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Commission approves municipal-engineer contract after residents raise questions about developer ties
Summary
The Millville City Commission awarded a non-fair-and-open contract to municipal engineer John Noope after residents raised questions about his past ties to a local precast company and data-center development; the mayor said Noopereturns at a lower hourly rate than the prior engineer and the contract passed unanimously.
The Millville City Commission on Feb. 17 approved a non-fair-and-open contract to appoint John Noope as the city's municipal engineer after public comment questioned his recent private-sector ties.
At a public hearing before the vote, city residents raised concerns about whether Noope's prior employment with Northeast Precast and work connected to a nearby data center could create conflicts if he steered municipal resources. Angelica Hanstein, a Millville resident who earlier described a petition about the residential poultry ordinance, told the commission she was concerned about "paid ties to that company" and asked the city to guard against diverted resources.
Mayor (presiding) responded that the prior city engineer, Wayne Johnson, had earned $200,000 annually under a $135-per-hour arrangement and that Noope's contract is set at $110 per hour "not to exceed" the same overall costs. The mayor said, "So it's actually, there's no increase to taxes. There's no increase to, you know, our cost. It's exactly the same as what it was before." He also cited Noope's long service to the city and said he had heard overwhelmingly positive references about Noope's work.
Supporters on the dais described Noope as bringing "institutional knowledge" the city needs. Vice mayor Cott said Noope "always did well for the city" and that the hire should provide stability.
The commission adopted the resolution awarding the contract by roll-call vote. No member recorded a dissenting vote on the record.
What the record shows: the resolution text and the mayor's summary were the basis for the contract award. The transcript does not record contract start or termination dates, specific dollar amounts beyond the hourly rate, nor identify contractual safeguards regarding conflicts of interest; those details were not specified during the meeting and are not included in this report.
Next steps: The commission welcomed Noope and indicated staff will proceed with the contract implementation and onboarding.
