Waldwick September 30, 2009 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 7 Borough hopes to get stimulus loan for water tank The Borough of Waldwick is aggressively positioning itself for stimulus loan eligibility so it can replace its water tanks if and when the funds actually become available. Under the federal program, the loan for 75 percent of the cost of the project would be interest-free. The remaining 25 percent would be at an interest rate of about 4.5 percent. The borough council last week introduced a bond ordinance in the amount of $1,150,000 to fund the project. The two metal water tanks on Franklin Avenue in Wyckoff would be replaced with a new cement structure. “We have to position the borough where it meets the requirements to get funded in 2010, if not now; then (the loan) it’s reachable,” said Borough Administrator Gary Kratz. “It affects everybody in Waldwick, so we are making sure everything is ready for the financing,” Councilwoman Anita Bozzo, who heads the finance committee, told the mayor and council. “We are not going ahead unless we get the funds,” she added. The administrator said that the borough is about 160th on the list of projects to receive the loan, but that many of the towns ahead on the list may not be ready to proceed when their loan is actually approved. This would move towns with Waldwick’s degree of readiness up on the list. “I’m hopeful,” said Kratz. “We’re not that far away.” The borough is eager to undertake the tank replacement because the two existing tanks are reaching their structural life expectancy, with one of them dating to World War II and the other to 1953, according to borough officials. If not replaced they would soon have to be refurbished at a substantial cost to the borough, they said. A third tank on the Franklin Avenue property with an 800,000-gallon capacity was built in 1999 with financial assistance from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust. The council last week also passed a resolution asking the Local Finance Board to waive the requirement for a 5 percent down payment on the financing and for permission to have level debt payments over the 20-year life of the loans. Kratz said he didn’t expect any problem in getting the approvals, noting that the board should change its regulations to automatically permit the level debt payment option. I&I loan almost certain The council last week introduced a second bond ordinance in the amount of $150,000 to make inflow and infiltration (I&I) improvements to the sanitary sewer lines. This loan is more likely to be awarded, Kratz said, because the borough is well within the parameters of available moneys for this loan. He explained that more stimulus funds are available for sanitary sewer projects than for water programs; therefore, more projects can be funded. Kratz said the moneys would be used to repair lines already identified as being in bad condition with substantial cracks or leaks. He said the borough has TV footage of two sections of the borough that have already been scoped at a cost of $100,000. “We know we have problems adding to the I&I. This is a major contributor to our sewer bill,” Kratz said. “This loan will give us the money to start the repairs.” The borough pays $1.8 million a year to the Northwest Bergen Utilities Authority, he said. “We are looking for a magic leak, a rational answer to this puzzle. By doing this work we can get an answer on how to reduce this astronomical sewer bill,” Bozzo said. A public hearing on both ordinances is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 27. FDR interpreter to appear at library As 32nd president of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt led the United States through its worst depression and, arguably, its worst war. On Saturday, Oct. 10 at 2 p.m., the Waldwick Public Library will present “FDR: A New Deal for America.” Professional actor Neill Hartley, of the American Historical Theater, will appear as FDR in this captivating one-man show set against the background of the Great Depression and the New Deal of the 1930s. The program recalls FDR’s famous “fireside chats” that reassured the nation and his extraordinary and far-reaching programs designed to help make America prosperous. Hartley is a professional actor who has performed with many local and regional theaters and is on the theater faculty of the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hartley previously appeared at the Waldwick Library in the roles of Ichabod Crane, Sherlock Holmes, P.T. Barnum, and Charles Lindbergh. The program is free and open to the public; however space is limited and pre-registration is required. The library is located at 19 East Prospect Street in Waldwick. Call (201) 652-5104. ��� Woman’s Tie Shoe ���������������������������� ��������������� ������������ �������������������������������������������������� ����������������� ������ ���� Pictured: Neill Hartley as FDR. Keeping Families Warm Since 1929. 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