All township operations under the microscope
Employee restructuring plan to be made public soon
BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer
Arestructuring plan for the Brick Township work force could be released as early as Friday, Administrator Scott M. Pezarras said.

Township officials are looking at all departments to determine how employees could be moved around to where they are most needed.

"We have to relook at the way we deliver government services," Pezarras said. "We don't have the money to actually provide all those services. We have to relook at the way we are doing it."

The state has limited all municipalities to a 4 percent cap on the amount to be raised by taxation to support their budgets.

"The council and the administration are going to try and be as revenue neutral as possible in areas that bring in revenue," Pezarras said.

One of the areas of concern is the township's construction inspection department, which is included in the department of Land Use and Planning. Traditionally, the revenues generated from inspection fees have paid for employee salaries.

But that has not been the case recently. The souring real estate and tight credit markets have taken their toll on the department's revenues, Pezarras said.

"The revenues we anticipate in the budget are off anywhere between $25,000 to $30,000 a month," he said.

The township collected roughly $68,000 in permit fees in September, down from the typical month of around $100,000, Pezarras said.

All township department operations are being scrutinized, Mayor Stephen C. Acropolis said.

"When we look at restructuring the township, we have to look at everything," Acropolis said. "We can't go into deficit spending. "It's against the law. If we can't generate revenue, we are going to have to cut. That's the stark reality of running the government like a business."

The Ocean County Board of Freeholders abolished the county inspection department earlier this year in a cost-cutting measure.

Brick officials met with officials from Point Pleasant, Point Pleasant Beach, Lavallette and Bay Head shortly after, to see if the Brick construction inspection department could take over as a regional inspection department, Acropolis said.

"We thought there were some local towns using the county that we might be able to provide services for," the mayor said.

But after some research, it was determined that having Brick do an inspection would run around $60, compared to a private contractor who could do it for $30, Acropolis said.

"That kind of slowed down the process," he said.

Acropolis plans to meet with Board of Education officials soon to discuss sharing services and facilities.

"Obviously, we are looking at every single thing we can look at before we look at personnel," the mayor said. "People have to understand that we are in a different place than we have ever been before, because of this cap."

The restructuring plan has to be approved by the state Department of Personnel, Pezarras said.

"Once you submit the plan, you can start moving forwards," he said. "You can start implementing the plan. Chances are, they are going to approve something. You can't effectuate the entire plan until you actually get their approval."

It's too soon to tell if there will be any layoffs in the construction inspection department or anywhere else, Acropolis said.

"That's a lot further off," he said. "I'm waiting to see the plan the professionals put together."