i want to start the meeting for the township of Hamilton a little late monday April 7th 2025 please rise for the flag salute always got to start a 10:42
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 all adequate notice of this meeting has been provided pursuant to the New Jersey open
public meetings law by posting a notice of this meeting on the bulletin board in the municipal building and by transmitting notice of this meeting to the press of Atlantic City the Star Ledger and the Atlantic County Record on January the 8th 2025 mr cheek here Mr laws Mr patali here Dr witherspoon here
mayor Shanker here can we have a moment of silence for private reflection please thank you um so to get started with we have a proclamation for the Hamilton Elite Basketball Team any you folks here come on up
[Music] this is how we do this why don't you guys line up around here [Music] spread out so they can get [Music]
[Music] pictures and I'm going to read a little statement okay whereas Hamilton Township believes the student athletes are the mo are important part of Maze Landing community and would like to recognize the 2024
2025 Hamilton elite basketball team for representing Ma's Landing community in such a positive way whereas under the leadership of president head coach John Wheeler and the the 2024 2025 of Hamilton Elite Varsity Basketball Team went undefeated to win the Cape Atlantic
Junior Basketball League Championship which is the which was the first title being brought back to M's Landing in a National Division League whereas in addition the JV coach uh excuse me led by Kelvin Johnson won
the championship game whereas in addition to claiming the 24-25 Cape Atlantic Junior Basketball League Championship title the Hamilton Elite Boys Basketball Team had four student athletes named to the All-Star
Tournament team zane Forest oh my god you're killing me paladin Muhammad Mitchell and Sakur you guys really ch Yeah well my name's Shanker so they
never they never got that right either so I don't feel bad um whereas the accomp accomplishments of these athletes on this team are admired respected by the Maze Landing community and demonstrate the character that athletes of women William Davies Middle School
possesses therefore the sworn members of Hamilton Township Committee in Maze Landing New Jersey do hereby recognize the 2024 2025 Hamilton elite basketball team in honor of this accomplishment in perpetuity as established this day the
seventh day of April the year of 2025 congratulations the microphone nice [Applause] yeah let's get up let's bring you guys up front line up here so everybody can get
pictures out here so you guys can spread out it's all right come on [Music] absolutely great job say a few words or you guys want to thank
[Music] I just want to thank all the parents all year putting up with us boys y'all did an awesome job thank y'all for the support thank you mayor for having us today and the staff thank you again thank you good job guys
it's almost as good as the trophy you got right mr mayor Mr mayor Mr mayor if I can say one thing to you parents thank you very much it's you that get them to the games the practices and everything else you
deserve an applause as well and to the kids you couldn't have done any better undefeated great job that's a nice t-shirt good thing you came today man here we go always my favorite thing to do
okay where we at here uh we move to item number one uh additions deletions of the late agenda items to be considered for action tonight we have two uh additions 7 A3 business res resol
registration for how do you say that raccoen yeah that sounds right yeah sushi 4403 Black Horse Pike Hamilton Mall uh it's a sushi restaurant which I did go by there the other day looking forward to going in uh 7F resolution
authorizing the release of the performance guarantee for Fenmore Homes at Woodless Landing LLC phase 5 in the amount of 317,19720 contingent upon posting acceptance of the resolution of the governing body for a 2-year maintenance
guarantee at the amount of $77,319.36 and a 4-year storm water management maintenance guarantee in the amount of $49,854.78 as recommended by engineer township engineer Rob Robert Smith in his correspondence stated
4325 two deletions 7E resolution granting authorization to conduct promotional process for police sergeant and lieutenant to create lists for fill vacancies the other deletion is 12B executive session construction official
personnel so moved second got a motion and a second are there any questions hearing no questions all those hearing no questions all those in favor signify by saying I i all those opposed
the eyes have it early public comment on agenda items excluding items listed in for public hearing no one signed up no one signed up good uh decid discussions formal action may be taken a amendment to the operating hours of the liquor
licensed establishment um do we want to chief you want to kind of give us a brief good evening um the one one of the reasons why I wanted to get this on the agenda uh this this time is because we we had talked about it in the past you
know going over the businesses that we do have in the township and some of the issues that we've had in the past um we we discussed different times we discussed uh moving from four o'clock to 2 o'clock I think is is much more reasonable um it's more or less a
