##VIDEO ID:NJcP3gql2Ik## [Music] I making this announcement in compliance with the open public meetings act chapter 231 Public Law 1975 laws of the state of New Jersey the bur clerk has repaired a schedule of the meetings of the governing body of the B of kennworth for the year 2025 the burough clerk has posted a true copy of the schedule on the Bolton board located at the front entrance of B Hall and is mail two copies of the schedule to the local Source in the Star Ledger and is maintaining a copy of this schedule in her office during the year 2025 accordingly the notice requirements of the open public meetings act have been satisfied in regard to this meeting roll call Madam clerk mayor car here council member Bo is excused Council finella here Council D cerno here councilman here councilman Piper here and councilman s here form okay um I'd like to approve the minutes of uh January 2nd 20125 for reor January 15 2025 and January 15 2025 at executive [Music] session oh we ski sorry it's not on my on my I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the repblic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy and justice for all I apologize for that moving too quickly okay I'd like a motion to approve the minutes of um January 2nd 2025 January 15 2025 and executive session of 10 January 15 to 20 2025 make a motion second motion made by councilman Mor seconded by councilman pestrella roll call please councilman fo is excused councilman fenr yes councilman G cerno yes councilman Morrow yes councilman Piper yes and councilman fur yes okay yep okay one Proclamation this evening it is uh National Wear red day whereas cardio vascular disease continues to be the leading cause of death among men and women globally with Statistics indicating that one in three women succ to heart disease each year it is crucial to raise awareness about these life-threatening conditions and educate individuals about preventative measures to reduce the risk of heart related ailments thereby promoting healthier Lifestyles within our community National Wear red Day held annually on the first Friday in February has has been recognized as a day to emphasize the significance of cardiovascular health and the importance of early detection prompt treatment and ongoing research whereas we the bar of Kenworth believe that our community's well-being should be of Paramount importance and prioritize initiatives to Foster physical and emotional Wellness now therefore I as the mayor of the bar of Kenworth to hereby proclaimed February 7 2025 shall be duly recognized as National Wear red day in the bur of kennworth and urge all residents businesses and Community organizations to actively participate in this day wear red attire is a symbol of the solidarity and support of those affected by heart disease and as a visual reminder for others to prioritize their cardiovascular health I encourage our educational institutions healthc care facilities and public spaces within our burrow to dedicate resources toward promoting heart healthy lifestyle choices off offering relevant information and organizing educational activities centered around raising awareness about cardiovascular health on this significant day by joining forces we can create a united front against heart disease inspiring individuals to adopt healthier habits and collectively contributing to the reduction of heart rated ailments within our community in witness he whereof I mayor Linda Carlovich have here unto sign my name officially and cause to seal the countor to be affixed this fifth day of February 2025 okay at this time I would like to uh invite Daniel Rodriguez up uh to present his um Eagle Scout project hi hi thank you for having me my name is Daniel Rodriguez and um I'm currently trying to get my eal my eag award become an eag Scout right now I'm currently a life Scout and I've been in Boy Scouts for about 8 years since basically since I moved here from korth to korth I've lived in korth for the past 10 years and I've been in the rec center like part of the rec center most of my childhood and I wanted to do something to give back to the community and for the children of Kenworth so I thought about um doing a project for the rec center so my project basically is there used to be a board game room in the rec center and most of the shelves and and like the board games are all disorganized and like the room is basically just like a mess at this point so then I my plan is to clean everything out of the room build new shelves paint the walls and then get a board game donation and then set up a board game knife for kids to come and with their parents with no electronics and just play board games it's awesome yeah that's my project I hope you guys can improve it and thank you so much absolutely thank you very much great job thank you okay I just want to take a minute um our rec director Joe kzer I just wanted to mention that his wife um is in the hospital his wife Gina um undergoing uh some major surgery so if everyone can keep the family in their prayers I appreciate that okay I'd like to move on to the uh Finance report thank you mayor councilman Morrow takes me a second I'm so yeah no that's okay first anyway I'll I'll with a quick Public Service Announcement uh first quarter tax payments are due on Fe by February 10th without interest uh so little announcement for that uh we have a couple of items of Interest taking place in our finance department right now we're working with the Auditors on the UN un audited annual financial statements uh and we filed