##VIDEO ID:aN1uqFhnNwE## good evening everyone I would like to call the uh November 12th 2024 Hamilton Township council meeting to order this meeting is held with benefit of public notice uh as required by the open public meetings act Madam clerk will you please call the role Mr PaPeRo here M Phillips here Mr R here Mr Ty here Mr carabell here all pres ladies and let's please rise and join us in the salute to the flag and please remain standing for the invocation Ali 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 dear God you are our creator and source of Hope give us the wisdom and the generosity to impact positively and improve the lives of our family friends and Community let us pray for those experiencing loss especially those suffering with depression and addiction during this Thanksgiving holiday as always bless this Township and may we as a government represent the best interest of our community we ask all these things in your name amen amen and God bless you so our our first action this evening is to um recess as the township Council and conven as the Board of Health so can I have a motion for that I'll make a motion have a second thank you well call Madam clerk Mr Phillips Mr Mr here yes Mr Mr yes just in case we were more sure yes we have uh director Kathy Fitzgerald with us with uh our health uh Health officer uh Chris Helwig um thank you both for being here this evening um and uh want to want to start off with just giving a little bit of a update and then and then if we have any questions from our Council body we'll proceed like that does that sound good sounds wonderful so uh good evening all as always it is with great pride and pleasure we come before you this evening to present our report to the Hamilton Township Board of Health the Hamilton Township division of health is dedicated by maintaining the health and well-being of all of our residents and Visitors by means of prevention health promotion and educ this evening we will provide you with an update on our public health goals and objectives the progress on our journey towards national accreditation and a more detailed information on our environmental section as well as other sections and the accomplishments of the department to keep up to date on the accomplishments of the division of Health we invite our board members and our residents to take a moment to visit our Township website and read the division of Health's annual report our health officer will provide each of you with a hard copy at the end of the year in addition our animal shelter and Adoption Center posts monthly updates and statistics on our web page our health department staff continues to provide State mandated services and our animal shelter staff continues to provide the best quality of care to the animals in our shelter the animal shelter has been and continues to be a top priority of this Administration as well as one of the Health Department's highest PRI priorities we are very proud that through the hard work we have essentially turned around the operation of the shelter performance and delivered positive results we have received numerous accolades through the past several years but we are also not without some questions and criticism regarding operations in our animal shelter many tasks are accomplished with a lot of hard work passion and dedication tasks that have been accomplished in addition to the care of the animals which is our top priority has been the development of detailed policies and procedures exceptional recordkeeping and shelter internal controls oversight is provided daily and management continues to evaluate re-evaluate and revise policies as needed the shelter operations and environment is an extremely sensitive operation due to the high emotional level and passion of our staff necessary to care and provide a nurturing and loving environment for the animals imagine if you have or had a pet at home the relationship you develop the trust the concern and the genuine love that is a result of the care you provide to that animal each staff member has a direct daily contact with these animals and even the support staff that helps in a different way all develop a special relationship with each animal in our shelter unfortunately some of our animals may not have the relationship in the shelter we would all desire for them to have but as as with humans each animal has their very own personality temperament and behavioral traits it can be very frustrating and stressful for the staff as well as the shelter an animal when this type of relationship cannot be formed prior to this evening's meeting several managerial directives have been issued and implemented we not only hope to provide the members of the board the answers to any questions that they have presented to us in addition I asked Chris to reach out to two of our most faithful Animal Advocates to ask if they had any questions for tonight's meeting this approach will hopefully offer transparency and provide all concerned parties a clearer picture of the shelter operations and oversight this evening I have requested that our health officer provide us with something different a visual PowerPoint because sometimes it's a visual learning not just a listening learning that we see and so he's going to provide us with that information hopefully he addresses past and present questions and can provide us an update with all of the divisions and sections within our health department at the conclusion of Chris's report if you have any additional questions or need further clarification Danielle Joya our shelter manager has also joined us and hopefully can provide any answers that Chris norai can provide at this time I'd like to offer Chris to provide his report and I ask you to focus on our PowerPoint presentation all right good evening uh Board of Health and residents um I know normally I I print out a memo and and made it available to everybody to have but uh we're running a little uh late today so we just have the uh the uh the PowerPoint for everybody to uh to take a look at today and hopefully it won't be dep by PowerPoint I swear so just as a quick overview of where we'll go today um I'll give uh everybody a brief update on uh where the division uh on the health side stands uh through accreditation covid-19 after action reporting our strategic plan and then finally uh an animal shelter update so starting with uh the environmental section um our annual inspections do remain on schedule uh our goal is to complete uh the retail food inspections by the end of November which has been our goal for for the last number of years um so the vast majority of the inspector's work uh should be wrapping up shortly but we um are also seeing a great increase in the number of temporary and mobile food establishments um that we've been uh working with through events at the farmers market that's now in town uh the brewery that has opened up who has weekly food trucks and then also you know ongoing school events and other special events that have uh food trucks and temporary food uh that does need to be continuous ly um uh get inspected as we have new arrivals coming into town uh month after month and week after week so that's been uh a big uptake in after hours inspections from the inspectors we're also seeing an increase in nuisance and rodent complaints uh especially over the last couple of months here in town which the inspectors do go out um and help address those issues for our residents um and they keep track of all those complaints and C click fix so if any Resident does have any kind of nuisance or health concerns they can always submit a ticket in C click fix and they can track it easily through that process which has been working out really great on the nursing side um on the nursing side um we are in respiratory virus season um now is the best time to get your annual flu in covid vaccines it does take about 10 days to two weeks for vaccines to be fully effective um and that puts us right at Thanksgiving so um I would hope that everyone does does not want to bring uh the flu or covid to dinner this year um so please try to get your annual flu and covid vaccine uh scheduled if you have not already ASAP uh we do have plenty of flu vaccine available at the health department uh that we offer at no charge uh to Residents um although we do ask for uh insurance information because we do seek reimbursement but there's no outof pocket cost for residents um covid vaccine right now the best opportunity is to get that through your local pharmacy uh we do expect uh over the next couple weeks to be able to get State uh purchased vaccine to continue doing home visits to our most at risk um but our nurses are you know out in the field doing uh we have three more clinics uh flu clinics this month and they're also doing home visits as well um Chris where um where are they I'm sorry to interrupt where are they going to be located and when are they going to be uh I believe senior center in Nottingham um but I I can pull up the list up towards the end to make we have they're on the yeah and in the Township calendar as well um the there are two other vaccines uh the RSV vaccine which came out last year which is uh something that you know our older residents uh or um you know pregnant or new moms might want to consider uh considering those are the most at risk and then also the pneumonia vaccine which recently had uh an eligibility change so it has been lowered to 50 uh years and older uh residents are able to get that vaccine uh which is something that the health department does provide so if you have questions you can either talk to your provider or give our nurses a call um already this year we've exceeded uh uh SD patients in our Clinic compared to last year so we are on record for uh on target for a record number of patients seen in our Clinic I think that's due to a we've seen across the nation a rise in um STD rates but also um you know just the expanded um you know uh knowledge of the services and the great services that our nurses do provide uh to the residents of our shared service municipalities um and we consistently get um very high marks of the services that they're receiving uh there both through CHC the child health clinic and then also our adult Health Services as well um we know that all of this costs money and we are trying to um continue to on board new insurance companies that we are credential with currently we're still cred with Etna and Medicare and we do seek reimbursement for our flu uh vaccine and pneumonia vaccine services but we are working with a provider to try to onboard additional uh insurance carriers to increase the insurance rates to make sure that at least those Clinical Services um do get offset um or if not possibly even U make Revenue um for the township to offset uh some of those uh costs and then additionally bringing on down the road hopefully uh submitting for insurance for other uh services that we're providing such as childhood lead or the vaccines for children program which are our all stuff that we can seek reimbursement for so that's something down the road that we're looking to uh to utilize on the administration side we are uh preparing for the 25 licensing year so we have um our go pilot modules for both dog licensing uh retail food and mobile temporary food establishments which has all been working very well and has helped kind of um streamline and make sure that we're moving faster through those processes to um to allow residents to get their license and businesses to get their licenses sooner um it also saves trips and that way people don't have to come into the health department come into the shelter to to access those licenses you don't have to mail in forms you don't have to mail in money um it can all be done seamlessly through the online module we are looking to add um and we purchased uh four additional modules um moving into the next few years so we'll have a total of eight um two of those have been earmarked for the animal shelter to improve data collection and service requests um and then two kind of our outstanding and we're still working on what we'll be using those uh empty modules for uh our main Health Grant uh will sunset uh June 30 of 25 so um you know while we've had that for 3 years and it's helped not just us at the health division of Health but it's also helped the senior center the fire department police department offset some of their costs and we're looking at other divisions as well to um purchase stuff that we know that in the health side that we you know help take advantage and also improves um Public Health in the entire Township you know the main thing that we've been providing both uh fire and PD are aeds we've purchased new aeds for both of those uh departments and along with us as well and the health side so we all have all new ads throughout the township um as well as we Chris can you just refresh my memory uh what AED stands for automatic external defibrillator so that is the device that um if you are having um Cardiac Arrest or um that will help shock you um and reset the rhythm of your heart and we are also looking for a new Grant we did also we submitted for an ASPCA Grant so there was finally a animal shelter grant that was open to Municipal um shelters cuz most are closed to governmental shelter so fingers crossed and in the in December we'll have a nice Christmas gift for uh for the animal shelter there should we uh get awarded that Chris what does that go towards uh I put in so that was for uh psychological Improvement um so it is a competitive Grant so I there's no guarantee that we'll um get it but I did put in for redoing the R2 uh dog run exercise pens in the back so um allowing for um safe enclosure so it'll be two gates so you'll have you the animals could get um come in there'll be two gates and then they can leave um and then also resurfacing uh and putting in Grass instead of uh just the cinder or the blue rubber mulch that's there currently and then some other um sound ding uh material for the the indoor kennels and then some just uh you know staff training and resources for residents as well so moving on to accreditation so I am super excited to uh let our residents and uh board know that we did submit uh for all of our documentation uh to the accreditation board uh back in October so what we did was we submitted a total of 203 examples of documents policies plans um that were uploaded uh that best represented our work across the 10 domains that Fab um uh recognizes so as far as where are we in next steps go so as of this month we were assigned an accreditation specialist so what they're doing is digging through all of those uh 200 plus documents to make sure that um they do indeed meet the measures um that they're looking for um but this is going to take time so we're they're going to it'll take time for them to review all of those um documents so it's not something that we're looking uh to hear back from for at least till the end of the year slash beginning of New