standardized time for New Jersey when it comes to um okay hours of operation and I think that would cut down on a lot of the issues that we're having in some of these establishments those hours so that's basically it yep and we've had some
conversation about this prior does anybody uh on the day want have any questions or any discussion none uh what's your pleasure so move you want to move this to uh what we do a resolution or we have to change
ordinance this would change the code so it would be done by ordinance so I could draft an ordinance to put in front of you for introduction it would go to a public hearing okay so we'll move forward that in the next meeting yes i can have a draft and put it onto the agenda with the administrator's
permission okay very good thank you okay number four public hearings adoption of ordinances we'll start with a ordinance 2098 2025 an ordinance amending chapter 144 of the township code to
provide for amend the fees for certain construction permit applications in the township of Hamilton county of Atlantic uh this is a public hearing anybody in the public like to comment on this hearing none a motion to close second we have a motion to close public
portion we have a second any questions all in favor signify by saying I i all those opposed uh we will entertain an adoption of this ordinance so moved second we have a motion we have
a second are there any questions or concerns hearing none rita can you do a roll call vote on this please mr chief yes mr matalli yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes oh yes and adopted thank you uh B ordinance 2099 2025 an
ordinance to amend ordinance 1346-99 as amended titled an ordinance implementing the emergency services volunteer length of service award program LOAP pursuant to New Jersey
NJSA4A14-183 to replace LOAP point system for firefighters set forth in exhibit A attached to the ordinance 1346-99 or to adopt and establish a new point system for the volunteer
firefighters to be identified as exhibit A1 2025 this is a public hearing anybody in the public like to speak hearing none move to close we have mo motion to close public portion second we have a second all those in favor
signify by saying I i all those opposed the eyes have it we will entertain adopting this ordinance do we have some discussion i have a discussion as far as I'd like to make a change or two on this okay not
quite sure how we would do that at this point uh at this point I think that we would vote to uh May address that go ahead yeah i think if the governing body wishes to discuss that change so that we can iron out the change and there is uh agreement between the governing body to
make that change and you can make a motion to amend the ordinance will be seconded and if it's approved because it most likely will be a material change the notice would have to be uh given it's my understanding that based on the publication that another public hearing would be scheduled for adoption on May
5th 2025 if there's a motion to amend the ordinance okay i would like to make the motion to amend it then can you um You'd have to give us what amendments you want to do is that correct that's correct ma'am okay
to jump in Rich uh yes Carl my fingers aren't working under under drills 40 point maximum 20 point minimum um most fire companies have 12 drills a year and they get So this
provides for two points per drill if they missed two drills they would lose the minimum of 20 points so we'd like to look into that and and make a change there would we have to make the change now Ken yes if you're making a
specific motion what you would like to amend amendment would be be put on the record and voted upon understood so I would like to I suggest that we change that 20 point minimum down to uh 12 point minimum
and just so the public's aware that's under exhibit A120245 for the length of service awards program section two for drills uh you'd like to move the 40 point maximal with a 12point minimum is that correct yes
okay is that the only um amendment that's the only change that I that that I see um Rich that's the only one I see um so at 12 point minimum that would be
they make half the drills yes okay it was almost set up to where if they didn't make them all they didn't get anything and that's not We're trying to make this as fair as possible okay uh so is that in a form of a motion richie you want to make you
mean that motion do we have a second second [Music] um any comments concerns rita let's do a roll call for this please mr chief yes mr patali yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes
carrie thank you mayor again for the record inspire termination that is a material change so that will be on for final adoption on the meeting of May 5th 2025 with another public hearing as well okay so we don't have to start all over again we're just going to do another
public hearing correct yes very good thank you uh six awards of bids contracts and change orders a resolution increasing the not to exceed mount amount did you just get number five i'm sorry oh I'm sorry i'm sorry
