##VIDEO ID:-GTjlbXW9ko## uh no wife she's found her spot e e e to e e e e e e e e the e e e no worries the sh good evening I'd like to call the January 21st 2025 burough council meeting to order will a clerk please read the open public meeting statement adequate notice that this meeting has been provided as required under chapter 231 public one 1975 specifying the time date and location by posting a copy of the notice on the municipal building Municipal website providing a copy of the annual notice scheduled to the official newspapers of the buau is on file in the clerk's office will the clerk please call the role council president Zam Brana here councilman Collins herec moo here councilwoman P here councilman panski here councilman Potter here mayor Murray pres B Attorney Peter Veno pres Bor engineer Mike mlen pres Bor administrator Frederick Carr here Bor clerk Monica Orlando here well everyone please stand for a moment of silence which will be followed by the salute of the flag to the flag of the United States of America to the stand indivisible next we have a presentation from the revitalization committee good evening mayor Murray miltown burough council members of the audience here and at home my name is bunny jascot and I'm a middlex county Master Gardener a miltown library trustee chair of buildings and grounds but I'm here in my capacity as a member of the revitalization committee and specifically its subcommittee the Main Street Planters as you may know revitalization is tasked with the beautification of miltown while I personally tend the Gardens at the library the municipal building and all the Planters along North and South Main Street are designed ordered planted and tended throughout the year by Main Street planter subcomittee members consisting of myself Susan Wen and Phil zambrana along with a group of loyal dedicated volunteers who have been donating their time and energy to to watering the Planters along Main Street and keeping them healthy and vibrant some volunteers have been doing this since 2021 and some just got involved last year before I shortly call these volunteers out by name a brief update on the Main Street Planters our program started in 2021 with the cleaning and filling of all the empty Planters along North and South Main street with plants that were donated by Home Depot and Lowe's it was a start but it had a hjge Podge look so in 2022 we aimed to build relationships develop a volunteer base and establish a credible presence planting our Planters with uniformity and that was using the artistic design of Thriller plants filler plants and Spiller plants and that was to enhance the look of Main Street up and down North and South the revitalization committee members and the events they facilitate namely miltown day help Source some of the funds to step up our look so to speak decisions made internally have allowed us to obtain special planters that contain water reservoirs these these new Planters are called Earth Planters and they can currently be seen as the hanging baskets on the bridge the Planters in front of miltown Pharmacy and on the corner of Ford Avenue and the two large Planters at the clock at the intersection of Washington and Maine the reservoirs helped to keep our Planters self watered though nothing really ever eliminates the need to water by hand so our goal continues to incrementally increase the overall number of Planters with reservoirs until the older Planters life cycles are ended now in 2023 miltown Auto liked the looks of our Planters so much that they purchased three Earth Planters of their own and they provided me with funds to help make the Planters match the looks of the planters that we had the burrow planters to date businesses have expressed approval of our plantings and local citizens who stopped to comment seem very pleased with how the Planters improve the Ambiance along the cement sidewalks and asphalt roadways our expectation is that the additional B uh businesses May purchase and fund Earth Planters of their own which will then add to the number of Planters along Main Street we currently purchase plants flowers through local vendors at the best prices possible including purchases of flowers through the middle sex County Master Gardeners this year I'll be assisting in overseeing the care of some of these flowering plants which will help keep our expenses down in 2024 we expanded the season for our Planters using scarecrows to extend the use of Aging plants into the fall and then this year we had our first winter display at the clock and at the Planters at miltown Auto in 2025 you're going to find a new self-watering planter positioned at the head of kout Avenue it will be the compliment on South Main Street to the same Planters positioned on North Main Street at miltown Auto welcoming people coming into and out of our town from either end of Main Street so I would like to publicly thank the Main Street planter team consisting again of Susan wolen councilman Phil zambrana the mayor and burrow councel Fred Carr and the finance department Ralph jasinowski and his team at the DPW the revital ization committee all for furthering the goals of the Main Street Planters and to acknowledge the following volunteer waterers in alphabetical order for their selfless dedication to the beautification of mtown there's Gina ball at the planter positioned by Maria's Pizza there's Michelle boio Bon at the planter positioned at A&M vacuum Melissa Elm at the planter positioned at zuzanna's Aesthetics Marty finra at the planter positioned at uh American Chiropractic and at the bench at the rescue squad fence Amy and Bernice howt at the planter position by the United Methodist Church Lacy Earl at the planter position by rescued by La Rich Manelli and John maleno at the three Planters positioned at miltown Aro Danielle Marin and family at the planter position by puan jiujitsu Mariana Mano and family at the planter position by makor and Cat Karma Moren Milano at the planter position by between Milano Jewelers and bell and Stockton Dawn mbour at the planter positioned at M Kito Shield Nancy reachi at the miltown Historical Society bathtub planter Gail tilsner