3/13/19 Council Meeting

PERTH AMBOY – Resident Alan Silber came up to speak about Ordinance No. 1 – To submit the proposition to the voters at the November 5, 2019 General Election that the City of Perth Amboy adopt the holding of runoff elections as permitted by the Uniform Non-Partisan Elections Law. 

“I encourage the Council to vote for this. In the last 2 elections, the top vote getter only got 36%-45% of the vote.”

Former Councilwoman Lisa Nanton came forward to ask the Council to rescind the ordinance on background checks. “It’s an abomination for those who are working for free to hand over such personal information. You should investigate other communities to see what their qualifications are (for members of municipal boards).”

Law Director Peter King responded, “The form does not request financial information. I’m not the Clerk or Administration. Other municipalities can be asked about their ordinances regarding volunteer boards.”

Councilman Fernando Irizarry spoke up stating that the affidavit is not what the Council had in mind. “We are not looking for any financial records. The affidavit should be suspended.”

Councilman Helmin Caba spoke next and asked how expunged records would be handled.

King responded that the ordinance does not require them to divulge that information. “Just tell the Clerk what you want (in the ordinance).”

Former Member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment Roisin Dowling said, “It’s a very important fact that the Board of Adjustment are making improvements to Perth Amboy, but I still have concerns. I have concerns about you putting the ordinance (regarding background checks) on hold. I don’t like bullies. Don’t let them affect our City. I’m flabbergasted at Ms. Nanton’s objecting to background checks.”

Resident Renee Skelton came up next. She thought that the form that some municipal board members had to fill out were overly wrought. She stated that it’s a privacy issue and some people will not want to volunteer and it’s too broad. 

Resident Linda Cruz came up next. “Every Board Member has to fill out a Financial Disclosure  form. Citizens are entitled to know. Some people are refusing to sign the form because of the background check on it. You volunteer because you care about the citizens. You’re entitled to have honorable people serve.”

A PARA Member came forth to speak, “People should be prepared to answer any questions on forms (given to applicants for municipal boards).” He urged the Council to go forward with the background checks.

Resident Robert Meazy came up next, “I agree with Lisa Nanton. People who volunteer for those boards should not have to go through all of those background checks.”

Resident Sharon Hubberman asked, “Why were there not copies of the budget at the Meeting? They have workshops in other towns. In previous administrations, there would be copies of the budgets at the meetings for the residents to look at.” She went on to talk about the importance of needing a criminal background check. “Look at what’s happening in the news. Fingerprints are not evasive. I haven’t seen the waiver forms. A lot of other towns do background checks and financial disclosures are required.”

Resident Caroline Pozycki-Torres came up to speak, “I’ve never been subjected to a background check. Often, they contain erroneous information.” She said those that have this erroneous information aren’t being allowed to defend themselves. “It seems unjust to put it in our community and we should not deter them. They should be judged on their actions.”

Resident Alan Silber came up, “Do we do a background check on our neighbors. Do City Employees get a background check? This is crazy stuff. I was in the service for three years. After I got out, I applied for a job at Standard Oil and they asked if I was a member of the Communist Party. I didn’t answer and I didn’t get the job. This background check is overkill.”

Resident and Businessman Adele Tawfik came up, “As a concerned citizen and taxpayer, I need to know more about the budget. The Master Plan is over 20 years old. Public Safety is being cut (personnel and equipment). Government Management (Fehrenbach) is being paid over $26,000. This is a yearly salary for an officer. Officers on duty at night often have to walk in the cold weather. You need to cutoff the contract with Government Management. We are paying someone to baby-sit Mr. Carr, who is very qualified. You guys will have to answer to the public.”

Former Councilman Fernando Gonzalez came up next and then asked what the tax increase will be. 

Council President Bill Petrick responded, “It will be $223 per normal household a year.”