uh number five introduction of ordinances public hearing to be held on May 5th ordinance 2000 uh-2025 an ordinance to vacate a portion of Avenue of the Pines described in the Metis bounds at located at the Township
of Hamilton County of Atlantic state of New Jersey um Brett you want to give a little background on this i think I could too but so the uh engineer for the the project that we're
um that's excuse me one second correct yeah there's road LLC asked to vacate uh unimproved portion of the Avenue of the Pines that runs through their their property um the engineer went out the uh
surveyed surveyed the work took a look at what they want to do and has signed off on the vacation yeah the the applicant submitted a meets and bounds description for the the roadway intended to be vacated uh we reviewed the legal description we took no exceptions to the
legal description yeah okay it runs from one of the culde-sacs in Misty Pines to the curb on Walker Forge Road right okay and mayor just to add to that the governor body remembers we did discuss this at a prior meeting no other affected property owners for this vacation that part of the street was
already vacated previously this is for the purpose of that development that's going there correct correct just so everybody's clear um committee I'm familiar with the project i motion second we have a motion we have a second
do we have any questions or concerns rita let's do a roll call for this please mr chief yes mr patali yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes oh yes and introduced all right so let's do awards of bids contracts and change orders
now resolution increasing not to exceed number not to exceed amount of 2025 professional services contract for Leon Costello of Ford Scott and Associates LLC is our auditor from 42,000 to 43,000
so it's a $1,000 increase so move we have a motion we have a second any questions concerns yes I have a question okay what was the difference of the $1,000 uh so Leon's original proposal was for
43,000 um it was a mistake on our part uh we just we pushed it forward and we have to correct it by increasing the not to exceed amount okay okay any more questions fred can we do a roll call vote please
mr chef yes mr patali yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes all yes and carried thank you um we move on to consent agenda don't forget we have uh two
additional seven motion that we approve A through D 7 A through D and then 7 F okay second we have a second are there any questions concerns just one question
on B which I have no problem with it i just wanted to know I see Amazon is down for the consensus i mean let me let me make sure I'm saying it right 7b
application name of and address of supplier Amazon what does that mean because on the other app on the other applications it's like I guess it's self-explanatory but I just wanted to make sure because is it
an Amazon gift card i don't know the on B for the turkey tray schedule expense auction ticket sheets from Amazon right that's what it's referred to is that what they're referring and on the
other one double roll of tickets that they're buying the tickets from Amazon the paper tickets right what made me question it was on the last one on um May 3rd and at the bottom the B portion it had tumbling and dice entertainment
Atlantic bingo supply tango outlets that's what I question that is for um designer bag bingo i saw that oh they have different expenses from a raffle to a bingo okay
which is fine i just wanted they have to disclose to legalize games of chance exactly who's supplying everything right that's fine it's But you can see how it's broken down here and it wasn't broken down because the other one's just like a um a 50/50 so they just have the
tickets okay that's fine yeah that's that's it okay any other questions none all those in favor signify by saying I all those opposed the eyes have it eight excuse me
personnel uh resolution to extend appointment of Bonnie Cherry at the rate of $75 per hour on an asneeded basis to assist finance department through June 2025 so a motion are there any questions hearing none
rita could we do a roll call vote please mr chief yes mr patali yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes all yes and carried number nine approvals we have minutes from the regular meeting minutes of March 17th 2025
so move second we have a motion we have a second are there any questions yes go ahead uh I just have a couple questions um the Amazon uh presentation to discussion uh I had
asked a question about the $25,000 escrow and that's not included in the minutes minutes are not verbatim that's I understand but I just would like for that to reflect that there's a down
payment and I understand I understand you know what it was wasn't the 50,000 but it was 25 from them and 25 from the other one but it was nothing I did bring that up may I address if you believe that the minutes aren't accurate you would like inclusions that are something
that might be left out of there I would ask you to make a motion to table the minutes and then that can be updated in the vote upon in a future meeting table motion to table okay and then I just have one other thing that um resolution uh 20
