Times
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS, INC.
THE BERKELEY
Vol. 21 - No. 47
Inside This Week’s Edition
Business Directory.............. 22-23 Classifieds................................ 21 Community News................. 8-13 Dear Joel.................................. 18 Dr. Izzy’s Sound News............. 16 Fun Page.................................. 24 Inside The Law......................... 19 Letters to the Editor.................... 6 Wolfgang................................. 27 WWW.MICROMEDIAPUBS.COM
Your FREE Weekly Hometown Newspaper | Serving Bayville, Berkeley, Beachwood, Pine Beach, Ocean Gate and South Toms River
April 30, 2016
Township To Ramp Up Skate Park Possibility
–Photos by Catherine Galioto The old location of the skate park is now simply a flat enclosed space in Veterans Park after the deteriorating equipment was removed years ago. Local officials are discussing where it might be rebuilt.
Ordinance Could Double Commissioners’ Salary
By Catherine Galioto BERKELEY – An ordinance that would allow com m issione r s on t he township water and sewer authorities to double their salaries was adopted, but one resident hopes efforts i n opposit ion cou ld reverse the compensation. Township council approved the ordinance at its April meeting, which would allow the independent authorities of the Berkeley Township Municipal Utilities Authority and the township sewer authority to raise annual
stipends from $2,500 to $5,000 maximum. Laura Wheeler-Shaw of Bayville, speaking out in the public hearing for the ordinance, said the benefits were unnecessary and that there was no ju st i f ication for the increase. The commissioners of the respective municipal utilities authority and sewerage authority hold a short, monthly meeting and for their time receive more than the volunteers who serve on the township’s planning board or school
boards, she said. “For this small group of people to receive this compensation is excessive, extreme and unearned,” Wheeler-Shaw said. “It is my understanding that no other board members in town receive t h i s t y p e of compensation, and in addition these board members are receiving medical benefits at significant expense to the rate payers.” Township Attorney Lauren Staiger said technically it is not the council granting the commissioners a raise, but
rather setting the framework for how these agencies operate and can decide to pay its commissioners. “What happens is the council is not voting to give these board members $5,000 each, the New Jersey statute requires us to set up the framework of these authorities,” she said. “So all they’re doing is authorizing them to go up to $5,000. The individual authorities will vote on their own ability to pay their amounts.” There has not been a (Salary - See Page 20)
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By Catherine Galioto BERKELEY – With local youth wondering if the township could have a skate park again, the mayor said it is more a question of when and where, but also how to pay for it. Mayor Carmen Amato said he’s heard the concerns that a skate park is a needed addition to the town’s recreation, and said the former location was at Veteran’s Park, but was removed due to wear and tear making conditions unsafe. Located on behind chain link fence with a small opening for an entrance, the outline of the previous skate park equipment is visible, the holes from the structures filled in, in what is now simply a flat, enclosed space along the road leading to the gazebo at Veteran’s Park. Township officials said they first thought to repair the park but the manufacturer went out of business, meaning Berkeley has to start from scratch. Amato said this gives the town a chance to decide where the best location (Skate Park - See Page 4)
NY Jets Honor Clara B. Worth School Efforts
By Catherine Galioto BAYVILLE – An in-person example of the benefits of eating right and moving more came to Clara B. Worth Elementary School recently. New York Jets linebackers Julian Howsare and Taiwan Jones visited the school to honor students as one of the “Division Champions” for the New Jersey Department of Agriculture’s Jets PLAY 60 “Eat Right, Move More” program. A $5,000 grant was awarded to the school. The program is a partnership between the Jets, the state Department of Agriculture and the American Dairy Association North East. The idea is to encourage students to take advantage of healthy foods in their school cafeterias and become more active. The excitement of the visit was the attempt to inspire that further, though the school became Division Champions based on their high level of participation in the program. Schools were required to have at least 100 students participate in the Jets PLAY 60 Program, with each logging a (Honor - See Page 20)