Glen Ridge Shifts Zoning and Fire Inspections to Bloomfield, Adopts New Fee Schedule
Listen
Glen Ridge's Borough Council voted to have the Township of Bloomfield take over zoning compliance and related fire inspection services for the borough, formalizing the arrangement through an interlocal agreement. To help cover the cost of setting up this new arrangement, Glen Ridge is joining Bloomfield in applying for a state LEAP Implementation Grant — LEAP stands for Local Efficiency Achievement Program — worth about $50,000. Tied to that change, the Council also adopted a new set of fees for zoning compliance and smoke detector certification: $250 for residential property transfers of one to three families, $100 per unit for transfers involving four or more units, $250 per unit for tenant changes in one-to-three family properties, and a $50 fee for reinspections.
In routine financial business, the Council approved warrants covering roughly $3.42 million in claims across various funds, the bulk of it — about $3.29 million — from the Current Fund, and authorized the borough's April 1 payroll. Council members also approved shifting $30,000 among 2023 budget accounts, pulling $10,000 from Public Safety, $5,000 from Finance, $10,000 from Legal, and $5,000 from Street Lighting Utilities to boost the Parks and Playgrounds expense account.
On other borough matters, the Planning and Development Committee, chaired by Councilor Morrow, said it will review public comments gathered from a March 20 hearing on short-term rental regulations, which included a presentation by Erik Delin, before deciding next steps. A resident of Stone House Road submitted a written request asking the borough to ban gas-powered leaf blowers, though the Council took no action on the request at this meeting. Councilor Hughes reported that new stop sign striping at Highland and Baldwin is waiting on weather, since installation requires temperatures consistently above 50 degrees.
In lighter news, Mayor Mans signed the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors' Monarch Pledge, committing the borough to support monarch butterfly and pollinator habitat efforts, and announced that a Glen Ridge home will be featured on the television program This Old House airing March 28th. Clerk Ventola announced that Eagle Scouts will attend the Council's next meeting on April 8th. Police Chief Quinn reminded residents to stay alert and keep their homes and cars locked.
What to watch
- The Planning and Development Committee's next steps on short-term rental regulations following its review of public comments
- Whether the Council takes any action on the resident petition to ban gas-powered leaf blowers
- Eagle Scouts attending the Council's April 8th meeting
Watch key moments
- 0:00 — Mayor's Monarch Pledge signed