BOROUGH OF MOUNTAIN LAKES COUNCIL MEETING

MONDAY JUNE 11, 2007

8:00 P.M.

 

M I N U T E S

 

  1.  CALL TO ORDER; OPENING STATEMENT:  This meeting is being held in          

       compliance with Public Law 1975, Chapter 231, Sections 4 and 13, as notice of

       this meeting and the agenda thereof had been reported to The Citizen and the

       Morris County Daily Record on January 3, 2007 and posted in the municipal

       building.

 

Mayor George Jackson called the meeting to order at 8:00 p.m.

 

2.       ATTENDANCE AND FLAG SALUTE

All Council members were present except for Councilman Gormally.

Also in attendance were Borough Manager Gary Webb, Borough Attorney Marty Murphy and Borough Clerk Christina Whitaker.

 

3. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Mayor Jackson announced that the boys’ lacrosse team won the State Championship and congratulated the girls’ team for its success this year.

 

3.       PROMOTIONS/DPW

·         Earl Mabey

·         Michael Petito

 

Department of Public Works Director Mark Prusina introduced Earl Mabey and Michael Petito to the Council.

       Mr. Mabey was hired in June 2000 and has been promoted to DPW Forman.

       Mr. Petito has worked for the Borough since August 2001 and has been promoted to

       Assistant Forman Crew Chief.

Mr. Pursina said both men have done outstanding jobs and are deserving of the

promotions.                    

 

4.       PRESENTATION

Push E-mail System/Web Site Committee

Chairman Andy Bulfer and Web Site Committee member Nilesh Shringarpure explained a communication e-mail service that could be used for Borough announcements.

Mr. Shringarpure explained the mailing list service provided by ListPlex, which can automatically broadcast a message via electronic mail to everyone on a list, including cell phones. Subscriptions would be optional allowing the ability to op-out at any time. The list of subscribers would be owned by the Borough and would not be shared.

The cost to the Borough would include a $500 one-time setup fee for all the lists and a $300 annual charge for administration and support. The cost is $2.50 per 1,000 recipients.

 

 

 

Mr. Bulfer said the communication system could send a monthly on-line newsletter to residents as well as tax reminders, notification of major DPW projects and special events taking place in the Borough. The system has the potential to provide emergency notifications as well.

 

The Web Site Committee has been working on the project since last fall at the request of Mayor Jackson. The objective was to find a cost effective way to communicate to Borough residents.

The Committee’s research determined that ListPlex was best suited to the Borough’s needs.   

The Council expressed interest in proceeding with the service. However, it was noted that not all residents use e-mail and would still need to be served in another manner.

Mr. Webb will work on policy and procedures should the Council decide to move forward.

 

5. PUBLIC COMMENT

 Mayor Jackson explained the Council’s policy of limiting each speaker to 5 minutes and no 

 yielding of time to another person.

 

Mayor Jackson read the following statement before opening the public comment portion of  

the meeting:

 

“Mr. Kanter has served a written notice of his intent to make a tort claim against the Borough of

 Mountain Lakes claiming that the Borough, its employees, and elected officials are engaged in

 conduct that he alleges is harassing.  On the advice of counsel any questions directed to us at

 this meeting by Mr. Kanter will be reviewed by our legal counsel; and if appropriate, will be

 responded to in writing. It is our considered judgment this procedure will minimize disruption

 and protect the interest of the public.”

 

 Mayor Jackson opened the public comment portion of the meeting with consent of Council.

 

Fred Kanter - Hanover Road

Mr. Kanter complained that the minutes of May 29th were not yet available for public review.

 

      Denise Brennan - Morris Ave.

Mrs. Brennan congratulated Mr. Mabey and Mr. Petito on their promotions.

Based on the presentation by the Web Site Committee, she told the Council that the Board

of Education had done a community relations survey and it might be helpful to the Borough

to review the analysis. 

 

      Dede Conlan – Morris Ave.

      Beach Director Dede Conlan expressed her concern with the proposed ordinance prohibiting non-residents from using beach facilities.  She said the purchase of beach tags by non-residents is minimal and has never created a problem. She said problems on the beaches have always occurred after 6 p.m. and it was an issue of enforcement. She noted that Ordinance 12-07 would deprive residents, who do not purchase beach tags, use of the facilities after 6 p.m.

 

6. ORDINANCES

 11-07

ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF AN AMENDMENT TO AN  

       AGREEMENT WITH RENSSELAER GRADS, LLC CONCERNING THE RELEASE

       OF A RESTRICTION ON PROPERTY

 Public Hearing

If adopted this ordinance shall take effect after publication and passage as provided by

law.

 

Mayor Jackson opened the Public Hearing.

 

Fred Kanter - Hanover Road

Mr. Kanter told the Council that it should not vote on the ordinance because the

minutes of the last meeting, when the ordinance was introduced, were not yet

available to the public.

 

Mayor Jackson asked for Mr. Murphy to respond to Mr. Kanter’s comments

regarding introduction of the ordinance in the absence of the last meeting’s minutes.

Mr. Murphy said the ordinance had been properly introduced and legal notice

had been published in the newspaper. Not having the minutes from the last

meeting would not prevent the Council from voting at this meeting.

 

Introduced:      May 29, 2007                                                   Adopted: June 11, 2007

Council Member

By:

2nd

Yes

No

Abstain

Absent

By

2nd

Yes

No

Abstain

Absent

Gormally

 

 

X

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

X

Emr

 

 

X

 

 

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

Shaw

X

 

X

 

 

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

Davis

 

 

X

 

 

 

 

X

X

 

 

 

Wilson

 

 

x

 

 

 

X

 

X

 

 

 

Urankar

 

X

X

 

 

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

Jackson

 

 

X

 

 

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

 

 

 

In addition to Rensselaer Grads Contract, the Developer’s Agreement may be

discussed.

 

Mr. Murphy explained that some minor changes had been made and the

agreement was now ready for Council’s  vote.

 

  RESOLUTION 78-07

            RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF A DEVELOPER’S AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE BOROUGH OF MOUNTAIN LAKES AND WEBER HOMES AT MOUNTAIN LAKES, LLC