Scotch Plains Council: Towing Fees, POW/MIA Day and Union Catholic

At its biweekly meeting Tuesday night, the Scotch Plains Township Council postponed a vote on increasing towing fees, declared Sept. 17 POW/MIA Remembrance Day and heard comments from residents about Union Catholic High School's proposed baseball field renovations.

Towing Fees

It was the second meeting in a row that the council tabled a decision on the fee increase, which irked some council members and administrators.

"Like Mary said last time, we keep tabling these things," Mayor Nancy Malool said during the council's conference session, referring to a comment made by Councilwoman Mary DePaola during the council's Aug. 17 meeting.

Councilman Kevin Glover, who was absent from the Aug. 17 meeting, asked that the Council delay voting on the towing fee increase until its next meeting Sept. 21, so that he could consult with Sgt. Ernesto Hernandez, the head of the Scotch Plains Police Department's Traffic Bureau. Hernandez addressed the council about the fee increase Aug. 17.

"Why are we increasing the fee?" Glover asked. "I just don't see why this is necessary at this time."

He argued that increasing the fee would make it more difficult for car owners to recover vehicles from the police department's impound lot. As a result, he said, more vehicles will end-up on the police department's auction block.

"We have never profited from one of those sales," Glover said.

Councilman Dominick Bratti said he did not oppose delaying a vote on the fee increase until Sept. 21. But Township Manager Christopher Marion, echoing Mayor Malool, expressed irritation with the delay.

"We had these discussions," he said. "I just feel we're putting this off."

Ultimately, the council agreed to table the matter until Sept. 21. But Malool emphasized, "It's a council member's responsibility to make up for what they missed."

POW/MIA Remembrance Day

The council declared Sept. 17 "POW/MIA Remembrance Day." Councilman Dominick Bratti read the resolution into the minutes, which declared that "all Americans everywhere owe a special debt of gratitude and a responsibility for remembering and honoring those who have given so much to make all of us free and secure."

Union County will host a ceremony at 11:15 a.m. Sept. 17, in front of the Union County Courthouse on Broad Street in Elizabeth. 

Full House for Union Catholic Baseball Field Developments

Opponents and supporters of Union Catholic High School's renovations to its baseball field filled the gallery and lined the walls of the council chambers Tuesday. For more than half-an-hour, they stepped to the microphone to express frustration, consternation or even calls for calm.

Residents of Black Birch Road and Dutch Lane, whose houses abut Union Catholic's baseball field, argued that the renovations, specifically the construction of stadium-style lights and concrete bleachers, will impinge on their safety, quality of life and home values.

Union Catholic educators, administrators, coaches and parents, however, countered that the lights, bleachers and other renovations are necessary for a modern sports facility, and that the baseball field will be used by township organizations and the school alike.

Council members said they could neither respond to nor act on any of the attendees' comments. Residents that filed a lawsuit against the school to halt construction said they are appealing a decision handed-down Aug. 20. In addition, the township's Zoning Board of Adjustment is currently considering Union Catholic's development application.

As the dispute between residents and Union Catholic continues, stay tuned to the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Patch for details.

Editor's Note: I am a resident of Black Birch Road. However, my house does not abut the Union Catholic baseball field. Additionally, in-depth articles about this dispute have been written by freelancers and edited by other Patch editors.