##VIDEO ID:jxb67glGNYM## e e e e e this meeting has been held in conformance for the Sunshine Law notice of time date in place has been furnished to the Bergen record in the Ridgewood news notice has also been posted on the bulletin board of the administration building with the Clark County please take the role mayor Gano here uh Mr Drake here Mr martinello here Mr Rondo here Mr Richie here Mrs Weber here andone kindly rise for the Pledge of Allegiance pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation God indivisible liy and justice for all let us have a moment of silence for our world veterans and all veterans across the country who have given the ultimate sacrifice to keep us free so we could assemble the way we ought tonight also let us keep in our prayers those lives that were lost in uh Los Angeles and also all those homes that were uh ragly destroyed by the fire the clerk please do a prayer dear Lord grant us your wisdom and freedom let this meeting be conducive to Unity and fairness May our actions reflect our agenda that assists our Burrow's needs not our personal goals and needs in his name amen okay good evening everyone under my report just a couple of items uh last week I performed a wedding for two residents or two out of our B residents who needed someone to marry them so we opened up our buildings to them on the on a Saturday so that they could be so they could be married also um May's Association has started their new year uh we are in the process of of setting up uh all different uh days in which we're going to meet instead of meeting on Saturday we might meet on a day during the week and also the agenda of what we're going to be talking about also I uh had a phone call with the Board of Ed president about they'll be setting up a meeting very soon to talk about safety he asked for people on uh from the council to be part of a committee uh the committee was set up it was announced at our reorg meeting and once they have their committee set up for the new year uh he will let us know and then we will have a uh a meeting with them to see what they're looking for from us and how we could accommodate each other that's all I have to report financial and administrative committee councilman Richie thank you Mr Mayor good evening everyone the finance committee met uh this evening prior to the prior to the meeting we we just kind of revised or reviewed last year's budget um talked about some very high level items no decisions were made but we will have our first first formal budget meeting with the entire Council on the 28th it's prior to the council meeting at at 6:30 so look forward to getting that process kicked off and getting our 2025 budget underway that's my report this evening thank you mayor thank you fire police protection committee Mr bren's not here but at the last meeting he told me that he will be speaking with the uh the police department the fire department to talk to them about uh their budgets and what they're looking for for the year 2025 Public Safety Committee councilwoman sahola Drake Thank You mayor wal resp or walak responded to 38 total calls for the month of December one being Mutual Aid Ashley studo responded to the most calls at 24 April trainer responded to 19 and Lucas nostos at 13 about 33% of the runs were on Sundays and 24% on Saturdays the majority of the runs were for Falls for 82% of all runs a unit arrived on scene in under 5 minutes finally I'd like to congratulate the 2025 officers that were sworn in at our last meeting One More Time Captain Adrien deadski second Lieutenant Ashley studo president Lucas Soros first lieutenant Morgan Hoffman secretary mateline bonitz and Treasurer Frank pelino thank you thank you Recreation and health committee councilman monello thank you Mr Mayor uh from the health side we had uh for December we're seeing an increase in covid-19 positivity percentage also flu rates were increasing and an increase in RSV um to high also noticed that there a lot of uh NE virus going around with a lot of the kids in school so uh please practice good hygiene to keep that on on the low side there um also reminder we have our child health clinic every third Wednesday in December we saw two children with six vaccines being administered um also in December there were three retail establishments that were inspected with one complaint being reviewed uh byal statistics there were one marriage application four marriage licenses issued thank you 10 deaths recorded there's also a Board of Health meeting this Thursday 7:30 at the Prospect Street Office of the Northwest B Health um on the recreation side uh wbsa baseball and softball Association has open their registration you can have uh registrations on WWI baseball. sport engine.com it's also a link on our town website we have registration open for prek through 8th grade and uh also our sponsorship Drive is open right now for teams and Banners and we're happy to announce that in 2025 the annual wbsa golf outing is returning for the first time in many years now we look forward to a great event there um also from wrestling they had their first annual uh JJ Gil shimer um tournament they hosted at walwick high school was over 200 wrestlers um participated was a great fundraising day for um the organization and thankful for all the support from the town and from the school