See the first one is the one >> like to call the meeting to order please. Johanna, will you read the statement of compliance? >> The notice requirement of the open public meeting act for this meeting have been satisfied. A copy of the annual meeting notice was sent to the press of
Atlantic City Star Ledger posted on the Bolton board in the municipal building, the municipal website and filed in the office of the municipal clerk. Please turn off all cell phones. Please stand for the pledge of allegiance. >> Attention. Salute. I pledge algiance to
the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Johanna, please take the role. >> Mayor Collins,
>> here. >> Commissioner Blumb, >> I am here. >> Commissioner Horn, >> here. >> Welcome everybody. We will begin with our engineering report. JJ, >> afternoon, mayor, commissioners. Um, not a whole lot of changes here. We're still
waiting for um Peland's uh >> pressure. There you go. >> All right. >> There you go. >> Okay. Um, dredging permitting. We're still waiting for the um tidelands to
isu issue the um license for dredging. U we're going to work on a process to um if the private homeowners uh want to dredge under a city permit um have some process that that they need to come to the city to at least um make sure that
they are aware of all the conditions of the permit and and that kind of stuff that going forward. Um the rest Salt Marsh uh on Shelder Island um Stockton's going to can't start until
uh middle of sometime in the spring on that um permit application to do some work in testing the D has requested um on the pump station. We're uh working on that pump station at the um Amherst
Avenue, the storm water one. first have to then now go in and get um D approvals for it before we can actually bid it and everything. Um public works building. I actually met with the electric company this morning about um relocating one of
the poles and removing some of the guy wires out there. Um I know there are some uh changes that are um requested. They're going to have to be completed before we uh go out to bid. The parking lot in Ventner Avenue was readvertised
and we have a bid opening on the February 12th at 11:00 a.m. in the municipal building. Um on the required storm water ordinance and mapping issues D has, we've um sent that information into them. We haven't
heard anything. Um, same with the uh watershed improvement plan. That's at the D. Um, we're working on the uh lead service line outreach. There's um obviously I just found out the letter that's going to go with the water and sewer billings been approved. So, that
should help get um the res, you know, people to give access give the access agreements and self-report. We found it's been working really good in in Longport when it went with with their billing. It seems like if you send it out
separately, people don't think it's real. So, um, we're working on the, uh, plans and specs for the deck renovations at the Bloom Pavilion, though, we still haven't heard anything from ACIA whether or not they're going to provide any funding on that. So, I'm not sure what's
what's going on there. um for the second um lead service line replacement project. We're working on the plans and specifications and hopefully we will have that up to D by the end of this month so we can get it um approved and
um get it going for construction to probably start in the fall. Um really there's the rest of uh the projects that are in construction, the road program, um
they're still working on that. Um pretty much everybody who's out there has been delayed by the weather. Um but that job's working. The streetscape out front, that job's um still working. Um the 2024 road program, they're in that's
that's working. the service line replacements. They're still working on that. Um we're waiting on the bike lane painting on Atlantic Avenue till the um construction gets done this spring. Um they're planning on that project um to
begin next week. Um they got delayed by the weather. Um and that's the piece from uh Huntington to Mansfield. um on well 10's redevelopment. Uh they're going to do their um
the test the test tomorrow morning on the flow test and then we'll see um they'll be in next week to do the video of the well and the 2025 road program. We held the uh pre-construction meeting this morning. Um and they're kind of the
way it was set up because of um we didn't know when the funding would be available to do that work. They're looking at how what they're going to be able to do this spring to be able to button up everything before Memorial Day and then finish the project starting in
the fall. So that's it. >> Great. Thank you. >> I have. >> All right. We'll now move to our department head reports. Chief Adams, would you like to begin, please? >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh, first off, I just want to start off with, uh, two compliments to our public works
department. One, with the snow removal, considering the conditions with the snow and then the rain and the snow again, uh, you guys did a great job. You you really did the best you could with the conditions. And, uh, as far as our streets compared to others, I felt that they were in much better shape. So,
thank you for that. And also I I you know I know I sent a text out this afternoon but uh we had asked you guys or tasked you with trying to clean up the hallway on the second floor in this building. Um when it was done originally by the contractor it was a little bit you know problematic since then and they
did an outstanding job with fixing prepping and painting the walls upstairs. It really looks great and I want to thank you for that. Um the fire department is in the process of doing ice rescue training. Uh we started on Tuesday and we're going through tomorrow. We've been doing it