who is also a middlex county Master Gardener residing in East Brunswick who tends the planter at vanderbel and North Maine Sandra wolen at the planter at Famas which unfortunately ended its life cycle this summer when it was hit by a vehicle Susan wolen at the planter at miltown Pharmacy and the corner of Ford Avenue and North Main Street thank you again for all your support past present and future both the Main Street Planters and the revitalization in our beautification endeavors in miltown if anyone listening is interested in being involved as a volunteer with the Main Street Planters in 202 five look for our upcoming announcement on the municipal bulletin board or at the library and then contact Susan wolen who will Who coordinates our volunteers and On a related note the miltown free seed Library will be opening on February 22nd we received 81 varieties of seeds this year donated from the Burpee Seed Company and Baker cre Creek rare seeds company and we're in a position to provide some beautiful pollinator plant seeds like zenas and sunflowers in addition to a classical culinary herb collection a classic vegetable garden collection and a classic salad seed collection there can't be enough flowers and vegetables to Green up our burrow your choices will be available online and on site at the library soon mark your calendar for the formal opening of the seed Library February Saturday February 22nd with a presentation at the library I hope you can join me thank you again for this opportunity to address the council any questions yes bunny I think you're great I've never met you before I'm very impressed I've heard a lot actually I've heard only good things about you thank you for coming well thank you you could see me at any of the Planters this coming year thanks for doing the Planters buddy I'm I'm tied up with the Rangers I do the hanging baskets in the Rangers the red ones on the white Gazo and the ones in the front I us share it with another uh thank you the work of all members especially the hard work of our waterers without watering plants don't really do very well okay I have two two quick questions money um how do the businesses in miltown if they want to um find out more about the Planters who should they reach out to I think reaching out to Phil from the revitalization committee okay and anytime they see me around okay just go not a problem because I'm sure they're going to ask uh my second question is did we uh recuperate the cost of the planter from the one that got hit on uh Main Street by family um probably I probably not hit and run I don't think hit and run I think we found a hubc a hubc yeah okay yes fight would have been more usable but the Hub Cap okay all right thank you so very much now is it time for public comment limited to the resolutions on the agenda only if you wish to speak please step up to the microphone state your name and address for the record again this is the public portion is limited to the comments only listed on the resolutions listed on the agenda at this time there will be a 5 minute time limit as set forth by the rules of council if someone raises their hand please come up to the microphone and state your name and address for the record seeing none I will close a public comment portion of the meeting um we have the meeting minutes for December 23rd 2024 regular meeting on agenda for approval are there any comments or Corrections no may I have a motion to accept the minutes as typed so moved second second I have a motion made by councilman Potter seconded by councilman Collins uh all in favor I any opposed okay I abstain May okay uh the meeting minutes for January uh 6 2025 reorganization meeting are on the agenda for approval are there any comments or Corrections um I noticed two uh typo uh for the day after Thanksgiving Friday November um it says November 289 it was fixed it was already fixed in the resolution that was certified oh okay thank you I'll make sure it's fixed in the minutes um may I have a motion to accept a minutes is typed so moved second um all in favor I any opposed and um any abstain no okay the meeting minutes for January 15 2025 special meeting are on the agenda for approval are there any comments or corrections I had one quick question uh councilman Collins were you there for that special meeting I uh January 6th yeah uh no 15th 15th when was that everybody was here last Wednesday the copy I had it didn't have them I I don't know if we could just follow up on that please okay um yeah I was there that was 5 o' yes yes there um I have a motion to accept am minutes as typed so mov second I have a motion made by councilwoman Payne second by council president Zam Brana all a motion all in favor any opposed okay thank you ordinance introduction first reading this introduction of the ordinance 25-15 55 there will be no public input on this ordinance tonight this is Introduction summary will be published as required by law in a second reading public hearing final adoption will be considered on February 10th 2025 full copies of the ordinance will be posted on the B website on the bulletin board at the municipal build building and available at no cost in the office of the municipal clerk between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday will the clerk please read ordinance 25-1 1555 by title ordinance to exceed the municipal budget appropriation limits and to establish a cap Bank njsa 48 colon 44514 I have a motion in a second please make a motion o sorry do I have to do I have to the number that's where it's going no got okay okay I have a motion made by councilman panski seconded by councilman Collins uh will the clerk please call the rooll council president Zen Brana I councilman Collins councilman moo I councilwoman Payne I councilman pnan I councilman Potter I authorizing payments of Municipal obligations next on the agenda we have authorizing payments of Municipal obligations will the clerk please read resolution 20 25-80 by title authorizing the payment of bills claims and statements against the bur of miltown the total amount of 23557 12 you have heard the reading in this resolution are there any questions NOP may I have