WEBVTT

METADATA
Video-Count: 1
Video-1: youtube.com/watch?v=FHIIEgAK0UU

Part: 1

1
00:03:54.760 --> 00:16:10.800
Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> We all set? All set? Okay. I open the Bernards Township Committee meeting for July 14th, 2026. Please stand if you are able for the flag

2
00:16:10.800 --> 00:16:31.680
salute. >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for >> Adequate notice of this meeting was posted on the bulletin board in the

3
00:16:31.680 --> 00:16:47.120
municipal building, on the township website, filed with the township clerk, and transmitted to the Bernardsville News, Courier News, Tap Into, and Patch.com on December 17th, 2025. Any motion to enter closed session will be made in accordance with the Open Public

4
00:16:47.120 --> 00:17:03.240
Meetings Act, and will state the general nature of the matters to be discussed. Minutes of such closed sessions will be made available to the public when the need for confidentiality no longer exists, and the matters have been fully resolved. No new business shall be introduced after 10:30 p.m. Public

5
00:17:03.240 --> 00:17:18.880
comment will be accepted at all meetings. Each speaker shall be limited to 5 minutes. All meetings shall adjourn no later than 11:30 p.m. Christie, roll call, please. >> Ms. Asey? >> Here. >> Mr. Hodges? >> Here. >> Mr. McNally? >> Here.

6
00:17:18.880 --> 00:17:34.440
>> Mr. Tompkins? >> Here. >> Mayor Duarte McCarthy? >> Here. Christie, any executive session this evening? >> None this evening, Mayor. >> Christie, any presentations? >> None this evening. >> Christie, any public work session needed? >> None needed. >> Christie, any correspondence?

7
00:17:34.440 --> 00:17:49.480
>> None this evening. >> That brings us to public comment. During the public comment period, comments are welcomed on any agenda item. However, if an ordinance is listed for its own public hearing on the agenda, please hold your comments for that public particular public hearing. The public

8
00:17:49.480 --> 00:18:05.600
comment portion of the agenda is not structured as a question and answer session, yet offers an opportunity to share your thoughts with the Township Committee. The Committee may or may not address these comments during the meeting. However, all comments are considered. To address this body, the speaker must come forward to the

9
00:18:05.600 --> 00:18:22.080
microphone and state his or her name and address for the record. To ensure an orderly and respectful meeting, speakers should avoid personal attacks, inflammatory language, or derogatory remarks toward any individual or group. Each speaker is limited to 5 minutes. The clerk will keep time. Please

10
00:18:22.080 --> 00:18:38.480
promptly yield the floor when time is called and return to your seat. Your cooperation in adherence to these rules of order will ensure an orderly and respectful meeting. And for those here for the first time, if an agenda item is on is here, you can come during public comment. If it's not here, you would

11
00:18:38.480 --> 00:19:02.720
come during our second public comment. I open public comment. >> Good evening. My name is Anthony Risorto and I live at on Sherwood Drive. A few of us have come here tonight to express our concern regarding the old school on Lord Stirling Road.

12
00:19:02.720 --> 00:19:20.560
>> So, that item would be for second public comment. That should be pretty soon. >> Okay. I'll You want me to >> Of course. No, you can um take a seat, but yes, thank you so much. Okay, I close public comment. Next, we invite staff comments, Township

13
00:19:20.560 --> 00:19:37.600
Committee comments, including board and liaison reports. Mr. Monaco. >> Oh, thank you, Mayor. Earlier this evening, we held the swearing-in ceremony for our police officers, so I want to congratulate our three newest officers and welcome them aboard, as well as our six other existing officers who have been promoted

14
00:19:37.600 --> 00:19:53.960
to various ranks. So, congratulations to them. I want to welcome Michael Lancaster to our recreation department, new hire, and I congratulate Courtney Worthington, promoted to roads foreman in our DPW building. >> Okay, thank you. Christie, any comments?

