By MELISSA BEVERIDGE
Bradley Beach officials put to rest a measure which would have allowed residents to purchase parking spaces in front of their own driveways.
“There’s no big problem in Bradley Beach of people blocking their driveways,” Mayor Gary Engelstad said. “The misinterpretation of this was through the roof.”
In other business, the Borough Council adopted an ordinance which amends the way the borough handles special parking permits. The permits will now be handled by the Police Department and will begin at zero at the beginning of each year.
“We think this will significantly decrease the amount of parking permits that are issued,” Engelstad said. “This is long overdue. Once this is passed, these will not be brought before the mayor and council.”
The council also introduced three ordinances at a cost of $317,000 for the leasing of certain equipment including two police vehicles.
The council also discussed fees for sewer service which is handled by the Neptune Town ship Sewerage Authority.
“I think where we can we need to become more physically responsible so that we can fix our sewer systems without having to engage upon the taxpayers of the town,” Councilman Harold Cotler said.
He said he had met with sewerage authority who told him that when it rains Bradley Beach is pumping a lot of green water from the ocean, which has been infiltrating the storm water drains.
“We have a $900,000 a year on our sewer budget,” Cotler said. “Our surrounding towns spend half that, but those are the towns that have fixed their infrastructure, which means that after we initially bond to start fixing the sewer lines, the savings that we get in our sewer budget will then compensate and cover the bond. So over 10 years the cost of fixing the sewer system, of $3 to 4 million, will essentially pay for itself.”
Engelstad also requested that residents who have their sump pump to install a hose to the sump pump onto their driveway.
“It’s a very simple request,” the mayor said. “It’s going to go from request to something we’re going to have to act on in a legal manner. If your sump pump goes into your drain, you are hurting your town. We’re paying for rainwater. We’ve got to fix that and we’re going to start enforcing this.”
Cotler said that the sewerage authority members told him that 10 percent of the overage flow from Bradley Beach is estimated to be from sump pumps, which can decrease the borough’s sewer charges by $90,000 alone. Directing a sump pump to a drain is actually against TNSA regulations. Engelstad said that the borough would be sending a letter with the tax bill notifying residents to redirect their sump pump into the street.
“I think it needs to be done,” said Councilman Sal Galassetti. “I think the borough would be very responsive to say hey, you’ve got 6-months, change it, get it done. It’s going to hurt a little bit in the beginning. It’s got to be fixed.”
