good evening everyone this is a regular meeting agenda governing body of the barau of Bloomdale Tuesday February 18 2025 at 7 p.m. call this me into order by the SL flag I to the flag of the United States of
America and to for it stands one nation God indivisible withy and justice for all roll call please mayor tomato here
here Council Broner present Council Catalano here councilman Graziano is excuse this evening councilwoman Hudson here councilwoman shert here Council y here also behal M cler BNA Smith
business administrator Michael SAR and bur attorney Don Sub sub uh this meeting is called to presant of the provisions of the open public meetings law adequate notice of this me meeting was advertised in The Herald news on January 9th 2025 copies were provided to the local
news media and posted continuously in the municipal building a copy of this notice is available to the public on file in the office of the municipal clerk as per state fire code I am required to ack that there are two emergency exits in this council chambers
the main entr which you enter through and a secondary exit to the left of where I am seated if there is an emergency walk orderly to the exit exit through the door down the stairs and out the building there any questions please raise your hand um seeing none we do do not have
any non-agenda items can we open up the early public comic reserve for agenda items s second all in favor I okay seeing no one do I have a motion to close early public comment sen all in favor I okay report of
committees um good morning hello mayor I have um some I'm sorry for the tri bur um first aid Squad their calls for January were
168 calls um they have a breakfast that's um March Sunday March 23rd um it's a pancake breakfast can't get this any bigger um and they also have their uh
craft there in St Anthony's and I can't I can't open up the file it's too small um for the uh Bloomingdale uh Public Library they have a porch leaner
uh paint pain and sip that's coming up on uh February 23rd um they're encouraging people to sign up because the attendance if attendance isn't a little higher they might need to postpone it they're also
um pushing back the date of the designer handbag Bingo um from March to April and their Julian piano event there's it's still to be determined and as always um check out their website um they're
encouraging um um all of our um residents to register and get library cards and to enjoy their family story times and their baby story time they
have open play times um book clubs and uh child and adult uh crafts um in at the library and also at the senior center um there is a on February 24th there's art class with Miss Lanna from
6:00 p.m. uh at the senior center and the adult craft night uh will be on March 26 at 700 p.m. and you must register to attend for the um Rose fund there was um
a lot of um they spoke about a lot of uh line items which I know Mike has um there's something on New on the uh for the budget and they're
also and as far as the senior uh Center they have a lot of activities for in February uh also available on the town website for land
dancing chair aerobics they have a community outreach coming up Thursday March 20th at the Bloomingdale Senior Center um there's no appointment needed and you don't need insurance to attend and they
have a um trip leaving uh the senior center to the uh paper mill Playhouse their a representation of t the lead on April uh 10th uh there's a $25 deposit required um also look you can find this
information out at the um the the Senior Center website okay very good yes uh dog and cat dog and cat licenses are due now if they're not received by March 1st residents will be charged an additional $10 February 25th is the Ramadan
Crescent lighting at Town Hall 6:30 p.m. burrow offices oh that was yet that was yesterday sorry uh there's one remaining rabies clinic on March 1st from 11:00 a.m. to 1: p.m. at the Riverdale DPW Garage on Dalton Drive uh Board of Health there is an open
position for an alternate for the Board of Health should you have any interest you can find the burrow volunteer form on the website under forms and then that gets once you filled out the form that gets sent to free which her email
address is on there um at last week's uh I'm sorry last two weeks ago council meeting uh John Graziano read everything off for me he talked about the ordinance that the Board of Health introduced we introduced an ordinance it wasn't a resolution I just want to make sure that
that's clear um that was for massage body work and uh sematic therapy um and the pay County Health Department is offering free eye and hearing screenings and children's well clinics which is state required vaccinations and physical exams that's
for those uninsured individuals you can call 973 881 4396 to um schedule an appointment and what is it right nothing Dave
con just one thing we had a we did post that position [Music] that's to replace yeah no report thank you nothing thing this evening man uh
just for me um just uh I went down yesterday and visited the animal shelter and Lisa was down here and gave me just a tour the shelter with you know um she really appreciated the new fence that's in um actually there's a tree down there that's hanging over that fence it's dead we might want to go take a look at
before we have to replace the fence again um but it was real interesting of the um the process they had people down there that were taking the cages apart and cleaning them and um through through the shelters and they had three beautiful dogs down there um they were a little bit loud I walked in but they
were gorgeous and all three of them were part husky with the blue eyes so it's pretty pretty neat but that's uh that's pretty much it for Me Maybe the mayor needs um no I don't need any I have one not yet anyway so okay
uh [Music] resolution and actually all three me members that are resigning Shelby Myers from the Board of Health put a lot of time in she she'll be a loss and um Joseph fortunado who um is moving on to
