2. The Amboy Guardian *July 20, 2022The Continuance7/13/22 Council MeetingBy: Carolyn MaxwellPERTH AMBOY – The meetingwas opened up to those whowanted to speak on ordinancesthat have their own public hearing.Resident Ken Balut came upto speak about Ordinance No.2 – Dissolving the Perth AmboyRedevelopment Agency anddesignating the City Council asa Redevelopment Entity.Balut said, “The people thatare controlling PARA are countyleaders and people who don’tlive in the town. The councilgets things dropped in their lapat the last minute and you shouldbe controlling this. There is stillno money for schools with thesePILOTS and they are only makingmoney for the developers.I get a lot of calls from peoplewho talk about all the overdoseshappening in the schools. Youshould have your own lawyerwhen dealing with issues thatwere handles by PARA. Do youknow of any pending PILOTSthat PARA has right now?”Councilwoman Rose Morales,who is also on PARA, spoke upand said, “No.”Balut continued, “You can’tkeep giving money to the richwhile the poor get nothing.Sometimes these developerswill grab you aside and say:“Let’s make a deal.” We onlyhave 29% of homeownership inthis town. A lot of people whoown these homes rent them outand live out of town. This hasgot to stop.”After Balut finished speaking,Council President Petrick statedthat the council will not be votingon this ordinance tonightbecause it requires approvalfrom the Local Finance Boardprior to adoption.The next ordinance that thepublic spoke about was No. 5 –A $2,400,000 bonds or notes toprovide for the construction ofthe Smith Street Shop DistributionBuilding for the Water Utility.Balut stated, “You waited 14months to spend the first allotmentof money (from the AmericanRescue Act). Legal feeswere already used, and we areflushed with money. The moneywill probably be used for the reelectionof county officials. Inflationis too high now and landlordswill suffer. It will causerents to go up and people willuse unsafe methods to warmup. Stop pushing things downthe line. The banks and lawyersare making out and there shouldbe no more gimmicks, or youwould have used the money if itwas needed. I am asking you totable this ordinance.”The meeting was then openedup to Zoom participants.Resident Sharon Hubbermanalso talked about Ordinance No.5, “Who are the underwriters?This is not the time to do anytype of construction becauseconsumer goods and materialsare going up in cost. Are the watermeter replacements compatiblewith our housing? We needmore details on these bondssuch as the maturity, rates, etc.Compound interest goes up.We need to have a Water UtilityCommission. We have more urgentmatters such as what is goingon with the water (quality).”For Ordinance No. 6 – Thehonorary naming of LindenStreet as Peru Boulevard, awoman who resides on thatstreet came up to the podiumto thank the council for this ordinanceand she hoped to seethem all when they are there tounveil the name on July 30th.Ken Balut came up for thepublic hearing on OrdinanceNo. 7 – A tax exemption anda financial agreement with E-Port Phase II Urban Renewal atBlock 430 Lot 1.02.Balut said, “What are the termsand what are you giving away?The county gets their money,but nothing for the students. Weget a bandstand with no toilets.You are making billionairesrich, and they are getting lowertaxes. I see Woodbridge has thesame law firm that we do workingon PILOTS. We need to seethe full amount of taxes we willbe getting with and without aPILOT.”Business Administrator MichaelGreene responded, “Inthis instance, the city would geta lot more. Based on 20 years,with a 20-year PILOT, wewould get a total of $7.7 millionwithout the PILOT. Withthe PILOT, we would have accumulated$54 million, and thecity would also get a lot more. Ifwe have our own health department,we could use $500,000(of that money).”Balut added, “You also haveto factor in what the cost wouldbe if taxes go up. When I comeup here and ask questions,that’s when the residents get answers.”Resident Dave Szilagyi cameup to the mike and asked how aPILOT works.B.A. Greene explained givingthe numbers with and without aPILOT, “Year#1, the city wouldget $2 million with the PILOT.Without the PILOT, the citywould receive $350,000. Year#20, the city would get $3.5million with the PILOT. Withoutthe PILOT, the city wouldget $426,000.”Public Comments on AgendaItems Only:Resident Ken Balut cameup first. He asked why therewere no bids in ResolutionsR-358 – 7/22 – Regarding anamount of $304,150 for constructionservices related to theYouth League Complex. Andon R-371-7/22 – Solar ParkingPay stations for $90,978.50.