Sidewalk Project Could Save Rafkind Road Residents Thousands
Council continues discussion on assessment project.
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As the Bloomingdale Council continues to mull whether to complete a sidewalk repair assessment project on Rafkind Road, several affected neighbors attended Tuesday's borough council meeting to hear more about what would be entailed.
The project is being considered as Mayor Jonathan Dunleavy said much of the street's sidewalks are in disrepair. Bloomingdale has received a $200,000 state Department of Transportation grant and will be contributing $325,000 to the project for paving and curbing. The total estimated cost of the project, should the borough decide to move forward with the sidewalk assessment portion, is around $825,000. Rafkind Road residents would be asked to repay the cost of the portion of their sidewalks they would be responsible for as assessed by the borough engineer.
On average, this would mean a cost of about $4,800 for a Rafkind Road homeowner with 100 feet of frontage on their property.
Rafkind Road resident Tom Tracey said he was not sure whether he was for or against the project but had questions about his property, specifically. He asked when the borough engineer would be able to visit his property and assess how much he would owe, and Dunleavy replied that assessments would be done only if the council agrees to move forward, which could happen some time in April.
"The decision of moving ahead would already be made," the mayor said.
The initial decision would be to move ahead with a bond ordinance for the project, which the council will be voting on after a public hearing at the March 26 meeting.
Regardless of how the council decides on the assessment project, Dunleavy said the borough would be moving ahead with the curbing and paving. But considering the condition of the sidewalks, he said it would only make sense for the sidewalks to be repaired at the same time.
"I would say 90 percent of Rafkind's sidewalks need to be replaced," he said. "They're awful."
While the residents would be responsible for a portion of the costs, they would make payments to the borough which would be financed at 1 percent for 10 years.
"We're not asking for it up front. We want to help you out," Councilman John D'Amato told one resident.
Last month, the council held a special meeting to kick off discussion on the project. But out of the 61 affected families, only a handful of residents attended.
"I was very surprised as to the lack of Rafkind Road people," Tracey said.
No residents seemed to speak against the project on Tuesday, but one noted that whereas his sidewalk would likely cost close to $4,000 to repair in the project, his insurance company had told him he would need to fix the sidewalk regardless and other companies that quoted him said the repairs would cost more than $6,000. Officials assured residents that the borough's rate and cost would be lower if the project moved ahead than they would be offered through a private company.
"It looks like it's just a great project," resident Mark Rooney said.
eva
8:00 am on Friday, March 15, 2013
When we moved in 10 years ago, we had to level our sidewalk for our insurance to cover, ours are not "horrible", in fact there is hardly any lifts, so would we have to pay $4k (which we don't have) just to make the sidewalks pretty? I agree that there are some major problems, and perhaps the deal would afford homeowners on Rafkind a cheaper solution than repairing on their own, but how can we agree to something until we know how much we are looking at? It doesn't make sense when we are all watching every penny! As much as we wanted to go to the 1st meeting, having 4 kids in 4 different directions, there is always a conflict and think there should have been a few options for those 61 families to learn more. Still, without being able to have an assessment to know if we would have to replace, repair or be excused and at what cost, is ridiculous anyway!
Tom Tracey
9:44 am on Friday, March 15, 2013
Eva:
Not sure if any are at town hall, but call them or the mayor and see if there is the 4-page handout that has Rafkind Road map on the front. Please e-mail the mayor your question. Your sidewalk was done 10 years ago? Tell the mayor. He will listen and give you all the answers you need. The last meeting on 3-12 was recorded I believe. Watch it on channel 77, sorry not sure what time. A neighbor of mine had his sidewalks completely ripped out and replaced a few months ago. Will the town rip his out - I highly doubt it. Please e-mail the mayor to get the correct and accurate answer to your questions-his address is in the Bloomingdale town web-site. (Tom Tracey)
Tom Tracey
10:21 am on Friday, March 15, 2013
The next Town meeting on this subject is 3/26 at 7PM. Eva-this is how approachable the Mayor is. I e-mailed him a few weeks ago and he responded in minutes. Please ask the Mayor your questions via e-mail if you can not get to a meeting. Eva-your options are to get this 4-page handout via the town, or maybe the Mayor can have it e-mailed. Come to the next meeting. Watch the last meeting on channel 77, or e-mail Jon. The town will not vote to move forwards until April. Not saying i know it all, but "move forwards" I do not believe means they will rip up your sidewalks the next day. please get your answers from Jon directly.
Bloomingdale Resident
11:13 am on Friday, March 15, 2013
Just FYI a few years back my neighbor ripped up his side walks and put new ones in. A week later the town came in and ripped up his side walk b/c they were putting new side walks in. This was a few years back but it did happen. You should find out what you can.
Jon Dunleavy
12:07 pm on Friday, March 15, 2013
Bloomingdale Resident, can you please tell me what street this occurred on? There hasnt been an sidewalk assessment in our town in over 20 year thus the condition of many of our sidewalks. I cant imagine what circumstances would require ripping up new sidewalks without giving months of prior notice, unless there was an emergency such as a sewer or water issue.
Jon Dunleavy
11:44 am on Friday, March 15, 2013
Eva, I understand your concerns. There will be one more council meeting on 3/26 7pm where residents can ask questions pertaining to the project. This would be a total of 3 public meetings on the subject. If the Governing Body is going to proceed this will be authorized on 4/23. You can also email me at jdunleavy@bloomingdalenj.net or call me at 973 838 0778 to talk. The average cost per homeowner would be approximately $4000 which would be paid over 10 years. The Borough Engineer will inspect sidewalks of anyone who has recently done replacment or feels their sidewalks are in good condition. There will be a meeting with residents and our Engineer to finalize what everyones cost would be and who is eligible to opt out. Please call with any additional questions.
Bloomingdale Resident
9:49 am on Monday, March 18, 2013
Mayor, it happened on Elizabeth Street about 10 years ago. They were relatively new residents at the time. They have since moved.