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June 16, 2009

Caucus and Regular Minutes

CAUCUS:

Review of regular agenda – Mayor Alexander

Discussion regarding Tax Assessor Appointment – Mayor Alexander and Council President Fetter:
Tom Colavecchio spoke of his accomplishments as Tax Assessor and outlined his plans for the next four (4) years. Copy of which is attached. Council President Fetter commented that the personal touch Tom Colavecchio applies to the residents is wonderful and his hard work has shown. Mr. Fetter has received a tremendous amount of positive feedback.

REGULAR AGENDA:

Mayor Scott M. Alexander opened the regularly scheduled meeting with a salute to the flag and moment of silence.

He then stated, “In accordance with Section 5 of the Open Public Meetings Act, Chapter 231, P.L. 1975, notice of this meeting was posted on the bulletin board designed for that purpose and notice was mailed to the official newspaper provided by Resolution adopted January 3, 2009”.

Under Roll Call the following council members were present: Councilmen Daniel Haggerty, Lee Wentz and Tad Fetter, Councilwomen Rosemary Fitzgerald and Kathy Lange and Borough Solicitor Robert A. Gleaner, Esq. Councilwoman Sheilds and Borough Clerk were absent.

Resolution 2009:133 – Resolution Appointing Thomas Schneider to the Position of Patrolman (Effective date of July 1, 2009)

Motion was made by Councilwoman Lange to adopt Resolution 2009:133, seconded by Councilwoman Fitzgerald. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:134 – Resolution Appointing Michael Smollock to the Position of Patrolman (Effective date of July 1, 2009)

Motion was made by Council President Fetter to adopt Resolution 2009:134, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

Oaths of Office was administered by Mayor Alexander to Thomas Schneider and Michael Smollock. Detective Sergeant Giambrone presented them with their badges. Dsg. Giambrone welcomed Mr. Schneider and Mr. Smollock and advised that Chief Kinkler could not be here this evening due to his son’s high school graduation. The Police Department is very happy to have them.

Motion to approve the minutes from 5/19/09 was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor with the exception of Councilman Wentz who abstained due to absence.

Motion to approve the minutes from 6/4/09 was made by Council President Fetter, seconded by Councilman Wentz. All members present were in favor with the exception of Councilwomen Fitzgerald and Lange who abstained due to absence.

The following Committee reports were presented:

Councilwoman Fitzgerald reported for Zoning and Construction. Report on file with the Borough Clerk. Senior Citizens meeting was held today; only six people attended. They will continue meetings in September and go forward from there. There is a lot of demand for Senior Citizen Organizations, but attendance is lacking. Mrs. Fitzgerald spoke of stores on Station Avenue and gave some examples of how other towns operate. 4th of July festivities are all set. After the parade there will be field activities and free refreshments. We are currently in the process of gathering volunteers; the events are advertised on the website.

Councilwoman Lange reported for Parks & Recreation and the Historic Commission; report on file with the Borough Clerk.

Councilman Wentz reported that the Board of Health did not meet this month due to health issues. Drug Commission met for the last time before the 4th of July. Anyone interest in the 4k run may register July 3rd 6:00-8:30pm or July 4th 6:45-8:00 am.

Mayor Alexander asked Councilman Wentz if would give a presentation on the Municipal Alliance Grant at the next Council meeting on July 21st. Councilman Wentz replied yes.

Council President Fetter reiterated his comments supporting the re-appointment of Tom Colavecchio. He thanked the Police Department for all their hard work while working understaffed. Fire Department will be having a ceremony Friday evening for the housing of the new squirt fire truck. Regarding the Finance Department, the exit conference, summary of audit findings went very well. A lot of this reflected on the CFO.

Councilman Haggerty reported that he met with the Library Board and discussed their finances. They are trying to push the maximum service with minimum funds available and through fundraising. Audubon has shown an interest in utilizing our Library facilities; we are only in the fact finding stages right now. Mr. Haggerty stated that Court is doing an outstanding job. We are continuing with the process for a merger analysis. The grant application is being made to the State and hopefully we will move forward with it. Audubon has also showed an interest in joining Courts and they are welcome to join us. Reporting for EMS, we are in the process of formalizing a lease/contract arrangement with them. Reporting for Green Initiatives, a presentation will be made to Council in the near future. Green Initiatives is also interested in traffic calming. Borough Engineer Richard Lipko commented.

With no further reports to be presented Mayor Alexander called for remarks from the public on New Business agenda items.

There were none.

OLD BUSINESS:

Public Hearing and Final Adoption of Ordinance 2009:1311.

Ordinance 2009:1311 – An Ordinance Fixing and Determining the Salaries, Wages or Compensation to be Paid to the AFSCME Union Employees of the Borough of Haddon Heights for the Years 2008 (Retroactive) and 2009 (Motion needed to amend; public hearing as amended; then motion to adopt)

Motion to amend Ordinance 2009:1311 was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. Under a roll call vote, all members present voted in favor.

