Truck Repairs: Better Late Than Never?

Random image: Angles and icicles at Grace Church.

The items of greatest interest Monday may prove to be final passage of the Recreation Commission ordinance and council approval of Abubakar "AJ" Jalloh as city clerk, but a visit to the library uncovered an interesting little item tucked inside a resolution.

The City Council meeting is 8 p.m. Monday in Municipal Court, 325 Watchung Ave. The agenda is posted on the city web site.

When I saw a reference last week for use of Urban Enterprise Zone funds to replace truck parts, it was a new one on me after covering the city for more than a quarter-century. The agenda reference for R 082-11 (RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING APPROVAL TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE NEW JERSEY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE AUTHORITY FOR PROJECT FINANCING TO PURCHASE REPLACEMENT MOTOR AND REPLACEMENT PARTS FOR HEAVY EQUIPMENT TRUCKS DEPLOYABLE TO THE CITY’S URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE) was not too enlightening.

So here is what it's all about: Two trucks are involved. The Division of Public Works is seeking to apply for $25,000 for a new engine for a truck purchased in 2001. This truck was damaged during storm debris removal at an unspecified date and is unoperable. However, it is needed for all aspects of DPW operations, including leaf collection, snow removal, tree maintenance, road repair and more.

The other request is for $23,500 to retrofit a water tanker that was purchased in 1998, but which has only 18,986 miles on it because its main use, spraying water on the center of the road, proved to be inefficient. Its only current use is once a year for cleanup after the July 4th parade.

The retrofit would allow this truck also to be used for all areas of DPW operations and it would "play a major role" in road maintenance projects because it could haul 25 cubic yards of material. No other trucks in the fleet exceed seven cubic yards, according to the resolution.

The total amount requested for approval by the Urban Enterprise Zone Authority is $48,500, quite modest compared to some of last year's requests, such as $1 million for a revolving loan fund for economic development. The process calls for a resolution to seek council approval to submit a UEZ request, then if the UEZA approves it, the council votes to accept the funding. All funded projects must take place within the Urban Enterprise Zone, which stretches from the city's east and west borders and includes the central business district. The money in the UEZ fund comes from sales tax revenues from UEZ-certified retailers. With the loss of major retailers such as Macy's in past years, the fund income has thinned.

Plaintalker does not recall any UEZA approvals in 2010. The Music in the Plaza events did not take place last summer, presumably for lack of UEZA funding approvals. Meanwhile, the city's director of Public Works & Urban Development, David Brown II, quit after less than a year on the job and longtime city staffer Jacques Howard is acting director while a search is conducted for a successor to Brown. It might be a good idea to get a status report on 2010 UEZA requests sometime at a public meeting.

--Bernice Paglia