thanks for joining us tonight today is February 10th 2025 welcome to the meeting of the mayor and Council of Princeton New Jersey uh Madame clerk have we uh or actually could you read the meeting statement please adequate notice of this meeting was provided in accordance with the requirements of the open public meetings act including the time date and location of the meeting in addition the agenda and all related materials were posted electronically and made available to
the public on princi meeting portal in advance of the meeting thank you very much Michelle's going to do the land acknowledgement this evening We Gather today on the land of the Lenny Lenape as members of the Princeton Community we aspire to show appreciation respect and concern for All Peoples and our environment we honor the lape and other indigenous caretakers of these lands and Waters the elders who lived here
before the indigenous today and the generation to come thank you who have roll call please Mr McDonald here miss Peron lambrose here Mr Cohen here miss saxs here miss Fraga here Mr nulan here mayor Freda here you have quum all right if you're able to and like to join us in the Pledge of Allegiance please stand and the police department Color Guard is going to come in and lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance
look
flag FL United States of America to The Republic which it stands
one nation under God invisible with liberty and justice for all
that's impressive okay please be seated thank you very much to the police department Color Guard thank you to all the officers of the police department that are with us tonight so we are going to swear in six new officers this evening you're going
to lead us off yep good evening everyone and thank you for coming tonight it's my great honor to welcome our newest members to the Princeton Police Department tonight we will swear in probationary police officers Drew clugston Daniel mangel Vanessa saboro Shane Frida Benedict Arthur and Anthony
Rodriguez as you take your first steps into this Noble profession you join a legacy built on the foundation of our four core values honor knowledge integrity and service honor reminds us of the privilege we have to wear this badge it's not just a symbol to commitment to act with courage and respect in every interaction no matter how challenging the circumstance knowledge reflects the importance of lifelong learning policing is an evolving profession and we must continuously equip ourselves with the skills and understanding necessary to meet the needs of
our community effectively and fairly Integrity is the Cornerstone of public trust in everything you do let your actions reflect honesty fairness and accountability remember trust is hard earned but easily lost let it guide you as you make decisions under pressure and finally service service is the heart of our mission at its core this job is about people about serving and protecting our community with compassion dedication and humility and tonight as you take the oath of office I want you to remember that oath for the rest of your career it's displayed throughout the police department to serve as a constant
reminder of the solemn promise you make tonight these words are not just a formality they are a pledged to uphold the law protect the rights of all and live by the values that Define this department the oath binds us to a higher standard one that calls us to serve with integrity and courage even in the face of adversity to the families of the new officers first and foremost thank you thank you for the love support and encouragement you've given these brave men and women as they take on this honorable calling I know that behind every officer stands a family that sacrifices alongside them and I don't take
that for granted I want to assure you that your loved ones will not walk this path alone at the Princeton Police Department we're committed to providing them with the best training equipment and support to ensure their success and most importantly their safety They will receive the skills and knowledge necessary to navigate the challenges of this profession with confidence and professionalism our department is more than just a workplace it is a family we look out for one another and we will always be there for them just as you've always been there for them together we will help them grow succeed and uphold our core values that Define us
the Department thank you for trusting us with them and we're honored to welcome them and you into our law enforcement family to Drew Daniel Vanessa Shane Benedict and Anthony welcome to the Princeton Police Department you're not just joining a team you're becoming part of something greater a mission to serve with honor pursue knowledge uphold integrity and dedicate yourself to the service of others congratulations and welcome aboard mayor and come down
this uniform is not conducive to bending over sorry yep perfect first officer who is being sworn in today is Drew kugon Drew kugon grew up in Cookstown New Jersey he attended New Egypt High School where he played football basketball and baseball following high school he attended and graduated from the College of New Jersey with a bachelor's degree in criminology over the last few years he served
as assistant coach for the New Egypt high school before accepting a position at the Princeton Police Department J you want to come forward with your family to be sworn in please I state your name I close do
Solly swear you sol swear that I will support the Constitution that I will support the Constitution of the United States of the United States and the Constitution the constitution of the state of New Jersey state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same allegiance to the same and to the governments established to the governments established in the united states in the United States and in the state in the state under the authority of the people under the authority
of the people that I will Faithfully impartially and justly performed perform all the duties of the office all the duties of the office a probationary officer officer according to the best of my ability according to the best of congratulations thank next to be
sworn in is Daniel mangel Daniel grew up in nearby Hamilton New Jersey he attended steinard High School where he played baseball for 4 Years After High School he went on to study accounting at Ryder University obtaining a bachelor's degree and a master's degree after college Daniel was employed by the office of the state auditor as a senior auditor for six years Daniel you want to come up with your family please
I state your name I do solemly swear swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey St new that I will bear true faith I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same alance to the same