with the Atlantic City Fire Department in the Thorough Avenue Lagoon and it's been very beneficial for both agencies as it gives us an opportunity to train in an environment that we normally don't see that often. We did have it last year but prior to that it was at least eight
years prior that we had the freeze that we had enough that the bay froze over the way it did. But um we both you know both departments were learning valuable lessons from each other on ways that we can improve and do things better and it it was really great training and I I
actually had the opportunity to get involved today and get in the water myself. So it was really good to see that and really good to be a part of it. Um lastly just the cold water cold water cold weather will persist Saturday into Sunday this weekend. We're going to have
extreme cold temperatures, even colder than what we've already seen, um, with high winds gusting to over 50 mph. There will be a light snowfall Friday night into Saturday. I don't think we're going to see anything accumulating. I think it's an inch or less, but just
there will be some snowfall. And because of the cold extreme and and the wind, we've been dealing with a numerous amount of water mane breaks. As far as water made brakes in houses, um I know we spoke about it every meeting for the last three months. If you didn't shut
your water off, you got to make sure it's done because it continues and we've had a lot of problems with these breaks. And you know, luckily some of them are in the crawl space, but some are not and they're really causing extensive damage to people's homes. So, please make sure
you pay attention. I myself, we had recently our our water to our washer uh froze and it's on an inside wall, but it's connected to the garage. Thankfully, we caught it in time, you know, we're able to thaw it out. But pay attention to
that. We hadn't run the washer in 4 days and it was enough that without running the water that those lines froze. They didn't freeze to the point that they broke, but they did freeze. So pay attention to that, you know, and just make sure, you know, if you have to leave a little water dripping. Um, but
that's all I have. Thank you, Mayor. >> Great. Thank you, Chief Henson. >> Thank you, Mayor Commissioner. I will uh be brief just to dovetail off what Chief Adams said and especially with public works. I think you can see the state of our roads are much better than a lot of
other areas in the county. I think that's a credit to public works and the job they they did. I heard them out all night all Sunday, last Sunday. So, it was really good to see, but at the same time, we can see how slippery the roadways have become. You know, there are places where it's a little harder to
pass because there is snow buildup. So, I I say it to everybody, take your time. Um, you really can't see all the ice. We've had a few more motor vehicle accidents just recently because it does get slippery out there. So, I said I always say take your time. It's going to take a little bit longer to get wherever
you have to go. Parking is going to be a little bit more difficult at times because there's only so many places we can put frozen snow. And as we all know, there's frozen snow all over the place. Like I said, with another storm coming, just everybody to be aware and like I said, just be be careful when you're out
there at night. Like I said, just uh be safe while you're driving in this inclement weather. That's all I have. Thank you, Palmer. >> Good evening, mayor and commissioners. Uh the building department continues normal operations with steady permit
activity. With the upcoming high winds, we do ask contractors to secure your job sites. I typically send them an email reminding them of that. Um, we are contain continuing to bring the building
department's web page up to date with updating our forms for 2026 and to try to make the permit process as clear and userfriendly as possible. But we do encourage anyone planning a project to just contact our office if
they have any questions. I also attended today's meeting of the New Jersey Coastal Coalition. Margates's participation helps support our CRS rating. So, that's a monthly meeting that we attend. That's all I have. >> Great. Thank you, Pat.
>> Thanks, Commissioners. Uh, with this record weather and all that, we had um 49 shut offs. That would be houses, especially with the help with the fire department helping us out with that. been 11 calls for frozen pipes in the houses and uh seven water main
emergencies which is we had to call in for emergency markouts to uh repair. So it's a lot also with the uh with the snow and the ice. I know you get a lot of we got a lot of complaints and stuff but what happens is we with the salt is very ineffective when it's cold. So if
you're below 20° forget about salt. I mean, we went through like 75 tons, but it's just not going to do anything until you warms up the temperatures. So, all in all, I think we did a great job. And uh hopefully we don't have to see that again for a while. But also, um our
public works secretary came up with an idea with trying to get phone numbers, addresses, and uh Margate address and a phone number and a person to contact with um to get a hold of these people that with these broken houses and the water pipes. A lot of these houses we
come across are in like a trust, some kind of trust, and there's no phone numbers, and you can't really Google search who owns the trust, and it's really hard. So, she worked with Mike, the IT guy, that came up with an email to uh contact me at margate-j.com. And if you just put your address in
here, your Margate address, phone number, and a person to contact, that way we can get a hold of you when we do have an emergency. So, I think it's pretty pretty good idea. I'll pass this along to Shannon and uh Chasse where I get on the website and face uh social media. And that's all I got.
