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Peapack and Gladstone council tables resolution on contractor notification after residents report damage and missed alerts
Summary
Following multiple resident complaints about missed notifications, property damage and poor cleanup during a water‑main replacement, the council tabled a resolution directing notice and permitting process updates to allow further review and input from residents and municipal staff.
The Peapack and Gladstone Borough Council on Tuesday voted to table a resolution (102‑26) aimed at tightening notice and process requirements for road openings and contractor work after widespread resident complaints about a recent water‑main replacement project.
Council members and multiple residents described a pattern of missed notifications, unannounced water shutdowns and poor cleanup on Farm Cottage Road, Greenwood Court and nearby streets. “I’ve sent numerous emails about notification to Nancy … unanswered,” said Robert Compton, a local contractor and resident, who showed photos he said documented brown water, mud on roadways and final‑restoration problems. Compton said some residents’ driveways were blocked without advance warning and urged the borough to post work schedules publicly.
Other residents and a speaker who works with utility projects said the issues could reflect poor project management rather than systemic contractor failure, but several council members said the permit form and notification process need clearer requirements. One council member said the immediate priority was simply that residents be notified of start dates, scope and expected disruptions.
Borough staff described some corrective actions: the superintendent and borough engineer told council they were satisfied overall with project performance and that the contractor had made repairs and apologies in at least one instance, while acknowledging isolated lapses. Borough attorney Steve Warner advised caution where the proposed resolution might duplicate or conflict with existing ordinance language.
After discussion the council moved to table the resolution to allow staff and council members to gather additional information from New Jersey American Water, review the relevant ordinance and hear more resident testimony; the tabling motion passed on a roll‑call vote (majority yes). The council urged the clerk and administrator to work with the borough engineer to update permit forms and notification practices and to report back at a future meeting.