Fernando Gonzalez then explained, “In my case it would translate to a $1000 increase. We need to protect our people. Get rid of some of these people on this floor who don’t do much. We need to find out what our surplus is. The citizens can’t afford an increase. We are going crazy hiring people. Fehrenbach, stopped this.”

Council President Bill Petrick had a question regarding the introduction of CY 2019 Budget. “Why are there no salaries listed?”

Business Administrator Carr explained, “This is because of ongoing contract negotiations.”

Petrick then asked about why individual employee’s salaries were not listed as they were in the past.

Carr explained, “This will be done after the contract negotiations are set.”

Petrick continued, “The Budget does not reflect the cuts or cost. We had another Business Administrator who said there is no reason that past salaries were not on the budget.” Petrick then requested that the past salaries be provided to the Council. 

Carr responded, “This is a poker game and we’re not showing our cards. I can give you the salaries of the previous two years.”

Petrick then requested that information be put in the books.

Carr said that he could do that, and he will also post that information for the public.

Fehrenbach spoke again, “There was a 17-page budget message which will go on the website. The $7.3 million deficit reflected an increase in employee group insurance which rose 20%. The salary increases steps were already received. There was a $600,000 increase in the Police Department. There was a $730,000 increase in the pensions for the Police and Fire Departments. $205,000 appropriations were made in the DPW and Fire Departments. We have a $2.2 million revenue shortfall. There were reductions in the Police Department. When people left, they were not replaced. There’s also overtime cuts and cuts in part-time employees. There’s a $7.3 million problem. Department requests were ignored. The $3 million debt caused a tax increase. 2014 was the last tax increase in the City. There was increased cost, but not increased revenue. The surplus will be depleted in 2020. The Budget doesn’t have a cushion. You have to provide for assumptions such as overtime. Costs cannot exceed the excess. The Mayor’s budget shows a reduction. The Mayor determined that attrition of 23 positions which would be employee based. There will be a 9.3 cent increase (based on how they appraise your house). The Council introduces their budget after getting the Mayor’s budget. You need 4 members of the Council to increase the budget. This is a statutory rule and should be introduced at this meeting. You can wait until the end of the month, but it will not be enough time to make amendments. In doing this tonight (be voting on R-130-3/19 Introduction to CY-2019 Budget) a special meeting is not required. On April 10, 2019, amendments can be made at Public Budget Meetings.”

Councilwoman Milady Tejeda spoke and stated, “There were a lot of unnecessary hiring’s since Fehrenbach left in 2014.”

Fehrenbach spoke up, “When I left 5 years ago, the City was in better shape, but was still fragile. We are not East Brunswick. We have 382 employees. By the end of 2019, there should be 372 through attrition. The Council is in control of the hiring purse strings. If you resolve by using surplus, in 2020 you will delete the surplus. The projection is based on new information. Expenditures are not spent to build surplus. There was significant cost in 2018. Cuts in this budget will make the 2020 surplus nil.”

Councilman Irizarry wanted to make sure he heard correctly and stated, “If we use the surplus (now), we will not have a surplus in 2020?”

Fehrenbach then went on to explain, “State Aid and tax anticipation needs money and current funds.”

B.A. Carr spoke up next, “It’s like a payday loan.” He then talked about Buckeye which the City assessed at $170 million. “Buckeye is appealing and believes that their assessment should be $60 to $110 million. They (Buckeye) said they are liquid, but the City disagrees.”

Fehrenbach spoke up, “Buckeye’s income doesn’t come up with $110 million.”

Council President Bill Petrick spoke up and said, “If they (Buckeye) prevail, then we (the City) will owe them money.”

Fehrenbach responded, “Yes, but we’re not going there.”

Councilman Joel Pabon then asked (regarding the letter about Perth Amboy water) if contaminants are coming from the same area.

USA-PA Director of Operations Luis Perez Jimenez answered that it’s organic matter (such as leaves, animals, trees) – not a chemical.

