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Council To Discuss First Aid Fees; Rental Housing Limits; Firearm Use
By Catherine Snipe
At its upcoming meeting, the Brick Township Council may decide how much the first aid squad can charge insurance companies under the new paid first aid squad program.
The council is looking to establish a maximum fee for the service. The paid squad is new this year, and in its creation an ordinance allowed for insurance companies to be billed up to $500 for basic life support services. However, the township is seeking the maximum be increased $650.
The raise would allow costs for oxygen, gasoline and mileage to be included in the figure insurance companies pay.
Residents who need a first aid squad transport but have no insurance will not be affected, township officials said.
The $650 fee will be decided at the next township council meeting, September 26.
Also at the meeting, the council will introduce several other ordinances for first reading.
One deals with how many renters can live in one property. Township officials said some rental properties are overcrowded, and an ordinance must address the limits. The proposed ordinance would require the owner of the property to provide the square footage dimensions of each bedroom, living room area, kitchen area, bathroom area, and the name and number of all tenants. This application must be filled out before the tenant occupies the residence.
A second ordinance up for first reading regulates the discharge of firearms in the township. The ordinance states that the township's many waterways attract sportsmen seeking out migratory waterfowl approved for hunting. However, the township's residential areas continue to grow.
"The Mayor and Council are aware that harvesting migratory waterfowl by sportsmen in the areas surrounding Barnegat Bay has a long and rich history," states the proposed ordinance. "Simultaneously, the Mayor and Council of Brick Township are aware of the Township's ever expanding population, population which results in housing being constructed and occupied in areas which were formerly areas which waterfowlers and other sportsmen pursued their outdoor recreational activities."
Some of the residents moved from more urban zones, the ordinance states, and this population might associate the sound of the discharge of firearms as a sign of dangerous activities.
The areas affected by these competing interests are such places as the southerly side of the Metedeconk River east of New Jersey Route Highway 70 Bridge, according to the ordinance.
The ordinance proposes the number of hunters in the area pursuing ducks shall not exceed four on any given day, and must register with the police department.
Another ordinance the council will discuss this month is whether to accept Pier Avenue as a public right of way.
The council will hold its regular meeting at 7 p.m. on September 26.
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