Charlotte Gregor Titus frish Mason proin Gabriella Vargo Gian Rodriguez Ava Kelly Laura Le TZ and Harper gardano flag of the United States of
America and to the Republic for stands [Applause] [Music] godice I have them I have here great [Applause] job public notice of this meeting
pursuant to the open public meetings act as we give on December 11th 2024 by the city clerk in the following manner posting written notice on the official bulletin board in lobby of City Hall providing written notice to the offices of the Daily Journal in the Press of Atlantic City and filing written notice in the office of the city clerk of the
city of Island chair on attain a motion that the minutes of the preting conference and the regular meeting of February 11th 2025 and the work session of February 18 2025 be approved as submitted B move
second any discussion by councel being none Dr Arthur yes Mr English yes Mr Gomez yes Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes I have resolution 2025-the adopted according to law move second any
discussion by councel see none Dr Arthur Mr English yes Mr Gomez yes Mr Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes Laura here yes come on up front and center you
come right right near Mr Petroski right here that's a great reason oh man how cute I'll read this uh commen resolution whereas Laura Gilroy began her career with the city of violand on August 4
1986 and whereas L say 886 84 Mr Petroski we have to make a correction whereas Laura has furthered the City Mission by providing valuable public service to the vinent community and
whereas Laura has earned the respect and confidence of her co-workers and employer throughout her many years of faithful service and whereas Laura Gilroy has earned a well deserved retirement city of isol in effect of March 1 2025 ending her Public Service
career in the Department of Finance as principal accountant now therefore be it resolved that the mayor and Council of the city of vient extend their sincer their thanks and appreciation to Laura for a career of loyal and meritorious service with best wishes for
many years of health and happiness congratulations [Applause] Laur would you like to make some
comments Laura the microphone is yours no thank you okay she's out I resolution 202-828-8303 Dr Arthur yes Mr English yes Mr Gomez yes Mr Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes is Armando
here he is not here uh a very similar resolution will uh is put into the record uh I'll give that to the deputy Clerk and he will make sure he gets it I have resolution number RMC ejd as municipal clerk of the city
of Island chair entertains a motion that resolution number 2025-the adopted according to law so move second discussion by councel big shoes to fill roll call Dr Arthur yes Mr English
yes Mr Gomez yes Mr Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes this time the Kirk will administer the Earth office to Mr franchett let's go over there you have family that you'd like to have come up I state your name I Richard PR ched
do solemnly swear do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States that I will support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the state of New Jersey and the constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in
the United States to the governments established in the United States and in this state and in this state under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I will faithfully and I will Faithfully impartially impartially performed and justly performed all the duties of the
office all the duties of the office as municipal clerk of the city of B of the municipal clerk of the city of B according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability so help me God so help
[Applause] me Rich you got to sign stuff yes congratulations congratulations I resolution 2025-the Maryann you'll be much more fun than Rich Roll Call Dr Arthur yes Mr English
yes Mr Gomez yes Mr Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes clerk will administer the Earth of office to maryan Wolf you can go up guys that's sure I state your name I youly swear swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States that I will support
the of the United States the Constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith and ALG to the will govern establish in the United States stes the
state under the authority of people perform all the duties of the office of the office asut municipal clerk as muner according to the best of my ability [Applause]
I have resolution 2020 5-85 a resolution recognizing Keith Petroski upon retiring from public service effective March 1 2025 John attain a motion that resolution number 20258 be adopted according to law move
second Council I have any comments I'll be fitting that he reads his last resolution to retire Keith you will be missed there is no doubt about that I will be calling you though if I have questions anybody
my fees are reasonable okay that's beur yes Mr English yes Mr Gomez yes Vargas yes Mr Spinelli yes Mr patoski will hand the meeting over to the municipal
clerk design Richard G fretta so the police have The Thin Blue Line and the firemen have The Thin Red Line flag and the clerk going way way back used to
use a quill to keep minutes this one doesn't work so much anymore it's kind of dried out but I am passing along this symbolic um symbol of the office of the municipal clerk to you rich and I thank
you for your professionalism I thank my whole staff over the course of my career for uh all of their tremendous support and the work that they we've done to make our office professional Maryann I wish you all the best as well to be the sidekick
to E I will read your resolution into the record at this time sure whereas Keith Petroski began his career with the city of Island on December 5th 1988 and work as Keith has furthered the city's Mission through his significant contributions and demonstrated
unwavering dedication and professionalism while upholding the highest standards of administration and whereas keth has earned the respect and confidence of his co-workers and employer through his 36 years of faithful service and has left a lasting impact inspiring those who have had the
privilege of working alongside him and whereas Keith Petroski has earned a well-deserved retirement from the city of irland effective March 1st 2025 ending his Public Service career in the city clerk's office as the city clerk now therefore be it resolved that the
mayor and Council of the city of V extend their sincere thanks and appreciation to Keith patoski for a career of loyal and meritorious service best wishes for many years of health and happiness and as a good friend Keith I wish you all the best good health and enjoy yourself thank you very much
appreciate it [Applause]
thank you congatulations oh once again um I'm just honored to hold this position for 36 plus well this position for 30 plus years I've been working for the city for over 36 years and I appreciate every person that crossed my
path and I uh I hope the citizens continue to be engaged as when issues come up you need to come here and let your elected officials know how you feel um for that that's said thank
[Applause] you you don't have to go Nowack on we're going to go with the public comment yes we'll open up with the public comment public comment provides an