2025-0130 i would like um the clerk to look at the tape because I recogn on on the motion who made the motion or who made the second right sometimes we hear things differently it's possible
right so um I don't have anything with me here so no table that's fine and and if you would be kind enough to obviously follow up with correspondence table any discrepancies so that we can have it adjusted if necessary i appreciate that thank you
thank you Conor is there a motion to table the minutes second so move second we have a second all those in favor signify by saying I i i all those opposed the eyes have it bills billless total
[Music] $4,827,841 we have a motion second we have a second are there any questions or concerns hearing none rita could we do a roll call vote please mr cheek yes mr patali yes dr witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes
oh yes and carried thank you we have reports mr administrator I have nothing signed thank you mr solicitor nothing this time thank you mayor appreciate it mr engineer nothing to add to my written report okay township committee dr witherspoon sure you know I have a
report uh I would like to report that I did attend the Atlantic County legal municipalities meeting in Hamilton at Ilos i guess Ilanos ilanos i messed that up sorry ilanos and they had the public
works director there talking about on what's going on with the county with the spraying of the mosquitoes so on and so forth it was a it was a very very nice meeting i did uh attend the township band concert at the H school and that
was very nice and I found out that the Oakrest High School uh won um a competition and they're going to Rowan College so I was very very excited about what the children are doing uh in our district uh coming up uh there is an
Atlantic County Township administrative meeting uh that I would I am attending i called today about that and that's going to be on Friday the 11 in Lansdale then on Saturday I will be attending the
community expo senior expo uh from 10 a.m to 2:00 p.m i'm not going to be there the whole time but I will be there cuz at 1:00 there's going to be a cleanup on New York Avenue so I will be
going to that so that is my report for today thank you thank you Deputy Mayor uh last month um we lost former committeeman and one
time mayor Mr anthony Platinella uh he was on committee for 5 years back in the 70s okay i'm going by what the obituary said um and he was mayor in 1973 is that correct
okay he also was the original owner of Mil Street Pub and Sugar Hill Subs so he had a bit of an influence on my eating habits unfortunately um so I'd just like to say rest rest in peace Mayor Platin and thank you for your service to our town
um on another note I'd like to mention the amazing gymn gymnastic career of our very own Hannah Applegate hannah has been a determined and successful gymnast for nearly her entire life she began her collegiate career at Lynenwood
University where she excelled for three years only to have the university cancel her gymnastics program she moved on to Central Michigan University for her senior year and final year of college gymnastics her and her team went out on
the highest of notes winning the mid mid American C conference championship with Hannah taking home the all-around title so I'd like to say congratulations to Hannah Applegate and to the Central Michigan Chipawas women's gymnastic team
pretty impressive um and you can go on Facebook and look at her mom's Facebook page and see all of her performances now what are you going to post about yeah yeah what now but uh just absolutely amazing what what she can do and uh
she's also does pretty good with her schoolwork too so Um tomorrow night at 6:00 there will be a community art night at La Pasada Bar and Grill $20 includes food and art supplies uh there will be terracotta
painting a community canvas uh handwritten station and more i really I just saw this the other day seems pretty interesting some of the uh businesses on Main Street are involved so really a great thing to try to get some people together get out and do something a little bit different
um as Dr witherspoon already said senior citizens advisory committee having the community resource expo at William Davies Middle School 10 to two um and this isn't just for seniors it's for everybody they have a whole
um array of different businesses uh Atlantic Care will be there i believe the Atlantic County Sheriff's Department is going to be there doing some things so that's um Saturday at William Davis School from 10il 2 um on Saturday May
3rd the Hamilton Sustainability Team will have their Earth Day Oakfest at Oakrest High School from 10:00 till 2 vendors exhibitors food trucks K9 demos uh workshops uh they will have document
shredding which people ask throughout the year all the time um this is for residential only don't bring your business stuff there um recycling drop off uh there's going to be opening remarks from our very own mayor Arts Janker I
believe and I heard Smokey the Bear will be there too so don't get too excited about the mayor um also there will be a roadside cleanup before this event and that will take place over on West Jersey Avenue at 8:00 a.m and I believe they're
