Frequent notice of this meeting was provided and published in the Asbury Park Press and the Ocean Star on December 12th, 2025 and January 16, 2026. Copies of the agenda were provided to the newspaper, posted on public bulletin boards in the township website. >> Thank you. Can we get a roll call?
>> Councilman Albanese here. >> Councilman Makino >> here. >> Councilwoman Reena >> here. Councilman Cohen >> here. >> Councilwoman Travers >> here. >> Vice President Amberino, >> I'm here. >> President Feman >> here. >> Thank you. Now I'd like to ask everyone
to rise for a pledge of allegiance and a moment of silence to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for
all. >> Thank you. Please be seated. Madame Cler, do you accept the reports from the municipal officers? >> Of course. >> All right. Could I have a motion and a second to approve the minutes from January 6, 2026 meeting? >> I'll make that motion.
>> Second. >> Thank you. >> Roll call. C. >> Councilman Albanese? >> Yes. >> Councilman Makino? >> Yes. >> Councilwoman Reena? >> Yes. >> Councilman Cohen? >> Yes. >> Councilwoman Travers? >> Yes. Yes. >> Vice President Amberino. >> Yes. >> President Fman. >> Yes.
>> Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh, now we have some presentations. I'd like to invite Mayor Crate and Chief Forester up to the podium for some swearing in. >> Swearing in. >> Swearing in.
Right. Good evening. First and foremost, I would like to welcome Mayor Crate, the town council, and the business administrator. Your support and partnership plays a vital role in our shared mission of fostering a safe and thriving community.
Tonight we come together to celebrate a moment of pride, achievement, and an occasion that underscores dedication, perseverance, and honorable service. It is an honor to witness the promotion of two of our finest officers, Lieutenant Keith Prrenville and Sergeant Matthew
Caner. Each of these individuals has displayed leadership, expertise, and a commitment to safety and well-being of our residents. This evening is more than a celebration of individual milestone. It is proof to the collective strength,
unity and vision our depart of our department. Every promotion not only signifies an elevation in rank but also calls for greater responsibility. A responsibility to uphold the ideals of integrity, honor, and service that are
the foundation of our work. With this talented team of leaders, I am confident that our community remains in capable and safe hands. Congratulations to each of you promoted tonight. Thank you for your service and may your leadership inspire those around you as
we continue this journey of excellence. First up is Lieutenant Keith Prrenerville. Keith began his career with the Brooktownship Police Department in 2005 where he was assigned to the patrol division. In 2010, he was selected to
serve as a K-9 handler and join the K9 unit. For the next 10 years through the end of 2020, Lieutenant Prenville proudly served alongside his partner Max. In June of 2021, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant and continued his
service within the patrol division. Today, Lieutenant Prenavville serves as a boat operator for the Marine unit, a certified firearms instructor, and a supervisor of the K-9 unit. Upon his upcoming promotion, he will take on the role of shift commander for the midnight
shift. >> Your family, >> your family want to come on up and He said, "I'm gonna wait until I get a smile." And he said, "It's not happening." And then someone made him laugh. >> Did you get that?
Yeah. Right. >> All right. Next up, we have Sergeant Matthew Canire. Right. In 2018, Sergeant Canire began his law enforcement career with the Bricktown Police Department. Sergeant Canire is an active member of the Brick
PD Honor Guard unit, attending funerals, memorial service, and community events. Sergeant Canire is also the team co- captain of the brick PD team for the police unity tour which is a 300 mile bicycle ride from New Jersey to
Washington D which raises money for the law enforcement memorial and the families of fallen officers. Sergeant Canire will be assigned to the patrol patrol division as a midnight shift supervisor. He's accompanied by
his mother Carol, wife Lindsay, and son Lincoln. You want to come on up. You know how they love it. Hey, just all police officers in real quick. Well, it's not
his. >> Yeah, someone take the Should I ask him? >> Uh, the last two. >> What, Joanne? What about the photographer guy? Little tired. I guess
Hi, how are you? >> Good. You enjoying your retirement? >> You are. >> I know. >> I know. January is the worst and it's the longest month. But
>> yeah, I hear >> Jackie needs to put you to work. You need to go work with Jackie. >> Okay. >> Yeah. Good. I'll see you around. >> Congratulations. >> Yes.
Oh, did they end up moving? >> Yeah, my sister-in-law wanted that one, but they pul they took it off the market. >> Yeah. Yeah. It's a pretty house, but it was expensive. >> Oh, there's not.
>> That's your number. Oh, we have to do the >> Is she coming? Yeah, it's >> I'm just waiting for them to clear out. >> Okay. And now without further ado, I'd
like to reintroduce Mayor Crate with a another presentation. >> Yes, sir. >> Thank you, Council President. >> You're welcome. >> Uh if I could please, we have some school board members. Uh, if you'd like to come on up.
>> Oh, that's all right. Come on. That's okay. She'll get the camera. You guys come on up. >> We're very casual here. Thank you all so much for coming out tonight to join us. >> Yeah. So happy to honor you. I give you the option. Okay.