opportunity for members of the public to inform the governing body about their views the governing body prescribes the city council's bylaws and the New Jersey statutes when open public meetings when engaging during public comment as such each individual shall have a five minute time limit the comment cannot yield time
to another individual may only approach the podium once during public comment for any one topic vulgar offensive language is prohibited and the city council will not engage in dialogue with the public during this time the governing body maintains model courtesy and respect and requires the members of
the public to do the same we have at this time before you go the general public comment uh you could speak on any topic that you like but if you're here for certain public hearing rather than be redundant and speak two different
times and Etc for expediency sake just hold your comments until the public hearing now the public hearing basically is used for the topic of the public hearing all right so therefore you have to stay on topic when you're there and
if there's redundancy uh we will ask you to please stop uh if there's constant redundancy on on issues uh that we've heard before over and over and over um and we have to stay on topic uh
that being said is there anyone who would like to step up to the podium for general public comment we have the first person that would speak is Georgette Shelton speaking generally good evening I just wanted to I was sick the last time I was here so I
just wanted to clarify some things um that we the South Jan Alliance and the board of directors understands that you are not banned Banning uh substance abuse treatment Mental Health Services and nonprofits you are however making them inaccessible and by moving them
anyone who needs these Services may not be able to get to them to prove to you that these services are vital to New Jersey's overall Community Health I wanted to make you aware that in a significant move to improve care delivery for individuals with opioid use
disorder the New Jersey state department of health health announced yesterday the is issuance of a rule waiver that will enhance access to opioid Treatment Services across the state this rule waiver which aligns State rules with
federal guidelines that apply to opioid treatment programs which includes methodone clinics will increase access to opioid treatment services in New Jersey reduce regulatory requirements on providers while maintaining the safe
provision of services and will ensure medications for opioid use disorder are provided in accordance with be best practices and Regulatory standards thank you thank you next up we have Jeffrey
Melina good evening city council um I live at 24.95 cavalo drive and having an issue with water intrusion on my property property um all the research I've done I've discovered there's a 20
foot easement there between the two properties 24.95 and 2485 10 foot on my property 10 foot on 2485 uh 2023 I replaced a fence after I replaced a fence there was water under
the fence fence company had to pull the fence out and the post holes was water um it looked like the water was seeping in from the neighbor's property so I contacted code enforcement and I really haven't had too much success asked Mr
barcy to forward an email to all the council members I hope he did that um currently I have a city engineer and the health department um working on the issue I would ask city council and city
solicitor to please uh cooperate with those gentlemen they're young they're very intelligent they've been very professional and very helpful up to this point um in the easement I have a fence on my side and a
pool that uh should have never been put in the ground by the city engineer uh that is butting up right to the easement on the other side there's two sheds uh Garden uh cyclone fenes and
irrigation so uh is the easement failing is the the sheds and the garden and the irrigation causing issues uh I don't know um I have a full-time job I'm being asked to do most of the work jump through a
lot of Hoops so I'm here tonight just to ask for help um I I just wanted to read something real quick that's off the violent uh website according to code enforcement and it states it's a proclamation that states the violent
code enforcement division is responsible for administering the city's Property Maintenance codes which have been enacted to ensure all structures premises and vacant land are maintained in a clean safe secure and sanitary manner by doing so blight conditions are
avoided and property values are enhanced which helps make violent a desirable place to live or maintain a business I would argue that that hasn't happened on my property since 1997 um so so I I would hope that
instead of excuses and um running away from the problem that that you know we try to solve it um you know I don't they say you can't fix stupid but I don't subscribe to that I think you have to remove stupid from the equation we have
to work together and and we have to think outside the box and we have to fix it I mean there's water coming on my property and you're asking me to figure out what kind of water where it's coming from I mean the the the development was built in n in the mid 90s and and the
grade the pitch from the development uh the high point is at the stop Street of poo and cavalo it all grades down so the the property of 2485 is higher than my property so you know there's codes on the books that can be enforced and and if you're enforcing them for some
properties you need to enforce them for all properties in my opinion it has to be fair in the city of Island you're allowed one shed for residential property it has to be six feet from the property line these two sheds aren't nowhere near six feet they're in the easement so uh I'm going to be changing
my shed when I change my shed I'm sure you're going to tell me I have to be a under you know how you going to do that when you when you have two sheds that aren't so uh you're creating problems for yourself and the other just one other thing I want to mention I know you changed your St stance on the sewer
project and I I just my opinion is that's a bad idea because every property on that street has leech Fields uh septic systems they're 30 years old um your health department U representative said that that's the lifespan of a sewer
system so it's a costly project to hook up to the city sewer it's costly to change out and build a new system so I think you're encouraging people on that street to maybe do their own engineering and redirect their gray water or their
storm water or even their sewer water and if that's coming on my property it's a health issue so please I'm asking for help I don't want to have to you know take legal action I want to work together if we can work together I would
greatly appreciate it all right that's all I really have to say thank you all right thank you very much have a good night thank you you too is there anyone else in the uh room that hasn't signed up to speak that want to speak
General General come on are you David yeah okay are you're speaking on ordinance 9 and 10 yes yeah there'll be a public public hearing for that all right with no one else no one else general public comment okay all right we'll close
general public comment portion thank you Mr President I present ordinance number 2025-the standards 425- 298 entitled I n-1 institutional Zone standards in