our annual debt statement W2's 1099 uniform construction code annual report and Library State a report our CFO uh you'll hear from him probably a bit later his currently spearheading the 2025 budget and our committee will be convening as early as next week to discuss exactly on Thursday we just worked it out uh so that's it for the finance committee thanks mayor thank you councilman uh Department of Public Works councilman B oil is absent um does anyone have his report I do thank you councilwoman I don't know if I'm going to be as thorough as Pat would be um but I'm going to give you all the highlights so during the last snowstorm they uh deployed 13 staff members each earning about 11 hours overtime and used 55 tons of road salt and the road salt has been replenished by the Union County Co-op purchasing agreement um Communications njd visited the DPW on Monday the 3rd of February and the visit was to do a routine inspection of the Burrow's sanitary sewer system the inspector looked at all the reports for the past year and did visual inspections of four random manholes and a visual inspection of the lift station on Lafayette Street everything appeared to be in order and the investigator left very satisfied we Greg will get a uh a report in a few weeks Union County D visited the DPW on January 31st for a routine inspection of the gasoline fuel pod they're requesting BTUs on all the generators updated information for our air permits and recommended repairs on the pumps Union County de D is working with us to bring us into full compliance and they will issue full reports and summaries once uh while the abatements are completed and next week is bi-weekly burrow wide cardboard pickup on Tuesday the 11th and the burrow wide pickup of cans and bottles will be Tuesday the 18th the street sweeper goes out regularly uh per D regulations um and of course you could recycle at uh the DPW Yard there's a lot of details here call the facility ask for Greg and get all the information Greg what is the number for the DPW 908 27650 73 9 908 27650 73 73 call because there is quite a bit of information um I'll touch on the trees there's ongoing tree work for 2025 the DPW superintendent is making sure I'm making time each week to tour and check trees that have been reported and logged for work um emergencies of course take priority healthy trees are trimmed as necessary um but they will not be removed at the burrow expense residents have an option to remove a burrow Tree on their property at their own expense by submitting a tree waiver form that's on our website and having it approved by the buau that's all I have thank you thank you councilwoman Department of uh Public Safety councilman fenestella oh thank you mayor uh the monthly report for January from the police chief uh for the month of January korth PD responded to 1,11 calls for service and there were 163 911 calls there was a total of 237 hours of overtime for the month 150 hours for scheduled Patrol OT dispatch OT 48 Hours counter of police department completed 342 hours of training for the month which incl includes arrive Firearms user and various classes Conor PD issued 171 traffic summonses and five arrests for the month there was one sick day used um and zero sick occurrences there were zero oji days on the job injuries Conor police received 48 total flock hits for the stationary count cameras units responded to 10 high priority flock alerts units were able to respond to the areas and intervene before the actors victimized K korth residents korth Police Department two recruits started their police training at John H stamler Police Academy on January 3rd 2025 K P's 2 new dispatchers have started their training on January 20th 2025 uh mage from the chief of police uh K Police Department is requesting everyone to take their time driving when the roads are snow covered and icy give yourself some extra time when driving that's uh no no-brainer you know when it's icy nasty out there so slippery just be careful leaving your front steps uh we're supposed to have some ice tonight maybe um and also I remember hearing something about emergency room visits are peaked with heart attacks after snowstorm if you see an elderly person out there Shing the snow go out there and and say listen let me give you a hand I mean you know it's courtesy common cuz uh it is it is uh otherly people you have to try and uh extend a hand um and that's pretty much it thank you councilman planning zoning councilman scce thank you mayor um total receipts from building fees truste uh fees miscellaneous trailer storage uh Road opening fees for foreclosure vacant abandon and developer fees total uh $458 32 for the month of January there was no zoning complaints for the month of January but there in February a couple of stock work orders had to be issued and that's all I really have from the uh planning of zoning there's a lot of other things pending but uh we'll wait till they materialize more so um I'm not sure if I could even speak too much of that um also while while I'm here um since we're talking to snow I want to remind everyone that the uh snow was simplified if I don't think it's going to be a problem this this time around but in case we do get snow remember have to park on the odd side to start off and then once that side is cleared then you have uh a couple hours to move your vehicles over so they can ply the the other side that's all I have mayor thank you councilman Recreation and fire councilman Piper thank you mayor uh there's not much going on in recck but the basketball