Bid to cut grass-height limit falls short

By: Matt Chiappardi
   HIGHTSTOWN — An attempt to lower the maximum height of residential lawns from 10 inches to 6 inches was mowed over by the Borough Council this week.
   However, the issue could sprout again as it will be reviewed by the borough’s Environmental Commission and could possibly reappear at a later meeting, said Mayor Bob Patten.
   A proposed ordinance was defeated Monday night by a 5-0 vote after some residents and members of the council voiced their opposition to both its language and spirit. Councilman Ryan Rosenberg did not attend the meeting.
   Opposition initially came from North Main Street resident J.P. Gibbons, who likened the borough’s enforcement philosophy to that of the state’s in terms of highway speed limits. He said he believes the ordinance was an attempt to regulate lawn lengths at, "somewhere around 8 inches," while having the ordinance read at a lower number.
   "You don’t want people doing 80 (mph) so you make the limit 55 (mph) and people do 70 (mph)," he said, "It’s the same thing here."
   "The worst thing you can do is pass an asinine law, which people will ignore," he added.
   Local activist Gene Sarafin said he believes the ordinance is unclear, particularly for lawns like his. One of the points of contention is language in the ordinance that would mandate the cutting of "obnoxious growth," something nobody on the council was able to more clearly define.
   "I try as much as possible not to grow grass," he said. "I grow flowers, and how will this affect me?"
   Council President Walter Sikorski seemed to have some sympathy for Mr. Sarafin’s position.
   "Not everyone has the same idea of orderliness," he said. "Some people may have a more naturalistic sense of their lawns."
   However, Councilwoman Constance Harinxma, while not ultimately voting for the ordinance, did express her displeasure with the current regulation.
   "Ten inches is much too high," she said.
   Also agreeing was Councilman Dave Schneider, who said he found himself in violation of the ordinance last summer. Mr. Schneider said his concern is that soil has become drier over the years.
   "Higher grass levels contain more moisture," he explained, "and thus the moisture-holding capacity of the soil is greater."
   He went on to couch his opposition in environmental terms by saying, "We’ve definitely changed the climate, we don’t have those big snowstorms anymore and soil drying is a concern. … It’s unreasonable to tell people they can’t travel without paying someone to cut (their lawn)."
   His comments were met with some ridicule by Mayor Patten who glibly remarked, "We look forward to your next television presentation on how to grow grass."
   Mr. Schneider said he received a warning from the borough’s Public Works Department, which mows overgrown lawns and charges residents. He said he chose to mow his lawn himself to avoid a bill.
   "At first I was happy that they’d mow my lawn," said Mr. Schneider. "Then I was unhappy that I would get a bill."
   Borough Administrator Candace Gallagher and Borough Councilman Sikorski said they don’t know who suggested the proposed ordinance, and Mayor Patten did not return several calls seeking comment.
   In other business Monday, the council voted 5-0 to accept a bid to purchase a brush chipper for $41,620 from R. J. Sherman and Associates, more than $5,000 over the lowest bid received. The lower bid of $36,044, from Seeley Equipment and Supply in Farmington, caught the attention of Councilman Quattrone. In his opinion, the less expensive brush chipper was a safety hazard.
   "The (Seeley brush chipper) has no way to stop the machine if a person were to somehow fall in, except for a little string-operated lever that’s hard to reach," Mr. Quattrone said after the meeting.
   He also objected to how the brush can be collected by the machine which, in his opinion, "throws all of the brush into you face."
   The brush chipper the borough decided to buy has a safety bar that stops the machine before an operator could fall in, according to Mr. Quattrone.
   The council also revisited a portion of a proposed traffic ordinance for Leshin Lane, near the High School, that it had delayed approval of June 4. Originally the council discussed restricting parking on the entire one-block street 24 hours a day, instead of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for safety reasons related to a narrow curve. But that plan was met with opposition from several residents of the street who petitioned the council to reconsider.
   The council voted 5-0 Monday to restrict parking on the curve that extends 50 feet from house numbers 16 and 17 into Westerlea Avenue and the high school.
   While the petitioners did not receive the resident permit parking they requested, at least one petitioner, Richard Mastriano, said Tuesday that he is satisfied with the compromise.