accordance with resolution 6667 of the city of Island planning board which is ready for a continued public hearing CH attend a motion that witness number 2025-the yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes this time uh the clerk do you
have uh sheets for those as well yes so speaking on ordinance number nine first up we have Sheila hand Sheila hand hi my name is Sheila my daughter Elizabeth died of
endocarditis yes oh uh I live in currently live in Bridgton my daughter Elizabeth died of endocarditis a bacterial infection of the heart and heart valves often caused by IV drug use in my daughter's case germs entered her bloodstream during IV
drug use from using unclean or in unsterile needles in December 2012 Elizabeth called me from a Florida hospital and said she had a life-threatening disease my dad and I flew down there Elizabeth had endocarditis and needed open heart surgery she was too weak for surgery she
was put on I IV antibiotics when she was strong enough the head cardiac surgeon performed open heart surgery and removed growths from around her heart and heart bels after six weeks of IB antibiotics she was released on a Tuesday Thursday in April Liz called me to chat not
mentioning anything was wrong the next day I got a call from a Florida Hospital a nurse told me Elizabeth had been admitted with endoc card itis and her blood work was incompatible with life several hours later her doctor called to tell me she would not survive she was
unconscious but comfortable that night at 1:30 a.m. I got a phone call from a nurse saying Elizabeth had just passed away I've told you Elizabeth's story because Elizabeth is a perfect example of a person who would have benefited
from a harm reduction Center in Florida where Elizabeth is living there were no Services programs Elizabeth reused needles and shared needles at some point Elizabeth contracted hepatitis C from sharing needles if Elizabeth had had
access to a syringe Services Program or harm reduction Center she might be alive today at a harm reduction syringe Services Program Elizabeth would have been able to get clean sterile needles she might have been able to access health services and treatment being
Irregular at a harm reduction syringe Services Program like South Jersey a Alliance brings connection to people who care and who understand with no judgment or shaming I'm going to read a quote from a
CDC report dated February 4th 2024 references for second are you we're talking about a zoning scenario here I'm trying to get to the point okay um I'm I'll I'll read the quote from the CDC syringe Services programs can benefit
commuting communities and public safely by reducing needl stick injuries and overdose deaths without increasing illegal injection of drugs or criminal activity to lose sjaa syringe service program would be a huge loss for bin
there would be more deaths of vent residents more death and more disease spread with unclean needles diseases such as hepatitis C and HIV many more over death overdose death since noox noran would no longer easily be available from the syring Services Program
if the sying if fj's program has to move due to zoning changes it's extremely questionable whether they will find a new location that will work for them and their clients the people who used to go to sja Center will have no safe place to meet where will they go where will they
be welcomed in a way that helps them see that if they want they can make positive changes in their lives change can happen when a person who has interactions with empathetic and non-judgmental people that's what harm reduction uction centers such as sjaa can do harm
reduction centers bring hopes to people who do not have much hope and guides them towards being healthier staying alive longer so there is more of a chance that positive change can happen no judgment no shame just caring and empathy to help make lives better thank
you thank you next up speaking on ordinance nine and 10 was is David antoy apologize for the pronunciation once again we would appreciate it for expediency sake we understand the benefits of farm
reduction we've heard it we know it we've researched it so we're not questioning that we're talking about zoning issues and where they're going to be allowed to do the practice of harm reduction within the city so please keep
your comments into that stationary area Hi how are you thank you oh my name is David I'm actually the landlord of sja a and marville they're both phenomenal tenants sir speaking to the mic because we really David ant there we go an a n t
e b i and you're the landlord sir yeah uh West Long Branch New Jersey West Long Branch right okay go ahead thank you so as you said I want to get off board I understand your stance on the
um the substance abuse and stuff like that but La two weeks ago after Miss Hicks gave some I guess wording regarding nonprofits and tying that into this whole zoning issue um if if I'm not misunderstood um so I spoke to Miss
Hicks afterwards and I believe that she's saying that no nonprofits are going to be allowed in this Zone if I'm not mistaken is that true that's not yeah go ahead brick is to be in in a B3 or an
IB Hospital Zone and so the could be different services that um be a nonprofit that doesn't provide a particular service they're permitted there what what type of services is not what type of nonprofit Services would it
could be an office I don't know I'm saying so so so office so my point is I'm saying if it's I I don't understand the language correctly but I would like nonprofits to be able to be in the area um similar if somebody's teaching basketball for money or teaching basketball not for
money the business a nonprofit and a business is the same intellectual but if you're telling me that they'll both be allowed there or they won't depends if they provide a service or if they're just in office Bo Scout has an office in in your building let's say they provide
basketball training or math tutoring I'm sorry let's say they provide math tutoring math tutoring math math math tutoring would they be allowed in the B2 Zone I don't know what that math math math M I thought you said mask
okay well that would be considered a service I the ordinance would be red is that would be if that's a nonprofit they would not be committed I think that's too General broad for the zoning issue um because a
nonprofit is a business hypothetically um nonprofit is really classification like an LLC or something like that so um that's really my only point is for nonprofits uh at tutoring service in B2
or not B2 for money or not for money I think it's the same thing only Point thank you okay thank you sir next up is Teresa Anderson my name is Teresa
Anderson my voice this is a little raspy um I'm here today to speak in opposition I'm sorry Middle Township I'm here to speak in opposition to ordinance 20
25-9 I want to make it very clear that after reading the proposed ordinance and hearing prior testimony of the city's professionals and others as well as a reading of the minutes of the city council and the planning board I
understand that the purpose of the amendment to the ordinance is to prohibit substance use counseling or treatment center from being located in the B2 Zone and allow these Zone uses to