a motion in a second please so moved second I have a motion made by councilman uh Potter seconded by councilwoman Payne uh will the clerk please call the rooll council president Zam Brana I councilman Collins councilman moo councilwoman pay I councilman posnanski I councilman Potter I a consent resolution has been prepared for the resolutions listed on the agenda all matters listed under the consent agenda are considered to be routine in nature and haven't been reviewed by bur Council will be enacted on in one motion any item may be removed from the consent agenda at the request of any council member and if so removed will be treated as a separate matter any items requiring expenditures are supported by certificate certification of funds if any member of council wants any resolution acted upon individually please give me the resolution number and it will be pulled from the consent resolution yes Mr Mayor I'd like to pull 2025 d89 Mr Mayor I was going to do the same one you to it you did sorry okay will the clerk please read the resol that's the only call whereas pursuant to the rules of council the council May establish a consent agenda for any regular or special meetings upon certain conditions and whereas each of the following resolutions to be presented before the burrow council at its January 21st 2025 meeting appear to have the unanimous approval of all members of the burrow Council 20258285 2590 through 2025 91 now therefore be resolved by the bur Council of the B mtown that each should the above listed resolutions be approved and adopted by the bur council with the same legal effect as though each were read its entirety at the January 21st 2025 meeting and adopted by separate vote you have heard the reading reading of the consent resolution what's your pleasure Mr Mayor I make a motion that these resolutions be adopted second I have a motion made by councilman Potter second by council president Zam Brana um will clerk please call the rooll council president Zam Brana hi councilman C councilman Mano hi councilwoman pay I councilman panski councilman Potter I will the clerk please read resolution a move the resolution be adopted second thank you um motion made by councilman Collins seconded by councilman zamb Brana um any discussion yes yes Mr Mayor I'd like to thank uh councilman Potter for shairing this uh 4th of July committee it's the 100th anniversary and all the members of the Fourth of July committee for their uh participation and uh volunteering for this this is a big event in miltown it's our like you said our 100th year anniversary and uh Rainer shine it's going on uh councilman Potter you want to talk about this no we've been we're going to be talking about it for the next months so this is just a start so whatever I can't talk about it should approved so but thank you C how many years is it councilman Collins 100y year anniversary 100 years nice big event you're here then John I wish I wish I should be so lucky to live to 100 that's all I have Mr Mayor I just have to abstain thank you will the clerk please call the role council president Z Brana here Council I councilman Collins I councilman moo I councilwoman pay I councilman panski councilman Potter abstain reports from elected official council president Z BR thank you Mr Mayor um the only uh I very short report uh today um just to remind folks that uh the HRC committee will be having its first meeting on Tuesday February 4th uh via Zoom at 7 p.m. uh as always uh I encourage folks to go to the website click on the calendar and you can click on the zoom link that will let you into the meeting uh Tuesday uh February 11th uh 7:30 p.m. will be revitalization ation committee uh Fort Avenue uh first meeting of the year will be uh Thursday February 6th uh 20125 at 7 o' in burrow council chambers um we are going to have a miltown meter project meeting tomorrow Fred is that correct 10:00 that's right uh it'll be via teams to continue the conversation about uh the smart meters uh and how they're going to be rolled out um with the project uh and then finally uh January 29th which believes a Wednesday um is our initial budget meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the uh burough Council conference room finance committee our CF uh RPA and our CFO and that concludes my reports thank you councilman Collins uh our first meeting it doesn't take place till tomorrow night Mr Mayor and uh I have no report thank you counc makeer uh there uh regarding the water utility there were water meain braks on roders Lane and Fisher Place uh monitoring of the pump stations occurs on regular schedule a failed clamp on the water main was repaired on JFK drive a fire hydrant was replaced on Mo Drive uh the water department wants to thank the electric department for their help during the repair uh and please make sure everybody's signed up for the new burrow notification system to know when there may be any interruptions uh to the water due to brakes or repairs you can sign up by texting miltown to three 38 276 there is also a mobile app available on Google Play and download in the App Store uh DPW is working very hard and the water utility uh in the cold to combat the uh the onslaught of what winter brings and uh everything gets harder for them so I know uh some those people brought out coffee and donuts for them I think one of the councilmen might have done that too good guy uh but you know anytime to town sees any of this happening if they can at least try and give them good space in the road work would always be good thank you councilwoman pay thank you Mr Mayor I have three three reports tonight um as chair of the Public Safety Committee um one from the police one from fire and one from Rescue Squad I had my first meeting today with Chief Johnson um I met uh his team I took a tour of the department um and um he showed me a lot of documents and shared a lot of information and I was very appreciative between December 1st 2024 and December 31st 2024 police responded to 1,40 calls for service during this period the police conducted 64 radar details in numerous locations police made 295 motor vehicle stops during this period the police investigated 