The Point Beach Municipal Court operation is one step closer to staying in the Point Borough municipal building on Bridge Avenue.
Point Borough Council voted unanimously on Tuesday night to extend the court shared services agreement until 2016. The proposed agreement calls for the Borough to pay more for municipal court administrative costs and to hire, at Point Beach expense, two part-time, special police officers to provide security for Point Beach municipal court sessions in Point Pleasant Borough's Borough Hall on Bridge Avenue.
The proposal still has to be approved by the Point Pleasant Beach Council and then Superior Court Judge Vincent Grasso, sitting in Toms River.
The agreement calls for Point Borough to hire two Class II special officers at a cost of $13 per hour, with no benefits, with Point Beach reimbursing the Borough for the cost of those officers.
The agreement also provides for the Borough to pay 25 percent, instead of the current 15 percent, to pay for administrative court costs. At the last Borough Council meeting, Municipal Attorney Jerry Dasti said Point Beach wanted the Borough to pay more than the current 15 percent.
The Point Beach Council also met last night, but did not discuss the matter.
After the Point Beach meeting, Patch asked Mayor Vincent Barrella if the Borough's vote to hire specials at $13 per hour, to be paid for by Point Beach, and to pay 25 percent more towards administrative costs, is making the shared services agreement sound like a better deal for Point Beach.
"It's a place to start," Barrella said. He said the Borough's hiring of specials "is a significant step in addressing the security issue." He said he did not want to comment further on the matter until he sees the proposal and until after both municipal attorneys have discussed it.
He said Point Beach Municipal Attorney Sean Gertner would call Point Borough Municipal Attorney Jerry Dasti in the morning to get the details and plan how to move forward.
Point Beach has been paying lots of overtime pay, including $20,000 in 2011 alone, to its full-time officers to man municipal court sessions in the Borough's municipal building on Bridge Avenue because Point Beach specials do not have jurisdiction outside of Point Beach. So the Borough hiring its own specials appears to solve that problem because that cost will be significantly less than the overtime Point Beach was paying full-time officers to staff the court.
The state requires uniformed police in court for security.
Point Beach's municipal court moved from Point Beach Borough Hall, route: {:controller=>"listings", :action=>"show", :id=>"point-pleasant-beach-borough-hall-and-police-department"} --> to
If you are upset because you believe the Boro governing body did not act quickly enought, I suggest that you attend one of their meetings and express your opinion to them. I am sure they will listen to you as you reside in the Boro.
...Although the agreement was for a three-year term, the contract stated it could be “terminated sooner by agreement of the parties.” Also, each party was to review the contract annually on July 1 to determine whether each borough would continue to derive economic benefit from the shared service...
To what meetings do you refer? Governing body meetings are, as you well know, open to the public. How did either the Beach or Boro republicans get a personal gain from this Court agreement? How did they try and “play God?” Who achieved “their financial goal?” I understand you dislike republicans because they refused to nominate you for council, recognizing, I’m sure, your “ends justify means” mentally revealed by the deceptions you used to get your beloved parking plan implemented in the Beach, but how was what happened to the Court agreement about greed? Sure looks to me like it was about you and Barrella playing politics instead of looking out for your taxpayers.
To what meetings do you refer? Governing body meetings are, as you well know, open to the public. How did either the Beach or Boro republicans get a personal gain from this Court agreement? How did they try and “play God?” Who achieved “their financial goal?” I understand you dislike republicans because they refused to nominate you for council, recognizing, I’m sure, your “ends justify means” mentally revealed by the deceptions you used to get your beloved parking plan implemented in the Beach, but how was what happened to the Court agreement about greed? Sure looks to me like it was about you and Barrella playing politics instead of looking out for your taxpayers.
I'm not against Republicans at all, but when you're told "we want you to run but you need to vote the way we tell", I have a problem with that Party. You evidently don't, nor do the candidates that the Regular Republicans the Beach are running this year. Party politics is corrupt, and unfortunately our County probably mirrors the State and Country. The "what's in it for me" politicians need to be voted out. What happened to serving the residents/taxpayers because it's the right thing to do, an honor? One who was there, if you are proud of being "there", I'd think you be proud enough to use your name!
...what's that expression Oliver Hardy saids to Stan Laurel. . . well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!
And as to being told how to vote, you have voted with Gordon Tooker and Barrella on virtually every issue. Seems you are being told how to vote. The difference is you are not being told how to vote by republicans or democrats, but by Barrella, who is part of a party----except instead of naming it democrat or republican, he names it “independent.” And I agree the politicans like you and Barrella who are in it for the ego need to be voted out.
The court agreement would have worked if those involved simply spoke with the Beach police department before signing off on the deal. The "Queen" didn't care and her merry group of followers didn't know any better. Being a Governor drone was more important than their respective stakeholders.
Now that statement contradicts what there saying now, unless were parsing words here. . .both municipalities can't hire Specials. . .but now the Borough can. . .Which is it Lt Dikun. . .and why didn't you make this point when you discussed the matter? ...now let's look at where the Council left off... ...Councilman Jeff Dyer said there would have to be a meeting between the boroughs to discuss the issue of the use of Point Pleasant Beach Police officers. “I think that we will have to address that,” Councilman Dyer said... So 'one who was there' what happened. . .and why was this not worked out. . .What gamesmanship was being played here. . .seems a little ridiculous if not stupid, not to have saved Beach taxpayers money in regular police O/T, in lieu of hiring Specials. . .Was Trenton tying their hands. . .Did they need some kind of order from there to hire Specials? http://starnewsgroup.com/weekly/2010/08.20.10/council_agre_08.20.10_61936.html
I'm not a yous! I am not affiliated with any party or group locally. I like it that way. I will do what I think is best for all the taxpayers of Point Pleasant Beach. I certainly will make mistakes, but they will be mine, and I will own them.
http://starnewsgroup.com/weekly/2010/08.20.10/council_agre_08.20.10_61936.html
There is no difference between the Republican Club insiders and the Democratic Club insiders. They are a single political unit which is balanced out by the independent movement in the Beach.
The Beach Council is divided into those who try and balance what is best for residents AND business vs. those who pander to squeaky wheels to get elected. The Independent Club insiders are in the latter category and provide no balance
PS: Mayor when you quote the Ocean Star, please either provide the link or the publication date, and your simplistic comment is not representative of the Beach politics as I recall...Republican insurgents, then Republican/ Democrat flippers. . .Now it's Independents?