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TOWNSHIP
MINUTES
MAY 21, 2008
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TOWNSHIP MEETING
MAY 21, 2008
The regular scheduled meeting of the Mayor and
Committee of the Township of Oxford was held on May
21, 2008 in the Township Municipal Building, 11
Green Street, Oxford, New Jersey.
Mayor Riley announced that the meeting had been
properly advertised in compliance with the OPMA of
1975 and called the meeting to order at 6:15 PM.
In attendance were Bonnie Riley, N. Angelo Accetturo
(arrived at 6:30 PM), William Bray, Michael Lavery,
Michael Finelli, and Sheila L. Oberly.
Everyone stood and recited the flag salute.
Mrs. Riley stated that the tax, sewer, and
treasurer’s reports for April 2008 are available to
the public in the back of the room.
On motion by Mr. Accetturo, seconded by Mrs. Riley
and passed unanimously on rill all vote to approve
the minutes from March 19th, April1st, April 7th,
and April 16th, 2008 meetings.
Susan Wagner-Glasser spoke to the Committee as a
representative from Let’s Celebrate Housing Inc. She
explained, Lets Celebrate Housing is a 20-year-old
housing developer, manager and preserver of
affordable housing. She stated that they are in a
heated discussion with the owners of Oxford Heritage
Manor and are hoping to purchase the property
relatively quickly to preserve the affordability for
the residents that are living there and any new
residents that would come there to live. She asked
the Committee for an extension of the Pilot Program-
(a payment in lieu of taxes) that currently exists
on this property. She needs the assurance from the
Committee that they will work with her to preserve
the Pilot Agreement for the length of time that they
will own the property, which would be somewhere
between fifteen to twenty years. Currently the
annual pilot amount that the township collects is
$15,000 to $20,000/ per year. Mr. Accetturo stated
that he would like to see what the Township has
collected for the years 2004 to 2007 before a
decision is made.
Mr. Lavery will review the initial Pilot Agreement
to make sure that the original agreement can be
extended and an agreement would then have to be
signed between the Township and Lets Celebrate
Housing Inc. stating that this restriction would
remain.
On motion by Mrs. Riley, seconded by Mr. Accetturo
and passed unanimously on roll call vote to
authorize Mike Lavery to review the Pilot Agreement
and report back to the Committee with his findings.
Ordinance 2008-03 Speed Bump Removal was read by
title on second reading and opened for public
comments.
Diane Hopper asked if more speed limit signs could
be erected. She stated that there is a section on
both sides of the road for about a mile, where there
is no signs posted. Being no more public comment,
the public comment period was closed.
On motion by Mr. Bray, seconded by Mrs. Riley and
passed unanimously on roll call vote, Ordinance
2008-03 was approved.
Mr. Lavery stated that in February the Oxford
Textile Redevelopment Agreement was revised to
change the number of units and a couple other minor
changes and he has discussed these changes with Dave
Roberts, CMX. These revisions and ordinance will be
forwarded to the Oxford Land Use Board for their
approval.
On motion by Mr. Accetturo, seconded by Mrs. Riley
and passed unanimously on roll call vote to extend
the Redevelopment Plan with Oxford Textile for six
months-from May 16, 2008 to November 17, 2008.
ORDINANCE 2008-06
ORDINANCE OF THE TOWNSHIP OF OXFORD, COUNTY OF
WARREN, STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO AMEND OXFORD TEXTILE
MILL REDEVELOPMENT PLAN
WHEREAS, the Township Committee of the Township of
Oxford, County of Warren, State of New Jersey,
adopted the Oxford Textile Redevelopment Plan
(“Plan”), June 28, 2006 and subsequently revised on
January 19, 2007; and
WHEREAS, the Oxford Textile Redevelopment Plan
(“Plan”) was revised pursuant to changes set forth
by David Roberts, Township Planner, of CMX, Inc. on
February 7, 2008; and
WHEREAS, the revised Plan is amended to the attached
Oxford Textile Overall Plan as Exhibit C to the
Plan.
Section 1.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED that the revisions to
the Oxford Textile Redevelopment Plan dated February
7, 2008 are hereby adopted.
Section 2.
Severability. The various parts, sections and
clauses of this Ordinance are hereby declared to be
severable. If any part, sentence, paragraph, section
or clause is adjudged unconstitutional or invalid by
a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of
this Ordinance shall not be affected thereby.
Section 3.
Repealer. Any
ordinances or parts thereof in conflict with the
provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed as
to their inconsistencies only.
Section 4.
Effective Date. This Ordinance shall take effect
upon final passage and publication as provided by
law.
On motion by Mr. Accetturo, seconded by Mrs. Riley
and passed unanimously on roll call vote to
introduce Ordinance 2008-06 Amend Oxford Textile
Mill Redevelopment Plan.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
WHEREAS, Section 8 of the Open Public Meeting Act,
Chapter 231, P.L. 1975, permits the exclusion of the
public from a meeting in certain circumstances, and
WHEREAS, this public body is of the opinion that
such circumstances presently exist.