>> Great. Thank you, Pat. Scott, I'll be brief. Mayor, commissioners, uh I see we have the resolution designating the month of August as Veterans Recognition Month. Now, I do recall that Mr. Dixs wanted to perhaps be here. I don't know if he knew that this was on
tonight or not. Should we still approve it tonight or wait till he's here or he asked to be here. I remember him asking if you recall that. >> Or we could approve it and then have him come again. >> And you have his contact information, correct? >> Yeah, I do.
>> So, why don't we pull it and and contact him? And >> or you want to approve it tonight and then but have him come again or >> I think it'd be nice if he was here when we approved it. So, >> yeah. Yeah, I mean he put a tremendous amount of effort in this and he he's going up and down all over New Jersey,
but he lives over in Ocean City and yeah, maybe maybe pulling it would be the best move and I'll contact him and uh see if we can get him over here for the next meeting. >> Okay, sounds that might be the right thing to do. >> I agree. >> Other than that, I just want to
compliment the police and fire. My wife took a bunch of pictures of you guys training in the water. That's so important that you have that skill developed because every once in a while somebody there's a reason you have to go in that ice cold water. Danny, I hell I would have paid to see you go in there.
I would I would like to see that. And uh I do think our public works guys did a tremendous job dealing with that ice and snow. So that's all I have. Great. Thank you, Scott. Pat, >> just want to start off by saying kudos
to all of our departments. Um, the fire department, police department, public works with the the mess that's that's been given to us regarding the snow and all that stuff. Um, additionally, like our construction folks and zoning with their inspections, having to deal with
delays, u closings and so forth and so on. Um and everybody just seems to come together and make sure that you know uh when we do meet with bad weather that the city steps up and contacts people to make sure that the sites secure and that
we're prepared. So kudos to to all the departments um that we have. Um on my report basically I I had negotiations with the PBA uh the FMBA and the MCEA. Um I've reviewed uh some
of the cyber related security with our our uh cyber guy, our in-house computer guy along with our um company that that handles that. Um spoke to them about some of the security issues related to our cyber security. Um, again, reviewed
the snow related briefings, made decisions related to, uh, closing delays, uh, those types of things. Met with our GIF representatives regarding pending litigation. I spoke with, uh, our auditor related to the water bills, um, and the financial related issues to
that. Um, we did conduct two rounds of interviews, the open position of finance. Um we've moving closer to uh making a recommendation um for that position. Um consulted with the comproller with regard to budget, some
financial related issues. Um met with the officials from the school regarding the bond ordinance that's on tonight. Um also spoke with Joel and Leon um as far as how that's going to all play out at the end. Um was deposed for the pending
construction litigation and we're moving forward with our website. um rebuilding the website or updating at least um the committee that's running that they're actually uh going to be uh getting together tomorrow with another
presentation. So um all that stuff's moving forward and at at this point that's my report. >> Thank you Johanna. >> We are still looking for the um businesses in Margate to get their
merkantal licenses. There are a few that have not gotten it to this point. Dog licenses are on sale for the 2026 year. All you need is proof of rabies. That's all I have. >> Thank you. All right. We will now open
up public comment. If anyone has any comment on any of the items discussed during workshop, please step forward. Uh Steve just want mentioned about the uh coastal coalition meeting yesterday. Uh I want to say that Margate is really well represented. Uh
PAR was there and I sat next to Chuck was over there. One thing that they talk about at the uh at the coastal coalition meeting is the uh is the app. I don't know what it's called, but it seems like
it's a really really good app about it's an an alert map. So, it tells you in real time where the flooding is if there's flooding. I was wondering I hope we're moving on it because I know that there's a time limit on it. Uh a lot of
things going on. We rep the coalition is funded by FEMA and that may go away, but uh there is time for us to get in and I think that that's going to close on us. I was just curious if we have intentions
of getting on to that. >> Yeah, Palma had sent an email to the commission and um hopefully we'll have something done shortly on that. >> Okay. Um I I I see it as a very very positive step. Uh even I have a question
on that. Like on the 4th of July on fireworks, people leave this city. Jerome Avenue will sometimes backed all the way up to the ballpark, you know, and it it can take you about 45 minutes to get from the ballpark through the
toll bridge. And I was wondering if that would be a if that would tell us that, you know, because I think this camera is going to be on the Jewish community center, so we'll be monitoring the bridge and the traffic. >> I know that. So Dan Adams, Chuck Lear,
and myself had a meeting uh on Zoom with the coalition. Joe Maruchi was explaining the web app to us, and we did have some visuals of it. He said that it's not only just for like flood related updates, but the city could use
it to show, you know, city events, road closures, all sorts of things. And there is no cost to the city if we get in before they um stop taking cities because they only have a certain amount of funding from FEMA to for the app.
