Acupuncture in Chatham Township, NJ

The Colony Pool held a "float day" on Saturday. Chatham Township residents don't want repair plans to change the "relaxed feel" of the unique settingPhoto Credit: Tom Salvas

Chatham Township Mayor Stacey Ewald and Deputy Mayor Mike Choi, with plans in hand, chat with Colony Pool Manager Samantha Kenny on SundayPhoto Credit: Tom Salvas

Pool manager Samantha Kenny watches over "Float Day" at the Colony Pool ClubPhoto Credit: Tom Salvas

The Colony Pool held a "float day" on Saturday. Chatham Township residents don't want repair plans to change the "relaxed feel" of the unique settingPhoto Credit: Tom Salvas

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By Ed Barmakian

Published July 23, 2024 at 11:54 PM

CHATHAM, NJ -- The special Zoom Call meeting was scheduled so that bids could go out on repairs to the crumbling walls at the Colony Pool Club, but the Chatham Township Committee pumped the brakes on the resolution Tuesday night and carried over the vote to its next regular meeting set for Aug. 13.

The nearly two-hour meeting included a discussion on the safety and aesthetics provided with the current sloped walls compared with traditional vertical walls used at most traditional public pools.

There were 39 residents tuned into the meeting and those who spoke during public commentary portions were in favor of keeping the sloped walls for both safety and aesthetic reasons. The Committee generally agreed on a "replace in kind" approach with a "straight wall" on the lap lane.

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The results of a resident survey, released earlier on Tuesday before the meeting, 66.1% of respondents favored a repair design that matched the existing walls.

Resident Maureen Kelly called in to say she was "unhappy with the rushed nature" of the special meeting and asked why it was only on Zoom. She suggested that a public meeting held at the Colony Pool Club would have given the public a better understanding of what the choices for changes are.

Resident Jessica Romeo offered that people join the Colony Pool Club for the relaxed, easygoing feeling that the current setting provides. She said that the 90-degree angles of vertical walls would not be as relaxing.

Pool member Erika Lopes-Leman admitted she wasn't a pool expert, but saw no reason to make drastic changes to the design of the Colohy Pool. She added that sharp angles would not benefit the safety of the children.

Two Colony Pool lifeguards, Asher Robson and Dante DiTuri called in to say, from their experience, it's safer to have sloped walls than a vertical edge.

Several other callers said that a vertical wall would lead to kids diving in from the edge and possibly getting injured by not knowing how deep it was because of the murky water.

Chatham Township Mayor Stacey Ewald wanted to move forward and vote to send out bids for the work while Township Engineer John Ruschke tweaked the changes to the plans discussed at the meeting. The idea is to start the work in the fall so that the pool will be ready to open next Memorial Day.

But Committee member Mark Lois, a member of the Colony Pool Advisory Committee, argued that the process should be slowed down so that the public could see what the final plans look like and be able to weigh in. Part of the exchange between Ewald and Lois can be viewed below.

Committee member Marty McHugh also wanted to hold off on the vote so that he could get more feedback on the proposed plans (see below). He also said there were still details of the design plan that had yet to be decided.

Because no member of the committee introduced the resolution on the bids, it was tabled to the Aug. 13 regular meeting.

According to Lois, the committee has already allocated approximately $300,000 for the repairs in its capital budget.

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Chatham resident Bob Penn holds up an email communication he had with Council President Jocelyn Mathiasen during Monday's meeting

Chatham Borough Mayor Carolyn Dempsey bangs the gavel at Monday's meeting to restore order in the roomPhoto Credit: TAP Chatham

Chatham resident and former firefighter Bob Penn speaks about "safety" and points to a member of the Chatham Borough Volunteer Fire Department during his public commentsPhoto Credit: TAP Chatham

Chatham Borough Mayor Carolyn Dempsey reminds resident Bob Penn that public commentary has been closed Photo Credit: TAP Chatham

Chatham resident Bob Penn holds up an email communication he had with Council President Jocelyn Mathiasen during Monday's meetingPhoto Credit: TAP Chatham

Chatham Borough Mayor Carolyn Dempsey bangs the gavel at Monday's meeting to restore order in the roomPhoto Credit: TAP Chatham

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By Ed Barmakian

Published June 25, 2024 at 12:19 PM

CHATHAM, NJ -- The public comments are more concise, but Chatham Borough residents continue to grumble about this year's implementation of a 4-minute limit on what some describe as restrictions on free speech at Borough of Chatham Council meetings.

That scenario contributed to a gavel-banging moment at Monday's regular meeting in which Chatham Borough Mayor Carolyn Dempsey used the tools at her disposal to quiet dissent from the audience.

In his public comment, resident Bob Penn railed about the length of time that it took to purchase a new fire truck and asked if the council had applied for an AFG (Assistance to Firefighters Grant), which could defray the cost of a new fire truck (see below). "You don't take six years to address a safety issue," Penn said.

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Mayor Dempsey responded to Penn after the public comment portion of the meeting was closed. Penn shouted out his objections to the mayor's remarks (see below) and said that he now has to wait two weeks to make his response.

"It's disingenuous to say we don't care about public safety when we have authorized (the purchase) of one of the fire trucks and we will be working to authorize the next fire truck," Dempsey said. "But I can't promise that that's going to be tomorrow."

In his report, Chatham Borough Administrator Steve Williams confirmed that the Borough has negotiated the purchase of a new fire truck for $1,196,000 that will be on the agenda for the July 8 council meeting. The purchase will replace the fire department's 25-year-old pumper. The next proposed purchase is for a vehicle that has a tower ladder.

Thirty-year resident Penn has been relentless in his advocacy for updated fire equipment and vehicles and has cited "safety" concerns for the members of the Chatham Borough Volunteer Fire Department due to the age of the fire trucks currently in service.

Penn spent 26 years as a firefighter in Bloomfield and reached the rank of fire captain/station commander before retiring. He has been an instructor for the Morris County Public Safety Training Academy for the past 28 years.

Penn, who has declared he is running a write-in campaign for a seat on the Borough Council, often quotes from the 43-page "Fire Apparatus Evaluation Report & Recommendations for Chatham Borough" that was conducted by Cotter Strategies, LLC., fire emergency services consultants. The evaluation was completed in November 2023.

In the Cotter Strategies report, the latest ISO (Insurance Service Office) rating for the Chatham Borough Volunteer Fire Department is 3.97 out of a possible six points. "Based on our analysis, we do not anticipate a change in the ISO rating based on the proposed apparatus replacement schedule included in this report."

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