be located within the B3 Zone and others essentially the ordinance proposes to exclude or isolate people with mental health issues including substance use section or from sections of the
city and I take note of the fact that the ordinance singles out substance use counseling or Treatment Center as being unsuitable and therefore prohibited from
the B2 Zone while at the same time continuing to allow uses such as adult bookstores and pawn shops to remain as permitted uses or
suitable no one has articulated specifically what it is about substance use counseling or Treatment Center that the city finds to be unsuitable to be embedded in neighborhood zones when the
people served by substance use and mental health and other services provided by as s Jaa and similar organizations are the very people who live in the neighboring residential [Music]
zones only a few people who've testified said the quiet part out loud you are not welcome here the proposed ordinance the services provided in terms of substance use counseling or treatments
benefit the residents of the city who are our neighbors friends mothers fathers sisters brothers and children as well as members of our community organizations including the
YMCA some if not many of whom have transportation issues and benefit benefit or will benefit from Services being located within close proximity to their residences including the B2
Zone I've had the opportunity to view the introd introductions of each of our council members some of whom have indicated that mental health is of of City
residences are is of utmost priority as as well as envisioning more inclusion within our society for all people the proposed changes of the Ordinance do not accomplish that I would therefore ask that you vote
no on the proposed ordinance since while it may not be intentional the concept in effect excludes shuns and isolates people with mental health and substance use and
thereby perpetuating stigma and I know that I did not put um put it on the little blue paper but um I don't know if uh 2025 is up but um if
that was adopted last two weeks ago or what but I do note that the text of that ordinance uses words as abuse alcoholics and drugs drug
addicts and these are heavily stigmatizing labeling terms and I would ask that the board consider using non-stigmatizing person first
language in a drafting that ordinance thank you for your time next up we have Stephanie Mazon Engle the other mic thank you Stephanie maon Engle um Newfield New
Jersey good evening respected members of the council and thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight I stand before you to encourage your reconsideration of ordinance 20259 which if passed will have a
detrimental impact on the mental health and overall well-being of the people of vinand as a school social worker in the Vinland public school district and the owner and clinical supervisor of the healing Den I've been providing
outpatient mental health therapy to vinin residents for over 20 years in one capacity or another when I received the letter two weeks ago I began to look into what exactly zones B3 and i1 had to offer me as a small
business owner and I am here to urge you to reconsider how you are classifying these Services if myself or some of my colleagues that are here tonight were to have to rent industrial spaces we would be out of business small private offices
do not bring in the volume of clients that could afford these spaces furthermore the plain truth is that B3 has very little to offer Us in terms of availability as well you will force us to shut down probably the most needed
service outside of traditional Medical Care in the entire County this move could have devastating consequences for the individuals and families who rely on these Services which are already stretched thin as you know Mental Health Services are one of
the most PR needs in our community every day we hear stories of people struggling with anxiety depression trauma and other debilitate debilitating conditions for many therapy is the lifeline they need
to heal we work with your children your parents and your spouses to help them grieve or figure out how to navigate the challenges that they experience in their day-to-day lives if you vote for this forced relocation it could potentially
eradicate these services in our area altogether our small business provides a safe welcoming environment for people to seek help and many of us are already in spaces that fit our clients needs perfectly spaces that are not found in
industrial zones or B3 districts by moving them to these zones we would create more barriers to access and ultimately harm the very people who depend on these Services I ask you to reconsider the Imp
in I'm sorry I ask you to reconsider the potential impact of this ordinance not just on the businesses but on the individuals who will lose access to the mental health support they need let us not make a decision today that could
cause harm to our community tomorrow I ask you to table this ordinance until a more objective plan can be made that can identify ways to keep these needed services in our community and accessible to
everyone I would also suggest that as City Representatives we make we be mindful of making statements like the ones that were made at the last meeting such as mental health services are not suitable for our neighborhoods and that it
creates negative impacts on the character of these areas this does contribute to the stigma of a growing problem thank you let me just clarify something for you I think you miss read the ordinance they're not they're not suggesting that these
Services go into an industrial Zone it's i1 Zone which is our Hospital medical Zone up on German Avenue and there around there not the not the industrial Zone um isn't the the area by uh the industrial park isn't
that conc considered i1 as well no not i1 i1 okay um still B3 is incredibly limiting I'm not arguing I just wanted to point you out that it was not the industrial Zone it's the in1 zone are we
aware um are there a lot of opportunities for office space for all of the places by the hospital I think if you go up all the medical providers and the offices up in the medical area you check for yourself yeah I I did and
there really isn't any so that is a concern thank you thank you next is Leanne Upshaw Dear honorable members of city council my name is speak to the mic please so we could hear you thank you um I'm from vinand um my name is
Leanne I'm obviously here uh to speak on ordinance 20259 um I a member of the community my children attend violin public schools are active participants in violin's Recreational Sports I also work at violin high school and as a social
worker and have a small mental health facility in the area um I'm deeply concerned about the city's attempt to re relocate the essential services this is not just about a space issue although that is a concern as well this is about access to critical mental
health care for some of the most vulnerable members of our community these small mental health practices provide a safe and stable environment for our most underserved community members we offer personalized care often forming long-term relationships with our
clients I've been working in the community for over 20 years in some capacity we aren't just service providers we are lifelines to individuals families and children who are struggling within our community forcing small practices to relocate with