and to the governments govern establishing the United States EST the United States and the state under the authority of the people under the authority of people and that I will Faithfully I will faithfully impartially and justly perform and justly perform all the duties all the duties of the office of probationary officer office of prob officer according to the best of my ability of my ability congratulations congratulations
thanks Ryan next to be sworn in is Vanessa saboro Vanessa is originally from Staten Island New York she attended Tottenville high school and then went on to get her bachelor's degree in criminal justice at Rucker University thereafter she graduated from Arizona State University with a master's degree in forensic psychology Vanessa was employed as a preschool teacher in addition worked
with the mammoth County Board of Elections Nessa you want to come forward please I state your name hi do solemnly swear do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution that I will support the Constitution of the United
United States of the United States and the Constitution and the constitution of the state of New Jersey of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and allegiance to the same and to the governments and to the government established in the United States established in the United States and in the state and in the state under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will faithfully impartially impartially and justly perform and justly perform all the duties of all the duties of the
office of probationary officer the office of probationary officer according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability congratulations congratulations congratulations I have to put this disclaimer out the next uh candidate coming up is no relation at all to the mayor same last name but no relation
I'm sure I'll get a question but um Shane Freda was born at Princeton hospital and has deep rooted connection to the Princeton Community with the majority of his family having attended the local school system he graduated from Montgomery High School in 2019 and went on to earn a bachelor's degree in Communications from St Joseph's University in Philadelphia Shane served as the assistant general manager and a server at Nomad Pizza located in Princeton shopping center for nearly seven years he has now transitioned to a career with the Princeton Police Department where he continues to serve and contribute to the safety and
well-being of his hometown Jam come up with your family please and actually we can have you repeat after me I state your name I Shane Fredo do solemnly swear
you solemnly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey and the constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Saint and allegiance to the same and to the governments and to the governments established in the United States and in the state established in the United States and in the states under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I
will Faithfully and that I will faithfully impartially and partially and justly perform and justly perform all duties of the office of probationary officer all duties under the office of probationary police officer according to the best of my ability according to the best my ability
next uh officer is Benedict B Arthur Benedict was born and raised in sville New Jersey where he attended sville War Memorial High School he's a two sport Varsity captain in football and wrestling Benedict continued Athletics into college playing four years of football at UDA University where he was a standout defensive lineman Benedict earned his bachelor's degree in criminal justice from UDA University in the spring of 23 and enrolled in The Graduate School program at JN J College where he's currently studying
International crime and Justice Benedict has 3 years of security experience as well having been employed as a security officer at Central State Hospital in Freehold prior to accepting his position with the Princeton Police Department Benedict you want to come forward repeat after
me I state your name I bent Arthur do solemnly swear do solemnly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution the constit of the United States the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey and the constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and allegiance to the same and to the governments and to the governments established in the United States established in the United States and in the state and in the state under the authority of the people under
the authority of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will faithfully and partially and partially and justly perform and justly perform all the duties all the duties of the office of probationary officer of the office of probationary officer according to the best of my according to the best of my congratulations
and last but certainly not least Anthony Rodriguez Anthony was born in Silver Spring Maryland he spent much of his life in Maryland attending senica Valley high school and eventually the University of Maryland College Park graduating with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology in 2023 Anthony moved to New Jersey and began working as a personal trainer while pursuing a career in law enforcement Anthony is a fluent Spanish speaker who looks forward to serving and protecting the Princeton community
and Anthony you come forward please repeat after me I state your name hi Anthony Rodriguez do solemnly swear do solemnly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution
the United States the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey and the constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and allegiance to the same and to the governments and to the governments established in the United States established in the United States and in the state and in the state and in the state and in the state Under The Authority Under the authority of the people of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will Faithfully impartially and justly
perform and justly perform all the duties all the duties of the office of probationary officer of the office of probationary officer according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability okay that'll conclude the uh swearing in portion um of the meeting
thank you all for uh coming out and supporting our six new officers and congratulations Police Department you're dismissed should do a picture with all oh yeah that'd be great and when you go outside if you won't don't mind going down to the police station just gets out there it gets loud and disrupts the meeting so thank you goodbye darling
do take pictur okay thank you for coming
everyone ready smile
yay w
told
