All right. Good evening everybody. Thanks for joining us. Today is September 23rd, 2025. This is a meeting of the mayor and council of Princeton, New Jersey. Madame Clerk, could you do the meeting statement, please? Notice of this meeting was provided in
accordance with the requirements of the open public meetings act and state regulations governing public meetings, including the time, date, and location of the meeting and clear and concise instructions to the public for accessing the meeting and making comments. In addition, the agenda and all related
materials were posted electronically and made available to the public on Princeton's meeting portal in advance of the meeting. Thank you. Leon will do the land acknowledgement tonight. Thank you, mayor. We gather today on the land of the Lenny Lape. 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 generations to come.
Thank you. We have roll call, please. Mr. McDonald, here. Miss Peron Lamrose, here. Mr. Mr. Cohen is absent. Miss Saxs is absent. Miss Frogga here. Mr. Nulan here. Mayor Freda here. If you're able and can stand, please
join us in the pledge of allegiance. To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. forward.
All right, please be seated. Good evening, Mayor and Council. It's my privilege and honor to welcome our newest members to the Princeton Police Department. This evening, we gather to swear in probationary officers, Nicole Karinante, Jordan Niti, and Connor Lucky. Our recruitment process began in
March of this year with more than 140 applicants. From there, the candidates faced a rigorous physical fitness test, four separate interviews, and an extensive background investigation. Nicole, Jordan, and Connor distinguish themselves at every step. And tonight, I'm proud to formally present them to you.
To Nicole, Jordan, and Connor, when you take your oath tonight, I urge you not to simply recite the words, but to embrace them fully. This this oath is more than a formality. It's a lifelong promise. It holds us to a higher standard. one that calls for integrity, courage, and dedication even in the face
of adversity. You'll see that the oath of office is displayed throughout the department, serving as a constant reminder of the solemn responsibility you accept tonight. Also displayed throughout the department are our core values: honor, knowledge, integrity, and service. These are more than words on a wall or words
on our patch. They are principles that must guide both your professional duties and your personal lives. During your interviews, we asked you about these core values and which one was most important to you. We ask this because we seek officers who not only understand these values, but who embody them.
To the families of the new officers, thank you for your love, encouragement, and sacrifice. Behind every officer stands a family who serves alongside of them in quiet but profound ways. It is often said that it takes a village to raise a child. The same holds true for raising a police officer. Your role in
their journey is invaluable and we don't take it for granted. I want to assure you that they will not walk this path alone. At the Princeton Police Department, we are committed to equipping them with the best training, the right equipment and tools, and the emotional support necessary to succeed and most importantly to stay safe. We
will ensure they gain the skills and confidence needed to meet the challenges of this profession with professionalism and pride. To the new officers tonight, you're not just joining a department. You're becoming part of a family and a mission. A mission to serve with honor, seek knowledge, uphold integrity, and
dedicate yourselves to the service of others. On behalf of the entire Princeton Police Department, congratulations and welcome aboard. This time, I'd like to invite the mayor and uh Councilwoman Fraga come up to minister the oath. First officer we're swearing in today is
probationary officer Nicole Karinante. Is that right? Probationary police officer Nicole Carinante was born in Staten Island, New York and attended attended Jackson Liberty High School in Jackson Township, New Jersey. She then went on to continue her education at Ocean County Community
College and Kane University where she graduated with a bachelor of science degree in business management with a minor in finance. Prior to being hired by the Princeton Police Department, patrolman Karanante worked as a class 2 police officer in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. Patrol Officer Karan is currently
assigned to a patrol squad and is assigned to a field training officer. Patrol Carante, please come forward with your family to be sworn in. Maybe you want to step closer to the mic. So, repeat after me. I your state. I,
Nicole Karani, do solemnly swear do 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 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 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 all the duties of the office of probationary police officers of the duties of probationary police offic sorry of the office of probationary police officer of the office of probationary police officer
according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability so help me God thank you so Right. [Applause]
Probationary police officer Jordan Niti was born in Trenton, New Jersey and attended Steiner High School in Hamilton Township. Trollman Niti then went on to continue his education at Stockton University. Go Ospreys. where he graduated with a bachelor's of arts degree in criminal justice and was a member of the baseball
team. Prior to being hired by the Princeton Police Department, Patrol Maniti interned with the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office. Maniti is currently a recruit at the Mercer County Police Academy is scheduled to graduate in January of 2026. Patrolman Niti, please come forward with
your family to be sworn in. Who's going to read? Okay. I state your name. I, Jordan, do solemnly swear do 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 true faith and allegiance and allegiance to the same 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 would faithfully impartially impartially and justly perform and justly perform all the duties of the office all the duties of the office of probationary police officer of probationary police officer according to the best of my ability
according to the best of my ability congratulations [Applause] no Probationary police officer Connor Lucky was born in Trenton, New Jersey, and attended Hamilton High School West in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. He then
went on to continue his education at William Patterson University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology and criminal justice. And he was also a member of the baseball team. Prior to being hired by the Princeton Police Department, Patrol Lucky interned with our department. Drone Lucky is currently a recruit at
the Mercer County Police Academy and is scheduled to graduate in January of 2026. Dr. Lucky, please come forward with your family to be sworn in. Awesome. That's what I like to see. You haven't seen my family. Yucky. Who wants to hold it?