1. The public shall be excluded from the discussion
of any action upon the hereinafter-specific subject
matter.
2. The general nature of the subject matter to be
discussed is: contractual matter (police negations).
3. It is anticipated at this time that the above
stated subject matter will be made public at the
conclusion of the litigation. The motion carried
with the following roll call vote.
On motion by Mr. Accetturo, seconded by Mrs. Riley
and passed unanimously on roll call vote to enter
into Executive session at 6:35 PM.
On motion by Mr. Bray, seconded by Mrs. Riley and
passed unanimously on roll call vote to enter into
regular session at 7:00 PM. The Committee discussed
the police contract for 2008-2010. No official
action was taken.
Boy Scout Troop # 138 attended the meeting as a
requirement to acquire the Citizenship Community
Merit Badge. This badge is an eagle-required badge
and part of the requirement is to attend and view a
Township meeting. The Scouts chose Oxford Township,
to come and listen, document the meeting, get
involved with the history of the town and to assist
the town with any projects in the future.
Brian Tipton, attorney for Samir Elbassionary, the
owner of 35A-35B Wall Street, (Old Municipal
Building) stated that Mr. Elbassionary was told if
he renovated the buildings, there would be a tax
exemption status. Basically the renovations would be
done, reassessment would be done on the new
renovated property and the taxes on the new portion
would be paid out in 20% increments up to five years
until the property went back to the fully assessed
tax status. In 2007 this tax exemption status should
have applied itself, but it did not happen.
Rich Motyka stated that there are two ways to apply
the five year abatement-the first being to apply an
incremental tax increase starting at zero percent
and 20% increments up to100 % taxation over the
course of five years and abate the rest or give it
as tax free. The second method is to give a straight
30% abatement across the board for five years
without any incremental increase. Ordinance 2006-09
states that if the building is a new building, it is
typically given a 20% incremental tax abatement
program and if it is a rehabilitation, it is given a
straight 30% across the board with 7% taxation. The
question has arisen over the past several months,
what actually this building would qualify for. Mr.
Motyka said he has contacted the New Jersey Division
of Taxation and the Division doesn’t want to take a
strong position on this matter-the final decision
would be up to the Township Committee and the Tax
Assessor. Mr. Motkya stated that 2008 is set and no
adjustment can be made. If everything moves forward
as is, there is no problem, it remains unchanged,
but if the decision were made to give 30%, it would
be adjusted in the next 4 years.
Mr. Lavery suggested that have Mr. Tipton submit
something to the Committee for their review at the
next Township Meeting.
Mr. Bray read a copy of a Resolution from the Land
Use Board that stated that this is an application
for a preliminary site plan minor sub division
approval to permit the renovation of an existing
commercial building for the purpose of constructing
a day care center and an accessory residential
apartment. He stated that this application was
granted based on the argument that it was a
pre-existing building-if it was new construction,
the building would not have meant the requirements
of the existing zoning.
Mr. Tipton stated that he would put all the facts
together with the law, present something in writing,
and present it to the Township Committee for their
review.
Resolution 2008-50 is to be tabled.
Ordinance 2008-04 Lake Dock and Playground Repairs
was read by title on second reading and opened for
public comments.
The Mayor stated that the Township received two
bids, some playground equipment will be removed and
other pieces of equipment will be repaired. The
amount to be paid is $10,500.00 to Dock and
Waterfront Construction. Being no more public
comment, the public comment period was closed.
The Land Use Board suggested raising the fees for
Site Plan Waiver. Mr. Accetturo stated that he would
like to have the Zoning Board Officer have more
authority in making decisions. The Committee will
review the permitted use list in the zoning
ordinance and report back at the next meeting on
June 5, 2008.
Mayor Riley read a Proclamation proclaiming May 19,
2008 as “Kathryn Melberger Day.”
PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS, it has come to the Oxford Township
Committee’s attention that Kathryn Melberger will be
ninety-five years “young” on May 19, 2008, and
WHEREAS, she is a lifetime resident of Oxford
Township, and
WHEREAS, the oldest resident living in Oxford
Township, and
WHEREAS, the Oxford Township Committee wishes to
honor her for past and present contributions as she
continues to play a vital role in our society, and
particularly in our Township, and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that I, Mayor Bonnie
Riley of the Township of Oxford hereby proclaim May
19, 2008 as:
“KATHRYN MELBERGER DAY”
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-first day of May in the year of our Lord, two
thousand and eight.