15 motor motor vehicle accidents 15 arrest s were made uh there were two arrests for DWI eight arrests for shoplifting two arrests for aggravate aggravated assault two warrant arrests and one arrest for possession of controlled dangerous substances um it's important that we talk a little bit tonight about residential security um the miltown police department can assist you uh in by providing you with a home security risk assessment if requested one of our Community Affairs officers will come to your home discuss vulnerabilities and help you come up with options to improve your home security to request a a risk assessment contact Lieutenant Carmen D Lorenzo um at the miltown PD um at his miltown PD email address uh or you can visit the miltown police department um web page um for um more practical steps to take um I'll let uh DPW uh talk a little bit about the snowstorm uh and um the police uh of course works with the public works and the utility teams uh during any snow event um one of the things that is uh critically important is to remember to sign up for our Civic ready emergency alert system as of November 19th 2024 the police department stopped using nixel and switch to Civic ready for mass communications relating to emergency news and important information um how to sign up uh you can receive emergency messages only it if you text the word miltown to 3827 and to receive messages from burrow offices you can download the app um for an app Apple or an Android Android phone you can sign up through the burrow website under the heading how do I and click on alerts and notifications you can choose to receive messages from Public Works the bur Clerk's Office the senior center Recreation Etc don't wait please sign up today why this is crucially important today is that there were recently two break-ins um to into people's homes where residents woke up to find um people in their homes um uh after talking with the chief today it seems pretty clear that they are targeting um homeowners that own luxury cars uh they break in through uh Windows usually um with the homeowners waking up uh to hearing them in the home uh they are looking for keys uh and so this happened once uh already on January 16th and another um incident happened yesterday so the police department is encouraging all residents to begin to really think very carefully about taking preventative measures uh installing bright exterior lighting security cameras and alarm systems and the chief is also encouraging everyone not to leave valuables in your car that would include garage door openers because that's how they're getting into the homes in some instances uh in any situation um as as you know um the non-emergency line is 732 828 11100 and of course the emergency number is 911 on the incident that happened last night um the homeowner called it was 3:30 in the morning the police arrived on scene and there was a foot jaase um so they almost had him so this is um this is a concern and this is something that it's really important for residents to have a a real awareness uh about this situation um the police are working tirelessly on the situation they're on it um to make sure that we all remain safe um the miltown fire department um so uh I've spoken um fairly regularly with the chief uh Anthony F uh who is a new Chief so I welcome him and I'll welcome the other new officers after this report um the total number of incidents for the month of December uh were 31 and year to date 334 uh the the hours the man hours U were 511 uh month uh monthly and then the year to date 4,566 um so the so the fire department is very busy um there was uh so first let me welcome um the elections were held um most of us on the council I think almost all of us I think were there um at the uh ceremony uh Anthony F is the new Chief Tony Coro benek is the deputy Chief and Tom damansky uh the assistant chief uh the fire department is always looking for members uh candidates that are interested in joining the miltown fire department are encouraged to stop by the firehouse on Monday nights at 6:30 or email join miltown fire gmail.com um yesterday uh there was a fire in town so I'm going to read um what was um published what was written with regard to what occurred um um yesterday uh and I'll ask the mayor and and the councilman Potter were actually on scene uh yesterday January 20th at approximately 12:54 the miltown fire department responded to a structure fire at 36 burnhard Road upon arrival Crews encountered heavy smoke and Flames billowing from the second floor Windows acting swiftly firefighters deployed attack lines and worked diligently to bring the fire under control their quick and efficient efforts successfully extinguish the blaze preventing it from spreading further and causing extensive damage to the entire house the miltown fire department extends its heartfelt gratitude to our mutual Aid partners for their invaluable assistance during the structure fire at 36 burnhard Avenue we sincerely thank the miltown police department miltown rescue squad the East Brunswick District 2 East Brunswick District 3 and the North Brunswick company 1 and the local utility services for the Swift and coordinated response your support was instrumental in ensuring the safety of everyone involved and in successfully mitigating the incident and they deeply appreciate that dedication and teamwork um Mr Mayor or councilman Potter would you like to add anything I was just going to say that the mayor and I are onon scen um Chief fam and his Department did an amazing job along with uh our police and rescue and mutual Aid um there were no serious injuries to our knowledge and more importantly everybody made it home safe so thank you Chief and everybody for um having a a a critical issue you know come to light thanks councilman Potter and my last part of my report is the miltown rescue squad uh for the month of December there were to a total calls were 92 uh and that and 69 of those in miltown 10 on the on the New Jersey Turnpike and 18 Mutual Aid uh 2024 the total call volume was 1,178 um the current officers um that elected for 20125 uh Captain Chris lover and assistant Captain Kyle raffy