oh no no no I wasn't talking about
B okay thank you we were just waiting till everybody
had a chance to walk out of the room next up is a proclamation and councilman nulan is going to read the uh Proclamation thank you may it is pleasure to read
the proclamation of the mayor Municipality of Princeton for honoring Black History Month for 2025 whereas African-Americans have been an integral part of American history for generations and our nation exists in honor strength and stature because of their contributions during Black History Month we honor the achievements of African-Americans and recognize our continued responsibility to
strive for equality for all of our citizens and whereas African-Americans have enhanced and advanced every aspect of American Life their fight for equality representation and respect motivates us to continue working for a more promising peaceful and hopeful future for every American during National africanamerican History months we honor
the extraordinary contributions made by African-Americans throughout the history of our Republic and we renew our commitment to liberty and justice for all and whereas in 1976 50 years after the first celebration of negro history week and 94 years after the founding of the association for the study of negro life
and the history by Carter G Woodson the entire nation had come to realize the importance of black history in the drama of the American story and whereas the theme of this year's observant honoring the past inspiring the future acknowledging the legacy of black Scholars and medical practitioners in Western medicine but as well
as neuropaths and herbalists inventors clergy and engineers and whereas we uplift our community leaders black business owners professionals and others who have played significant roles in the history of our economic cultural medical spiritual and political development throughout the many facets of the black community as part of our whole inclusive community whereas all Americans can be proud
of the progress we have made yet recognize that much can still be done to work towards a more Equitable and inclusive Union as we celebrate Black History Month we reaffirm our commitment to building a society where every individual has the opportunity to achieve the promise of this great land now therefore be it proclaimed
on this 10th day of February 2025 by the mayor of Princeton Council Municipality of Princeton state of New Jersey recognizes February 2025 be known as Black History Month be it further proclaimed by mayor and councel and Princeton Council respectfully request that all residents share and observe this month with appropriate programs and activities that
honor the significant contributions of African-Americans made to our nation Nation given under the mayor of Princeton Mark freda's hand and seal this 10th day of February 2025 Lon Newan speaking on behalf of the honorable mayor Mark Freda of Princeton New Jersey thank you Leon
okay next up are announcements do we have council members that have announcements or okay I have one uh I have appointed the local emergency management planning Council and uh that is our Emergency Management coordinator our administrator our police chief myself Mr Cohen Mr Nan our engineer our health officer our fire chief the chief of the Princeton
State and rescue squad the director of Princeton University emergency preparedness the fire marshal from the university the assistant superintendent of the Princeton Public Schools the coordinator of student health and safety at Princeton Public Schools Eve Neer gang a name you might recognize as a citizen member and Richard Ryan as the media member any other reports or announcements is there anybody not appointed to the lupc yeah
I think we appointed everybody uh any staff I'm sorry D yeah I I just want to give a brief um report the flood and storm Water Commission had their first meeting of the year on Friday and um excited about one initiative in particular that we're working on for this year which is to um initiate and adopt a drain program in New Jersey in Princeton so keep your eyes open for that
um it a way that um residents can volunteer and help with the stringent storm water management requirements that the state has recently passed thank you David anyone else anything at the staff no okay how about the uh police chief's report for December 2024 thank you mayor I just want to highlight two things um one is in the report one is not uh the one that's not in the report it uh it really
started November but it it accumulated into December sorry um we started a program last year where we let the officers um grow facial hair for no- Shave November and this year um by doing that we're able to raise uh just over $1,500 um which we donate to Human Services and they use that money to spread a holiday cheer by purchasing gifts to families who are in need during the holiday so I just wanted to highlight that and then one thing on the report I wanted to highlight was
um our motor vehicle crashes for the year one of our goals in 24 was to reduce um crashes and I don't think I can make this up we ended up on the exact same number as 23 698 crashes um however our accidents with injuries and our fatal accidents were down from previous years and in fact our fatal accidents were zero last year so we're going to continue working on that um and try to get those numbers uh the total accidents down even more that's all I
have if anybody has any questions thank you Chief any questions for the chief okay seeing none next up is approval of minuts we have minutes from a closed session of December 3rd 2024 if someone would thank you David is there a second thank you Michelle any questions or comments on that one set of minutes all right all all in favor please say I I Iain sorry abstain oh I'm
sorry yes of course Brian's abstaining thank you all right next up is public comments for items not on the agenda and anyone in the room can come forward and just um once you do let me just go through the Spiel you have three minutes please state your name and your address and welcome mine should only take two minutes and 44 seconds Felicia spits 5 heslet Avenue um I'm speaking tonight
um as an encouragement for good governance um as we begin another year I wanted to take a minute to highlight two important points first in order for Meaningful change to occur decisions must be taken that will allow change to happen we need to open doors in order for change to come through this means that all the standard practices policies and hiring decisions must be thoughtfully reviewed to ensure that they contribute to opening the door and not firmly locking it shut at at the beginning of the year many
