By DON STINE
Newly-appointed Asbury Park Councilwoman Sue Henderson has also been appointed as the city’s representative to the Deal Lake Commission, which is currently negotiating to receive its annual contributions from the city council.
“I am looking forward to everything being resolved with the contribution,” Henderson said this week.
Henderson said she knows she “has some big shoes to fill” by replacing outgoing Asbury Park commission member Len Rokaw, who is voluntarily stepping down.
Henderson said she has met twice with Rokaw to catch up on commission affairs and get information.
Commission Chairman John Everson said Rokaw will certainly be missed.
“We’re sad to see Len go. He has really been a cornerstone of the commission for more than 20 years. He leaves with a wealth of knowledge and understanding of many of the lake’s problems,” he said.
Everson said Asbury Park still owes its annual contributions to the Deal Lake Commission for 2007 and 2008, or about $16,500.
“Asbury Park has not paid because its public works department has brought up some valid concerns about our procedure for lowering the lake prior to storms and structural deficiencies with the existing flume and the protective grate that catches debris before it gets into the flume,” he said.
Water flows from the lake into the Atlantic Ocean through a flume under Ocean Avenue. A gate in the flume helps control the water level in the lake.
“I think Sue’s presence will help resolve this problem. Sue is a big asset to the commission because she is in tune with the needs of Asbury Park and Deal Lake and she has a strong love for the lake,” he said.
Everson said commission, which gets annual contributions from the seven municipalities surrounding the lake, doubled the contributions in 2008. The contributions are based on the amount of shoreline each community has on the lake and Asbury Park has the second-largest amount after Ocean Township.
“It was a hard thing for the towns but the commission has been collecting the old rate for years, possibly since it was founded in 1974,” he said.
Everson said the money is needed to do minor maintenance projects, such as weed harvesting, repairing and maintaining flume gates, and investing in upgrading the flume grate.
Everson said he is encouraged that the two parties are getting closer to settling their differences and that a meeting is planned with Asbury Park officials in the near future.
“I am optimistic too. Responsibility for opening and closing the flume and its maintenance is the main sticking point,” Henderson said.
“We are arranging a meeting with John Everson to hash out some of these things because we are very eager to move on,” she said.
Henderson, who has lived on the lake at her Asbury Park home for the past 16 years, said she also grew up two houses away from the lake in Loch Arbour during the first nine years of her life.
“I am very aware of the importance of the lake and I am very happy to represent Asbury Park on the commission,” she said.
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