Year based because of the holiday um after that we have they'll come back to us and they'll give us uh their corrective action plan if we have one um and we'll have 45 days to respond to those questions or provide additional documentation after that um there will be a site visit so they will come uh one or two uh Specialists will come here to the division they will interview staff they will look at all of the documents in person that we've uh scene they will also tour the facility and they'll um you know do interviews with not just on the health side but also on the township side as well to make sure that um you know the town Administration is in alignment with what we're doing has Buy in U because a lot of the documents that we did have to support they're not just Health but they're overarching governmental organizational um system type documents that we have to um submit to them to show that we are actually working um efficiently and you know in good faith and and providing good Services uh to our residents so one of those uh documents that we had to submit was uh an after action report we actually have to submit two after action reports but the main one that we were able to um finish was our covid-19 after Action Report uh which I did uh submit to and transmit it to the board a few months ago and after this meeting I will post on the our website so the public will have access to the entire report uh for the um the covid-19 after action report so they can read through and see where uh where we did really well and where we have areas for improvement so really the um the main purpose for um an after action report is really to identify our strengths and weaknesses learn from our mistakes create best practices and plan for the future for the purpose of this report um it was really through the beginning of the uh the pandemic 2020 through the end of 2022 that's the period that we looked at uh and this report covers so what does that process look like so we hired an outside consultant um we partnered with uh emergency preparedness solutions to develop this a we wanted it to be um non-biased and uh and really to make sure that we had a good honest look at what we did during the pandemic and how we we responded so that's why we chose to utilize an outside consultant uh that consultant conducted document reviews so they asked us basically for everything that we did um and we just uploaded it and gave them a giant tranch of files they sorted it looked through everything uh our files our memos um different directives and then also facilitated focus groups um you know with our staff with the administration with our partners to also get a better idea of of the work that we did so then after that was completed um they provided us with a list of 37 corrective actions and steps and recommendations that we can take to strengthen our response capabilities and that all leads us to where we are today where we are starting the process and have started the process um of implementing those changes and also sharing this a with our governing body and the community at large um I pull this from the report because I think it it really shows that you know even independently that we did a really good job here in Hamilton uh with our response to uh covid-19 and I'll just read this for everyone Hamilton Township's management of the covid-19 pandemic was largely effective with most credit going to the leadership staff and partners of the township these three groups were critical to the township successes and ability to overcome challenges that arose directly from covid-19 as well as related supply chain shortages fiscal matters and external bureaucracy effective leadership at all levels supported a collaborative approach to managing the Township's response regular communication of priorities ensured steady progress and I think this really sums up nicely um you know our response to uh uh to the pandemic and it really was just solid teamwork and it's something that is strong here in the township not just here in the division but also within the leadership and across the the different departments that we worked very well together as far as next steps go it's planning I think this was really um our biggest Gap was is um you know we had some outdated plans that needed to be updated so we've already started that process and we've updated uh our existing Coupe um the continuity continuity of operations plan continuity of government plan and our risk communication plan so those existed and we've uh We've updated them to match the the uh um corrective actions and you know recommendations of the of the consultant development of Sops or standard operating procedures continuing having uh memor memorandums of understanding with our partners continue to Foster relationships with our response partners and development of new plans and rewriting existing plans um so all of those are are steps that we're taking actively right now one of those uh another plan that we had to submit and was a key component for accreditation was our strategic plan so we tried um really hard not to have it whether it it's just public health or it's just animal shelter um in the eyes of accreditation all they're looking at is public health and not even clinical Public Health but really kind of like you know big pitcher Public Health um you know or Public Health in the background type um items but we know that's not all the division does and a lot of the um what our goals and objectives in the Strategic plan are kind of overarching just good management type stuff and really knowing where we're going in the next couple of years and moving into a new building taking that into it an account of how we can be best prepared to do that move um and do it efficiently and then also um continue to just you know be better um you know providers of services in the community so again super quickly process very similar to what we did for our covid-19 after action report we were able to uh on board a consultant to help facilitate that so whereas in the covid-19 after Action Report where they took the consultant took a more uh heavy approach or really had a bigger um uh time of writing it because we wanted to kind of be independent we took a step back this we were um you know step in step with the consultant and making sure that we were there and that the goals matched what we wanted um and what were needed for for the division and for where we're heading um we did hold inperson meetings both with the division and uh and also with uh the mayor's office and administration as well because that was a requirement for accreditation is to make sure that we have Buy in of the direction that we're heading from management uh and from the mayor's office just quickly part uh as far as our strengths weaknesses opportunities and threats go or SWAT analysis that was that was conducted um strengths being well organized behind the scenes positive relationships uh creating strong effective team Communications and diverse staff skills across the board and I think that's uh something that we have both on again the health and on the animal shelter side as far as opportunities go again new building means new opportunities for Community Access and also kind of leveraging what that building means and and what services could be provided there in a in a better way or or other shared resources as far as weaknesses go and and I wouldn't look at these necessarily in in term of like true weakness it's almost that you know we know that we're managing these and they're part of what it kind of goes with threats is that you know as far as language barriers and you know that kind of block you know efficacy and Equity you know we don't have we know that we're having more residents who you know speak other languages than English we have language line as an availability but is that really the the best way to um to deliver those Services probably not but at least that we are we are still able to move forward and maint and maintain and delivering those Services that's true isn't tight um and then balancing the management of priorities we know that you know we're delivering good Services people expect a lot from us and we have a high bar and we want to maintain that high bar but sometimes that means that there is just some um stresses when it comes to prioritization of tasks and that again just goes kind of piggybacks off of where we are with threats is you know there's strained resources just due to the excess demand of services in Town um and really we have that trust integrity and responsiveness but because we have that you know those um you know kind of characteristics within the community it does tend to kind know sometimes overwhelm our capacity and again that's on the animal welfare and Healthcare side or public health side and I'm not going to go through all of this but basically this is what our strategic plan is um and our steps and our goals basically looking Inward and then looking outward of where um uh our our focus is over the next couple of years you know and the big buckets really being streamlining for the move which could just be you know very basic stuff of just making sure we're digitizing records records retention stuff like that that way you know we're we're ready to go leveraging leadership empowering employees and and PRI prioritizing sustainability as well and looking for more funds I'm sorry just two quick questions this is across the entire department of health right the division yes so health and and public health or public health and shelter and what prompted this so this is like introspective what what prompted this whole yeah I mean at at the end of the day it's it's um it's a requirement for accreditation so we have to have this in place um for accreditation um and it's one of the main plans so if you you have to have the Strategic plan which kind of outlines where you're going but then part of that then will also needs to align with the community health Improvement plan so that way you know all right these are the Target and the the areas that we know that as a community this is what their health priorities are and that's what we're working with um all of the health departments and the hospitals in the county we do a collective Community Health Improvement plan so we're all moving in the same direction there so it all kind of has to align um so that way we're all moving again the and this was conducted by 35th Street other one with EPS was was a response to just how we performed during the pandemic correct yeah okay yeah so that was look so the AR is looking backwards this is looking forward yeah any other questions no just I know I know I'm throwing a lot at you that's good not yet um again similar to what I just said as far as next steps go implementation um we're in that process now of implementing it um we'll have we'll receive the community Improvement plan from uh the county we do that through the greater Mercer Public Health Partnership um that is due by the end of this year because the hospitals are on a three-year cycle because of the ACA or the Affordable Care Act to have that Community Health Plan uh in place so we piggyback off of um of what they're doing and it really I think provides a much better more effective um health planning process for us all to be align on that regard so the end of the three-year uh period period for us here in Mercer is uh this year so we'll have going into 25 uh a brand new chip so uh once that's uh adopted we'll have that posted and shared to uh a council and to the residents as well and then monitoring um that's what the biggest thing is just with Fab and everything else that we do is documentation documentation documentation um so we have to make sure that we are monitoring and we actually have um a kind of quality improvement performance management software that all of these metrics and goals that go into and that all the staff and the different divisions are able to track whether it's monthly or annually where we stand um uh for all of the different um goals and we have our grant objectives in there you know the monthly stats that I have that I give um director Fitzgerald and all of our annual report data all goes into that system so it's kind of all housed together and then everyone's favorite part animal shelter update so where we are we have 40 dogs currently uh on site uh we have 36 runs which means we have four dogs in if I did my math right uh four dogs in crates um this does include cour holds and new arrivals so that is if you are looking at our website and adoptable animals versus animals on site that is where sometimes the discrepancy comes from um is that only the dogs on the website are the ones uh currently available uh for rescue or for for adoption that goes for cats as well we have 59 cats um uh on site including uh new arrivals and then we also have uh 26 animals that are in Foster we don't have 26 bunnies we just have one one rabbit uh right now and this just kind of shows you over the course of the last number of years just our average daily um count of animals has increased year over-year I mean for the most part cats has basically been the same year-over-year where we're really seeing the increase is in dogs but you know even just uh little increases on both sides does you know compounds and adds to each other um and that's where we see in 24 that you know we're having our average daily count is you know exceeding 100 animals so addressing concerns similar to what uh you know director fritzgerald had said in our opening statement you know we're here we want the feedback you know but we want to also help address it and if anybody has concerns you know please reach out to us you know we're as we're going through this accreditation process again it's not just on the health side it's on the animal side um and we're trying to do this continue continuous quality improvement but it does take time and it also really needs a kind of cultural mind shift among employees but also stakeholders of like getting into that change and and wanting to better uh ourselves and and and and just really buying into it it's you know and just having that mind shift uh uh uh shake this is what we do on on the health side this is kind of our quality improvement process plan due checked act so basically making sure that we're not just doing things for the sake of doing it we're planning things out we do it we're check to make sure that it's working how we want it and then if it's not changing action or changing uh we need to do it and then it just goes in a complete cycle and it's never really finished you know we're continuously making sure to see that we have uh that you know that we can be improving and those are little things that can take place for example we did uh like our um just recently the dog bite animal bite reporting form we used to get dog bites reported to us in 15 20 different ways uh you know depending on who was sending it in when they were sending it in so we worked with uh staff