Mayor and Council Reorganization, Zoning Board Meetings Top the Week Ahead

The week starts off with the reorganization of the Mayor and Council Monday, Jan. 7 at 7pm in the Council Chambers of Borough Hall.

After completing old business carried over from 2012, Austin Ashley and Michael Putrino will be sworn in as Councilmen. The rest of the evening will be devoted to the appointments of professionals, followed by the appointments to boards, committees and commissions. Click here to see the agenda that includes a full list of appointed positions to be filled by the Mayor and Council.

Borough Grant Writer, Marlene Casey, is not on the agenda to appear at Monday's meeting to clarify her position regarding what grants were available at the time that the town had the opportunity to purchase the United Water property.

The Board of Education is also holding its reorganization meeting on Monday, Jan. 7 at 7pm in the Media Center of New Milford High School. Incumbents Darren Drake and Joseph Steele, along with Laura O'Grady and Christoper Ryan, will be sworn in.

The Zoning Board of Adjustment will be holding its reorganization meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at 7pm in the Council Chambers of Borough Hall. The meeting will open with the swearing-in of newly appointed members, dissolution of all offices and committees, election of officers and the appointment of professionals.

On the agenda is the continuation of the hearing of the development of the United Water property by the S. Hekemian Group. Near the close of December's Zoning Board meeting, Marc Leibman, the attorney representing Councilman Austin Ashley against Hekemian's development of the United Water property, said that because the changes in Hekemian's recently revised site plan application are 'substantial,' he was requesting that the Zoning Board toss the current application before them and require Hekemian to submit a new one.

Hekemian had submitted substantial changes the site plan. The proposed changes include a severely reduced amount of residential units -- from 221 to 24. A flood storage basin has been placed where the bulk of the housing units were originally proposed fronting Cecchino Drive. This area marks the space Hekemian offered to give New Milford as a field during their April 2011 presentation at New Milford High School.

Hekemian is also removing the four-story 428 parking garage and replacing it with 54 perimeter parking spaces.

Based on the information that Hekemian submitted with the revisions, or lack thereof, Zoning Board attorney, Scott Sproviero, said that the board needs more information in order to make a determination and requested that attorneys for Hekemian submit a paper by Dec. 28, summarizing the scope of the proposed changes and a synopsis of why the revised site plan should not be considered a new application. The paper submitted by Hekemian's attorney supporting their revised application will be addressed during Tuesday's meeting.

Click here to see the full agenda.

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