Tuesday’s Secaucus Town Council meeting began with a respectful silence as residents watched a 9/11 10th anniversary video, but erupted into heated debate when residents aired a number of concerns including the cost of the Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) program, the status of the town’s health insurance broker, and cuts made to the Board of Education budget.
Questioning cat program
At the meeting, resident Chris Conti from Harmon Cove Towers referred to an Aug. 7 Reporter article that quoted the mayor as saying the town spent $45,000 on the TNR program last year to help control the spread of wild and feral cats. She said the numbers didn’t add up, and asked whether Secaucus should be having more success.
“45,000 [would equal] 600 cats. When and how was that done? In 2010 we spayed and neutered 131 cats – that’s $9,000,” said Conti, referring to a shelter report she had obtained.
“I am an animal activist. That doesn’t mean that I want to live in a town with 6,000 cats.” – Chris Conti
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The town veterinarian, Dr. John Hatch, treats cats and neuters or spays kittens at the Secaucus Animal Hospital.
In a follow-up call, he said the bills from 2010 actually added up to $41,457 for those costs. He said that so far this year, the town has spent $28,739 on those services.
He said the town also had to revamp the shelter and has made changes recently to improve operations.
Conti also questioned the town’s concept of a TNR program.
“A TNR program is not Secaucus animal shelter employees going out, trapping a couple of kittens, putting them in the shelter, and getting them adopted,” she said. “A TNR program is where a mass trap is set and you get a lot of cats, you fix them, neuter or spay them and put them back out.”
She said the issue was important, not just to her, but to a lot of citizens.
“I am an animal activist,” she said. “That doesn’t mean that I want to live in a town with 6,000 cats. I want to make sure it is done properly. For the welfare of the citizens and the welfare of the animals.”
Gonnelli said the town cannot undertake a massive TNR program right now, but has taken a first step in identifying the extent of the problem with a letter to residents educating them about the program and asking for help locating problem areas. He said the town recently added six new, large traps to their existing inventory, and sets up to 11 traps when the weather is favorable. Dr. Hatch has agreed to increase the number of cats he can neuter per day from two to three or four cats at most.
Conti said that cats would multiply faster than town officials can neuter them. She said the UPN 9 lot has 30 pregnant cats.
Gonnelli said the town will address the industrial areas.
Councilwoman Susan Pirro said the shelter will hold an adoption day Oct. 1 and will also adopt out kittens at the library mini-fair Sept. 17.
The shelter is also having a fundraiser garage sale on Sept. 24 and charging $40 a ticket for a Halloween-themed dance fundraiser at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Oct. 14.
The town recently received a donation from Johnston Communications company to install a surveillance system to prevent animals from being abandoned outside the shelter.
Board of Education grievances resurface
Also during the meeting, Board of Education members Tom Troyer and Dora Marra approached the podium for different reasons.
Troyer questioned whether the town was ordered by a court to continue a contract with the town’s previous broker of record that filed a lawsuit against the town for accepting a competitor’s more expensive bid. The matter was tangentially related to the school board’s own process regarding its broker.
Gonnelli said the town has no broker of record, is undergoing litigation, has appealed the decision, and will ask for a stay.
“We renewed our insurance with Blue Cross, Blue Shield, the same policy that we always had in a timely fashion at a zero increase – a savings of $500,000 – which is something I’ve been waiting for [the board of ed] to do for six months now,” said Gonnelli.
“Well, we have a process we follow. I saw the process you follow. That’s why this court order should come out,” said Troyer.
“Yeah, a very slow process,” said Gonnelli.
The banter between Gonnelli and Troyer continued until the Mayor addressed the ongoing, underlying tension between the board of education and the town council.
“We were charged by the people of Secaucus that voted a budget down by a large margin to do our job. We didn’t take that job with a grain of salt…we formed a committee, we worked hard, then we met with the board of ed,” said Gonnelli. “[We] sat in front of every one of you and asked you questions. And I had to say it three times, does anyone have anything to say.”
The debate between the board of education members and the council escalated into shouting until all decorum was lost with council members and audience members talking over each other.
“I was on the committee. I never had a meeting with you!” said Marra.
“If we ever did this at the board of education, you guys would go nuts!” said Deputy Mayor John Bueckner, referring to the breakdown in order.
“You have!” said Marra.
Marra complained that the school board members never had a chance to properly discuss with the council the $1.1 million in cuts that were made to the school budget. After the budget was rejected by voters in April, the council and board had to come up with an amount to cut. The board will now have to find ways to implement those cuts.
“I just think you guys cut too much. That is my personal opinion and I am entitled to it,” said Marra. “How do you make cuts on negotiated union items?”
Mayor Gonnelli said the town had several meetings with school board members before the cuts were voted upon.
Earlier in the meeting, Councilman James Clancy asked Town Administrator David Drumeler to send a letter of invitation to School Superintendent Cynthia Randina and the Board of Education members to attend the next caucus meeting.
“Word is spreading around that we are being blamed for cutting academic programs. We had nothing to do with that,” said Clancy.
The town hopes to settle the open board of education issues at the joint meeting.
National Moment of Remembrance
The town unanimously passed a resolution expressing support for the bill introduced by Sen. Frank Lautenberg asking the nation to cease all work or other activity at 1 p.m. EST on Sept. 11 for a moment of remembrance for the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Also that day, the town will gather at the 9/11 town memorial at the library.
“I lost my best friend that day, Steven Strobert, 33 years old,” said Councilman Robert Constantino. “Ever since that day, in fact that evening, we started the Steven Strobert Foundation. We raised $100,000 for education.”
The town launched a month of giving campaign in August to encourage residents to make donations to 9/11 organizations such as the Steven Strobert Foundation (see hudsonreporter.com for last week’s story).
Other business: slowing traffic, rec center $$
The town introduced an ordinance to reduce the speed limit to 25 on the Meadowlands Parkway from the Route 3 East Entrance Ramp to the Route 3 West Entrance Exit Ramp by Wood Avenue.
The town will begin putting up signs next week, repainting the intersection, redoing the stop signs, and having radar patrol.
The new limit will not be enforced until Sept. 13, after the next council meeting.
Councilman Gary Jeffas said the town wanted a traffic light after a number of car accidents, with six accidents in three years. But the town failed to meet the state’s criteria for a light. So they are changing the limit and continuing to pursue a traffic light.
Bueckner reported the Recreation Center income for this year so far at $184,000, which is $19,000 ahead of last year. The center has 1,734 renewed members and 927 new members, for a total of 2,661.
“We are trying to bring things into the rec center where we can make a couple of dollars,” said Bueckner.
He gave the example of the Kettle Chip company, which has asked to film a commercial all day at the swim center on Aug. 29. The town will get $7,500 for renting the space to the company.
Adriana Rambay Fernández may be reached at afernandez@hudsonreporter.com.