Council Meeting 1/20/09-Football Champs Honored

[admin]

I will post later on other things discussed at the council meeting, but I am starting this thread off with the main event of the night- the recognition of our state champs, the Freehold Borough High School Varsity Football Team.

Last night that borough pride that we all share was over flowing at borough hall. The room was packed with football players, their families, and residents who watched as the mayor and council presented the entire team with recognition and a presentation of awards for a job well done.

Before the awards were give to all the players, the Mayor recalled some past football history in our town. When he was in the school, he mentioned that in four years the team only won one game. Fast forward to the eighties and we came close to getting a title but lost. Finally, in 2008, Freehold Borough High School won the Group III state championship.

The entire room could not have been more proud that we were last night of these champs. All of the council had great words and salutations to give to them. It was also mentioned that not only has our town been seeing a great run of success in the athletic programs, but we are one of the best high schools in the nation academically.

Also as a nice surprise, Assemblywoman Casagrande was there on behalf of the Senator Beck, Assemblyman Decalan, and herself. Casagrande also had a recognition from the state for our champs.

Last nights presentation was a great community night. Our town was shining for the right reasons.

[richardkelsey]

Jan 21, 2009 16:55:24 GMT -5 admin said:

I will post later on other things discussed at the council meeting, but I am starting this thread off with the main event of the night- the recognition of our state champs, the Freehold Borough High School Varsity Football Team.

Last night that borough pride that we all share was over flowing at borough hall. The room was packed with football players, their families, and residents who watched as the mayor and council presented the entire team with recognition and a presentation of awards for a job well done.

Before the awards were give to all the players, the Mayor recalled some past football history in our town. When he was in the school, he mentioned that in four years the team only won one game. Fast forward to the eighties and we came close to getting a title but lost. Finally, in 2008, Freehold Borough High School won the Group III state championship.

The entire room could not have been more proud that we were last night of these champs. All of the council had great words and salutations to give to them. It was also mentioned that not only has our town been seeing a great run of success in the athletic programs, but we are one of the best high schools in the nation academically.

Also as a nice surprise, Assemblywoman Casagrande was there on behalf of the Senator Beck, Assemblyman Decalan, and herself. Casagrande also had a recognition from the state for our champs.

Last nights presentation was a great community night. Our town was shining for the right reasons.

Who ya root'n for - FHS -- a little louder -- FHS.

Cool. Kudos to the kids, coaches, parents, and all the supporters. That was a nice event for the Council to have -- and I applaud them for giving recognition to a well-deserving group.

[admin]

As promised, here is the follow through on the rest of the council meeting.

Graffiti ordinance proposal- Not a lot of details here, but it appears there may be an ordinance coming soon that requires property owners to clean up graffiti. The police department is working on this one.

Truck wash facility update- This has to do with a shared grant with the township and Marlboro. Apparently, the state has new standards on washing large trucks.

Municipal Regional residential Trash Services- The talk here surrounded doing a study of how to make it work and save money for all. The obvious issues are in what services each town currently provides and what the changes for each would be.

As an aside, the above two issues are reflective of a trend that has been occurring in boro hall- shared services to save money.

Five Boy Scouts were also honored for attaining the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest honor in the BSA. Our town also benefited from the eagle scout projects. Two examples are the patio area at the library and the fit station at Lake Topomemus.

Records Management Committee- This was discussed, but vague. No further details.

Committee reports

Health Department to host two health fairs this year.

Recreation Commission to possibly hold to borough wide yard sales due to the success of the first. Jazz and blues concert coming ( Yeah) The re commission is also assisting with the flag football league. This was put together by a resident and has done very well.

Shade Tree is updating all lists including dead and diseased trees that have to be removed, and a planting list. On April 25th there will be a tree planting on Liberty Street. Tree removal contract has been awarded to Friendly Tree service. Expect to see them around.

BOE- finally got the money from the sale of the former police station

FCP- not mush specific said, but as I have mentioned, expect to see a lot of good from them over the next year.

Historic Preservation- still need showcases donated to show off memorabilia PLEASE HELP THEM IF YOU CAN! HPC is also putting on a house tour this year.

Community Information Committee- will host a volunteer fair this year, get the new web site up, and the Resident Resource Packet is just about done. ( Whew!)

The Neighborhood Pride Committee is really taking off and getting a lot done. World Changes is coming back, there will be a job fair, multiple seminars through the year, the community garden and more.

[admin]

As I mentioned, the graffiti issue came up at this meeting. Here is a better article....

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2009/0128/front_page/034.html

Graffiti issue gains council's attention
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer


FREEHOLD — In an effort to retain Freehold Borough's hometown appearance, municipal officials have discussed an idea for an ordinance that would, if enacted, address the removal of graffiti on borough properties.

