New biz administrator on board in So. River Faces challenge with proposed remote meter-reading system BY MICHAEL ACKER Staff Writer Andrew Salerno SOUTH RIVER - - They may disagree on many issues, but Republicans and Democrats alike have welcomed Andrew Salerno as the borough's new business administrator. Salerno, who previously served as administrator in Jackson and Hamilton townships, has filled the vacancy left by Joseph Kunz, who resigned in September after two years to take a position closer to his home in northern New Jersey. Police Chief Wesley Bomba served as acting business administrator in Kunz's place until Salerno took over. At the Jan. 22 meeting, Republican Councilman Raymond Eppinger said he was excited that the governing body had hired a new business administrator. "The borough is going to gain a lot from your knowledge and experience," Eppinger told Salerno. Democratic Council President David Sliker told the Sentinel that the council had seven finalists for the position. Salerno's prior experience, he said, was a major reason he was chosen. "It was his overall qualifications," Sliker said. "He has 20 years' experience and extensive background with the joint insurance fund. He is an overall well-rounded business administrator." Sliker, who heads the borough's Finance Committee, said Salerno will review a draft of the proposed 2007 municipal budget and make recommendations. Salerno recently attended a meeting of the Public Power Association to learn more about the borough's electric utility, Sliker said. The utility will be a major focus for the new administrator. Kunz told the Sentinel when he stepped down that one of the next administrator's greatest challenges will be the implementation of a remote meter-reading system, for which the borough received bids. This issue has been a contentious one at council meetings, where residents regularly voice concerns regarding estimated meter readings. Mayor Robert Szegeti said the remote meter-reading device will save the borough on labor costs, compared to the drive-by meter reading method suggested by resident Jim Hutchison at the latest council meeting. Szegeti added that the remote system would be less time- consuming since the readings would come directly into the building. "It will be nice to be on the cutting edge," since the borough would be one of the first municipalities on the East Coast to implement the technology, Szegeti said. Hutchison, a customer service manager for Middlesex Water Co. who has worked with utility meters for over 20 years, told the governing body that a cost-benefit analysis would likely show that a remote meter-reading program would be costly and require years to implement. While he is glad the council is upgrading from the current manual system, he thinks the remote system is too far of a leap forward. "You are talking about close to 5,000 accounts where you have electric and water meters," Hutchison said. "There are residential, business, and industrial-type accounts. You have to have all of these units installed in order to install them borough-wide. It is an extremely massive project." Szegeti said Salerno's appointment will help the municipality move forward with efforts like the remote meter-reading project. "We are happy that he has come aboard and chosen South River," the mayor said. "We are looking to use his experience, expertise and years of knowledge to get South River back into the scheme of things and running smoothly again." Salerno, who was raised in the Oranges, said the first few weeks on the job have gone well. "I am still formulating my conclusions, and I will be presenting those to the mayor and council with whatever recommendations I might have," Salerno said. While he is not experienced with an electric utility, he has managed water and sewer utilities, which he noted are identical in terms of financial management. "I look forward to working with it," Salerno said. "I am aware of some of the concerns of the citizenry and I believe that they are all very solvable."