October 9, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 3 Waldwick Referendum will decide White’s Pond dredging issue Dredging of White’s Pond in Waldwick is now in the hands of voters. The Waldwick Borough Council last week decided to put the matter up to referendum in the Novem- ber, 2014 General Election. In making the motion, Councilman Andrew Brennecke noted that it was up to the governing body to take control of the project and gauge citizen support. “It is our responsibility to look for funding. It is not the responsibility of the residents. If there are no outside moneys, … let’s put one proj- ect on the ballot in November, while we continue to mitigate the problem,” Bren- necke said. “It’s the only way to go. We don’t know how many people are against the project. This is the best way. Let’s see what people think out there. My conscience will be relieved,” said Councilman Frank Palla- dino. “Direct democracy is the way to go,” echoed Councilman Anthony Celeste. “It’s up to the residents of Waldwick to decide. We’ll get the answer and take the correct route,” he added. The decision was made after a detailed presentation by Borough Administra- tor Gary Kratz, Borough Attorney Craig Bossong and Borough Engineer Michael DeSena on their research into the avail- able options to improve the condition of the pond, specifically addressing questions or statements made by Friends of White’s Pond President Andrea Mistretta and other residents at previous meetings. Friends’ members have been urging the governing body for at least two years to take action before it is too late. DeSena said approximately 74,000 cubic yards of silt would have to be removed from the pond, stockpiled to dry, trucked off site and disposed of in a legal matter. This is the same amount that was removed when the pond was last dredged in 1974. He said the amount of material generated from dredg- ing the 6.9-acre pond would fill the entire administration building 12 to 13 times from the ground floor to the peak of the roof. The total cost, he said, would be about $3.514 million. This would include state and county environmental permits, labora- tory analysis of sample borings and engi- neering fees. Kratz said this amount would cost the average homeowner $1,119 in taxes, which translates into $95 per year over a 12-year period. He explained the borough does not have the capability to reallocate moneys within the existing budget without impact- ing services. He said that expecting full funding from the state on the energy tax receipts owed Waldwick is unrealistic. Kratz said expecting grant moneys at this time was unrealistic as well. He said the grants consultants interviewed had noted that any potential moneys from fed- eral or state sources for such projects had been redirected to purchasing flood prone residential housing. Bossong stressed DeSena’s figures were just estimates, not necessarily the actual costs. He said hard costs can only be deter- mined by public bidding so as to get the best possible price, and that the bidding pool could not be limited in any way. He said the project would have to be bid as a package because state law does not allow dividing into parts. Friends of White’s Pond members had suggested selling the dredged material to offset some of the costs. Addressing the water quality of the lake, DeSena said that a research scientist from the NJ Division of Fish & Wildlife, Dr. Jan Lovy, had assessed the pond on Aug. 29 and had conducted a water quality analy- sis from the inflowing stream, through- out the pond and to the outflow and had determined the parameters were normal. “He stated that the water quality of White’s Pond during his assessment was excellent and in a better state than many lakes within the State of New Jersey. Also, he commented that the eco-system was excellent with an excellent water turn-over rate,” DeSena said. Speaking to reports that the dam was unsafe and that a breach would result in flooding downstream, DeSena said the dam is inspected every four years as required by state law. “The inspection reports reveal no struc- tural defects with the exception of a few aesthetic concrete issues on the spillway,” the engineer said. The dam was classified as a low-hazard potential structure in 1991 following engineering studies by Boswell (continued on page 28)