The Governing Body - Office of the Mayor

Dear Friends:

It is once again my pleasure to present to you the Annual Report of the Township of Wayne. I had sincerely hoped that as I wrote this year’s report, I would actually, for the first time in two years, be able to start my letter with something other than a weather incident. Unfortunately, this was not to be the case. With the double punch of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee not quite faded from our collective memories we were confronted with Superstorm Sandy.

Despite the fact that we did not experience a flood event, Superstorm Sandy brought with it ninety mile an hour wind gusts, over nine hundred tree complaints and prolonged power outages. And although PSE&G was able to restore power to its customers in a reasonable amount of time, the length of time that those living within the JCP&L service area were without power was totally unacceptable. It is for this reason that the Township has filed a formal motion with the Board of Public Utilities to intervene as a party opposing JCP&L’s Rate Increase Application, or in the alternative, compelling JCP&L to upgrade its electrical infrastructure in Wayne to prevent and/or minimize future power outages.

Superstorm Sandy once again proved the worth of our first responders. While the majority of us were safely ensconced within our homes, our police, fire and first aiders were responding to many emergency calls during the height of the storm. One of the calls they responded to involved Patrolman Robert Franco and Fire Chief John Neukum. Both Franco and Neukum were trapped inside their vehicles when a large tree fell on top of them. With the assistance of all of our emergency disciplines both were rescued and I am happy to say that both are doing well. To our first responders, I say thank you very much for all that you do for us. I would like to thank as well those Township employees who were also out for a portion of that night and worked feverishly the following days to remove all of the trees and branches that came down. Their efforts on behalf of us all are greatly appreciated.

Developing a budget is never an easy task. During this exhaustive process we are constantly evaluating our “needs versus wants” while all the time keeping in mind that we must be ready to respond to any emergency that may come our way. The last three years has proven to us that we must maintain the flexibility to manage any number of disasters even as we search for ways to reduce our expenditures. I think that we have been able to achieve that balance.

In 2013, we continued to reduce the municipal work force through attrition by eliminating five positions. This task was started six years ago and the budgetary impact of this effort over that period is a cumulative savings of $6,424,875 and the elimination of thirty-eight positions. I am also happy to report that the total Township budget is down 1.35 percent. Acknowledging that we are moving in the right direction, Moody’s recently affirmed Wayne’s AAA bond rating and Standard and Poor’s recently affirmed its AA+ rating. And, once again, Money Magazine has voted Wayne one of the top 100 places to live throughout the country. But, as author Jim Newton said, “progress is generally the result of long and sustained work, not sharp breaks or impulsive leaps.”

In that same vein, the Township recently joined an electric co-op that will allow us to purchase electricity at a lower rate. Starting on January 1, 2013 we began transporting sludge from our Water Pollution Control Facility to the Passaic Valley Sewer Commission in lieu of burning it on site. This action will save approximately $150,000 a year in operating expenses while at the same time obviating the need for a $15,000,000 upgrade to our incinerators in the near future.

While being against a budget is always a very popular position to take, I would like to tell you why I support our budget. I support this budget because I believe in supplying our first responders with the tools they need to provide us with fire and first aid services to protect our homes and person. I support this budget because I believe in providing Wayne with the level of police services that are required in a municipality that is over 27 square miles, a municipality with over 18,000 residences and more than 54,000 residents. I support this budget because I believe in a municipal workforce and infrastructure that is able to adequately respond to the every day needs of our residents and also to emergencies such as Superstorm Sandy. And I support this budget because it allows us to provide those services that make us all say “this is why I have chosen to live in Wayne.”

I would like to thank the Township Council for once again working with my Administration to provide you with a fiscally responsible government, one that is responsive to your needs. And I pledge that we will continue to work together with one goal in mind; to maintain the quality of life that makes Wayne such a great place to live and raise a family.

Serving as your Mayor is a great privilege and honor and I look forward to a bright future for us all. As always, my door remains open to you so please feel free to stop by or to contact me with any questions or comments that you may have. My phone number is 973-694-1800, ext. 3201 or you can use my email form. Also, you can follow us at this web site, www.WayneTownship.com, or on Twitter and FaceBook.

Thank you very much for your continued support.

Christopher P. Vergano

Mayor