to compare the findings with the Open Space Plan.
Mr. Hall asked about
the requirements of a Qualified Purchasing Agent. Mrs. DeCroce stated that Dianne Vanderhoof
has held that title even prior it being mandated.
Mr. Hall stated that
he asked the Roxbury Board of Education why they had not investigated using the
J.I.F. and H.I.F. for insurance. Mrs.
DeCroce stated that more and more school districts are joining. Mr. Hall asked Mrs. DeCroce to set up a
meeting and give the school district more information about Joint Insurance
Fund opportunities.
Mayor Rilee asked if
there has been any more discussion about the school district committing to
using the new DPW truck wash facility.
Mr. Blood stated that, it is his understanding, the school district
plans on utilizing that service.
Mayor Rilee stated
the Master Plan is meeting next week.
Mayor Rilee
recognized Daniel Montgomery for achieving the Boy Scouts of America Eagle
Scout honor. Mr. Schmidt will present
Daniel with a certificate at a ceremony this Saturday.
Mr. Raths stated
that he is continuing to work on finalizing the budget.
Mr. Raths reviewed
some of the findings of the Energy Audit that was in the Communications packet.
Mayor Rilee would
like items such as the Energy Audit on the agenda for discussion as opposed to
in the Communications packet. Mr. Raths
will add on the next agenda as a separate discussion item.
Mrs. DeCroce
reported that a letter was received today from the NJDOT and the Governor?s
office that the Township has been awarded $250,000 from the Transportation
Trust Fund for the Berkshire
Valley Road, Phase 2 resurfacing project.
A. New
Business
B. Old
Business
1.
Procurement Policy
MATTERS
REQUESTED/REFERRED BY COUNCIL MEMBERS, MANAGER, ATTORNEY OR CLERK
A. Recognition of Roxbury High School 2009
State Football Champs ? previously
discussed
B. Berkshire Valley Nutrition
Center Lease ? previously
discussed
DRAFT ORDINANCES FOR
DISCUSSION
None
INTRODUCTION OF
PROPOSED ORDINANCES
01-10 HOLD - AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER XII, SEWER AND WATER, OF THE REVISED
GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE TOWNSHIP OF ROXBURY, COUNTY OF MORRIS, STATE OF NEW
JERSEY, TO REVISE WATER RATES
Mr. Raths asked that the introduction of this ordinance be
postponed until after contractual issues are discussed in executive
session. To clarify for the public,
Mayor Rilee explained that there is a shortfall and rate increases will be
necessary.
02-10 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND AND SUPPLEMENT CHAPTER II,
ADMINISTRATIVE CODE, SECTION 2-17, OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES GENERALLY, OF
THE REVISED GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE TOWNSHIP OF ROXBURY, COUNTY OF MORRIS,
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Mr. Smith asked if
this ordinance contains any changes other than the line item for the Manager?s
compensation. Mr. Raths confirmed that
his salary is the only amount that is amended.
Mrs. DeFillippo made
a motion to introduce ordinance 02-10.
Mr. Smith seconded the motion.
Roll Call: Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes Mr. Smith ? Yes
Mr. Behrens ? Yes Mr. Hall ? Yes
Mr. Schmidt ? Yes Mr. Zoschak ? Yes
Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 7 to
0.
For clarification to
the public, Mayor Rilee stated that:
Ø
the
purpose of this ordinance is to give Mr. Raths a raise.
Ø
Mr.
Raths was solicited by another municipality in November of 2009.
Ø
Mr.
Raths was offered the job.
Ø
Council
members, at the time, felt that it was in their best interest to retain Mr.
Raths.
Ø
The
increase amount is approximately $20,000.
Ø
Mr.
Raths has not received a raise in three years.
Ø
If Mr.
Raths had received his raise over those years, figuring a four percent annual
increase, this raise would bring him to approximately the amount being offered
today.
Mayor Rilee stated
that Mr. Raths has been with the Township for eight and a half years and giving
him this increase is well worth it. He
further stated that he feels Mr. Raths does a good job and brings a lot of
professionalism to the building. He also
stated that he has seen a lot of other managers and ranks Mr. Raths near the
top. Mr. Hall stated that Mr. Raths has
done an outstanding job and is glad to have him in Roxbury. Mayor Rilee stated that he is glad to keep
him in Roxbury.
