October 17, 2006 Minutes

October 17, 2006

Council President Trish Sheilds opened the regularly scheduled meeting with a salute to the flag and moment of silence.

She 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, 2006”.

Under Roll Call the following council members were present: Councilwomen Cortese and Sheilds, Councilmen Shopp, Ottoson and Witzig. Solicitor John B. Kearney was present. Mayor Griffith and Councilwoman Haven were absent.

Council President Sheilds presented certificates to Student Council members representing the Atlantic Avenue School, 7^th Avenue School and Glenview School. There were approximately 50 children in attendance along with their parents, principals and aides.

Motion to approve minutes from the October 3^rd meeting was made by Councilwoman Barbara Cortese, seconded by Councilman Gordon Shopp. All members present were in favor.

Committee Reports.

Councilman Donald Witzig reporting for Pubic Safety said that Police Department activity and gasoline usage reports were on file with the Borough Clerk. He also reported that the Public Safety Committee and Police representatives will meet tomorrow for contract negotiations.

Councilman Thomas Ottoson reporting for the Environmental Committee, said the committee met last week and said they are surveying a 15-acre site along Devon Avenue for site remediation. He noted that once the survey is done, the land where the old landfill was located may have to be surrounded by fencing or some other barrier. Ottoson said he will give future reports as information becomes available. The Councilman announced that the Committee is also looking into grants for solar power for street lights, building lights, etc. in an effort to save money on energy bills.

Council President Trish Sheilds reported that our Municipal Court received an excellent review and commended Court Administrator Catherine Lawson for doing a fine job. She then reported on the latest Engineer’s meeting held earlier this evening. The report is on file with the Borough Clerk for review.

Borough Solicitor John Kearney referred to his comment at the last council meeting when asked if he or the prosecutor were in the pension system. He said he answered the resident, saying they were not in the pension system. Kearney said he checked on this and found out that our prosecutor is paid through the Borough’s payroll and is therefore part of the pension system. Solicitor Kearney asked that the minutes reflect his clarification on this matter.

There were no further reports at this time.

The Borough Clerk gave a report of bids received for a new ambulance. She stated that 4 sets of specifications were mailed to vendors and only 1 vendor submitted a bid. The final cost of the new ambulance will be $132,129.00. The vendor who responded was P.L. Custom Emergency Vehicles from Manasquan, NJ.

Council President Sheilds called for remarks from the public on agenda items. There were none.

Old Business:

Public hearings for Ordinances 2006:1224 and 1225

Ordinance 2006:1224 – An Ordinance Regarding the Removal of Graffiti by Property Owner. (Recent state law allows municipalities to set time lines for the removal of graffiti from privately owned property and allows the municipality to charge the owner for the removal if not done by the property owner in a timely fashion.)

Hearing or seeing no comments from the public, motion to close the public hearing was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Witzig. All present were in favor. Motion to adopt Ordinance 2006:1224 was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Shopp. All present were in favor.

Ordinance 2006:1225 – An Ordinance Concerning Age-Restricted Housing Overlay Zone. (Will allow age-restricted housing in any zone, except for those properties fronting the White Horse Pike. Sets property size guidelines, front, side and rear setbacks, maximum coverage and building height.)

Hearing or seeing no comments from the public, motion to close the public hearing was made by Councilman Witzig, seconded by Councilman Ottoson. All present were in favor. Motion to adopt Ordinance 2006:1225 was made by Councilman Ottoson, seconded by Councilwoman Cortese. All present were in favor.

New Business:

Introduction of Ordinance 2006-1226. Public hearing and final adoption will be held on Wednesday, November 8^th at 8:00pm.

Ordinance 2006-1226 – an Ordinance to Chapter 450 of the Code of the Borough of Haddon Heights Related to Require all Residential and Nonresidential Development within the Borough to Provide for Its Share of Affordable Housing Attributed to Its Development.

Motion to introduce Ordinance 2006:1226 was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Shopp. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2006:151 – Resolution Setting the Hours for Halloween Trick or Treating and Curfew Hours for Mischief Night and Halloween Night. (Mischief Night and Halloween curfew is 8:30pm for persons under the age of 18. Trick or Treat hours are 3:00pm – 5:00pm and 6:00pm - 8:00pm.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:151 was made by Councilman Witzig, seconded by Councilman Shopp. All members present were in favor.

Resolution 2006:152 – Resolution Awarding a Contract to PL Custom Emergency Vehicles in the Amount of $133,129.00 for the Purchase of a 2007 Ambulance. (A one time discount of $1,000 is offered for prepayment of chassis, actual cost will be $132,129.00.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:152 was made by Councilman Witzig, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Under roll call all members present voted yes with the exception of Councilman Ottoson who abstained from voting.

Resolution 2006:153 – Resolution Authorizing Change Order #1 for the Project Known as 7^th Avenue Elementary School Pedestrian Safety Improvements. (Change order actually lowers the contract by $4,863.04 due to estimated project costs versus the as-built quantities.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:153 was made by Councilman Shopp, seconded by Councilwoman Cortese. Under roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:154 – Resolution Accepting a Grant from the Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund Municipal Program Through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the Department of Environmental Protection. (Grant in the amount of $161,291 was received for the Haddon Heights Landfill remediation project.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:154 was made by Councilman Ottoson, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Under roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:155 – Resolution Authorizing Council President to Sign Interlocal Agreement with the County of Camden for a Recycling Rebate in the Amount of $10,952.14.

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:155 was made by Councilman Ottoson, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Under roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:156 – Resolution Requesting Approval of Items of Revenue and Appropriation NJS 40A:4-87. (Grant money received for recycling and alcohol education/rehabilitation that was not anticipated in the budget. In order to use the money, permission from the State has to be obtained in order to included it in our budget. Total amount for both grants is $4,820.44.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:156 was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Witzig. Upon roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:157 – Resolution Authorizing an Emergency Appropriation. (Kings Highway pumping station.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:157 was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Upon roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:158 – Resolution Establishing Payments to Be Made by the Haddon Heights Ambulance Corps. (They are contributing $30,000 toward the purchase of a new ambulance. The payment to the Borough will be $6,000 a year for 5 years.)

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:158 was made by Councilman Witzig, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Under roll call all members present voted yes with the exception of Councilman Ottoson who abstained from voting.

Resolution 2006:159 – Resolution Authorizing Payment of Bills and Claims for 2^nd Half of October.

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:159 was made by Councilwoman Cortese, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Upon roll call all members present voted yes.

Resolution 2006:160 – Resolution Regarding Agreement with the Utility Engineering & Construction Agreement with the Department of Transportation of the State of New Jersey.

Motion to adopt Resolution 2006:160 was made by Councilman Ottoson, seconded by Councilman Shopp. Under roll call all members present voted yes.

With no further business to come before council, Council President Sheilds called for remarks from the public. No comments were made at this time.

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

_____________________________ 8:35pm

Joan D. Moreland, Borough Clerk