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Residents press Woodland officials over emergency communications, OEM attendance and property issues
Summary
Residents at the July 24 meeting raised concerns about the OEM director's absence, limited Nixle alerts during a fire, denied OPRA request for the emergency plan, and unresolved property-sale and farmland-assessment questions; Solicitor Burns said the emergency plan is exempt from OPRA.
Several residents used the public-comment period at the Woodland Township Committee’s July 24 meeting to press officials on emergency preparedness, communications and property matters.
Teri Sheerin of Old Tuckerton Road raised multiple concerns, saying the township’s shared-services arrangement for construction may leave the municipality open to liability and that the township’s OEM director has not been attending meetings nor submitting reports. Sheerin also said an OPRA request she filed for the township’s emergency plan was denied. Solicitor Mr. Burns told the meeting that the emergency plan is exempt from OPRA, a legal exception that limits public access to that specific document.
Resident Jane Donoghue of Old Tuckerton Road said only one Nixle alert was issued during a recent fire and asked about the status of the property at 4007 Route 563; Solicitor Burns said there had been no interest in the property. Lisa Sabitini of Maple Drive said she did not receive a farmland-assessment form and later thanked the committee for paving work on Lebanon Lakes while asking what work is planned for 115 Maple.
The comments prompted no formal action at the meeting; officials recorded the concerns and provided legal context for the OPRA response. The committee did not direct staff to a specific follow-up during the session, though residents noted interest in clearer emergency communications and more consistent OEM reporting.
