MINUTES OF THE HEP-SCD BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING
December 6, 2012
The meeting of the Hudson Essex Passaic Soil Conservation District was held in
accordance with the Open Public Meeting Act; advance notice had been given to the press
(Star Ledger Newspaper and the Herald News) and posted. The meeting was also
advertised on HEP’s website.
Members and guests present were as follows: Carl Quazza, Chairman; Supervisors Bob
Prout, Matt Ward, John Sarnas and Mario Tridente; Glen Van Olden, Director; staff
members Matt D’Alessandro, Fran Aguirre, Janet Rekesius and Ken Sicknick; Dr. Amy
Rowe, Environmental and Resource Management Agent for Essex and Passaic Counties;
Dan Mull, District Conservationist, USDA/NRCS; and Frank Minch, SSCC/NJDA.
The public meeting was called to order by Carl Quazza at 7:04 p.m.
The November 2012 minutes were reviewed. M/M Mario Tridente, M/S John Sarnas and
passed unanimously to accept the minutes for the month of November 2012.
Glen reviewed HEP’s Treasurer’s Report and banking accounts for the month of
November 2012. Glen mentioned that the $406,000 currently in the Valley National
Savings Account is to have access to quick funds for a potential future building purchase.
M/M Bob Prout, M/S John Sarnas and passed unanimously to accept the Treasurer’s
Report for the month of November 2012.
Glen Van Olden reviewed the Soil Erosion & Sediment Control Plans certified in
November 2012. M/M John Sarnas, M/S Bob Prout and passed unanimously to accept all
actions taken on Soil Erosion and Sediment Control Plans certified in the month of
November 2012.
M/M Bob Prout, M/S John Sarnas and passed unanimously to change the agenda to
discuss the most important issues first due to Matt Ward’s possibly having to leave before
the end of the meeting.
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GENERAL BUSINESS
Resolution #212-04 Write-Off Property Development Costs
Glen presented this resolution to write off $71,367.46 in assets for past property
development costs, as previously suggested by the district’s auditor, since it is currently
impractical and unrealistic to move forward with developing our current property. M/M
Sarnas, M/S Tridente and passed unanimously.
Resolution #212-02 Employee Reimbursement for Business Use of Cell Phones
Glen presented this resolution to reimburse employees $50 per month for business use of
personal phones since employees are contacted on their cell phones by the District for
work-related emergencies, and employees need to speak to job-related individuals when
away from the office. M/M Mario Tridente, M/S John Sarnas and passed unanimously.
Resolution to Reimburse District Manager for Safety Equipment
Glen presented this resolution but no motions were made and it did not pass. The
supervisors opined that the district should provide or reimburse all employees for any
necessary safety equipment thus no resolution required.
Proposed Fee Schedule Increase
HEP-SCD’s proposed fee schedule increase was originally submitted for review/analysis
in July 2011. Frank Minch met with Glen Van Olden today to again discuss the particulars
of our proposed fee schedule. It seems the dilemma is that the district needs to better
capture the time spent on each project and to account for all ancillary activities. Carl
Quazza asked if there was a “set” inspection time for every inspection to which Frank
responded “no”. Bob Prout stated that there needs to be consistency. If all the districts
had the same software, the State could tap into the required info. Minch replied that the
State is working towards that and that the kick-off meeting of the newly formed Work
Groups will be held on 12/13/12 at Freehold SCD. John Sarnas expressed frustration at
why the process is taking so long. Matt Ward questioned how long our increase request
had sat on Frank’s desk since July 2011 when it was first submitted and that the
conversation Glen and Frank had today should have happened a year ago. Frank and
Glen both acknowledged that other issues had sometimes taken precedence but Frank
stated that better record keeping for projects was needed by the district. Ward stated that
better communication between Frank and Glen was necessary. The supervisors opined
that HEP was being scrutinized and hoped that the other districts were being scrutinized
for their inconsistencies as well. Ward stated that this all started with the “white paper”
and people start to think that there are ulterior motives behind all decisions and actions
or in-actions. Minch also stated that the HEP district had been very prudent financially,
possibly to its detriment. Prout stated that seventeen months to get a fee increase is the
ultimate bureaucracy and jeopardizes the program. John Sarnas was under the
impression that we were at a point of finality months ago and thought that lack of
communication was the issue not methodology. Van Olden stated that he felt Minch was
trying to justify new proposed fees with information from old completed projects and that
this method does not work. Glen stated that he and Janet will work on figures for the
1/3/13 HEP district meeting. Ward requested that Minch provide a summary sheet of
what HEP submitted originally and changes submitted subsequently to prove the need for
a fee increase. Minch said he would provide a summary sheet of the last 17 months of fee
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schedule progress. Minch stated that he was hopeful that he could recommend a fee
increase by the next meeting of the SSCC on 1/14/13
M/M Bob Prout, M/S John Sarnas and passed unanimously that the district’s proposed
fee schedule would be effective 1/15/13.
