County buys vape sensors for schools

The Sussex County Board of County Commissioners approved a resolution to spend $81,414 to reimburse schools for the purchase of vape detection systems at its meeting Feb. 13.

Money from an opioid litigation settlement will be used to reimburse the High Point Regional High School District for $39,814, Lenape Valley Regional High School Board of Education for $29,361, Wallkill Valley Regional High School for $10,000 and Sussex-Wantage Regional School District for $2,238.

Jill Space, deputy director of the board, said the board in December approved the purchase of 119 vape sensors for 12 middle and high schools in the county using opioid settlement funds.

”This initiative will serve as a resource for schools to help administration identify occurrences and enforce anti-vaping policies, assist in prevention efforts and overall deter vaping incidents,” she said.

Other resolutions approved by the board:

• Authorized $2.4 million for guide rail installation and repair work by Road Safety Systems.

• Awarded a one-year contract worth $122,824 to Waste Management of New Jersey for the collection of garbage and recycling from county buildings. The bid was the lowest of two by a responsible bidder.

• Acknowledged the appointment of Paul Fiore to a four-year term on the Sussex County Community College board of trustees.

• Reappointed Rachel Helt to the county Mental Health Board for a three-year term.

Open space referendum

Commissioner Jack DeGroot gave an update on his effort to promote the reauthorization of the county’s Farmland Preservation, Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund for another 10 years.

That referendum is expected to be on the November ballot. Voters are required to approve the fund, which is provided by taxpayers, every 10 years.

Money from the fund is used to acquire land and wetlands for the protection of environmentally sensitive areas; for preservation of scenic, cultural or historically valuable areas; and for public outdoor recreation areas.

Governing bodies in Sandyston, Green Township, Fredon, Stillwater, Frankford, Hamburg, Montague and Lafayette have approved resolutions in support of the referendum as have the Sussex County Board of Agriculture and the county Agriculture Development Board, DeGroot said.

Chris Carney, director of the commissioners board, pointed out that 47 percent of Sussex County is preserved and public land compared with 36 percent of Warren County and 29 percent of Hunterdon County.

Thirty-seven percent of the county’s land is available for development, not including land restricted by the state Department of Environmental Protection and setbacks required by zoning laws, he said.

The open space fund has collected an average of $395,000 a year for the past 10 years, he noted. ”We have $6.2 million in the coffers and if we’re not using that money, maybe we should take a break for a year or two or three and save the taxpayer $395,000.”

He suggested that the referendum might allow a freeze on collection of the tax.

Commissioner Alan Henderson asked where young people will buy homes “if everything’s preserved.”

”And where do we get future rateables from?” asked Commissioner Bill Hayden.

Space said, “We need smart growth. We need the voters to decide whether they want to continue with the open space tax or if they want to take a break. We still have the funds that we need to use that we already collected.”

Bridge replacement

Carney said plans are being finalized for replacement of a bridge over Berry Road in Wantage.

Work on the two-lane, 20-foot span is expected to begin this spring and be completed late this year or next spring.

DeGroot the county’s new seed library has more than 1,300 seed packets for vegetables, fruits and flowers.

Educational sessions are planned at 11 a.m. March 12 at Liberty Towers in Newton and at 11 a.m. April 9 at the Vernon Senior Center. For information, call 973-579-0555 ext. 1225.

More than 640 people responded to a survey about farmland preservation in the county.

”A clear majority of respondents expressed concern about the loss of farmland and recognized the importance of agriculture here in Sussex County,” DeGroot said.

Nearly two-thirds said they buy local agriculture products, mainly fruits and vegetables, from farmstands at least once a week during the season, and more than 80 percent said they have attended events at local farms, such as pick-your-own and hayrides.