district board um also Highlands lacrosse is open no registration which includes residents from Waldwick from boys and girls 2nd through 8th grade also um for tonight on the agenda there is a line item f for request from Warriors football club for um field use at Veterans Park we're going to pull that tonight as we have further discussion on that um before we vote on on it that's it thank you Mr Mayor thank you very much Public Works committee councilman rundo yes Mr Mayor thank you um spoke with superintendent Lor uh regarding some of the updates uh for the recent uh three storms basically uh those only required uh sanding uh and salting the roads uh they were on top of it I think when most residents woke up that morning the roadways were clear um did give me some updates regarding some of the watermain valve uh replac on malcol street that was completed uh another valve replaced on well number four uh the water departments be evaluating addition Val and replacing as needed uh also with the cold weather they're catching up on a lot of the Interior work that needs to be done on some of the buildings and they're just making all the fixes here and there uh that's all Mr there thank you thank you very much building and grounds committee councilman Weber thank you Mr Mayor um we have a couple we have some work ongoing in a few of our buildings um at um Company 2 we had a heating system that had to be replaced um in this building here we're going to be working on the fire suppression and also in the public safety building as well with the fire suppression um we'll be doing some um maintenance as far as checking and looking into some other items be sure that everything is uh up to stuff and that's all I have thank you thank you Alber administrator thank you Mr Mayor um a couple updates stes we have a water main installation and replacement work project that's starting up on Sheridan a between Bergen and Waldwick a uh this Friday so you'll see some activity over there um after they finish Sheridan they're going to um jump over to Hemlock and Evergreen to do the same over there um basically the work is we have some deadend water main Loops so they're going to Loop them in together to keep flow going nicely um which should help some of the issues we're experiencing um this notice um on that upcoming waterwork was posted to the water department page which is where we hope to provide some additional Communications on some of the discoloration um issues we continue to experience we are working on that we're actually working with a new water consultant um who's preparing you know uh a comprehensive report for us that we could start to share out we're hoping to have that ready to go this week sometime that will also be posted on the website along with um you know it at least bi-weekly updates on the website that we'll continue to share out just to keep everyone you know updated on any progress with that situation um in keeping with water the pasas litigation uh I know has come up we did receive a recent update this week um which was basically just to let us know there's a couple other uh claims that were approved I believe if the attorney wants to jump in at any point to but um also the update is that the settlement administrator continues to review everything and there is no update beyond that we don't have a solid timeline or amounts uh announced yet so just to touch base on that so as you know there were two companies that had settled claims a while back and we've submitted all our documentation on there's been two more companies that recently the court has approved there were some objections to those but the court recently approved the settlements on for those two companies as well so all the documentation that we submitted for the first award we'll transfer over to the SEC for to this new one to give more funding hopefully and uh once that claim period opens we'll submit everything and work with the Consultants to make sure everything's submitted so that we can hopefully get a a decent award from those companies as well and I believe the timeline they're saying hopefully by the end of February uh we should have the first for the first settlement uh end of February so we'll say we'll continue to update as we get numbers and that's all I have thank you m thank you aloro Clerk thank you mayor I probably the most important thing is that the 2025 calendar is posted online now and they will be mailed to um all Property Owners within the next meet within the next week uh the calendars are now 13mon calendars so they run from January of 2025 and it'll run through January of 2026 just like this one ran January of 2024 through January of 2025 um we did that so that we would cut down on the calls but that didn't work completely but hopefully now people will understand that the calendars are 13 months and that you know they will get it will be mailed it's just going to be a little delayed because you've got that whole month there uh also want to thank Tatiana for desting and Melissa for copying uh the mayor and council tonight um at your place for some handouts uh we're going to try to we're going to do this um probably once a month just to let you know what's going on especially if there's something you know really pertinent so you'll find these at your place we just did this time the January 