first lieutenant Kyle blackm second Lieutenant Will Kaplan president JJ blackm and vice president Emily Sullivan and again the squad is always looking to recruit new talent to join their ranks uh and you can email them and submit applications um the um Rescue Squad continues to do uh wonderful work uh for our town uh the Public Safety Committee has meetings scheduled on the on January 28th and January 30th with police fire and rescue squat so my next report I'll I'll let you know how all those meetings went and that concludes my report thank you councilman pany short I have lot to read in report and I'll try to try to finish in a timely manner miltown historic preservation committee via zoom on October 24th 2024 at 7:30 p.m. the agenda and minutes from that meeting will be addressed at the reorganization meeting on January 23rd 2025 at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom the ongoing project to move the historic train station was discussed the committee presented plans to follow up on a Green Acres Grant and establish a timeline that was sent to the appropriate authorities regarding grants the committee discuss potential funding sources and the need for specific tailor requests work on establishing a star Pres a commission is progressing this was presented in part as a fall presentation to buau council upcoming collaborations with the county and preservation New Jersey were confirmed to supplement the cancellation of events in late November and December registrations for the Saturday event were listed as 60 with the anticipation of an enthused public the new events are scheduled for Saturday February 10th at 10: a.m. and Saturday March 10th at 10: a.m. both at the miltown senior center topics will soon be confirmed by the guest speaker for from preservation New Jersey as mentioned in previous report middlex county has offered to collaborate with the buau on creating a GIS map of lot local historical sites through a shared service agreement the County's GIS division which supports County government functions has previously parted with municipalities for similar projects the committee sees immense value in the shared service Beyond historic preservation is and is encouraged to help facilitate its use for other utility and possible DPW needs the buau would need to initiate the agreement by contacting County Administration for further review the next me meeting is scheduled for January 23rd 2025 at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom topics include setting dates for in-person meetings tentatively once per quarter and ongoing preservation efforts throughout the burrow all meetings are open to the public with links to online meetings found on the burrow website for my uh Senior Center update we have several bus trips planned for the remainder of January which which include Wednesday January 22nd there is a bus trip to Leon in New Brunswick in North Brunswick the bus will leave at 11:45 a.m. Monday January 27th there is a bus trip to Mammoth kitchen and the bus will leave 11:30 a.m. as with all the trips you must sign up either in person or on the bulletin board or by calling Debbie at 732 296 0681 and they are also starting a body shaping class on Wednesdays beginning January 15th also they had the monthly meeting that that John Collins councilman Collins and I attended and um they asked us to speak I spoke about the uh the water rates um the taxes and upcoming electrical rates uh people had a lot of questions we did um quite a bit of uh question questions and answers and I I think we answered a lot of their questions um I'm also going to speak about the DPW here um I I I did just want to speak about um the night of the storm because I I rode around with Ralph for a couple hours but I'd like to also detail what they've done because they do more than just uh uh plowing the streets so um they've done uh street street sweeping has taken place and is ongoing to meet the D regulations quarterly catch Basin and outfall pipe cleaning has taken place to meet the D storm water regulations the trucks were made ready for the possibility of snow which it did this week by putting on plows and Sal spreaders please remember to move your cars off the road many people did not when two or more inches of snow is predicted this allows for the plows to do more a more thorough job pothole repair has started and will be on uh ongoing the DPW assisted with Hy repairs and two waterm brakes um as I said the night of the storm I I rode around with Ralph for two hour about two hours uh plowing and and checking the streets and um unfortunately what I saw um there were dozens of cars in the streets and they they they could have or should have been moved and especially on Main Street I saw over a dozen cars and I saw that the police had to go out and and and give tickets um but it also um it was also a situation where the the DPW were going to have to go out after the cars were moved and um I I would hope that people will will try to comply because it's they should be complying but many of them did not uh and that that concludes my report thank you councilman Potter thank you Mr Mayor from the miltown recreation department adult yoga men's basketball and women's volleyball are off to a fantastic start with exceptional registration numbers youth basketball kicks off on Saturday January 25th running through March 22nd fresh Theater Arts is now open for registration until January 30th the kids will be performing High School SCH musical Junior in late March new youth chess classes for ages 6 through 12 start on Monday February 10th at the senior center please register on community pass miltown night with the New Jersey Devils is on Monday March 24th get your tickets on community pass youth night at Spotswood High School is this Thursday January 23rd at 6:30 this is a great chance for local youth to have fun and connect Youth Soccer Clinic res registrations is open until February 28th the 4-we session will be held at Parkview school please sign up on community pass and we also had a very productive Rec advisory uh council meeting on January 16th thank you to all our advisory members for attending and