By Carolyn Maxwell
PERTH AMBOY – The meeting commenced at 7:12 p.m. All Council Members were present. No one from the audience came up to speak on any of the ordinances. When it came to the first public portion, resident Ken Balut was first to speak.
He questioned R-508-12/20- An agreement with Bayshore Single Stream Solutions LLC for marketing and recycling of single stream recyclable materials.
“Why isn’t there any money mentioned?”
Law Director Peter King responded, “Bayshore will be paying the city $82 per ton.”
Balot then questioned R-509-2/20 – Professional Services agreement with Center State Engineering for project cost for design engineering, specifications, BID documents, and construction inspection for the New Jersey Department of Transportation Municipal and Urban Aid Grant improvements to certain streets off of Convery Boulevard. Cost not to exceed $39,000.
“Why was this contact not bidded out?”
City Clerk Victoria Kupsch answered, “This is for professional services. It is not bidded out.”
Balut wasn’t satisfied, “Still some of the work involved in this project should be bidded out. I’m also waiting to see the bills that Centerstate Engineering sent out to Kushner. I already OPRA’d this. There has been no action for over a year.”
He then went on to question R-531-12/20 – A contract to Turn-Key Technologies for the purchase of parking garage cameras in an amount not to exceed $22,619.04.
“Will they (the cameras) work?”
Council President William Petrick fielded this question. “This is the same company who installed the cameras that are presently in the Jefferson Street Parking Deck.”
Balut continued, “The cameras on Smith Street never worked and information can be deleted. You need to have a backup system.”
Petrick then stated, “Maybe Cloud Storage can be used.”
Balut ended by stating, “Cameras were altered and changed in the past. I have copies of original tapes that I had turned over to the prosecutor’s office that were later altered.”
After the public portion was closed, Council President Petrick announced that the council needed to take a brief break to go into a closed session. The council went into the closed session at 7:28 p.m. and returned at 7:55 p.m. When the council returned, Law Director King told the council that you cannot have a resolution to amend an ordinance. The question was regarding putting a late starter on agenda.
City Clerk Victoria Kupsch told the council they would need a unanimous vote to put this particular resolution on the agenda. It was moved by Council President Petrick and seconded by Councilwoman Tejeda to add the late-starter on the agenda. When it came to voting, Councilmen Caba and Irizarry voted “Yes”, but Councilman Pabon voted, “No” which stopped the voting since the vote had to be unanimous.
For Ordinance No. 1 – RE: Handicapped Parking. It was moved by Irizarry and seconded by Tejeda. Ordinance No. 2 – Special Events. Moved by Irizarry and seconded by Pabon. Ordinance No. 3 – Administration of Government RE: Budget and Fiscal Procedures. Moved by Irizarry and seconded by Caba.
For the consent agenda, R-498 thru R-532, R-534 thru R-535, was moved by Irizarry and seconded by Pabon. R-533 was voted on separately.
R-533 – 12/20 – Expressing appreciation to Lisa Nanton for her outstanding efforts and dedication to the city.
Before voting, Pabon wanted to thank Lisa Nanton for her service, especially when it came to securing funds for the Prop House which has cleaned up this place a lot. “The ball room is open, and the lights are working. As someone who lives right across the street from the Proprietary House, I can tell you that I and the other homeowners on that street are very happy.” R-533 was moved by Irizarry and seconded by Caba. All voted “Yes”.
Public Portion:
Ken Balut came up to speak and questioned whether municipal prosecutors can make political endorsements. He also questioned how a captain who worked as a campaign manager for the mayor received a $12,000 raise. “A captain had been suspended. There is a video showing people going into mailboxes and they had been investigating this since September 24, 2020. Why have there been no announcements from the business administrator, the mayor, or the police department for people to make sure they watch their mailboxes?”
He then talked about the Kushner properties. “The mayor in 2009 extended Kushner’s contract even though he had done nothing for the city. The mayor took it upon herself to do this contract – and its garbage. She doesn’t want to take on Kushner.”
Balut then talked about Code Enforcement. “They should enforce the law. How many tickets did Code Enforcement give to the Landings? They have no fire-blocks in their building. It is about time people stood up and not let Kushner build more garbage. Kushner likes to brag about his developments in Long Branch.”
