How Much Has Sandy Cost Bernards?

"Superstorm" Sandy was more than just a devastating weather event that shut down the Somerset Hills for a week, or more in some spots. It also was a major expense for local towns with costs even now showing up in municipal budgets being introduced in Bernards Township and nearby.

Bernards Township Administrator Bruce McArthur has several times estimated that Sandy and its aftermath cost the municipality about $600,000. He repeated that figure on Tuesday night, when the Township Committee voted to introduce a $35.14-million budget for this year that is scheduled to come up for a final vote and public hearing on May 14.

In the immediate aftermath of the storm's arrival on Oct. 29, Bernards Township declared a $250,000 emergency, McArthur said. With trees blocking many major roads and public property throughout the township, the funds were spent mostly for the hiring of tree professionals and vegetative debris disposal costs, he said.

McArthur said that $250,000 is in the budget in 2013, along with another $100,000 to replenish a snow removal fund after $150,000 was spent the previous October, in 2011, for the snowstorm that struck and damaged many trees that fall.

The costs associated with taking care of the Sandy-related debris and other costs related to that storm did not come from the snow removal trust account, McArthur said.

McArthur on Tuesday told the Township Committee that the township has just received an insurance settlement for other damage that Sandy caused for municipal property and equipment.

On Wednesday, he said an insurance settlement of $121,000 covered damage to guiderails, fencing, and equipment such as a police car on duty the night of the storm, speed warning trailers, and the Basking Ridge Fire Company's siren controller.

In addition, the storm caused damage, also covered by the same insurance claim, to roofs at the police headquarters and community center, and to a Dunham Park storage shed, tiles at town hall, damaged batting cages at Mountain Park and wrecked township-owned light fixtures and similar equipment, McArthur said.

Like other towns, and individuals, McArthur said Bernards has filed a claim with the Federal Emergency Managment Agency (FEMA). He said he expects the township ultimately will collect reimbursement of $250,000 to 275,000 from FEMA for protective measures taken as a result of the storm, and also for some of the debris cost cleanup.

The Bernards Township Sewerage Authority, which has a separate account for users of that system, anticipates collecting about $40,000 to $50,000 from FEMA separately from the township, McArthur said.
 
On Wednesday, he said that of the estimated $600,000 spent as a result of the storm — including election mobilization, communications, power outage communication, mobilizing an emergency center, cleanup and more — he expects the final net cost being picked up by the township ultimately will be in the neighborhood of $300,000 to $350,000.

However, looking ahead, last fall's prolonged power outage and the arrival of cold weather as November set in while many still were without electricity, has resulted in the township making plans to turn the large courtroom at town hall into a central command and warming center if necessary.

Township officials are planning to spend funds this year to install a generator powerful enough to keep town hall up and running.

Placing a generator in a municipal facility housed in a old home with original sections dating back to 1904 and different circuit systems — which also requires state Department of Environmental Protection approval for installation — is relatively complicated, officials discovered.

As a result, the Township Committee in Marchwarded a contract of up to $18,400 to professional engineer Nancy C. Wohlleb of the firm Hatch Mott MacDonald for an engineering design for a standby municipal generator powerful enough so McArthur said it could power the entire building. He said keeping the township's information technology system running as a major concern.

McArthur said the township staff had not had much luck coming up with a plan for a generator, and had received a proposal for a generator that would need to be converted from diesel to natural gas, and would cost in excess of $400,000, more than the township wants to spend.

Now, the township expects to focus on acquiring a diesel generator that would cost less than the other proposal — although McArthur added he couldn't yet say how much less. The cost of revamping the courtroom and main meeting room also will be appropriated from within the budget, officials said.

Neighboring Bernardsville's costs higher

Even so, Bernards Township's costs from the storm were less than in neighboring Bernardsville, where this year's 2013 budget is expected to absorb the first of five $500,000 payments toward the borough's costs resulting from Sandy.

Bernardsville Administrator Ralph Maresca last month said the borough's total cost for Sandy was about $2.5 million. However, he added that Bernardsville — which has filed an application for help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency — expects to be reimbursed for about $2 million of that amount. However, he and other officials said this year's budget must include upfront costs.

A major expense in Bernardsville was a townwide collection along public roads in which an outside contractor, accompanied by the public works department, to pick up all logs and vegetative debris that were supposed to be Sandy-related.

The cost of that pickup soared as residents moved more and more logs and vegetative debris into the right of ways along roads.

Bernards Township did not hold storm debris collection

Bernards officials decided early on not to repeat 2011's collection from debris left by two major storms that year. The Pill Hill Recycling center was opened for additional hours and contractors were allowed to bring in debris from township homes.

However, McArthur on Tuesday said that the facility will go back to its regular schedule later this month, and contractors no longer will be able to enter the center with materials.