municipalities dust off decisions from years prior and rubber stamped them for another term whether due to a belief that a predecessor carefully reviewed it or perhaps in absence of any information arriving in your inbox to the contrary unexamined approvals can and do present problems they can sty or stop change outright regardless of whether this outcome was intended if Princeton continues to take the same Decisions by approving the same policies and
practice without examination or questioning of impact meaningful change will never happen here residents who have historically been underserved and underrepresented will continue to be underserved and underrepresented I'm here tonight to implore you to look at the standard decisions with fresh eyes review the details of each Municipal action as if everyone has been crafted by you in 2025 ask yourself is my intention as a leader in harmony with the outcome of this action does my decision reflect the
needs of a town that is currently 63% white 20% Asian 6% African-American with about 8% of residents identifying as Hispanic does my vote serve the 6% of residents who live in poverty as well as it serves the almost 70% of married families living at the other end of the economic Continuum is as well as enough does this decision open the door to possib ability and change or
keep it shut lastly please recognize the unfairness of asking colleagues and residents who come from underrepresented in minority groups to address the inequity and oppression in our systems while they also continue to fight it in their personal lives they did not create the systemic problems or work to keep them in place they certainly can't solve them alone it is incumbent on those who enjoy privilege to use it to make change Step Up be allies carry some of this
centuries old load and work together to lead in necessary change for Princeton Princeton will not change on it on its own it requires you all to commit to working for Change and that starts with everyday decisions and actions please don't leave them unexamined and find the courage to welcome change thanks thank you Felicia hi my name is SE oner I've
been been a resident of Prince uh Princeton for 20 plus years my two daughters went through Princeton Public Schools um I'm here today representing Ramadan organizing committee and um we recognize that um that to Broad Community inclusion is important to you as Leaders of diverse community and to our town that celebrate holidays and in that um
expert I would like the municipality of Princeton uh and request them to approve the Lighting Event and display of the Crescent in town uh to enrich our uh our community uh it will be uh the initial request was uh sent to uh mayor Fara on January 21st and we still haven't received the official approval uh so I just wanted to bring it to the uh in the notice of the Council and see
how we can um follow up I'm just following up on it and see how we can uh further proceed with that the request okay I'm so sorry so you're which event is this I'm sorry sorry the event of lighting of Crescent yeah in town just like the we we celebrate just like we have the
event for lighting of Christmas tree and manura right and I believe we had asked for more information but I think my initial response was I was concerned that this was uh more of a religious event than a Civic event and that it's the m and that we so I had asked for more information so our attorney could help us determine whether we whether we could actively support the event there's we we do events in different ways um for example we don't do um the
manora lighting on Municipal property we don't do a Christmas tree on Municipal property we do happen to go to events that are tied to the Palmer Square does a Christmas tree lighting the Jewish Center does a manura lighting and we do attend those events to show our support right yeah that's that's exactly what we're asking for for the council to show their support uh uh you know attend the event right so okay so anyway I was waiting for more information to come back and exactly what the request was
and I don't think I've gotten that information uh I think I I'm happy to talk to you or anyone at any point but I okay uh I I think yeah that that was a concern right whether it's a cultural event or a religious event which is it's a very much a cultural event it doesn't happen everywhere where Ramadan or E is celebrated it's purely a I think a US event where we have these and uh several uh towns within New Jersey uh does does it our our neighboring town all have this event so um so so
right and I think what what I had suggested was um ask different Property Owners like Palmer square if you could hold this on their property okay right because if it's religious related we can't do it on Municipal property but I am I am happy I think the clerk had also provided information that people could respond to her so again anybody from the group can give myself more information or give our clerk more information but I'm happy to help in any way we can with in the constraints
that you know the separation of government and and religion but so yeah I mean call me tomorrow or email me tomorrow I think most of you have my email and we'll we'll figure it out all right thank you sorry that you had to come here for that thank you all right anybody else in the room for uh can you can everyone hear me
all right uh good evening my name is Sean Elwood I'm a junior at Princeton High School uh and a couple years ago I started uh the uh PHS triathon club uh now it's one of the largest clubs uh at PHS over 50 members we've uh won two state championships and now we're uh trying to put on an event in Princeton uh so this uh this event has been
uh in development for uh a couple months now we've been in contact with all the department heads uh I've spoken with uh Chief Tash uh lieutenant Thomas uh Evan Morehead from the recreation department um uh and a couple uh a couple other department heads and uh all of them have expressed their support uh for the event and we've worked through uh some of the uh details uh with safety and other aspects of the event um so uh
for what a so this event is uh would be a tri Triathlon in Princeton uh that's a Swim Bike Run event it's similar to the half marathon and the 5K um which uh Garner a lot of attention uh when those events take place um but I believe that this event uh not only reaches a more diverse audience uh with the different events uh or
sorry with the different disciplines um I think it would uh draw a lot of attention not only from uh the Princeton Community from but from a larger uh standpoint we've uh we've already included some local businesses uh to help out uh from a sponsorship standpoint uh and then some larger uh businesses and organizations uh such as the uh such as USA triathon uh