The discussion occurred at a Borough Council meeting on Jan. 20.

The item was brought to the meeting by Borough Administrator Joseph Bellina.

"We want to address this issue and the importance of why we need it," Bellina said, although he did not provide specific locations in town where this is a problem. "Graffiti is ugly to us certainly, but there are also code issues to be addressed with graffiti. We want to alert you that this will be coming up."



Bellina said the issue of graffiti had been discussed in the past, but he said this proposal deals more with the removal of graffiti as opposed to the creation of the symbols and words that some people place on buildings and other structures.

He suggested that the proposal which originated in the Freehold Borough Police Department regarding the removal of graffiti be introduced as an ordinance at the next council meeting.

The draft that was presented to the council seeks to address the removal of graffiti in a timely and proactive manner. The draft also states that addressing this issue is "a necessary step in combating gangs as they use markings to establish their identity and presence in a community, which is counterproductive to the quality of life of Freehold Borough neighborhoods."

The draft states that by reducing graffiti in an "expeditious manner," the amount of recognition so-called graffiti artists receive will be reduced and it will help maintain the hometown appearance Freehold Borough represents.

According to the draft, property owners would have a duty to keep their property free of graffiti and owner(s) of every commercial building and residential building will keep their buildings free of all graffiti. It will also require property owners to remove graffiti from their homes or business. The proposal gives municipal employees (with authorization from the administration or the chief of police) the right to enter private property and remove graffiti, if left untreated.

When graffiti is found on a home or business, a notice will be sent to the property owner to advise him he has 15 business days to remove it. If the owner does nothing to remove the graffiti in 15 days, the borough will be permitted to remove it and the owner will have to reimburse the borough. Failure to do so may result in a property lien, according to the draft that was reviewed by the council.

[admin]

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2009/0211/front_page/028.html

Three towns eye plans for shared truck wash
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer


FREEHOLD — Borough officials have passed a resolution to endorse the pursuit of a New Jersey SHARE grant with Marlboro and Freehold Township for the purposes of studying the possibility of creating a municipal truck wash facility.

SHARE stands for Sharing Available Resources Efficiently.

The purpose of the $10,000 grant, according to the Freehold Borough resolution, is to promote shared services between the towns through the sharing of mandated truck washing facilities that would be beneficial to the local municipalities.

The three towns have joined in applying for money to fund a feasibility study, with Marlboro as the lead agency.



Freehold Borough Administrator Joseph Bellina explained that new state Department of Environmental Protection regulations require that when municipal trucks are washed, the water must be separated from the grime and residue in order to keep "deleterious" materials from entering the storm drainage system.

Bellina told the council members to keep in mind that Monmouth County will be getting three truck washes. He said it may be more cost-effective to pay per wash for each truck at county truck wash than to go in with two other towns and create a truck wash.

Bellina said the county truck washes will probably be up and running by the spring or summer.

According to an executive summary from the Western Monmouth Shared Storm Water Compliance Study prepared by the Patriot Group, a key goal of the study was to find mutual ways of meeting two seemingly unrelated state goals: storm water management compliance and the sharing of municipal services with the goal of lessening the strain on property taxes.

New Jersey's new standards for vehicle washing by municipalities include "the installation of a vehicle wash-water reclamation center; the capturing and hauling of the used water for proper disposal; connection to sanitary sewers; and the halting of washing activity or the obtaining of a separate New Jersey Elimination System permit."

The compliance study recommends the immediate establishment of two wheel/vehicle wash systems in the study area to maximize the efficiency of storm water compliance delivery to the three towns (Marlboro, Freehold Township and Freehold Borough) while providing maximum opportunities for generating a funding system through subscription use by other governmental agencies.

The compliance study also states that Freehold Township is "an ideal facility for the erection of a permanent touchless/brushless, fully reclaimable, vehicle wash system and would be capable of washing every vehicle in the three municipalities."

The compliance study suggests that a portable wheel wash solution be placed in Marlboro immediately. This would be capable of washing every vehicle in the three municipal fleets to the storm water regulatory standard.

The compliance study recommendations include the following: the three municipalities should enter a shared services agreement for the purpose of jointly providing wheel/vehicle wash services for storm water management compliance among the three towns; a portable truck wash system should be leased and placed in Marlboro immediately. The system would lease for between $6,900 and $7,900 per month and could be purchased for about $90,000. A lease-purchase arrangement is also possible and may be a better choice, according to the study.

The study also recommends that a permanent system be fully investigated in anticipation of purchasing an appropriate system for eventual placement in Freehold Township. The cost of purchasing such a system starts at $120,000.

Both systems would be within a 17- minute drive of municipalities in four counties, according to the compliance study.