More than wise to hold it, too. Come on. If you want to step closer to the mic. We got a lot of them. They're going to keep coming. Are we ready? Yes, ma'am. Okay. I state your name. I, Connor Lucky, do solemnly swear do 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 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 impartially impartially and justly perform
and justly perform all the duties of the office all the duties of the office of probationary police officer of probationary police officer according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability. So help me. So help me God. Congratulations.
[Applause] [Music] [Applause] That concludes our swearing in ceremony. You're more than happy to stay for the
council meeting if you want to. Um for the families, we can go downstairs um to our classroom and take pictures if you'd like to come down here. Thank you all for coming. And one more round of applause for the uh new candidates. [Music] Thank you. I punched Andrew.
He just [Music] Come Yeah, [Applause] Okay, they're shutting the doors. Never mind. That's good. Okay, we're going to try to get on with uh the rest of the meeting. Next up are
two uh two sets of minutes to be approved. June 9th, 2025 and June 17, 2025. If someone would like to move those. Thank you, Leticia. Michelle's got the second. Any questions or comments on the minutes? All right. If not, all in favor, please say I.
I. I. Okay. Next up are council announcements. Excuse me, Mr. Mayor. I was uh absent at the first meeting, so I'll be an extension. All right. Thank you. All right. Did you have your hand up also for announcements?
Nothing else. Second one. Yeah. Go ahead. No, no, no. Are we doing the second set or we did them? No, we did both sets. Oh, we did. Okay. We did both, but you Yes. announcements. Yep. Yes, please. Um
I do not have one, two, three, or four announcements. I have five announcements tonight, all related to uh s our desire to be a sustainable, resilient, and environmentally focused community. Um the first is that this Thursday at
public library at 7 p.m. uh uh Prince Environmental Commission and Sustainable Princeton are co-sponsoring a greenhouse tour video screening and discussion panel that is going to be really great. and I hope uh some people in the
audience can attend. The second is uh this Saturday is an action-packed day. Uh it begins with greenhouse and garden tours here in Princeton and you can go to the sustainable Princeton website to reserve
space. They're uh very close to completely booked, but I think there are still some spots left. Um the third thing is that is also Princeton Municipal Shredfest which is a joint venture between uh Siminal Princeton and
the municipality and that is always a great chance to uh get rid of uh things that you shouldn't be holding on to and there's plenty of information about that on the municipal website. The fourth is that action-packed Saturday is also uh
hazardous chemical and hazardous waste disposal at the uh Dempster Fire School in Hamilton sponsored by the Mercer County Improvement Authority. An opportunity to get rid of uh uh chemicals and um uh other hazardous
waste. And then finally, uh, not this weekend, but next weekend, uh, the Sustainable Princeton, the Princeton Environmental Commission, the Shade Tree Commission, and the municipality have all been working very
hard to plant our first micro forest at Quarry Park. And there are uh at least 100 volunteer spots. About 75 are already filled for the planting which begins at 10:00 in the morning on the
4th with a rain date of the 5th. There are still a need for volunteers in two of the afternoon sessions. So if anybody would like to literally get their hands dirty and uh plant some of the more than 1,000 shrubs and trees, um that would be
great. This is a a Milwaukee forest project. It's a pocket forest that has really remarkable benefits um considering its modest size and I think it's a a great experiment. I'm glad that we are doing it and if it is successful
we might be able to consider it for other locations in town. That's my report. I like that. Nice and concise. Other council Leticia. Yes. I just wanted to uh welcome we have visitors today uh professor Lanceman
from Princeton University and his freshman class uh I was invited to uh meet with them I said two weeks ago or so uh and uh it's uh for a seminar course uh called uh is politics a
performance it's very interesting uh but I had uh the opportunity to engage with the students and it was a really good conversation and uh they're here to uh observe uh local politics in action. Welcome.
