Even though the final results of the November election were still uncertain, West Windsor Council got back to business on Monday, November 14, when nearly a dozen homeowners from Village Grande at Bear Creek came out to voice their displeasure over $70,000 the township mistakenly paid to builder DR Horton for sinkhole repairs that were not taken care of.
Instead homeowners say they were the ones who split the bill and the township left them in the dark with no communication over allocation of the $70,000. The legal action was discussed in a closed session meeting from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m.
In open session Gary Weisser, president of the Village Grande homeowners board, presented a letter addressed to Mayor Hsueh from a law firm that represents the Village Grande Homeowners’ Association and board of trustees. Weisser read from the letter, which stated the “extreme displeasure and frustration that $70,000 that the township was hoping to use to address bond-related issues with the developer, DR Horton, was erroneously released to the builder by a township employee without the necessary authorization to do so.”
The law firm’s letter also states that certain municipal employees “were aware of the bond-related deficiencies which exist in the community,” referring to the sinkholes in its road infrastructure. Wiesser also presented a letter the homeowner’s association had received from township engineer Fran Guzik which “served as immediate notice that West Windsor has taken immediate steps to utilize the cash guarantee to repair the site deficiencies as committed to date.”
Weisser looked at the Council and Business Administrator Robert Hary with concern and added: “Instead of doing the repairs you might have had to return the money to DR Horton. I don’t understand the reasoning for doing this. We want to know why you did this and if you’re going to repair these problems yourself now,” he said.
He added: “Who’s responsible for this mess and who’s going to fix the problems before the winter comes?”
Ellen Gardner, vice president of the Village Grande board of trustees and wife of Marvin Gardner, West Windsor’s Planning Board chairman, reminded Council that Village Grande represents 540 homeowners. “When DR Horton refused to fix the sinkholes we turned to the town to have the holes fixed and to use the money that they were holding for us. The town told us it would be on the Council agenda October 24. When I returned from vacation I learned that the item was not on the agenda that day, and it was not revealed to us. Bob Hary did not come forth and tell us immediately,” Gardner said.
Longtime resident Alvin Lerner requested that Council sign a resolution to conduct a formal investigation “of just what happened to the $70,000.”
“Who was responsible for signing a check for $70,000, and who co-signs it? We should have a chronicle of events that this entire episode went through,” Lerner said.
Councilman Charles Morgan told the Village Grande residents their outcry got him thinking about his home at the Elements. Morgan said what the residents are experiencing “is truly obscene.”
“I live at the Elements and I wonder about my slab and what’s under there and the longevity of what’s under there. You’ve managed to put a little bit of fear factor into my own situation and maybe our homeowners’ association should be paying attention to similarities.”
Morgan assured the residents that the elected officials will support them and so will the administration, adding that they should be reimbursed the $70,000. Morgan offered to lend a hand as far as legal issues are concerned when he leaves Council on December 31.
Councilwoman Linda Geevers told residents that the matter is a priority and litigation will ensue, mentioning that time is of the essence as winter begins next month. She asked her fellow Council members if they had received the attorney’s letter and they said they had not. Diane Ciccone expressed confidence that Bob Hary and the administration, along with the help of council, will resolve the matter as quickly as possible.
Council President Kamal Khanna assured the Village Grande residents that Council will come back with its recommendation in the next two weeks, and there will be a resolution forthcoming “which will satisfy everyone.”
In other matters, Bob Aikens of 32 Windsor Drive asked the Council to consider revoking or modifying an existing ordinance that assigns a monetary penalty for putting brush and tree limbs one week or more before scheduled pickup in residential areas.
“You could balance the budget if you went through and did that right now for zone four, which is two weeks until pickup,” Aikens said. He said that brush collected on some residential streets is so bad that it impacts traffic.
“It’s not surprising that people have put brush and leaves out with weather permitting, but don’t put forward an ordinance with a penalty if you don’t mean it. Everybody that raises kids has heard or learned that you don’t promise or threaten anything that you don’t intend to do. This makes a joke of West Windsor ordinances, and if people think they won’t get penalized for doing this they may say the same thing about using a cell phone while driving,” he said.
