Engineer outlines dam-removal plan and $690,525 Green Acres grant request; residents press council on costs and parking

Mary, a dam-safety engineer hired by the borough, presented a conceptual plan and environmental assessment for removing the main dam at the municipal park and restoring the Mine Brook stream channel.

The engineer said removal would restore fish passage, reduce in-stream temperature and bacterial (coliform) load, cut geese use of open water and eliminate the borough’s long-term high-hazard dam ownership liability. She described a park redesign that would add a loop trail around the former pond, designated fishing access points and educational signage, replace a deteriorating pedestrian bridge and plant pollinator meadows while foresting the railroad side of the property.

The consultant presented a planning-level total construction estimate previously shown to council and said the Green Acres grant application will request $690,525 to pay for park amenities including benches, trail improvements, signage and some stream stabilization. She said other pieces of the project (excavation, channel grading, some stabilization and haul/disposal) are being funded by other grants or existing municipal bonding.

Why removal, not repair? The engineer said the structure is classified by NJDEP as a "high hazard" dam — a label that reflects consequences to downstream life if failure occurred — and that state dam-safety rules require updated hydrology, dredging, spillway capacity checks and long-term inspection and reporting for any rehabilitation. "Any rehabilitation alternative that doesn't incorporate those elements is not a regulatory compliant scope," she said, arguing removal resolves the structural deficiencies and eliminates ongoing high-hazard obligations.

At least one resident sharply disputed the cost estimate. "A 3,400,000 estimate is exceptionally high," said Bob Graham, who urged council to reassess rehabilitation options and questioned large mobilization and hauling costs. Mary responded that earlier conceptual estimates excluded the park-rehab scope (bridges, amenities and downstream stabilization) and that those items raised the total. She also said that rehabilitation studies performed previously reached comparable costs once full regulatory scope and modern standards are applied. "Removal, by contrast, resolves those structural deficiencies and eliminates the borough's high-hazard liability," she told the council.

Residents and councilors also raised usability and parking concerns. Mike Galloway and others said the park currently lacks sufficient parking and that increased use after restoration could intensify on-street parking near the firehouse and police-area routes. Mary said drainage on the railroad side and knotweed removal are included in the restoration and that the contractor will provide maintenance procedures; council members said they would examine signage and parking plans and that some borough bonding already exists to cover local shares.

Council finance discussion noted the borough previously bonded about $2 million and later increased that to roughly $3.1 million; the mayor said grants would reduce, not eliminate, the local funding obligation. Mary said the removal project has received dam-safety permitting and that the next step for the engineering team is preparing a bid package with value-engineering options and potential beneficial reuse of excavated material to lower hauling costs.

The council did not take a final vote on construction contracts at the meeting. Officials said they are prepared to proceed with the Green Acres grant application and will pursue grant and private-donation options while attempting to trim costs in the bid phase.

The council will consider project bids and funding details in future agenda items; no construction contract was awarded at this meeting.