which is a national triathon uh oversight organization we've uh agreed to give a percent of the profits uh to an organization uh called Dar to try which is a National Organization uh that helps out uh Youth and uh disabled athletes um and they've agreed to partner with with this event um yeah I think we've we uh submitted a proposal like this last year I think uh
We've uh revised it a little bit uh cut down on uh some of the course times uh and I think uh some of you should have a proposal um I'm sure the I'm sure the uh the police chief will uh give you a whole briefing um but I'm here tonight just to get some general feedback uh see if you if uh anyone has any questions sure well first of all thank you
very much for putting this all together of course sir and I I believe in conversations I've had I think the police chief is pretty much comfortable with what's going on I think there were some last I think there were some details which I'm not aware of if they've all been lined up but I think you shortened the race I think the swimming has been locked up and right and I think the first aid squads on board I think the police are on board I think we're on board with our yeah so I I think we're going to be good to
approve this at the next meeting I think it's going to be on the next agenda for formal approval but folks are questions or comments Michelle um I just want to thank you Sean and I've been uh in contact with Harrison um I really have to commend uh your group and uh you have put together a very um very professional presentation uh I see people that are way older than you that are not as professional and the thing that I really um
I think we all need to commend is the fact that you listened uh you went back and you reworked it uh and really understood or tried to understand what the concerns were um from a safety and Recreation Department standpoint um so I just want to commend you and thank you for pursuing persevering uh and doing a whole lot of work as I um personally know what it goes what goes into putting an event like this together and with your high school work and everything else
um I just wanted to say thank you uh for for what you're doing so good luck of course yeah thank you for listening Mark I wanted please so just uh for the benefit of our Co my colleagues I I wanted to share that this did come before the Public Safety Committee and when it first came to us uh not our chief did Express that there were some some tweaks that needed to be made and and that was done and it was just as far far as the Public
Safety Committee is concerned we is something that we can definitely get behind and actually look forward to to uh seeing it and and I'm wasn't clear to me though who the participants are is it open to it's yeah it's open to anyone just to the general public yeah it wasn't clear to me whether it was for the high school uh or okay so challenge to my colleagues something to consider thank you y I'll be there clapping I'm not going to
be in it David yeah I just to the point of who's going to participate I'm curious number one how you're planning to promote it outside of town and number two um if you have any data about other super Sprints you know that have been done around the state and what kind of um participation that they've had yeah so for uh for your first point we're planning to promote it through uh
a couple different different websites we uh we're already partnering with a a uh national uh timing company called DQ events they send out emails they uh put that up on their website and then uh also through social media we've already set up an Instagram account Facebook uh all that sort of stuff um and then uh for your second Point some super Sprints uh around New Jersey generally uh it
they'll be on the lower side of participation uh compared to like the 5K or half marathon uh around 150 to 200 weave set are uh and this was uh in a uh discussion with the police chief and uh some other department heads we've set the cap or they agreed to set the uh cap of participants at 250 uh it's I mean there's a chance that we won't even reach that but uh just so that it doesn't doesn't get too
out of hand great thanks okay I think we're good okay thank you very much of course all yeah so sorry just to be clear the uh final uh decision will be made in at the next town council meeting at the next meeting we'll actually vote on it perfect yeah I assume since there were no negative comments or concerns raised that you're you're pretty good shape cool thank you thank you thank you all right okay anybody
else in the room public comment all right anybody on Zoom all right nobody on Zoom nobody else in the room we'll close the public comment for items not on the agenda part of the meeting oh hand just went up just in time all right John if you could just state your name and address and then you have your your three minutes for whatever the topic is great uh actually I'll take much less time than that my
name is John catus and uh I just wanted to follow up on what Sean had said um I've been involved with Triathlon and USA Triathlon for over 20 years and I think it's just remarkable what these young men and women have done uh for the sport of triathlon but more importantly for what they've done for community and getting kids especially um involved in Swim Bike Run and and leading healthy lifestyle so I'm totally supportive of this and in fact um a lot of
this will be promoted through USA Triathlon and uh I think it's going to be a terrific event and I think it's going to be great for the community and the surrounding community so again uh totally supportive of this and uh um I hope that uh some of you uh may be uh try it out John thank you okay was there anybody else on Zoom that wanted to make a comment on anything all right this time I am closing the public comments for items not
on the agenda and we'll move on next up is an ordinance introduction ordinance 2025-the of the township of Princeton New Jersey 1968 accordingly the public hearing will be February 24th 2025 thank you David for the motion is there a second thank you Michelle roll call vote please Mr McDonald yes
Miss Peron lambrose yes Mr Cohen yes Miss Sachs yes Miss Fraga yes Mr nulan yes carried thank you you guys should feel free to sneak out if you want you you're not stuck here please don't you're you're good all right next up are our resolutions 2561 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing an increase of $60,000 to the not to exceed amount for the Professional Services agreement with green bomb Rose Smith Davis LLP
for Legal Services as special Redevelopment Council to Princeton for a new not to exceed amount of $175,000 Michelle's got the motion leighton's got the second questions or comments I see none all in favor please say I I I 2562 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing the release of inspection fees in the amount of $24,105 to Princeton Eden LLC
