The Livingston Township Council met on Monday evening, September 23, and approved three ordinances on final hearing, including one to fund construction of a new Department of Public Works building and another to reset salary ranges for town employees.
Salaries and Wages
The Council approved an ordinance to establish positions and salary ranges of public officials and non-union employees of Livingston. The ordinance had been tabled at several previous meetings before ultimately passing on Monday.
Comments from several Council members indicated the changes in ranges reflect raises that will better support assistants and deputies in various departments, to shore up succession plans throughout the town.
The salaries range as high as $220,000 to $280,000 for township manager to a low of $40,000 to $60,000 for various administrative assistants and secretaries. Hourly wages range from $25 to $60 for recreation specialty instructors to $ 14 to $ 18 for camp counselors. Firefighters earn between $20 and $40 per hour, according to the ordinance.
Council members earn a minimum of $7,000 and a maximum of $ 12,000 annually, with the mayor earning between $8,000 and $15,000. The range for police chief is $210,000 to $260,000; fire chief is $165,000 to $210,000; and chief financial officer is $160,000 to $210,000.
Prosecutors and public defenders earn between $20,000 and $40,000 annually. The percent increase in these salaries from the previous ranges was not disclosed in the ordinance.
Public Works Facility
Also approved on final hearing was an ordinance to authorize a $7,500,000 bond ordinance to fund the design and construction of the new Department of Public Works facility. The funds cover all of the workmaterials necessary to complete the job.
The new DPW building will be located on Industrial Parkway. The land for the proposed building was acquired by the town in 2019. The current building on South Livingston Avenue has been in a state of disrepair for many years.
(Continued on Page A-6) Council member Ketan Bhuptani called it a “milestone ordinance” for the town that will support the DPW department.
“Long time coming,” Council member Shawn Klein said. “Long overdue.”
“Our DPW workers are the best,” Mayor Al Anthony said. “It’s something we have wanted to do for a long time, to give them a home.”
The Council said the plan is to turn the current South Livingston Avenue DPW location into a rateable property for the town.
Requests for proposals will now go out to bidders, and the contract is expected to be awarded during the October 28 Council meeting. Township manager Barry Lewis said crews expect to break ground on the project by the end of 2024.
Rezoning Ordinance
Another approved ordinance will rezone the area of 91-105 East Mt. Pleasant Avenue from its current status as an R-4 residential zone to B-1 General Business District, to which it is adjacent, and permitting car wash facilities as a conditional use in the zone.
Under the ordinance, changes would be made under the “conditional uses – public garages and gasoline filling stations” section of the code. The ordinance references 91-105 East Mt. Pleasant Avenue as the area that would be affected by the change. The area contains a mix of commercial uses, and the changes include more stringent identification of the tanks present on properties, as well as developing plans for anticipated deliveries.
The ordinance would also amend parking regulations, including street parking and loading provisions, for that parcel.
Resolutions
The Council also approved two resolutions on Monday evening.
A change order for a contract with T&M Associates for professional engineering services was approved. Where the original contract was for an amount not to exceed $433,400, field conditions requiring additional engineering services necessitated an increase of $18,245, making the new contract sum $451,645.
Another resolution authorizes the township to formally enter into a two year contract with Agra Environmental Service, Inc., effective October 1, to perform laboratory testing services.
Closed Session
In an executive closed session at the end of the meeting, the Council was expected to discuss the Livingston Mall and Open Space acquisitions related to additional land adjacent to the Strahman property acquired by the town in 2019.
