The Montclair Township Council had a light agenda for its September 19 meeting, passing eight pending ordinances and six resolutions, as well as the bill list.  One resolution that got much commentary from members of the council was the one awarding a contract to Abraham General Construction for improvements to Edgemont Park.

The Montclair Township Council

Fourth Ward Councilor Renée Baskerville said the improvements that members of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee proposed for the park were “outstanding,” and she said that committee members hope to be more involved with the council in all issues regarding parks and open spaces.  Deputy Mayor / Second Ward Councilor Robin Schlager said that the Friends of Edgemont park group was also supportive.  But Dr. Baskerville asked if the money was left over from a previous source for park spending, or “reprogrammed.”

Acting Township Manager Tim Stafford explained that funds were in fact reprogrammed from Green Acres funding for Edgemont Park. He said there was more funding possible through the state Green Acres program, and he added that Montclair has sent a letter to the state asking to be kept informed of such funding.  Mayor Robert Jackson has a sent a letter to the state endorsing such funding. Continue Reading

The Montclair Township Council

The Montclair Township Council breezed through yet another 20-minute meeting on September 5 in a conference meeting that dealt with a pending ordinance, three resolutions, and one comment from the member of the public.

The pending ordinance was an amendment to allow alcoholic beverages to be consumed on public property through a temporary permit for what Township Attorney Ira Karasick referred to as “narrow circumstances” such as social events like the food and wine festival, or if a license holder wants to extend his or her permit for such an event.  The amendment allows the township to give such permission, although it would not necessarily have to.

Deputy Mayor / Second Ward Councilor Robin Schlager said she was very pleased with the amendment to the ordinance because it had always been a gray area for people who wanted to plan a public event using Montclair parks or parking lots at which serving alcohol would be expected.  She noted that the council had listened to residents asking for clarification in the ordinance.  “I’m pleased we did this,” she said.

One member of the council who was not pleased was First Ward Councilor William Hurlock.  He first asked Karasick if he had discussed this with the police in terms of enforcement and in terms of patrolling.  Karasick replied that he’s discussed it with deputy chiefs, and Acting Township Attorney Tim Stafford interjected that any such application for a temporary permit of alcohol consumption on public property would have to be reviewed and approved by Police Chief Todd Conforti before the township would even look at the request.   Despite that assurance, Councilor Hurlock pressed further, asking about responsibility for liabilities.  Karasick explained that there would still be a requirement for insurance.  Then Councilor Hurlock asked about his biggest concern – the township’s liability under the “Dram Shop” rule, the rule that holds a bar liable for serving alcohol to an individual who later cause a car accident. Continue Reading

By the Montclair Planning Board’s standard, this was fast going.  The board met on August 28 to hear a project on North Willow Street that, coincidentally, is adjacent to the site of developer Steven Plofker’s project to renovate the former Diva Lounge on North Willow Street and Bloomfield Avenue as part of a new apartment building.  EKR Associates, LLC plans to reuse and expand the existing building at 10 North Willow Street and turn it into retail space with two new apartments on the second floor.  The application was heard from start to finish and approved in two hours.

10 North Willow Street in Montclair. Image courtesy of Google.

Architect Matthew Jarmel of Jarmel Kizel in Livingston, who is working on the Warner Communications building in Upper Montclair, presented his plan on behalf of the applicant.

The current structure, a garage with a single apartment above, would be reconfigured.  The shed in front would be demolished, as would a diagonal interior wall on the first floor; new walls would be built to provide perfectly rectangular rooms on the first floor, and a new wing would be added in the building’s northeast corner, providing 1,000 square feet of first-floor retail space overall.   The second floor would be converted into two two-bedroom apartments, a 1,065-square feet unit in the front and a 1,026-square foot unit in the rear.  The design calls for the second floor to hang over the façade of the first floor, with simulated-wood siding and slight use of brick on the top level and an arrangement of brick and decorative concrete block along the lower retail level.  Jarmel says he expects the retail unit, which features 387 square feet of rear storage space, to be rented by an art boutique or a similar small-retail business.  The existing windows, which are non-conforming, would be taken out and replaced with fewer windows of a more appropriate size.

A rendering of the facade of the proposed renovation of 10 North Willow Street. provided by architect Matthew Jarmel.

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One and done.  The Montclair Township Council concluded its August 8 conference meeting one hour after convening after a very light agenda.  The bulk of the meeting was devoted to an update on the Bigbelly trash receptacles that were installed in Montclair Center earlier this year, with Bigbelly representatives Rick Gaudette and Joseph Nardello briefing Mayor Robert Jackson and the councilors.

The Montclair Township Council

Gaudette and Nardello said the 40 receptacles, called “stations,” had accumulated 24 tons of waste since they were first installed in February 2017, with a 98 percent efficiency rate in collection and computerized alerts from each receptacle, which are activated when the receptacles are 80 percent full – all running smoothly.  Craig Brandon, the township’s Supervisor of Solid Waste Services, has been overseeing the implementation of the Bigbelly program in town.

Guadette and Nardello explained that the Bigbelly concept allows for receptacle locations to be adapted and changed when the situation calls for it.  They noted an area along Church Street where so much waste was being discarded in the Bigbelly can – 7,000 gallons, the highest volume of any receptacle – that a second receptacle would be added to to keep things in balance.  The Massachusetts-based company’s operational system is designed to accommodate such flexibility. Continue Reading