Teaneck to Form Citizen Advisory Board on Votee Park Contamination
Board should include local experts, sports groups, officials say.
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The Township Council is moving to create an advisory board of local residents to offer input on how to handle soil contamination discovered in Milton Votee Park.
Details of the advisory board have not been finalized, but Mayor Mohammed Hameeduddin said it would likely include between seven and nine members.
Deputy Mayor Adam Gussen said the board could first examine data presented by the township’s environmental consultant. The board would include local residents with expertise in environmental health and related fields.
“It’s unbelievable how many experts in this field that we happen to have living in Teaneck,” Gussen said at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
Township Manager William Broughton said the board should also include representatives from sports leagues who use the park.
Councilwoman Barbara Toffler had asked that officials gather input from local experts, and council members have signaled they support forming the advisory group.
Teaneck’s central park was closed in December after tests turned up levels of benzo(a)pyrene, polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, above state safety guidelines. Additional tests found high levels of benzo(a)pyrene near the soil’s surface.
Officials have said the health risks are limited, but the park would stay closed for the year.
Bill Kennedy
8:58 am on Wednesday, February 22, 2012
An advisory board is a great idea, it should also however include a few residents that don't have an expertise in this area but do have a vested interst in the park and Teaneck's residents. Where can residents get information on the board and how to become part of such?
Noah Cohen
12:00 pm on Wednesday, February 22, 2012
The advisory board is not finalized yet, but we will post more information as it is put out by the township. The town manager did say he wanted the board to include residents who are not necessarily environmental science or health professionals.
Barbara Ley Toffler
11:03 am on Thursday, February 23, 2012
I am hoping that we can expedite the forming of a Citizen's Board on Votee Park. the process of forming a traditional "Advisory Board" by ordinance will take at minimum 4 weeks. Since one of the possible scenarios laid out by DEP would require minimal remedial action taken and the return of the entire park to public use within the next few weeks, it seems inappropriate and unfair to the residents of Teaneck to wait 4 weeks or more to engage our citizenry in this critical activity. I understand DEP will be proceeding to conduct their work re Votee -- so I'm not sure what an advisory board will have to do after DEP has made important decisions. I suggest Council seek applicants over the next week and then appoint a Special
Council Commission asap.
zizi
11:52 pm on Thursday, February 23, 2012
I would like to see that no tax money be used to do the cleanup. I would suggest that we sell that land to developers. This way we will get some money and increase our revenue base at the same time. We also don't have to pay for the cleanup costs.