we look forward to a great year ahead for the miltown planning board we held our reorganization meeting on January 8th congratulations to James Leon as being elected as chairman and Michael sakaran as Vice chairman the next planning board meeting is scheduled for February 5th and for the miltown 4th of July organization thank you to everyone who joined us for karaoke night at the VFW this past weekend your enthusiasm and support made it a night to remember Mark your Calenders the annual celebrity bartender event is happening on Saturday March 22nd at the American Legion tickets will be available soon for purchase so stay tuned and exciting news with the passing of resolution 2025 -89 the miltown 4th of July organization is thrilled to announce that our annual 4th of July event will be held on Friday July 4th this year marks councilman Collins how many years 100 100 Years thank you uh making an extra special celebration and we can't celebrate uh with all of you and Mr Mayor that concludes my report thank you uh I have a brief report Personnel committee uh met I tried to get uh councilman moo councilwoman pay up to speed a little bit uh so the following positions um we're seeking for uh following positions is business administrator clerk's office DPW workers and crossing guards if anyone is interested please see the burrow website under employment opportunities that's the end of my report um reports from burrow professionals Mr venola Sure uh thank you Mr Mayor uh just one item um at the end of last year uh councilman Potter as the chair of the Public Safety Committee along with uh Chief Johnson had requested that I take a look at the uh Towing rates and report back on whether or not an amendment to our ordinance is something that would be appropriate in light of what other municipalities are charging and the fact that they hadn't been uh really looked at in a number of years I've finished my analysis I'm going to be providing a report to the Public Safety Committee to uh councilwoman Payne and the other members for them to take a look at and I anticipate probably providing a draft ordinance for your consideration either at the first or second meeting in uh February that's all I have thank you Peter you got it thank you thank you Peter for professional Mr MCL two items Mr Mayor first one is that uh North Brook Drive contracts are being prepared by the contract we will schedule a preconstruction meeting as soon as weather permits uh the um also Albert Avenue Park is also a scheduling a preconstruction meeting we'll provide notice to Mayor and B Council of the meeting the clerk the administrator uh Public Works and your water and SE utilities and electric thank you B staff business administrator Fred Carr uh yes mayor uh the council I had requested the U Clos session tonight uh and I'd like to remove that from the agenda we don't have been unrevised to wait okay thank you uh Carl cler Monica Orlando thank you Mr Mayor uh just a few things dog license renewals are now being processed in the clerk's office if you have a dog that is spay or neuter it's a $10 renewal fee $15 if they are not starting February 1st there's a $5 per month late fee charged we take cash or check only and the rabies must be valid through October 31st of this year or I cannot renew the License Board of Health our first meeting will be January 28th at 6:30 p.m. here in council chambers and Mary my Deputy Deputy clerk did resign so at this time I'm the only one in the office uh so I appreciate everyone's patience as I work through this very busy month with food renewals license renewals um if I have a day off that means the office will be closed I am putting up a lock box on the wall outside of my office so if you have documents such as dog licenses or anything else that needs to be dropped off in my absence you will be able to drop that off I hope to get that up by the end of this week and that concludes my report thank you does any member of council have any old business to bring before Council I have two two items unless someone else wants to go first I do have one thing I'll be really quick two things take your time take your time um and it was just a uh mention I know it's early in the year and there's a lot of things that we all have to do and a lot of meetings uh but last year there was a a look that was taken at a resolution that about you know cleaning up destroyed sites and I believe uh Peter was doing some work on that and then a lot of other things got in their way and also a uh an ordinance about parking that was kind of reviewed with mayor uh myself and Rich I know Dave had looked at it uh when he was on safety um and maybe uh I think P you might still have that stuff if you could get that over maybe to Pat at some point just start the idea of I guess that falls into safety that ordinance was voted down I'm sorry that ordinance was voted down well at that time but I was just waning to know if we could take it it was voted down we were going to see about maybe amending it but it could be useful this year something maybe we could look at if it still exists I can certainly pass along the ordinance and what was done to councilwoman pay and at that point the Public Safety Committee can sure do with it what they wish that's all I ask sure okay um I'd like to say um because I'm I'm starting my New Year I I was green last year and didn't have a lot of knowledge and what I to do this year is um what I bring with me is a pencil sharpener and an eraser so now I'll begin I I'd like to talk about the uh the Water the uh the 20 million gallons of water that we the residents of miltown pay for yet is unaccounted for considering the the the water rate took a 90% rise for all consumers you the public should be concerned and demand Demand Action first are the numbers we get from New Brunswick accurate I'm not asking for someone to answer right now because I'm just going to finish this it should be proven if someone has to prove accuracy so be it could Fire H could the hydrant flushing be better monitored all burough buildings should have the usage of water and and electric documented the pool cannot Escape scrutiny we need a true