we looked at other examples of in the community um we developed a new animal bite form and we've sent it out to all of our uh Partners both vets doctor's offices hospitals you know to get their feedback but then also to get them to start utilizing one standardized form and with even just within a week where we know that we're getting it back and it's now on not just the 15th copied version of the form that you can't read anything you know we have fillable PDFs on the website they can print them off themselves and then we'll also be delivering hand copies as well once those um those come in um as far as our rescue Partners in 2024 uh we've had five organizations pull animals from uh the shelter this year um that includes chickens dogs and cats uh but those are the uh the five organizations that have pulled animals from us uh we have also worked with bark which is not a NE neily a rescue partner but it is a uh board and train Facility Who has really helped us a lot and has is fostering animals currently for us and then has also um you know when we needed offside boarding has stepped up and we did um use them as a vendor to board some animals off site um and we've also placed animals into or dogs into um their board and train program and we've had uh good success and I think we've had two two or to to uh dogs of who went through that program then that were ultimately put into um a permanent uh situation which is which is great and something that we're looking forward to continuing to work with them in the new year as well and as far as total organizations that we have contact with in regards to rescue Partners we have about 75 plus organizations on our list serve that we um you know when we need assistance that we do ask for assistance from from those partners uh and we make that list available to um residents if they're looking to rehome their animal uh as well that's the same uh list that we we give to Residents should they should they need it and this is just snapshot of um of the contact info and and who we work with um but if anybody you know wants this list you know we can make that available and we can probably put if it's not on the website already we can make sure that it's up up on the website um as far as our volunteer program goes you know the the great thing is that we are seeing an uptick in over the course of the year of the number of hours of service uh on a monthly basis that um volunteers are uh generously giving their time uh to the shelter which is which is great um because all of those hours of service you know do equal real inine donations of of support to the shelter and to the township um that we otherwise don't have to um you know pay out of pocket or use taxpayer dollars for so we're very very appreciative of that since August you know we have 35 uh active volunteers um basically volunteers that have been active since uh since August so that's 35 of those 19 um are dog walkers um we've had 21 new volunteers come in uh since August as well um not all of them are necessarily have been active since they've come in come through orientation but we've at least had 21 um individuals who have come through orientation and are considered an active or I should say a volunteer whether or not that they've since volunteered um is uh a different story 21 new Volunteers in 2024 correct uh since August oh yeah so that' be August through November um that's pretty we have uh 16 active cat volunteers and then we have 19 volunteers who do both cats and dogs um we are still looking for a volunteer coordinator unfortunately our two primary pick or primary and secondary pick uh for the position uh both withdrew their candidacy for personal reasons so that is something that we are um uh still on lookout for so it's you if anybody is interested we're looking for somebody with animal experience who would like to uh work about 10 to 12 hours a week uh you know really getting our volunteer program um up and running um to the best of our its capability and and exploring more re ways to engage our our both our residents and then also uh the volunteers um and you know we've continued to have ongoing discussions you know on the shelter management side of how we can best utilize our volunteers and we really want to try to see if we can get volunteers to take over or at least be a part of that adoption process and processing adoption applications meaning um you know as you know residents or prospective adoptees um submit applications utilizing uh volun our volunteers to then go call call the references call the landlord call the vet office um learning a little bit more about what the potential adopter is looking for in an animal like what kind of qualities that they're looking for what behaviors that they do not want to deal with just so then that that could be a good touch point for the volunteers and and something that will help take some time off staff and and and in reality moving our our adoption process along a little bit faster than what it is now which will be very helpful um just because we had gotten some questions about summons is issued so just this is just a quick breakdown of you know the number of summons is issued I believe it totals up to 69 or 70 um uh the vast majority is failure to license I would expect that this number is going to go up because um at this point at the end of the license year anybody who is still outstanding will just get a summons uh We've also had a number of the second one it would be dogs running at large which is the uh the second highest as well and this is about on target for where we were last year so they're about um I I would expect probably the same amount of summons as issued uh last year and this year together hey Chris are those summonses issued by acos or Yeah by acos [Music] so just some um some improvements that we've been able to work on over the last couple months since we've last had Board of Health um I know that parking we have a small parking lot and um that has been an issue that has come up so we have reserved uh three uh spots for potential adoptees so that we um the sence shop did these great signs for us so uh we're very uh happy with them they were the if you're looking at the I guess the old side of the shelter we have our handicapped uh accessible spot and then it's the three spots uh next to that we've also uh directed the staff to uh the acos to move the trucks so their trucks are no longer in the parking lot during operating hours unless there's um there's a need for them to to be there and otherwise they're moved either to the lower lot or behind the shelter and then also asking staff um if they're able to to park on the street or again um when the weather is nice to park in the lower lot as well um as you can see um right now I took this photo yesterday the kennel cards are up there we are in the process and Danelle I don't know if anybody we got a recommendation for newer more heavier Duty um I guess I don't know what you call these well file holders that have four points of contact instead of the one and they're a little bit sturdier and there's a zipper so hopefully they'll last a little bit longer uh in the weather and then with the dogs to that don't get um uh pulled down and they also won't hopefully flop in on each other so um they are all we finally just got these in so they're all now printed and they just need to be hung up which will happen this week um but you know as of right now they have all the the runs have signs but that doesn't mean come tomorrow with the wind dogs chewing them down that they will all be up there tomorrow so if they're not there you know there's little asteris there for that um as far as dispatch issues go we've worked with um dispatch we've resent them we've been in communication with PD I know that there's been some turnover and new staff hired there we've resent them our uh um ACL callout policy so they all should have that um but we know that you know as new uh folks come on board that there are still some confusion but um you know we've been working with PD to try to address those concern concerns as they come up again the website is updated and uh as of today um has been uh everybody has a bio all of our animals are up they have photos um so we're happy that that is something that you know we're moving a little bit faster on as well um and our ACO coverage just as a reminder we do have 7-Day coverage um minus if there are call outs obviously we um that's an issue or you know holidays you know then it would just be the on call schedule but right now during the standard non-holiday week we do have acos on on staff uh 7 days a week uh we also have additional two um animal attendants who are um have their ACO certification and um and can go out as well as if if needed so that kind of also helps with like Sunday or other hours if the acos are busy we do have other staff and and it just builds the pool for call outs as well which is nice Chris as you continue want um this is a lot of information and which is great and but are you going to make this available website just so that folks can go back afterwards and look over some of the information if they didn't get a chance all right yeah absolutely and and and if anybody you know again needs the explanation they can always contact us but then I know that um the clerk's office also posts the the video recording online so they can always refer back to that as well but yeah we'll make sure that this presentation is available as far as in progress stuff goes and and I and I put this in here as to say that it not that it's not being done but it's not at the point where I want to say just check and this is we're completed we can move on to something else but you know we know that behavior modification is something that comes up regularly um you know what I can tell you and the same thing with assessments we're trying to and we have moved staff around to free up staff time to better um you know make sure that these are happening on a more regular basis but even though you know there might not be a full standard formal behavior modification program for every single animal just because our resources right now don't allow for that we I we do know and I know and I've seen it myself when I'm when I've been there is that the staff does you know mention to and they uh you know volunteers when they're walking dogs or and they give them like little ticks uh tricks and tips to um you know help whether it's um you know making sure that the dogs are you know they have better manners when they're walking on a leash um helping them with uh you know distractions or helping them um you know if they're positive reinforcement making sure that if they're jumping that you're not reinforcing that you know the jumping so while it might not be these you know full-blown intensive uh behavior modification programs there are there are things that are happening you know on a daily basis you know as it can be to make sure that you know there are behaviors that are being worked on you know that things are you know dogs are being socialized there are pack walks that happen you know as staff has time uh to make sure that you know the dogs are getting socialized um you know as they can be um again going back to what uh with bark Institute you know we have had success with uh the board and train and that is an intensive monthlong process uh of behavior modification and training that goes into those animals um so that is also something that you know we again want to continue as well dog walking so the requirement for dog walking is that you know crated dogs have to get walked at a minimum of 20 minutes a day obviously we know that they need more than 20 minutes especially considering that they're being in a crate right now every single created dog has a uh exercise log um on its either whether it's on the crate or next to it but it's you know specifically for each dog the staff member um who takes the dog out or let's say if the acos have the dog just out in the office it should also be noted on there that you know you know you know X dog was in the office free roaming for a bit as well just so it's not just in the crate the uh the whole time um again and also their volunteers when they take dogs out do also log that um the question is always you know are we getting every single dog out for a walk every single day no because we don't have the resources to do that um and you know dogs do get walked we try our best to get as many dogs walked as possible now that we have less dogs in crates that does allow the opportunity for more dogs um that are in runs to get out but my legal requirement and our legal requirement at the end of the day is those dogs and crates have to get walked and they have to get walked multiple times a day the dogs and kennels there is no legal requirement for that so it's just we have to prioritize where our resources are are put um and you know as we have less dogs in crates that means more dogs in runs that can get walked um and we want to and we are getting better at documenting behaviors and other items in pepo it's something that the three of us consistently you know tell the staff that you know even if they're walking and they behave they had a they had a really good walk and there was a behavior of you know that was good whether it was good or bad there something memorable or mentionable that stuff like that gets put into pep Point not that just you know we there's nothing for months on end for these dogs because I I recognize that that's a problem and we want more information in pepo in the animals uh record you know really demonstrating who they are and if their behavior is getting better that that we're documenting that and then their assessment or level can change or vice versa if they're you know regressing that then that's also um documented and put in there um so that way if any you know when we have to you know have conversations or make decisions um you know we have a true picture of you know what's going on over the last few months or however the long the period of time is for that animal in question so projects that are still pending um C resurfacing this is something that is imminent I'm just waiting on a start date from our contractor but it has to be done by the end of the year so between now and December 31st it needs to be finished but as you can see um our runs are taking a beating we had our runs all 36 runs were resurfaced in 2020 and they were also uh had uh repairs done within the 2 years following because there was a 2-year warranty on that process um but it's just not holding up uh so hopefully with this new where Rees they're sanding down and sand blasting the entire walls 4 feet um uh four feet on each side uh of the runs and then we'll be doing a new epoxy coating on on that and then also repairing the floors and a handful of kennel runs that have um either serious cracking or or there's they're degrading and they need some serious work so that's something that we're very much looking