HEARING AND ADOPTION
OF ORDINANCES ON SECOND READING
None
DRAFT RESOLUTION FOR DISCUSSION
None
INTRODUCTION AND ADOPTION OF
RESOLUTIONS
10-16 A RESOLUTION INCORPORATING BY REFERENCE
HEREIN AND APPROVING THE FOLLOWING NUMBERED RESOLUTIONS LISTED ON THE REGULAR
COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA FOR THIS DATE:
10-17, 10-18, 10-19, 10-20, 10-21, 10-22, 10-23, 10-24
Mrs. DeFillippo made
a motion to adopt Resolution 10-16. Mr.
Behrens seconded the motion.
Roll Call: Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes Mr. Behrens ? Yes
Mr. Hall ? Yes Mr. Schmidt ? Yes
Mr. Smith ? Yes Mr. Zoschak ? Yes
Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 7 to
0.
10-17 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ACCEPTANCE OF A
CONSENT OF MORTGAGEE FROM CHASE BANK FOR THE GRANT OF SIGHT EASEMENT AND DEED
OF DECLARATION FROM NICHOLAS STAVRAKIS AND MICHAEL COOPER ACROSS LOT 20 IN
BLOCK 1901 IN THE TOWNSHIP
OF ROXBURY
10-18 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE RELEASE OF
PERFORMANCE GUARANTEES POSTED WITH THE TOWNSHIP OF ROXBURY
IN CONNECTION WITH WORK PERFORMED AND ACCEPTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH VARIOUS
TOWNSHIP RIGHT-OF-WAY EXCAVATION PERMITS
10-19 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ACCEPTANCE OF
THE SANITARY SEWER MAIN CONSTRUCTED IN CAREY ROAD FOR THE RALZONE, LLC MAJOR SUBDIVISION LOCATED AT 19 CAREY ROAD,
BLOCK 4305 LOT 12 (SHEEP MEADOW FARM)
10-20 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE SUBMISSION OF AN
APPLICATION FOR THE 2010 MORRIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAM
10-21 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AN INTERLOCAL
SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH THE BOROUGH OF NETCONG FOR SOLID WASTE REMOVAL SERVICES
Mayor Rilee
complimented the Roxbury staff for being proactive in efforts regarding shared
services and interlocal service agreements.
10-22 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF A
LEASE AGREEMENT WITH THE COUNTY OF MORRIS FOR USE OF APPROXIMATELY 2,200 SQUARE FEET OF
SPACE AT THE ROXBURY
COMMUNITY CENTER FOR A
NUTRITION SITE
10-23 A RESOLUTION AMENDING THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE
TOWNSHIP FIRE DEPARTMENT
10-24 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PAYMENT OF BILLS
PERSONNEL CHANGES
None
COMMUNICATIONS
December 18, 2009
#6 Correspondence
from Helen Newstead, Social Services volunteer, to Mayor and Council, dated
December 12, 2009, re: request to extend
the hours for Social Services to be open
Mr. Smith asked if a
response has been drafted regarding this request. Mr. Raths stated that he forwarded it to
Social Services. At the request of Mrs.
DeFillippo, Mr. Raths agreed to forward a copy of the written response to council
members upon its completion.
December 31, 2009
#1 Energy
Audit: Report prepared by Clough Harbour
& Associates, LLP, dated December 2009, re:
Roxbury Township Town Hall/Police Department Energy Assessment
It was decided that the Energy Audit results should be separated from
this packet and included as an agenda item on the next Capital Budget Meeting
Agenda.
#3 Correspondence
from Gabrielle Evangelista, Wharton Borough Clerk, re: ?A RESOLUTION URGING THE LEGISLATURE TO AMEND THE
OPEN PUBLIC RECORDS ACT TO ADDRESS VARIOUS TECHNICAL AND PRACTICAL ISSUES?,
adopted
December 28, 2009
Mayor Rilee asked Mrs. DeCroce for her opinion regarding the
Borough of Wharton?s adoption of the above resolution. Mrs. DeCroce stated if she thought it would
make a difference, she would have brought it to the Council a long time ago;
however, she does not believe adopting such a resolution will help or change
anything.
#7 Information:
?Idling Fact Sheet? and ?Enforcement Guidelines and Investigation
Procedures?
Mr. Zoschak stated that this is the information that he had
previously referred to when informing Council members that New Jersey did, in
fact, have a law regarding idling. Mr.