season is halfway over uh The Season's been going well so far the Eagle Scout project in the front storage room of the wreck has been completed the Middle School sports trials and registrations will be posted soon Flyers will be sent out through the school emails will be sent through Community pass and info will be po posted on the website and the Facebook page the uh fire department report this month the fire department responded to 29 calls there were two carbon monoxide alarms three cprs five fire alarms one fire prevention four first responder one public assist two medical assist three motor vehicle accidents one mutual Aid response to Rosel Park three odor of gas one cable line one training and two waterf flow alarms uh during these incidents the fire department traveled 48 miles and utilized 77 man hours I do not have the rescue squad numbers at this time the additional man hours utilized during the month of January well that would be December would include administrative 268 Building Maintenance 75 stien 1,4 426 work detail 24 additional fire training 12 and Rescue Training 30 so the total calls for the month were 29 total miles traveled 48 and the total man hours 1,912 that's what we have thank you councilman you're welcome health education and Welfare councilwoman gardano pno thank you mayor the board of education's meeting is next Monday so I don't have anything to report at this meeting um the library has its typical or I should say traditional infant toddler programs going on Bingo laps sit pajama time um Legos read to a dog please call for times and dates cuz there's quite a few there is uh two craft events in February the 7th and the 21st there's another special event the good time string band on February 26th and a yarn spinning um event on February 10th English class is still going on Tuesdays at 5:30 the phone number for the library is 908 276 2451 for the seniors um we have a really uh nice um service that's being provided for seniors and Veterans by the lwis dundo civic association it's the fourth year that they are sponsoring free tax preparation at the VFW it will be on Feb Thursday February 20th from 9 to 4:00 p.m please bring all your documents a photo ID and the prior year's taxes please you could call the number is 98361 0255 call for an appointment it is free for all seniors and Veterans and like I said it's the fourth year um that the civic association is offering it it's a really great um service for the health department the candidate that had originally accepted the position um for the rhs RS declined they took a job elsewhere so Marone will repost post that position on um the typical Health site web um websites um and we talked about a couple of other options as well for now we still have the shared services with the two inspectors in Union and we have coverage every day from 9: to 11: then again at 1:30 to 3:30 um and the last thing with the health department it was really a collaborative effort between the health department the code enforce and Ken kennworth Police Department who um the inspector Chris Demco Came Upon an illegal let's call it cosmetology business operating in kennworth and all three um departments came together went to the facility inspected uh it was determined it they were not selling what they were supposed to be selling and it has been closed down so thank you to the health department the code enforcement and the kenor police department working seamlessly together thank you and that's all I have thank you councilwoman barl engineer okay thank you mayor I really don't have much to report um obviously we have the ongoing sidewalk project and the front of building uh which has obviously been on and off with the weather um so this week was a bust the snow uh we'll see how it goes in the next week or two uh and um with respect to the boulevard sidewalks we did get reimbursement from the uh gas company um as we as they promised H so we will look into doing that project in the spring and um you know we'll get those get those straightened down good other than that don't really have anything else to report great that's actually more for the chief but also for you Tony uh on resolution 7 8 tonight we have that speed sign on the boulevard the radar sign um I know in the past when we were looking at signs on 14th Street there's very minor expense of the battery um every couple years is it the same kind you know what he's putting up the council a little on this this is one of those signs that's a speed sign that's solar power it's fixed on a fixed position it doesn't move uh it runs on solar um it's gives us an opportunity to get traffic just down we have we have one being placed on one side of the boumard and we also in the process of getting another one on the other side so that'll help slow things down on the little uh you know at least people see going 45 this 25 people be bor so be a big deterr for on helps slow toic down I'm a big supporter I just want to make sure the lights stay on right and the maintenance of it would maintain we have a service Contra okay it's not like um I don't know how to describe it uh it comes with a service contract General General Electric this company that's storing it they will be the ones that R will service it with full essentially our uh street lights and uh we have maintenance U for that so we to that uh okay so it's outside of anything Harbor would be [Music] okay good okay sorry to put everybody on spot not actually it's a good thing for Kor help of traffic down on the Boulevard and hopefully in the