So, for those of you they that may not recognize this, uh March is uh or it's not March, it's January. Oh my goodness, I just jumped ahead in time. Uh January is schoolboard recognition month. So, we'd like to take a moment to recognize our school board members here. And a
little bit of information uh from our resolution. New Jerseys public schools serve approximately 1.4 4 million children from preK through 12th grade. The direction of public education in in New Jersey is chartered locally by
individual school boards whose 5,000 members serve as advocates for public education as they work with administrators, teachers, parents, and local residents. Boards of education provide accountability to the public. They communicate the needs of the school
district to the community and they convey to school administrators the public's expectations for school districts. School board members do all of this for our students and for the township here at no cost. They do it because they love what they do. They
love our schools and they love our our the children that go to our schools. The Township of Brick is justly proud of the academic and athletic social achievements of the students in our community. Uh, the New Jersey School Boards Association has declared January
2026 to be schoolboard recognition month, a time when all residents can and should acknowledge the contributions made by our local schoolboard members such as those we have here this evening. Uh, so I would like to say that the township of brick proclaims officially
January 2026 as school board recognition month in the township of brick and urges all of its citizens to join in recognizing the dedication of local school board members past and present as we work together to advance educational opportunities for all of our children
here in Brook Township. So congratulations and thank you to all of you for your service. We appreciate it. Let's go. Thanks for all you do. >> Thank you. Thank you, Mayor Crate.
Moving on to the consent agenda. >> All matters listed under item consent agenda will be enacted by one motion in the form listed below. If discussion is desired on any item, this item will be removed from the consent agenda and will be considered separately. >> Thank you. 51.
>> Recognize school board recognition month. >> Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution recognizes January 2026 as schoolboard recognition month in the township of Brick and urges all citizens to join in recognizing the dedication of local school board members past and
present as we work together to advance educational opportunities for our children. Thank you. >> Thank you. 52 >> authorized budget transfer. >> Councilman Mikino. >> Thank you. This resolution authorizes budget appropriation transfers as needed for year end. These transfers do not
increase the overall municipal budget in any way. We are moving funds from one account to another. Thank you. >> Thank you. 53. >> Authorized transfer to dedicated account for snow removal. >> Council Vice President Amcino. >> Thank you, Council President. This
resolution authorizes a transfer of $350,000 into the dedicated account for snow removal trust fund. This past weekend's state of emergency and our subsequent response, coupled with weather projects for this upcoming weekend, find a need
to ensure that our trust fund can cover all necessary expenses. Thank >> Thank you. 54. >> Appoint commissioner to Central Jersey Health Insurance Fund. >> Councilwoman Raina. >> Thank you. This resolution appoints
Township Human Resources Director Sarah Zimmer Scarpelli as the fund commissioner for the Central Jersey Health Insurance Fund with Township Business Administrator as the alternate fund commissioner. Thank you. >> Thank you. 55, please. >> Authorize cancellation of outstanding checks.
>> Councilman Cohen. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the cancellation of stale dated check totaling $23.31. >> Thank you. 56. Please >> amend property appraisal and inspection services awarded contract. >> Councilman Albanese.
>> Thank you, Council President. This resolution amends a previously awarded contract to Henry J. Mancini and Associates Manhawk to provide the township with property appraisal and inspection services at an hourly rate of $67 an hour. There is a typographical
error in the hourly rate in the previous award. >> Thank you. 57. Authorized receipt of proposals for professional services five-year flood plane management plan. >> Councilman Makino. >> Thank you. This resolution authorizes receipt of proposals for a flood plane
management plan. This proposal is in accordance with the federal emergency agency FEMA National Flood Insurance Program NFIP Community Rating Systems CRS guidelines. Proposals are being requested
to develop a comprehensive five-year flood plane management plan that meets or exceeds FEMA requirements. The plan will serve as a guiding document to reduce flood risk, enhance public safety, protect property, and improve the
township CRS score to maximize flood insurance premiums discounts for residents. Thank you. >> Thank you. 58. Authorize receipt of bids mobile ice cream truck. >> Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the receipt of bids for a mobile ice cream truck. This
bid will provide an ice cream truck for Winward Beach Park, Trader Cove Marina, and other various Township Park year round parks year round. The township's current contract with Cool Concessions was $1,500 for one year and will expire on March 15, 2026. Thank you. >> Thank you. 59.
>> Authorized receipt of bid Summerfest food truck vendors. Council Vice President Ambersino. >> Thank you, Mr. President. This resolution authorizes the receipt of bids from vendors to provide food and refreshments during the four Summerfest
concerts and the annual car show with an option for the Green Fair and for kids night out. Last year, the award was made to seven vendors in the total amount of $13,428.25. Thank you. >> Thank you. 510, please. Authorize
receipt of bids beer and wine garden concession. >> Councilman Makino. >> Thank you. This resolution authorized receipt of bids from vendors who currently have the appropriate ABC licensing to provide a beer and wine concession during the four Summerfest
concert and Fall Fest in 2026. Last year, the township received $8,750 for the one-year contract. Thank you. >> Thank you. 511. Authorize receipt of bids fireworks exhibitions. >> Council vice president Amberino.
