US:New Jersey: Former River Vale DPW members oppose proposed shared-services agreement with Montvale
"It seems like you looked at the dollar signs rather than the work load," former DPW worker Jim Hanna said to the River Vale governing body at the July 22 council meeting.
An estimated combined reduction of about $865,153 in DPW operating costs for both municipalities, as well as millions of dollars in savings over a 10-year shared services agreement period was predicted in a feasibility study by LKM Consulting, LLC, of Morristown.
"This is a way for us to become more efficient and save a little money for our taxpayers," explained Council Vice President Mark Bromberg.
The Montvale Borough Council commissioned the study independently of River Vale in March. This month, the Montvale Borough Council introduced an ordinance to dissolve its DPW and enter into a shared-services agreement with River Vale. A vote during a public hearing on the ordinance is slated for July 30.
Although the River Vale governing body passed a resolution authorizing Mayor Joseph Blundo to sign the shared-services agreement with Montvale on July 8, there has been little public discussion.
"I went on [River Vale's] website and I did not see anything about this. I actually had to go on Montvale's website to find out about it," said Hanna, who worked his way through college at the River Vale DPW. "I was a little bit taken aback by that."
According to the study, the new staffing model would consist of 12 full-time maintenance men for the two municipalities. This represents a three man increase from the nine men that River Vale currently employs.
If approved, River Vale would serve as the lead agency, but Montvale's facility would remain maintained and serve as a satellite location for the department.
Peter Wayne, the former superintendant of the River Vale DPW, also approached the council. "I can't understand how three men will do seven men's work," he said.
Wayne, who was employed with the DPW for 36 years, also expressed his concern about the work load the employees will face. He explained that it will take two to three men 90 days just to flush out Montvale's sewers.
Township Administrator/CFO Gennaro Rotella said based upon the workload that is currently provided at Montvale, there is no reason to believe that the new DPW will not be able to handle assigned tasks. He explained that the cleaning of River Vale facilities and leaf removal will be outsourced.
Bromberg reassured, "This has all been worked out by our professionals and it is looking very favorable... The risk and the downside are very low." He also said that the agreement is not finalized and is still being talked about and negotiated. "...We wouldn't be giving this a second thought if we didn't think this was something that would benefit River Vale."
According to Township Attorney Silvana Raso, once the contract is complete River Vale can proceed with the shared-services agreement.
Residents can view the feasibility study by visiting Montvale.org.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Lisa Spear
Quelle/Source: NorthJersey.com, 23.07.2013
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