near future be able to get a couple more put to slow traffic I live get effective they do they good work they're not cure all but they do they that they can help I just want make stays on I remember we were talking about 14th Street and uh walking over to the on the county uh Park the trail there um there was something about the batteries in those signs needing to be replaced every couple years and I just want to make sure we we do that sign uh that's they're actually place of specific locations where because they're solar power um you know just we actually walk out the electric and they they advis us which would be the best location because we have those beautiful trees in the you know in the spring and summer uh we want to be able to make sure that they have enough light to make sure they function bre's trimming away so um Chief you're saying there's a battery there and the batter is replenished through solar power it work at night ity snow and it covers the the paddle but we'll do our our best to make make sure that they're function yeah but the battery should last a while Char warant for so new piece ofip so follow but be more okay thank you thank you okay B [Music] CFO thank you mayor uh Council M moral mentioned we filed all our reports to by January 31st and uh some or done early uh and we are currently working on the 2025 budget so first meeting schedule the committee next Thurs that's have thank you attorney mayor I have nothing to report this evening however I would like to have a close session to discuss zoning this evening okay burrow administrator on January 22nd I attended a training session for o updates and First Amendment and audits I represented the burrow for cdbg Grant applications for the year 51 presentation uh as you may be able to see we started the painting here at bur hall there's a few areas that do need to be patched up uh it's plaster work um and we don't expect to have any more damage reoccurring because we did just have the roof replacement uh program that should have Abed all our issues there we had a safety committee meeting which was held on the 28th of January you should have all received your email for your mandatory annual training for the uh Insurance Fund M and let's see the fourth quarter safety incentive program reports have been submitted to the GIF and due to the impending weather that we're anticipating um we made a decision to have a delayed opening tomorrow just to allow public works and you know all the public works on everybody's commute to get into the burrow to have an opportunity to clear the roadway so them you know to just to take everybody's uh safety and health to consideration and speaking of the inclement weather Greg and I were talking earlier and he had a thought about the recycling for next week Greg if you want to speak to [Music] that so the uh future forecast for next week is predicting 6 to 10 in on Tuesday going into Wednesday national weather forecast is anticipating snow starting around 1:00 a.m. and the fact that it won't end until sometime early Wednesday morning it's going to be another slow storm um this could change as we all know New Jersey weather changes rapidly so we're going to play this one by year but Laura and I were talking about how we will just have to notify the residents that if it does happen in Tuesday where we cannot send the trucks out the next day that is available where there's no snow precipitation we go out that day regardless of what day it is so we just want to remind residents that how we going to let everyone know can we do uh we'll do the nixel but unfortunately we I think the war can confirm the numbers but I think it's like 1100 people are signed up yeah it's not even one person per household on average so we know not everyone's going to get it we're going to do the nixel alerts we'll do advertisements on the borrow website we'll do it on the board out front can we put it on the Facebook page yeah we're going to do everything we can but we're just asking any neighbors that if they get their work to just reach out to their neighbor everybody know you know if you see wake up and you see snow or you wake up and you get the alert hold it back because so no one should put their recycling out on Wednesday if there's snow that's what you're okay yeah now they get the alert and they put it out when they get the alert Yeah okay or the next schedule what the alert says yeah because if we do the alert it'll be saying postpone till Wednesday based on the weather report okay but and I will work together on that to notify people's manye as we can and hopefully no one put cardboard out because that will fly when we start pushing sure and they're talking another storm possibly Thursday okay we not going to put out our recycl unless we they put it out unless you hear how it was if if the forecast stays true to what they're predicting today yeah I'm it's a 100% chance that we're not going to be doing recycling okay so I'm saying we're playing close to chest because we want to see if the weather's going to Shi door right that's still a week out I mean they don't usually get it right the day before so exactly we'll check we'll check in on this G that's hours that's right okay thank you [Music] right okay next for Council consideration is the consent agenda consisting of resolutions 25-70 through 2578 is there a motion to approve the consent agenda motion second motion made by councilman Fen Shaw seconded by councilman nar's roll call resolutions 25-70 through 2578 have been approved by one motion all