no clear plan for where they will go or how clients will access care is disruptive and harmful displacing these Services would further widen the Gap in mental health care access pushing our community members um potential crisis situations
towards potential potential crisis situations that could have been prevented I urge you to think about the long-term effects of approving this ordinance which is the same one being used as a platform to keep our community safe but by doing this you're doing the
exact opposite for our members of our community thank you thank you very much next we have Carolyn Rush good evening and thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you my name is Carolyn rush and I am
from C city um I come come here tonight just to add my voice to the chorus of voices you have already heard um I give I believe it was Teresa a lot of credit for getting up here and explaining to you the situation that she dealt with
regarding her daughter it brings into very clear perspective how important the services are that are provided by sjaa um I have a late son who was also suffering from mental illness and substance abuse disorder um I know how
important it is to get the care that's needed for people that find themselves in these very um difficult situations and I agree with the other speakers who have said that it is um wrong to stigmatize to use the stigmatizing terms
that we have in the past that make the people that suffer from substance abuse disorder seem like criminals or outcasts or people that um have some sort of problem you know inherent in them
themselves and not really the disorder that it truly is um if sjaa has been providing a service to the people of vinin and those people have come to rely on that service it is important that that service remain available to them I
did read through the ordinances and I have to admit I didn't fully understand them but the gist that I get is that the outcome should these ordinances be passed is that the current facility will
be moved to the outskirts of the city um if I'm wrong I apologize for that but that's a very basic understanding that I have about what you're considering here tonight I think it's critical that the services remain where they are that the
people who need these Services continue to be able to access them and that we do everything that we can to keep those people alive the only way to help someone deal with a substance abuse disorder is if they're alive to help
once they've taken an overdose or contracted an illness that is is terminal because of their substance abuse disorder it may be too late so doing everything within
your power to help the most vulnerable Among Us is critical so others who spoke before me spoke much more eloquently but I implore you to listen to their voices as well as mine and and do what's best for your community thank you thank you
very much next up Bonnie panto hi uh my name is Bonnie panto and I do have a couple questions reside I reside in vinand I'm what did she
say we got three certified letters my question one of my get number one I'm against this but my question is for you when Stephanie maone was up here um thank you the certified letter says
permit newly defined service offices in B3 B4 IB and IND in in1 zones you said that it is not in the industrial zone am I correct that's correct but why did why is it
saying in the certified letter I think that what we had to notify everybody within whatever Zone might have been affected and there might have been an industrial Zone that was affected but the concept is to move them where the medical providers
are so then this certified letter is not right no that's that's not true the certified letter is sent saying that all of these zones might be affected in other words there may be so your word is might didn't let me finish but go ahe go ahead go
ahead what's your question you just said might be affected correct B1 Zone people in the B1 Zone were also notified because the law requires us to notify anybody that lives in any Zone effect
and I also got from you also that it kind of is the people this ordinance is where the hospitals you're trying to get it to where the hospitals the suggestion is that it be within the B3 Zone there's several B3 zones in the city of Island
the largest one is Dela drive and then the1 Zone which is the where the hospital is where all the medical offices are um my last question is um if this does pass um the the nonprofit businesses
that are in the um zones the B1 and the B2 are they going to be grandfathered they would be a pre pre-existing non conforming years correct so what is the purpose of this make sure that the proper location
for the uh uses are called out in our zoning ordinance no different and a gas station is not allowed in a residential Zone but they still stay they could if they're pre-existing not conforming I don't know how many there are but if they pre-exist um they can stay there
but new companies cannot thank you anyone else go ahead all right that's it Madam prosecutor go ahead good afternoon my name is Jennifer web McCrae I happen to be a lifelong prow
Jennifer raise the mic so we can pick it up good afternoon my name is Jennifer web McCrae I happen to be a proud lifelong resident of the city of Island I'm here as a resident but I'm also here in my capacity as the Cumberland County prosecutor I did receive the notice
about the zoning changes and um I understand that this may have started because people have concerns about the South Jersey Aid Alliance and the clean needle access I can tell you as a parent of a child a resident of violent parent
of a child that attended the why I call a y kid um who who attended preschool there as well as after school I do think that there could be legitimate concerns on behalf of parents as well as the why about that close proximity it's a hard
issue to tackle but I think that the public health aspects of clean needle as a of clean needle as access need to be discussed because there are benefits to it but what I would like to talk about
tonight is the fact that it seems to be an overreach to be addressing all mental health and all substance abuse use to add address that one issue Why Would a prosecutor's office be concerned about this issue why would I
be concerned in my professional capacity because for my entire 30-year career as a criminal defense attorney and then as a County prosecutor we've been addressing substance abuse issues untreated substance abuse issues
untreated me mental health issues that get kicked down the Continuum to the criminal justice system thankfully for all of us as the opioid abuse issue became more prevalent and the substance abuse issues started affecting middle
class class individuals and not just poor people we become Kinder and gentler about the way we treat these issues we all have members of our family that deal with mental health and deal with substance abuse there are brothers there
are sisters there are parents there are childrens and we all want them to be treated with dignity and respect and most importantly if you have had the ill Fortune as I have had to deal with someone who has to address their mental
health and their substance abuse issues you want to be able to find access to treatment and you want to be able to find that access to treatment where folks can get get to it we in Cumberland County suffer from Transportation issues
