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Residents press council over Snug Harbor dumping, cat-trapping coordination and land-gift rumors; mayor says town responded and tests were clean
Summary
During public comment at the May 21 Highlands council meeting, Susan Mckitus voiced support for the New Jersey Super Fund Act and Melissa Peterson raised four concerns: dumped material at Snug Harbor, poor coordination on a trapped cat/TNR response, an alleged land gift rumor and a question about a council member's residency; Mayor Bulan replied that testing was done and results came back clean and defended staff actions.
At the Borough of Highlands Mayor and Council meeting on May 21, two residents used the public comment period to press the council on environmental and operational concerns.
Susan Mckitus of Atlantic Highlands, speaking for the nonprofit Food and Water Watch, thanked the council for supporting the New Jersey Super Fund Act and said she would travel to Trenton on June 2 to support the measure.
Melissa Peterson (17 Bay Street) raised four distinct points. First, she said material had been dumped at Snug Harbor and criticized the town for placing the item on a consent agenda without prior public explanation; she also said callers seeking answers about people on the beach and material being poured received no response. Second, Peterson said the town and the SPCA showed poor coordination in a trap-neuter-return (TNR) matter involving a cat: she described conflicting information about when traps were set and said she observed SPCA staff answering phones and discussing internal plans rather than being aware of the town’s schedule. Third, Peterson cited a rumor that land (described as a "paper road") had been gifted to a person she named; she asked whether any street vacation or ordinance had occurred. Fourth, she questioned whether "Mr. Felic" still lived in town and urged clarity about residency issues for council members.
Mayor Bulan responded to each concern. She described the Snug Harbor incident as "a mistake made by an employee," said the town retested the material and that the borough engineer reviewed the results at a prior council meeting, concluding that the "everything came back clean." On the animal-control issue, the mayor said town employees and the SPCA were on site repeatedly, that public works staff had taken measures to free the animal and that cameras and repeated searches were used until the animal was located. On the alleged land gift, Bulan said no street vacation or transfer occurred and that any such action would require a formal resolution or ordinance. The mayor also rebuked personal attacks against town officials and said she had received death threats and would preserve email records documenting when actions took place.
No formal council action was taken on the public comments. The council closed the public portion and later moved into an executive session to discuss attorney-client privilege and litigation matters.
Quotes recorded in the public portion include Susan Mckitus: "I just want to thank you. I'm for um supporting the New Jersey Super Fund Act." Melissa Peterson said about Snug Harbor: "Nobody was able to answer the phone calls for people inquiring on why there were people on the beach and why stuff was being poured on the beach." Mayor Bulan told the meeting: "We did everything we could for that cat."