Councilman-elect Bryan Maher added that the most frustrating thing is landscapers dumping leaves and brush on Penn Lyle Road or Village Road. “Instead of going after residents with these big fines of $1,200 you have got to find a way to go after the landscapers because they’re a big, big source of the problem,” he said.
An ordinance was unanimously approved authorizing the acquisition of a sidewalk easement from Rajeev Bedi, lot 153-162 Penn Lyle Road, for $1,200. It was introduced at a previous council meeting and was brought forward to avoid placing a utility pole in the sidewalk.
A resolution authorizing a refund for a development plan review project for Hilton Realty in the amount of $7,694.33 was approved because Hilton is no longer pursuing the project.
Ciccone asked that a bill for deer carcass removal be pulled since she questioned why the township was paying for this service and if a shared services agreement could be introduced.
Mercer County has had continuous two-year contracts with a company based in Cream Ridge, NJ called Deer Carcass Removal Service LLC since the state stopped paying for carcass removal in 2006. Hary explained that the township was responsible for a landfill cost when the carcasses are removed. The bill has been pulled until Hary finds out who would be collecting the fee.
Recommendations from the administration included the following:
— A text and title change for the recreation opportunities for individuals with disabilities grant for 2011, which was for $2,000. Hary said that CFO Joanne Louth said the text of the grant was a generic $2,000 matching amount and that needed to be changed.
— A budget transfer of $66,000 within the 2011 municipal budget for gas costs above what the township anticipated with funds taken from planning board accounts.
— Providing for inclusion of the 2011 Recreation Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities Grant for $15,000. The township received the money after the 2011 budget passed, so it was necessary to make an amendment to the budget to use the money.
— Authorizing the refund of an affordable housing fee associated with Martian Holdings LLC (Grovers Mill) of $1,976.34
— Authorization to execute a developer’s agreement with the trustees of Princeton University for the Washington Road Storage and Maintenance Facility.
— $9,800 to Van Cleef Engineering Associates through a professional services contract for North Post Road sewer repairs.
— Granting an extension of reservation of sanitary sewer capacity for the Greenview Corporate Park or Switzenbaum project, which dates back to 2006. Hary said it was the township’s third or fourth extension to reserve sever capacity for it.
— Endorsement of the removal of Green Acres Restrictions to reconstruct the Old Trenton Road Bridge crossing the Assunpink Creek. This would serve as an amendment to the resolution passed back in August as Hary says that DEP review showed there was less property involved than the township first perceived.
Councilwoman Linda Geevers briefly spoke about her experience hearing from residents and the administration at the November 2 special meeting regarding flooding and storm water management in Penns Neck (WW-P News, November 4). She asked Hary to make sure that ahead of sending out the request for proposal for the engineering study, he should not only share the draft with the public but with Council to seek input from the current and new members plus the West Windsor Environmental Commission.
“That’s a big priority as a lot of residents were affected by flooding and it’s a safety issue, health issue and if there’s any money that we get awarded from the environmental commission, I think that this could be one of the highest priorities to take that money and use it towards preemptive measures,” Geevers said.
Finally, the current council took time to thank all those who ran for council. Linda Geevers first congratulated George Borek on his re-election.
Charles Morgan welcomed the two new council members-elect. “I don’t know whether to offer you congratulations or sympathies,” he said.
His advice for the two newcomers is to get a copy of the book “Robert’s Rules of Order” and study it. Robert’s Rules, first published in 1876, has served as the most widely used handbook for parliamentary authority in the United States.
“Robert’s Rules are our rules and sometimes the best way to manage a meeting is to call attention to the rules,” Morgan said.
Morgan and Councilwoman Diane Ciccone said that because two new individuals would be coming aboard, replacing their two seats, it was imperative that they get a chance to be part of meetings and closed sessions from this point forward until they formally begin their positions on January 1.
For that reason Ciccone balked at Council President Kamal Khanna’s suggestion that the agenda meeting on November 21. At present Council still has scheduled a meeting on Monday, November 21, at 7 p.m.