we suffer from poverty and people need to be able to access access those Services by bus by walking and it needs to be affordable so I as a resident took a brief look at where the B1 B2 zones
were it appears to me and you can correct me if I'm wrong that that's our Center City area I can tell you that that area aligns with the hot spots that we see for both substance abuse arrests as well as our cause for EDP services in
the City of Violence so that says to me if that is the area where people are suffering that is the area where we need to build both substance abuse recovery Capital as well as mental health treatment capital in our community and
that's why I'm here tonight talking about this very difficult issue now if you moved these types of facilities to the ey End Zone that will be where I live I live right by the hospital and I'm here to tell you we already have those
treatment centers over in that area um I have to resist the urge to say the nimi uh urge to say not in my backyard because everybody has to get to these services so they are there by our count
we think there's about 14 mental health and substance abuse treatment centers in this community I am asking you to slow down I'm asking continue to use precision and not throw the baby out with the bath butter and simply take
your time to make sure that you're not zoning these types of facilities out of the areas where the most people need those Services thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight thank you very much that
it okay we'll move on we'll close the public CH I'll entertain a mo u a motion at the public hearing on ordinance number 2025 D9 be contined to Tuesday March 11th 2025 at 5:30
p.m. second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes solicitor I'm sorry that's I was trying to get that's
your key you're the solicitor right um I just wanted to make an an announcement that uh we had a little bit of a hiccup last uh council meeting uh due to the inclement weather prediction for last Tuesday on the 10th uh the city
council determined to be in the best for the safety of all who wish to comment on the proposed legislation to allow public comment in person and electronically after the public hearing on proposed ordinance 202-9251 and adopted it it was later
learned that members of the public had appeared electronically but were're inadvertently not recognized and therefore we're not given the proper opportunity to comment on ordinance 2025-the and and again consider uh its merits to adopt or defeat the ordinance
chair I attain a motion to reconsider ordinance number 2025 d10 and reopen the public hearing second any discussion by Council seeing none back Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes yes president
spelli yes I present ordinance number 20251 ordinance amending ordinance 996-4021 -270 entitled word usage definitions to clarify the term office and substance
abuse counseling or treatment center and to consider other types of offices as defined terms in accordance with resolution 6667 of the city of violent planning board which is ready for reconsideration and a reopen public hearing count a
motion that ordinance number 2025 DT be taken up for public hearing over to public for discussion second Dr Arthur yes Council English yes councilman Gomez yes Council Vargas yes president spelli yes you have a list for that as well I
have Carolyn Rush who spoke on nine do you wish to speak on 10 as well you wrote that down no i' have no one yes ma'am on this yes absolutely again my name is Teresa Anderson and I'm
from Middle Township and I um I had mentioned in my earlier uh addressing of the council that the proposed ordinance refers to certain words um they use certain terms
and things like that that have been determined to be stigmatizing one is um it refers to substance abuse the word abuse is a stigmatizing word and um actually the correct term is
substance use or substance use disorder secondly the ordinance later refers to recovering alcoholics alcoholics is is a labeling stigmatizing ter term the correct term for that would be a person with an
alcohol use disorder I hear that alcohol use disorder and drug addicts was another term that they had used and um all of the um you know all of the
literature regarding stigmatizing terms and things like that you can find that probably within um the State Department of Health and Sam which is the substance um abuse and um Mental Health Association for for the
United States but in any event they um they recommend person first language so it would be a person W who you know with a substance use disorder um but technically person first
languages you know so that was the purpose for my addressing the council right now but I think that there were three T troubling terms that the ordinance refers to and I would ask that the that the board
um use different terms within the definition thank you thank you very much anyone else yes ma'am Stephanie Missouri angle uh Newfield New Jersey I I just want to um I don't have anything prepared but please be conscientious when you're
looking at the definitions of um the different offices that you know uh depending on the the wording um it can really I I mean when how do I say this like when we talk about mental health offices we in my office we work with
little children you know and it seems like some of the definitions that we're talking about tonight are um big agencies that are providing harm reduction and um you know different different um services that maybe we want
closer to the hospital per se and things like that but we also have strategically placed some of these professional offices in places um where kids like high school students can be um find them accessible so I just
think that using language that is all-encompassing may also be um detrimental to how this continues to move forward I hope that makes sense um just think that we really need to look at
definitions before making any firm decisions thank you thank you General T a motion the public hearing on ordinance number 202-10 be continued Tuesday March 11th 202 5 5:30 p.m. move second Dr Arthur
yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes I present ordinance number 202-10 ordinance amending excuse me 12 ordinance number 2025 D2 ordinance
authorizing the execution of a contract and other documents necessary for the acquisition of block 122 Lot 1 and block 122 lot 3 which is ready for public hearing chair entertains a motion that ordinance number 20252 be taken up for a
public hearing open the public for discussion second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes is there anyone in the audience who likes to be
heard on ordinance number 20252 seeing no one chair attain a motion that public hearing onance number 20252 be closed so move second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes
president spelli yes chair entertains a motion and witness number 20 25-12 be taken up for final reading and adopted according to law discussion by Council seeing none Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez
yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes ordinance number 2025 D12 ordinance authorizing the execution of a contract and other documents necessary for the acquisition of block 122 Lot 1 and block 122 L3 with a vote of five y