Thank you. Any other announcements? Leon. Thank you, Mayor. Yes. I just want to let uh people here gathered and the public know that the Historic Preservation Commission has uh asked council to consider uh putting two
plaques up as you enter Princeton in honor of the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. They are submitting applications for two official state historical markers to be placed along the roadside for people entering and leaving Princeton. Uh entering
Princeton from the south, it would be on Quaker Bridge Road. As you cross the canal, taking that hard left turn off to the right, there's an area next to the tow path. The plan would to have it there. Um
entering from Kingston, the plan would be to have it adjacent to Carnegie Lake. Um there's one small catch. the uh currently as as it sits under their proposal, they have about 2561
characters. You only get 650. So, they're going to, you know, tweak this up because obviously we, you know, to consider the plaques, we really need to know what is the inscription, you know, what are those 650 characters going to say about Princeton. So, you
know, just ask council mayor and general public just to stand by while we work that out. Thanks, Le Michelle. Yeah, I just wanted to mention um the kiosk design competition. Uh the
applications have now closed. There's been um me set dozens of applications uh both from high school, college students as well as professionals. So, there's two categories. Uh the competition is closed now in terms of applications and
uh there should be some winners um coming up shortly, but it's um it's been a great um um effort and just wanted to thank in particular Josh Zinder for um shephering that. So thank you. I just want to add one more event. Um not this weekend but next
weekend, Sunday the 5th, the fire department's having an open house. The firehouse is right across the street on Witherspoon Street and all are welcome. All right, we're good first announcements. And uh Captain, the uh police report. Thank you, mayor. Tonight, I'm
presenting two reports, the July and August chief's monthly report. The first item that I like to note on this report is our annual community night out. This event occurred on August 5th. This event once again is highlighted by the strong partnership between officers, municipal
staff, community organizations, and our residents. This year's program was a resounding success, drawing families, local businesses, nonprofits, and community partners together in a fun and welcoming environment. We want to extend our sincere appreciation to everyone who helped out with this event and all of our partners
who made it an absolute success. The second item that I want to point out that's reflected in these two reports was brought up by Councilman Cohen at the last meeting I was present at and most recently it was referenced in um articles in in local media and that is
the decline of speeding summones. That trend is real, but it's it isn't sudden and it isn't unique to Princeton. The issuance of motor vehicle traffic summons is drastically down across the state and the nation. The significant drop occurred in 2020 and speeding
summons have remained relatively steady since that point and several factors contributed to this issue. Staffing constraints, revisions to state legislation, changes in officer mentality, and a broader shift in policing toward education and officer
discretion. Quite frankly, policing has changed since 2019. But what hasn't changed is our commitment to safer streets. This is achieved through traffic engineering, education, and yes, enforcement. We're working handinhand with our municipal partners like Atiana and Jim to my left
and their engineering teams. We work to find traffic engineering solutions. We're expanding community education like our recent seminar for our community members over the summer involving vulnerable road users. And also through traffic enforcement. If you look at the
reports, you'll see motor vehicle enforcement is reflected and incurring in a form of motor vehicle stops. The thing that is changing is the outcome of those stops. My plan moving forward is clear. Staffing a dedicated traffic safety bureau has been challenging in recent
years due to vacancies. As we reach full strength in the coming months, we plan to assign additional officers to that unit that will allow more directed patrols, high visibility details, and follow-through on resident complaints. We want to maintain that balance between
education and enforcement. Our ultimate goal isn't to be known for summons production. Our goal is safe, welcoming roadways. engineering, education, and yes, traffic enforcement each play a role in making that a reality.