bigger and better things for him and his wife so we um hate to see all three of them late and also item G before we approv that Samuel Mr Earl is becoming an eagle scout he's a resident and I've been invited to go down and do a
presentation and John knows the family so he got an invite so we'll be attending that on March 1st and I think it's out in Rocka where they're doing it so congratulations to S Okay resolution number 2025 2.9
consent agenda do I have a motion to accept the consent agenda any questions roll call Bron Cur yes Catalano yes Hudson yes Shubert yes Yi
yes okay item nine pending business second final reading of public hearing ordinance number 52025 amending chapter 2 Recreation fees for hiking group club and Co coaching C catch catching
catching yes I don't even know what what that is but we can tell yeah okay public o statement please yes Mr Mayor this ordinance was posted in the municipal building published in The Herald news and copies were made available to the public so that a motion
may be made that it be read by title have a motion to read by title so move second all in favor okay an ordinance of the bur of Bloomingdale in the county of pic and state of New Jersey amending chapter 2 Administration section
26411 fees for recreation programs of the code of the bur will be done okay we have a motion open up public hearing all in favor I anyone wishing to come up seeing no one a motion to
close second all in favor I um motion for adoption I would explain this but it's just another umram program that the recreation group is putting out and like I said I don't know what de catching is
so uh motion for adoption so thank roll call [Music] please Catalano yes Hudson yes Shubert yes yazzy yes Bron
yes okay new business adoption a resolution 2025 2.16 motion to pay the [Music] bills I make that MO quiet can someone make a motion for you
to say that yeah I need I he used different terminology he threw everybody off that's okay to pay the bills yeah um roll call Hudson yes
Schubert yes yassie yes Ron Cur yes Catalano yes okay Item B adopt of resolution number 20225 2.17 award disposal of solid waste contract to
G um to G do I have a motion for that so second okay any questions about that Mr Mayor we did go out the bid and G was a low bid out of four I believe we receiv four quotes yes okay but it is a it is an increase
over last last year okay everywhere B everywhere so it's that light and it grows over 17 $7 time 77 the new price i 94 94 and they
were the low yeah and of course you have to do this roll call please Shubert yes gadzi yes Bron yes
Catalano that's it yes okay motion to open up L public comment s second all in favor I anyone wishing to come up Steve how are youone St partal two High Street bloom
so I've seen the last couple meetings I haven't been here I watched them on Zoom there been some comments by the council regarding the referendum some you know during the the initial section we all did your reports there was some commentary and uh I wanted to come here tonight and discuss some of that um that's right with you guys
so I guess the first point was there's a lot of com comments over the last few weeks that this is a very separate issue that the Board of Ed is doing its thing the council has its thing and it's very separate um there's been things like we're not involved it's a school
decision things like that but there is collaboration right you guys are talking yes right so and and kind of a lot of it you're having meetings about it you're talking about it together um to kind of say it's a whole separate thing and the two are completely distinct I just don't
think that's really being forthright um I believe there was discussion about you know basically how the council can help the board pass their resolution and to say like that's kind of in their Court we don't deal with it till later but you know there was
discussions about maybe hold on just let let him finish in direct can you just stop all right everything's got to come through me and then we'll go through that okay yeah so um to jump on that listen
there's monthly collaboration meetings right between the board and the council right and at one of those meetings at least the council discussed whether they could support the board by either passing or resolution uh issuing a uh a press release or even providing
information to taxpayers through their electrical bills or their tax bills this was all efforts taken by the council to help the board which is perfectly fine but then to sit here and watch you know discussions about how oh that's completely them we're completely us
we're not really you know involved in that it doesn't seem exactly upfront so I just think you're Miss Missing the point because I made the comment is when they make a decision to go to referendum and how they do it is really up to the board of education and yes they did ask for our
support and I've said it publicly that I support the referendum totally because I know what the school's like I know what it's like inside and I know what's coming down the pipe but when they're making their decision to put it out to the public and all their documentation and all the the Flyers that they're
putting out that is the board of education is doing that they've asked us how we can help support it financially and I can't give them the exact answer because we're not there yet but I we I believe us as a
council are supporting the referendum to close the Donald school and build an addition this school should have been closed many many years ago I was in that school last week or the the day before our last council meeting the gym floor
is a total mess the walls are a total mess it's there's problems with the boiler system going on there and that just isn't because of what's going on that's been problems for for a few years so I do we do support that but how they advertise it to the public they asked us to put stuff in in the electrical bills
correct and we will do that we're helping them do that but their decision to go to a referendum and come all about this and how they're put it all together that's their group we've had meetings with them and they talk about um financially what what are we going to do