this ordinance is hereby adopted Mr franch ched police submit ordinance number 20 25-12 to the mayor for his approval of this approval yes I present ordinance number 2025-the the transfer of certain industrial property to the violent
industrial commission pursuant to njsa 4A colon 12-3 and improving the sale of set industrial property by violent industrial commission pursuant to njsa 40 5 B-1 at SEC which is ready for a public hearing
CH entertains a motion and number 202-31 in the audience who would like to be heard on ordinance number 20 25-13 none chair entertain a motion to public hearing on wi number 2025 D13 be closed second Dr Arthur yes councilman
English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas president spelli yes chair entertains a motion in ordinance number 20253 be taken up for final reading and adopted according to law second discussion by councel seeing
none Dr Arthur yes coun English yes counc Gomez yes counc Vargas yes president Spinelli yes ordinance number 20 25-13 ordinance authorizing the transfer of certain industrial property to the violent industrial commission pursuant to njsa 4A colon 12-13 and approving the
sale of set industrial property by vinin industrial commission pursuant to njsa 40 colon 55 B-1 at SEC with a vote of 5 y this ordinance is hereby adopted Gran Chat is police submit ordinance number 2025 -3 to the mayor for his approval or
disapproval yes I present an ordinance number 20254 in ordinance to amend and supplement ordinance number eight which establish the classification and compensation plans for the city of Island various titles of the ibe W Local 210 unit 1 unit 2 unit 3 non-union 2
non-union 3 and appointed officials which is ready for a public hearing CH rains a motion in ordinance number 20 25-14 be taken up for public hearing open to the public for discussion second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez
yes coun Vargas yes president Spinelli yes is there anyone in the audience who like to be heard on ordinance number 20254 seeing none chair entertains a motion that the public hearing on ordance number 20 25-14 be closed so move second Dr Arthur
yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes chair entertains a motion in ordinance number 202- 14 be taken up for final reading and adopted according to law so move second discussion by
Council a none Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes ordinance number 20 25-14 an ordinance to amend and supplement ordinance number 8 which establish the classification and compensation plans
for the city of Island various titles of IBEW Local 210 unit 1 unit 2 unit 3 non-union 2 non-union 3 and appointed officials with a vote of five y this ordinance is hereby adopted Mr Fran CH please submit ordinance number 20 25-14
to the mayor for his approval or disapproval yes thank you present ordinance number 2025-the chair entertains a motion on ordinance number 20 25-15 be taken off for public hearing open to the public for
discussion second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman SP or excuse me councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes is there anyone in the audience who wish to be heard on ordinance number 20255 no one chair entertains a motion
public hearing on ordinance number 20255 be closed second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes chairain Motion in ordinance number 20255 be taken up for final reading adopted
according to law second discussion by Council seeing none Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president spelli yes ordinance number 20255 an ordinance to amend and supplement
ordinance number 8 which establish the classification compensation plans for the city of Island tenative title local government 10103 with a vote of 5 y this ordinance is hereby adopted Mr Fran ched please submit ordinance number 20 25-15 to the mayor for his approval of
disapproval yes thank you I present ordinance number 20256 which is ready for a first reading Chan entertains a motion and ordinance number 20256 be taken up for first reading still move second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez
yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes ordinance number 20256 an ordinance to amend and supplement ordinance number 8 which is Revis the classification of compensation plans for the city of Island public defender Chan obtains a motion that ordinance number 202- 16 be passed for
first reading the public hearing be held on Tuesday March 11 2025 at 5:30 p.m. move second discussion by Council seeing none Dr Arthur yes Council in English yes councilman Gomez yes Council Vargas
president Spinelli yes I present ordinance number 20257 which is ready for a first reading to entertains motion and ordinance number 2025 17 be taken up for first reading move second Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman
Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes ordinance number 20257 an ordinance to amend and supplement ordinance number eight which establish the classification and compensation plans for the city of violent V police captains Association CH entertains a motion in ordinance number
20257 be passed for first reading that a public hearing be held on Tuesday March 11th 2025 at 5:30 p.m. move second discussion by Council seeing none Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez
yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes I present ordinance number 20258 which is ready for first reading entertains motion on wance number 20 25-18 be passed for first reading that a
public well no we're not that far n you got to read the uhin rich introduction so that you're uh opening yeah an ordinance to amend and supplement ordinance number eight which establish the classification compensation plans for the city violent violent Superior
Officers Association the vsoa t entertains a motion that ordinance number 20258 be passed for first reading that public hearing be held on Tuesday March 11th 2025 at 5:30 p.m. so move second
discussion by Council seeing none Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Finelli yes there's a motion to approve all the consent items on the agenda we do have a
resolution here um for the Red Cross um so I'm just going to read the resolution into the record whereas during the American Red Cross month in March we recognize the compassion of people in violent and reaffirm our commitment to care for one another in times of Crisis whereas its generous
spirit is woven into the fabric of our community and advances the humanitarian Legacy of the American Red Cross founder Clara Barton one of the most honored women in our country's history who notably dedicated herself to ating suffering and whereas today kind-hearted individuals in our community exemplify
Barton's commitment as they step up through the American Red Cross New Jersey region to provide a Beacon of Hope for our neighbors in need whereas through our invol their voluntary and selfless contributions they make a life-saving difference in people's Darkest Hours whether it's delivering
shelter food and comfort during disasters providing critical blood donations for hospital patients supporting military families veterans and caregivers through the unique challenges of service saving lives with first aid CPR and other skills for delivering Aid and reconnecting loved