Mayor and council, do you have any questions in regards to these reports or anything police related at all? No, I think we're good. Thank you, mayor. Thank you very much. Next up, we have a proclamation for Unity's 2025 communities of light. Uh,
let me read that. Whereas it is the policy of the municipality of Princeton to recognize organizations that have contributed to the overall benefit of the community. And whereas Unity, formerly Women's Space, founded in 1977,
has demonstrated a unique ability to provide comfort, support services, crisis intervention, and safety to women, men, and children who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault. Whereas unity and the belief that peace
begins at home has asked the Mercer County community to join them in their struggle against family violence by participating in their annual community of lights project. And whereas Unity has provided emergency shelter and secure locations and comprehensive services for
victims of domestic violence since 1977, sexual assault since 2002 for more than 130,24 women, 17,782 children, and 9,397 men. Additionally, Unity has assisted
more than 332,296 hotline callers over the last 48 years, 48 years. And whereas the municipality of Princeton commends Unity for their efforts to bring an end to the cycle of interpersonal violence imposed on women,
men, and children. And whereas as mayor of the municipality of Princeton, I urge that each and every household demonstrate their support of the concept that peace begins at home by placing luminaries along their driveways and sidewalks on Monday, October 27th, 2025
as a visible symbol of that support. And whereas the proceeds from communities of light 2025 will be used to fund vital services for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Now therefore be it proclaimed I, Mark Freda, mayor of
Princeton, municipality, mayor of municipality of Princeton and the council of Princeton, County of Mercer, state of New Jersey, do hereby proclaim October 27th, 2025 as Community of Lights Day. We will have a ceremony probably around 4:30, 5:00 here on the
plaza that day. And I believe that if anyone in the audience or listening or that watches the broadcast here, you could buy luminaries directly from Unity and that helps to provide them funds for all the great services they provide. Okay. Next up, we have an ordinance
introduction. That is ordinance 2516, an ordinance by the municipality of Princeton regulating parking and amending chapter 19 of the code of the Burrow of Princeton, New Jersey, 1974. The public hearing will be October 8th, 2025.
Is there a motion on that? Thank you, Brian. Leaden's got the second. That's a roll call vote. Mr. McDonald, yes. Miss Peron Lamrose, yes. Miss Frogga, yes. Mr. Nulan, yes.
Thank you. And just to remind people, I try to say this all the time, when we do an introduction, there's no discussion because there will be a public hearing at a at a later date. So, you don't want to start the public hearing the night you introduce it. That's not legal. So, that's why we don't discuss it. We just vote to introduce it. Next up are
resolutions. Resolution 25316, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton approving police promotions for 2025. And Captain, I believe we are approving your promotion to chief as of October
1st. This is a big one for me, sir. There we go. I just want to make sure we all know what we're doing. Uh Michelle had the motion and Leticia had the second. Questions, comments by anybody. Congratulations, Chief. Thank you very much. I really appreciate
the support of mayor and council. I'm incredibly humbled by this opportunity and I'm extremely excited to get to work. There you go. And just to make it formal, all in favor, please say I. I. I. Thank you. Resolution 25317,
resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton authorizing the mayor and clerk to accept federal agreement modification number two for Rosedale Road County Route 604 and General Johnson Drive intersection and pathway improvements federal project number TA-D006
PN435 PN/State job number 6500343 agreement number 201- DT- DLA-5 51. Brian's got the motion. Leticia had the
second. Questions or comments. All in favor, please say I. I. I. Resolution 25318, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton authorizing a professional services agreement with NV5 in an amount not to exceed 620,167.98 for final design services of the
Rosedale Road County Route 604 and General Johnson Road Intersection and Pathway Improvement Project. Leighton's got the motion. Brian's got the second. Questions or comments? All in favor, please say I. I. I. Uh, resolution 25319, resolution of the
mayor and council of Princeton authorizing the award of a bid contract to Sunset Creations for 2025 fall tree planting for an amount not to exceed $62,845. Michelle's got the motion. Leighton's got the second. Any questions
or comments? Michelle. Okay. I just want to make a comment and thank uh Taylor and the engineering department for um really prioritizing what looks like a lot of tree planting in the Witherspoon Jackson neighborhood when we did the uh tree canopy analysis
last year and I think um particularly uh Councilman you know Leighton Nulan had really highlighted the fact that there was a lot of um trees destroyed by disease and that there needed to be more shade. So, I just wanted to say thank you.