Hearing or seeing no comments from the public, motion to close the public hearing was made by Council President Fetter, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

Motion to adopt Ordinance 2009:1311 was made by Council President Fetter, seconded by Councilwoman Fitzgerald. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

NEW BUSINESS:

Resolution 2009:131 – Resolution Approval to Submit a Grant Application and Execute a Grant Agreement with the NJDOT for the Borough of Haddon Heights 2010 Road Program Project.

Motion was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald to adopted Resolution 2009:131, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:132 – Resolution Appointing Thomas J. Colavecchio to the Position of Tax Assessor (Thomas J. Colavecchio was appointed 3/18/08 to fill the unexpired term of the former Tax Assessor, which term expires June 30, 2009.)

Motion was made by Council President Fetter to adopted Resolution 2009:132, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:135 – Resolution Authorizing the Mayor to Enter Into an Agreement with the New Jersey Department of Transportation for Federal Aid agreement #08-DT-BLA-480 (Federal funding obtained in the amount of $250,000 to carry out the Historic Railroad Corridor Enhancement Project)

Motion was made by Council President Fetter to adopted Resolution 2009:135, seconded by Councilwoman Fitzgerald. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:136 – Resolution Approving Bills & Claims for June.

Motion was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald to adopted Resolution 2009:136, seconded by Council President Fetter. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:139 – Resolution Authorizing Borough Solicitor to Perform Duties Which Are Not Covered in His Professional Services Contract. (Review of Ordinances for Codification)

Motion was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald to adopted Resolution 2009:139, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:140 – Resolution Seeking Approval of Director of Division of Local Government Services to Include $11,574.00 Received From Municipal Alliance On Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Grant in the 2009 Municipal Budget in Accordance With NJSA 40A:4-87

Motion was made by Councilman Wentz to adopted Resolution 2009:140, seconded by Council President Fetter. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:142 – Resolution Appointing Kelly Santosusso to the Position of Registrar of Vital Statistics.

Motion was made by Councilman Haggerty to adopted Resolution 2009:142, seconded by Council President Fetter. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:141 – Resolution Providing for a Meeting Not Open to the Public in Accordance with the Provisions of the New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act, NJSA 10:4-12.

Motion was made by Councilwoman Lange to adopted Resolution 2009:141, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

With no further business to come before council, Mayor Alexander opened the meeting for comments and concerns.

Bill Lange, 26 First Avenue commented that he regularly attends the Board of Education meetings and was surprised to hear they have $800,000 in surplus, and that they also found $200,000 for a new track. Mr. Lange was told in the past that money cannot be put into surplus for capital accounts, but that is exactly what is happening.

Carolyn DiMedio, 106 Kings Highway, commented on the $800,000 the School Board is holding in surplus and feels the public should have a say on how that money is spent. Mrs. DiMedio commented that Tom Colavecchio is doing what he said he would do and it is nice to see things moving forward. Thanked Council for making her happy.

John Rayser, 611 W. High Street asked if clean up could please be done by Stanfill Towers and along the tracks and also asked if we could do something with the drainage by Lippincott. Per Rich Lipko, Borough Engineer, it will be fixed.

Motion was made by Councilwoman Fitzgerald to go into closed session, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

Closed session:  Present were Councilpersons Fetter, Fitzgerald, Lange, Wentz and Haggerty, Mayor Alexander, Deputy Clerk Holcombe and Solicitor Gleaner.  Councilwoman Sheilds was absent.  Richard Lipko was also in attendance during the discussion of real property purchase only.

Discussion ensued concerning matters relating to collective bargaining agreements; matters relating to the purchase, lease or acquisition of real property or the investment of public funds; matters relating to litigation, negotiations and the Attorney-Client Privilege; and matters relating to the employment relationship.  No formal action was taken.

Motion was made by Councilwoman Lange to adjourn the closed session and open the meeting to the public, seconded by Council President Fetter. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:137 – Resolution Approving Family and Medical Leave Procedures

Motion was made by Council President Fetter to adopt Resolution 2009:137, seconded by Councilman Haggerty. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2009:143 – Resolution Authorizing the Mayor to Sign Contract for the Purchase of the New Jersey American Water Company Properties

Motion was made by Councilman Haggerty to adopt Resolution 2009:143, seconded by Council President Fetter. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor with the exception of Councilman Wentz who voted no.

Resolution 2009:138 - Resolution Approving Contract With AFSCME AFL-CIO District Council 71, Local 3869

Motion was made by Council President Fetter to adopt Resolution 2009:138, seconded by Councilman Wentz. Under a roll call vote, all members present were in favor.

Motion to adjourn was made by Councilman Wentz, seconded by Councilwoman Lange. All members present were in favor.

________________________________________
Marie Holcombe, Deputy Borough Clerk