Long Branch council adopts ordinances on sidewalk cafés, police staffing and drainage easement; salary ordinance introduced

The Long Branch City Council on Dec. 11 adopted three ordinances and introduced a fourth.

Ordinance 23-24 amended Chapter 181 (food establishments) to set Sidewalk Café operations from March 1 through Nov. 30. The council opened a public hearing, heard no public comment, closed the hearing, and adopted the ordinance on its second and final reading. The roll-call vote recorded Yes from council members Dangler, Rassus, Wittes, Vogue and Viera (unanimous among those present).

Ordinance 24-24 amended Chapter 78 (police department) to adjust establishment numbers for lieutenants and sergeants. During the public hearing council members asked whether the duties of the new lieutenant would mirror sergeant duties and whether the change was tied to current personnel matters. The Director of Law said the ordinance and the department’s disciplinary matters are unrelated. The council closed the hearing and adopted the ordinance on second and final reading by unanimous roll-call vote of the members present.

Ordinance 25-24 authorized a permanent drainage easement for 316 Fairfield Avenue (Block 65, Lot 3). No public comment was offered; the council adopted the ordinance on second and final reading with a unanimous roll-call vote.

The council introduced Ordinance 26-24, which amends titles and sets salaries for certain city employees for 2024, and set the public hearing for Dec. 23, 2024 (a council member later corrected an earlier misstatement of the hearing date). The motion to introduce passed by roll call.

The meeting also approved routine consent-agenda items, including renewal of various taxi-cab licenses for 2025. Several items were handled by unanimous roll-call votes recorded during the meeting.