15
00:19:53.960 --> 00:20:09.000
>> None this evening. Thank you. >> Mr. Bilardo, any comments? >> No, thank you, Mayor. >> Very well. Um Committeeman Hodges. >> Thank you, Mayor. I just want to take a brief moment and thank our Township staff for being here through the most through

16
00:20:09.000 --> 00:20:25.680
the mess of the most recent storm that we had. I know that many of them probably had to come in and give up personal time to help out. Many probably worked well over their regular shifts, and I just wanted to say thank you. I know that there is a there's a lot that goes into it and a lot of coordination

17
00:20:25.680 --> 00:20:40.720
that needs to happen and a lot of safety concerns, and I just want to thank them for their time and commitment. >> I know you were out of power for 5 days, so you were >> Uh 6 days. >> 6 days, yeah. So, thank you. It's very gracious. Committeeman McNally.

18
00:20:40.720 --> 00:20:56.640
>> Yes, thank you, Mayor. Um I too would like to extend my congratulations to our new hires in the police department, uh officers Gladden, Benjamin, and Molina. Uh I'd further like to congratulate uh our newly promoted officers, um

19
00:20:56.640 --> 00:21:13.880
Corporals Moore and McCray, uh Corporal Kulick, uh Sergeant Albanese, Sergeant Severino, and of course uh Nieri. Um having worked with the police department uh uh closely for a number of years now as a member of the police subcommittee,

20
00:21:13.880 --> 00:21:28.280
um our department is really second to none, and it keeps getting better with a lot of these new hires and promotions. So, I want to congratulate the department, its leadership, past and present for all their efforts. Thank you, Mayor. >> Thank you. Committee Woman AC.

21
00:21:28.280 --> 00:21:44.840
>> Thank you. So, the last um 3 weeks have been really busy, and so I just want to touch on a few of them and then speak about some things that are upcoming. Um as was briefly mentioned, today was a really wonderful celebration for the activities that happened before this meeting with the uh new hires, the

22
00:21:44.840 --> 00:21:59.760
promotions, and the life-saving award that was presented. So, just a wonderful way to start the evening. Um the FIFA World Cup is still going on, and um I wanted to specifically call out um our mayor and thank her for her

23
00:21:59.760 --> 00:22:16.040
persistence to arrange the ceremonies where we presented a key to the city as well as resolution to both Morocco and Brazil. I say this because having been on all those FIFA planning calls, this activity, these welcome events,

24
00:22:16.040 --> 00:22:31.160
were uh not required. They were encouraged. Um definitely not mandatory and very difficult to execute. Um I saw the many emails over weeks using not only FIFA contacts, but others. So, I am just very

25
00:22:31.160 --> 00:22:47.160
grateful for the history-making opportunity to have um representatives from these countries building those connections for our community. So, thank you, Mayor, for that. And very grateful again to our entire community for their support with that. And And I would be remiss if I didn't

26
00:22:47.160 --> 00:23:02.920
say that the Welcome World Award program is still going on. We still have our eight businesses in there. Um so, please make sure that you uh leverage if you go to the township webpage, you can see which those businesses are. And please uh please visit them and um check in for that particular tool.

27
00:23:02.920 --> 00:23:18.520
I also wanted to, um, thinking about the the last couple weeks, um, power restoration. Wow. Um, as was mentioned, a tremendous thank you to all of the staff, specifically our police department, our first responders, and not only the police department, also

28
00:23:18.520 --> 00:23:34.400
our first aid and our fire companies as well as DPW. I also am grateful, uh, also to our mayor for her advocacy for encouraging, uh, power restoration during the July 3rd and 4th outages and all the associated

29
00:23:34.400 --> 00:23:49.040
communications. So, I appreciated that and I was very happy to support. It was sort of PTSD back to 2024, um, and trying to ensure that, you know, priorities were given and our our, you know, our residents, this very

30
00:23:49.040 --> 00:24:05.520
widespread storm affected the, you know, essentially the entire state. So, again, very grateful for that. Some other fun things to call out, uh, you know, I just today, I just came from the, um, the Bernards Township Parks and Rec the

31
00:24:05.520 --> 00:24:22.000
Jersey Peach Boys concert. That band is amazing. There are two more concerts that are happening, um, this this summer. Also, last week I attended, cuz I have kids that love to do this sort of stuff, the family fun night at Harry Dunham Park was outstanding. And again, the police department's there, Liberty

