SOUTH RIVER – Two former borough employees are suing the town after losing their jobs due to the disbandment of the Building Department.
Borough Business Administrator AndrewSalerno, whose office received the lawsuit on Dec. 21, said a joint insurance fund is handling the case on the municipality’s behalf.
Old Bridge Township took over South River’s Building Department in October after South River’s then-Democratic majority on the governing body voted to disband the borough office and enter into a four-year shared services agreement with Old Bridge.
The action involved the laying-off of borough employees, including full-time construction official David Wroblewski and part-time fire subcode official Scott Melski, who also served as fire inspector and code enforcement officer. The borough retained a full-time secretary and full-time control employee in the office.
Republicans on the Borough Council opposed the plan, and several residents expressed concerns that the move would further delay the process of obtaining building permits. Then-Mayor Robert Szegeti, a Democrat, broke the council’s tied vote by supporting the agreement. He said the initiative would decrease costs, increase efficiency and expand services to the borough.
The council later voted unanimously to increase construction fees, bringing themin line with state standards and with Old Bridge’s fees, which had been 15 percent higher than South River’s. Old Bridge receives a portion of the money from construction and permit fees paid by South River applicants, under the agreement.
The former employees’ lawsuit names the borough as well as Salerno, Szegeti and those council members who voted in favor of disbanding the department. It alleges that South River took on the shared services agreement without offering “any objective support for their claim that entering into the [agreement] would result in a reduced expenditure of tax dollars and would provide a greater level of governmental services.”
Salerno, however, estimated a net savings of $19,000 for the borough, taking into account the reduction of one full-time and one part-time employee in the Construction Department, and their health benefits.
Salerno said last week that the agreement is working well. Old Bridge has certified staff in all of the disciplines, he added, while South River had one full-time construction official and a number of part-time employees.
“I can tell you from a manager’s point of view, from my point of view, I believe it’s working well,” Salerno said. “Whatever areas need to be addressed are addressed quickly. I think we havemore coverage now than we did.”
Salerno said borough officials will base their assessment of themerits of the agreement on facts.
“What they eventually decide to do, I’m sure, will be based on an analysis of both methods to deliver the service,” he said.
The former employees’ lawsuit also states that the borough hired a new fulltime employee in October to work as code enforcement officer and zoning officer, performing tasks that Wroblewski and Melski had performed.
Democratic Councilman Anthony Razzano told Greater Media Newspapers that the position the borough filled was for a vacancy created by Steve Behar, the borough’s former code enforcement officer.
Razzano agreed with Salerno that the shared services agreement has been successful
so far.He added that this is not a reflection on the work performed
by Wroblewski as construction
official.
“The interlocal [agreement] is working fine,”
Razzano said. “We’ve had
few complaints from the
citizens, and this has
nothing to do with Mr.
Wroblewski.”
Razzano said he will suggest to the other members of the governing body that they look into shared services with other departments.He added that while he would not consider this action with police, fire or emergency services, he would like to look into the possibility for other departments where employees may be overworked and underpaid.
“I truly think that interlocal and shared services is the way to go,” Razzano said.
However, newly electedMayor Raymond Eppinger, a Republican who was a councilman last year, told GreaterMedia Newspapers that the governing body is looking into how the interlocal agreement with Old Bridge isworking, and said the boroughwill look into whether it is feasible to bring the Building Department back to South River.
“We’ve heard a little bit of both [positive and negative feedback],” Eppinger said. “Some people felt it worked well. We have gotten complaints from several residents and business owners who say that it is not going well.”
The lawsuit from Wroblewski and Melski claims that the borough has seen a substantial reduction in the number of public contact hours and other services provided to South River residents on constructionrelated matters.
But much of the lawsuit discusses instances during the past two years in which Wroblewski “repeatedly advised the defendantmayor and defendant individual council members that they were not complying with state statutes and regulations and borough ordinances relating tomany construction related matters” in South River. Wroblewski also wrote to the state Department of CommunityAffairs inAugust 2006 regarding the borough’s “continued noncompliance with state mandates.” He also complained in a letter last July that “borough representatives” were “preventing him from performing the duties of a construction official.”
While they pursue their litigation against South River, Wroblewski and Melski have apparentlymoved onwith their careers. Both were appointed last week to serve in Sayreville’s Building Department. Wroblewski was named acting construction official, and Melski was appointed as temporary fire subcode official.