6/25/18 Caucus
PERTH AMBOY – There was a lengthy discussion regarding R-291-6/18 regarding a property located at 319, 320 & 322 McGuire Place. There was question as to whether it was in need of redevelopment.
Code Enforcement Director Jamie Rios explained that this was presented to the Planning Board (If this property is in need of rehabilitation). “There was no mention of what they want to do with the property.”
City Engineer Jeffrey Rauch then spoke, “There have been no proposals yet for this property. A study has to be done first. They (the property owners) had talked about a possibility of townhouses. They had to go to the Planning Board, then the Council, and then to the Redevelopment Agency.”
Councilman Fernando Gonzalez spoke up next, “We should all look at this property. I don’t remember this resolution being passed.”
Rios replied, “It’s in a Hard 25 Zone. It’s an odd shaped lot.”
Council President Bill Petrick stated, “There are a couple of easements.”
Councilman Gonzalez then replied, “I don’t know why the owners had to go to Zoning instead of straight to Redevelopment.”
Another property that was discussed was R-279-6/18: 613 Penn Street. – Directing the Tax Collector to place a lien in the amount of $800.88 for charges incurred by the Department of Public Works.
DPW Director Frank Hoffman came up and explained that a bunch of people use this property as a dumping ground. “And we had to fence the property in. Since doing this, the dumping has calmed down.”
Jamie Rios then commented, “This property was purchased by private developers. They will be demolishing the building in a few weeks.”
The next discussion was related to R-285-6/18 – Accepting proposal of and awarding a contract to Center State Engineering for professional engineering services related to a housing study for the Department of Human Services in an amount not to exceed $35,000.”
Tashi Vazquez from the Department of Human Services came up to talk about R-285, “This is part of the Capital Budget for $67,000. This study will focus on the City’s demographics and housing stock (how much housing is available). We submitted RFP’s that we reviewed. Center State came back with half of the amount that we requested. The Master Plan hasn’t been done in 15 years. The Rutgers Study (Bloustein School) was 5 years old and doesn’t address housing or fair share. We have to look at the rehabs in the entire City.”
Vazquez also explained when asked by the Council if this had to go out for bid. She explained that this is professional services and not a bid. “We had to use a scoring system for these professional services. There were 3 engineering firms who we considered. CMS, Center State, and Clark. We had to base what was needed for the study and who had experience in urban communities. Myself, Jamie Rios, and Adam Cruz made up the committee (to see who would give the best services for the amount of money).”
Council President Bill Petrick then asked Vazquez if they can see the paperwork of all 3 proposals.
Vazquez said she could have the information sent to the Council electronically by the next day.
Councilman Fernando Gonzalez then complimented Vazquez on basing the (committee’s) decision not just on the lowest proposal.
CFO Jill Goldy then spoke up and told the Council that professional services are not bid, and they are not just based on price. “They have to meet certain criteria.”
