Streetscape Communications
Dear Cranford Township,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-5(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
Copies of emails that include "Streetscape” “Eastman” “Arterial” “NJDOT” & “topology” from January 1, 2022 through June 26, 2026 to/from all Township Committee Members serving between January 1, 2022 and June 26, 2026, Lavonna Patterson and Juan Carlos Nordelo.
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
Jennifer Rigney
Dear Ms. Rigney,
In regards to your recent OPRA request pertaining to copies of emails that include "Streetscape” “Eastman” “Arterial” “NJDOT” & “topology” from January 1, 2022 through June 26, 2026 to/from all Township Committee Members serving between January 1, 2022 and June 26, 2026, Lavonna Patterson and Juan Carlos Nordelo.
- Please provide specific email addresses/names of members of the Township Committee you are seeking records from.
- Please provide clarification for the names "Lavonna Patterson and Juan Carlos Nordelo" and what you are seeking.
Your request is considered overbroad and improper requests under OPRA cannot be processed without further clarification. Government agencies are required to disclose only identifiable government records that are specifically described in the request. Gannett N.J. Partners v. Middlesex, 379 N.J. Super. 205, 212 (App. Div. 2005). Neither OPRA nor the common law countenances open-ended searches of agency files. MAG Entertainment, LLC v. Div. of Alcoholic Bev Control, 375 N.J. Super. 534, 549 (App. Div. 2005), or permits a blanket request for every document an agency has on file on a topic, Bent v. Twp. of Stafford, 381 N.J. Super. 30, 37 (App. Div. 2005). Requests for information must identify the individuals or accounts to be searched and be confined to a discrete and limited subject matter. Burke v. Brandes, 429 N.J. Super. 169, 176-78 (App. Div. 2012). The request should not require the records custodian to undertake a subjective analysis to understand the nature of the request. Seeking particular information from the custodian is permissible; expecting the custodian to do research is not.” Paff v. Galloway Twp., 229 N.J. 340, 355 (2017).
If you do not respond to this communication by Tuesday, July 14, 2026, we will consider your request for public records closed.
With best regards,
Patricia Donahue
Municipal Clerk
Township of Cranford
8 Springfield Avenue
Cranford, NJ 07016
908-709-7210
Dear Clerk,
I am seeking all communications that include "Streetscape” “Eastman” “Arterial” “NJDOT” & “topology” from January 1, 2022 through June 26, 2026 to/from all Township Committee Members serving between January 1, 2022 and June 26, 2026
The specific names of township committee members are:
Brian Andrews
Kathleen Miller Prunty
Patrick Giblin
Mary O’Connor
Terrence Curran
Gina Black
Paul Gallo
Ryan Cooper - Township Attorney
Juan Carlos Nordelo - within the capacity of Planning Board Member and Complete Street Advisory Board Member
Lavonna Patterson - within the capacities of Business Administrator, CFO, Director of Finance, Certified Municipal Finance Administrator and DMC Support
Yours sincerely,
Jennifer Rigney
Dear Clerk,
I am following up regarding my clarification email concerning my OPRA request. I have not yet received a response and wanted to confirm that my clarification was received.
Could you please provide an update on the status of my request and advise when I can expect a response?
Thank you for your time, and I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely,
Jennifer Rigney
Dear Ms. Rigney,
We are in receipt of the two OPRA emails received from you on Saturday, July 11th.
We will be reviewing your OPRA inquiries early next week and plan to meet with the Township's IT consultant on Tuesday if deemed appropriate.
We will reach out if further clarification is needed.
Please don't hesitate to call me to further discuss (I'll be back in work on Monday at 8:30 a.m. at 908-709-7210).
With best regards,
Patricia Donahue
Municipal Clerk
Township of Cranford
8 Springfield Avenue
Cranford, NJ 07016
908-709-7210
Dear Ms. Rigney,
The Clerk's Office is in receipt of your recent OPRA request for an email search as follows:
- January 1, 2022 and June 26, 2026
- Brian Andrews
- Kathleen Miller Prunty
- Patrick Giblin
- Mary O’Connor
- Terrence Curran
- Gina Black
- Paul Gallo
- Ryan Cooper - Township Attorney
- Juan Carlos Nordelo - within the capacity of Planning Board Member and Complete Street Advisory Board Member
- Lavonna Patterson - within the capacities of Business Administrator, CFO, Director of Finance, Certified Municipal Finance Administrator and DMC Support
- Using the search terms:
- "Streetscape”
- “Eastman”
- “Arterial”
- “NJDOT”
- “topology”
The Clerk's Office presented this email search request to the Township's IT professional yesterday. Based on the traffic study email search that he conducted for your other OPRA request, the IT professional believes that such an email search will yield approximately 2,500 emails.
Each email must be examined individually for potential redactions of exempt information. Due to the volume and the level of review required, this falls within the type of work that constitutes an extraordinary expenditure of time and effort under N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5(c).
Based on the expected number of emails and the detailed review needed, we estimate that the process will require approximately 21 to 42 hours of staff time. Using the applicable hourly rate of $25.98 (reflects the salary of the lowest-paid employee in the office who is qualified to perform the required review and redaction work), the projected special service charge is $ 545.58 to $1,091.16.
As required by OPRA, we must provide this estimate before proceeding. Please confirm whether you wish to continue with the request at this cost. No additional work will be performed until written approval is received. Please respond to this communication by Friday, July 31, 2026 or we will consider your request for public records closed.
Please do not hesitate to discuss this matter with me via a telephone call. I can be reached at 908-709-7210. FYI, I am off for vacation leave for one week beginning this Friday at 1:30 p.m. ('off the week of July 27th).
With best regards,
Patty
908-709-7210
Patricia Donahue
Municipal Clerk
Township of Cranford
8 Springfield Avenue
Cranford, NJ 07016
908-709-7210
Dear Clerk,
Thank you for your response.
In an effort to narrow my request and reduce the volume of responsive records, I would like to revise my request as follows:
Please conduct an email search for the period of January 1, 2024 through June 26, 2026 using only the search terms:
* “Eastman”
* “Streetscape”
To/From the following custodians only:
* Brian Andrews
* Kathleen Miller Prunty
* Paul Gallo
* Juan Carlos Nordelo, within his capacity as a Planning Board Member and Complete Streets Advisory Board Member
* Lavonna Patterson, within her capacities as Business Administrator, Chief Financial Officer, Director of Finance, Certified Municipal Finance Officer, and DMC Support
Based on this narrowed request, please advise whether a special service charge would still apply and, if so, provide an updated estimate before processing the request.
Yours sincerely,
Jennifer Rigney
Please send all OPRA requests to [Cranford Township request email]
Hello,
You have reached the email of Patricia Donahue. Please note that I will
be out of the office until Monday, August 3rd.
If you need immediate assistance, please contact Deputy Township Clerk
Ashley Smith at 908-709-7207, Patty Kozlowksi at 908-709-7200, x7200 and
Cathy Danetra Cameron at 908-709-3982.
Please send all OPRA requests to [Cranford Township request email]
Thank you,
Patricia Donahue
Township Clerk
908-709-7210
[1][email address]
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]