CAPE MAY – No member of the five-member City Council was up for election in November, so the council remained intact at its Tuesday, Jan. 2, reorganization. Council member Lorraine Baldwin was chosen by her colleagues for another term as deputy mayor.
The meeting did mark the transfer of the city manager position from Michael Voll, who retired at the end of 2023, to Paul Dietrich. Under Cape May’s form of government, the city manager serves as the municipality’s chief executive.
The manager has full administrative responsibility for the municipality, including appointment of department heads, preparation and presentation of the initial budget and negotiation of contracts. The council serves as the municipality’s legislative branch.
Dietrich is the fourth person to serve as city manager following the retirement of Bruce Macleod at the end of 2016.
There were no surprises in the annual appointments that are part of the agenda at reorganization meetings. Attorney Christopher Gillin-Schwartz was reappointed as city solicitor. Board and commission liaisons all remained the same as in 2023.
Kevin Hanie was appointed as temporary chief financial officer for 2024, having taken that position in 2023. His need for reappointment to temporary status stems from the fact that he is still fulfilling course requirements for state certification as a certified municipal finance officer in New Jersey.
As is true in most municipal reorganizations, a long list of resolutions was adopted as a consent agenda, making annual designations for a varied list of positions ranging from the municipal auditor to the volunteer harbor master.
A temporary budget was set at $5.2 million for the current fund. The city’s three utilities also have temporary budgets: $1.5 million for water and sewer, $793,000 for the beach utility and $343,000 for the tourism utility.
There is no change to the council meeting schedule, which remains the first and third Tuesday of the month at 5 p.m., with a change to 3 p.m. in June, July and August.
The State of the City
Mayor Zack Mullock gave his annual State of the City address. Mullock assured residents that the state of the city was strong, saying as well that the city best conquers its challenges by having officials and residents work together in a nonpartisan way.
Mullock said he prepared for his address by looking back at the first State of the City presentation he gave three years earlier, in January 2021. The issues in that presentation, he said, drove much of the activity of the last few years.
The mayor pointed to the promise of a new firehouse that recently had its ribbon cutting. He referenced the desire for improvements to Soldiers and Sailors Park and the purchase of the Allen AME Church, as well as the project to renovate and repurpose the historic Franklin Street School as a branch library and community center, all of which have been completed or seen substantial progress.
Mullock said that the 2021 State of the City address included a commitment to get the lead out of city water pipes, a commitment that he said predated the state mandate. He reported that the city is about 10 years ahead of schedule on that project.
The mayor also talked of the successful preservation of the Sewell Tract.
He said the city’s financial position was strong, with investment income topping $1 million for the first time, occupancy tax and parking revenue up, and the city’s surplus at an all-time high.
Turning to challenges facing the city, Mullock cited the seawall project, where the city’s partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers may lead to as much as $25 million in federal funding.
He spoke of the need to replace the city’s aging desalination plant, the commitment to a new police station and a need for more affordable housing in a city he said was “built by families” and needing to preserve its year-round population.
The mayor assured that the council would continue to work with the city’s residents and visitors to meet the challenges of the coming year. He urged those with comments and questions to seek out elected officials, who he said very much want to hear from them.
Mullock ended his address with Proverbs 12:15: “The way of the fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.”
Contact the author, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.