forward to but everybody should know that obviously we can't have the dogs in there when they're um when we're doing the resurfacing so we will be off uh kenneling offsite and this will be a two-e project and we'll do one side first and then the other so um we'll have about 16 to 20 dogs uh in off-site boarding um at any given time once this project starts we do have other capital projects that are in the works as well we have Capital to put in a dishwasher and a new commercial washer dryer so that's something that is in in the um that's in the works we we need a we need a shelter vet for 2025 we don't have one at this point um we've gone out to bid twice nobody has responded uh our current vet is unable to continue just for perect not um just too busy they uh she took a new role at her practice and just does not have the time right now to uh commit to us same thing with our the vet who um helped out temporarily last year as well um they're both just don't have the the professional time to to commit to us we have reached out to all of the Vets within uh the township and surrounding communities um but you know we understand that uh you know the Vets are I mean vets are very busy and uh they just don't have the time to take on an additional you know 500 animals a year uh in their practice um to you know to to be our shelter vet uh so that's been an issue I already talked about the volunteer coordinator uh phone upgrades you know I know that that's continuing to be in progress the generator is uh my understanding is just pending permits so that is should be something that should be moving along uh in the foreseeable future and again just with the volunteer coordinator uh the uh the volunteer program expansion program uh is kind of tied into that but my the two biggest things that for me is a concern right now is really the kennel resurfacing and the shelter vet because those are two things that are we do have legal obligations to make sure that they are completed but we're doing the best we can with the resources we have uh and you know we know that there is clearly there's always room for improvement and we're trying our best to and we are doing our best to not even trying but we are doing our best to continuously make improvements uh and we are listening and we're and we're acting on it um but we also have to prioritize and and use our resources uh as we can to make sure that you know we're fulfilling our legal obligations but then also you know making sure that the welfare of the animals that we have in our care are are as best as possible and with that I hope I didn't kill anybody by PowerPoint but um no you I I I'm I'm open to questions now no you did save a few trees though no I I I I just want to thank you it was extremely comprehensive you always give a thorough report but it it was beneficial to you know I'm I'm a visual guy so it helps me to see like you know some of the um statistics in front of me and just the process that you know you're dealing with on a variety of different fronts um I thank you for being proactive on you know especially some of the issues at the shelter that have come before us uh um over the last several months but even before that so um I think that you know it shows that we're trying to make some progress um on on a variety of different fronts and if we get that accreditation it would be amazing um before I hand it off to my Council colleagues I just wanted to um just wanted to ask when when do we typically go out to are we going out to bid for the um vet opportunity for 2025 now that was something that is that something that we're doing now cath we did it in September and October okay so now at this point we can go and Kathy you can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe we can go to direct negotiations with uh if we do find a vet and we did interview someone we just um we just have to uh they're not they're not available for the full year but we're just waiting for a yay or nay if they're willing to move forward so I mean at this point I don't have anybody but we at least have a prospect which is good um but until we have it it in writing uh you know TVD okay and something that my Council colleagues may be aware especially councilman perero I know um you know this process fairly well but do we typically like are we actively reaching out to these organizations um how does it how does it typically work as far as the rescue part rescue part D do you want to think you can talk about your process thank you T um so periodically when we're over capacity which has been a lot of the year or if there's a special needs animal or special breed rescue yeah I reach out to rescue organizations for assistance we get a lot of uh unable to help a lot of responses that are unable to help just because they're also over capacity and and unable to take it on you know and anymore many of the organizations are Foster based and lacking foster homes and such but that's just the general list but it's the same list that we share with when when we receive calls for someone that needs to surrender a pet and for overc capacity I give them this list for them to reach out to other organizations as well okay all right that's helpful so just looking at the our Facebook page there's a lot of dogs that are posted on there when they're found but how about the dogs that are in there that we're trying to get adopted I'm looking all the way back as far as October 30th there's not one post sure still I'm currently working on promoting more adoptables we're trying to sell a car we're not going to not post it right we're going to keep posting it so more people view it not one since October we're working on that along with the mayor's office um AA has been helping us with you know photographs and things like that how much longer do we think that's going to take to get to get moving it's a continual process so you should see results immediately but obviously it it's something that's fluid and has to be done on a regular basis good um real quick first of off Chris Kathy everybody involved uh the Power Point presentation was very helpful like council president carabell said uh actually seeing it and being able to follow along was very helpful um kind of backtracking almost what Pat just saying councilman paparel asked was uh as far as information like evaluation timeline on animals as they're processed what what's it seems like that's been like an ongoing complaint right what is the timeline usually um you receive uh an animal on um you know the first of the month what is usually the process before all that information is up whether it's on the kennel placard or online that this dog's been dog or cat or has been evaluated and um you know so it's updated to the public sure I realized there's been Gap uh previously with a number of animals that have been coming in as staffing issues as far as getting the animals evaluated uh some animals can be evaluated much sooner because they're easier and more adoptable other animals may be less willing to be handled by staff um may be fearful for whatever reasons or have issues so they you know the staff does give them a bit longer to make a formal evaluation but we've been addressing that with the staff internally to expedite the process uh typically I my ideally I want them done you know after 7even days or made available for adoption sometimes they're not available for adoption um till they gets spayed or neutered but uh some more often than not because we've been over capacity we're sending those animals who are evaluated and still not spay or neutered into Foster to adopt until that's done ideally it can be done after 7 days but it does depend on Staffing and the Animals specifically the animals in and their I want to say Behavior okay I hope that helps of your staff right as Chris spoke we were we've reassigned some of the staff so what they're tasked with doing on a day-to-day basis moving some of them into different responsibilities or roles so that I can free up other staff to to get these assessments and the whether it's behavior modification walking assessments get those things taken care of in a more timely manner so trying to utilize skill set more efficiently okay I don't I don't want you to think that we just focus on the negative things looking at these post the amount of work that you put in to get us where we are the fact that we just had dogs that were adopted after a th days 584 days and you know youve worked hard to get them so I know I I think I speak for everybody I think we all commend you on that we could all appreciate that being animal people we just I just think that um I'll just speak to myself the more we get these animals in front of people it makes them easier makes easier for somebody to fall in love with a dog if they see the dog or the cat and that's I just want to you know get more FaceTime maybe they draws somebody in and says hey you know maybe I can take the absolutely that's one of the things too I cover with our volunteer orientation when I speak to new volunteers and ask them when they're out and whether they're out walking a dog or they're with the cats or to get if they can capture a short video or some photos to share that with me so we can use them on social media cuz that's very helpful obviously nobody wants the you know that's why Ava is very helpful the mayor's office she can come in and take good photos instead of the what's that yeah Steve shares when he takes the animals out for the day you know he shares his photos so those are very helpful and showing a different side of of the animal so getting that input from everybody is helpful thank you so um Kathy Chris uh da I da I want to thank you guys thank the mayor uh this presentation today uh is just a an example of the increasing transparency that we see from this Health Department under your leadership Kathy and Chris and uh very appreciative of that thinking about um the increase of of the level of vital services that have been provided uh over the time under your leadership um you know what wasn't getting done compared to what is getting done now um in this time the the resources that collectively Council and the mayor have made available to you uh we continue to have those discussions right about what more we can do uh to help you uh fulfill that mission uh but uh the pursuit of the certification I think um really just has has kind of spurred you to a level of of excellence in the service and the transparency uh that you've been providing throughout the entire Health Department uh that the township hasn't seen previous to this so I'm just really pleased with uh the efforts toward that certification the continued progress that we see and that certification is is going to prompt you to want to maintain that certification so there's going to be a need to maintain this higher standard uh that we're seeing so um all in all just just really a great report tonight uh obviously there are ongoing challenges the animal shelter is always going to be a tough challenge for us um and it's something that you know we're always going to have to have those discussions about where the resources are are they being allocated uh properly you know the important thing to me is um I have a high level of confidence in the leadership of the health department um and Danielle at the shelter the leadership team that we have um you know leading those efforts right and is it ever going to be perfect no it's never going to be perfect um but I do continue to see that you know the efforts are being made with the resources that we do have available uh to you know get the best possible outcomes and um you know I my experience with family dogs is when you don't walk a dog they start to misbehave pretty quickly so I do think it's extremely important that we do everything that we can to get as many dogs as many walks as possible I understand when you have this many animals and this many employees that it's hard to do that uh but I I do think you can uh prevent a lot of behavior issues by making sure dogs are walked um and I know that's an ongoing effort that you're making and that we are overpopulated and every animal that you add to the census adds x amount of manh hours that need to be devoted to the care of the animals um you know but again I I appreciate the efforts that are being made the improvements that are being made very glad that the dog runs are going to have grass finally that is great great for the dogs um so thank you um yeah I just also want to it's hard to follow Council TI but um I also want to say thank you to each of you and and Chris that's what great um that really helped to see the visuals and um see the clarity and transparency and all the hard work that you guys have done over the years we've seen such an improvement and you know getting through covid and Beyond and now being I'm happy to hear that we have less dogs in crates that's great um and like counc apparo said you know we do see on Facebook you know some of these dogs that are getting adopted that have been there for so long so obviously you're doing something right with those dogs to get them adopted um I was going to ask about the the time it takes for the evaluation too but that was already asked um as far as social media do we have like one person who handles that or is that like a volunteer we can have so that can be more active myself primarily but that's so that's falling on you to do that is it possible to have a volunteer maybe he's like Savvy with social media I think we talked about that as a possibility once we get right as part of the improvements to and growing a little bit the the volunteer program and when we get the volunteer coordinator that's something that we want to consider so that it can you know free up done um and maybe not completely maybe it's done together right that type of thing and they they sort of uh each do that so because I think and again I I agree with everything you said about the you know all of the good things that are happening but as Chris pointed out there's plenty of things that we can monitor and do better or continue to do better at and and I think you know especially posting on social media that that's one of the areas that you know we need to do a little more often um and you know maybe a lot more often and uh because that's going to be really successful in in helping get the you know The Fosters and the adoptions so yeah and you already Danielle have so much on your plate we know that you know so to put that on top so and I'll just piggyback on that so yes Danielle does have a lot on her plate you know when the animals or the dogs or the cats need that physical care it's Danielle who has to leave the job she's doing in order to do that but that's why put our heads together to see what other volunteer tasks we can give such as vetting some of the applications getting the information so that they can pass on a more detailed application to the staff um relieving some of the staff that does that to assist