Wednesday's Zoning Board of Adjustment opened with a tribute to Melvin Cody, a 10-year member who unexpectedly passed away at home in April.
Chairman D. Scott Belin recalled Mr. Cody's style of questioning applicants who came before the board, saying while it was their duty to consider the positives and negatives of a case before rendering a decision, Mr. Cody always looked at the positive impact and how it would serve the community.
"For that, we should always be grateful," Belin said.
Councilwoman Vera Greaves, a Fourth Ward resident who knew Mr. Cody well, accepted a framed resolution after it was read aloud and agreed that the city should appreciate his loyal and outstanding service.
A tilted chair at the table marked the board's loss of his presence and participation.
--Bernice
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Zoning Board Approves PSE&G Substation Upgrades
Zoning Board hears PSE&G plans
Two PSE&G substations will receive upgrades to support an anticipated 12 percent increase in electricity demand over the next 10 years.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment granted preliminary site plan approval Wednesday for improvements at substations on West Second Street and South Second Street. Newer and bigger equipment will increase capacity from 2,600 volts to 6,900 volts to meet increased demand.
The projects are part of 69 upgrades mandated by grid operator PJM, project manager Michael Luciani said. Both substations were built in the 1950s and are at the end of their useful lives, he said.
The improvements also include lightning masts, new fencing and landscaping.
Zoning Board Chairman D. Scott Belin objected to a type of fencing that he said looked like a cage.
"I have the feeling you want to put a cage in our downtown," Belin said.
Proposed to replace chain-link fencing with barbed wire on top, the non-metallic fencing had holes too small for a toehold to climb. Belin repeatedly insisted it was cage-like and wanted a decorative fence instead, as the site is downtown between a proposed 148-unit housing development and the historic Titsworth-Sutphen house. The applicant agreed to put decorative fencing on the three sides that do not abut the railroad tracks to the south.
Board member Jim Spear wanted cameras at the site, but Luciani said PSE&G has never done that.
A large tree will be removed and new ones in containers will be used, as the sidewalk cannot be opened for planting. As for noise, the improved facility will be quieter than it is now.
On the South Second Street site, board concerns included keeping out trespassers, as someone was found sleeping inside the substation. The board also wanted more of the front to be landscaped, because it faces homes. A retention basin will be created on the Clinton Avenue side of the site. The board debated whether a large number of trees on the site should be kept or removed. Originally, 176 trees were to be clear-cut, but some will be saved. Flowering trees will be planted along the South Second Street side.
Lightning masts will be 55 feet high at the South Second Street substation and 45 feet high at the West Second Street substation.
Attorney Glenn Kienz had hoped for PSE&G to receive preliminary and final approvals for the two projects Wednesday, but the board only voted for preliminary approvals which will be memorialized at the June 4 meeting. The board will not meet in July, so the soonest final approvals can be given is at the Aug. 6 meeting. Construction is expected to take 12 to 15 months and PSE&G must also seek other approvals, but Nierstedt said the company could begin construction at its own risk while awaiting final Zoning Board approval.
The work is not expected to affect traffic at either site except for arrival of heavy equipment and PSE&G will coordinate everything with the Plainfield Police Division, Kienz said.
--Bernice
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Budget Committee, Consultant Target Cabinet Jobs
Among recommendations of the 2014 Citizens Budget Advisory Committee: Get rid of the "unelected pseudo-mayor."
CBAC Chairman Richard Stewart referred to Chief of Staff John Stewart (no relation), a target since Mayor Adrian O. Mapp took office on Jan. 1, even though the City Council approved the title and a salary band late last year.
Duties of the chief of staff (click to enlarge)
John Stewart is part of a team Mapp says is essential to re-branding the city and getting it in gear after eight years of a prior administration marred by extreme turnover at the top and dubious fiscal practices. Besides Stewart, Mapp's team includes the first full-time, permanent chief financial officer since 2007, a public information officer and a cabinet-level economic development director.
Critics, including the council members who approved the job, say the chief of staff is a stand-in for the part-time mayor, who holds a full-time position as finance director in another municipality.
Richard Stewart called for elimination of the $80,000 chief of staff post Monday, as part of the CBAC report which also faulted the budget review process and deplored the Health Division's failure to inspect two-thirds of city food establishments.
He said the CBAC got late notice of the meeting schedule and only got to review a fraction of city divisions. In addition, only two of seven council members attended all six budget deliberation sessions, he said. The committee's report found both Police and Public Works top-heavy with supervisors and dismissed the explanation that superiors worked together with lower-ranking and lower-paid employees.
Overall, the committee found a lack of measurable outcomes and data to support budget requests and called for a full-time grant writer to seek outside funding.
The council also received a report Monday from budget consultant Lawrence Caroselli of .Government Strategy Group, calling for elimination of all new positions except for the Recreation superintendent. Caroselli and Government Strategy Group CEO Kenneth DeRoberts offered an alternative to the administration's proposed budget that would increase taxes on the average $113,000 home by $129. Their plan, which included reducing use of surplus and insurance funds, would result in an increase of only $93, they said.