>> You know, it could be dangerous to have fireworks follow beer and wine, but I guess that's what we're doing here. Uh, this resolution authorizes the receipt of bids for our fireworks exhibitions during the four Summerfest events at Winward Beach. The total cost for 2025
was $37,375 and that included Fall Fest, which we are holding in 2026 without fireworks because we're going to be moving the event earlier in the day. Thank you. >> Thank you. 512, please. >> Authorized receipt of bids chemical turf
maintenance. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the receipt of bids for seasonal turf application for fertilizer and weed control at 16 locations including township parks, recreation facilities, and municipal complex. Contract provides four weed
control and fertilizer applications per year for approximately 71 total acres per application. It begins with early spring soil tests at each location to determine the proper application of each. There is an early and late spring application and early and late fall
application. This is a unit price bid with a cost per application based on seasonal treatment not to exceed $60,000 or a two-year contract period. >> Thank you. 513, please. >> Authorize receipt of bids purchase and delivery of playground parts.
>> Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes receipt of bids for the purchase and delivery of playground parts. This is a new bid for the township and is needed to repair and maintain the playgrounds in the township. These parts and supplies will be installed by our parks employees. The
parks department plans on repairing repairing various playgrounds throughout the year and anticipates needing to purchase parts that may not be covered on a contract. Thank you. >> Thank you. 514, please. >> Authorize receipt of bids manufacturing and printing of tax bills. >> Councilwoman Rea.
>> Thank you. This resolution authorizes the receipt of bids for the manufacturing and printing of preliminary and final tax bills, printing of post tax year statements, and corresponding reports to the tax collector. Thank you. >> Thank you. 5:15.
>> Authorize receipt of bids purchase and delivery of various commercial dumpsters. >> Councilman Cohen. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorized the receipt of bids for the purchase and delivery of front load dumpsters. Department of Public Works will be purchasing steel 8 cubic yard front load, 20 yard and 40
yard rolloff containers for various locations throughout the town. >> Thank you. 516 >> authorized rejection and rebid snow removal services. >> Council Vice President Emino. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the rejection and
a subsequent rebid of snow removal services. The township had previously bid for this service and only received one response. This is not sufficient to service our needs in a future snow event. And due to the nature of these services and research that we've done in
surrounding municipalities rate structures, we're going to be increasing our rate to reflect current costs. The township has not significantly increased the rates for snow removal recently, and research suggests that by increasing the rates, the township may receive more
bids and in doing so end up with a longer list of contractors and equipment to handle potential future storms. Thank you. >> Well done. Thank you. 517, please. >> Authorize award of contract tree trimming, removal, and disposal services. >> Councilman Mikino.
>> Thank you. This resolution authorized the receipt of bid for tree trimming, removal and disposal services. This bid is also necessary for tree trimming, removal and disposal that cannot be done in house. Work will include the removal of dead, dying, diseased, interfering,
objectionable or weak branches and or complete the removal of entire tree including grinding or removal of stump and all exposed roots to a depth of 6 in below the adjacent existing ground level. removal of remove chips and
replace with filled dirt upon request. The township had an expenditure an approximate expenditure of 121,000 during the current two-year contract period with Fulenberg Tree Expert Company. That contract will expire on January 28, 2026. Thank you.
>> Thank you. 518, please. >> Authorize award of contract on-site truck wash services. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the township to go out forbid on site environmentally safe wash on township owned vehicles and
equipment by recapturing wash water runoff during the cleaning process and preventing it from contaminating soil and groundwater. The Department of Public Works does not have a closed system for this capture of water wash when washing trucks and equipment. So we
must contract out for service. Townships New Jersey discharge elimination system storm water permit mandates the capture of wastewater runoff to prevent contamination of soil and groundwater. The township spent $135,000
in contract two-year contract which expires January 28th, 2026 with Milspray Military Technologies Lakewood. >> Thank you. 519, please. >> Authorize award of contract Swamp Point Roadway Resurfacing Improvements.
>> Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes an award of contract in the amount of 201, $3.50 with Miko, Inc., Clarksburg for the Swan Point Roadways Resurfacing Project. The project generally consists of roadway milling and resurfacing to
Gail Road, Pine Hammock Road, Cedar Point Avenue, Sheldon Avenue, and Douglas Road. Bid notices were sent to 79 prospective biders from our biders list and nine requested bid packages. Six bids were received with Mo Inc. as the lowest responsive responsible bidder. Thank you.
>> Thank you. 520. >> Authorize award of contract purchase and delivery of eight 2026 Ford utility inceptor vehicles. >> Council Vice President Ambrescino. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes an award of contract to Winter Ford located in
Cherry Hill in the total amount of 356,390.40 and this is for the purchase and delivery of eight 2026 Ford utility interceptor vehicles. The township is facilitating this purchase through the state of New Jersey cooperative
purchasing program. Thank you. >> Thank you. 521 >> authorized shared services agreement with Burough of Manalokin code enforcement and zoning officer services. >> Councilman Mikino. >> Thank you. This resolution authorized renewal of a shared service agreement with the bureau of manoken for code
enforcement and zoning offices services. In the agreement, Brick Township code enforcement officers will respond to property maintenance violations as a part-time as needed basis in the burrow of Manalopen and be reimbursed for those services to cover the cost.
Those with the proper certifications will also assist with zoning issues at the employees hourly rate. Thank you. Thank you. 522 authorized sh authorized shared services agreement with county of ocean county narcotic strike force.
>> Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution authorizes the execution of a shared service agreement with the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office for the Ocean County Narcotic Strike Force. The purpose of the strike force is for combating the growing gang element and enforcing firearm and anti-drug laws of
the state of New Jersey. The township receives a stipen per officer assigned to the task force who participates for 12 consecutive months. Thank you. >> Thank you. 523 >> authorized shared services agreement with Ocean County Prosecutors Program Fiscal year 2026 fast.
>> Councilwoman Rea. >> Thank you. This resolution authorizes the execution of a shared services agreement in place with the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office to designate Brick Township Police officers to be assigned to the fatal accident support team for
the purpose of assisting in investigation, prosecution of fatal accidents, and in traffic enforcement and education. During times where additional manpower is needed for investigations and/or training, members of the FAST will be called upon to
assist. Officers will be paid for money in the prosecutor's program fund which has been designated by the Ocean County Prosecutor and the Ocean County Board of Commissioners. Thank you. >> Thank you. 524, please. >> Authorized shared services agreement with County of Ocean operation and
maintenance of three pumpout boats. >> Councilman Cohen. >> Thank you, Council President. The resolution authorizes the execution of a shared services agreement with the county of Ocean for the operation and maintenance of three pumpout boats. the Bay Saver Bay Defender and the Waist
Knot which service um the affluent discharge need of Boers in Brick Township waters. The pumpout boat provides a convenient, inexpensive, environmentally safe means for voters disposed of efficient waste. In this agreement, Brook operates and maintains the pumpout boats and the county
reimbures the township up to $50,000 for the cost incurred for the three boats. >> Thank you. 525, please. Authorize submission of strategic plan for brick municipal alliance grant 2027. >> Councilman Makino. >> Thank you. This resolution authorized
the submission of a strate strategic plan for the brick municipal alliance grant fiscal year 2027 in the amount of drug enforcement and demand reduction grant 22,626. Cash match of $5,56.50
an inind match of $16,519.50. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh 526, please. >> Authorize enabling resolution for supplemental funding NJD Green Acres program. >> Council Vice President Ambersino. >> Thank you, Council President. This
resolution authorizes a request for the NJD green acres program for an additional 6 million7,412 that may be needed for potential open space acquisitions as recommended by the mayor's brick open space savers
committee. This grant would help us continue the fantastic work that the boss team has done in preserving open space within brick. The particular parcels are located on Summit Avenue, Drum Point Road, and Brower Drive. Thank
you. >> Outstanding. Thank you. 527, please. >> Authorized waiver of administrative fee on animal licensing. >> Councilman in Albanese. >> Thank you, Council President. This resolution waves the dollar late fee for
animal licensing. Due to the weather event this past weekend, the township rabies clinic has been has to be rescheduled to February 1st, which does not allow for residents to obtain an animal license by the January 31st deadline. >> Thank you. 528
>> 521A is an inspection fund release for block 1170, lot 18, and B is an inspection fund release for block 1386.03, lot 31. >> Thank you. 529 >> 29A is a 50% DAV widow of veteran
deduction of block 230.29 lot 4. 29B is a 100% DAV widow of veteran deduction at block 383.28 lot 62. 29 C is a 100% DAV widow of veteran deduction at block 383.32 lot 28. 29D 100% DAV widow of
veteran deduction at block 446.02 lot 2. 29E 100% DAV widow of veteran deduction of block 755 lot 37. 29F 100% DAV widow of veteran deduction of block 1068.125 lot 5. 29G is a senior citizen deduction
at block 755 lot 37 and 29H is a veteran deduction at block 161 lot 214. >> Thank you. That brings us to the end of the consent agenda. Can I get a motion and a second? >> Motion second.
Thank you. Open to councel. Seeing none, closing council. Open to the public for questions on the resolutions only. Right. Seeing none, close public. Roll call. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Yes.
>> Councilman Makino, >> yes. >> Councilwoman Reena, >> yes. >> Councilman Cohen, >> yes. >> Councilwoman Travers, >> yes. >> Vice President Amberino, >> yes. >> President Feman, >> yes. 5:30.
>> Be it resolved by the township council of the township of Brick that the following bills be paid and that the mayor and clerk be and are hereby authorized to draw orders on the treasurer for the amounts of the same computer bill resolution in the amount of 12,791,56456. >> Is there a motion and a second on the computer bill resolution?
>> Motion. >> Thank you. Open to councel. Seeing none, close council. Open till the public for questions on the computer bill resolution only. >> Seeing none, close public. Roll call. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Yes. >> Councilman Mino,
>> yes. >> Councilwoman Marina, >> yes. >> Councilman Cohen, >> yes. >> Councilwoman Travers, >> yes. >> Vice President Amberino, >> yes. >> President Feman, >> yes. >> Thank you. >> 531. Be it resolved by the township council of the township of brick that the following bills be paid and that the
mayor and clerk be and are hereby authorized to draw orders on the treasurer for the amounts of the same manual bill resolution in the amount of 4,139,81348. >> Thank you. Can I get a motion and a second on the manual bill resolution? >> I'll make that motion. >> I'll second it.