with social media so it kind of all Works hand inand so um although we aren't perfect like councilman Tai said um the job that she has done with social media compared to where we is 180° so and the number of uh live rescues that we have um shows the care that we're giving the animals um even those that are long-term residents you know the best care that we can give and we'd love to get them out sooner but uh unfortunately there are a lot of animals that are being surrendered dropped off as stray so to speak um due to the economic problems that we're having so we understand and we appreciate your patience with that too and we work together with Danielle to try and get those photos up get those bios up every day get those uh kennel cards up so that we do promote adoptions in the most efficient way we can thank you yeah I just want to commend you commend you for all I mean obviously we're on the right trajectory and that we wouldn't be there without all of your hard work so I just want to thank you takes the team thank you so stupid question that maybe it isn't so stupid um what about what about doing uh you know we have the message board like the Billboards the electronic Billboards on the highways what about having around the town are there grants that we could put cuz you know having one of our First Responders here in the back uh kind of brought it to my mind if we ever had emergency situations we needed to get message out to to Residents sayy just you know traffic is closed for whatever reason it's nice that people can get it to their phone but what about having a message board around town you know just a couple that the PD or fire department could put a message out we can use them during the day when they're not being used for emergency situations is there any type of grant that we could look into uh to maybe pay for something like that to get another electronic billboard you yeah even if it's on a smaller version right putting it on a busier type roads possible maybe we can put one up in front of that ugly Storage Center where the municip I do know we've taken advantage of the around town signs that we have for our different events and when we're not in October Fest and Winter Fest right there's a couple of Corners that we've had the big signs on there they were actually came up very nice and it was regarding adopting adopt you know from the shelter today so you know but I you know you can really accomplish maybe even more by having it you know movable and move it around to different areas and then have that sure just a thought and I'd also like to commend the mayor's office and Ava for promoting uh on her Township um newsletter that goes out she usually highlights one of our shelter animals in order to get more um advertising on that animal to help promote adoption so we're grateful for them they work with us all the time to try and help improve that okay well I appreciate your uh your report um now I'm just going to open it up to um I'm going to switch out the podium okay I'll switch out the podium um if you wouldn't mind just taking a see if there's any questions that pop up from uh the public uh regarding the Board of Health uh you can be here to help us in responding to some of them thank you shows how small I am thank you [Music] oh great any questions or comments from the public regarding the board of Health's presentation this evening yes Lisa Lisa Williams I don't really have any questions I just want to take the time to thank Chris for reaching out Kathy for suggesting it Danielle for doing all of the work um it was a very good presentation I do appreciate your time and effort and thank you I know I complain when there are issues and I want to publicly thank you for this presentation also it is now November and I will make my plea that I make every year this time when you're reviewing the budget for the shelter please consider adding staff to support what they need to do you know we hear number of animals are high we don't have resources but we are a town of 92,000 residents and our animals deserve really good services and you could up the staff for a year and get everything under control and not fill vacancies if you don't need it the following year so I'm just making my plea when you're looking at the budget please make sure that the staff is sufficient to support shelter daily operations as well as ACO coverage for the community thank you I appr appreciate your time guys thank you Lisa just for the record myself and councilman Tha tried to get more St for the past three consecutive years and that's Al I just want to also commend the uh the team here that uh for reaching out to some of our volunteers I appreciate that that was that was very uh proactive uh in your approach um they're the folks that know the shelter inside and out so um anyone else wishing to comment yes Steve Steve Cay wolf peek Road um listen close because I don't do this often but yeah was this could be the one and only time I say this um for the first time in eight years six years um you know I'm sitting here trying to think what can I get up and complain about um there's not much the few things that I did have you know conversations with Chris have uh uh improved communication a lot and and still continuing but usually when I talk to him it's him telling me the issues I'm about to bring to him so that's that's what stands out to me so I'm going to bring up an issue that he and I have not specifically talked about or are not already on the agenda to talk about uh one of the things I emailed all of you about was unlicensed kennels in the township uh to stop backyard breeding um and there is no law against breeding so it is an unlicensed kindal issue and the Health Department's been phenomenal if I get him the information somebody's out there in less than a day and they follow up they check for licensed dogs they give them a warning but the catch is they don't want to uh I guess impose fines on somebody who had one litter but the catch the the the flip side of that is you can't ever do anything until they have a litter so to to kind of help him or help us because any any dog coming in a shelter is one too many dogs for other enforcement actions you know not wearing your seat belt drunk driving we put out a Township puts out a warning and a notice we're going to enforce this and that's their one warning and perhaps maybe something like that for unlicensed kennels or you know other other issues that might be affecting the intake to our shelter could help you know cut down on this um unless that's that's a good suggestion yeah I like that a lot all right thank you thank you Steve is uh Kathy is that something we can consider like just yeah just to put something okay I saw you writing all right any other comments seeing none uh health Team you're free to go I appreciate the Pres uh presentation this evening um we'll make a motion to adjourn and um and then we'll reconvene as the Hamilton Township Council second it vo call Madam clerk Mr Papo yes Philips Mr yes Mr Ty yes Mr yes now we need to reconvene us Oh I thought that was oh that cover all right good all right uh next for your consideration are the minutes of the de 17th uh 2024 regular council meeting come motion so Mo second roll call Mr vapo yes Phil yes Mr wh yes Ty yes Mr car yes 5 Communications we have C1 through C4 for your consideration I make a motion to recognize Communications C1 through C4 I'll second roll call Madam clerk Mr Papo yes M Phillips yes Mr wh yes Mr T yes Mr Carell yes 5 next we have consent agenda item ca1 through ca4 so I'll just give a quick summary uh on today's uh really short consent agenda we only have 14 items on the consent agenda uh we have a resolution ca1 that's transferring uh funding uh from and to this doesn't increase our our bottom line it's just transferring uh dollars throughout a few uh divisions and um and uh departments in addition to that we have a grant for dri sober or get pulled over uh we're adding a vendor to theun and Co-op we also are adding a vendor to the New Jersey state approved contractors uh list we also have a resolution supported uh safety regarding safety improvements uh along 129 Corridor uh this is the removal of a crosswalk potentially at ler in Route 129 thanks uh there's also a PSA uh uh um Professional Services agreement for in two uh in 2025 for water pollution control sidewalks and markouts with Robert's engineering uh there's also litigation attorneys uh environmental litigation attorneys that are are also being put forth uh before us this evening for a PSA um there's a settlement of certain tax appeal there's also a decrease of 70 roughly about 75,000 in um in a street project on jness street with bar Paving there's also um a not seed of 136,000 for to purchase division of fire responder uh PPE uniforms we also have several refunds uh fire permit reimbursements a release of uh performance bond at Twin Ponds and a refund of overpayments for real estate and Sewer taxes so that's it tonight so um anyone wishing to comment from Council regarding tonight's consent agenda anyone from the public just a consent agenda items seeing none can I have a motion I make a motion to move on consent agenda items ca1 through ca14 have a second I'll second roll call mrar yes M Phillips Mr R yes Mr Ty yes Mr Carell yes yes next for your consideration we have uh ordinance 24042 in ordinance of the C of Hamilton and the county of mering New Jersey providing for acquisition of computers and or laptops for the Department of information and and Technology end of life cycle project fully funded by Capital Improvement funds in the amount of $50,000 this is second reading in public hearing any comments from my Council colleagues any comments from uh the public regarding this ordinance on second reading seeing none seeing none I'll make a motion to move on ordinance 12442 and close public comment I'll second that roll call Mr paparo yes Miss Phillips Mr wh yes Mr Ty yes Mr Carell yes 5 ordinance 2 24043 is an ordinance of the township of Hamilton in the county of Mercer New Jersey providing for improvements to the Township's wastewater treatment system and for the town ship appropriating $5 million therefore and authorizing the issuance of $5 million in sewer utility bonds or notes of the township to finance St second reading public hearing any comments uh can we talk a little bit about what we're spending this money on yes I'm happy to so this is the full replacement not this this is only a piece of it for the full replacement of all 48 rbc's that we have don't ask me what RBC is I know what it does oh there you go rotating biological what contct contactors those are the the big things inside of that process right the um yeah they they process a lot of what goes through there everything that goes through there so but anyway they're gigantic and we have to replace all 48 of them we're doing them probably two to three or four a year so right now in fact I think this week uh we're replacing our first two that you've already approved and so they're showing up there I'm sure that director forer will be providing us with photos and all kinds of exciting things to um show us the progress on this but this is for the next wave of them um they're very expensive obviously and so we're doing this over many years in order to get them on a a cycle to to replace them extremely important they are yep any questions from the public see none council president I'll I'll move callose a public uh portion and move on ordinance number 22 24-0 43 on second reading I'll second it roll call Mr paparo yes Miss Phillips yes Mr yes yes yes is 5 next is ordinance 3 24-44 an ordinance authorized ATT panel to enter into an agreement for the acquisition of 1755 Roberts ad second reading in public hear this was an additional property that was um adjacent to the properties that were impacted on East State Street with the fire uh that impacted and this was also uh a property that was impacted by the fire correct or was this a property that was in our best interest just to acquire it it's behind um and just based on where it is it's in our best interest to acquire it because it now gives us that back portion okay which depending on how it's used can be used for parking maybe some off street parking or something else so that is why we acquired it um because we think it'll just give us a little bit more space okay yeah this is uh part of the ongoing effort to redevelop uh this property in uh Bramley um having the access from Roberts Avenue as opposed in addition to East State Street uh is just going to uh increase the options for what we can do when we uh build some Modern affordable housing uh on that property any questions from the public seeing none can have a motion council president see no members of the public wishing to comment I move that we close the public comment portion and move ordinance ordinance 24-48 on second reading 2444 ordinance 24-44 excuse me on second reading I'll second that roll call Mr yes M Philips yes Mr wh yes Ty yes Mr Carell yes 5 ordinance 4 24045 is an ordinance amending and supplementing the code of Township of pamilton New Jersey part three land use legislation chapter 550 Land Development article one title section 5507 definitions and I lost my place and article three District regulations Section 55073 rrc rural resource conservation and r25 single family residential districts and section 55074 R15 r10 R7 and R5 single family residential districts this is second reading public so yep sorry so this specifically outlines the um patios and the uh shall adhere to the area and yard requirements of accessory buildings and they shall not be they should only be located in the rear of the yard and should not exceed 25% of the total of the rear yard area of the rear yard um anything else that I should be aware of on this uh we should be aware of yeah um so I was surprised to learn that we didn't already have a regulation in place for patios I know this was spurred by um we we had some discussion with residents recently regarding swimming pools being constructed and and the amount of uh impermeable surface that was creating problems for Neighbors when you create more impermeable surface in your backyard it may create an a a problem for your neighbor vice versa so this is a way for us to uh regulate how much imper permeable surface um a resident May uh construct within our our regulations um and thus protecting everyone from additional runoff um and it always uh perks my you know kind of um it always catches my attention whenever I see that the rural resource conservation zone is included uh in in any changes that we're making for our ordinance uh but the only change here is uh that we're regulating how much patio people can build in their backyards that's really it um previous to this being passed if somebody wanted to pave over their entire backyard they could do it uh now we're we're regulating it we're limiting it to 25% any other questions anyone from the public please was a