John’s Notes on Tonight’s Berkeley Heights Town Council Agenda

The 12/16 Berkeley Heights Town Council agenda is set to continue themes from recent meetings – year-end infrastructure spending, repeat vendors coming back for contract increases along with a mix of administrative and regulatory items. This meeting also includes two ordinances on second reading that carry long-term implications for homeowners and taxpayers alongside several resolutions that green-light significant spending.

Below are the items residents can pay attention to heading into Tuesday night.

Ordinance 2025-35 Lot Grading Plans and As-Built Surveys (Second Reading Final Adoption)

This was introduced earlier in the month and carries a heavy expansion of (pre and post) construction requirements for homeowners and builders…

-Mandatory pre-construction topographic surveys
-Lot grading plans before permits are issued
-As-built foundation surveys before framing and as-built site surveys before a Temporary or Final Certificate of Occupancy.

It also introduces expanded enforcement authority…
-Stop-work orders
-Daily penalties
-Inspection fees and performance bond requirements if work can’t be completed as approved.

Engineering and legal costs incurred by the Township to address violations may be passed directly to the property owner.

This is being pushed as a stormwater and drainage compliance measure but it increases the cost, complexity and enforcement exposure for residential construction and additions. Because this is the second reading this week is the last chance resident have to ask questions or express concerns before it becomes law.

Residents with ongoing or planned construction projects may want to review this item closely.

Ordinance 2025-34 Amended Salary Ranges (Second Reading Final Adoption)

Laura covered this thoroughly before and after the last Council meeting.

The ordinance expands salary caps for a slew of positions, including the Mayor, Council members, senior administrative roles, finance positions and Chief of Police. In several cases, the maximum salary increases are substantial but are unattached to updated job descriptions, workload analyses or performance benchmarks within the agenda.

At the last meeting, the Mayor characterized the ordinance as being driven primarily by changes related to the Tax Collector position. The ordinance text, however, reflects salary cap increases to more than a dozen positions including elected officials and senior management.

Tuesday’s vote represents final approval of the expanded salary range – once it’s adopted, salaries can be set anywhere within these ranges without further public hearings.

Rapid Pump and Meter Service Co Wastewater Treatment Plant Repairs (Resolution Contract Increase No-Bid Professional Services)

A familiar name…

This time the council is looking to approve $130,000 increase to the 2025 not-to-exceed amount for Rapid Pump and Meter which raises the annual cap to $250,000 for sewage plant repairs. The contract was originally awarded as a professional services agreement which allows it to bypass public bidding.

That last line should just be a straight copy and paste at this point.

Rapid has appeared repeatedly on recent agendas for emergency repairs, mid-year increases and add-on work. This resolution doesn’t explain what equipment failures or conditions are driving the additional spending nor does it summarize work already performed in 2025. The contract is in its final year and we are left with questions on deferred maintenance and longer-term planning for the plant.

Rock Salt Purchase Union County Cooperative Pricing System (Resolution Amended Authorization No Public Bidding)

The Township is authorizing the purchase of rock salt through the Union County Cooperative Pricing System, which allows purchases without competitive bidding.

The resolution sets a $230,000 not-to-exceed authorization for 2025 and gives the Township Administrator and CFO the ability to make purchases as often as they feel its necessary during the winter, subject to budget appropriations. The agenda doesn’t include quantity estimates, usage assumptions or comparisons to prior winters despite the size of the authorization.

National Opioid Settlement Funds Budget (Amendment Resolution)

This budget amendment inserts $11,964.63 opioid settlement dollars in the 2025 municipal budget along with a matching appropriation.

This is a required procedural step that allows the Town to spend funds received after the budget was adopted but it does not specify how the funds will be used, only that spending is restricted to settlement-eligible purposes. Any policy decisions on use will occur later- outside the scope of this vote.

31 Snyder Avenue Township Residential Lease (Second Reading Final Adoption)

This ordinance authorizes the renewal and extension of a residential lease for 31 Snyder through December 31, 2028.

It increases annual rent by $6,000 and includes a 90-day termination clause allowing the Town to reclaim the property. The lease document and ordinance contain inconsistent start-date language and the agenda packet does not include a market comparison. This item is on second reading, making Tuesday the final approval step.

Authorization to Pay Bills $3.16 Million (Resolution)

The December 16 bill list totals ~ $3.16 million – the bill list is attached.

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