>> Yeah. because because I I did field a lot of phone calls from people who were out of town at our last storm and just to know what streets are flooded I think is a very positive asset to our that's
>> great thank you Steve >> any other comment on workshop is there a motion to close public comment >> motion Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes.
>> Is there a motion to adjurnn? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes. like to call the meeting to order, please. Johanna, would you read the statement of compliance?
>> The notice requirements of the open public meeting act for this meeting have been satisfied. A copy of the annual meeting notice was sent to the Atlantic City Press, the Courier Post, posted on the Bolton board in the municipal building, the municipal
website, and filed in the office of the municipal clerk. Please turn off all electronic devices. >> Please stand for the pledge of allegiance. >> Attention salute. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America
and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Johanna, will you take the role, please? >> Mayor Collins >> here. >> Commissioner Blumb, >> I am here. >> Commissioner Horn,
>> here. >> Is there a motion for the approval of the January 22nd, 2026 regular and workshop meeting minutes? Motion >> second. >> I'm sorry. >> Motion. >> Motion and second for >> Mayor Collins.
>> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes. >> All right. We will now open up public comment on resolutions. If anyone has any comment on the resolutions on today's agenda, please step forward. Is there a motion to close public
comment on resolutions? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins? >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg? >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn? >> Yes. >> Johanna, will you proceed, please? May I have a motion for the introduction of ordinance number two of 2026, an
ordinance amending chapter 67, alcohol beverages of the code of the city of Margate City, County of Atlantic, and state of New Jersey. >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg, >> yes. >> Commissioner Horn,
>> yes. May I have a motion for ordinance number three of 2026 bond ordinance appropriating $4,200,000 and authorizing the issuance of $4,200,000 in school bonds and notes of the city of
Margate for various school improvements or purposes authorized to be undertaken by the city of Margate, New Jersey. >> Motion >> second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn, >> yes.
>> May I have a motion for resolution number 37, 2025, authorizing bill payment and claims? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumberg. >> Yes. That would be 2026. >> Bill payment claims is 2026.
>> No, no, no. You 37-2026. >> Okay. 2026. Thank you. >> We can relive all the fun we had. >> Okay, I'm ready. >> Mayor Collins, >> yes. >> Commissioner Blumberg, >> yes. >> Commissioner Horn,
>> yes. May I have a motion for resolution number 38-2026, a resolution amending the 2020 2026 annual water billing cycle to include September 1st, 2026 through
December 31st, 2026. >> Motion >> second. >> Mayor Collins, >> yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg, >> yes. >> Commissioner Horn, >> yes. Resolution number 45-2026 has been tabled to the next meeting for
the consent agenda. May I have a motion for resolution number 39-2026 through resolution number 44-2026 resolution number 36-2026 through resolution number 49-2026. So just that's 46-2026
through 49-2026. >> 49-2026. >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes. >> All right. We will now open up public comment. If anyone has any comment,
please step forward. State your name and address. Stephen Alman 9003 Amber Staff. Um I know that if people have questions when they're on Zoom, they have to
submit them to uh Johanna by 3:00. However, if somebody is on Zoom and they have a question about uh department head and or comments that they hear in this
room now, for example, uh there ought to be a way for them to be able to uh either do a a chat, which is a a Zoom feature, or some other thing. And if not, why not?
>> Yes, Steve, I agree. And, uh, talked to Pat today about trying to fix this so, uh, our people watching on Zoom can comment in a more efficient way. And, uh, you know, asked Pat to come up with a way to do it
because there was a issue with the Open Public Meetings Act that we had to to resolve. >> Originally, we had the chat, uh, available for people to ask questions for the meeting. However, we weren't able to put them up uh on the screen to make them public, and that was a
problem. So, we have to reconfigure or refigure out how we're going to do that. Um and uh there's some maybe some additional costs or additional procedures that we have to do to make sure that we comply with the Open Public Meetings Act. >> Thank you. Yep.
>> Thank you, Steve. Is there a motion to close public comment? Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes. >> Is there a motion to adjurnn? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mayor Collins. >> Yes.
>> Commissioner Blumbberg. >> Yes. >> Commissioner Horn. >> Yes. >> Thank you everybody.