“There is only group qualifiedto do these parking meters.When I went to the League ofMunicipalities Meeting, I foundout there were several peoplewho can do this work. The bidamounts would always be onthe agenda in the past. Peoplecall me to ask questions at themeeting for them because theyare afraid to come here in person."Police Chief Cattano answered,"The people who werecontracted who put in these meters(IPS Group) – all the machineswere shipped from California,and we have been usingthe same company. They supplyall of our needs, and all of themachines are purchased directlyfrom the manufacturer."Balut continued, “Is there anoriginal bid on the contract forthe parking meters? And wasthe original contract a no bidcontract? The solar meters wereplaced in town around fouryears ago for $113,000. I knowbecause I put in an OPRA aboutit.”The next person to come up tospeak was Ariel, a 26-year-oldresident who lives on BrightonAvenue. “I submitted an applicationfor a new APP calledTimestamp which was developedto help residents and businessowners so they can advertisewhat services they have tooffer.”Council President Bill Petrickreplied, “We really can'thelp you because it would bean unfair advantage to marketyour business when there are somany other businesses in town.You can talk the BID.” Petrickpointed to BID Chair BarryRosengarten who happened tobe sitting in the audience. “Theadministration handles the citywebsite, and you are also gettingpublicity because the meetingsare televised on our PublicAccess TV.”Before sitting down, Arielsaid, “You will not be favoringme, because my APP will helpthe residents and the businesses,and it will favor many people inthe city (to give them more exposure).”The meeting was then openedup to Zoom Participants.Resident Sharon Hubbermanreferenced R-376-7/22 – Agrant to Celebrate Perth Amboyfor the Fourth of July Fireworksto be funded through the AmericanRescue Plan Act.Hubberman stated, “You needto look into nonprofits andmake sure they have certificatesin good standing and arein compliance with New JerseyLaw. Financials have to be public.They need to comply withthe intent of the funds.”The next person to speak cameup in person was a residentfrom Kirkland Place, He complainedabout a business locatedat 442 Smith Street. “There’s acontainer that they have on thesidewalk that has liquid thatsmells awful. I and some ofthe neighbors have to pick upthe garbage on this property. Iwent to Code Enforcement tocomplain, but nothing has beendone.”Council President Bill Petricktold the resident to talk toB.A. Michael Greene about thisproblem.No one else spoke via Zoom.The council voted on the consentordinances and consentagenda.Ordinance No. 1 – Public Entertainmentwas moved by Pabon,seconded by Tejeda. Whenit came to vote individually,Tejeda and Morales voted “No.”Ordinance No. 2 – DissolvingPARA was not voted upon.Ordinance No. 3 – FloodDamage Prevention was movedby Pabon, seconded by Tejeda.Ordinance No. 4 – HandicappedParking Spaces – regardingadditions was moved*Continued on Page 8
July 20, 2022 * The Amboy Guardian .3Kerry Dyke Wins Women's Distance Festival 5K,New York *Photos SubmittedPERTH AMBOY/NEWYORK - Perth AmboyanKerry Dyke takes first placein the Women's Distance Festival5K in New York. This isthe second year in a row thatKerry has won the title. Kerryis also three-times NewJersey cross country champion,along with many other titles.Congratulations!Fireworks Celebration, Perth Amboy & South Amboy Waterfront & Raritan Yacht Club, 7/3/22*Photos by Katherine Massopust & Eric Salvary
Change language