June 6, 2009
RINGWOOD
BY TERESA EDMOND
Staff Writer
To some residents' chagrin, the borough has appointed the deputy borough manager - a Republican former mayor and councilman -as head of the Department of Public Works (DPW).
Effective June 1, Deputy Borough Manager Scott Heck was hired as the new DPW director, according to Borough Clerk and Manager Kelley Rohde at the June 4 Borough Council work meeting. Willard Bierwas' last official date as DPW director was April 1 before retiring from the post Heck has taken over the director's tasks, although he hadn't been appointed temporary director, he said previously.
Now tackling two jobs, Heck will get a yearly salary of $95,000 as DPW director and a yearly $10,000 salary as deputy borough manager plus benefits, according to Rohde. Heck was earning $60,000 per year plus benefits as deputy borough manager. But now that he's the DPW director, his earlier position "has been reduced significantly," Rohde said.
But this recent appointment doesn't sit so well with some residents, who said Heck first got the deputy borough manager position and then the DPW job because of his Republican connections. The Borough Council has been GOP-dominated since its January 2008 reorganization.
Rohde said she didn't have to advertise the DPW director position. It's her duty to interview the three borough employees who were candidates for the job and appoint someone for the position. She also acknowledged that Heck has been at the DPWs helm since Bierwas' retirement.
During the meeting's public portion, resident Robin Canetti said it's "inappropriate" to hire Heck as the DPW director, since it has become a "habit" for the council to practice favoritism when employing people. She specifically referred to Republican Mayor Walter Davison, who became borough manager while he was a councilman.
"You have lots of people in this town who probably have more management experience (than Heck) and that probably have more budgeting and road experiences. They never got an opportu-
nity to be considered because you never advertised it (the position). Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should do something," she said.
"Fact of the matter is, you have the power to put all your relatives in a (borough) position, but you shouldn't do that because it's not your money. It's the taxpayers' money. You're the trustees of that money, and when you're the trustees of our money, you have the duty to do the best job you can on behalf of us, the taxpayers," she said.
Councilwoman Linda Schaefer said detractors didn't say anything about five people getting appointed to municipal positions while the Democrats had the council majority, yet have the "audacity" to publicly criticize Heck's appointment
According to Borough Attorney Richard Clemack. the DPW director position isn't open to the public because only certain persons would qualify for the position. By law, eligible job candidates must have the principal public works manager's certification. The candi- dates also must take courses at Rutgers University and take an exam from the state Department of Community Affairs.
According to council supporters like resident Connie Hernandez, the council and borough officials help keep taxes low while running the borough efficiently.
Resident Grace Hazeldine also opposed Heck's recent job appointment, saying that he got the job because he's a former Republican Club president.
E-mail: edmond@northjersey.com