Bonnie Riley, Mayor
Oxford Township
ATTORNEY’S REPORT
Mr. Lavery said he reached out to Stuart Kellner’s
attorney, Jay Delaney and asked him the status of
the permits for Oxwall. Mr. Delaney stated that he
has not heard anything from his client therefore
could not confirm anything that Mr. Kellner had said
earlier- no progress on that. He reviewed the Maser
contract submitted by Mr. Zelley at last meeting and
will discuss that later to get the HDSRF progress
moving again. The pending litigation matter with 50
Wall Street, which is a tax appeal-a motion to
dismiss the complaint failure to provide any
documentation to support the claim. He provided Mr.
Motyka with a copy and will discuss the matter
later.
Mr. Accetturo asked if anyone on the Committee has
had any correspondence with Stuart Kellner since the
last meeting. Mrs. Riley said that she had called
him and left messages, which were not returned. She
also stated that she has called the EPA, the DEP,
the New Jersey State Department of Health and Senior
Services that control the state asbestos-not one
person had any records or knowledge of conversations
with him and no files were found. She was also told
by EPA that such abatement did not need an EPA
permit, that he would just have been instructed to
hire a company that does abatement and they would
tell him where to dispose of it.
Mr. Bray stated that he also has not heard from Mr.
Kellner. He said he also has had several
conversations with EPA-and they have no records in
their database of anything related to this property.
(50 Wall Street).
Mr. Lavery suggested sending a letter to NJDEP and
NJDCA, about the Township’s concern about the
possible contaminants on that site and cleanup
should be expedited. Mr. Lavery also stated that to
notify the Warren County Board of Health, and ask
them to go out to the site and see if there are any
violations.
Mrs. Riley will write a letter to Charles Herring,
(Regional Supervisor of Construction Code
Enforcement for the State of New Jersey Department
of Community Affairs-Northern Regional Office)
asking him to do an inspection of the OxWall site at
50 Wall Street.
ENGINEER’S REPORT
Mr. Finelli passed out the latest version of the
arsenic map, which is the final map-all the data is
on the map that has been received.
The Mt. Pisgah Road project will start as soon as
the Department of Public Works completes some
drainage repair. This years grant application for
next years project will be for Buckley Avenue. He
will bring this application to next month’s meeting
for action by the Committee authorizing the Mayor to
sign it.
Mr. Finelli said that he would attend a
certification class in Paramus on June 9, 2008 to
become the MHL-COAH Liaison and has already done the
computer-training requirement.
The Township discussed filling out an application
for the Spill Fund. On motion by Mrs. Riley,
seconded by Mr. Bray to authorize Mr. Bray to
complete the application and return it to the
Committee at next month’s meeting for their review.
The Committee received a letter from Dave Dech,
Planning Director concerning wastewater
responsibility. Mrs. Riley will write a letter
stating that Oxford Township does not support
assigning wastewater management responsibility to
the County.
PUBLIC COMMENT
The Committee and public discussed the five-year tax
exemption ordinance that was discussed earlier.
The Mayor stated that the update on the Code Book
with all the municipal ordinances hopefully should
be on line by July 2008.
End of Public Comment.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
WHEREAS, Section 8 of the Open Public Meeting Act,
Chapter 231, P.L. 1975, permits the exclusion of the
public from a meeting in certain circumstances, and
WHEREAS, this public body is of the opinion that
such circumstances presently exist.
4. The public shall be excluded from the discussion
of any action upon the hereinafter-specific subject
matter.
5. The general nature of the subject matter to be
discussed is: one pending litigation matter (Oxwall),
and one contractual matter (shared court) and sewer
billing.
6. It is anticipated at this time that the above
stated subject matter will be made public at the
conclusion of the litigation. The motion carried
with the following roll call vote.
On motion by Mrs. Riley, seconded by Mr. Accetturo
and passed unanimously on roll call vote to enter
into Executive session at 9:00 PM after a short
intermission.
Entered open session at 9:32 PM. No Official Action
was taken.
The Committee received a letter from Mr. And Mrs.
Suyker, the last house on Route 31. She is asking
that the Township stop billing them because they
have never been hooked up to the sewer. Mrs. Riley
will write a letter stating that the Township will
stop billing them for sewer, they must provide
certification of their septic tank yearly to the
Township and in the future if they do connect to
sewer, must pay the difference in the connection fee
of $1,010.00 and what the fee would be at time of
hook-up.
On motion by Mr. Bray, seconded by Mr. Accetturo to
stop billing the Oxford Township School for sewer
fees beginning July 1, 2008. Mrs. Riley voted No.
On motion by Mr. Bray, seconded by Mrs. Riley and
passed unanimously on roll call vote to cancel the
scheduled workshop meeting held on the Tuesday
before the Township meeting held on the third
Wednesday of each month for the rest of the year.
On motion by Mr. Bray, seconded by Mr. Accetturo and
passed unanimously on roll call vote to adjourn at
10:05 PM.
___________________________
Sheila L. Oberly, RMC
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