Okay. So, noted. No other comments. All in favor, please say I. I. I. I. Resolution 25320, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton authorizing the award of a professional services agreement to Remington and Vernick engineers for services to create and update sanitary sanitary sewer GIS
layers using existing digital drawing files and surveying for an amount not to exceed $12,330. Uh, Leighton's got the motion. Leticia's got the second. Questions or comments? Uh, Leon, you know, I just want to say when you
read through some of the information we read to it, it it's not very sexy, but you know, this is infrastructure. This is, you know, underneath the ground and I just want the general public to know that we we are doing work uh maintenance
work and spending money so that later we will be saving money. So, this is money well spent. Even though it's underground, you don't see it. Um, trust us when we tell you we're doing right by you with regard to our infrastructure. Thank you. Any other questions or comments?
All in favor, please say I. I. I. Resolution 25321, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton awarding a contract for extraordinary unspecifiable services to White Buffalo, Inc. uh for an amount not to exceed $183,167.90
for specialized deer management services. Brian's got the motion. Leighton's got the second. Questions or comments? Leon. Yeah, this this is important. Um I just want to share in particular with my colleagues.
Um, more and more I I have people coming to see me um on Wednesdays very disturbed and distressed. I'm looking at you, Trisha, because I know we've gone through this about uh the deer population. One lady said, "My god,
where are they going to go?" She said, "You're you're building, you have construction." And she said, "And now you know you you're killing them off." She said, "What's wrong with sterilization? Why not do this in a humane way, you know, and
I mean, you you read the uh information we were sent in our package and and the sharpshooters like clearly say like we're shooting them right in the middle of the brain or in the cervical spine in the back. I
mean just you know it when she said it to me I I listened to her but then when I started reading the package I was like you know so I guess my point is this there's nothing we can do about this. This is something that comes and emanates from the state of New Jersey.
But if you were in the sound of my voice and you care about the deer and the deer population and the expansiveness that we see, talk to your state legislators and ask them to give us the ability to do this to manage the deer population in a more humane way. Thank you.
Thanks, Lee. Any other questions or comments? All in favor, please say I. I. Resolution 25322, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton awarding a goods and services agreement to White Buffalo, Inc. to conduct a deer population survey for an amount not to
exceed $22,89760. Brian has the motion and Michelle has the second. Questions or comments. All in favor, please say I. I. Resolution 25323, resolution of the mayor and council of Princeton authorizing a rights of way
use agreement with SQF LLC. Is there a motion? Thank you, Leighton. Is there a second? Thank you, Brian. Um Jim or Deanna, I was trying to figure this out. So, we're agreeing that they can use I think the
Verizon system. Are they just putting things on? What are they putting on? What are they using? existing poles, adding poles or what's happening? This company is similar to Crown Castle. They erect poles and the equipment to
house the providers. They are not a provider of cell service. Um uh recently Verizon has decided not to continue to own their own poles. So, they're contracting with SQF and Crown Castle to
um have them put in the uh infrastructure that they can then have antennas on. So, this is just very similar, exactly similar to Crown Castle. Um this one in particular was already approved as a location um for
Verizon when Verizon decided to switch their business model and told us that they were going to use SQF to put the poll in. and we said, 'Well, you can't just do that. You need to have a right ofway agreement. SQF needs to have a right-of-way agreement with us so that
we can collect um get compensation for the use of our rightway from that organization. That's what this is about. Thank you. Any other questions or comments? All right. All in favor, please say I. I.
Next up is the consent agenda. There are 11 items on the consent agenda unless anybody needs them to come off. In block in block. Laticia moves them in block. Is there a second? Thank you, Brian. All in favor say I. I. Next up on the Thank you. Next up on the agenda is public comments for items not
on the agenda. If anybody in the room or on Zoom wants to talk about something that was not on tonight's agenda, now would be the time to raise a virtual hand, a real hand. All right. see Nomad rush to the microphone either virtually or in person. Uh would someone like to move
adjournment? Thank you, Michelle. Is there a second? Thank you, Brian. All in favor say I. I. We are done. Thank you all for attending. Have a great evening. Uh tell them about your leg. See you next time. in case they want to.