for the Walgreens relocation major site development at 301 North Harrison Street block 7401 lot 1.011 zone SC and PSC David has the motion Leighton has the second questions or comments I see none all in favor please say I I I 2563 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing release of a performance guarantee in the amount
of 1 million uh God I'm blanking 1,258 sorry to the trustees of Princeton University for East Campus tiger and athletic operation site plan block 50.01 lot 18 Zone E1 T is there a motion on that thank you Brian leighton's got the second questions or comments all right all in favor please say I I I 2564 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton
authorizing an increase of $963.66 to a contract with asphalt paving systems for asphalt paving on beram drive and Codwell Drive utilizing New Jersey state contract 17- gns v2- 00181 for the not to exceed amount of $137,200 4 do we have a motion on that thank you David leighton's got the second questions or comments all right all in
favor please say I I I 2565 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing the award of a Professional Services agreement to French and pello Associates for construction Administration for the Cherry Hill Road shared use path for an amount not to exceed 98,6 is there a motion on that thank you Mia Brian's got the second questions or comments seeing none all in favor please say I I I 2566 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing
an agreement with Princeton mobile food pantry for temporary use of 237 North Harrison Street Michelle has a motion Le has got the second questions or comments Michelle yeah I just uh I just want to say I'm really glad to see that we're able to help uh the food pantry and I just want to thank Jeff and row and the staff um for really jumping on this and being able to um to put this together quickly uh to help them reload loate
even if it's temporary um it's you know great to partner with these Community Partners that serve the community so I just wanted to say thank you thank you any other comments or questions all right all in favor please say I I I 2567 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing the award of her Professional Services agreement to topology new NJ LLC for planning services at the Westminster choir College site for an amount not to exceed $115,000 M has got the motion
ltis has got the second questions or comments all right seeing none all in favor please say I I 2568 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton authorizing the award of a Professional Services agreement to Michael T Barrett Esquire to serve as public defender in 2025 for an amount not to exceed $ 58,60 is there a motion on that thank you Michelle leighton's got the second questions or comments all in favor please say I hi
hi 2575 resolution of the mayor and Council of Princeton for the appointment of the municipal court judge Jack McCarthy sorry said placeholder here is there a motion on that thank you Brian Michelle's got the second questions or comments I have a comment okay yeah um so I wasn't at uh was traveling at the previous meeting and I understand you know there were there were some question questions raised about the appointment of this
judge and I just want to say as a matter of principle when individuals come to the council and ask for legislative re remedies for judicial decisions that they are unhappy with that is a very dangerous and slippery slope that we see going on at the federal level and I think we um I hope that we won't ever see that in Princeton and just um for anyone who's confused if they unhappy with the decision that
a judge makes there are judicial remedies for that the remedy is not legislative and the remedy is not to come to council and ask for any sort of Rec criminatory action against that judge we're better than that in Princeton and um we have separation of powers here I'm glad we do um I'm proud of that and uh I hope we won't see this again okay let is
you so uh I just wanted to comment that you know for me uh from the start I understood that it was not our p uh our role to ask second guest or question judicial decisions or if there was any concerns about uh conduct in the court also was not under our purview that's something that there's other avenues for someone to
uh to address but although I must say I did have uh reservations about uh how uh how we make appointments you know with boards commissions and committees we usually discuss uh towards the end of the year November and then collectively decide whether we uh there's consensus to appoint or reappoint
an individual and I felt that if we do that for volunteers some boards and commissions and committees we should do that for these official positions too and uh and I just want to say based on that um uh personally I've chosen I'm going to abstain on this so but but as but not because of questioning uh a ruling or performance because that's not something that would come
that would be our role yeah to do yeah and I agree your suggestion on how we handle that process is a good suggestion so thank you for that LE thank you mayor uh although it was late in the process I too like my colleague Leticia had pause to reappoint this
distinguished gentleman on to continue to be the magistrate in Princeton and and to be totally honest as I examined the reasons that I was given pause I did not see uh justification as as my colleague examined and indicated that there
was any decisionmaking issues but I also want to share with the general public and my colleagues that given the opportunity to listen to almost 5 hours worth of audio tape and I want to make this clear too today I realized that when we were asked for an audio tape that there should have been available not only an audio tape but a visual visual tape
that would have given us more area to evaluate not the decision but the behavior that it was not made available so all we had was an audio and based on what I heard that I listen to very carefully 4 hours and 39 minutes plus my determination
was that this magistrate this jurist this judge did not make from what I could tell any decisions that were in error at all but in listening to almost five hours of testimony I would have to say
that overall I don't think that I can vote Yes for three more years on the bench and also I can't vote no because I didn't see a decision that he made that was in error but I will abstain
because I can't condone three more years on the bench watching over the judicial conversations and decisions of the people in Princeton based on what I saw I will I I I just can't do it so I'm going to abstain I don't see a problem with the judge's decisions I do not I want
