Hello, everyone. We have a Township Council Meeting tomorrow evening, Tuesday, February 21st. This meeting will begin at 6:00pm (as opposed to the usual 7:00pm start time). It is open to attend in person, watch on TV34, and on the Township’s YouTube Channel here. I expect public comment will be open starting around 6:30pm as we’re receiving a briefing from our insurance provider and planning to do a Black History Month proclamation in the first 30 minutes. Reminder, everyone is limited to 3 minutes of comment.
To manage your expectations, note that we are not voting on Lackawanna Plaza or the budget tomorrow night. We will also have an Executive Session where we will discuss the Montclair Fire Department promotional examination investigation and the situation with the suspended Township Manager.
Accessory Dwelling Units – Final Vote
Tomorrow night, we’re voting to enact the Accessory Dwelling Unit Ordinance, which will truly introduce a missing middle housing option in Montclair. Spearheaded by my colleague, Councilor Lori Price Abrams; I’m really excited to introduce this law we’ve been working on for almost two years. This will introduce an affordable housing option to keep keep families together, for adults to age in place, college students to come live between school and starting a career and for families who need to support each other in a difficult time or have outside care.
You can see the revised ADU ordinance here. If you want to dive deeper, you can watch a symposium we hosted too.
Key Details:
- Permits ADUs for One and Two Family Dwellings
- The property owner must live in the primary structure or the ADU
- One off street parking space must be provided
- An ADU must be between 300 and 800 sq. ft. in size (ADUs that are fully handicap accessible allowed up to 5% larger)
- There can only be one ADU per lot
- Short term rentals of less than 6 months are not permitted
- Must harmonize with the existing architectural and landscaping character
Cannabis Process Update
The Council is in the process of reviewing applications for cannabis product manufacturing and cultivation to award those licenses first. We’ll then pivot to recreational licenses.
Essex & Nishuane Parks & Pools Update
Other than tying some loose ends, work in Nishuane and Essex Parks is largely complete. This includes something I asked for and am very excited about — refillable water bottle stations. We need to be spending our dollars wisely in this town and for me, that includes investing in eco-friendly solutions like this. We’re also voting to authorize $700,000 in spending to make minor and cosmetic repairs to both pools, starting in the fall. Pools will be open this summer, following last year’s boondoggle between the Township and the contractor who lied to staff about their timeline (and who we won’t use again).
Backyard Chickens – Final Vote
I like to work on cleaning up and modernizing our code broadly and address the small stuff along with the big stuff. With guidance from our Animal Control Officers, the Humane Society, our Health Department, the Law Department, existing chicken coop owners and my colleagues Councilor Robin Schlager and Lori Price Abrams, we’re creating modern, humane and practical governance for keeping chickens in Montclair. If this interests you, you can read the draft law here.
Thank you Annette Batson, Lily Becker, Lana Mustafa, Michele Shiber, Keith Costello, Jose German, Karen Sacks, Elissa Frank and others for contributing to this process.
Vision Zero Task Force Update
I’m working with Mayor Spiller, Councilor Robin Schlager and Councilor Lori Price Abrams on Resolution to create a Vision Zero Task Force, which I’ll have ready to introduce and hopefully pass at our March 14th meeting. The Task Force will include citizen representatives, engineers, traffic police, public works, representatives from bike/walk organizations and liaisons to groups that represent seniors, people with disabilities and major institutions like the Board of Education, Essex County and more. It’s time we get a lot more serious on the municipal level about ending traffic, pedestrian and cyclist crashes/accidents on our roads.
Composting and Banning Leaf Blowers Updates
- In 2021, a small group of volunteers, including my partner Benjamin, developed a proposal for Montclair to work with a company called Java Compost to pilot a compost drop-off program in town. Like a lot of good ideas that we “don’t have the money for”, this one ended up on a shelf. It’s back now and we’re applying for a Sustainable Jersey grant to fund it. This would be for up to 200 households to pilot a 6-month program where you would bring compost-ready material to select locations around town. If we get the grant, I’ll circle back with more detail.
- I also want all of you to know that in the medium term, I fully support having Montclair offer curbside compost pickup. New Jersey is so behind the 8-ball on this and we as a state and a Township should be leading the re-direction of organic matter away from landfills. We need more regional capacity to handle the suburban volume and so that we don’t have to send trucks too far away to dump the organic matter. However, even sooner than that I’m hoping we can figure out a way to get something going with restaurants in town. More on this soon.
- Lastly, my position on gas-powered leaf blowers has been consistent since I ran for office. I’m for an outright ban. Councilor Bob Russo, who has long championed this issue, and I are in the process of discussing with our colleagues again to see if there are four votes to do this. I want to do it in a way where the town itself practices what we preach and we bring in new electric equipment too. We will get there as a town. It was less than two years ago that we successfully got the permitted days of use in the township cut in half.
A Selection of Other Smaller Agenda Items for Action
- We’re finalizing an Ordinance to create and set salaries for the positions of Rent Control Officer and Rent Control Administrator
- We’re taking the second and final vote to create a 4-way stop at Claremont and Forest
- We’re considering an Ordinance to revisit depth of lot requirements in our zoning code
- We’re voting to onboard Cleary Giacobbe Alfieri & Jacobs for Labor Employment / Labor Relations, Affirmative Action and Ethics Special Counsel to the Township
- We’re voting to onboard Santarcangelo Law to handle vacant properties
- We’re voting to onboard Riker Danzig for conflict and general litigation counsel for the Township
- We’re voting to amend an existing agreement with Lindabury, McCormick Estabrook & Cooper to cover additional costs related to their investigation surrounding the complaints against the Township Manager
- As a prerequisite to County approval, we’re voting to authorize a rapid flashing beacon at Summit and Grove to improve pedestrian and cyclist safety
- We’re voting to authorize additional funds to Phillips Preiss Grygiel Leheny Hugues LLC and Smith Maran LLC to continue to support updates to the Lackawanna Redevelopment Plan proposal
Join me for some Doughnuts and Democracy on Thursday
This Thursday, I’m having my first Democracy & Doughnuts event, which I’m hosting with Rachel Wyman at Rabble Rise to support my election fund, the Peter for Montclair Candidate Committee which pays for things like this email software, list maintenance, my website and more. Tickets and info are here.
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