accounting of expenditures as it is the taxpayers greatly subsidized this recreational expense with nothing to show for it are there other leaks that should be cons that we should be concerned about such as under the turnpike because of the climbing rates for water status quo is not acceptable nor in the future now we're in the future I will do my part to to find answers and um I'm also going to talk about the schendan property not the cabin I will discuss the swnd property and its possible incorporation into Albert Avenue Park I am not not including the cabin in this discussion however we could consider spending grant money to remove the newer decrepit addition and the shed the three-car garage could be useful in the future and should be left trees especially bamboo could be removed brush and debris could be cleaned up much work can be accomplished by our dedicated DPW fencing could be removed ponds clean ready for use if acceptable we're having the reason I'm bringing this up also is because we're having a DPW meeting and uh Ralph jasinowski had brought up that U there's possible grants that could be used and we we are also working on the um Albert Avenue Park coming up so we are having a DPW meeting and we'll discuss like I said with the grants that can be used at the site again this discussion has been about land use and its possible benefits to the citizens of miltown who own it and deserve to use it if they so desire and um thank you Tom thank you is there any new business to bring before Council seeing none open to the public the public comment portion of our meeting is to allow the public to bring to the council's attention their concerns or comments the council will resp will respect the Public's Time by refraining from any comment till the speaker is finished it should be further noted that the public comment portion of our meeting is not structured as a question and answer session please state your name and address for the record when you come to the podium just as a reminder under rules of council individuals wishing to speak during the public input part of our meeting should be limited to 5 minutes and may after others speakers have finished be allowed to speak for a second second 5 minute period if you someone raises their hands just come up and state your name and address Steve gregus 25 Lincoln Avenue and a member of the Historical Society um I've been a member for about 30 years and for a lot of years I would come up in front of council and ask for funding to help maintain the buildings and unfortunately aside from them putting a new front porch on the annex back in 2000 there was never funding so over the years we've been spending money out of our own pocket um we've out of our own po we've replaced the roof on the museum we've put on a new front porch and new front steps we've had to gut two rooms in the museum and replace a header panel um and we've not that long ago we replaced the two porch roofs on the annex and along with new gutter systems also so um right now we are due for a new roof on the Annex Building it's 40 years old and it's not leaking yet but I don't want to wait till it leaks so I went out and I reached out to the contractor who did work for us before and I have a contract here you know and uh basically you're looking at with ripping off the old roof replacing the gutters some uh Lumber repairs uh you're looking at about $7,750 he says if uh anything after March because apparently March is when the materials go up probably looking at an increase of about another $200 because prices of materials go up so basically um I'm hoping that you know I I don't know when exactly you do your uh budgeting for you know the bough budget but um I'm hoping maybe this can be put into the budget um you know we put a lot of work into those buildings over the years and I don't want to see them fall to disrepair especially roofs I mean once roofs go then it just opens up a Pandora spot so um I want to leave this with I don't know who's in charge of finances I want to give this to you okay and um hopefully um let keep my fingers crossed so that's uh for that um second thing um I want to ask you regarding the schwend house um you know got a $100,000 Grant from the county six years ago and so far nothing's been been done I mean I don't understand what the delay has been I mean previous councils you know keep putting it off putting it off putting it off I mean we given money to do this so why wouldn't we want to fix it you don't fix it we're going to have to tear it down then if you tear it down where's that money coming from we're being given money to fix it so I'm really hoping that you know I don't know which councilman is in charge of that this year but um you know something's got to get done with that and it's not going to cost the taxpayers any money we already have the money so I don't understand what the problem with that building has been over years so I'm hoping that you know I don't know how long that grant money is good for but uh hopefully you know somebody will do something with it so again I don't know who's in charge of that project but I'm hoping that um something will get done with it and then finally um I just want to commend the revitalization committee uh being a longtime member of that group when it first started I have a a connection to them and it's nice to see um new group of people that revamped it again um we had to shut it down because we were down to three people we couldn't get new people to join but it's nice to see that um they got a new group of people and they're doing a great job so who my hats off to them thank you hello Peter Bianca lyanna Gia and Olivia bway 218 rers Lane hi guys thank you thank you for having us uh I just want to say to business administrator clerks uh mayor all the council men and women and the township attorney thank you for all you do for to making you know miltown a great town um Professor Payne congratulations I'll never stop calling you Professor pay maybe I I I'll transition to Professor councilwoman pain 20 years ago she was my professor um so we just uh we're here today to announce the opening of Bella Bianca Italian deli and