Pabon then stated, “That should have been added to the letter. The City has an obligation to clear this up for the average family to understand. What is the true condition of our well? Our water (bill) keeps going up. We took a trip to Runyon, but we need to take a trip to the Water Shed in Old Bridge”

Perez Jimenez responded that we have been flushing the hydrants.

Council President Bill Petrick read a letter which talked about the owners of the Duane Marine Property that had contaminants. He stated that no one ever went after them. Petrick then mentioned that Comcast provides $190,000 to the City for equipment upgrades but I don’t know where the money is going. “The Mayor sent letters appointing people to Boards that she’s not permitted to do. We have to send notices to the PARA (Perth Amboy Redevelopment Agency) Members to let them know they were not appointed appropriately. We are looking to abolish (PARA) and maybe they want to expedite some projects they are working on. Regarding the appointment of Irving Lozada, it’s already been 90 days.”

Councilman Irizarry then spoke up, “You are discussing something that is private.”

Law Director Peter King then advised the Council, “If you went to court, the judge will not rule in your favor.”

Petrick responded, “I read the case (that you (Peter King)) forwarded to us regarding appointments, and I believe the Mayor did not do appointments appropriately.”

For the ordinance regarding the Background Checks, Disqualifications – Deleted, Law Director King asked the Council if they wanted to have that pulled. Irizarry moved to table and Caba seconded it.

For the Consent Agenda, R-122 thru R-129 and R-131 thru R-152 and R-154 & R-156 were moved by Councilman Fernando Irizarry and Seconded by Councilman Joel Pabon.

For R-130 – Introduction of CY 2019 Budget, Irizarry asked for that to be pulled to be voted on separately. It was moved by Helmin Caba, seconded by Irizarry. When it came time to vote individually, Council Members Helmin Caba, Joel Pabon, and Milady Tejeda voted “yes”. Council President William Petrick and Councilman Fernando Irizarry voted “no”. Motion passes.

For R-153 – A proposal awarding a contract to Kyle & McManus Assoc. for professional engineering services related to the housing study for the Dept. of Human Services in an amount not to exceed $52,500. Council President Bill Petrick asked for a separate vote. It was moved by Joel Pabon, seconded  by Helmin Caba. Caba, Pabon, Irizarry voted “yes.” Petrick and Tejeda voted “no”. Motion passes.

During the last public portion, Resident Robert Meazy came up to the podium. He stood silently while holding the American flag while displaying the bible. After a minute, someone from the audience shouted, “A person is supposed to speak during the public portion.”

Council President Bill Petrick turned to Law Director King for a ruling on this.

King responded, “This is the portion where the public are supposed to speak.”

Petrick then questioned, “What if the person is a deaf-mute?”

King had no response. After Meazy’s five minutes of silence were up, Meazy removed the tape off his mouth and asked for another five minutes, but was denied by Council President Petrick.

Businesswoman and Resident Sharon Hubberman came up next and asked for clarification on the water situation. She continued, “We get water from Runyon. There was an article about the Runyon Water Shed and chemical pollutants in 1984. There should be an independent testing of our water. They are doing presentations in Old Bridge, and they’ve done independent water testing.”

Petrick responded that a company had a contaminant spill and CMD is doing the cleanup.”

Hubberman emphasized, “We need to be certain our water is clean.” She then spoke about the Redevelopment Agency. “Having the Mayor (on that Board) is a conflict of interest.” She then talked about the budget, “The appraisal for Buckeye should be reevaluated. Consider the tax rate. Is it comparable to residential homes? Buckeye owns property in Linden. Look to add more revenue.” She then added that the assessment should be based on the type of industry.

Resident Renee Skelton came up next. She mentioned that there is a Superfund Site next to our well. (The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980 (42 U.S.C.s/s 9601 et seq) provides a federal “Superfund” to clean up uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites as well as accidents, spills and other emergency releases of pollutants and contaminants into the environment. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) reauthorized CERCLA to continue cleanup activities around the country. (source: NJ.gov)

There is an interim cleanup and they are doing a presentation in Old Bridge. She stated that the Council should have the people who are doing the presentation in Old Bridge do the same presentation in Perth Amboy. 