question comes Williams I just have a quick question I know I mean I read it and I I I just want a clarification um we have a building area coverage um calculation for residential commercial uses and perious services so uh we have building area coverage and I don't remember all the numbers but say it's 30% does this patio is that part of the 30% or is that in addition to the 30% like your house and your shed or your detached garage that would be building area coverage of 30% we don't include in a residential how much your driveway is or your patio so now is this the 30% for building plus you could have 25% of your backyard as a patio or is it 25% of your backyard as a patio is included in building area coverage it's in addition to right it's an the first one that you said so it's an addition to okay so we're not we're not touching what you're having for your home because this is going to be outside still part of your home but it's outside so we're telling you 25% when you're outside right but your house of the yard 25% I know but say your property is 10,000 sare ft you're and I don't have the things in front of me but say You're Building area coverage is 30% that means your house and your shed or your detach garage plus all your sheds can't cover more than 3,000 sare ft 30% so now is the patio an additional 2500 square ft that you could cover which would give you 3,000 for building and it has always been thus that's always been true no I know building a coverage has been we've never had anything on patios this keep we're making it less that you can do an imper impermeable surface on the property we're reducing the amount of impermeable surface that you can have on the property right now prior to the passing of this ordinance you could pave 100% of your property and this came up when we're were trying to get people to get permits for widening driveways in Golden Crest and the neighbor who stood up against somebody wanting to widen their driveway his entire backyard paved with pool and pavers but he wouldn't let his neighbor widen the driveway but m i get that you're saying you can't pave your whole property you can only pave 25% my question is is what you're allowed to have covered in my fake sample of 10,000 FT Property 30% building area coverage 3,000 is your house your detach garage your shed are we then saying you can patio 2500 to 25% for total impervious of 5500 is that what we're saying you got it okay I just want to make sure I understood it case I want to build another patio thank you still will need to go in front of planning board correct Poss depending on what they're putting back there you have to get a permit I don't know if you have to go to planning board now that it's legal widening uh driveways right it was just explained that example if you're whing a driveway and means to go in front of planing Beyond what's allowed so now you're going to well now you always needed to get a permit now if it's beyond now if it's beyond the 25% you would need to go to planning right but if you're doing 20% patio you're complying with our ordinances you shouldn't need to go before Planning and Zoning you submit your building plans to construction they make sure you're complying they say pull your permit have a merry day no I didn't no this is just for paing just for pao just Pao yard right let's say side yard right thank you okay thank you Lisa could be a lole anyone else always a loard why they call Philadelphia can motion wait wait sorry goad so to answer Lisa's question it's not just 25% of the entire yard if you read the portion it's an excess of 25% of the total area of the rear yard so it's not going to be 2500 square ft that you can then um that you could make patio it's only going to be whatever your rear yard is 25% of that I just thank you forif makes it better that's right yeah that helps yes I just want to ask a clarifying question um so of the of their backyard the patio can be 25% but is it is that exclusive of say your pool you know can you can you consume your entire backyard between Pool and Patio and some other structure are we are we limied the imperious surface of the backyard to 25% or only specifically if it's a patio specific to patio and it has a definition of the patio in the ordinance right so it could be you know you could have your patio 25% and another 25% with a pool and I'd have to look up what the pool 25% of the total area of the rear yard regardless of what's there so regardless if there's a pool there or not correct it's it's in addition to the poll right now right okay yeah yeah [Music] than okay any other questions seeing none can I have a motion counc president seeing no other members of uh the public wishing to comment I move that we close the public comment portion and move ordinance 24- 045 on second reading second motion roll call Mr yes Phils Mr Mr ordinance 1244 is an ordinance amending and supplementing an ordinance fixing the salaries and other compensation of the officials and employees of the township account and County IM merer state of New Jersey this is first reading and introduction so I just want to mention here I know it's only first reading and introduction but this essentially allows for a lower entry salary for the ranges that are established for tax assessor tax collector and municipal clerk that isn't it it's not increasing the range it's just for that lower entry into the salary range so I just wanted to mention that council president I move ordinance 24046 on first reading second roll call Mr pero M Phillips yes Mr wh Mr Ty yes Mr parabell yes 5 ordinance 2 24047 is an ordinance amending and supplementing the code of the township of Hamilton New Jersey chapter 228 fire prevention council president I'll move 24- 047 on first reading and introduction second motion roll call Mr Papo yes M Phillips Mr wh yes parabell yes passes by zero ordinance 3 24-48 is an ordinance amending and supplementing the code of ordinances Hamilton New Jersey chapter 215 fees section 251 municipal clerk council president I'll make a motion to move an ordinance three and introduction first reading 24- 048 have a second I'll second it sounds good roll call Mr yes M Phillips Mr tyell yes ordinance 4 24049 is an ordinance amending and supplementing the code of the township of pilton New Jersey part three land use leg legislation chapter 550 Land Development article 3 District district regulations section 55073 rrc rural resource conservation and r25 single family residential districts and section 55074 R15 r10 R7 R5 single family residential districts this first reading and introduction since this first reading in I'm just just just wanted to just mention this is for um a cottage food operator so there's a licensing at the state level uh there's not a permitting process now that we haven't established here so this just allows for uh those individuals that have a our Cottage food operators a license for that to um to have a permit as well to proceed with their operation at their house enables us to regulate it regulate it that's where I'm looking for thank you council president I move ordinance 24- 049 on first reading I'll second we call who got that first and then was second Mr Papo yes M Phillips Mr wh yes Mr Ty yes 24l the code of the part two general legislation chapter 485 vehicles and traffic article three traffic regulations Section 485 34 speed limits council president I'll make a motion to move on first reading and inod uction for ordinance 54-5 second motion thank you roll call Mr Papo yes Mr yes Mr Ty yes yes 5 resolution 12441 is a resolution referring proposed amendments to the code of the township of pamilton New Jersey part three land use legislation chapter 550 Land Development article 3 District regulations Section 55073 rrc World resource conservation and r25 single family residential districts and section 55074 R15 r10 R7 and R5 SLE family residential districts to the Hamilton Township planning board uh for review pursuant to njsa call 55 d-26 now this is just referring this over to uh review by the planning board 24 that's 24- 049 any questions for my Council colleagues on this no so this is uh regarding changes in speed limits no no this is Cottage food operator oh this is for the cottage food all right any questions from the public yes so and fer Spruce Farms um living in the RC Zone representing um um North Cross friends of open space um first of all um what is the cottage food industry I don't even know what that means I mean I thought cottage cheese when you said that you know I had the same question when I saw it too there are individuals who uh have like small businesses out of their homes and a lot of times if they were going to sell food items they had to go to an industrial kitchen a commercial kitchen okay the state law has changed where certain people when they pass certain inspections are now allowed to do their businesses out of their home and out of their home kitchen so if they're making parois in their in their in their kitchen and then they're planning to sell them commercially there's a process now that allows them to do that and for them to be regulated correct on the state level and so we are now updating our ordinances to comply with what the state is now allowing okay well that sounds that sounds downright innocuous actually it is the way it works is that all of our ordinances especially on the land use side if it is not expressly permitted it is not allowed yeah sure course so what we're doing is we're making sure to expressly permit it because there are several uh businesses here in town with individuals that are doing this and so we want to make sure that we're in compliance both state law and that we so that that's what that's what this that it's under control that is correct and of course you know our organization is concerned about the rezoning possible rezoning of the um rad Vinny tract which is like uh I have to like consult whatever it is but lot 51 and 52 you're welcome to come back up and talk about that to our public comment I probably will thank you anyone else seeing none can I have a motion Mr sorry I'll move on resolution 124 d411 I'll second motion Mr phoh yes Miss Philip yes Mr yes Mr Ty yes yes 5 resolution 2 24412 with the resolution of support mer reduction County Road 524 South Broad Street Yardville alltown Road zones 1 through 4 County Road County Road 535 Nottingham Way Edinburg Road zones 1 and two County Road 652 Nottingham Way Zone 1 and County Road 672 South Broad Street Church Street zones 1 through 4 first reading introduction so this it's an ordinance resolution resol so this this resolution is just uh referring 24-50 for review and consideration by the planning board so any other questions by the council CH no Sor on 244 412 yes yeah yes so this is just a resolution of support that doesn't have to go to the planning board so the county has changed are you on right the county is making changes to to several different zones and um streets with in the township of Hamilton due to uh some studies that they've done and also to complaints that have happened based on how the speed limits that are that they're reducing them so what they're asking this uh board to do is to agree with their changes this would then go back to the county to then Institute those changes this is not something that will then to take further action within the township okay okay thank you for that clarification John anyone else wishing to comment I just I'm pleased to see a reduction in speed down to it we hear see too much too much speeding anyone else uh wishing com from the public yes Janice no it's Force okay John GL 432 Trinity Avenue Cornell Heights what are the you what were the speed limits and what are they being reduced too I mean especially Nottingham Way you have them J in front of you I'm um it does haveh it does um it doesn't tell from knows where just says reductions and we don't have any supporting collateral in our kit 35 from East State Street the PX and where where'd you find that yeah but it doesn't give is it in here yeah it gives you the old ordinance with the old speeds why don't I have that if I can't find it here but from my recollection oh it's before the like 40 to 35 okay wasn't drastic changes nothing like 25 something like that only in a school in a school zone so any place where it was a school zone that already had that limit of 25 milph that was not changing but outside of that Janice if I remember correctly because I wrote a bunch of ordinances um it doesn't say here but it there's one stretch of South Broad Street in Yardville that'll be reduced to 30 the other zones that they're reducing along South Broad and church out there will be 35 okay so if it's more than 35 through those residential areas that's a that's pretty fast it's yeah so it's the 25 that drives me that you know like especially Paxton Avenue Paxton Avenue is like kind of main thare that should be like 30 instead of the 25 I would think you know but neighborhood with a lot of kids and a lot that's probably what it was seems like it's such a main drag you know there are a couple places that are dropping probably from 45 to 40 and then from 50 to 45 okay so it seems as though I believe everywhere there was a drop it was by about 5 miles like I said the zoning area where there was already a school zone if it's already a school zone and it's 25 M an hour that is the exception so it will remain that in that portion um but for the most part that's what those changes were okay very good thank you good job there thank you than you hi Ellen coyote this just as had come up I've been next thing I was going to just tell people is that a notingham way um where I live off of by greenb it's around Sunset where that hole stretched until you get down to Saul's Funeral Home used to be 40 and what's really weird is I don't know when I noticed it maybe a year ago or so around Sunset Nottingham it says 30 m an hour and right across the street there's a sign that says 40 mil an hour so I was wondering if we could just get that changed back to 40 but don't know if it's our street oh that's um yeah that's a County Road County Road 535 out um well actually hold on Nottingham to edin Edinburg is 535 so I don't know about the stretch you're on it's from like St Greg through Hamilton Square I believe they pav it don't they it it's from St Greg's down to Saul's Funeral Home it was 40 mil an hour you know we'll figure it out because if they are inaccurate speed limit signs we need to fix so we'll figure it out stop I tell the C look across the street so it's 40 just so I understand correctly if I'm going towards St Gregs after I pass Saul going towards St Gregs is it on my right or is it go the other going the other direction it's going the other directions from St Greg's going to Sauls it's on the right hand side is the 30 and right across the streets the 40 yeah we just need to so right going west it's 30 going east it's 40 we either need to address it or we need to send something to the county if