Politics & Government

Scotch Plains Council Defends its Role in Lawsuits, Approves Road and Security Grants

The township's attorney claims the litigation budget has decreased in recent years.

The Scotch Plains Township Council meeting Tuesday night was relatively low-key, despite being held less than one week before the Nov. 3 elections.

While several members of the town’s Democratic Committee were in attendance, their candidate, Theresa Mullen, was not. No one approached the council during the public portion of the meeting to make any direct political statements.

Councilman Dominick Bratti, who’s running for re-election against Mullen, said he’s still finalizing his Election Night plans. There’s a chance he may be joining fellow Republicans,  District 22 Assembly Candidates Martin Marks and Bo Vastine, at their party at Sun Tavern in Fanwood.

Democratic Chair Richard Samuel said his party is convening on Nov. 3 at the home of Scotch Plains resident John Thompson.

One point of contention that did arise during the meeting came when a local resident questioned the amount of taxpayer dollars being used to fight lawsuits against the township.

The township recently won one lawsuit, filed by Samuel, and has three others currently pending, according to township attorney Brian Levine.

The resident asked the mayor why the township is spending money to fight these lawsuits and whether they’ve examined why the cases keep getting filed.

“We have two choices,” Malool said. “Either pay taxpayer money out in a settlement we don’t agree with, or defend ourselves and taxpayer dollars. We do look at the situation and the basis for each lawsuit.”

Levine noted that the township’s litigation budget has actually gone down since he started his service. He would not state his salary when asked for the number by another resident, but did say that when used for litigation, he bills the township at a reduced hourly rate of $125 per hour.

Other business at the Tuesday night meeting included Mayor Nancy Malool announcing the Mayor's Gala Committee selections for volunteers of the year. Tom Russo and Mary Ball Cappio were chosen this year for their service to the community. One of Russo’s contributions to the community includes his role in the Fanwood-Scotch Plains Rotary Club. Cappio is a member of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Scholarship Foundation’s Board of Trustees and has formerly served as PTA Council president, among other roles.

In addition, Malool also announced that the Italian-American Club of Scotch Plains has been selected as organization of the year. All three of the members will be honored at the Mayor’s Gala on Dec. 4.

The council also approved resolutions to accept grants that were recently awarded to the township. One, from the state Department of Transportation, comes in the amount of $182,000 to pave Jerusalem Road.

The other, a $52,030 grant from the Department of Justice, will be used to install security cameras on the inside and outside of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School.

The township also authorized its shared service agreement with Westfield regarding fall leaf collection. The agreement allows Westfield to collect leaves on the south side of Scotch Plains on Lamberts Mill Road. It also gives Scotch Plains the OK to pick up leaves on the north side of Westfield.

The agreement is intended to save time and expense for both municipalities' public works departments.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here