Council to Act Soon to Hire Consultant to Design Deck by PAUL J
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Ad Populos, Non Aditus, Pervenimus USPS 680020 Published Every Thursday OUR 111th YEAR – ISSUE NO. 18-111 Periodical – Postage Paid at Westfield, N.J. Thursday, January 11, 2001 Since 1890 (908) 232-4407 FIFTY CENTS Council to Act Soon to Hire Consultant to Design Deck By PAUL J. PEYTON deck. thus impacting the size of the facility Specially Written for The Westfield Leader The Town Council opted this past and location of the entrance and exit. Westfield Town Administrator summer to build a parking facility on Councilman Sullivan said he does Thomas Shannon announced Tues- surface lots located on Elm and Pros- not want to waste money to complete day night that he expects to have a pect Streets. The deck would range a deck design that might change after recommendation to hire a design from 600 to 800 spaces and cost in the T&M traffic study is completed. consultant within the next two weeks the range of $12 million to build. The town administrator indicated for pre-design work on a downtown Mr. Shannon said the timeline is to much of the beginning work by the parking deck. have a contractor hired by the end of design consultant will not involve Mr. Shannon and Third Ward Coun- the year to begin construction in the actual design of the deck, and cilman Neil F. Sullivan, Transporta- January 2002. The facility would be thus will not be impacted by T&M’s tion, Traffic and Parking Committee ready for partial use for the 2002 study findings. Chairman, will be interviewing those holiday shopping season. Mr. Shannon said he has been firms that responded to a legal notice The town has also contracted T&M meeting with a representative of a requesting proposals that was pub- Associates of Middletown and Toms residential housing complex near the lished in The Westfield Leader on River to evaluate the possible impact proposed deck. November 16. a deck would have on traffic patterns “The tenor of the conversations Pre-design work, as stated in the on roadways in the vicinity of the has not been adversarial at this point,” legal notice, will involve soil analy- parking facility. he told Council members. sis; property, utility and environmen- T&M concluded a circulation As part of the town’s plan to in- tal surveys; and review and integra- study of Westfield’s downtown for crease parking revenues in advance tion of traffic analysis. the County of Union last year. of construction of a deck, the Town The work also involves the sche- Councilman Sullivan said he would Council took action late last year to matic design phase of the project, like the work on the traffic analysis raise parking permit and meter fees. which includes the development of to be completed prior to pre-design Noting that the town is behind design options for a multi-tiered deck work on the deck. He said T&M’s schedule on the parking permit pro- including plans for consideration of findings might indicate severe con- cess, Mr. Shannon said Tuesday night Brooks Crandall for The Westfield Leader a commercial and residential devel- DANGLING SPIRES OF ICE…This glorious vision of crystalline icicles suspended from a roof of a local building cerns of traffic patterns on some road- that he expected the 600-plus park- captured the beauty of last week’s snow storm. opment along the frontage of the ways leading to and from the deck, ing permit applications to be mailed out over the next few weeks. The town is now requiring license plate numbers for up to two vehicles Listening to Residents, Raising Quality and Condition per commuter permit holder. The numbers will be placed on the decal which will be mailed to permit hold- ers. Officials said the plate numbers Of Playing Fields Are Goals of New Rec. Comm. Chairman will improve the efficiency of the parking enforcement system. By DEBORAH MADISON Westfield to tell us what to do,” Mr. fund our DPW to maintain the fields,” Specially Written for The Westfield Leader coaching Little League Soccer in 1992 to 1993 and at Livingston High The administrator expects the 2001 Hertell stated. he commented. 