it's a county I I don't know County Road we'll check it out it may or may not be certain sections clarify we'll clarify yeah thank you for bringing that to our attention Okay y I'm not doing that tomorrow I'll take a ride I'm thinking it's where that's right around where it I think I know where it is I know exactly okay so do we have a motion on that resolution did we pass that resolution I'm so confused right now confus late yeah all right so now let's uh let's on the resolution please I'll move on uh resolution 22 24-42 have a second I'll second roll call Mr yes pH yes Mr yes yes yes that brings us to a public comment I'm going to excuse myself yes yes go Ahad what [Music] happen hey you're up again okay so Ed F first first FS uh kind of the township here for North Cross friends of open space so um so North crosspix we're concerned about the possible rezoning of the uh what was called the red Benny track and what we know is Back Creek Farm which is block 2712 and lots 151 and 156 um for the obvious reasons that it's very very consistent with the um rural resource um conservation Zone which was created to protect land like that of course and um so I just thought I'd call it to your attention um once again okay and we we are very concerned about it we'll Contin continue to to watch and see you know what's going to happen with that and you may see a lot more of me here at this at these meetings I don't know as we move forward um and metaphorically speaking I just want to emphasize the risk of metaphorically right at the risk of beating a dead horse basically you know I'll be back but that's uh you know so um thank you for your you know attention to this and your patience and uh so we'll be just you know keeping an eye on it and plan to uh you know follow through if it comes up for a um a hearing to to be resed okay and we have good news for you oh yeah okay we fought it in court the project is dead um so there's no uh there's no current proposal uh yeah well that is great The Proposal that you were concerned about the warehouse proposal is dead well what about the rezoning of it is it still is that still a consideration we're not there's no proposal to reone that that the council is considering yeah I was read my question has there been any project talked about that's for that area is there been any resoning because I haven't heard anything I see a bunch of signs put up but I have yet to hear of a project so we put signs up all along that road you know and one of them was don't re um don't rezone leave alone you know and kind of like um like the burmes shave you know commercial uh ads that you used to see on on the highways dating myself um but you know we kind of thought that was cute and uh so you know we're maintaining that really you don't have to do anything on this it's not costing the township any money but if you re well it's not costing any you know any anything at all just to leave it in the Ral resource conservation Zone where where it belongs but um we did have a conversation with the one of the I guess one of the owners rad Benny who's still I guess part of one of the realy groups that that owns that and um he he says I'm getting lots of offers whoops I'm getting lots of offers and uh um I'll die before I set you know I sell to conservation or something like that it's what what we heard which is unfortunate but so it'll probably come up again and we'll probably be here again just to visit and say hi in if you okay okay thanks take care thank you okay next up we have Ellen coyote hi y'all again hi um I sent you my notes again and picture and I don't know if the video Work CU I'm not text Savvy um the most important thing was to show you guys the ordinance that's on the books at the police officer who talked to me on the phone um I forget what day um I believe it was October 7 I mean November 7th but anyway um um on November 9th two days after the zoning guy told them that it wasn't allowed to do what he was doing he was blowing leaves at the border of the woods further into the woods and I figured when I heard the leaf blowing I figured that's what he was doing so I went down there to videotape his Insanity I was like cuz nobody's going to believe this or me also approximately uh November 2nd after I got the video and was going back home his dumping bunny was there also number 24 crossed his arms and came within an inch of my face our noses were about an inch apart he was no doubt was trying to entice a physical flight I turned away from him to go back home and he blocked my leaving he got within an inch of my nose again and I just wanted to push him back like from my personal space but I like no I'll be accused of sorting a fight um so um I did the only thing I could with him within an inch of my nose I shouted at the top of my lungs I figur I'll make him deaf um but his dumping buddy was there with him and kind of grabbed him by the shoulder and said either leave or get away from the  and his wife was yelling at me something from the kitchen door as I was leaving um I went home a couple of times to um that I had to go down there to video his illegal activity he stops now the leaf flowing goes off the township property to property line to pick get his cell phone and he starts video V videoing me and I'm like fine and so I walk home and he follows me like halfway um but one time um I believe it was November 2nd too I went back to cut cut finish cutting my lawn and I don't know 10 minutes later or so he was 10 ft behind my fence videotaping me and I'm like I don't care it's like I'm not doing anything IL legal and I feel like he's just trying to intimidate and harass me um but he's failing to obey the law since the public works department letter went out help us help you and the only time he's been told to stop the illegal dumping was by the vot the the zoning guy on 117 and no one really besides the zoning officer has told him to stop stop and decease um the s sorry um that was a Freudian slip um first cop the first cop that came April 21st didn't directly engage him only 24 and they were they were I mean 20 didn't they were there both there on the day the first cop came out and he only addressed 28 cuz they're behind his property but number 24 knew it concerned him but he got to be a cowardy and walked away but after the cop try to give him the complete thing he goes I don't need it give it to her and then number 24 just kept saying just take it doesn't mean anything doesn't so when I watched the oper tapes I knew they weren't intending to stop anything but anyway um yeah the letter didn't change anything when I asked him about two weeks ago I said I keep wa want this answer and I never got it he always blow me off so I was like let's try one more time and he he came in halfway out to his lawn I said can I ask you one question and and it's like why don't you go a third of the distance to bring the brush to the curve and he just cuts me off again being so exasperated and we live it and just says stop just stop it stop it and go home Ellen you know what can I bring you back up just for another two minutes just I have to let someone yeah okay and then we can respond okay yeah thank you yes Jess okay John for2 Cornell Heights um the are we like the the voting C went came and went there was no results nobody knew what happened are is the township supposed to put it in the paper or is the paper just supposed to put it in well there's a what for for election results yeah because like the who Who board of County Commissioners nothing was said we know Andy got in but the other guy nothing we said about this her Conway for 's House of Representatives who got that and so I had no idea and same thing with the school board I just heard my word of mouth you know who won the school board you know I just thought it you know there would be some kind of notice in the paper or something I I got to be honest I haven't had a chance to check the final results either usually I go to the clerk's County they're all on theb County Clerk uh town no I'm joking I'm joking take that back to the county clerk uh Paul Sal's website and usually there's a link there oh yeah talking to the computer Queen here oh well yeah so that's a good question for someone who is not on the internet how do they get those results these days and I mean I would think contact the County Clerk is still the best way to go you could call them call the county clerk Co you know I was just you know thinking well you know you would think the paper would the paper would I mean I knew have Lawrence ying and but but you know but I mean be nice for the public to know you know what happened what happened you're right so uh and then I just I saw when I happened I thought well let me I can get on the Hamilton website and see if it's listed on there but it wasn't if before I came here but then I saw where you guys dedicated opened the municip building you had opening that and but that was yesterday and it was in in either paper today so it would be nice if it was the paper should have covered it you know how the groundbreaking was a couple weeks ago doing that we can't control with the newspapers Oh see it would be nice if that know much coverage on that either okay I even dressed up there were cameras chy wor NE next time okay just be know night said M people know these things oh you are right because I mean that's phenomenal that hey it got started because people because I come to all the council meetings my friends and all think I know everything you know and so between that the school board but um you know uh nice you know because people are going you know I said I know when it's going to be done it's you know 2026 and it's supposed to get started this year sometime in the fall I I knew that much but I can say well now it's officially going to be started you know so that uh it' be nice that's a nice Public Announcement that you know we're on the road to getting it going um well the meeting's over I can take a look with you see if we can find it together okay all right let's do that say Al can we put a link on our clerks like for the county clerk I can and speak to it yeah and that doesn't solve the issue for folks who aren't on the internet but I know if she can if she can navigates the Hamilton site I'm just thinking you of an easier way because I I've had trouble too even like Googling yeah trying to get the results and same you know had the same issue trying to find an accurate count yeah I you used to be able to just look in the paper the next day and next day you look the paper there it was you know you know what was going on course now the Trenton rather Trent times is going completely digital as of February 2nd yeah so uh but uh since the Trentonian will only be the P of paper funny to think right right okay thank you yeah thank you yes Lisa Lisa Williams I have a crosswalk question in the past year we've gotten these amazing crosswalks At Mercer Street and on Hughes Drive Crossing from saian Gardens to Apple gate you press a button you have nice flashing lights I mean my dog and I almost got hit on Mercer Street even with that but still um most people stop and at the I don't know if it was the last meeting or one before that you know Tammy raised the issue about the crosswalks at flock Road and how people just go around or some you know and like they don't even stop and somebody's you know it's dangerous and I I don't really pay attention to those crosswalks too often just because I don't Crosshair that often I mean we have occasionally I'm curious who paid for those flashing lights like I love the one on Mercer Street and can we get them in other places in Hamilton like Flock Road and Hughes it's very hazardous to cross Nottingham Way at AB fo oil is hard for people to cross now especially since AB foil is a massive cut through to avoid the traffic lights on 33 and I'm sure there's a whole whole bunch of other places that are very hard to cross was that a grant or did like how do we do that it's good question Lisa I remember having a conversation with Sam Brown about this I I I forget if this was I think it was a grant some of them were grants we've done several uh with the flashing signals young and Colony Drive Hughes Drive in Applegate um Mercy Street and Hughes um I'm just trying to think there was a couple others that we did too and at the same time we're upgrading the not just the flashing signals but upgrading to the adaa ramps that are required and all of that so I think it was um a partnership of a partial payment by Grant funds and then the rest from the township I'm just wondering if we could look to try to put more of those you know it is difficult to walk around what are the two locations you just said the most recent ones you said them it's um Mercer and Hughes so you cross from seian Gardens over Hughes that's a regular crosswalk but then when you want to cross to go to the other side of Mercer Street it has the flashing lights um that one's that's where we almost got hit this weekend but you know it was two cars stopped the third one decided he was going to blow right through and I was just stopped and I looked at him I think he saw me look at his license plate cuz he put his window down he's like I'm so sorry wasn't a guy in a white Tesla was it no I go by that way all the time and the other one is saying Gardens to Applegate um you know like your the old hoglands area yeah um so you can actually cross there but if you go further up Hues to block that's a little difficult to cross if you want to go to what is it damsite 22 my dog took me there 21 all right sorry it was the first time I had ever been there I just love it's beautiful isn't it it's gorgeous um you know and like other places like abber foil and Nottingham that's it's hard for people to cross I mean people Park even like it's hard to make a turn there cuz people Park so close to the intersection I was just curious if we could find a way to put them in more places not we'll definitely put it on on the list but I I think it's been a continued effort to try to increase pedestrian safety and if if Miss stuffy was coming tonight and to because she sent us an email as well and we'll respond to that uh but there's been a lot of different traffic initiatives that are trying to address some of that because you know unfortunately we have had a few fatalities with pedestrians and vehicles and so uh that's not normal and so we haven't had a normal year for that but it really caused us to take a hard look at some of these areas and try to increase The Pedestrian safety so we'll keep doing that Park that'd be a good spot for for one of those we had a fatality on Park we've got the grammar school and the high school there we talked about that one a lot so okay and AO I'm going to add to your list AO I think they should be all over the township I just know where I walk and where we try to cross busy roads but I don't think that it should just be my neighborhood I think it should be all over the township yeah agreed because