The next Common Council meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 6 at 7:30 PM. Members of Common Council, Mayor Radest, and City staff will be participating electronically in this meeting. For this and all future electronic meetings, members of the public will be able to comment by video or audio conference. Comments will also be accepted by email or by mail to cityclerk@cityofsummit.org. Comments must be received by noon on April 6 and will be read by the clerk or summarized if substantially like other comments. The access code for the Zoom meeting is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89615718354?pwd=ZjhacjUwQ3RFMkFRN0NxVkxncFZ5UT09 Every Common Council meeting is broadcast live on HTTV Verizon channel 30 and Comcast channel 36 and 34. The meeting will also be broadcast live on the City of Summit YouTube Channel.
The first item on the agenda is a presentation by Nancy Adams, the Executive Director Summit Downtown, Inc. on SDI’s accomplishments in the past year supporting Summit’s businesses and our downtown.
Council will hold a hearing and vote on an ordinance to authorize the city to increase its final budget appropriations by the statutorily permitted 3.5 % and to allow the city to bank any unused amounts for the next two years. This ordinance is not an expenditure of funds and does not affect the tax levy; rather this is a budgeting technique that allows council to plan for unexpected expenditures in future years.
The Capital Projects and Community Services Committee will introduce two ordinances for hearing and final consideration. The first will amend noise prohibitions to create a pilot program to ban the use of gas powered leaf blowers within Summit from June 1 to August 31, 2021. The second ordinance will amend construction permit fees in the city’s schedule of fees. The fee structure currently in place has not been increased in 10 years and does not adequately cover the operating expenses for the construction office.
The Law and Labor Committee will introduce an ordinance to amend the lease agreement between the city and Reeves-Reed Arboretum to extend the lease of the Arboretum property until September 6, 2046. The lease extension is necessary for the Arboretum to apply for a state Green Acres grant. The hearing on this ordinance will be held on April 20.
The Finance Committee will introduce three resolutions. First, council will vote to introduce the 2021 budget for the Special Improvement District (known as SDI or Summit Downtown, Inc.) and set a hearing date of May 4. The second resolution authorizes emergency temporary appropriations to the 2021 temporary operating budget. This resolution adds $2,327,343 to the current temporary operating budget to meet expenses that must be paid prior to the final adoption of the 2021 budget. The 2021 budget introduction has been delayed until April 20, 2021 to allow the city to receive information and guidance from the federal and state governments on the application of American Recovery Plan funds to the city budget. Finally, council will consider a resolution supporting New Jersey Senate Bill 3522 to create a local part of the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) to protect the portion of the public employees’ retirement system funded by local governments from being used to subsidize the portion of the system that is underfunded by the state. This measure will shield local governments, who have met their pension obligations, from being forced to subsidize the funding of state pensions.
The Capital Projects and Community Services Committee will introduce 11 resolutions. First, council will vote on a resolution to set the 2021 Sewer Use Charge, which is based on the charges established by the Joint Meeting of Essex and Union County for wastewater treatment and the costs attributable to the city’s sewer utility. Second, council will consider a resolution to authorize the purchase of a new backhoe loader from the National purchasing cooperative. The backhoe loader will replace a 1999 CAT backhoe and will be used by the Division of Public Works in its daily maintenance operations, and for snow removal. This purchase will be funded through the 2020 Capital Budget. Next, council will hear a resolution to award the curbing portion of the Westminster Road reconstruction project through the Morris County Cooperative Pricing Council. This is the first time that the city will be completing a road reconstruction project using the Morris County Co-op, which should save the city money and streamline the construction process. Council will hear two resolutions intended to assist local businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic – approving a parklet on Bank Street for Summit Greek Grill and authorizing the temporary use of public parks and fields by local exercise and fitness businesses. Council will also consider a pair of resolutions to appoint a member of the Mayor’s Arts Committee and the chair of the Summit Economic Development Advisory Committee. Finally, council will vote on resolutions: (1) to accept a donation for the dedication of a bench on the Village Green; (2) to authorize Arbor Day festivities on April 23; (3) to authorize the execution of an affordable housing deed restriction agreement for a two-bedroom unit at 86 Park Avenue; and (4) to authorize submission of Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC) Open Space Stewardship grant application for the installation of a pollinator and native plant garden at the Summit Community Center.
The Administrative Policy Committee will introduce a resolution to create a voluntary registration program for landscapers operating in Summit to allow for them to receive communications from the city about regulations governing their activities and programs offered by the municipality.
Finally, council will consider three Safety and Health Committee resolutions. One resolution would accept a contribution to the Summit Police Department in the amount of $250 from the Donald and Elizabeth Holck Fund and two resolutions would authorize submission of grants to fund pedestrian safety measures through the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety.
Printable Agenda Preview: https://www.cityofsummit.org/DocumentCenter/View/5566/Fox-Council-President-Preview-040621
To view the complete Common Council agenda, go to https://www.cityofsummit.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/523?fileID=27058
Next Common Council Meeting: Tuesday, April 20, 2021.