WESTFIELD – The Legislative & Ordinance Committee began the new term by reviewing motions, some dating back several years, to determine which to keep, which to remove from that committee and which should be referred to other committees.
Several of the motions have already been acted upon and will be removed, while others were kept to allow the L&O members to speak with former councilors and city officials to determine if further investigation and possible action is required.
One of the items which will be kept in the L&O dates from December 15 of 2011 relative to establishing an ordinance requiring curb-to-curb paving of roads opened by contractors and city departments for subsurface work, such as installing sewer or gas lines.
That motion was reviewed in April with no recommendation to act upon it because of concerns raised by former Councilor John J. Beltrandi III who said that the problem is not patching the pavement cuts, but proper compaction of soil as it is returned to the excavated road. Soil that is not compacted properly settles, which causes the patch to sink.
Last night the L&O spoke with Department of Public Works Superintendent Jim Mulvenna who recommended that an ordinance be developed to establish compaction procedures and require proof that it was done correctly. Mulvenna said the city could require contractors and city departments to have a third-party compaction test to ensure that the soil is properly compacted before the pavement is patched.
The L&O will recommend that a motion, made at the March 15, 2012 session to create a new Building Maintenance Department be removed from committee. The committee members agreed that there is a need for a centralized building maintenance program, but felt that the issue should be addressed through the mayor’s office.
Any new municipal building maintenance function would require funding in the city’s budget through the creation of new line items, a function of the executive branch of city government.
The committee members will also recommend removing a motion made in November of 2012 to create a separate Animal Control Department under the direction and control of the Health Department. Currently the Animal Control program is under the command and control of the Police Department. The Police Department trains and certifies animal control officers who carry sidearms.
There were also six items that were referred to the L&O from the ad hoc Charter & Rules to keep the motion in a committee last year when then-Council President Brian Sullivan abolished that ad hoc committee. Council President Brent B. Bean II has reestablished that ad hoc committee and the L&O will move to return those motions to Charter and Rules for further review.
Included in those motions was one to increase the mayor’s term in office to four years while another would set an eight-year term limit for that executive office, both of which would require the state Legislature to approve changing the city’s charter.
