MAYOR'S UPDATE:

WEEK ENDING JUNE 23

Summer is officially here, which means many seasonal events and local happenings around Town. From Sweet Sounds Downtown, to Open Quimby, Memorial Pool, Recreation programs, and enjoying our beautiful parks, what a great time of year to be in Westfield! 

It also means that municipal offices are now operating on summer hours, which are 8:30-4:30 Monday through Thursday, and 8:30-1:30 on Friday, through September 1. All emergency services, Memorial Pool, and the Conservation Center hours remain unchanged.

With school out for the summer, I want to congratulate all of our students for completing a successful year, with special recognition to our new graduates. To the Class of 2023, I wish you all much success in your next adventures, near and far, and hope you will always think of Westfield as your home. We can’t wait to see what amazing things you’ll do. 

As a reminder, the Town Council meets on Tuesday night. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

PSE&G LAWSUIT

We were recently notified of a decision issued in favor of PSE&G in the litigation they filed against the Town in April of 2022. As a reminder, PSE&G filed the lawsuit challenging the adoption of General Ordinance No. 2022-04, which was passed by the Town Council on February 22, 2022. This ordinance amended the regulation of the public rights-of-way, both adopting comprehensive standards and regulations for the installation of new small wireless facilities within the Town’s rights-of-way, and better managing access to and use of our rights-of-way by traditional utility companies. Simply put, it provides standards and regulations for how our public rights-of-way are used by utility companies and telecommunications providers so that work can be better managed, and is similar to what’s been passed in multiple other municipalities -- none of which, to our knowledge, have resulted in litigation from PSE&G.

Prior to its adoption, General Ordinance No. 2022-04 was in progress within the Town Council's Code Review & Town Property Committee for more than a year, initially intended to address the installation of new wireless facilities (i.e., 5G and other small-cell networks), and ultimately expanded in scope to include all traditional utility work in the public right-of-way. The Town Council believes that it is important to ensure that all work done within the public right-of-way is done properly and in accordance with what is best for our community. 

Following the introduction of the ordinance, PSE&G reached out to the Town regarding their concerns with the ordinance and their intention to revisit 69kV upgrade plans through the Town. We had several subsequent conversations (which included leaders of other, adjoining towns) reiterating our fundamental objection to the proposed route for this project, and questioning its necessity. As discussions continued, the lawsuit was apparently filed by PSE&G to preserve their ability to challenge the ordinance under the short period they are allowed by law. 

While the Court’s ruling left in place the comprehensive regulation of the public rights-of-way, we believe that the Court’s decision striking down portions of the ordinance as it relates to PSE&G was wrong. In light of this, the Town intends to appeal this decision to the appellate courts. While we continue to fight this litigation, it’s important to note that we have not been provided with any final plans for a proposed 69kV route, and we continue to maintain that these poles should not be placed anywhere in Westfield.

We believe that the ordinance protects the Town's rights not only related to any proposed 69kV project, but also with any future utility upgrades, to ensure we can minimize any potential negative impacts to Westfield. We remain extremely concerned about the impact of the 69kV poles on our residents and businesses, as we have consistently expressed to PSE&G. As this Council has previously communicated, we fully intend to take all necessary legal action to vigorously defend the Town's interests and the public right-of-way, and secure the best possible outcome for our community. 

UPCOMING PARKING RESTRICTIONS

If you need access to the train station on Sunday, please be advised that there will be parking restrictions in place due to geophysical survey work of Lots 2 and 3 (North and South Avenue lots), which involves ground-based physical sensing techniques to produce a detailed image or map of the area. In order to complete this work without disrupting work-week commuter parking, the entire North Avenue lot and portions of the South Avenue lot will be closed on Sunday. In addition to the unaffected parts of the South Avenue lot, parking is also available in the Watterson Street lot, as well as in Lot 8 behind UBS.

In addition, select parking spaces will be restricted in these lots from June 26-July 5 in order to perform smaller scale work that involves soil borings.

THE DEVLIN AWARDS

The Westfield Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) seeks entries for the Harry Devlin Awards program honoring property owners for outstanding efforts in the restoration, expansion and maintenance of older properties. Any project completed within the past five years that is visible to the public is eligible. Residential, commercial, professional, and institutional buildings may be entered. Categories for nomination include:

• Addition or alteration sensitive to original architecture

• Restoration or repair of original or existing improvement

• Period-appropriate painting or residing

• Adaptive reuse of a property in a manner sensitive to the original architecture and/or neighborhood

• Persons, actions or events that promote preservation may also be considered.

Nominations may be made by neighbors, architects, or builders, and can also be self-submitted by owners. Created in 1993 to encourage the use of established historic preservation standards, the Devlin Commendations are named for Harry Devlin, a prominent local artist and architectural historian. This year’s awards will be bestowed in September to coincide with an exhibition of Devlin’s work. The deadline for entries is July 15, with criteria and entry forms on the commission’s website. For additional information, please contact hpc@westfieldnj.gov.

MINDOWASKIN PLAYGROUND IMPROVEMENTS

With the surface repairs at Mindowaskin Playground now complete, work has begun on installation of the decorative fence that was recently approved by the Town Council. The fence will fully enclose the playground with gated access, and we are very pleased to move forward with this safety improvement for everyone’s enjoyment of the playground, just in time for summer!

INFORMATION ON FOXES FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT

It’s the time of year when our Health Department receives an influx of questions about the foxes spotted around town. The Westfield Regional Health Department reminds residents that healthy foxes pose virtually no danger to humans, and requesting their relocation is not warranted unless the animal is unhealthy or aggressive. To report an unhealthy fox and request relocation, contact the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife at 908-735-8793.

SWEET SOUNDS DOWNTOWN

Save the dates for the Annual Sweet Sounds Downtown Music Festival – every Tuesday night from July 11 through August 29. This favorite summer activity draws residents and visitors alike to Downtown Westfield for dining, shopping and, of course, the fabulous musical entertainment. Thanks to the DWC for scheduling another great line-up of performers! The full schedule is available on the DWC's website.

BLOCK PARTY INFORMATION

It's block party season! Before hosting your neighborhood gathering, be sure to follow the Town's procedures to obtain all necessary approvals. You can find full details, as well as a fillable application, on our website.