SOUTH BRUNSWICK — At the South Brunswick Township Council reorganization meeting, the councilmen and Mayor Frank Gambatese took time to look back over the previous year’s trials, tribulations and successes as well as set their sights on new goals for 2011.
Chief among the issues faced in 2010 were budgetary concerns. Various council members spoke of the wide variety of cuts the township had to make in order to function properly.
Councilman Charles Carley summed up the previous year’s situation.
“2010 was a trying year. It’s no secret that the economy is tough, but we got through it. I expect 2011 will be difficult — we’ll be faced with the same challenges,” he said.
The other council members and the mayor echoed this sentiment. They also added that nothing in town would’ve been successful without the hard work and dedication of everyone in town, from paid employees to the volunteers who work on the town’s commissions, many of whom were present for the meeting.
“You’re very dedicated. So many people make so many sacrifices for the greater good of all,” Councilman Joe Camarota said.
Council members said they could not thank the members of the public enough for their countless hours of service that made South Brunswick a better community, he said.
“We can’t do this without the commissions. They’re very important to our form of government and to the quality of life in this township,” Deputy Mayor Chris Killmurray added.
Gambatese made sure to also point out just how much the municipal workers in town sacrificed in 2010 in order to help make the budget work. Each worker, he said, took 12 unpaid “holidays.”
“That’s300employeesthattooka5percent reduction in pay. We could not have accomplished what we were trying to do without their help,” he said.
This help was tempered by the pension costs rising by $1.5 million and the health insurance going up another almost $400,000, the mayor said.
“Everywhere we turned, we seemed to get clobbered,” Gambatese said, also reminding the public of the $1.1 million the township lost in funding when the state cut its aid to municipalities.
Despite the many difficulties, Gambatese said, there were also many accomplishments to be proud of in South Brunswick in 2010.
One of the items he was most proud of, he said, was the fact that in 2010 the township collected 99 percent of its taxes.
“That’s a fantastic number in this economy,” Gambatese said.
Aside from taxes, growth was also a success in 2010. In Middlesex County, South Brunswick had the second-highest ratable base, a little over $8.3 billion, coming up short only to Edison.
Gambatese made note that Woodbridge, which has almost 2.5 times the population of South Brunswick, has a smaller ratable base.
The mayor also recounted the new passport service that the township implemented. Over 500 passports were issued in 2010, Gambatese said, generating $14,440 in revenue. The passport photos added an extra $2,600 in revenue.
Construction was also another area that saw improvement in 2010.
“Our budget this year for construction was $1.1million. I’m happy to say that in the year 2010 we were up $1.5 million, which means that despite this bad economy, despite the condition this country is in, businesses are still coming, people are still spending money, and I think that’s a great thing. That’s a real plus,” Gambatese said.
Among the businesses that undertook construction or expansion, Williams-Sonoma now utilizes a 1.3 million-square-foot facility, Infragistics uses a 235,000-square-foot warehouse, and soda giant Coca-Cola is in the process of finishing construction on a 225,000-square-foot building.
The amount of empty warehouse space dropped from 9 million square feet to 4.5 million square feet in 2010, Gambatese added happily.
All of these successes, Gambatese said, will help in 2011. “The good news about 2011 is that there are signs that the economy is turning around, you’re seeing a little bit of growth,” Camarota said.
“It’s going to be another tough year, but we’re ready for it,” he added.
Camarota then told the public that they can help the township be successful in the coming year by continuing to voice township issues and concerns.
“That’s the only way that we can be effective; that’s our small part of our community,” he said. By having an open dialogue, the council can function more effectively and more ably assist the public.
“I hope, just like you, that the economy changes and the township revenues increase, but that will be slow,” Councilman John O’Sullivan said.
O’Sullivan’s hopes for 2011 center on finding additional revenue for the town, but without raising taxes. One idea he suggested pertained to the animal control officers of the township. The chief animal control officer, O’Sullivan said, was trained to undertake animal cruelty investigations. The councilman said this could be a possible avenue to explore for future revenues.
Looking ahead, the one place the mayor hopes to save the most money in 2011 is in energy costs.
“We see the great savings this year are going to be in solar energy,” Gambatese said. “We’re going to make major pushes. We’re hoping that some of our buildings, such as the senior center and the public library, can be solar-energized.”
The current energy cost for the town is around $400,000. Gambatese hopes that solar energy will allow them to cut that in half in the coming year. Contact Sam Slaughter at [email protected].