Council schedules special meeting with DEP, tables lead-service contract and approves emergency intake work and property purchases for Trenton Water Works

Trenton City Council on Aug. 7 said it will seek a special meeting Aug. 18 to hear from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection about long-running questions tied to Trenton Water Works and the DEP’s oversight. The council also delayed action on a contested lead-service-line replacement contract after a bidder’s attorney requested a hearing and the council voted to table the resolution; it approved an emergency intake cleaning contract and an ordinance authorizing purchases of two properties for the water utility.

The council president opened the meeting by telling the public that DEP officials had declined to attend the Aug. 7 meeting but had offered to meet individually with council members. “We have offered them to come before us on August 18,” the council president said. Council members said they prefer a public meeting where the full council and residents can hear the DEP’s position.

During public comment James Ross, a lawyer with Blick Law Firm representing a bidder identified as Roman ENG,…