Chief Financial Officer Ulrich Steinberg and Finance Director Ron West asked Council President Bridget Rivers to allow a rebuttal, but she refused, telling them to 'put it in writing and put it on the internet."
The meeting Monday also included a public hearing on the introduced budget. West rose to speak as a resident and said last week Caroselli had called the budget "reasonable." West called Caroselli's urging to eliminate the person in charge of economic development among items that made no sense.
The next step is for the council to amend the budget and hold a hearing on the amendments before final passage.
--Bernice
CBAC Chairman Richard Stewart referred to Chief of Staff John Stewart (no relation), a target since Mayor Adrian O. Mapp took office on Jan. 1, even though the City Council approved the title and a salary band late last year.
Duties of the chief of staff (click to enlarge)
John Stewart is part of a team Mapp says is essential to re-branding the city and getting it in gear after eight years of a prior administration marred by extreme turnover at the top and dubious fiscal practices. Besides Stewart, Mapp's team includes the first full-time, permanent chief financial officer since 2007, a public information officer and a cabinet-level economic development director.
Critics, including the council members who approved the job, say the chief of staff is a stand-in for the part-time mayor, who holds a full-time position as finance director in another municipality.
Richard Stewart called for elimination of the $80,000 chief of staff post Monday, as part of the CBAC report which also faulted the budget review process and deplored the Health Division's failure to inspect two-thirds of city food establishments.
He said the CBAC got late notice of the meeting schedule and only got to review a fraction of city divisions. In addition, only two of seven council members attended all six budget deliberation sessions, he said. The committee's report found both Police and Public Works top-heavy with supervisors and dismissed the explanation that superiors worked together with lower-ranking and lower-paid employees.
Overall, the committee found a lack of measurable outcomes and data to support budget requests and called for a full-time grant writer to seek outside funding.
The council also received a report Monday from budget consultant Lawrence Caroselli of .Government Strategy Group, calling for elimination of all new positions except for the Recreation superintendent. Caroselli and Government Strategy Group CEO Kenneth DeRoberts offered an alternative to the administration's proposed budget that would increase taxes on the average $113,000 home by $129. Their plan, which included reducing use of surplus and insurance funds, would result in an increase of only $93, they said.
Chief Financial Officer Ulrich Steinberg and Finance Director Ron West asked Council President Bridget Rivers to allow a rebuttal, but she refused, telling them to 'put it in writing and put it on the internet."
The meeting Monday also included a public hearing on the introduced budget. West rose to speak as a resident and said last week Caroselli had called the budget "reasonable." West called Caroselli's urging to eliminate the person in charge of economic development among items that made no sense.
The next step is for the council to amend the budget and hold a hearing on the amendments before final passage.
--Bernice
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
It's Praying Mantis Time!
The Praying Mantis population in my yard has provided many hours of fascination with their antics and habits. Today I saw the first newly-emerged ones for 2014.
They are about as big as a standard staple right now.
My first clue that they were emerging was the sight of this egg case with the white exoskeletons of the smallest nymphs. They progress through many stages of growth, shedding their skin each time. Click images to enlarge.
This year we have more than a dozen egg cases and I gave away about five more. They favor the Forsythia bush for placement of egg cases, but this year we found them on a Rose bush, a chain link fence, an evergreen and even on some tall weeds.
Their favorite spot in the summer is the Butterfly Bush, where they catch lots of insects and mate when mature. They only live for one season and the egg cases hold the next generation.
Here is a mating couple in August 2013.
The female creates the egg case over several hours, as seen here in October 2013.
Backyard nature study is entrancing to me and I recommend it to all. Even a weedy vacant lot, such as the one I visited as a child growing up in East Orange, can yield a lot of interesting insights into the natural world.
--Bernice
This year we have more than a dozen egg cases and I gave away about five more. They favor the Forsythia bush for placement of egg cases, but this year we found them on a Rose bush, a chain link fence, an evergreen and even on some tall weeds.
Their favorite spot in the summer is the Butterfly Bush, where they catch lots of insects and mate when mature. They only live for one season and the egg cases hold the next generation.
Backyard nature study is entrancing to me and I recommend it to all. Even a weedy vacant lot, such as the one I visited as a child growing up in East Orange, can yield a lot of interesting insights into the natural world.
--Bernice
PILOT Approval Clinches Liberty Village Sale
The council's unanimous approval of a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement sealed the sale by Liberty Community Associates to Liberty Village Estates Urban Renewal LLC and met a May 7 HUD deadline to renew a Section 8 contract. The deal had been explained several times in April, including the May 7 expiration of the HUD contract, but at another meeting Monday with Rep. Rush Holt, Assemblyman Jerry Green was seeking an extension until the end of June.
The audience broke into applause after all seven council members voted "yes," with Councilman Cory Storch taking part by telephone.
The PILOT plan began 30 years ago and had 20 years to go. Liberty Community Associates had a 30-year management contract with the Housing Authority of Plainfield. But after the original owner's death, successors uncovered many problems at the complex and, according to heir Sam Perelman, had to sue the Housing Authority to regain control. The company hired a well-regarded management firm to make improvements and raise the complex's HUD score to acceptable levels. The new owner will also manage the property.