ones separated by global crisis now therefore be resolved that mayor and City Council of the city of viand New Jersey commend the American Red Cross and designate March 2025 as American Red Cross month and encourage all citizens to reach out and support its
humanitarian Mission Liz I'll give this to you to give to people on the Red Cross motion approve General motion to approve all items on the consent agenda second Dr Arthur yes councilman
English yes councilman Gomez yes councilman Vargas yes president Spinelli yes this time council members wish to be heard Dr Arthur yes thank you for the uh resolution for the Red Cross and I would just add that I am working with the Red
Cross to do a blood drive for Cle cell anemia uh patients that we have a shortage of blood for the black community which is normally the ones that are suffering from that disease so uh from in the month of March I will be
working with someone from uh C Caitlyn rather from the Red Cross to uh come up with some locations to do blood drive so if anybody knows of them for anyone contact me or uh the Red Cross we'll be working on that great
thanks I want to thank the students that came up and um did the Pledge of Legions today thank you okay orgus yes I like to also uh thank the pway safety control for coming out like always we really have fun for the
school members I also like to congratulate all the retirees well deserved i' also like to congratulate uh Richard franchetta and marann wolf on their new assignments good luck with
everything againu for you sir we we truly know you will handle it well thank you thank you hey buddy how are you uh yes I got some good stuff um I wrote down what do I have here I first congratulations
Maryann and Rich uh Keith I I've known Keith a long time um 36 plus years but we go way back to when I was a high school football player he would come out there and volunteer his time um just really the consument professional when I watch him up there we got sworn in a couple weeks back and everybody's
reading off the sheet not that man and said he brings his a game every day and you've got some big shoes to fill as um Al said here as well um Laura I've known Laura pretty much all my life too from the high school days we're talking 40 years she said wow it's pretty impressive um and then Armando I do know
Armando as well so you know I wish them all the best of luck in their retir IR hopefully someday I'll get there and um what do we have here also Public Service Announcement um for my good friend Carlos Marcado I got to pull this up here uh what do I have here please I
share this with everyone the city of violin will host an Irish flag raising ceremonial Monday March 3rd on the steps of City Hall 640 East Wood Street Vinland New Jersey beginning at 11:00 a.m. this year's keynote speaker will be NJ fnba president Ed Donnelly and he
just encourages everyone to please come out and support um the president and um everyone during the ceremony uh finally what do I have finally the people that came out from the public um I I I pretty much they covered anywhere they didn't cover in South Jersey um they came from
all over um I do appreciate getting educated on um subjects like this and I do take the time to do the research and I I also um feel the um the door should swing both ways that they should educate
themselves as well um we are all up here trying to do what is best for our city here in vinand and trust me um when we say we we need to go back and do the work the work is being done trust me I see the way these people work um we will
come up with the best solution as I believe violent always does so um remember there are two sides to every story and we will do what is best for this city moving forward thank you thank you all right president's remarks real
quick Bobby just do me a favor in uh the caval drive situation we take care of it please talk to elen and see what's going on and maybe get back to uh the gentleman who here and let him know what's happening uh and again it's great that
everybody comes out and and voices their opinion we're glad to see people come out do these things um just be very aware that we we understand the issues uh we have researched the issues despite what a lot of people think we haven't um
but we also are up here to uh look at what's best for everybody in the city of irland um there is no doubt uh you know I'm in up and down the Avenue and all over town I travel uh I'm retired and and I travel the city I know Al does the
same thing uh Cruz I know does the same thing I know doc does the same thing so we're all over we see what's going on and where it's at and where it's not uh we will do our best uh the prosecutor did say one thing you're between a rock and a hard place
and we know that so we are going to do what we think is best for the majority of the people in the city of irland and uh the one misconception that continues to come up constantly is that we're trying to close them that is not the case at all we're just trying to put
them where we think is the right spot for it and the i in zone which we have talked about here numerous times near the hospital there is public transportation so you can get there there's buses all right um there's Cumberland County buses that go all over
the place and it is a medical area and there are tons of Open Spaces in those uh condo units that are on Sherman Avenue now nobody's trying to kick the AIDS Alliance out or anybody else out of where they're presently
existing what does happen in a zone change if it does change is they can stay because they're a pre-existing which the solicitor said but they cannot expand their physical presence nor the services that they provide so uh if they want to
expand then they would have to move that's up to them how they want to how they want to deal with a situation uh we have done the research on zoning and where these things belong and don't belong we've also seen uh a lot of places uh that have had harm reduction
centers and that quite frankly downtown was closed and if anybody wants to look at it you can just look up Kensington Pennsylvania all right and it it's a nightmare and we don't want that to happen here so we are going to look at
all the information not just one side we we will look at their side we have already and we have to look at the other side as well and we have to figure it out and we will figure it out and um every one of us up here takes it very seriously uh the administration takes it
very seriously we probably spent more hours doing this stuff than than we've done on almost anything we've done and we've done some pretty big projects environment so that being said uh I don't want people to think that we just blow it off it doesn't happen that way
we do do the homework I'm in City Hall every day and I don't make six digits by any means in fact I'm lucky to make double digits so the reality check on it is we're here as a community service I spend more time here than I did on my
full-time job when I was making over $100,000 a year I'm retired I love violent I've lived here my whole life and I want I want what is best for the entire city and that's when how we will make our decisions so thank you very
much we appreciate the input and we will consider it all and uh we will move forward chain a motion to adjourn the meeting Dr Arthur yes councilman English yes councilman Gomez yes C