City Council

COUNCIL CONFERENCE MEETING MINUTES MARCH 11, 2008 CITY HALL - 5:00 PM A Conference Meeting of the City Council of the City of Trenton, New Jersey, was held on the above date at 5:11 p.m. in the Council Conference Room, City Hall. The meeting was called to order by Council President Paul M. Pintella. Council President announced that adequate public notice had been provided to the public specifying the time and place for this meeting in accordance with the Open Public Meeting Act. Said notice was mailed to the Times and the Trentonian Newspapers, posted on the first floor bulletin board in City Hall, and filed in the City Clerk’s Office on June 21, 2007 by Resolution No. 07-316. The agenda for this meeting was mailed, posted and filed on March 7, 2008. ROLL CALL: PRESENT: Messrs. Bethea, Coston, Ms. Lartigue, Messrs. Melone, Segura, Ms. Staton (arrived at 5:19 pm), Mr. Pintella – 7. Council President Pintella asked for a moment of silence for Mrs. Susan Procaccino, former East Ward Committee woman. Councilwoman Lartigue asked Council members to join her in sending a letter to Ms. Kasabach thanking her for her commitment to the Trenton Board of Education. PRESENTATION: Fee Structure: Appearance: Dennis Gonzalez, Assistant Business Administrator Renee Haynes, Chief of Staff Jane Feigenbaum, Business Administrator Mr. Gonzalez, Assistant Business Administrator made a presentation on the amending of the City Ordinance to raise the Licensing Fees for the following items: • Animals – License and Adoption fees • Vital Statistics – birth, death, marriage and domestic partnership transcripts • Taxes – Duplicate bill, tax lien installment payment plan, lost of tax sale certificate and tax search • Police – fingerprinting, photographs • Fire – Tarpaulin • Boat Ramp – establishing fees • Tax Assessor – owner lists for Zoning Variance requests • Park Meters – raising fees City Council Conference: Minutes March 11, 2008 1  Mr. Gonzalez suggested that the following sections be repealed/ deleted from City Code. • Section 77-3 • Section 77-7 • Section 77-15 • Section 77-19 Chapter 188, Section 188-3 – Administration – Amended to include the management and operation of the Trenton Parking Utility and the Parking Enforcement Officers as part of the Department of Administration. A detailed discussion was followed by a question and answer period. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Bea Perry, 26 Sylvester Avenue – Can a 15 minutes parking meter be put in front of the deli at 577 Brunswick Avenue; something has to be done with drivers going the wrong way on a one way street. Dion Clark, 323 Walnut Avenue – Complained about the dog problem in the City; wanted to know why the City was building more houses if 1,400 people were loosing their homes; the Wilbur Section needs jobs; complained about coming to Council meetings and nothing ever gets done; Walnut Avenue is a mess. Patricia Stewart, 679 Lamberton Street – Asked Council members to send Ms. Jackie Blakey a letter wishing her well and thanking her for everything she has done for the community, she is moving to South Carolina; unlicensed dogs should be taken from who ever has them; supports the new fees; police should give parking tickets at Trenton Thunder Baseball games; has the City considered instituting a City income tax; incident that happened this weekend with the police should really be investigated. Paul Harris, 137 Centre Street – Wanted to know why no one ever sees anything illegal being done by individuals, but they see everything done by the police; asked what the length of time allowed on the residency ordinance for a grace period was, is it in writing, and do all city employees get a grace period. Beverly Garrett, 539 Bellevue Avenue, 2nd fl. – Complained about the Police Department and the dog problem. James Fouse, 13 Cavell Avenue – Stated that the City should consider having a head tax not an income tax. City Council Conference: Minutes March 11, 2008 2 CIVIC MATTERS: Councilwoman Lartigue – (1) Asked for a workshop on vicious and dangerous dogs and fees for unlicensed dogs. (2) Count on abandoned houses. (3) Wants the City of Trenton to have a workshop for employees on the homeownership program. (4) Asked Administration for a resolution next Tuesday for the City to go after money for a feasibility study. (5) Asked for a date for Council to discuss their missions, goals and objectives pertaining to the next budget. (6) Wants a written summary for the Spring and Summer seasons from Director Santiago. Councilman Coston – (1) Asked to have a conversation in the future with Council members on the Champale Site; also wants to give properties back to the former homeowners. Councilman Melone – (1) Asked Council to address the gypsy cab problem in the City. Councilwoman Staton – (1) Asked for an update on the landlord who ran an illegal rooming house and had a fire on Academy Street a year ago. Councilman Segura – (1) Wanted to know from Director Santiago what the rules and regulations were for retired police officers carrying a gun. Council President Pintella – (1) Notified Council members of the Landmarks Commission Hearing scheduled for Wednesday, March 12, 2008 at 5:00 pm. (2) He also announced that Trenton Central High School Girls Basketball team had won the State Championship. Councilman Bethea – Recused himself from the Landmarks meeting. The meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m. Respectfully submitted ___________________________ __________________________ PAUL M. PINTELLA JUANITA M. JOYNER CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT ACTING CITY CLERK City Council Conference: Minutes March 11, 2008 3