The Secaucus Town Council introduced a $40.06 million municipal budget on Tuesday that, if passed, will raise municipal taxes in the town for the first time in eight years.
However, the increase will be slight. An average household in Secaucus, assessed at slightly less than $200,000, will see an increase of $95 per year.
The current tax rate is $10.46 per $1,000 of property owned, and the tentative new rate would be $11 per $1,000.
The budget will go to a public hearing on July 24, in which members of the public can make suggestions or comments.
Residents pay overall taxes that include a municipal (Secaucus town) property tax, as well as a school tax and county tax. The school and county budgets are figured separately.
Tuesday’s budget proposal passed by a vote of 5-0 with two abstentions.
Town Administrator Anthony Iacono said that the tax increase was due to factors that are “out of their hands.”
The amount required to pay for pensions for town workers increased by $430,000, Iacono said.
Mayor Dennis Elwell stressed at the Town Council meeting that only 2 percent of the tax increase can be attributed to spending that is under the town’s control.
This year’s tax levy, or the amount of the $40.06 million budget to be paid for by property taxes, is a projected $27 million.
Iacono told the council during the caucus preceding the town meeting that by working with town Treasurer Peggy Barkala, they were able to whittle down the budget by $400,000 since the original proposals of town department heads.
“If, after eight years, your municipal budget is only up $98, then we, as the town, did an excellent job,” said Iacono.
The new budget of $40.06 million is up $1.36 million from last year’s budget of $38.7 million.
Abstentions
Third Ward Councilman/Deputy Mayor John Reilly and 2nd Ward Councilman Michael Gonnelli both abstained from introducing the proposed budget, but said they agreed with the budget.
Reilly said he abstained due to his volunteer work at the Liberty Health Center, with which the town currently has an ambulance contract.
Gonnelli said he abstained because of his affiliation with the Secaucus Volunteer Fire Department.
During the caucus, Iacono also noted Gonnelli’s unpaid position on the Meadowlands Commission, and Gonnelli’s current litigation between himself and the town.
Both councilmen expressed their approval of the budget at the main meeting.
“I do agree with the budget. They put a lot of hard work into it,” said Deputy Mayor Reilly.
Reilly said that one of his concerns with the budget was that there was not enough allocated to environmental concerns, but sees that there was slightly more funding proposed than in previous years.
Recreation Center temporarily halted
Also discussed at the meeting was the current state of the Recreation Center and why construction has temporarily been halted.
According to Gerald Perricone, an engineering consultant, the building was halted after a large quantity of debris was found mixed in with the dirt they were digging.
Due to a number of complaints made by citizens who felt that all of the soil was contaminated, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) entered the picture and declared that a halt be put to the project.
As of Tuesday, the town was still missing one signature for the zoning permit issued by the NJDEP that would allow construction to resume.
The matter of the dirt removal will be put on hold until the town can find a safe and cost effective way of relocating it.