Ridgewood October 12, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 7 Councilman questions high costs of local projects by John Koster Ridgewood Village Council Member Stephen Wellinghorst repeatedly questioned the price of a new automatic door, ramp, and railings for Lester Stable, and the concept that using Bergen County Community Development grant money to pay the high prices would make the cost more acceptable to local taxpayers. “I’m flabbergasted to purchase automatic doors for the Stable at $110,000. It’s simply ridiculous,” Wellinghorst said. The councilman said he had no problem with making the side doors at Lester Stable handicapped-accessible by using three Bergen County grants to install the doors. However, he said he believes the price is off the charts, and that passing taxpayers’ money through county government did not make the doors a bargain for Ridgewood. When other council members explained that the bid of $91,000 by Automatic Door Systems LLC also covered a concrete ramp for a comprehensive price of $111,000, Wellinghorst was not appeased. “Any way you slice it, it’s $111,000 for a concrete ramp and some automatic doors,” said Wellinghorst, an attorney and former Ridgewood Board of Adjustment member. “As a taxpayer, I think it’s offensive. I’m tired of it.” A $64,000 Bergen County grant for the ramp was accepted at the same meeting, but Wellinghorst was able to get the vote on acceptance postponed pending further study. He got some agreement, with an explanation, from Deputy Mayor Thomas Riche. Riche explained that the cost of constructing the automatic doors and the concrete ramp were exorbitant by the standards of the private sector because of a New Jersey state regulation called the Prevailing Wage Law, binding on large-ticket public construction jobs. “I’ve referred to it in the past as legalized extortion,” Riche said. He explained that even though hiring a carpenter to work on a private project might cost $25 an hour, the Prevailing Wage Law boosted the wages of that same carpenter close to $100 because state standards, mandating parity of wages, rather than free market standards, are imposed on large contracts involving county money. “It’s an outrageous price, but it’s the price we have to work with,” said Mayor Keith Killion. “It is a lot of money, but it’s the lowest bid.” “We did approval of a partial request, so our foot is in the cement already,” said Village Manager Ken Gabbert. Mayor Killion said he wanted to soothe Wellinghorst’s concerns, so he agreed to postpone the vote on the whole project until the council and Gabbert had a chance to go over the numbers. The three HUD/Community Development Block Grants total $104,602. The criteria for these grants are projects to improve the lives of senior citizens or residents with physical disabilities. These grants do not require matching funds from Ridgewood. The additional monies for these improvements come from funds remaining from a former project. The council also dissented from Gabbert’s concerns about useful space by deciding in principle to proceed with the demolition of the house at 1037 Hillcrest Road, one of the two contemporary houses on the Habernickel Horse Farm property. “I believe right now it’s in the village’s best interests to consider saving the house,” Gabbert said. Gabbert said that since the first floor of Ridgewood Village Hall had been flooddamaged and was not available for senior meetings, the house at 1037 Hillcrest Road could be used for seniors’ meetings until the first floor of Village Hall is made accessible again to seniors and to youngsters. The Hillcrest Avenue house, not on the actual print of the sports field or parking lot proposed for the site, was recently rented, as it has been since Ridgewood took over the 10-acre site. The house is now vacant and in a generally good state of repair. “I do appreciate your concern. I do know that there is a need for meeting space, but I don’t think that house fits our current plan,” said Mayor Killion. Killion, who served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Vietnam and has some experience as a small contractor, said he felt the cost of making the Hillcrest Avenue house ADA-compliant would cancel out any advantage to using it for temporary meeting space until the first floor of Village Hall is restored, in a manner still under study. Agreeing that it was time to think outside the box, Deputy Mayor Riche suggested that before demolition, the house be stripped of any usable fixtures that could be sold or used elsewhere. The consensus of the council, however, was to proceed with the demolition.