>> Thank you. Open to councel. Seeing none, close counsel. Open to the public for questions on the manual bill resolution only. Seeing none, close public. Roll call. >> Councilman Albany, >> yes. >> Councilman Mikino, >> yes. >> Councilwoman Reena, >> yes. >> Councilman Cohen,
>> yes. >> Councilwoman Travers, >> yes. >> Vice President Emberscino, >> yes. >> President Feman, >> yes. >> 61. An ordinance of the Trop Brick County of Ocean, state of New Jersey, endorsing a reduction in the posted speed limit on
West Princeton Avenue and Ocean County roadway from 35 miles per hour to 30 mph. >> Councilman Mikino. >> Thank you. The Ocean County Engineer requested that the township consider the ordinance reduced the speed limit on
West Princeton Avenue. In 2025, the county completed two speed studies along West Princeton from Tuesday, September 3rd through Monday, September 9th, in the vicinity of Hoffman Street and from Tuesday, September 3rd to Monday, September 9th, in the vicinity of Fort
Street. The county speed study study and analysis included measurements of vehicle speed, review the 85th percentile of average speed, and review the number of vehicles exceeding the speed limit by 5 and 10 miles an hour. In addition, they utilize the Federal
Highway Administration speed management safety methodology to determine the recommended speed limit based on the various factors to determine if the existing speed limit is appropriate for the road. The exist the existing speed limit on West Princeton Avenue is 35
miles an hour. The collected data supported lowering the speed limit to 30 miles an hour. The township public safety committee agreed to proceed but with lowering the speeder limit in this neighborhood. Thank you. >> Thank you. Can I get a motion and a second? >> Motion.
>> Second. >> Thank you. Open to councel. Seeing none, close council. Roll call. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Yes. >> Councilman Mikino. >> Yes. >> Councilwoman Reena? >> Yes. >> Councilman Cohen? >> Yes. >> Councilwoman Travers? >> Yes.
>> Vice President Amberino? >> Yes. President Feman. >> Yes. >> 62, please. >> An ordinance of the Township of Brick County of Ocean, State of New Jersey, authorizing a lease of Milano Park, lot 548.01, lots 212304
to the Bricktownship Police Athletic League, a nonprofit corporation. >> Thank you, Councilwoman Travers. >> Thank you, Council President. This ordinance authorizes I'm not on this or this ordinance authorizes the renewal of a lease agreement with the police
athletic league for the property on Drum Point Road. The lease agreement is renewed for an additional 5 years. The P the PL has a history of providing community programs and offers the recreational facilities on site to the PA PL membership as well as the general public. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh can I get a motion and a
second? >> Make that motion. >> Second. >> Thank you. Open to council. Seeing none, close council. Roll call. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Yes. >> Councilman Makino. >> Yes. >> Councilwoman Reena? >> Yes. >> Councilman Cohen? >> Yes.
>> Councilwoman Travers? >> Yes. >> Vice President Amarcino? >> Yes. >> President Feman? >> Yes. >> On to number seven. >> Number seven is public comments. So, please note that each person addressing
the council during any section of the meeting during which public comment is permitted shall limit his or her remarks to five minutes pursuant to Brick Township Administrative Code section 2-33b. >> Seeing none. Oh, do we have >> Oh, sorry. I've got my little intro where I ask if there are any public
comments. Um, so a couple things I want to go over. I got to fill in for a lot of people here, so fig a little early. We get out a little late. Um, number one, uh, I I just got a couple questions I want to ask. The fireworks
at Winward Beach. Who pays the town or is that on donations or what what is it? >> It's a combination. So, we do solicit donations and sponsorships and each year it varies how much we get. So that's what we do first and the balance is paid by the township.
>> Right. So my question was like our fireworks are fireworks but trying to get something a little bit bigger. >> Wow. Have you seen them at Summerfest? >> Yeah. I've been to all they go to Point Pleasant and it's like you know a lot longer a lot more.
>> I don't think anybody I've ever spoken to is unhappy with the fireworks at Summerfest. >> I was thinking like trying to get like Macy's type stuff, you know, like a little bit bigger, a little bit longer. It's like 15 minutes. That's what >> Council President, if I may, I don't think this is such a bad idea. Let's have a
>> Yeah, it's a little bit more like a little bit more, you know? It's like one and then one and then >> Yeah, I don't think you're going to the same concert I'm going to. >> All right. My second thing was um
the uh snow that's here now. So, I know sidewalks have to get cleared. So, what I'm asking the council and the town, it's impossible to move the snow right now. So, if we could like wave that for these people, for everybody really, because there was so much snow,
the trucks push it all on the main streets onto sidewalks. It's nearly impossible to clean. So, it it's it's heavy. It's frozen. And for people, it's it's really a risk for both people. People walking and people have to
shovel. It's bad. So I don't know if they can wave instead of pushing, you know, your sidewalks aren't cleaned, you know, it's it's really, you know, bad. So >> So can I speak to that council? So thanks Bob. So we have typically done a
good job enforcing 24 hours after snowfall starts to clear the sidewalks. >> Um recognizing it's thick ice, we were not intending to get the crew code enforcement guys out there to drop the hatchet. However, um we've gotten a lot
of parents concerned about the routes to school and school bus stops. >> So, typically what we do is we focus first on the walking routes to school and we do um hold those folks accountable because it's got to be safe for the kids, >> right? I understand that. But it's it's
pretty it's it's solid. >> Okay. But I think all the parents that have been calling the past day or so would prefer a safer route for their kids. So, >> Right. Yeah. If you live on a school bus route or school walking school route, then you're kind of used to us reminding you that 24
hours after snowfall, it's got to be safe for the kids. >> Okay. So, back on the snowfall, we had a bad snowfall. Everybody knows that. Um I plow. I do a lot of a lot of snow plowing. Um it was a bad storm.