1972, was the founder of the Westfield Westfield Recreation School for the past three years before permit process to be completed by He said that he recognized that the “There is no reason why we Soccer Association and their first he retired. February. In the meantime, parking Commission’s newly appointed DPW was understaffed and under- shouldn’t have the best fields in the President. Chairman, Keith S. Hertell addressed Mr. Hertell also coached his own permits issued for 2000 are still valid. funded, but believed that they were state,” he added. He pointed out that Mr. Hertell was a junior varsity private team, the Central Jersey Stars, On another item, Mr. Shannon in- the commission and the community capable of handling the town’s field if the DPW had to spend hours clean- girl’s soccer coach in 1991 at Scotch for the first time in his new role at the an under 23 women’s soccer team, dicated that he anticipates a contract maintenance needs if properly funded ing up after games, then they couldn’t Plains-Fanwood High School as well who won the state championship will be drawn up in the next few commission’s re-organization meet- attend to field maintenance. as girl’s varsity soccer coach in 1994 ing on January 8. three out of the four years he coached. weeks between the town and Ray Mr. Hertell has had extensive ex- at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High And, he will be taking an under 17 Mikell for the startup of a concierge Mr. Hertell has replaced Dr. perience with recreational programs School. Seymour Koslowsky, who was Chair- girl’s soccer team to Brazil in July — and errand service at the Westfield and sports in Westfield, both as a He also coached soccer at Oaknoll, the second girl’s team nationwide to man of the commission since 1987. coach and as a parent. He started out a private school in Summit, from CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 Mr. Hertell raised several key is- CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 sues, which he said, are crucial to making Westfield’s recreation pro- gram a success in the coming years. Westfield Recreation Commission Chairman One of his main goals, he said, will be to listen to the residents, the pro- gram participants, leagues and par- ents, as well as fellow commission Seeks to Add Staff to Maintain Town Fields members for their input and opin- By DEBORAH MADISON staff, as well as with Recreation Di- hiring six people dedicated to parks more per year for a greatly needed ions. Specially Written for The Westfield Leader rector Glenn Burrell to discuss the and field maintenance under the di- He stated that he had some aggres- value to the community,” Mr. Hertell The newly-appointed members of details, which included two possible rect auspices of the Recreation De- pointed out. sive and controversial ideas, which the Westfield Recreation Commis- options. partment. he believed would benefit the com- sion were introduced to the commis- Mr. Hertell said that he preferred The plan’s first option involves Both options would cost $250,000 the first option, which would utilize munity, but that most of all, he wanted sion and the public on Monday, Janu- hiring four additional DPW crew and would involve having the Town the extensive skills and knowledge to hear from the commission mem- ary 8, at the monthly Recreation members, whose main function Council distribute the funds to each bers and the public regarding their of the DPW in this area. He said that Commission meeting. would be to address the maintenance respective department, depending on ideas for the future direction of the Keith Hertell Mr. Marsh and the DPW were very New members to the commission needs of town fields and who would the option chosen. Recreation Department. and supported. are Bill Palatucci, Karen Masciale, be under the direction of the DPW. “If the $21 million school bond enthusiastic about the plan and felt “We don’t need to take a back seat He said that one of his goals is to John O’Leary and Mike Cash as an capable of handling the task. Mr. Burrell would maintain close adds only $100 for the average house to any community,” he said, refer- raise Westfield’s fields to exemplary alternate. contact with the DPW to address the Other commission members, how- ring to the quality of parks and fields status in quality and condition, but Commission member Mel Coren town’s field maintenance needs. assessment, then this extra quarter of ever, expressed their reservations in Westfield. “People move to this that could only be accomplished resigned. The second option would involve a million would add only a few cents CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 community because it is family through the concerted efforts of both Also new to the commission, Keith friendly and we must maintain this the Town Council and the residents. Hertell, who replaced Dr. Seymour valuable asset (of parks and fields),” The Town Council, which he be- Koslowsky as the commission’s he stated. lieves is very supportive of creating Chairman. Mr. Hertell shared with Mr. Hertell also expressed that he quality recreational facilities, must the commission some of his ideas does not believe that Westfield needed be willing to fund the needed main- and goals for the future of the Recre- to consult an outside engineering tenance personnel, he said, and the ation Department.