M/M Bob Prout, M/S John Sarnas and passed unanimously to notify the media on
1/15/13 if the proposed fee schedule is not approved by the SSCC on 1/14/13.
Potential New Facility, Bloomfield, NJ
Glen Van Olden and Fran Aguirre visited the property at 80 Orchard St. for the first time
on 11/26/12. There was a second in-depth inspection on 12/3/12 with Van Olden, Quazza,
Sarnas, Tridente, D’Alessandro, Rekesius, and Sicknick in attendance. Tridente’s past
experience as a contractor was especially helpful and though the building needs upgrades
it seemed structurally sound. Just a few of the things noted were a French drain with a
sump pump in the basement, electrical repairs that are not up to code, the roof could use a
few repairs but the majority of the supervisors were of the opinion that installing solar
was the best option. The bathroom needs to be gutted and made wider possibly installing
a galley kitchen/lunch room in the next room. Van Olden opined that the Orchard Street
property had a good layout and lots of space. Mario thought that a fair initial offer given
the amount of work we would need to perform was $225,000. Bob Prout suggested
looking into sharing county space. His primary concern is the removal of a property from
the tax base for the town, Board of Education, and the county, as well as the long term
security of the area. Matt Ward offered to contact Passaic County to see if they have any
long-term office space available. Van Olden was not keen on the idea of sharing/leasing
county space because it leaves the district vulnerable if an administration changes and
HEP could be forced out. Van Olden also stated that purchasing is a better financial
alternative since SCDs are not required to pay property taxes. Ward asked Minch how
other districts handle this. Minch replied that some districts own their own building,
others rent, and others partner with counties. Quazza opined that he does not believe that
the Bloomfield property will increase in value but that he prefers that HEP be
headquartered in its own building even if it’s county owned. Prout stated that the Board
of Supervisors should consider all options and make decisions based on the long-term
interests of the district. Van Olden added that the district is in dire need of hiring another
employee but that there is no space and that we need a larger facility for staff and records
retention within a 6-12 month period. Ward will call the Passaic County Administrator to
inquire as to available office space and will advise.
M/M Matt Ward, M/S Sarnas and passed unanimously to make an initial offer of
$225,000 for the property located at 80 Orchard St. in Bloomfield.
Bob Prout will check on the old firehouse on Farview Ave and on the status of the
litigation.
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CORRESPONDENCE
Boards of Agriculture Dinner Dance
The 91st Annual Passaic County & Essex County Boards of Agriculture Dinner Dance
which was originally scheduled for Friday, 11/2/12, was rescheduled to 1/4/13 due to the
aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.
SSCC 2013 Meeting Schedule
The district received a copy of a memo dated 11/21/12 from Frank Minch with a list of the
eleven meeting dates for 2013.
Stop Work Orders/Chapter 251 Compliance
Glen Van Olden sent a memo dated 11/28/12 to Frank Minch enclosing some Stop Work
Orders issued over the past two years along with many directives sent to municipalities
and other agencies in an effort to foster cooperative efforts and accountability.
Revised Standards Awareness Training
The district received a flyer regarding the Standards training scheduled for 12/12/12 at the
Freehold SCD. Glen Van Olden and Ken Sicknick have been registered to attend the
training session.
SSCC Subcommittees “Kick Off Meeting”
Letter to Glen Van Olden dated 11/16/12 from The District Work Group confirming him as
a member of the District Review and Appraisal Subcommittee. The letter also informs of
the “Kick Off Meeting” scheduled for 12/13/12 in Freehold. Finally, attached is Resolution
2012-2 Conservation Partnership Subcommittees establishing four subcommittees for
reviewing and improving oversight, coordination and delivery of conservation programs
at all levels of the Conservation Partnership. The subcommittees are: Policies and
Procedures, District Review and Appraisal, Fee Schedule/Fiscal, and Training.
