The BRICK Times
Vol. 21 - No. 8
In This Week’s Edition
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
MASSIVE FOREST FIRES IN 2021: Should We Be Concerned?
School Website To Keep Up With The Times
By Judy Smestad-Nunn BRICK - The school district will be launching a new website this summer that Superintendent of Schools Dr. Thomas Farrell said “would be the hub of communication, public information and promotional communication.” The site would contain social media, board meetings, archived videos and much more, he said. An introductory promotional video for the new website, called “We Are Brick Schools,” was presented during the most recent Board of Education meeting. The narrator said that the school district website has had four major revisions over the past 18 years, each taking advantage of changing and evolving web elements, coding and technology. The new website, version five, gives consideration to improvements in site aesthetics and content culture, and builds on the best aspects of the current website, including essential content and existing current information. Also, various embedded district and departmental school-level Twitter feeds would remain in place from version four. These will be incorporated into the new website as well as other popular features while addressing or improving three core areas. First, site aesthetics, including navigation, will receive a facelift, or a new theme. Using
BREAKING NEWS @
jerseyshoreonline.com
Community News Pages 10-15
Inside The Law Page 11
Dr. Izzy’s Sound News Page 16
Dear Joel Page 27
By Chris Lundy BERKELEY – Public property in senior communities can reopen without fear of lawsuits now that the governor has signed a bill providing them indemnity. This had been an issue since the start of the pandemic. Pools, cl u b h o u s e s , a n d
─Photo courtesy New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection NJ Forest Fire Service personnel do annually prescribed burns to get dry debris off the ground which prevents fires from spreading quickly. By Alyssa Riccardi JERSEY SHORE – Within the first half of 2021, two major forest fires have affected the lush greenery that runs throughout our region. Monmouth and Ocean counties are not only home to beautiful beaches, but also dense woods like the Pine Barrens
spreading across southern Ocean. In March of this year, a forest fire broke on the Brick/Lakewood border. The fire destroyed 167 acres of land, shutting down the Garden State Parkway and making several stores close down. Strong winds of around 40 miles per
hour and low humidity around 20 percent made it difficult for firefighters to battle the blaze. As a result, two commercial buildings were destroyed along with 29 residential properties being damaged. Officials were able to determine that the fire was intentionally set, al-
though they still have not identified any suspects.
“Detectives have attempted to interview approximately 60 potential witnesses and reviewed video recordings from cameras in proximity to the fire. The vast majority of these potential witnesses have been less than cooperative with our investigation, and (Fires - See Page 2)
(Website - See Page 5)
Senior Clubhouses Can Reopen
other amenities were closed to the public. At first, it was a safety issue. Homeowner associations didn’t have the staff to wipe down every surface or to police the area to keep people wearing masks and socially distancing. But the legal issue was looming in the background. If someone be-
lieved that they caught COVID-19 in a clubhouse, they could sue the homeowner association as well as every member of the board. It could potentially devastate the association and bankrupt those in charge. Even if they did everything right, and followed all the rules to keep people safe, they
could still get sued. It doesn’t matter that it might be difficult to prove that someone contracted a virus in a particular location. All that matters is that a lawsuit is possible. And lawsuits cost money. Meanwhile, residents were mad that they were paying dues for amenities that were closed.
Therefore, a new law was recently signed that will indemnify the homeowner associations and its officers. This means that they are protected from lawsuits. The State Senate bill, S-3584 and Assembly bill A-4979, were supported by a number of township gover ning bodies like Berkeley
July 10, 2021
where there are a lot of senior developments. The bill reads, in part: “Any illness, injury, death, or other damages arising from, or related to, an exposure to, or transmission of, COVID-19 on the premises of a planned real estate development shall not give rise to any cause of action.
“The im munit y provided pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall not apply to acts or omissions constituting a crime, actual fraud, actual malice, gross negligence, recklessness, or willful misconduct.” It’s important to
(Senior - See Page 4)
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