City Inventory Gets OK for State Aid; Data Show Beach Injuries Declined

CAPE MAY – State law requires the Division of Local Government Services to determine if a portion of municipal aid should be withheld depending on an annual inventory of best practices covering various areas of municipal governance. 
The survey must be filed by Oct. 21 and must be followed by a public discussion of the results with the governing body.
This report from city Chief Financial Officer Neil Young led off the agenda for the Nov. 1 City Council work session.
The survey comprises a series of questions for which yes responses are required to gain necessary points. An overall score of between 22 and 30 is necessary to qualify for the full amount of state aid.
Of the 30 questions in this year’s questionnaire, the city responded with a yes to 23, no to four, and three were not applicable. This resulted in a final score of 26, mid-way in the required range, and thus qualified the city for all of its remaining state aid.
Young went over the four questions that the city was unable to respond to affirmatively. 
In most cases, the city had policy or procedure in the areas in question but needed to tighten the policy to meet the state questions as asked.
One such area was a need for a policy on the use of municipal vehicles for personal use other than commuting to and from work.
Later in the meeting council passed a resolution inserting such a policy into the personnel regulations so that the city could answer yes to that question if it were asked next year.
Two other no responses stemmed from a question concerning contract policy for groups of city employees and the treatment of accumulated sick leave. 
The city is moving to institute the best practice, but in some cases, implementation needs to wait for the next cycle of collective bargaining contracts. The last no also impacted collective bargaining agreements and dealt with the eventual elimination of longevity awards.
Beach Replenishment
City Manager Bruce MacLeod reported on the soon to begin federal beach replenishment project which this year will include the entire coastline from the Coast Guard Training Center to the Point. What has occurred is two cycles of beach fill which have seen their cycles overlap this year.
One project, normally run every two years, will move sand from borrow areas to needed spots from the Coast Guard base to the Third Avenue jetty. 
The second project, usually on an every four-year cycle, will deal with the area from the jetty to the Point.
The overall effort will cost around $15 million for which the city’s share will be $274,000.
The city has benefited from a long-established 50-year agreement with the Army Corps of Engineers to maintain the sand on the beaches for the protection of property and public safety.
MacLeod also noted that 2016 saw a reduction in the number of injuries logged by the Beach Patrol and the Fire Department.
He speculated that one potential reason for the decline was the augmented beach safety education program adopted by the city. Beginning in 2017, the city is looking forward to an expansion of the reporting on injuries as an agreement with Cape Regional Medical Center continues to take form.
Beach safety advocates have pressed for changes in the Army Corps’ beach template to help alleviate the surf zone dangers and ease the natural beach slope. 
Better data, one of the objectives of the cooperative agreement with Cape Regional, is needed to identify any links between cycles of beach replenishment and injury patterns on the engineered beaches.
MacLeod did note that the template for this year’s replenishment will seek a “gentler slope,” with a change from the standard 1:10 ratio to a “softer” 1:15 level. 
Attempts in the past to alter the slope have resulted in a quick return to the steeper inclines which appear to be the work of natural forces of wind and waves in the area.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.