CHAPTER 251
Stormwater Basin Training
Janet Rekesius previously attended the database entry training in October. Completion
date under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is 11/1/13. An intern or additional
staffer is needed to assist with this project along with a faster internet connection and an
additional work station. In the past year Janet added additional fields to the database to
better keep track of the basins. So far there are over 200 projects with basins and only 8
basins have been logged in so far. Four of these Janet did at home through her FIOS
connection. The system is basically good but Janet estimates that it will take a minimum
of a half hour per project and fifteen minutes per basin to enter. The district has no way
of obtaining basin summaries for Exempt municipalities.
PSE&G’s Northeast Grid Reliability Project
On 12/3/12 Glen Van Olden met again with the engineers involved with this project. He
had already met with them over a year ago but they requested another meeting due to
some changes that had come about.
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Violation at Former W.R. Grace Property, Wayne, NJ
On 11/29/12 Glen Van Olden advised Fernando Zapata, the Wayne Township engineer,
that work had commenced on this property with no certified SESC and without a NJ DEP
5G3 Stormwater permit.
Potential Violation, Packanack Lake Association Dredging, Wayne, NJ
Van Olden investigated this potential violation but found that currently there was no need
for an SESC plan. Frank Minch questioned if Wayne should lose their exempt status since
it seems that Van Olden is spending an inordinate amount of time checking on them. Van
Olden opined that if a certain project does not require building permits is when Wayne
seems to drop the ball on an SESC plan. Minch stated that if Wayne Township personnel
can not do what HEP does, then it is a problem.
Stop Work Order (SWO)– 36-40 Lawrence St., Paterson
Glen Van Olden issued a SWO for violation at 36-40 Lawrence Street in Paterson. An
exemption had been previously issued for a demolition that was under the 5,000 square
foot threshold, but then approximately half an acre was filled in with three feet of fill.
EXTENSION –Dr. Amy Rowe, Environmental & Resource Management Agent
Amy had a meeting on 11/13/12 with Eagle Ridge Condo Association in West Orange to
discuss water conservation/rainwater harvesting. This community is built on bedrock.
Their water bill is over $250,000 per year and they are investigating ways to reduce this.
Dr. Rowe submitted her packet for reappointment but will not find out until April if she
will be reappointed. The supervisors agreed to write a “district” letter to Amy thanking
her for her assistance and extolling her professional accomplishments.
Glen Van Olden and Dr. Rowe are sitting on the committee for the Sustainability Element
of the Passaic County Master Plan.
Amy attended the Sustainable Jersey Green Infrastructure Task Force meeting on
12/4/12. A new law may be passed charging a per bag fee for plastic shopping bags.
Dr. Rowe has continued her work on organic land care and attended a working group
meeting on 11/16/12 and will attend another meeting on 12/13/12.
An EPA Environmental Education grant application is due 12/12/12 for the Rutgers
Environmental Stewards program expansion.
On 12/6/12 Amy published a new Rutgers Fact Sheet on Green Infrastructure.
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USDA/NRCS – Dan Mull, District Conservationist
Dan discussed the free Conservation Program Roundtable scheduled for 12/20/12 at the
Morris County Cultural Center in Morristown, NJ. Technical and financial help will be
available to agricultural producers. Topics will include disaster recovery assistance,
energy savings and audits, organic initiatives and seasonal high tunnels.
SSCC/NJDA – Frank Minch
The next SSCC meeting will be held in Trenton on 1/14/13.
Frank Minch has been working on the rule amendments and standards. There were
difficult comments from the DCA, builders, and the governor’s office regarding the rule
adoptions. The Table 2 standards dealing with compaction have been tabled because of
the “expense” factor. Not many comments were received but some soil scientists made
very technical comments.
The work groups will be pushing for lots of changes as a result of the white paper.
M/M Matt Ward, M/S Bob Prout and passed unanimously to inquire about hosting the
2014 conference.
Matt Ward commented that although he had previously expressed interest in attending
the NACD Conference in San Antonio, the registration fee was too expensive.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business, M/M Matt Ward, M/S Bob Prout and passed
unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Robert J. Prout
Secretary/Treasurer
MEETING NOTICE
The next meeting will be held on Thursday,
January 3, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.
at
The HEP-SCD District Office
15 Bloomfield Ave.
North Caldwell, NJ 07006
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