to make that clear but overall conduct and control of the courtroom in Princeton for three more years I am going to abstain thank you thank you Lon any other questions or comments I just want to point out um I and Lon I'm just I'm just want to be real clear on this for the anybody listening in when you said there was no tape provider to see the the court session I just
want to make it clear to everybody that we don't tape we don't videotape the court sessions so I just don't want anybody take it incorrectly that something that you asked for was not provided it's just that it doesn't exist mayor with all due respect I read over something today that gave me the impression that our Municipal proceedings in the
court are audio taped and videotaped at the same time now I may be wrong but and I'll leave it for others to make that determination but I think that our proceedings are both audio and videotaped do we know that I thought I was told that we do not videotape them I don't believe the ones that happen in this room are there there are some that happen on Zoom that I assume can be recorded more easily uh but not every matter is handled on zoom in this particular ular matter I believe was handled
in the courtroom um so I will I will confirm with the court administrator tomorrow okay M um so I I I I have a question of our attorney um again I'm very concerned about blurring the boundaries between legislative perview and judicial the remedy for decisions that we make as council members and there are many
people in the municipality of Princeton who do not like decisions that we make and the remedy is to vot us out of office the remedy if you do not like a Judicial decision is to appeal the decision to a higher court and separation of powers is the foundation of our democratic system I am would want so I understand Leon that you were concerned about some behavioral or or a lack of control that you
feel like a lack I'm I would like some clarity of what you had concerns about and some I'd like to hear from our attorney if that is in fact something that we we are entitled as the um in our capacity to act on uh council president what I I just want to make a response we our myself
and my colleagues were all given the opportunity to listen to 4 hours and 39 minutes of a tape that was done on October 15th 2024 I listened to that tape for the entire 4 hours and 39 minutes to gather information on our consensus here
and I did that I I I don't know who else on this day has did that but I did that and I made a statement on what I listened to and what I heard and that is my decision I am abstaining from this so that's that's really all I have to pretend I I don't know what this is all about I think we all listen to as as much as we could um I don't know if we all listen to it but I'm just asking you from
what you heard what was it specifically for so that all of us what what was it specifically that you objected to so can we I'm sorry I didn't I'm sorry let let me just jump in I I really don't want us questioning each other I don't think we need to be doing that I think if our attorney has heard anything that any of us have said that's problematic you could indicate that but if you had not I am going to ask us if there's any other questions or comments
where we're not questioning each other I think it's been explained to everyone what we can and cannot consider in this matter and I think we're all capable of understanding that so I'd like us to to move on because I just see this okay no I understand but I'm I'm I mean I feel like in any decision we make we are we respect one another's opinions and I have tremendous respect for my colleague's analysis and I want
to make an informed decision but based within the parameters of what is appropriate for us to make that decision on so if he has an issue with something that he heard that I may have missed and I also listened I'm interested to know that because that might change my decision and I mean that's part of our process here and I why we deliberate as a body and we listen to one another and um we listen to the community and and so
which is fine which is fine it seemed to me that you two were starting to get into some very specifics and if you're asking Leighton exactly not exactly but overall what his opinion is based on I think Leighton you could repeat it but it seemed to me that you were concerned about how the court was uh handled so to speak the control of the court so I think that's a legitimate item that Leighton can talk about um I thought that what we had explained to all the council members was that we cannot base
our decision on any um decision the judge made in coming to a conclusion in a hearing in front of him uh and that that had to be handled by some somewhere else and not in in this realm of the and mayor I just want to reiterate that my decision to hold this up was made on information I received and after I receiv received that decision Vision I was
given a tape of 4 hours and 39 minutes of the date in question and I listened not once not twice but three times breaking that tape down very carefully and my decision to abstain on reappointing this judge for three more years is based on the 4 hours and 39 minutes that I heard that's my statement and I'm going to leave it at that I'm abstaining and I don't know that I need to
say anything else more I agree that's my decision thank you y thank you any other questions or comments I I do have a question of the attorney um so if we are and first of all I want to say that I um really um agree with my colleague um councilman Fraga that um when it comes to
appointments it would be good for the council to get a some advanced notice um and and you know understand like what our purview is in terms of you know reappointing I think that was one of the major issues here is that this just appeared on the agenda as part of the consent agenda um and in general I think you know I mean I have no familiarity with this judge couldn't
pick him out of a lineup um and um but uh and wasn't here for that meeting but I understand that there that that that my colleagues were upset that all of a sudden you know a significant appointment which is a three-year appointment appeared on the consent agenda and I think I hope that that won't happen again and also that you know we'll be given some advanced notice when an appointment is upcoming I think for this appointment just
to clarify it's the recommendation of the mayor with the advice and consent of council um and um and I'm Mark I'm I'm not throwing that I'm just I just want to clarify like we all have a role in this um and I don't know if this comes through the Personnel committee or how it comes through but I think you know this is I guess because there haven't been any issues um but this came to the for based on some complaints related to