um and I pilot thing are are they going to get part of that I said I can't make that decision because I don't have a pilot in my hand yet okay and I've said that publicly many times they're asking um and be honest I'll go back even further the way this kind of started
going back I always wanted to build a a rec center and a new library for the temp so we said wouldn't it be great if we can do this all together and put it on one piece of property well that went by the ways side because cost was was going crazy all right we have a nice Library here we use the firem off for
for the rec center we have a good Rec commission that uses here at the senior center in our fields and and there's more stuff going on so that's not happening that's how we were getting involved all right but to build the classrooms and do all that they got their own architect they did everything
they showed us the pictures of it it's their decision it's their committee moving it forward do we meet with them yes we do the meetings last about what a half an hour 45 minutes right you're on that committee and Mike and Dominic it's and now Dave's our representative to the to the uh to the Board of Ed but we have
nothing to do with the sale okay they have to sell it it's their building we have no say on how that goes for bid that is their their baby once it's done and if that comes to the town that's when we really get
involved and decide with zoning and all that stuff that's up there that's what I said last meeting in the meeting before that we get involved once the building is going for sale because then we have to put things in place if they're going to advertise it they should advertise what it could possibly be otherwise
they're not going to get the proper busit could it stay public could another school come in and buy a charter school sure it goes to the bid process it's no different we go out and do a road job we have to go out for a bid and take the little bidder it is what it is hopefully they take the high bit right but you also both talked about public a public
purchase of the property wouldn't make much sense that's in the meeting minutes that you got that public a public entity purchasing it just wouldn't help fund the referendum you can't it doesn't help fund it but you can't control the bid process if a nonprofit comes in and buys
it that's the cble they're taking am I explaining that right right then then their $5 million valuation that they're counting on for taxpayer support is going to be in the in the gutter so that's going to be a big hole there we are not there yet I can't it's after the referendums decide one way or the other
that's when the ball will start rolling and what can happen here what can't happen it's going to take I believe two years to build it the $5 million valuation is on the price so that S price is regardless of who's purchasing the property to the taxpayer would be the revenue produced from the
property based upon who purchases yeah but but they're using the sale price they're using the sale price to reduce the amount they're asking for the tax correct correct so it does so so if it doesn't sell for what it should sell for what they've evaluated it for which is distinguishing fact between the
separation between their board and ours right we didn't write their plan for how to build the school and fiscally how to put this together we support the plan they put together but their evaluation for $5 million that had to press have it with through their appraiser we didn't
hire that appraiser we didn't come that figure right and I think what when we say that it's two separate entities what we're trying to Define what we're trying to tell you is that our role is supporting the advancement of our town right and we like the idea of building a
new school as a board right but our role does not happen via their resolution when they pass a resolution to state that they're in opposition of high density housing right we don't vote on that resolution nor do we participate in them bringing that before their board
right they're asking us to pass resolutions in front of this board right in front of this Council in support of the referendum that they're putting together for which we we haven't done yet but we publicly come out and stated that we support it I think no different
than any member of the public coming out stating that they support it we just do so from behind the day right so there I mean but there's other ways to participate than being involved in their resolution so there's been you've mentioned pilot programs before right there's been discussions of
pilot programs what yeah so so if you're discussing pilot programs for the property you're thinking it's going to be housing because you're not sh because you're not sharing pilot funds so necessarily that's not true hold on so if you you would share pilot funds for
non-housing project with the Board of Education the pilot I see I'm going tell you the same thing it can be a pilot is if it was a a exactly right and that is not so it's going to be probably regular
taxes up there and then they share deposit to get their taxes from that they get their share of money from that unless it a study was done and if somehow they declared that was going to be a study a read area need a read it's not for that correct but but when the
the pilot discussions came up at the collaboration meetings weren't sample pilot agreements provided to the board to review and discussed pretty much at length correct and wasn't there a decision on how which pilot sharing model there would be used there's no there's no decision that was made on
they gave us information they showed three three different two or three different the again the school board has their preference for what they prefer that they've conveyed to us we not holding a pilot in our hands can't and
won't make that decision ahead of time and I've made that clear to the day M and I've said that publicly many times that I cannot commit anything until I have a contract a pilot in hand and it's a done deal I can't spend money we do