Fine Foods Market located at 218 ryers Lane um you want to say anything about everyone has seen it I hope we've been waiting for this day to finally come and it's here and we're Beyond excited to bring to this town we were so excited to open our doors and we can't wait to see you guys there we have a lot of good good good good food on the menu U market items we do catering we have gelato apagado um espresso a lot of specialy items uh the reception and the feedback has been incredible so far just bear with us these next couple weeks there going to be a soft opening as we iron out some some Kinks and details uh we'll get better every day and then um after this week or next week we'll have a better idea of what when the grand opening is and we'll make that announcement as well and we look forward to being there for the ribbon cutting yes yes let us know wa thank you for coming I will definitely come to your shop but there's a camera right over there you might be able to see it if you turn around I see your old dressed up with the ad you like there you go yeah so it's right by Fresco um awesome neighbors we we love them and uh they've been very supportive and uh the landlord there at Heritage plaz that gave us an opportunity saw something in us and gave us an opportunity and um we couldn't be more thankful and for the opportunity and what we built has been incredible if anybody has come in and seen it it's uh it's a beautiful place and the food is is phenomenal so uh we just like to invite you all to the soft opening and um honest feedback that's all we ask we we named a couple sandwiches for in honor of miltown we have the miltown meatball parm uh we also have the Desmet the Harkins uh the PD for the police department the 160 for North Bruns Police Department the FD for the fire department uh the AR me cuz I'm an army guy but um so yeah we invite you all and we're glad to bring this to miltown and uh we plan on doing some uh some big things for miltown and putting miltown on the map and uh East by the way East Brunswick thinks it's theirs wrong side of the street and Peter too also everybody know these are miltown residents as well yes we are so thank you so much born and raised in miltown moov that and then move family back in good luck to you thank you so much congratulations than for can I have the menu yes there be some ordering tomorrow that's good anyone else seeing none I will close um audience comments uh Council comments is there anything from Council I have I have one someone else wants to go first um because we were preempted yesterday from um Martin Luther King day if it's if it's okay I'd like to read something about him um I'd like to honor Martin Luther King Jr tonight I'm old enough to remember him and to have listened to his philosophy and words live he fought non-violently non-violently for civil rights of African-Americans hoping that all Americans could live free together in a color blind Society I'd like to read his famous endearing and Timeless quote I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character his life was cut short but his philosophy and message of racial equality live on thank you see none okay I'll close Council comments I have a few comments um so uh to speak of the shman property uh I actually um mentioned a couple times last year and at reorg about the uh committee for the schwinderman homestead um I had given um bur Attorney Peter Veno a draft of um outline uh who is re he's reviewing it right now and hopefully by the next meeting Peter yeah we we I'll I'll jump on that for you so essentially what the mayor sent me was a framework for essentially a steering committee for the sentman property comprised of uh various stakeholders residents uh uh burough professionals uh and the like in order to try to uh come up with a plan for what to do with that property because it seems to have kind of uh hit uh some stagnation and and at this point someone needs to decide what the next step forward is going to be and make that recommendation to the council obviously it's going to be a council decision and we also did the same thing for the uh firehouses uh both Main Street and Cottage Avenue so uh um most likely going to be reaching out to a couple council members to see if they're interested in pertain you know being on the committee I know councilman Potter you had already um asked me a few times uh so thank you for that um and then uh I do want to thank the um miltown fire department rescue squad and police and uh East brunwick and North brunic for their response uh was wonderful uh to try to help uh minimize the uh damage to the to the residents um and they took uh very good care of the residents um transported the ones that needed to go for observation at the hospital and um the rest of them they just you know the officers that were there secured the secured the residents until they were able to board it up so they did a wonderful job uh all around and I just want to thank them for the response time was just was fabulous um that being said I would like to entertain the motion to adjourn motion to adjourn I'd like to say one more thing sorry well actually two more things very short um I neglected last meeting to uh to welcome back uh councilman Potter to council and also thank uh councilman uh council president Phil Zano for for filling that position and I also forgot in my in in my uh speaking about the DPW thank the guys because I actually knew their timeline they were they were um basically on call from 3:00 in the afternoon they came in at 7:00 and they worked till 3:00 in the morning and they were out all night and I think there were 12 or 13 trucks there that were out so I like I said I was out with um with the director for about 2 hours but those guys were out when you guys were sleeping and you saw the roads were were were beautiful the next morning so um I I want to thank them very much for their dedication and uh so thank you may I have a motion in a second to adjourn motion to adjourn second I have a motion made by councilman Collins second by councilman Potter all in favor any oppos okay thank you do this he good to see you look so relaxing right e e