a Judicial decision that the judge had made and and I think we all know that is not a basis for um taking action to appoint or not a point but the other thing that U my colleague councilman nulan mentioned was um some issue about the the you know some concerns about the judge's ability to control the climate and the you know the the situation in the in the courtroom and so my question to our
attorney is is that a basis is that something that we have the right to appoint or not appoint is that part is that within our purview the difference is yeah in deciding whether to reappoint there's a reason why Municipal Court judges aren't tenured they have threeyear terms there's a recognition that there is you
know some politics involved in it once a judge is appointed then any concerns about how that judge is conducting himself or herself running the courtroom anything like that is now under the purview of the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court and so that's where the well preliminarily at a lower level but it's ultimately at that point the judge is under the authority of the court and that's where these complaints would be brought but in terms of whether to appoint or not reappoint I agree with you you're correct you can't base it on
a decision that the judge has made but if you have concerns about the judge's demeanor and all the rest I think that's a valid consideration like with anyone else okay so that is within our purview it's not and in deciding whether or not to reappoint okay and in what so then it what is the uh sequence by which that would then come out of our purview and go
to the Chief Justice once the judge is appointed okay once the judge is appointed at that once because Municipal Court judges are part of the Judiciary so at the moment until the person is appointed as a judge I mean yes at the moment he's technically a holdover but he's not your Municipal Court Judge until I'm speaking hypothetically now but once someone is appointed as a judge they become part of the Judiciary now they're under the opes of the
Judiciary and the supervision of first the assignment judge of the Visage in which they're located and then ultimately all the way up to the Chief Justice okay so I just have to ask you know I know it's it's a personal decision but you know would it be your recommendation based on what you heard that the lack of control in the courtroom was of such an extreme nature that we should not reappoint can I just make one more point
just because I I just want to make sure understand I heard councilwoman Fraga and councilwoman noan saying that they were going to abstain so just so that we're really clear an abstention is a non-vote it's not a vote for yes or no it is a non Vote or non-action right I I I understand that yeah but um I I think if enough people abstain then we get back into the the the question that we dealt with at the Hun School of how many votes
you remember that fondly don't you I remember that very fondly yes you will need there are you the public can draw whatever conclusion they want and I don't think we need to have to try to explain to the the public the public can listen to this meeting after the fact or during the meeting and draw the wrong conclusion I don't think that's for I don't think that's part of no I wanted to know how many votes it takes so that we don't end up in limbo you need a majority right and that's not a four what yeah so four votes so as on
every matter that we vote on you need four votes except for the two-thirds for a certain right but this is not one of those any other questions or comments okay mayor I I I do have a a question and if my sense is if we as a body are going to move move in any direction and this may be putting people on
the spot but I would like to know how many of my colleagues have read or listened to the information that that is a part and parcel of what we are undertaking here tonight right now I think you can ask the question I don't know that anyone has to answer that question well no they probably don't have to answer the question but
I'm going to ask the damn question anyway okay I am I'm sorry but you know I'm a little I'm agreeing with you that you can ask stuff we're doing here yeah no dude I'm damn it I'm happy to answer leaden I did not get through all four hours okay that's one but I got to almost the three-hour Mark you know this is a big decision here am I only one that that listen to this tape no you are not the only one no you're not well who else answered who else listened to it and can they weigh in
here well can I hear from my colleagues on what they feeling you can ask well Leon I think I'm doing that every time I say are there any questions or comments I'm asking people and giving people the opportunity to weigh in if they so choose I'm sorry if I'm out of line but no no man we're good you know come on now all good we're good but I just want to restate that what I said in my recent you know when my comments was my decision and and any reservations I had
had nothing to do with what happened in court because I didn't I understood that's not within our purview uh what happened in court uh but my preference and my hope is that going forward we will have these conversations as we do whenever at the end of the year whenever the the time comes for us to consider and discuss appointments
and reappointments yeah okay so I will ask if there's any other questions or comments and people can feel free if they want to weigh in with any further detail as to leighton's question but Leon for myself yes I did listen to the vast majority of that I will admit that I did skip a little bit here and there because some of it was pretty repetitious um and not all of it was on this specific case uh so and I am comfortable uh as the mayor recommending to the
council that the judge be reappointed so I'm happy to to say that publicly thank you mayor thank I have no problem with you asking that if anybody else wants to weigh in feel free if anybody else has a different question or comment this would be the time to do it you don't you're not forced to do it but it's up to anybody and if you don't we're going to vote on this okay I'm going to call for a vote all those in favor please say I I I that was all three here
I okay so there's four eyes there extensions abstain okay so we have four eyes and two extensions actually no okay I'm sorry I'm voting no okay four eyes one one nay and one exstension all right next up is the consent agenda there are six items on the consent agenda if someone wants to move that in BL Michelle you're moving all of them thank you very much is there a second thank you Leticia all in favor say
I I I David I move to a journ is there a second thank you Brian all in favor say I I all right we are done thank you all e
now