After the holiday Monday, Plainfielders who want to keep up with city doings can attend all or any of four meetings this week.
The first one is the Plainfield Municipal Utilities Authority meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The Sept. 8 meeting clashed with a council meeting that required those interested in the proposed outsourcing of the Planning Division to show up at Municipal Court at 6 p.m. The Sept. 8 PMUA agenda had some interesting items, including status of the connection program and one simply titled "transfer station."
The connection program involved checking to see that sewer connection fees for all new construction projects were collected. Some development applications approved years ago are just now being constructed, and the authority collects a connection fee for each unit. The authority was working with the city to make sure all fees were being collected. Certainly that would affect the bottom line, and ratepayers always hope any new revenues will keep their PMUA bills in line.
The September meeting was only the second for new Executive Director Daniel Mejias, and several personnel changes have recently taken place, one being management of the Rock Avenue transfer station. I had wanted to hear more about the transfer station item.
Anyway, Tuesday's PMUA meeting is 6 p.m. at 127 Roosevelt Avenue.
The City Council's regular meeting Tuesday is 8 p.m in Municipal Court, 325 Watchung Ave. The agenda includes a resolution to submit a layoff plan to the state Civil Service Commission. It will affect Planning Director Bill Nierstedt and three other Planning Division staff members.
On Wednesday, the City Council Town Hall Meeting schedule continues with the Second Ward meeting, 7 p.m. at Cook School, 739 Leland Ave. Residents of any ward are welcome to attend and raise their concerns to the governing body.
On Thursday, a Planning Board meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in City Hall Library. The agenda has not.yet been posted, but it is one of the most important boards and always worth attending.
--Bernice
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Residents need to pay close attention to the PMUA.
ReplyDeletePay close attention to for what? Are we expecting something to change? I think we need to focus on the bigger picture and watch the deals that Mayor Mapp is cutting
DeleteIs it too much to hope that the PMUA inspired by the Planning Division layoff plan will submit one of their own??? Is it too much to hope that the Council will reject the obscene Planning Division layoff plan?
ReplyDeleteBill Kruse
Maybe PMUA can tell where the outrageous connection fee comes from. If a developer connects their project to an existing line where is the connection cost coming from. The use and sending of the effluent comes from the ultimate sewer use of the project.
ReplyDeleteMaybe PMUA can tell us where the Shared Service charge comes from. Years of attempting to obtain an analysis of the costs associated with the Household Collection fee, which is competitive, and the Shared Service fee, which is prohibitive, have failed. It remains my belief that a fair analysis would reveal that the Household collection fee should be about twice what is being charged, and the Shared Service fee about 30 % of what is charged. Bill Kruse
DeleteRegarding the connection fees, the PMUA is ultimately billed by the Middlesex County Utilities Authority for sewage treatment. If a vacant lot is replaced by 80 apartments, each one has to be connected (as I understand it) to the main connector. I think there is a base charge per EDU for usage and treatment. But if you think that's wrong, come find out at 6 p.m. tonight, 127 Roosevelt Ave. The PMUA takes comments and questions at its meetings.
DeleteThey may take questions, but they give no answers.
DeleteResidents need to pay even closer attention to the BOE.
ReplyDeleteFAILING SCHOOL SYSTEM = FAILING TOWN = NO REAL DEVELOPMENT = MORE LOW INCOME RENTALS.
Amen. And their budget is $172,000,000.00
Delete