|
County Inspection Department Closing
By Bill McLaughlin
The Ocean County Construction Inspection Department will cease to exist July 1.
The decision to shut the office came at the Ocean County Board of Freeholders' meeting last week.
The freeholders asked County Counsel John Sahradnik to prepare a resolution announcing the department layoffs and to formally notify the affected communities that the services provided would end this summer. The board's final vote on the resolution is scheduled to take place at its February 6 public meeting.
The department was reduced to a handful of inspectors after the workload dwindled in recent years, according to county officials. A report outlining the declining income the department produced from fees led to the conclusion that the inspections personnel would never generate enough revenue to pay for itself.
"(The department) is supposed to be selfsufficient," said Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari. "Every dollar that comes in, goes out to pay salaries and benefits."
The county budget has therefore had to subsidize the shortfall, Vicari said, with the operation of the revenue-producing department functioning "outside the budget" until income became insufficient to pay employee costs.
At one time, the county performed building, fire, electrical and plumbing inspections for 33 Ocean County towns and Bass River in Burlington County. Currently, five municipalities contract with the county for all four inspections, 14 use the county for some inspections and 14 either do it on their own or contract with a neighboring town.
Even if fees charged for current clientele were raised 25 percent, the report suggested the increase would not raise the department to self-sustaining levels.
"This is a very difficult thing to get involved in," said Vicari, who is liaison to the department. "These are valued employees who do a good job."
Vicari added the county "will do everything we can to help them." He suggested that some inspection department employees could possibly find work elsewhere within the county government, and some would find jobs in municipalities who handle their own inspections.
In the end, Vicari said, the larger towns have developed their own inspection departments and are willing to hire out their workers to neighboring towns.
Freeholder John Kelly, a former mayor of Eagleswood, says his town partnered with Stafford to handle all code inspections.
"Regulations change," Kelly said. "We tried to find a part-time inspector for what we could afford: $1,500 a year. It couldn't be done. Stafford had inspectors as needed, so it was better to reach an agreement with Stafford."
The irony, according to Kelly, was the decision to part ways with the county and join with the larger municipality came while he was Eagleswood's mayor in 2000.
"We've known for a couple of years this was coming," he said.
The sudden downturn in new construction in this area has only exacerbated the problem, Vicari added, as fewer new job sites have lessened the need for inspectors.
"It's one thing when (construction) demand was there," he said, "It's more cost effective for towns to do it. They can work together. Meanwhile, our goal is to see every employee is placed somewhere."
Keith J. Goetting, director of the county employee relations department, told the board that if the decision were to proceed, he would meet with the four union bargaining units and seek to place the workers in county or municipal jobs.
County Administrator Alan Avery asked the board for authorization to formally notify the affected municipalities of the termination of services.
Freeholder James Lacey, who serves as Beachwood administrator, said the borough is fortunate to have communities on both sides - Berkeley and Toms River - which provide "full service" inspection service.
Once the layoff date is established, Avery said towns would still be able to stay with the service until July 1 or contract elsewhere.
| 
