RE: OPRA Abandoned/VACANT/Probate- Bergen County
Dear Wallington Borough,
I appreciate your consideration of the following matter. Under OPRA and the Common Law Right of Access, I am requesting a current list of records for each of the following be delivered via e-mail in EXCEL format:
1) All abandoned/vacant residential properties (Property Class 2)
2) All condemned properties
3) All residential properties with delinquent taxes
4) All residential properties for which a Lis Pendens notice has been filed or that are currently in probate
5) All properties that are absentee-owned
6) All properties with delinquent water and sewer which date back up to 1 year, including amounts owed
7) All properties currently listed with water shut-off notice
8) All properties with code violations, including the type of violation
9) All properties with notices of abatement
Again, I appreciate your attention to this matter and thank you in advance for your help.
Yours faithfully,
B. Saint-Jean
B. Saint-Jean-
On March 9, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a State of
Emergency which has had an impact on Wallington and its vendors and
professionals. Wallington is dealing with limited staff and numerous issues
related to this emergency. Additionally, on March 18, 2020, Wallington
closed its borough offices to the public and instituted limited work hours.
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, New Jersey pursuant to A3849 requires
custodians of records to make a ‘reasonable effort’ to comply with OPRA
requests within seven (7) business days.
This request requires additional time beyond the seven (7) business days to
fulfill. It is being processed and shall be forwarded over to you. OPRA
allows custodians to seek extensions of time pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5.i.
Specifically, OPRA states that, “the requestor shall be advised by the
custodian when the record can be made available. If the record is not made
available by that time, access shall be deemed denied.” This request
requires an additional extension of time until August 31, 2020.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Borough of Wallington to deny access.
At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior Court
of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records Council (GRC)
by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC
by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O. Box 819, Trenton,
NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at their web site at
www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other questions about the law.
All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be
directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Respectfully,
Greg Zagaja
Deputy Clerk
B. Saint-Jean-
On March 9, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a State of
Emergency which has had an impact on Wallington and its vendors and
professionals. Wallington is dealing with limited staff and numerous issues
related to this emergency. Additionally, on March 18, 2020, Wallington
closed its borough offices. Additionally, as a result of Governor Murphy’s
executive orders, vendors, professionals and borough employees are
experiencing additional lags and delays as a result of being forced into
quarantine while visiting states outside of NJ for business, family
emergencies, funerals, and/or vacation. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19,
New Jersey pursuant to A3849 requires custodians of records to make a
‘reasonable effort’ to comply with OPRA requests within seven (7) business
days.
This request requires additional time beyond the seven (7) business days to
fulfill. It is being processed and shall be forwarded over to you. OPRA
allows custodians to seek extensions of time pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5.i.
Specifically, OPRA states that, “the requestor shall be advised by the
custodian when the record can be made available. If the record is not made
available by that time, access shall be deemed denied.” This request
requires an additional extension of time until September 11, 2020.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Borough of Wallington to deny access.
At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior Court
of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records Council (GRC)
by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC
by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O. Box 819, Trenton,
NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at their web site at
www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other questions about the law.
All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be
directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Respectfully,
Greg Zagaja
Deputy Clerk
B. Saint-Jean-
On March 9, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a State of
Emergency which has had an impact on Wallington and its vendors and
professionals. Wallington is dealing with limited staff and numerous
issues related to this emergency. Additionally, on March 18, 2020,
Wallington closed its borough offices. Additionally, as a result of
Governor Murphy's executive orders, vendors, professionals and borough
employees are experiencing additional lags and delays as a result of being
forced into quarantine while visiting states outside of NJ for business,
family emergencies, funerals, and/or vacation. Due to the outbreak of
COVID-19, New Jersey pursuant to A3849 requires custodians of records to
make a 'reasonable effort' to comply with OPRA requests within seven (7)
business days.
Attached is a paff for #1, #2, #5, #6, #7, and #9 of your request.
For #8, please contact the court for violations; A copy of the NJ
Judiciary records request form has been attached.
Wallington Municipal Court
500 Madison Street
Carlstadt, NJ 07072
P. 201-531-7185
F. 201-939-4648
I am still awaiting the results for #3 and #4 of your request.
This request requires additional time beyond the seven (7) business days
to fulfill. It is being processed and shall be forwarded over to you.
OPRA allows custodians to seek extensions of time pursuant to N.J.S.A.
47:1A-5.i. Specifically, OPRA states that, "the requestor shall be
advised by the custodian when the record can be made available. If the
record is not made available by that time, access shall be deemed denied."
This request requires an additional extension of time until September 25,
2020.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a
right to challenge the decision by the Borough of Wallington to deny
access.
At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior
Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records
Council (GRC) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may
contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O.
Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at their
web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other questions
about the law.
All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be
directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Respectfully,
Greg Zagaja
Deputy Clerk
Ben-
Attached is the balance of your OPRA request and shall be considered
fulfilled.
Respectfully,
GregZ