I saw they were doing a job was a lot of people out there and there's a ladyavy bad Trump did a good job. Everybody
thinks I have a little suggest insurance. >> The local procurement law won't allow us to do that. Um, we have to have a contract. We have to have their business registration certificate. They have to Right.
But it ahead of time you'd have to submit your business registration certificate and there's a lot of paperwork that's required by the state that we have to get from anybody um that does that. So it it's not necessarily something we could do on the fly like that.
You always got to do that. Okay, thank you Bob. Oh, the time the time is up. Uh we can continue the conversation after though. Thank you, Bob. Are there any other public comments?
No. Okay. Seeing none. Um before we move on to uh council administration comments, we're going to try something new. Um so with new council members come new ideas and since we are all here to serve the public, it's important that we work
together in that effort. Uh Councilwoman Rea suggested reporting back to the public on outcomes of concerns raised during public comment at our council meetings. and I fully support that idea. We want residents to know that the mayor, council, and township
administration work diligently to address concerns. A great deal of work goes on behind the scenes to assist our residents. And reporting back gives us an opportunity not only to provide transparency, but also to recognize and celebrate the dedication of our township
employees who serve our community daily. So, uh, if we do have an update, the council will provide it. And that being said, we do have two for tonight. Councilwoman Rea, would you like to uh take the first one? >> Yes. Thank you, Council President. I'm pleased to share a highle summary of the
activities following the grievances that came before council on January 6th from Mr. Stuck regarding Lynwood Avenue. There have been multiple communications between Mr. stuck council president and the business administrator on January
7th, 8th, 13th, and 22nd, detailing the history and timeline back to 2021. Crash data reveals a decrease in accidents following striping from six crashes to two crashes, noting six prior
to striping resulted in some injury of one of the vehicle occupants and following striping occupant injury. There were no occupant injuries in subsequent crashes. The speed limit study was conducted in 2021 and the
speed study uh result showed a speed limit of 31 miles per hour in a zone um where the speed limit is 30 miles per hour. An article appeared in the Brick Times on January 17th related to this concern. Let's talk a minute about the
next steps. So, a letter dated January 2nd, January 22nd, excuse me, was sent to Lynwood residents requesting their feedback and a new updated traffic study will be conducted. This council is fully committed to collaboratively working to
achieve the best possible outcome informed by experts, data, and Lynwood residents. We will keep you informed as additional updates become available. Thank you. >> Well done. Thank you. Uh and uh also at
the January 6 council meeting, a resident expressed concern regarding a car wash under construction on Route 88. Uh for those of you who missed it, the resident asked about the approval process for the car wash and asked about the possibility of creating a park on an
open parcel in the Taylor Boulevard, Barb Lane, and Kenneth Place uh section. That neighborhood backs up to a state highway and the property in question has been on a commercial zone since 1948. It's been the strip mall since the 1960s. For more than 50 years, the
owners of Camp Mall have owned that site. And the one next door, which is currently underway as a car wash. Car washes are not an approved use. I'm sorry. Car washes are not an approved use in the in the zone. They are only permitted in the industrial zone unless
they are associated with a gas station. Gas stations are allowed in this zone, but not standalone car washes. The application required site plan approval and use variance from the board of adjustment. As with all applications before the
board, residents are invited to attend the board meeting, listen to testimony provided by the applicant, ask questions, and make comments. Legally, the governing body has no role in board of adjustment or planning board cases. The township cannot stop a business from
moving in there a as the US Constitution says property rights exist for all of us. Temporary disturbances do come with construction such as the signage that blocked line of sight. That problem was immediately addressed by an astute code enforcement officer who happened to be
driving by. Once the construction is complete, construction equipment, temporary fencing, and temporary signage will be replaced with the components outlined in the site plan application approved by the board. The township has an active process to acquire properties for open space. The brick open space
savers committee looks at properties that meet certain parameters for an appropriate open space acquisition, such as its developability and access for active and passive recreation. Properties that above already acquired open space parcels rate highest as that
expands our footprint of open space parcels. We only purchase open space from willing sellers. The this property does not have open space conservation or recreational recreation value as it is a conforming business zone use and would
be very expensive as such. The 4500 square foot piece asked about at the last meeting is best suited for an adopt a spot, but a property that abuts a state highway is not appropriate for even a pocket park. It may be appealing to a contiguous property owner to
purchase and expand his or her backyard. Thank you. Uh moving on to number eight. Um, Madame Clerk. >> Okay. Thank you,
>> Madam Secretary. >> Councilman Albanese. >> Uh, nothing this evening. >> Councilman Mikino. >> Thank you. I'd like to congratulate the officers that were promoted and um for recognizing the school board. Thank you.