Law Director King responded to Balut’s question involving the municipal prosecutor giving endorsements. “They are not held to the same standards as judges would be. There is nothing governing prosecutors.”
Council President Petrick asked if a prosecutor can endorse the mayor during the elections.
King emphasized again, “Nothing precludes a prosecutor from doing this as there are for judges.”
Petrick then asked, “Can a provisional captain get additional pay?”
King responded, “If they are doing the duty for that position, then they can get the pay. If he is on his own time, he can work on a political campaign.”
Pabon questioned, “Will this be a civil service violation?”
Petrick said, “Would there would be a problem because a code enforcement employee was interviewing people who may have taken ballots from people’s mailboxes?”
King explained, “If this was done during the working hours and they were using city equipment, that would be illegal. If this was done on their own personal time, and using their own personal electronic devices, there is no violation. I don’t know if there were any criminal complaints.”
Petrick spoke up, “People did file complaints.” Petrick then described the video. “An individual filed a complaint of theft of mail from their mailbox.”
King responded, “The county can investigate.”
Petrick asked if he could be informed how far up the complaint went.
King gave two scenarios: “A person can get suspended with pay while an investigation is going on. If there is an indictment, a person can be suspended without pay.”
Council Comments:
Helmin Caba was concerned because Covid numbers are rising at alarming rates. “There were a thousand cases this month and sixty kids got it in one day. We are number one in the county. Protect all your loved ones. We need to get the Covid numbers on a daily basis.”
B.A. Patricia Perkins responded, “We get the numbers from OEM Director Cattano, and sometimes they (the county) will miss a day or two. As soon as I receive them, I give them to you.”
Caba reminded everyone that there are now two dropboxes for the mail-in ballots. “The one that was at the police department for the first election, and now an additional one was added at city hall. Exercise your right to vote. This is my last meeting as Councilman, and I want to thank all of you, especially for the ones who voted for me four years ago. There are many challenges left ahead and anyone coming into my seat (on the council), God bless you. Rest assured, no matter what, I’ll always be involved. Have a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
Councilman Fernando Irizarry, who is also at his last meeting as councilman read from a prepared statement (see p.).
Councilman Joel Pabon was also very concerned about the Covid numbers. He suggested that the council put out a letter to go to the county explaining that we need more screening in the city. “They were no-shows during the election. It’s almost a year (since the Covid hit) and it’s not getting better – it’s getting worse. We have a large amount of people here. The county needs to help us as we have always helped the county.” Pabon then urged when people who fill out the mail-in ballots, don’t write-in names of people who are not on the ballot. Don’t waste your ballot. There is only two people running for mayor. The county Board of Elections was closed because of Covid-19 in their office. I hope the county gets everything in place. We need help with Covid relief and with the election. Covid is not something to play with. I just can’t believe the Covid numbers, especially when it comes to the kids. Enjoy the holidays and do the right thing. Use your mask and wash your hands. I want to thank Councilmen Irizarry and Caba for their service. I have respect for those who serve the public. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you both the best.”
Councilwoman Milady Tejeda said, “People have been getting sick from their Thanksgiving celebrations. I want to thank Councilmen Caba and Irizarry for their service. It’s been an honor to be a part of this team. We are going to miss Irizarry as our official translator. Maybe he could come back and work as a translator for the council. Enjoy your holidays and be safe.”
Council President Bill Petrick stated, “The JRF is supposed to be getting the 15-minute response Covid test kits from the state.”
B.A. Perkins spoke up, “The rapid test that Council President Petrick is talking about is not that accurate.”
Petrick then continued. He thanked YMCA CEO and President Steve Jobin for the use of the Y facilities. “I want to thank both my colleagues: Caba and Irizarry for all of their hard work and efforts. No one can compare with Irizarry when it came to his translation skills. I appreciate your insight, diligence, and questions and I appreciate all the hours that you spent on this dais. I will miss you. Be safe. Be cautious. Wear a mask and practice social distancing. I have relatives who are waiting to see if they are getting sick. We are all still waiting for the vaccine. I wish everyone Happy Holidays and most of us will be back in January.”
The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
