Board of Trustees Awards Students and Addresses Bike Lanes

A recap of Monday’s Board of Trustees Regular Meeting:

Announcements

• The will continue every weekend, May 6^th – August 27^th, 7:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
• The South Orange festivities on July 4^th will include a bicycle rodeo and parade, a model boat exhibit at the Duck Pond, and live entertainment for kids and adults. The pool will be open on the 4th of July to all South Orange Residents from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.
• will begin this Wednesday, June 29 from 2 p.m. - 7 p.m., in the Sloan Street parking lot, near First Street and will run every Wednesday until October.
• Village Offices will be closed Monday, July 4th in observance of the Fourth of July holiday.
• The board of trustees will hold its second planning meeting on July 14 at 7 p.m. in Jubilee Hall.
• The board of trustees will hold its next budget workshop for the 2011 municipal budget on Monday, July 18 at 7:30 p.m.

Presentations

• Catherine Sullivan of the Community Relations Committee presented the Villagers of the Month award to Alyse Royal and David Hoffmaan, two graduating seniors from Columbia High School. 
• The Charter Review Committee presented their final recommendations to the board of trustees.
• Members of Main Street South Orange presented their quarterly report to the board of trustees.

Ordinances

• Ordinance 2011-09 passed after a second reading.  The ordinance amends Chapter 152 of the Code of the Township of South Orange Village to prohibit the parking, stopping or standing of buses on residential streets.
• Ordinance 2011-10 was read for first reading.  It passed following an amendment from Trustee Janine Bauer that clarified the language.  The ordinance established crosswalks and bicycle lanes on both sides of Mead Street between Meadowbrook Lane and Vose Avenue.  It will now be subject to a second reading and public hearing.
• Ordinance 2011-11 was read for first reading.  It was defeated 2-4 with Trustees Janine Bauer and Deborah Davis Ford being the only ayes.  The ordinance amends Section 92-163B(1)(a) of the Code of the Township of South Orange Village to delete the requirement that only one political campaign sign be permitted in residential districts and repealing Section 92-162B(9)(c)[4] of the Code of the Township of South Orange Village which requires a notice of intention to display political signs and requiring the payment of a fee of $25. 
  
  The ordinance was deemed unconstitutional at the last board of trustee meeting by Village Counsel Steven Rother as it impedes the rights of free speech.  Following an amendment that removed the deletion of the requirement that only one political campaign sign be permitted in residential districts, the ordinance passed 4-3 following a tie breaker vote from Village President Alex Torpey, his first such vote as village president.  It will now be subject to a second reading and public hearing.
  
  Trustees Bauer, Davis Ford and Howard Levison were the ayes while Trustees Mark Rosner, Nancy Gould and Michael Goldberg were the nays.  

Public Forum

• Local business owner Elaine Harris spoke about the evolution of the Special Improvement District and how it clashes with the duties of Main Street South Orange.  She requested the board look at the process and re-evaluate whether it is following the verbiage of the resolution that enacted it.  Trustees Rosner and Goldberg disagreed with Harris’ evaluation.
• Local business owner and South Orange resident Leslie Pogany asked why the Chamber of Commerce was not invited to join the Special Improvement District committee and felt the committee was a conflict of interest with Main Street South Orange.  She also spoke of the lack of presence of business owners on the committee as well as on the parking authority.  Trustees Rosner and Goldberg disagreed with Pogany’s concerns.

Consent Agenda

• 13 resolutions were passed on the consent agenda. 
• One resolution, 2011-168, was removed from the consent agenda by Trustee Nancy Gould who expressed concern about members of the local press serving on committees.
  “I’m concerned about appointing someone to a committee who’s also writing for press,” said Gould.  “I think it’s going to inhibit members of the committee, they won’t know if they are talking to a committee member or a press member.”

Board Discussion

• Deborah Davis Ford expressed her thoughts on the issue of charter schools in South Orange-Maplewood.  Upon receiving feedback from South Orange constituents, she felt it was important to clarify the reasons why by the board of education.

"I’m not against charter schools.  I think in some environments and situations, charter schools are the only option that some children can get a decent education that they deserve.  But I believe that voters who are in a school that is not a non-performing community has the right to vote for whether that funding from public school be diverted.  Not saying that you are against charter schools, because I am not.  I’m against the decision being made by someone else of what happens with my taxes.  I think that’s almost like taxation without representation.  So that is my position."