A Resident from Cornell Street came up to speak regarding being denied permits for a small addition in front of his house. “I came here to get an ordinance to try to get this done.”

Petrick told the Resident that he could present his case to the Zoning Board. “We (the Council) are not empowered to do anything. You can go to the Zoning Board and they can hear your concerns. You can appeal your case to them. Ask for a variance.”

Law Director King spoke up and suggested, “It might be a violation of a lot coverage.”

Petrick spoke again and told the Resident, “You can still ask for a variance.”

Businessman Franklin Diaz came up next. He was concerned about the tax increase. “We can’t handle any more. If taxes keep increasing, it will be worse than Camden. Perth Amboy will be a ghost town. Look at the past years and the homes boarded up. Control the taxes because we will all suffer. I have interests in this community. I was born and raised here. My family has been here for 45 years. I talked to a lot of businessmen and they said Irving Lozada is doing a good job. We spend a lot on building permits that kept getting delayed. This town is also a business. You should think about his (Lozada’s) appointment because a lot of the business owners are happy with Lozada’s enthusiasm. He’s also a businessman, and you should work with him. We keep arguing, but nothing gets done. Let’s work for the community and together. That’s why we voted for you.”

Businessman Adele Tawfik spoke about how the budget will affect 57,000 residents and himself. “Look at all the legal actions against the City. The City is buying a tow truck. You need less spending on sub-contracting. Officers are getting salary cuts, and this is putting people’s lives in jeopardy. Redo the Master Plan.”

Petrick responded to Tawfik, telling him that everything he mentioned will increase taxes. “The Master Plan alone will cost $500,000. The $223 per year tax increase is for the average household. If you have a business, it will be more.”

Councilman Helmin Caba talked next stating, “The Administration chose to do unnecessary hiring. Now we (the Council) will have to make difficult decisions going forward. With State Aid and Grants, we should not have to pay this much money in taxes.”

Tawfik then continued, “I see on the agenda where a lot of unnecessary money is spent, such as paying for two B.A.’s and hiring more lawyers for litigation.”

Resident Alan Silber came up next, “The City got rid of 40 employees, some full-time, some part-time. Many of the part-time positions we have now are crossing guards. Has there been any difference when those employees left? Did the City shut down? We had too many people. Fehrenbach’s job is to negotiate. We need a professional Police Department. Look at all of those settlements.” Silber then stated that two of our Police Officers are going to be honored by the 200 Club (an organization that honors First Responders). “Why weren’t their names mentioned in the communications? Too many people were hired who were cronies or had relatives (who were City employees). The Mayor took two weeks off to campaign for her candidates (who ran in the last election). There should be a record of where the Mayor is when she’s off. You give warehouses PILOTs.”

Former Councilman Fernando Gonzalez came up to speak. He pleaded with the Council to keep the taxes where they are.  “We don’t need three judges. We pay the Y $20,000 a month because of the contract made with the previous Mayor. Hopefully you’ll find money when you look in their books. The Y doesn’t pay utilities and they bought a lot of property with our money. Get rid of some of the hirees from the last ten years. We have bought too many new vehicles.” Gonzalez then advised the residents if they see any waste, report it.

Former Councilwoman Lisa Nanton objected to how the ordinance regarding background checks was stated, “It’s too ambiguous, too broad, and thoughtless. Throw it out! Why do you have an advise-consent (of the Council) for the Green Team and not the Library Board or Historic Preservation Commission?”

Law Director King responded, “The State Statute states it’s the Mayor’s appointments. It would not be legal to add: advise-consent.”