That's all I got. Thank you, Council Councilwoman Rea. >> I want to thank the mayor, council president, and Joanne Bergen for meeting with me on the 22nd and for implementing the recommendation to provide public feedback for grievances addressed before the council. As uh council president
stated, this ensures communication, visibility, and public confidence that concerns are not only heard, but fully acted upon and mitigated. Also, I'm looking forward to meeting this Friday with our township planner for a deep dive discussion into affordable housing
and zoning. I want to thank in advance Tara Paxton and Joan Bergen for scheduling. Um, lastly, my sincere congratulations to the officers promoted this evening for all their good work and to our school board for all they do for our students and schools and community.
Thank you. >> Thank you, Councilwoman Travers. We're out of order. >> We're out of order. I apologize. >> No, that's okay. It threw me off. I can go though if you want. >> Uh, no. Let's stick to the order. Uh, sorry about that. Councilman Cohen,
>> like to congratulate the officers that were promoted tonight. Um, it was great to see that happen. I also um would like to thank Joan Bergen. Um, her quick responses to emails I've sent questioning numerous things is the response time is just absolutely
amazing. Um I know how busy a BA is because I answer to one every day. Um so finding the time is incredible. Um along with um the township website um so that I don't get this wrong. Uh street not
plowed. Um, if you went on to to the township website during this storm and you clicked on street not plowed, that email was sent and I just found out tonight directly to Joanne who handled that personally to make sure that a plow was sent out to your street. So, if you
had an issue going forward, please don't hesitate to use that link. Again, street not plowed. I think it's an incredible job on her behalf um to be more proactive in making sure that our streets are being plowed. Um, I'd like to shout out to public works. Um,
although I've gotten some complaints, they did an amazing job with the amount of snow that fell. Um, and the amount of trucks that I saw out there on the road and even how friendly the drivers were. Um, I just cannot say enough about our incredible township employees. Thank you.
>> Well done. Thank you. Now, Councilwoman Travers, >> I also just want to congratulate the officers on their swear their promotions as well as thanking the school board members for being here and for all your continuous hard work. And I'm going to um also I just wanted to thank the public works as well. I feel like this
is this storm was not as expected as much as the ice and everything and they're working tirelessly. So, thank you to them and Joanne. >> Excellent. Thank you, Council Vice President Amberino. >> Uh thank you, Council President. Yeah. First, I'd like to just start again by
congratulating Lieutenant Keith Prenville and newly Sergeant Matthew Nurr on their promotions. I'd also like to recognize the school board members that joined us here today and all the work that they do uh for our children here in our community, of which I have
several. I take a lot of pride in brick schools. I'm a product of brick schools. Uh and what you're putting out today is much better than what I was. So, I'm looking forward to the future. Uh, Mr. Mataliano, it's good seeing you again. I'm happy you're here, my friend. I
count you as a friend. I hope you like me. Uh, I wanted to spend a little bit of time talking about what you talked about because I think we're very much on the same page. Uh, the fact of the matter is that we here in Brick experienced a very significant storm this weekend. And I mean, in my memory,
it's probably one of the bigger storms of the past several years. We got a lot of snow and it fell for a long time. Uh, first I want to call out what an enormous job it was to get this snow addressed. We've got nearly 800 miles of road in this town. That's a lot. 800
miles of roads. And I know that our township administration, our public works department, all of their employees along with many other emergency groups, our PD, our emergency services, they all put a lot of effort not just into remediating the storm, but in preparing
for it as well. We actually had nearly 60 vehicles secured to perform the many activities that are necessary to remediate this snow. That's plowing, but it's also salting the streets, sanding roads. They had small excavating vehicles out there. This includes both
township assets and employees as well as a long list of contractors that were secured in order to make sure that we could respond to what was coming. Uh these groups actually began their work on Saturday evening even before the first snowflake fell and they worked in
12-hour AB shifts until Monday morning. So practically 36 hours straight. They even had CS and food ready at DPW so that they could continue to work round the clock. Now the difficulty that this storm presented was not just the
snowfall, Bob. like you mentioned, there was a foot plus and that's not a small amount of snow, but the real problem was that it persisted for over 24 hours. And what this means is that we actually had to go out and replplow roads, especially the major roadways in town like Route 70
and Route 88 and Brick Boulevard and Drum Point Road, Manaloing. You add to that the big drop in temperature that we all saw Sunday evening, which we're still dealing with and will be for the next several days. Now all of a sudden we've got ice on top of everything else. And I want to make clear that that work
is still going on over by where I live in Herbertsville. Some of the plowed roads actually completely iced over today. I want to thank our brick police department for securing a portion of the which is very hilly and diverting traffic to keep cars from becoming stuck
and damaged. Thank you to our DPW for very quickly getting sand dropped off into that area within minutes so that that road could then be reopened and vehicles were no longer crashing. But really more than anything, what I want to do is thank all of the residents of Brick. We got through this because you
all took this storm very seriously. Folks prepared. And I know this because when I tried to go to Home Depot and buy salt, every place was sold out, right? But you also helped each other. Everybody on my street took plans to do what they could to get their vehicles off the road so that we could ease the
job of the plows and make what they're doing more effective. I saw my neighbors help each other in any way that they could. They were out there with snowblowers, with shovels multiple times on Sunday and Monday to make sure that driveways were cleared, cars were
accessible, driveway aprons were dug out, and sidewalks were clean. And look, at the end of the day, when weather like this happens, each and every one of us, our lives is disrupted. And that's hard for us. Everyone would prefer that such
disruption was as short as possible, that their road gets plowed first, that their cars don't get plowed in. But we've got a big town with a lot of roads, and this really was a big job. What I saw overwhelmingly was that people came together. They helped one another through this. and for that I'm
really really proud of our community. And that's it for tonight. >> Well done. That's a tough act to follow. Um I just wanted to congratulate uh newly sworn in lieutenant and sergeant uh and also thank the school board. I
have two little ones and uh I agree with Council Vice President Amcino in that I love our schools. We have a great school district. Um so thank you. I really appreciate it. Uh, as always, stay safe and have fun. Uh, moving on to Mr.