it's it's not you know just one particular area that we have some issues so but as we look at them we like to get right the some of the recommended areas cuz might help us prioritize it we can't do them all at the same time so Al from the Freedom Village to the library I think that it' be good to have an enhanced crosswalk there y all right okay anyone else wish the comment Ellen do you want to come up for your remaining two minutes um just to finish what he was saying he told me you know stop to go home that this is going on for months it's really only been a month and a half for him it's been a year and a half for me and I know leaf pickup is going on now to December so they won't even pick up brush and I understand that and this also concerns number 28 and I was just thinking one way to go is they be not notified by certified mail they have to sign to and give it back to the township acknowledge it they received the letter just telling them to REM remove the brush and give them like to January 15th um or Public Works will have to do and they have to be allowed access through their properties um and that public works when they go there won't have to ask that letter to be signed um giving in case they destroy property they just give them to go ahead and if they cause a problem for letting them get back to their property then the police will have to come out to force to leave public works alone and then find him if necessary give him his only second warning the first warning was on the 7th 117 by the zoning officer and um because the first and SE and second set of street cops and two detectives to me didn't do their jobs correctly and basically were giving him a pass and um they so no one's has got this building offer has come right out said you can't dump do this illegal dumping and um so I'm I'm here today to get more information on how this bad situation is going to be resolved and I was wondering um Mr whan did you hear back from director Thomas because I've been emailing him since September 3rd and I never got a response from him I I can answer some of those right cuz I know that you went out and visited the site after to the last meeting and you had said that nobody's been out there since but that's not entirely true so that we had um two of our Public Works employees had gone out there um I don't have no I didn't say nobody's beening back I haven't been not getting knowled I'm not here to argue with you but in your um in your letter that you sent to us just before this meeting you uh talked about going to the council meeting you're very first line says Mr whing came out on 10:17 and I haven't heard a peep and no one's been there since so you know but again they have been out and they're trying to address it right now um our Public Works team did make contact with uh the one resident I believe at at 26 and oh she's not even involved well again it's right there on the whole property uh and maybe I got that that date wrong however they were able to obtain permission for access to the back they're going to go back assess it clean it up if necessary they're putting signs out there that identify the ordinance um that will help Anytime Future officers have to come out for anything because the ordinance is right there so they've been notified through the ordinance and through the signage that's there excuse me you know who's been notified the the anyone that that is in the vicinity of that Park will be notified by the signs that no that say there's no dumping this is by ordinance and I I don't remember the sighting of the something's going to be put up on the on the trees signage yes that's correct all right they're going to have signs there that state no dumping or littering and they're putting the ordinance number on there and they're posting it there so that that hopefully will provide a way anyway to enforce that ordinance and to make notification as you had suggested to make notification to them so um we're trying to get a handle on the situation um I have forwarded your video as well to not just uh the zoning office but also to the PD oh it did work you were able to open it so I I didn't view the whole thing but um but yes they're they're going to uh take that and that investigation will happen as as time goes on so but at this point that's the way that we're trying to handle this uh get it cleaned up I think that's important if there's uh debris out there you know that Public Works had been out there back in August and cleaned up quite a bit the third and I was there doing the work with them yes I I recall and so and you had you know pictures of all of that was pulled out of there so um but again I don't know what's been put there since and oh know was what existed the brush they had dumped and they wanted to bring that through my property and I'm like he he's always claim that they have connections and I think they know the mayor too so to me nothing's everybody says that so just in all fairness um but but regardless right we we have a team that's coming out they're going to assess whatever is there they're going to clean it up because now they have permission they have access from one of the residents there and maybe I got the number wrong Maybe it's not 26 maybe it's 24 or 28 I don't remember it's 24 and 28 okay that's fine okay I think what H just go ahead not to debate this um you know we we we own a lot of different properties that butt up the residents homes throughout the township and you know from what I could see out there it's almost like they feel that our property is an extension of their property sure right and it happens I you know I grew up in that neighborhood so I I I had friends that H uh families abutted some of our properties and they clear it out or whatever um they are storing other things there besides you know you know I could see on the other side the fence so to speak they got firewood stacked which is in my mind doesn't bother me too much right but beyond that they've got a snowblower they've got grills they've got other stuff that's stored and covered that probably you know it's on Township property and should be removed um I would think uh in all fairness to the residents that they get a time frame of of when they should have that removed and if not then you take the necessary um um this is all measures to correct it you know um you know but I'm sure this happens throughout the Township in many areas um you know yeah I have a question so the video that I'm looking at are you videoing it because he's blowing leavs onto the property from the uh town from his property the come and from the township property that he cuts he's blowing it further back into the woods the leaves yeah so we can have an extra fire hazard that's what I was thinking about especially since we're in such a dangerous time figure out what I was looking at because the guy puts a leaf BL in FRS away so yeah he went to go get his cell phone now so he videotapes me Fair yeah and I'm sorry I I I sense an annoyance from when you said not at all not at all I just said I apologize if you got that came out I haven't heard a peak I didn't say no one showed up and I wasn't aware of that so it would have been nice to just send me an email or something that this is what's being done so just be patient you know cuz he's he's ready to physically fight over it and God knows what else I I really don't you know I feel bad about that I don't want you to you know get injured or or something because you care about what's going on there so I would just say be call be care careful with that so I'm sorry that you're having a problem with your neighbor um I want to thank you for bringing to our attention the issue that you see with people really dumping on Township property it should you're right it shouldn't be happening um and thanks to your reporting that they've gone out they've looked at the problem uh there's a course of action now so the township is taking action to address the issue and hopefully that'll solve the problem uh hopefully everybody who lives near this property adjacent to it is now on notice that they can't do that and it hopefully it will not be a problem in the future if it continues to be a problem we'll be here uh and you know I do appreciate your effort to address the issue and I'm I'm confident we'll hear from if if this is not adequate to address it but it does sound like we're taking measures to address it and now we got to give that a chance to uh solve the problem right and exactly but also this additional information as well as as well as your information I want to make sure that you know it's not just our Public Works crew going out there that we have others that are going out there particularly if there's plenty of other things that are still being stored on that property they should have been cleared off of there they haven't been that needs to be addressed so and this way the signage you get up and that will that will get done as well and so and I don't know if I'm on your email string and I I really apologize I did not mean to come off as annoyed I'm not annoyed at all we address you know this all the time I went and asked and looked up your name to get your and called hamat to get your email address because you look surprised you didn't have the information so I cc to everybody oh I'm glad so I was going to say continue to do that and as you said I'm sure you can contact the council as well at any time but if this continues on or there's other things that happen please don't hesitate to you know put it in an email or or get it to us right away because I've used those I wasn't aware that I know something really bad is going to happen now that he's had for I've been was friends with him for 22 plus years and saying he can't put his LMO and stuff back there all the stuff he's got he's going to be really pissed and um I even have a problem with that it but yeah it again what he pulls a lawn more it could all go up but um Ellen I got to cut you off though um so I think that we have a path forward councilman Tai mentioned it um I think that you know let's Kathy let's just communicate with Mrs uh Miss coyote and just keep understand correctly someone from Public Works has been out there and so they were out there already but they're going out again the crew is going out again because they got permission to get access back there from I'll I'll find out that and I'll I'll respond to the the letter that you sent to counil and they'll be all be on it as well and so Public Works will be doing the work to take to remove it that's correct but I also want to make sure there's others that are going out there because if there are still but if it's personal if it's personal property I think the township will be able to say that you're going to have to move this correct onto your property and give them a line that they have to do it and if not the township has to do it or remove it then it might be I don't know if they're allowed to assess them oh yes they are right so it be at their expense trespass on a little while has the zoning officer been out there so I think zoning has been out there maybe once before 117 they they never came the first time I called them months ago they said it wasn't their job the police it's the police job and they go like this goes back and forth sometimes so they only out 117 and he tried to dismiss it like the detective that wasn't a big deal cuz now the leaves have fall and it doesn't look that bad but um he was like and one of his comments was he's like it was like so what everybody in Hamilton does it and I'm like that doesn't make it right and then he said everybody around here's doing it I said no they're not it's just these two guys all my neighbors are putting their leaves on their on the curb like it's legal to do everybody's came from somebody else's tree and he just bunched them up so it was nothing and but but you can see what the next door neighbor day cuz she put it all in cars and pulled it out like you're supposed to so okay thank you follow up to be vigilant to my property cuz I don't want him to poison my dogs or something cuz I know it's going to get bad okay I hope I hope not thank you shouldn't but unfortunately yes got to be I know him now I didn't know he was a narcissist but I found out the hard way okay thank you I appreciate it okay anyone else Council not the chief I just want to acknowledge that uh Steve Kramer's in attendance this evening thank you Steve for being here our acting our acting Chief thank you um councilman Perry you want to start us off yeah just want to say thank you uh to my team here uh obviously I always thank the residents uh but in this time we're I believe this is our last meeting until Thanksgiving MH so I just want to say thank you uh for being good teammates uh thank you I think everybody brings a little piece of puzzle together and um hope you enjoy your time with your families and that's it and we'll see you next month thank you guess we will I'll keep it short also thanks everybody for coming I I thought it was a great presentation tonight by our um Board of Health I thought the the PowerPoint was great and like uh Council paparo said this s last meeting in November and I wish everyone to have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving um with your family and friends whatever you're doing that day be safe and enjoy it yeah I I'll just say uh we had a um a great October Fest once again kudos to the administration for uh and the health department uh I got my uh flu shot at October Fest something to look forward to at a at an event uh but just another example of of the Outreach and and the services being made available um and with that I I want to wish everybody a happy holiday season a happy and safe and healthy holiday season thank you um I also want to say you know thank you I'm very grateful for both our Administration and our Council team um before we know the year's going to be over and you know so but I think it's you know we've had a good year and we are what really welcome all the public who come and bring these issues before us otherwise we wouldn't be aware of them um I want to commend the health division for their great presentation as well and all the hard work they're doing towards the accreditation I think that that's something to look forward to hopefully in 2025 but again I just want to say thank you and I just really appreciate the cler Allison and Britney and just hope you have a good holiday season so my colleagues captured everything that I really wanted to say um all I got to say though is you only have two more meetings with me as your president so down to the wire here um but that's all right that's all right um yes but I just want to you know once again just wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and enjoy with some uh family and friends and a little football too if you like football so thank you all for coming out this evening uh see you at our meeting in December better stay the creature forever though yeah