[HISTORY: Adopted by the governing body of
the Township of Little Falls 1-23-2006 by Ord. No. 980; amended in its entirety 4-23-2018 by Ord. No. 1307. Subsequent
amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Flood damage prevention — See Ch. 86.
A.
Pursuant to the Municipal and County Flood Control Act, N.J.S.A.
40A:27-1 et seq., the Township hereby amends and supplements the Little
Falls Code to include the following, entitled "Ordinance to Form and
Establish the Little Falls-Woodland Park-Totowa Passaic Valley Regional
Flood Control Board" (hereinafter, the "Board").
B.
Findings:
(1)
The Mayor and Council of the Township of Little Falls conclude that
the public health, safety and welfare can best be assured by the establishment
of the Board and its review of the potential acquisition, construction,
financing, improvement, maintenance and operation of flood control
facilities in cooperation with other local units, as set forth in
N.J.S.A. 40A:27-4.
(2)
The Mayor and Council of the Township of Little Falls find that the
Board will contribute to the overall management of the surface water
of the Passaic River and the Peckman River basins, insofar as those
basins impact upon the properties located within the Township of Little
Falls.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A municipality which enters into a contract with another
municipality for the construction, maintenance, improvement, acquisition,
or financing of a flood control facility for its own use.
A local unit which enters into a contract with a contracting
local unit to construct, maintain, improve, acquire or finance flood
control facilities for the contracting local unit.
The cost of construction, reconstruction or maintenance and
improvement, the cost of all labor, materials, machinery and equipment,
the costs of all lands, property, rights and easements acquired, financing
charges, interest on bonds issued to finance a facility prior to,
during and after acquisition or construction, the cost of plans and
specifications, surveys or estimates of costs and of revenues, the
cost of engineering and legal services, and all other expenses necessary
or incidental to determining the feasibility or practicability of
the construction, reconstruction, improvement or maintenance of a
facility, administrative expenses and such other expenses as may be
necessary or incidental to the construction, maintenance or acquisition
of a facility, and the financing herein authorized. Any obligation
or expense incurred by a local unit in connection with any of the
foregoing items of cost prior to the issuance of bonds or notes as
authorized herein may be reimbursed to the local unit out of the proceeds
of bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter.
The dams, drainageways, structures and other real and personal
property acquired, constructed, operated, financed, maintained or
improved, or to be acquired, constructed, operated, financed, maintained
or improved, by a local unit for the purposes of flood control, including
storage reservoirs, dikes, diversions, dams, spillways, levees, revetments,
drains, ditches or channel improvements, such as widening, deepening,
straightening, clearing, desnagging, sloping, building and filling
in, and other plants, structures, boats, conveyances and other real
or personal property and rights therein, and appurtenances necessary
for the control of flooding, the preservation of stream flow and the
management of surface water and stormwater, including any storm sewers,
storm drains, drainage facilities, and detention basins, and the dredging
or desnagging of any drainageways.
The Township of Little Falls will function as lead agency
for the Passaic Valley Flood Control Board. Improvements and/or programs
to protect the public health, safety and welfare proposed by the Board,
including, but not limited to, potential acquisition, construction,
financing, improvement, maintenance and operation of flood control
facilities, will require each member municipality to authorize and
approve all projects and establish funding requirements prior to moving
forward with said project and authorizing the appropriate documents
for designation as lead agency.
A municipality or county.
The Township of Little Falls and the Borough of Woodland
Park and the Borough of Totowa.
N.J.S.A. 40A:27-1 et seq.
Once the Board is appointed pursuant to other provisions of
this chapter, the Board may make, or cause to be made, any necessary
surveys, investigations, studies, borings, maps, plans, drawings and
estimates of costs and of revenues relating to the provision of flood
control facilities on the Passaic River and the Peckman River; provided,
however, that the Board's recommendations are approved by the
member municipalities and the lead agency first secures or approves
the funding by way of grants for such surveys, investigations and
the like.
