Brush “Fire”
Last
night at our council meeting a group of residents from a neighborhood in
our community expressed their strong dissatisfaction with the revisions to the “Brush
Pick-Up” program during public participation.
To summarize, their neighborhood is filled with trees (more than most)
and, as a result, it is impossible for them to comply with the parameters set
in our current program.
As
I have said in public and on social media posts and comments, the new
guidelines came about after several public meetings that included our Public
Works Director detailing the many problems with the program as it existed. I won’t go over them all again here, but
there were many valid concerns that needed to be addressed in order to preserve
this service to the residents.
Unfortunately, I don’t think there were more than one or two residents
that attended the public council meetings.
And, judging by the amount of calls and emails I have received since we
started enforcing the program a month ago, many residents failed to visit our
website for the information, read the notice that was included in everyone’s
tax bill or read the multiple newspaper articles and social media postings on
the changes. The frustration is shared
on both sides because “reaching” residents that don’t want to or are too busy
to be reached becomes problematic.
Important community information is not getting to people who need it the
most. Of course, we can’t knock on
everyone’s door and have an individual conversation about the program. And in all honesty, I believe the Town did
enough to get the word out. And those
that are violating the ordinance now receive a “notice” explaining why and
offering a time-frame to remedy the violation.
The
phone calls and emails I have received for the most part have to do with an
individual’s unique situation that rationalizes why they can’t comply with the
new standards. Some are legitimate and most
are more that they can comply but it would be easier not to comply. The communications with these residents are
challenging because they, for the most part, aren’t very concerned about the
big picture or how laws can’t be tailored to an individual’s specific circumstance. They pay taxes, and they don’t want to be
restricted on when and how they dispose of their brush onto the street. This becomes a tough situation to address
individually.
The
Public Works Director, the Council Members and I all try to make the best
decisions for the greatest number of residents. Receiving community feedback at a time when council members are making
decisions is critical to crafting laws that so directly affect
residents. I do understand the disappointment, frustration and anger residents feel that something they had provided to them and had enjoyed (as a convenience) for so long now is reduced in scope requiring
them to adjust. But, just as important,
is our (PW Director, Council Members and myself) ability and willingness to
listen to the feedback and complaints no matter that they come after the fact. Laws are fluid, and can be adjusted.
Since
we began enforcement of the new program, I have met with our PW Director and
the Code Enforcement Officer on multiple occasions to determine what
difficulties the residents are facing in complying with the new standards. Some of the more recurring complaints
are: (1) The time requirement of putting
brush out the weekend before pick up of their zone (because it is not always
convenient or possible); 2) The height (3ft) and length (12ft) of the piles
poses problems for those who have larger lots or more trees; and 3) the
location where they discard the brush when it is unsafe or inconvenient to
place it in front of their home.
We knew there would be pushback
from some residents, and for sure that has happened by a small but vocal
group. I am told approximately 8 years
ago the Town tried enforcement of the brush program but the outrage from
residents prompted the effort to be abandoned.
This program cannot continue without a determined effort by the Town to
enforce the regulations and the residents to have a willingness to abide by
them. But as important, we have to be
open to adjustments to the program to better serve the residents. And we
are. Public discussions will take place
to consider amending the “Brush Pick-Up” program to address some of the major
concerns.
We will be considering larger
brush piles (maybe for the initial zone pick up); extending the time-frame from
the weekend before zone pick to the week before; and separating the restrictions
of brush pick-up from our leaf pick up program; and possibly reducing the
brush pick-up season because we somehow must address and reduce the cost to the
Town in terms of manpower, equipment and disposal of the excess brush, and we must maintain our streets in a condition that is safe for pedestrians and cyclists
who cross and use our roads. We simply
can’t go back to how it was, but we can always be open to adjusting the program
when reasonableness and necessity exist.
Stay tuned (seriously, try to stay tuned….) communication is a
two-way street.
And I will end with this by
telling those who attended the meeting, my apologies to you all when my emotion
got the better of me at times. I am
human. It’s been relentless hearing
disparaging comments from members of my community over the past month. Throw in some difficult things occurring in
my life recently, and I performed in a manner that was unacceptable. You all deserve better. One of the reasons that I post on social
media and make comments about community issues is to let everyone know that
township employees (including myself) are human beings dealing with the same
life issues as everyone else. Insults
and disparaging comments do hurt (I admit it).
I know I am expected, in fact it is demanded, that I am to remain unemotional
and professional at all times when I am acting as the Municipal Manager for the
Township of Lawrence. I will try my best
and will always be a work in progress……………..
And I am aware that this is “smushy” but I don’t care. I am just being real. #LawrenceNJStrong!
