TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON, N.J.—Mayor Peter Calamari has pulled back from siting temporary DPW parking adjacent to Sherry Field, and on town-owned land behind the Dog House Saloon & Grill, after potentially affected residents spoke out in concern.
He similarly said he wouldn’t execute an agreement with Our Lady of Good Counsel Church to lease parking spaces there from Oct. 6, 2020 through June 30, 2022, at $2,500 a month, for the purpose of temporary parking while the DPW undergoes soil remediation and new construction.
The council had authorized him to execute that arrangement Oct. 5, 2020, and it led to various public complaints including the proposed expense, certain maintenance obligations, and the mayor’s family connection to the church’s finance committee.
The Borough of Westwood had explored extending itself as a partner in a shared service, but this did not bear fruit, according to Calamari and Westwood Mayor Ray Arroyo.
Following a virtual mayors’ breakfast hosted by the Greater Pascack Valley Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 27, Calamari said “I again reiterated Washington Township’s DPW situation and again renewed the call and request for any assistance that any of our surrounding towns can provide.”
He said, “While none are able to help directly, Mayor Rendo of Woodcliff Lake mentioned there is a parking lot and garage located in his town that’s not being used. I immediately reached out to him to see if he thought it would be suitable for our DPW temporary needs. Unfortunately he does not think it is.”
The township’s DPW’s environmental contamination problems have been known for years, and the township faces fines from the state DEP should it not be in compliance by May.
Calamari said Dec. 21, 2020 that up to six large DPW vehicles, such as garbage trucks and loaders, would be parked on a portion of Sherry Field.
Other DPW vehicles were to be stored behind Valley Bank, in its parking lot, which was offered at no cost to the township. “We appreciate their kind gesture,” Calamari said.
He said township-owned property at the end of Hudson Avenue would temporarily house two 12 foot by 24 foot residential-looking storage sheds that may remain until a new DPW building location is found.
He said another “small piece” of township property will be used to construct a two-bay modular construction garage for DPW vehicle maintenance.
On Jan. 21, after residents protested, Calamari posted, “I’m happy to report that neither Sherry Field or the property behind the Dog House will be used for temporary DPW use.”
He said, “Thank you to the residents who provided me with the support needed to make this change by letting your voices be heard and agreeing with me that these locations are not a good fit for this use.”
Calamari said, “Consequently, other options may cost more than using town-owned properties, but we will not have to take down trees or disturb nature for a temporary use of land.”
Plans for a new DPW to be built on the present site was discussed more than 10 years ago. The council at that time commissioned The Musial Group Architects to draw up plans—which then were not acted on.
In a forum on taxpayer matters, resident Robert Bruno—a former council president who ran against Calamari for mayor, and who had excoriated the previous administration for poor conditions and low morale at township facilities—said last week, “All of this could have been avoided had the prior administration, along with the town attorney, acted swiftly and responded to the DEP letters instead of burying them from the taxpayer.”
He said, “It is now going to cost an additional $200,000-plus for soil remediation that every one of them [in charge] was aware of years ago.”
Bruno said, “The potential fines could have been enormous. The current administration dragged their heels for two years and now it is rush, rush, rush.”
Resident Diane Grimaldi agreed: “The problem never should have gone this far. It’s ridiculous.”
Westwood hoped to help
On Jan. 22, Westwood Mayor Arroyo wrote that members of his borough’s governing body had just met at Sherry Field with their township counterparts and residents from both towns to see about space at Westwood’s DPW.
He said, “The borough determined it could not accommodate our neighbor’s request” due to limited space and the risk in “commingling” public works staffs while COVID protocols are in place.
In considering siting temporary structures to house township DPW equipment in the Sherry Field area where the township conducts its leaf operations, “Residents of both Westwood and Township were concerned about additional truck traffic, intensity and line of sight along the narrow street,” Arroyo said.
“The buildings were to be placed adjacent to residences and required a treed buffer to come down. Sensitive to these concerns, Westwood proactively sought other options,” he said.
Arroyo explained Councilman Chris Montana suggested that a nearby area at Westvale Park— the Westwood Police Department’s former pistol range, which is awaiting DEP approval of a lead remediation plan—might be a suitable alternative site.
Arroyo said, “I’d asked Boswell Engineering [the engineer for both towns] if we could make this work, but unfortunately DEP floodplain regulations preclude Westwood from prepping the contaminated site with the necessary vapor barrier and fill that would also be required for parking vehicles there.”
Arroyo said “Westwood had hoped to help our neighbors as well as our own residents impacted by the Sherry Field plan.”
Lafayette Avenue benefits
Though the towns, which constitute the Westwood Regional School District, did not find a way to work together on this project, “These joint meetings between towns were not in vain,” Arroyo said.
“While at the Sherry Field meeting, we discussed the rough condition of that portion of Lafayette Avenue that straddles the two municipalities. We now look forward to working on a joint Community Development Block Grant application with Township to mill and pave Lafayette Avenue,” Arroyo said.
He said he had asked Boswell Engineering to see if that might be coordinated with the township as part of Westwood’s 2022 Road Program.
For his part, Calamari wrote after that meeting, “I want to thank Westwood Mayor Ray Arroyo and the governing body in Westwood for again reconsidering our DPW request… Westwood’s response is similar to what the other municipalities and the county have also told us.”
He added, “There have been many who have accused me of not reaching out to our surrounding towns to work together on matters or for their assistance. Mayor Arroyo’s message clearly proves otherwise.”
Calamari said, “I will continue to research options for the DPW but time is running short! Many options have been investigated and explored and found to be not viable for various reasons. I hope the council and administration can work together to find an acceptable solution in the next couple weeks.”
He added, “In the spirit of cooperation I have been open to and investigated councilpersons’ suggestions and ideas whether I was initially in favor of them or not. I ask that those same councilpersons be open to and provide positive and constructive input on various viable solutions as well.”
At the Jan. 19 Township Council meeting, Councilwoman Desserie Morgan said she had liked the idea of saving on DPW vehicles’ storage and initially didn’t “truly understand the impacts on children in the [Sherry Field] area.”
She said she joined at least two other members in trying to use town-owned land to reduce parking costs, rather than pay for alternate sites. “So I apologize for that.”
Council President Stacey Feeney said she was never in favor of putting a temporary DPW at Sherry Field. She said the cost for parking DPW vehicles at alternate parking spaces “will be very minimal” per local household.
Member Michael DeSena complained that he was not included in a Jan. 7 meeting with residents over the issue, and seemed to lay the blame with Feeney and the administration. Member Steve Cascio joined DeSena on this point.