meeting at Think Inc is that correct which is 4179 West Jersey Avenue um if you're going to go down there and help pick up all the trash that gets thrown out on that road um dress appropriately so and that's pretty much about it uh
Reagan I'll see you later maddie miss you love you and I hope to see you soon thank you Carl there you are i will follow the deputy mayor on March 18th I met with the sustainability team at a meeting and a
very good meeting it was they were having I couldn't make it on 329 Avenue cleanup and then again Oakfest is May the 3 and this year is their 10-year anniversary for being part of this
community so it was a very nice meeting and very enlightening and that's all I have very good uh I don't have much to report unfortunately I was kind of sick the last week or so but I am it is true I will be appearing at the Earth Day uh with the sustain
sustainability you know after a lot of contract negotiations we were able to work it out so I will be there uh other than that I don't have anything else to report um we want to move to public comment any comment anybody in the public like to speak say lean
hey everybody I have to give you the credit for telling me that Mayor Platinella was 1973 and just because the kid made a mistake in the obit she probably thought five plus one but that's okay carl you forgot to add the other punchline on the
Platinella family what's that i I messaged you uh we have a new rescue squad approved individual who will have Oh yes orientation this week and it is Mayor Platinella's grandson who is apparently one ace of a kid and he's an
EMT already i think he graduates high school this year but I'm not sure on that so that's all thank you thank you thank you very much thank you Rita you're welcome would anybody else in the public like to speak it's your big chance move to close
public thank you second we have a motion and second or any questions not all those in favor signify by saying I i i all those opposed the eyes have it u i'm looking for a motion to adjourn to executive session i do not believe will
we be coming back out we may have we may okay correct so I'm not make a motion to move to executive session second thank you uh any questions comments all those in favor
signify by saying I i all those opposed eyes have it thank you everyone for coming tonight appreciate it i'll entertain a motion to come out of uh executive session so move second motion second any questions hearing none all
those in favor signify by saying I i all those opposed the eyes have it so we have two uh items that we have to talk about here uh one is okay thank you
one is to have our solicitor Ken Warren draft a response to Hamilton's uh previous letter please yes uh do we need a motion to do that or we're just we just direct you to do that i would ask for a motion
of authority okay so would somebody please make that motion motion second we have a motion and second uh are there any questions anybody understand all those in favor signify by saying I i all those opposed the eyes have it
uh the other one is the shared services potential shared services agreement that's correct and I believe mayor you have a resolution to consider entering into application rita you want to read the resolution sure whereas the state of New Jersey has
appropriated 6 million for shared services and school district consolidation study and implementation grants to assist local units with the study development and implementation of new shared and regional services and whereas the Department of Community Affairs Division of Local Government
Services is tasked with administering these grant funds through the local efficiency achievement programs to support costs associated with shared service implementation to ensure that meaningful efficiency generating initiatives are not hindered by
short-term transitional expenses end whereas Atlanta County government acting as the lead entity and Hamilton Township proposed to enter into a shared service agreement for the participating entity to utilize county property known as
Lenipe Lake Lenipe Park East for public swimming and other potential riverfront activities but face certain expenses associated with implementation that present a burden to the local units and whereas the shared service agreement will allow the participating unit to
utilize the county property as a public beach and other potential riverfront activities and whereas as the lead agency in this effort Atlantic County government has agreed to submit the application to DLGS on behalf of all participating units and now therefore be
it resolved by the governing body of the Hamilton Township that Hamilton Township does hereby join with Atlanta County government and the participating units named above and applying for a LEAP implementation grant in the amount of $300,000 over a five-year term to
support implementation of this shared service i didn't quite understand can she read that again no I don't think I could heard the resolution at least everybody Richie heard the resolution um what's
your pleasure so move we have a motion second we have a second all those in favor i all those opposed the eyes have it so that will move us to a motion for adjournment so move second second all those in favor signify
by saying I i all those opposed the eyes have it thank you