items will be recorded individually and in a minute councilman Bo is excused councilman finella yes councilwoman J danern yes councilman Morrow yes councilman Piper yes and councilman CES yes motion passes okay at this time I'd like to open the floor to the public is there a motion to open the floor motion second motion made by councilman scarice seconded by councilwoman Jano pno does anyone have anything to say for the good and wellbeing of kennworth please come forward and state your name and address hello hi I'm Jean Lorie 412 coolage drive I'm Joan color 710 nor Avenue and basically um we just wanted to come and thank you guys my my mother is Mary Harris so to Mayor Linda carage and the the council we would like to thank you for the beautiful flowers that you supplied at her her wake and and especially that beautiful letter that you sent Linda thank you it was truly heartfelt and we appreciated it more than you know and so our mother loved this town so much and she would have been so humbled by what everybody said and did the fire the police everybody and so we just wanted to come in person my brother's in California so he could be that's so ni basically we wanted to come in person and say thank you from the bottom of our hearts because your letter it made us cry thank you so much touching I mean I read it at the church because I'm not a good writer myself so I thought I could start off with your beautiful letter and then I just added in a little at the end but we were really touched and we just wanted to come it's so nice of you to come we really appreciate that and we're so sorry for your loss you yes thank you thank [Music] you anyone [Music] else hi everyone 241 F2 since we're on thank yous I wanted to take the time tonight to thank our Police Department um we had a a problem at our shop the other night and I I I think I hung up the phone and I saw three police cars at my shop and you know the response was unbelievable and the Comfort level that you guys you guys have uh for the citizens is unbelievable because it was it could have gotten ugly and they were right there mayor and C awesome they they did a heck of a job great job so please everyone who's listening support these guys uh we really need them and and thanks Paul for you and you guys that's all thank you thank you anyone [Music] else okay seeing no one I'd like a motion to close the floor for public discussion motion second motion made by councilwoman scarice seconded by councilwoman gardano pno all in favor I okay does anyone have any Workshop items they'd like to discuss at this time um Mark should I mention it now no uh I go we got the closed session right yes this just works yeah I'm going to add I'll add it to the closed session okay uh so when it's appropriate I'd like give a list of items that be discussing for S I did okay okay so you will um so so I'd like to have attorney client communication regarding zoning okay to I'd like to have uh attorney client communication regarding uh contract issues uh relative to the Little League lease okay and uh the PBA contract okay okay anyone uh discussions for Workshop okay I'd like a motion to approve um Daniel Rodriguez's uh eal scrap project motion second second motion made by councilwoman G seconded by councilwoman G pno all in favor hi hi and what a very well spoken presentation you gave yes yes thank you yes okay at this time there's a need to enter into an executive session oh mayor can I make a statement the public before we let everybody go yes thank you to the PBA for what a wild event on Saturday night where poice jumped off the top of yes that was crazy had the BFW on the three people what a great event I'm glad I hope his mother wasn't watching I was that's what I was thinking his mother is going to have a heart attack she reminded I I know I saw him jump off I'm like oh my gosh the event was amazing as a growner man I loved it my kids went nuts and a lot of other kids in town yeah they had such a good time have yeah there's some uh amazing athletic ability in all of those gentlemen that were there that night I might I add um this Sunday Super Bowl Sunday hope everybody enjoys and responsibly and then before our next meeting I just want to give a Happy Valentine's Day to everyone there thank you Joe you're welcome thanks Joe oh you said wait for your every day I thought of you all of grand hog day did you wish everyone Groundhog Day no yeah we talked about Groundhog's Day already okay just want to point one more thing um in regards to S storms sanitation will never ever be canceled unless they cannot physically Drive other words I get a blizzard I just want let res know cuz Recycling and sanitation are not the same sanitation goes out whether there's snow or not they're better than the okay yes they are they are excellent our sanitation department is the best yeah okay I just want to stress that okay thank you confusion talking about the potential of delaying okay and we're not letting any everyone go but we are going to enter into executive session and uh no formal action will be taken uh when we come out of executive session so if you don't have to hang out if you don't want to hang out but you're certainly welcome to if you want to okay so everyone's good okay yeah but this time uh I'd like to a motion to go into executive session uh matters affecting impending anticipated litigation to which the public body may be party matters within the attorney client privilege motion motion made by councilman F seconded by Council M Greece oh [Music] oh [Music] [Music]