Starky. >> Okay, Miss Bergen. >> Well, I want to speak for Councilman Albanese and myself in congratulating Matt and Keith for their promotions. I saw that he forgot. So, I I'm throwing in your reminder now. It's It's great to see it's great to see them promoted and
move up and have such wonderful support from mayor and township council. It's so important. And speaking of police, this may very well be our last meeting with Ricky, who's going to be retiring. So we Yeah. So we hope so. We'll take you for as long as you're here, but he's served
this town very well for a few decades. He's a great man and uh he's always made sure we stay safe. So I thought we'd just recognize him. >> You're here. Absolutely. Yeah. And I can't top the snow comments made so far just to tell you that we are committed to continue to tweak what we
do and how we do it so that we do it better to serve the residents of Brick Township. But thank you for your wonderful comments. >> Well done. Thank you, Mayor Crate. >> Thank you. Uh I'd also like to uh congratulate our officers that were promoted this evening. Thank the school board for coming out and joining us and
congratulations on se your celebration of this month uh and all the hard work that you do. We appreciate you. as I cough. Sorry. Uh I do want to point out uh again and I'm going to reiterate some of what council vice president said regarding the so snow removal. We sat
down last week with our office of emergency management. Uh all of the important people were in the room with us. We had our police, our fire, our EMS. We obviously had our emergency teams. Uh Miss Bergen was there. We had
it there because you never know uh what's going to go down with regard to incoming messages to us. Every single person that sat in on that meeting, this EMS, if I didn't say them, was committed to making sure that we were prepared for
this storm. And that included everything from making sure we had enough officers on duty and traveling throughout the town in case people did get stuck uh getting their lottery ticket or whatever they might have been doing. Um, we made sure we had extra EMS ready to go. We
had, uh, as Councilman said, uh, we had CS available so that people didn't have to drive in the dangerous weather. We made sure people were fed. Our public works, uh, worked on rotating shifts constantly from, as you said, midnight Saturday night. They started with
salting, moved to plowing. Uh, it was, it was a difficult storm. It doesn't seem like it actually just snows anymore. It seems like it's an event uh that starts with one thing and ends with another and we get everything in between. We did get nearly a foot of snow here in Brick Township and that
foot of snow while uh the beginning could be blown with a uh you know I have a really heavy powered leaf blower that worked great on my deck for like the first couple of hours. The second that changed over to the freezing rain and then rain and then back to freezing rain and whatever else it was doing out there
overnight really hampered the efforts of a of all of the workers that were out there and made it very difficult uh for them to to continue to work. But they did so and I'm so proud of the work that every single uh employee did throughout this entire storm from public works to
EMS to police to our firefighters who also stayed. There are volunteers, but they were in each of the firehouses ready to go in case there was an emergency. So, kudos to them as well. Our township employees uh as was noted
about the is has my street been plowed? It was not a bot uh looking at those. It was an actual person charting out, mapping out uh where all of these streets were, which quadrant they were in for town that went out to our public works and to all of the contractors so
that they could get then address those issues. And to say that I I know that they I can't speak for the contractors, but I can speak for our public works guys doing it with a smile and and doing it as kindly as they could. It was a lot of snow to move. I have had calls of
positivity. Um, a shout out to TJ. Uh, I had a senior call and and they were and that he stopped and assisted them. Uh, so TJ is one of our public works guys. Shout out to him as well. And just as you noted,
because the snow was so much and so large and so heavy, the fact that neighbors were out helping neighbors. I know I walked out of my house, my neighbor came across the street. I'm like all choked up about this. My husband works during snowstorms and uh he works in a smaller town so they don't
have shifts. The shift is the snow starts and the snow ends and you work until it's gone, right? So, um you know, we had neighbors come out and assist with clearing each other's driveways and it's just that's what Brick Township is, right? It's it's neighbors helping neighbors. It's you look for the helpers
and they come out and they and they want to help each other. So, I appreciate the work that everyone's done. I appreciate our public works. They are still out. Um they'll be out again tomorrow salting these freezing temperatures are real uh
it's really tough when when there's that much on the road and uh it's going to be hard but we're we're still out there and they're still working and they're getting to each of these developments and continuing that hard work. So thank you to all of them. Thank you to the hard work of everyone behind the scenes to keep things moving. And may there be
only sunshine and rainbows uh for the next until we hit spring in 50 days or so. So, thanks to everybody. >> All right. Well said. Thank you. Uh next public meeting will be on uh Tuesday, February 10th, 2026 at 7 p.m. Can I get a motion and a second to adjurnn?
>> Second. >> All in favor? I