32
00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:37.160
Corner fire company was there, our fire inspectors were there. It's just wonderful for everybody to be out and and engaging with each other. Then, um, also enjoying the the library. The library is way more than books. And

33
00:24:37.160 --> 00:24:54.240
for instance, I participated in a library program on July 7th. Uh, Karen Andreola organized a program called Organizing iPhone Photos. Um, I was razzed in my house of like, come on, Mom, why? You don't know how to do that. Um, I got some really helpful tools and

34
00:24:54.240 --> 00:25:08.880
tips. It was also shortened because we lost power during that time because that does not have an emergency backup. And so, um she's going to run that program again. So, I highly recommend she in particular does a lot of great programs tech-wise.

35
00:25:08.880 --> 00:25:25.720
But regardless, there is program literally for all ages, littles, mids, uh adults, seniors. Um in fact, they are supporting a local Girl Scout uh who's conducting her gold award called the Transform Textile Club. And

36
00:25:25.720 --> 00:25:43.280
so, it did something um one of my children went in one of their coffee clubs today. So, the library is really more than books. And I highly encourage you there's too many programs that they have going on. Please check them out online. You can subscribe to their programs. It's just an amazing resource. Then switching to the health department,

37
00:25:43.280 --> 00:25:59.560
uh skin cancer screening's back in this week. So, hopefully um you have that reservation. If you don't, please contact um it is a registration required. So, I have some friends that are doing it and I'm excited to hear that hopefully they come through without any issues. There also is another

38
00:25:59.560 --> 00:26:15.720
wonderful program and I have to do the shout-out. This is uh Table for One or Two with Nourish and Thrive. So, these dieticians do not they give helpful information related to nutrition, but they also give very practical cooking cooking tips

39
00:26:15.720 --> 00:26:31.800
including um uh recipes. And so, it's something that the next one especially cooking for one or two is sometimes harder than cooking for a family of four. So, this event is July 23rd. Um they do suggest that you try to register so they know how many

40
00:26:31.800 --> 00:26:46.720
are coming and it's going to be held at the Chesterboro Municipal Building. So, um that is on the website. Please register and um it's been a it's a great summer and can't wait to see all the rest of you out. Thank you. >> Thank you, Jen. Deputy Mayor?

41
00:26:46.720 --> 00:27:00.760
>> Uh thank you, Mayor. Um I would just like to uh again congratulate um the new hires, the promotions, and uh, the officers that received the life saving award. Uh, really is

42
00:27:00.760 --> 00:27:16.280
uh, is very special. Uh, also uh, to the um, uh, employees of the town uh, during the power outage, above and beyond. Um, I was out and about a little bit uh, the day after

43
00:27:16.280 --> 00:27:33.440
out of Bernard's Township and the damage was statewide and it was pretty severe. So, resources were stretched incredibly thin. So, um, although uh, Brett might have been the last person to get power, way to take one for the team,

44
00:27:33.440 --> 00:27:48.920
um, they really did a Herculean job uh, getting everything back online and getting the uh, streets cleared. So, uh, thank you so much. >> Thank you, Deputy Mayor. So, I'll reaffirm what everyone has said about the wonderful celebration we had earlier today and welcome to our newest

45
00:27:48.920 --> 00:28:06.280
employees and our promotion of Courtney Worthington. Um, a couple of reflections on the storm outage. Um, as you all know, we had a storm on July 3rd that caused extensive damage. We began with 847 customers out. That went up to a high of 2,267

46
00:28:06.280 --> 00:28:20.720
for about a couple hours when a substation went down and then these day the outages uh, decreased resulting in pretty much a full restoration by Thursday, July 9th. Um, JCP&L reported there were 340,000 customers of their

47
00:28:20.720 --> 00:28:36.520
1.2 million impacted from the storm. Um, 85% of the restoration was achieved by day four and days five and six they moved into smaller pockets of damages and outages. We know, with this storm most of the outages were due to trees, including

48
00:28:36.520 --> 00:28:52.080
many within private property. And in addition, because we've all had this pretty significant drought, um, many of the trees that were impacted were actually healthy trees and that's which is unfortunate, along with limbs off of these trees that fell. And that was due