not have the pilot that's in discussion Mr Al is the one that is most likely to be on the one on Union app these collaboration meetings are not solely based upon the referendum so much of the discussion is fluid right so the sample pilot agreements that were
reviewed were they for the union a project or for the referendum they were just sample pilot projects other towns what other towns do with pilots and how they cater to the board of ed okay so when it says here both parties agreed to further pursue a cost sharing model based on
percentage what was the agreement between the two parties for the cost sharing model which property was that related to she says we're going to pursue a Crossing model that's all that we're going to do Steve you have a question you came up here making comments I'm just wondering
I never heard the question or you just I'm up here for public comment yeah I mean I think there's been a dialogue I just I just want to understand where one clear question some issues with the things that have been said and things have been going on you know using the
public comment time to express this no no no that's fine I'm just trying to understand like where are you on this are you for it against it here's what what are you asking us to do oh no I'm just responding to some of the comments that have been made recently I don't think I've been involved in the Board of
Education side of this I haven't been coming to Council meetings regarding the issue the last two meetings I've suen that this issue has been commented on by the council and I wanted to respond to some of those comments in this in the same manner the council uses its its its microphone and uh frankly I started I
live right by SRD uh this started as an inquiry into what was going to be happening to that property I eventually you know after getting all the reports reading everything seemed like the most most likely outcome was new housing someone who has purchased a house near a school I never in a million years
imagined the public school would be closed sold and developed so I was opposed to it for that reason as I started this process I found out that there was some sort of glossing over the fact that it was going to be housing and ultimately what I don't want is when we vote for a referendum I have kids in the
school I have a kid in the school system um I support the education and actually the referendum generally as a whole I support except for the sale of SRD to most likely become housing because you know what happens one day 5 years from now when they start developing that property people in the neighborhood
could be like when did this happen how did this happen Okay I voted for better schools for my kids I understand that I was even okay with the 2% tax increase but I didn't know that they were going to be developing this property in a hi traffic area that's already a dangerous cross-section between Glenn wild down to
Union have um and if anyone lives in the neighborhood you know how how how the traffic is in that area pick up and drop off are already difficult at Samuel so developing the property um would make it even more difficult so anyway I started there then getting some of the responses from the board I became even more
concerned with the project when they say that they are not anticipating it to be housing but they value the property for housing so that number we've been talking about the $5 million they got an appraisal the appraiser said I'm going to appraise this for the destruction of
Samuel darnold the rezoning and the building of multif family housing and then I'm sorry oh if they're going to rezone that's where we would come in as far as it is we could say no we don't want
apartments and and there is with the U I think the fourth uh the fourth round housing number I think was 269 that we have to have but but I think it's over 400 no it's been changed Chang our planner
working with them we could say no to that I mean I agree with you you know that's a difficult spot but ultimately it would be nice to have a medical center or some a senior s a senior housing something you know something to create Revenue one thing we can't do as
a council we can't speculate what's going to be there could there be housing absolutely can I've said that I don't know how many times going back probably a year ago he said that could happen but he can't do anything until they physically sell it to a developer or to whoever is interested in buying it once
it goes out we can Zone it part of our business Zone as I said last meeting it can become an an RM which is which is senior housing um but that decision can't can't be made until the referendum passes if it fails this all goes out the window so we can't speculate what's
going to happen until until March 11th right we're both bus both business and RM uh zoning allows for housing too so I understand the conversation that could be on business and RM I mean I Mr I know you say senior housing it's it's really
titled Garden style apartments and there's a conditional use for senior housing under RN so I mean it's basically looking at our but that's what I'm saying we can't make those decisions so it is in our best interest to evaluate every potential outcome that
could come from the referendum and we do so for the entirety of the Town understand what all the potential outcomes are right from a revenue perspective from a development perspective whether there's a charter school whether there's senior housing whether there's business that goes in there right the Board needs to evaluate
its value to put the referendum together we need to evaluate the potential outcomes that come once they sell the property that property won't be and can't be rezoned until New Jersey school board decommissions the school and it goes for sale it is going to maintain Exon until then
it'll happen simultaneously once they decommission it and that's filed why shouldn't residents worry about that now excuse me I understand it's all like oh it's going to happen then it's this long it's this long why shouldn't we be concerned about that now this is the time this is the time that