Nanton continued, “When I was on the Council, there was an illegal appointment made by the Mayor. The Council challenged this and hired an attorney. Now, the Mayor did another illegal appointment again. This City Council needs a financial budget and should hire an independent lawyer to find the truth. Cut the hell out of this budget to stop the Mayor from illegal appointments. The attorney can hire a lawyer to litigate.”

Resident Wilfredo Soto requested that the Council not cut any personnel from the Police, Fire, or EMT’s. “Sometimes you have to negotiate. I know you are in a difficult situation. You have to look at people who are on SSI. A lot of businesses are closing. I keep Perth Amboy in my prayers. My father moved to Florida because of the high taxes here. God bless you all.”

Council Comments were next: 

Councilman Helmin Caba questioned Law Director King about dissolving the PARA Board.

King responded, “The DCA (Department of Community Affairs) has to review the request to dissolve the agency.” 

Councilman Fernando Irizarry spoke next, “When I attended a meeting along with Councilman Helmin Caba, Greg Fehrenbach, Frederick Carr, and the Mayor, we had a compromise regarding the budget. Now, there’s no compromise. What happened? Councilman Pabon wanted to wait on recommendations.” Irizarry continued, “Regarding the dissolving of PARA, no City employee or the Mayor could be the Chair. There was supposed to be 2 Council Members appointed with staggered expiration terms.”

Councilman Joel Pabon then spoke next, “The Meeting that dealt with the budget that I could not attend and Councilman Fernando Irizarry came in my place – I don’t know what happened after I left.”

B.A. Carr asked the Council how they wanted to move forward regarding the Redevelopment Agency.

Council President Petrick stated, “PARA is working on smaller projects right now.”

Councilman Caba then added, “PARA only has two large developments left, then there’s no more land.”

Petrick spoke again, “The City didn’t always have PARA. It was created by a previous administration. Before PARA, the Council made those decisions. It seems like some members of the Council are not confident in taking over PARA’s duties.”

Pabon answered, “I’m confident.”

Petrick continued, “We established to abolish PARA.”

Councilman Irizarry disagreed, “We were supposed to compromise on PARA. Now, it’s to dissolve it?” He then thanked, B.A. Carr, Greg Fehrenbach, and CFO Jill Goldy for their work on the budget. “Don’t take on how I vote personally. How many Directors do we have? I’d like to see the qualifications for each Director’s duties. What qualifications do the current Directors have now? Can we amend the qualifications?”

King responded, “It depends on the department.”

B.A. Carr then commented, “Many qualifications are set in code.”

Councilman Joel Pabon spoke about the numerous complaints from residents that many streetlights are out on New Brunswick Avenue and Hall Avenue. He then added “There are 15 streetlights out on Smith Street. It’s ridiculous. I talked to Danny Cleaver (DPW Supervisor) who said he would reach out to PSEG.”

Pabon then asked, “What is the time frame for Amboy Avenue to be fixed, “It’s (the street) is a disgrace. A little sweeper rarely comes by. If we can’t help existing businesses, then they will leave. Handicapped applicants are coming to my house. Are we putting the Handicapped Committee back (in service)?”

City Clerk Victoria Kupsch responded, “We have two coming back, but we are still short of members.”

Pabon said once again, “The lights being out are the biggest issue.”

Kupsch also responded to the handicapped parking issues. “Sometimes people let us know that they are moving. If people who come to that residence, and they don’t need the sign, the sign has to be removed. We have several handicapped signs which will be removed.”

Councilwoman Milady Tejeda said, “Brace Avenue also has a lot of lights that are out. Also, too many people are speeding by the high school, especially on Grove Street.”

Council President Petrick stated, “We may need speed bumps.”

Tejeda then asked, “What are the plans for the train station?”

Carr explained, “Currently, the plans are in Washington D.C.”

Council President Bill Petrick spoke last, “We need to get the station fixed. Residents who live in Harbortown are taken by shuttle bus to the Woodbridge Train Station.” He then thanked everyone for coming to the meeting and watching on TV.