49
00:28:52.080 --> 00:29:08.400
to both the drought condition and the very high winds that were clocked at about 80 miles per hour plus. Um our municipality was within the top 10 most heavily impacted from the storm, along with others such as Harding, Morris Township, Berkeley Heights, New Providence, and Summit. And during that

50
00:29:08.400 --> 00:29:23.880
time, we did work closely with contacts in JCPL, the Board of Public Utilities, our assemblypersons, the governor's office to ensure that focus and attention were brought to the township. Notwithstanding the damage sustained created complexity in repairs. Um if you

51
00:29:23.880 --> 00:29:39.800
were among those, you know what it's like to be without power for several days. Um we'll be reviewing areas of opportunity with our partners as always for the future, along how to best provide data and facts to our residents. Um you know, lots of folks are on Rave Alert, uh which has character

52
00:29:39.800 --> 00:29:55.280
limitations, so there's only so much information you can share through Rave. Uh we did put communication on the township website. Committeewoman Eacobacci and I both posted on Facebook pages, but that being said, uh we always welcome input around how to best continue to communicate to our

53
00:29:55.280 --> 00:30:11.440
residents. In the meantime, as as has been already shared, we want to express our thanks to the Department of Public Works, which was relentlessly going around town, cutting trees, cutting branches, cleaning streets and roadways. Our police department that was lockstep

54
00:30:11.440 --> 00:30:27.960
with them, our Office of Emergency Management, both local and county, our fire companies and EMS for just their ongoing persistence and support throughout the past week. Uh their commitment to Bernards Township and their professionalism is greatly appreciated. I also want to express

55
00:30:27.960 --> 00:30:44.200
appreciation from the township to the Somerset Hills YMCA, which opened their facilities to individuals and families with power outages, along with the Delta Hotel, Courtyard Basking Ridge, Somerset Hills Hotel, and Old Mill Inn, which Committee Woman AC and I contacted to

56
00:30:44.200 --> 00:30:59.200
provide discounts to families without power and who had to relocate during the outage. So, those were you know, we've learned a lot and hopefully fingers crossed we won't have a storm this week, which I'm seeing some potential threat, but um thank you all for your patience

57
00:30:59.200 --> 00:31:15.600
and thoughtfulness during this time. As Committee Woman AC shared, we had the pleasure of meeting with representatives from the Brazilian national team on July 3rd and a presentation was made to the representatives from there and it was very well received along with Mr. Greg Romano, who is vice president and deputy

58
00:31:15.600 --> 00:31:31.440
general counsel of Verizon. And we have two couple of things coming up. On Wednesday, July 29th, um our CFO is Shawn McCarthy, Dave Santarelli, who's our tax assessor, and Kevin Santangelo, well, our tax collector,

59
00:31:31.440 --> 00:31:48.160
will do a presentation on understanding your taxes. That is on Wed- Wednesday, July 29th. This will be taped, so those who cannot see it can view it on live stream. Uh we will also have in August a national night out on Tuesday, August 4th. This is a wonderful way to connect

60
00:31:48.160 --> 00:32:04.040
our first responders with the community. It's offered by our police department in partnership with National Night Out and it's here at 6:00 p.m. And then in September, as part of our 250th anniversary celebrations, Farmstead Arts will be hosting Voices of the Revolution

61
00:32:04.040 --> 00:32:20.360
and that's on Saturday, September 19th and it'll be a wonderful opportunity to hear and see about our own history including some actors who have been walking around town since charter day providing stories about the personages from our time that um brought life to

62
00:32:20.360 --> 00:32:37.240
history in this township. And that's all I have. Kristi, any fire and rescue appointments? >> None this evening, Mayor. >> Kristi, unfinished business? >> Ordinance 2601, an ordinance to amend salary ordinance 2529 fixing the compensation of certain officers and

63
00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:55.480
employees of the Township of Bernards on or after July 1st, 2026 and this is a public hearing. >> Thank you, Christie. I open the public hearing and welcome comments on this ordinance. Okay, that's a no, that's right. No worries. Okay?

