By Amy Batista, Special Writer
HIGHTSTOWN — Two council members split from the majority Tuesday night.
Nearly 18 months have passed since Hurricane Irene struck Hightstown as a tropical storm and damaged the Borough Hall complex. The facility has remained closed.
Tuesday, council members in a 4-2 vote introduced an ordinance authorizing the borough to lease the properties situated behind the Ely House to place two modular structures, for municipal staff and the Hightstown Police Department.
A public hearing and adoption on the lease ordinance is scheduled for March 4.
The lot properties are located along Bank and Mechanic streets, near the closed Borough Hall.
The police station was destroyed by the floodwaters of Irene back in August 2011. The department relocated after the storm to rented space at 415 Mercer St., known as the Lucas property.
Council President Larry Quattrone and Councilwoman Susan Bluth voted against the lease measure.
While the majority of council continued to move ahead with its plans to bring two modular facilities to Hightstown and rebuild Borough Hall downtown at its current location, at a special meeting on Borough Hall held Feb. 15, some council members voiced new concerns.(See related story on Page 3A.)
And following the discussion at the special meeting last Friday, a resolution to investigate the feasibility of permanently relocating the borough’s municipal operations to the Lucas property, 415 Mercer St., was introduced Feb. 18.
However it was defeated 4-2, with Ms. Bluth and Mr. Quattrone casting the only “yes” votes.
”I think this is a great way to go,” Mr. Quattrone said. “It tells us how much money is involved. It tells us what is going on. We might come back to where we use to be. We don’t know. The big advantage I see is it gives us a little bit of a shot to the mill property. It opens up downtown toward it and this is something that we should be looking it. This is something that could make a big difference in Hightstown.”
”I definitely think all this resolution does is give us the opportunity to explore, compare the financial ramifications of going there as compared to staying there,” Ms. Bluth said. “That’s all this resolution does. It’s not binding us to put an offer in with the firm … It is giving us more information.”
Councilwoman Gail Doran disagreed.
”I think this resolution is nonsense,” said Ms. Doran. “We have done this analysis. We have done it, done it, done it. We are a year and a half away. We are approximately a year and a third away from when we should’ve been moving on.”
Ms. Doran reaffirmed her position of keeping Borough Hall downtown.
”This is a stall tactic at best and a total wrong direction at worst,” said Ms. Doran. “The insurance company will pay.”
As previously reported in the Herald, the borough’s insurance company, Lexington Insurance, has estimated it will cost under $2 million rebuild or rehabilitate Borough Hall on site at 148 North Main St.
Mayor Kirson moved the Lucas property resolution to the floor Tuesday and opened up the discussion for comments from council.
”I believe this resolution moves us backwards,” said Ms. Woods said of the measure suggesting exploration of permanently moving the administrative offices and Police Department to 415 Mercer St.
”We have had many discussions and debates about moving to Lucas and about buying the building,” Ms. Woods said.
”If we settle with the insurance company, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) does not pick up any additional money,” Ms. Woods said. “So the deductible will have to come out of our pocket”
Ms. Bluth disagreed with Ms. Woods and the insurance settlement numbers being presented.
”I do not feel that this moves us backwards,” said Ms. Bluth. “We never fully explored 415 Mercer St. I don’t believe what she says about (it being) $1.9 million to buy Mercer Street.”
In terms of when she voted to keep the Borough Hall downtown in September, she said, “We didn’t have a space to put trailers on. We don’t even know for sure if the insurance company is going to pay for everything. We have estimates for about three-quarters of a million dollars just to put trailers just for two-year temporary space. I can’t see insurance paying for it.”
”We have made the decision to retain Borough Hall on its present site and we need to move along with that,” Ms. Doran said. “Stop reinventing the wheel.”
Councilman Rob Thibault pulled out a report presented in July on the Lucas property and Borough Hall estimates and analysis.
”It’s disturbing that this one council member said that we haven’t investigated it,” said Mr. Thibault.
”So when people say we haven’t considered the costs already, we did,” Mr. Thibault added. “We paid a few thousand dollars for this report which are we now going to ignore?”
According to Mr. Thibault, the Lucas property has “environmental problems” pointing out “groundwater contamination.”
”Everyone knows where I stand on this from day one,” said Mr. Quattrone. “I can’t wait to find out the actual true numbers. We have to have the actual true numbers.”
Councilwoman Selena Bibens shifted her stance at the special meeting Friday toward the Lucas property but returned to her previous position of keeping the facility downtown Tuesday.
In a move to relocate municipal employees — who have been working in cramped quarters inside the Public Works building since Irene — the council sought bids this winter for the modular units, as previously reported.
However on Feb. 4 the council tabled its decision to accept the lone qualified bid it received for temporary modular facilities in town. The borough advertised for bids Jan. 11 and they were due Jan. 30. The only viable bid for review came in from Mobilease Modular Space Inc. It bid in at $159,200 for an administrative temporary facility; and $275,100 for a modular police unit.
While Lexington Insurance has sent the borough an estimate of $1.9 million to rebuild or refurbish the Borough Hall, Borough Administrator Michael Theokas has said that the temporary facilities are also part of the borough’s claim.
”Final approval of temporary facilities from the insurance company would be necessary for reimbursement,” he previously told the Herald this winter.
”There are not a lot of options,” Ms. Bibens said Tuesday. “I am going to vote no.”
However Ms. Bibens also brought up an open storefront at 102 Main St. and asked that Borough Hall project manager Dawson Bloom look into it as an option for renting space.
”You have to give me an area of limitation because I don’t want to go out and say, ‘You have all these options,’” Mr. Bloom said.
Mayor Kirson asked Mr. Bloom to come back to council in two weeks with additional information.
”I am very disappointed in the council’s decision,” said resident Bill Gilmore, who is a member of the Greater Hightstown-East Windsor Improvement Project. “The thought that we are not even considering that opportunity (to relocate to Lucas property) is ridiculous in light of the fact that we are going out and looking for more information,” Mr. Gilmore stated.
He continued, “I guess there is a fear in finding out real information.”