Upon the adoption of such necessary ordinances or resolutions
of the Borough of Woodland Park and the Borough of Totowa upon passage
in advance of a resolution adopted by the Mayor and Council of the
Township of Little Falls and subject to the approval of the Little
Falls Township Attorney as to the form of such contracts, the Township
of Little Falls as lead agency shall enter into an interlocal contract
with the local contracting units of the Borough of Woodland Park and
the Borough of Totowa to construct, maintain, improve, acquire, or
finance a flood control facility for the benefit of the member municipalities.
Such interlocal contract may address the following items: administrative
organization; governance; election of officers; staffing and personnel;
budget; funding by constituent municipalities; property arrangements;
meetings; insurance; indemnification; community participation; and
any other requirements pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:8A-1 et seq., or other
applicable statutes.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: N.J.S.A. 40:8A-1 et seq. was repealed
by L. 2007, c. 63. For current provisions, see N.J.S.A. 40:65-1 et
seq.
A.
In order to effectuate the establishment of the Board, the Township
of Little Falls authorizes, upon the adoption of requisite like ordinances
and the execution of such required contracts by the local contracting
units of the Borough of Woodland Park and the Borough of Totowa, the
creation of the Board, as set forth below.
B.
The Little Falls - Woodland Park - Totowa Passaic Valley Regional
Flood Control Board shall consist of 15 members. Each municipality
shall appoint to serve on the Passaic Valley Regional Flood Control
Board: a Council member, appointed by Council; the Public Works Manager
from each municipality; and resident members, appointed by the Mayor
with advice and consent of the Council; and the Mayor or his/her designee
of each member municipality. Each Mayor or his/her designee shall
serve as Chair of the Board in rotation each year; Woodland Park shall
chair the Board in 2018, Little Falls in 2019, and Totowa in 2020,
with the rotation continuing from there. The duties of the Chair are
to schedule meetings, chair the meetings and to vote in case of a
tie when all seats on the Board are full. A Vice Chair may be selected
by vote of the Board members. All terms are for one year. Appointments
shall be made annually at the municipal reorganization meeting of
each member municipality.
C.
The Board should meet once per quarter and only when matters defined
in the Code are to be addressed. Special meetings may be held if necessary
and only by authorization of at least two of the Mayors. The Township
of Little Falls Clerk will post and make all meeting notices on behalf
of the Board.
A.
The Little Falls - Woodland Park - Totowa Passaic Valley Regional
Flood Control Board may jointly recommend the purchase, construction,
improvement, extension, enlargement or reconstruction of flood control
facilities on behalf of its member local units, subject to the approval
of the Council or governing body of each of the member local units.
B.
The Little Falls - Woodland Park - Totowa Passaic Valley Regional
Flood Control Board may request, on behalf of its member local units,
to receive and accept, from the federal or state government or any
agency thereof, grants for the planning, acquisition, purchase, construction,
extension, enlargement, reconstruction, improvement or financing of
any of these facilities and to receive and accept contributions from
any source of either money, property, labor or other things of value
to be held, used and applied for the purposes for which these grants
and contributions may be made, subject to the approval of the Council
or governing body of each of the member local units.
C.
All requests and recommendations of the Board shall be made in writing
to the Mayor of each member municipality.
Any budgetary funding provided by the Township of Little Falls
for the operation of the Little Falls - Woodland Park - Totowa Passaic
Valley Regional Flood Control Board shall be subject to the annual
availability and appropriation of sufficient funds.
A.
The creation of the Little Falls - Woodland Park - Totowa Passaic
Valley Regional Flood Control Board shall be subject to and contingent
upon each of the member local units satisfying all of the terms and
conditions precedent contained in this chapter. The within ordinance
is only an enabling ordinance, subject to all of the various statutes
and contingencies mentioned herein, and shall only become fully operative
once an interlocal contract is executed among the municipalities and
this regional flood board is compliant with the Interlocal Act, the
Municipal Services Act, "Pay-to-Play Statute," Acquisition and Construction
of Public Improvement Act and other such similar acts.
B.
None of the municipalities herein shall be required to expend any
funds by virtue of this chapter. It is contemplated by this chapter
that this is a joint undertaking between the Township of Little Falls
and the Borough of Woodland Park and the Borough of Totowa, to be
separately funded by future grants and other such similar aid and
funding as may be hereinafter designated by separate enactments. The
Township of Little Falls will function as the lead agency for all
projects recommended and approved by the Board.