"You got to pay the rent," he said. "You got to keep it clean."
Reid said tenants must not let people stay with them if they are not on the lease, nor let drug dealers "run over you and take you over."
"There's a lot of responsibility on you," he said. "Pay the rent and become good citizens."
(Plaintalker covered the April 8 meeting where the PILOT was not moved to the agenda, the April 15 meeting where it was rejected as a new item, the "Town Meeting" proposal and the Town Meeting itself (here and here). Believe it or not, there is even more to this story, but I am signing off for now.)
--Bernice
Monday, May 5, 2014
Romond's Demolition Proceeds, 20 Units Proposed
December 2013
A proposal that won preliminary approvals in 2009 is moving along with demolition of the former Romond's Garage to make way for four stores and 20 apartments.
The building has now been largely broken down to piles of girders and timber.
A five-story building will replace the former garage.
Developer Frank Cretella expects to pair the project, known as Arts Loft I LLC, with another development bordering on Gavett Place to create an entertainment center.
The new building will occupy a block north of the main train station and is part of Cretella's downtown plan.
--Bernice
Saturday, May 3, 2014
About That Mailing
Friday's mail brought a disconcerting mixed message from Jerry Green.
On the front he is quoted as saying, "Plainfield is my home and I will always do anything in my power to help this great city ..." while inside he condemns Mayor Adrian O. Mapp, who took office on Jan. 1 and is now just four months into a 48-month term.
I do not recall such a bald attack on a new mayor, especially one who needs time to reorient a city that went without full fiscal oversight for eight years and had nine shifts in the office of city administrator; six people in charge of Administration, Finance, Health and Social Services; and five directors of Public Works & Urban Development. Mapp won with 70 percent of the vote, but Green, who admits he deferred to the power of his predecessor as head of the Union County Democrats to back Mapp, now vows to use his power in that seat to disenfranchise the electorate and make their votes null and void.
I recall one election night where a sitting mayor lost his re-election bid. His comment was simply, "The people have spoken."
Those who find this mailer out of line are waiting to see what the people say on June 3. Green says he "always supported the Democratic Party's choice of candidate and done all I could to see they were elected." He alone chose the party's ticket for 2014 City Council seats and no doubt has a large ego investment in them. A quick look at the flier might make one think he himself is on the ballot, but that will be next year.
Green says, "In less than a year (sic), Adrian Mapp has proven to be every bit as bad for Plainfield as I feared," and claims Mapp is dividing the city.
What message does this give to those who might want to bring transit-oriented development to the city and create the new ratables the city needs? Normally, developers approach the administration with their plans and rely on certain approvals from the governing body. If they are told to ignore the executive branch, how do they get started? Maybe they will go where the politics are less byzantine.
Green states he was "loyal to the Chair and followed her instructions to support Mapp" even though he believed it was a mistake. Now he wants people to be loyal to him and support his choices regardless of what they believe. Is there a moral here about dumb loyalty versus voting one's conscience? When the people speak and he doesn't like it, will Jerry say STFU, I run this MF? Oh wait, I think he just did.
--Bernice
On the front he is quoted as saying, "Plainfield is my home and I will always do anything in my power to help this great city ..." while inside he condemns Mayor Adrian O. Mapp, who took office on Jan. 1 and is now just four months into a 48-month term.
I do not recall such a bald attack on a new mayor, especially one who needs time to reorient a city that went without full fiscal oversight for eight years and had nine shifts in the office of city administrator; six people in charge of Administration, Finance, Health and Social Services; and five directors of Public Works & Urban Development. Mapp won with 70 percent of the vote, but Green, who admits he deferred to the power of his predecessor as head of the Union County Democrats to back Mapp, now vows to use his power in that seat to disenfranchise the electorate and make their votes null and void.
I recall one election night where a sitting mayor lost his re-election bid. His comment was simply, "The people have spoken."
Those who find this mailer out of line are waiting to see what the people say on June 3. Green says he "always supported the Democratic Party's choice of candidate and done all I could to see they were elected." He alone chose the party's ticket for 2014 City Council seats and no doubt has a large ego investment in them. A quick look at the flier might make one think he himself is on the ballot, but that will be next year.
Green says, "In less than a year (sic), Adrian Mapp has proven to be every bit as bad for Plainfield as I feared," and claims Mapp is dividing the city.
What message does this give to those who might want to bring transit-oriented development to the city and create the new ratables the city needs? Normally, developers approach the administration with their plans and rely on certain approvals from the governing body. If they are told to ignore the executive branch, how do they get started? Maybe they will go where the politics are less byzantine.
Green states he was "loyal to the Chair and followed her instructions to support Mapp" even though he believed it was a mistake. Now he wants people to be loyal to him and support his choices regardless of what they believe. Is there a moral here about dumb loyalty versus voting one's conscience? When the people speak and he doesn't like it, will Jerry say STFU, I run this MF? Oh wait, I think he just did.
--Bernice
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