First, I want to thank everyone who attended Friday’s meeting. The response was outstanding as every seat in the hall was filled. It was great to meet some of you and I look forward to seeing you all again as we work together on future efforts to improve Holgate and restore our property values to pre-Sandy levels. Some of you came long distances to support Holgate and the Mayor and the other Commissioners certainly were impressed with the number of homeowners present. You asked very important questions also. Thanks again to all of you.

Yesterday morning, Saturday April 6th, 25 residents did some dune grass planting at the south end of Holgate. What a great day it was to be outside and do a little spring planting. We thank Tom Beaty for leading this very successful effort. Another initiative we would like to undertake is to have a Holgate Clean-up Day. There are several areas where trash has accumulated and it is very unsightly. These areas are not on private property but they seem to be public areas that no one is taking care of. Three areas that I have seen is the south parking lot, the south end of West Avenue and the west end of McKinley at the edge of the Bay. The idea is to compile a list of these areas and then assign volunteers to pick up and load the trash onto a Township truck. Please send me the location of any areas that you have seen that needs to be picked up. I would also like to know if you, and perhaps some of your family members, would be willing to volunteer to help clean-up. We can then make assignments and schedule the date. It would be good if we could get this done by the end of the month. Another date to put on your calendar is Saturday, June 1st at 10:00 am at the Town Hall. That is the day of our annual membership meeting with the Mayor and the Commissioners.

The following items were discussed at Friday’s meeting:

Proclamations were made for Earth Day – April 22nd, National Volunteer Week – April 21st to April 27th and National Donate Life Month – April 2013
Commissioner Lattanzi reported that the Township had ordered the trailer to be located in the Acme parking lot that will house the Township’s Health Department. He also commented that he submitted an article to the SandPaper rebutting an article entitled “LBTownship Using Sticks in Ongoing Easement Battle” that appeared in the March 29, 2013 SandPaper edition. Commissioner Bayard reported that the County has two recycling programs planned for 2013. The first is a residential document shredding day scheduled for Saturday, July 13th. Residents will be able to bring their documents to the Public Works Department located at 79 St. and LBI Blvd. The second event is a household hazardous waste clean-up day. Residents will be able to bring their hazardous waste materials to the Stafford Township Public Works area on Saturday, June 1st. He stated that more information can be found on the Township’s web site. He also stated that there would be no more dune grass available from the Township until the Fall. Mayor Mancini stated that the next meeting of the Board of Commissioners would be on Friday, April 19th at 4:00pm. He also stated the next meeting of the Land Use Board would be on Wednesday, April 10th at 7:00 pm. The Mayor then went on to review the status of outstanding easements by community. Beach Haven has one remaining, Ship Bottom has 21 left, North Beach has 15 and Loveladies has 32 unsigned easements. He reported that the Township’s Office of Emergency Management was working with the Department of Environmental Protection to clean up the bay. He stated that Operation Take Back would take place on April 27th. This is a program to collect unwanted prescription drugs. The Police Department is asking motorists to be extra attentive when driving on LBI due to the numerous construction projects underway. Finally, residents were reminded to report suspicious activities to the Police Department in light of the recent increase in burglaries in the Township.

The following questions were asked of the Mayor and the Commissioners and the answers are highlighted in red

Questions from Holgate Taxpayers Association (HTA) Members

• People are climbing over the fragile dunes that remain. What will be done to keep people off the dunes in Holgate this summer and also provide for beach access? Is the installation of dune fencing and “Keep off the Dunes” signs a possibility? Dune fencing is being installed and access ramps will be provided. Keep off the dune signs are available to residents and can picked up at the Town Hall
• When is it expected that the beach replenishment project will begin in Holgate? Is there anything planned to protect the fragile dunes in the meantime? The Mayor stated that the $51 Billion has not been released yet and as a result he does not known when beach replenishment will be done in Holgate. He is trying to get the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) to utilize two dredges so Holgate can be done simultaneously with Harvey Cedars, Surf City and Brant Beach.
• There are lots of potholes to be filled in Holgate. What are the plans to repair the streets? Is there a plan to resurface some of the streets and is Cleveland Avenue on the list? The County is responsible for LBI Blvd. He said that the County has been busy elsewhere working on damaged bridges etc. A call or a letter to the Ocean County Engineering Department or the Ocean County Road Department may help get Holgate put on the list. Frank S. Scarantino is the County Engineer and he can be reached at 732-929-2130 or OCEngineering@co.ocean.nj.us. J. Thomas Curcio is the Road Supervisor and he can be reached at 732-929-2133 or 129 Hooper Avenue, Second Floor, PO Box 2191 Toms River, NJ 08754-2191.
• There is still a lot of trash strewn around the community of Holgate. If the Township could provide the equipment, the HTA can plan a Holgate Clean-up Day and get some residents to help clean up. A thought would be to identify areas, such as the south parking lot and the end of McKinley Avenue at the Bay, where unsightly debris has accumulated. A list of all such areas would be made by the residents. We can then have volunteers ready to load the debris onto a truck. The Mayor seemed open to this idea.
• One resident wrote that they own a house at 14 Beck in Holgate and are wondering if the HTA has any idea whether Long Beach Township or anyone else has any thought of removing the large amount of sand that was blown in the wetland between Beck and Starr by Sandy. That wetland is privately owned, so Long Beach Township may feel no obligation or have any right to remove it. On the other hand, it was the ability of that wetland to absorb the storm surge that saved many houses in the area. This area is private property and the Township can’t do anything about it.
• It has been reported in some local news publications that any community who employed the Florida-based AshBritt to remove debris may be penalized by cutting reimbursement funds if FEMA finds the costs charged by AshBritt were out of step with the marketplace. Did Long Beach Township use “Ashbritt”, for Sandy related debris removal? If yes, will LBT be impacted? The Township did use AshBritt in order to get going on debris removal. However, he did not expect that this would negatively impact the Township.
• The County is doing a good job cleaning the sand off of S. Long Beach Blvd. in Holgate. It is suggested that the Township consider pushing the sand piles left by the County sweepers away from the road and towards the beach so they do not blow back onto the roadway so readily. The Commissioners seemed to be open to this suggestion.
• Residents are looking to donate clothing to victims of Sandy. Is there any organization that is handling donations of this sort? The Mayor suggested contacting St. Francis Church, Tuckerton Food Kitchen or Angela Andersen at the Township.