Pool Report

Councilwoman Rebecca Williams, who serves on the council's Recreation and Public Safety committees, passes along an update on the status of city pools:

The following Municipal Pools have passed the required Health Inspection and will open at 12:30pm today Saturday, June 28, 2014.

 

1.        Rushmore Pool:  Kiddie Wading Pool only.  The main pool pvc liner is unrepairable, the liners will be removed and pool restored to concrete.

2.       Seidler Field Pool will open main and Kiddie Wading Pool.

 

Failed Inspection

3.       Hannah Atkins:  Both pools failed due to the drain covers not meeting code.

Pools will be drained Monday and repaired. 

 

Sign up for Free “ Learn to Swim” lessons are scheduled 12:30pm – 2:30pm  today at Hannah Atkins for the week of July 7^th – 18^th and Seidler Field for July 28^th – August 8^th.

First Festival Opens Friday

Friday may prove to be a test of whether large festivals can do better this year with noise and crowd management.

Nightclub owner Edison Garcia received city approval to use lots 8 and 8A for his festival celebrating the Independence of the United States. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, it will run from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m..Since the festivals began about six years ago, the city has increased daily fees to $2,500 and this year requires organizers to hire six police officers in addition to whatever private security may be used.

Residents requested tighter controls around the beer stations this year to prevent young people from being too close and to manage cases of public intoxication. But despite a lot of talk about noise, no specific guidelines on volume were imposed. The sound carried a mile, according to some who complained. The music is to cease at 10 p.m.

Garcia will also hold a three-day festival in September, celebrating Central American Independence. Another nightclub group will hold one the same weekend in September, in addition to a parade from Rock Avenue to Roosevelt Avenue. The events attract thousands of visitors to Plainfield and both organizers say they create good will and get people to know the welcoming side of the city.

--Bernice

Jackson Assumes Mayoralty

Eric Jackson's Inauguration is today.

July 4 Parade, Fireworks Are On July 5

Don't haul your lawn chairs down to Front Street Friday for the 91st Central Jersey July 4 Celebration, unless you plan to stay overnight. The parade will step off at 10 a.m. Saturday and the fireworks will start at dusk Saturday in Cedar Brook Park.

Old-timers may remember when the "Central Jersey" part referred to a joint effort by eight or nine municipalities to organize and fund the celebration. A committee worked year-round to make the arrangements. All their terms expired in 1993 and although legislation passed in 2006 to establish an all-Plainfield committee, no members were ever named. I'm told that may change for 2015, ending the practice of ad hoc planning for the event and a bit of mystery about the costs involved.

The city has budgeted $52,400 for the event this year. In 2012, a request for details of the costs did not get a response until January 2013. But as noted in this post, the issue of cost disclosure went back to 2006.

The issue of costs came up also when a contribution from Investors Savings Bank for the event in 2010 was apparently diverted to a controversial "Town Hall" radio show featuring Rev Al Sharpton.

All in all, the celebration is overdue for some rigorous planning with full disclosure of costs and it seems that will be the way it goes next year. The reason given in the past for not holding the event on July 4th was extra pay for employees. Maybe an analysis can pinpoint the difference and adjustments can be made so that the 92nd Central Jersey July 4 Celebration will be on July 4.
--Bernice

Mapp Answers Q&A on Jackson's Successor

Mayor Adrian O. Mapp has responded to my request for a Q&A on Eric Jackson's successor. Jackson, the city's director of Public Works & Urban Renewal since September 2011, won the May 10 mayoral runoff election in Trenton and will take office July 1.

Jackson was so popular and highly regarded here that he was asked to stay on in his post after Mayor Mapp took office on Jan. 1. Among his accomplishments were several departmental improvements, such as a review of the capital improvement process. He also oversaw the renovation of City Hall, including restoration of the original 1917 seal on the rotunda floor. Working with several commissions, he planned and executed a transformation of the grounds of City Hall as well, a visible legacy that all can admire and enjoy.

Here is Mayor Mapp's response:

Will you be making a search for a new Public Works & Urban Development director now that Eric Jackson has become mayor of Trenton? Yes, I will be advertising for Eric Jackson’s replacement very shortly.

The department has two aspects, one being Public Works (maintenance of roads and fields and seasonal tasks such as snow removal and various pickups}. But the Urban Development aspect is now front-and-center with the Transit Village designation, new TOD zones and a cabinet-level director for economic development who will rely on Planning to work with developers. In light of this, what talents or skills will you seek in candidates for the PW&UD post at this juncture? Eric’s replacement has to be a highly skilled professional, preferably with an engineering background and some urban planning experience. The person must be able to hit the ground running. The individual must have very good communication skills and must be able to communicate in an assertive and effective manner with the governing body and the public.

This is an advice-and-consent position. How soon do you hope to present a nominee to the council? My goal is to nominate a candidate for advice and consent within the next 30 – 60 days.

--Bernice

Health Fair Today

Lenin Aguirre writes to say, "There is a 'Health Festival' this Sunday - June 29 from 10:00AM-4:00PM in Plainfield! It will be held behind Supremo Supermarket-249 East Front Street, Plainfield NJ. I strongly recommend everyone to attend and show your support in this great cause."

Summer Flowers

One of the prettiest sights upon returning home was the Catchfly in bloom. My neighbor had planted wildflower seeds last year and after they bloomed, my seed-gathering urge kicked in. Catchfly seeds are a little bigger than dust particles. I was not sure they would germinate. What a nice surprise to see these flowers! And yes, they do have stalks with a sticky substance that could catch a fly - well, a little fly.

The gift that keeps on giving, these Black-Eyed Susans are the newest generation from a bag of seed heads that the owner of Schmiede's Nursery permitted me to collect from the bank in front of his business many years ago. Early on, the show was spectacular. Later, the flowers popped up so ubiquitously that they were practically weeds, as in the old definition that a weed is just a flower in the wrong place.

A handsome flower and a handsome bug. The Purple Coneflower, beloved of cold remedy illustrators, is always pleasing to see in the garden. It is not as quick to spread as some of its fellow composites, so a little lifting and re-planting is in order. I have moved them around to spots where they are easier to view when it's showtime.

I thought the feathery leaves of Dill would set off other plants nicely, so I gathered seeds and scattered them in maybe too many other places than the original site. The umbel of tiny yellow flowers is nice to contemplate while making a mental shopping list including a piece of salmon.

Nasturtiums are one of my favorites. I had an early success (or nightmare) with a climbing Nasturtium that pooled out six feet over the lawn for lack of a trellis. I had purchased a pricey compost bin after interminable fretting over the cost, and when I pulled up the prolific Nasturtium at the end of the season, it filled the entire bin! Luckily it wilted down to make room for my other compostables.

Hope you enjoyed the images! I sure was glad to be in the garden to see them. After the only major surgery in my life, I was, as the joke goes, glad to be anywhere!

--Bernice