we have to consider it after the referendum passes then the votes are are gone so so to say like it's it's it's later or it's not going to be for a while or it's not going to happen right away I understand that but the idea is with foresight to look ahead to what's
in the best interest for the voters for them all to have the right all the information to decide for themselves so so to say that oh well that won't be for three years that won't be for five years that's how kind of projects come up out of nowhere that without people really knowing where they came from so we discussed all potential outcomes for
this property you agre right a bunch of potential outcomes for this property and we understand what they're all going to be we presented those to the public we know what fiscally provides them the best benefit against the referendum which is what the school board is presenting right and from a political
standpoint that makes perfect sense and we're in support of it that being said like the information is out there we know it we've presented it to the public what potential outcomes are and now we're tasking you guys with making that decision we support the closing of the
SEL Donald and the expansion of Walter T Bergen regardless of any of the potential outcomes that come and we're telling the public that whatever those potential outcomes are as a Council we're prepared to handle for you I think that's what you want to hear correct
well the the the the side that I'm going to just we're just going to put this to rest is we're not look we're looking down the road like we should be because we have a 10-year plan for a lot of things so you have to look down the road and we are talking about the possibility Could Happen three years from now five
years there's a timeline and the Sal is the referendum to where it goes to to sale there's a timeline that everything has to happen and I've said at our last meeting when we really get involved is after the referendum is either passed or failed if it fails then it all ends if
it passes then we have to start meeting with our ordinance Review Committee all right and then start thinking about what type of ordinance how we're going to Zone it it's not something that we're going to wait two years and do we're in the process of talking about it now with everybody I've talked publicly people I
meet down the park people I meet in the grocery store people ask me questions and I tell them in favor of it but I give the same speech every time so I'm consistent all the way down and I said the same speech the last two meetings you've seen them of how it's going to work but there's a timeline when we get involved the timelines when we get
involved is when the school goes to be decommissioned and that's how it goes for sale once it's going to go for sale we have to have some type of ordinance so when they go out for bid people are bidding on knows what they can build there all right otherwise you're not going to get anybody and for VAR and
then they have to go for variant which is even a longer period of time I know you live I know the school's been there I've been in this town 65 years the school's been there my brother went there and he's 77 all right the school's over 100 years old and I nobody ever
planned this is going nobody ever thought about affordable housing that's coming down the things that we have to do we have to have something we probably know we have to have a whole fourth round uh model in place and submitted by June 30th we're working on all this stuff now this town's going to change it
is change is going to happen is you can't it's happening around us it's happening at pton Lakes it's happening in lals it's happening in Woodland Park it's happening in Wu it's happening all around us it would be nice to cast the vote knowing 100% what the outcome is
going to be I think that what we're cast of doing is presenting you all the potential information but you've got to vote now and we won't know what's happening for 3 years 100% I think we painted a pretty good picture of what we desire to happen What could occur to
help offset the cost and the f impact to your school taxes right which are 55% of your taxes let's be let's be honest to you so the school board is doing what they can there and we are going to support them to help ensure that the cost to all the taxpayers remains the
low as possible throughout this throughout this potential referendum but you've got to vote now not knowing 110% who the buyer going to be we don't know who that is nobody knows that nobody knows that right that could change a lot of things so so ultimately it's do you
see a need to expand and improve upon Walter T Bergen because of the shortcomings of Samuel Al Donald and I would say 100% yes I I encourage anyone to go take the tours that they've been giving continue to attend the
school board I'm sure your kids go there right continue to collect this information U my son goes MBD he'll be at SRD soon okay but the the the key is is that like a lot of what we're pontificating about that create the issues with how you may vote are are not
going to be resolved before the referendum comes up just not any other questions yeah just just respectfully I just don't think that the discussion ends with the necessity for better schools in the town it it that's the beginning of the the discussion but the
end result and the consequences and the writing on the wall of additional development in a town that just keeps getting new housing new housing new housing and the effects of that on the on the residents in that neighborhood it's a fundamental change to this town selling a school to be commercially developed is a fundamental change and I just think that all the voters should be
aware of what they're voting on when they're voting on The referendum so I appreciate your time today guys thank you Steve appreciate it thanks for coming in okay seeing no one else or a motion to close late public comment all in favor I okay our next
meeting is when is our next be March 4th March 4th 7:00 is a workshop meeting uh motion to adjourn come on all in favor thank you