Raths stated that we requested this information based on Mr. Zoschak?s previous
inquiries regarding idling. Mr. Zoschak
stated that it is unenforceable.
PUBLIC PORTION
Dennis Wine
4 Holly, Succasunna
Mr. Wine stated that a private water company services his
property, but expressed concern that his rates will increase just because the
Township?s are. Mayor Rilee stated that
increases need to be justified to the Board of Public Utilities and are
supposed to be based on a cost benefit analysis.
Mr. Wine commended council members for keeping Mr. Raths on
board. He stated that Mr. Raths does a
great job for the taxpayers and citizens of Roxbury and is pleased that the
Council was able to retain him.
Mayor Rilee announced
that the Council would be returning to the regular meeting and voting on the
introduction of Ordinance 01-10 after Executive Session.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
10-25 A RESOLUTION OF THE TOWNSHIP COUNCIL OF THE TOWNSHIP OF ROXBURY,
IN THE COUNTY OF MORRIS,
NEW JERSEY AUTHORIZING CONFERENCE OF THE
TOWNSHIP COUNCIL WITH THE PUBLIC
EXCLUDED
At 8:25PM, Mr.
Zoschak made a motion to adopt Resolution 10-25 for Executive Session. Mr. Smith seconded the motion.
Roll Call: Mr. Zoschak ? Yes Mr. Smith ? Yes
Mr. Behrens ? Yes Mrs. DeFillippo ? Yes
Mayor Rilee ? Yes
Motion carried 7 to
0.
Note: Anthony Bucco, Esq., Township Attorney,
arrived to the meeting at the conclusion of the Executive Session.
At 8:55PM, the Council returned to the Regular
Meeting.
Mayor Rilee amended the order of the agenda
to allow for general discussion regarding water rates.
Lisa Spring, Chief Financial Officer, Michael Kobylarz,
Township Engineer/Director of Utilities, and Melanie Michetti, Senior Assistant
to the Engineer, joined Council members in general discussions regarding water
rates.
The state of the
economy, the carrying over of previous deficits, inaccurate anticipated revenue
projections, significant decreases in connection fees and water sales were
cited as factors in creating the revenue shortfall of approximately $800,000. Extensive discussion took place and several
options were discussed including rate increases, borrowing from the sewer
utility or taking out a loan. Lisa
Spring explained that due to the severity of this situation, the auditor is
intent on finding a way to address it and has advised that if the $425,000.00
is to be borrowed from the sewer utility, it would need to be entered as
anticipated revenue from the sewer utility in the current Fund Budget and as an
expenditure line item, or deficit, for the water utility. She further stated that the $425,000 deficit
from 2009 must be paid in 2010. Mayor
Rilee expressed frustration about having sewer utility customers subsidizing
the water utility and concern that there is no requirement that mandates
repayment. Mr. Raths stated that the
water utility will begin repaying this debt in 2013. Several council members conveyed their
displeasure with having to be put in a position to make such a huge decision on
such short notice.
A deficit cannot be
shown in the budget that gets submitted to the State, so council members
decided to introduce the ordinance showing a transfer of the money from sewer
to water and a twenty percent rate increase on water rates. In the meantime, if other options are discovered,
an amended budget can be submitted.
At 9:45PM, Mayor Rilee allowed for a short
recess.
At 9:55 PM, the meeting resumed.
Mayor Rilee amended
the order of the agenda to introduce the following ordinance that was held from
earlier in the meeting while addressing INTRODUCTION OF PROPOSED ORDINANCES:
01-10 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER XII, SEWER AND
WATER, OF THE REVISED GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE TOWNSHIP OF ROXBURY, COUNTY OF
MORRIS, STATE OF NEW JERSEY, TO REVISE WATER RATES
ADJOURNMENT
At 10:00PM, Mr. Smith made a motion to adjourn the
meeting. Mr. Schmidt seconded the
motion.
Roll Call: All in favor- Yes
Submitted By:
________________________
BettyLou DeCroce
Township Clerk
MINUTES APPROVED BY COUNCIL
DATE: February 23, 2010
ROLL CALL: Mr. Schmidt ? yes Mrs. DeFillippo ? yes
Mr. Behrens ? yes Deputy Mayor Hall ? yes
Mr. Smith ? yes Mayor Rilee - yes