Freeholders Begin Year with First 90-Minute Caucus

CREST HAVEN — The first 90-minute-plus caucus session to precede a regular freeholder meeting was held Tue., Jan. 10 under Director Gerald Thornton. Newly-sworn freeholders Kristine Gabor and Will Morey joined Vice Director M. Susan Shappard and Leonard Desiderio on the dais.
Under Thornton’s direction, every freeholder meeting this year will begin 90 minutes early to allow a caucus in public in the freeholder meeting room, 4 Moore Road. During those sessions, department heads may address the board on various matters. The first meeting of each month, is the second Tuesday at 7 p.m. and is preceded with a caucus at 5:30 p.m. The second meeting of each month, on the fourth Tuesday, is scheduled at 4:30 p.m. with a caucus beginning at 3 p.m.
See the Jan. 18 Herald print edition for detailed report on the Jan. 10 meeting. The following are some highlights of the meeting.
Topics discussed:
* By Robert “Budd” Springer, Facilities and Services director, energy savings program that could cut the county’s energy bill by $800,000. It would place a privately-built and operated plant on county ground in the Crest Haven “campus” to serve buildings that would use hot water and electricity, produced on site including jail, nursing home, Technical High School and Special Services School.
* By Engineer Dale Foster, process of selection of pool engineers and architects used on various county projects including bridges and construction..
* By Purchasing Agent Kim Allen, procedure used to sell surplus county property on GovDeals, an Internet-based auction firm, similar to e-Bay. The county has averaged $110,000 by use of that firm, as compared with $71,000 annually, netted from former county auction at the county airport.
* Counsel Barbara Bakley-Marino informed the board that compliance with the state’s Open Public Records Act is becoming onerous, particularly for department heads. She said researching requests for e-mails, meeting minutes and various records often requires information to be redacted, something only department heads should do. She said one request was over 500 pages, and took her a day and half to compile.
The board will weigh more factors, but could set a special service charge to reimburse for time taken compiling protracted OPRA requests.
* By Chief Financial Officer Edmund Grant, procedures for management and non-union personnel to “opt out” of health coverage is a spouse is covered by other health insurance.
Gabor presented Dr. James Rochford and Dr. Harvey Strair with plaques attesting to their participation in a state grant program through the Department of Aging tha provides dental care to needy senior citizens, up to 30 a year.
They were among dentists in the county who reeive “minimal financial” reimbursement to assist those seniors.
Also participating in the program, but absent from the meeting were Dr. William Robinson, Dr. John Heckle Jr. and Dr. Frank Fuscaldo.