Lighting Ordinance Likely to be Rejected by Council

An ordinance that would bring changes to Chatham Borough's lighting code will likely be withdrawn or voted down when it appears for second reading at Monday's council meeting.

"It's already gone through first reading," Mayor Bruce Harris said, but there are some outstanding comments regarding technical terms.

Borough Engineer Vincent J. DeNave said he and the borough's professional planner, Susan Blickstein, discussed the ordinance in some detail after it passed the first reading.

"She provided me with six comments to the ordinance, and some are pretty important. ... I don't think we hit the mark there," DeNave said.

One example of Blickstein's comments is a clear distinction between residential and commercial lighting.

After the comments are discussed in detail, Borough Attorney James Lott will have to create new language for the ordinance.

"I think we have to leave it up and vote it down [Monday] ... or withdraw it," Harris said, "because you can't carry an ordinance from year to year."

DeNave said he would like to see other changes made as well, including a height limit for outdoor lighting of 25 ft.

"I think that 25 ft. we have in there is too high," DeNave said. He said he would like to allow 25 ft. for some spaces, such as commercial parking lots, but not for residential lighting.

Brush Collection

Bob Venezia, the head of the Chatham Borough Department of Public Works, will also speak to the council about a second possible brush collection.

The council formerly discussed a second brush collection after Hurricane Sandy hit the area and brought down numerous trees. Residents complained, sometimes in "nasty" terms according to Administrator Robert Falzarano, that they had missed the first brush collection.

The council agreed to consider a second brush collection if it did not interfere with other DPW operations.

Two other ordinances up for second reading will allow the borough to continue their composting activities indefinitely, and will repealing and replacing a section of the borough's code on Building Safety and Habitability. These two ordinances, along with the lighting ordinance, can be found in the Photos & Documents section of this article.

The Chatham Borough Council meets at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Chatham Borough Municipal Building. A full copy of the agenda can be found in the Photos & Documents section of this article.