64
00:32:55.480 --> 00:33:10.200
I close the public hearing. Do we have any discussion? >> Mayor, I move that ordinance 2601 be adopted and as ever and advertise as required by law. >> Second.

65
00:33:10.200 --> 00:33:26.240
>> Christie, roll call, please. >> Ms. Eacie. >> Yes. >> Mr. Hodges. >> Yes. >> Mr. McNally. >> Yes. >> Mr. Tompkins. >> Yes. >> Mayor Duarte McCarthy. >> Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. That brings us to new business consent agenda. The items

66
00:33:26.240 --> 00:33:41.280
listed within the consent agenda portion of the meeting have been referred to the Township Committee for reading and study. A copy posted on the website are considered routine and will be enacted by one motion of the Township Committee with no separate discussion. If separate discussion is required, the item may be

67
00:33:41.280 --> 00:33:57.520
removed from the agenda by Township Committee action and placed on the regular agenda under new business. Would any of my colleagues like an item removed from the consent agenda? Seeing none, may I have a motion? >> So moved.

68
00:33:57.520 --> 00:34:11.879
>> Second. >> Christie, roll call, please. >> Ms. Eacie. >> Yes. >> Mr. Hodges. >> Yes. >> Mr. McNally. >> Yes. >> Mr. Tompkins. >> Yes. >> Mayor Duarte McCarthy. >> Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. Christie, approval of

69
00:34:11.879 --> 00:34:27.080
minutes? >> June 23rd, 2026 closed session minutes and June 23rd, 2026 open session minutes. >> May I have a motion to approve our minutes? >> So moved. >> Okay, all in favor? >> Aye.

70
00:34:27.080 --> 00:34:44.040
>> And now, public comment. Comments are welcome during the second public comment period of this meeting on any matter over which the Township Committee has jurisdiction. The public comment portion of the agenda follows the same rules of order as the first public comment. Each speaker is limited to 5 minutes. The

71
00:34:44.040 --> 00:35:00.640
clerk will keep time. Please promptly yield the floor when time is called and return to your seat. Your cooperation and adherence to these rules rules of order will ensure an orderly and respectful meeting. Thank you for your patience. I open public comment. >> [laughter]

72
00:35:00.640 --> 00:35:16.600
>> Uh my name is Anthony uh Risorto. I live at 20 Sherwood Drive. Uh just before I get started, I just want to say I I go with the comments of the board um uh the committee um about the the police department. Um congratulations to the new hires and the pro- promotions as well as I'm not as

73
00:35:16.600 --> 00:35:32.840
bad as uh committee member Hodges, but I was out of power until until Wednesday. So, I appreciate all the all the work that everyone in the town did for that. So, thank you. Um >> [clears throat] >> A few of us have come here tonight to express our concern regarding the old school on Lord Stirling Road.

74
00:35:32.840 --> 00:35:49.440
But, we will keep our comments short out of respect for your time. I'm a neighbor of the property at 99 Lord Stirling Road. I understand that the property is waiting for review by the planning board, but I wanted to speak up to let you know that contrary to the statements made made by Mr. Rocker's business

75
00:35:49.440 --> 00:36:05.440
associates from a town um from town at the Township Committee meetings, the neighborhood is not in favor of this property being developed beyond the four to five houses which is currently zoned. In the years that Mr. Rocker has owned this site, he's done nothing to maintain it. He has left filled dumpsters on the

76
00:36:05.440 --> 00:36:21.960
property. He has not cut the grass, nor has he removed snow or leaves, and has left windows open regardless of the weather. >> [clears throat] >> I'd like to address Mr. Rocker's alleged concern about vandals on the property. He only just recently put up no trespassing signs last fall.

77
00:36:21.960 --> 00:36:36.920
I live across the street and I can see the barn from my windows. It is intentionally It is intentional neglect disrupting the property, not teens. I have never heard nor seen any kids or anyone hanging out there. I also go past the driveway multiple times a day and

78
00:36:36.920 --> 00:36:52.520
I've never seen any evidence of kids hanging out there. If kids were hanging out on the property, they would not be discreet. I would hear them and I would see beer cans or other evidence. As I said, he had never shoveled the driveway while we had a very snowy winter. There were never any footprints or tire tracks

79
00:36:52.520 --> 00:37:23.280
going to the house or barn. I hope that you keep this in mind when considering the statements made by Mr. Rocker and his business associates. Thank you for your time. >> Thank you. >> Hi everyone. Um my name is Matthew Macliano. I'm a resident of 154 Riverside Drive. Uh I'm here to state my concern about

80
00:37:23.280 --> 00:37:39.280
Mr. Rocker's development on the site of the former Lord Stirling School as well as the adjacent Sherwood property and the rezoning application. My property backs up against the woods that run along the back of Mr. Rocker's property. I have seen newspaper articles with

81
00:37:39.280 --> 00:37:54.160
statements from Mr. Rocker's business associates claiming that he has the neighborhood's support. He does not. Every neighbor that I have spoken to is opposed to him developing this property beyond the four or five houses for which it is zoned.

82
00:37:54.160 --> 00:38:10.160
We do not think the property is a hazard and we are not desperate for it to be developed at any cost. We respect the historical value that the Lord Stirling property uh and we are against any cluster housing in our neighborhood. All the houses in our area are over 1

83
00:38:10.160 --> 00:38:24.960
acre and are subject to strict setback ordinances. We ask that Mr. Rocker be required to abide by the same laws. We are asking that you not place the burden on the residences of Riverside, Castle, Hilltop,

84
00:38:24.960 --> 00:38:40.360
and of course the remaining Sherwood homeowners for bailing Mr. Rocker and his associates out of their investment if they're unable to work within these zoning laws. As I'm sure you will have or found in your findings, the amount of traffic that Mr. Rocker plans to bring through

85
00:38:40.360 --> 00:39:04.440
these neighborhoods will ultimately put a strain on the residents and not only increase congestion, but from a safety standpoint and the implications they pose to all the families living Thank you again for your time. >> Thank you. >> Good evening.

86
00:39:04.440 --> 00:39:20.840
My name is Lauren Zudell and I live at 28 Nadell Road here in Basking Ridge. My family has lived in our home for 14 years. I am against the proposed designation of the former Lord Stirling School. Unlike what has been stated in previous meetings, the majority of our

87
00:39:20.840 --> 00:39:36.440
neighborhood, as stated by other people tonight, does not is not in favor of Mr. Rocker's proposal. There has been little upkeep or maintenance of this property since it was purchased by Mr. Rocker. This is not an area in need of

88
00:39:36.440 --> 00:39:53.880
redevelopment as defined by the state. Mr. Rocker purchased the property that can allow four to five homes. Our neighborhood consists of homes on one acre lots or more. So, this should be consistent with what he is doing. It is unclear where the proposal to

89
00:39:53.880 --> 00:40:09.400
build 30 to 80 condos on this property came from. I myself work in the field of special education in a local school district and I'm very well aware of the needs of many individuals with disabilities who require housing as adults. I find it concerning that there is now a

90
00:40:09.400 --> 00:40:24.680
promise to people of possible housing for the disabled, but only if he's able to develop condos. This seems more like a strategy to maximize profit than to really help the individuals he's promising to house.

91
00:40:24.680 --> 00:40:51.880
Please listen to us and consider our thoughts. Thank you. >> Thank you. All right. Seeing none, Mr. Edelstein. >> [laughter] >> Okay. >> All right. Um All right. I'm going to close public comment. And just um as we shared at the

92
00:40:51.880 --> 00:41:08.600
last meeting, the 99 Lord Sterling Road area in need of redevelopment review will be in the planning board. Uh that item was not on our agenda. And um at the same time, we always welcome public comment as we welcome the public comment this evening. And in the future, when

93
00:41:08.600 --> 00:41:27.600
that resolution is reviewed by the planning board, uh you are welcome to go and also provide public comment during that hearing. So, we appreciate the public comment this evening. And having said that, I make a motion to adjourn. >> So moved.

94
00:41:27.600 --> 00:42:36.840
>> Second. >> Okay. All in favor? >> Aye. >> Okay. Thank you. Thanks for joining us this evening. >> Mhm.