2025 calendar um waste disposal um that's the schedule for the year and then we have uh this really great handy flyer uh on garbage and recycling reminders that um we have out and we also have it posted but we thought you all might want a copy of that um I'm we are working on dog licensing right now Melissa is doing a phenomenal job keeping up with that um and we are I am adjusting now to the the new uh June primary primary has been moved to June uh June 10th now so we're just working on getting the uh the dates that are going to change so I can get that to get that out um so everybody knows when they need to register and get vote by mail ballots um so that will be coming out soon that's all I have thank you thank you Alber attorney uh thank you mayor uh Steve covered the P litigation um we do have two items for Clos session under contract negotiations but other than that Mr Mayor there's no further report thank you thank you very much cons resolutions and resolutions of the governing body resolve that the following resolutions here with listed by can stand having to be considered by the governing body of The Bu of walck are hereby passed and approved with the removal of policy vote F 2025 51 approval of consent policy votes a Wald Lions Club requests permission to use the pool parking lot for overflow parking on April 19th from 5: to 10: p.m. B Waldwick Middle School PSO request use the municial pool on June 18th 2025 from 1: to 4:00 p.m. for the 8th grade promotional party uh promotion party with lifeguards requested C Nancy Estelle request to use a vilona on June 24th from 12: to dusk for a wedding with alcoholic beverages being served D mark Adell request to use Pavilion B on July 19th from 1: p.m. to DUS for a gathering with alcoholic beverages being served e Bal pistol and rifle CB request use civilian a on September 7th 2025 from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. for their annual picnic with alcoholic beverages being served 2025 52 authorized advertisement and receipt of bids for improvements to Schuler Avenue 2025 53 award a contract for the animal control services to Tao animal control in the amount of $ 13, $200 22554 authorized renewal of group Dental benefit program for eligible employees and their covered dependents through Delta Dental of New Jersey uh Inc 2025 55 adoption of the 2025 Council manual 2025 56 extending the 2025 budget uh introduction and adop adoption dates do I have a motion in a second to accept motion by uh councilwoman sad Dr I got that right and uh councilman Richie anyone to have a question on this if not with the clerk please take the role Miss sahri yes Mr martinello yes Mr randoo yes Mr Richie yes Mrs Weber yes okay we have no public hearing we have no introduction of ordinances anyone have any unfinished business on the council any new business on the council yes thank you Mr Mayor just want to a quick report I attended the uh Board of Education reorganization meeting earlier this month and uh just a report on the new officers uh Dan Maro was reelected president and tro cord is Vice President of the Board of Education uh we had a brief meeting uh the count the board of education had a brief meeting talk about their uh plans for this year and uh look forward to working with them um R of the Year thank you thank you um anyone else uh everyone received an email from me about uh you know speak to your committee so that you could set up an appointment with them to talk about 2025 uh after you do that just drop me a line let me know that you did like I asked you and also maybe every once in a while I know Katie speaks with our her group all the time but you know just touch base with them every couple of months just to see how they're doing if they're happy uh that's all I have anyone else um publish comments anybody from the public would like to comment please come to the microphone please state your name for the record okay good evening everybody I am Joanne Mitchell thank you for the update Mr Mayor on the water situation I have a question about my other favorite topic and that's the bus station is it possible more if you noticed I did notice that yes sir administrator will fill you in thank you uh yes thank you so we cleaned it up uh finally we've been in touch with just about everyone uh dot Transit short way on on the whole deal um we have I met with PD out there um and DPW to discuss a new location since it's gotten hit there a couple times in the past few years so we actually found a good spot um we checked with Dot and transit to see if we could relocate it they said they don't really have an issue with it as long as it's you know located along the highway so we are actually planning to move it closer to the overpass there the walkway um it's a little more protected and tucked in and not at the end of that you know offramp where we think people are just launching coming off 17 and just going straight through it um so that's where we're at right now so we cleaned it up um it's going to remain that as it is right now kind of through the winter and then through throughout we're going to start um planning and putting together a budget to relocate it for those of us who use that on a regular basis will we know where it is before it goes in and will there be pedestrian access yes um actually I think the way we have it laid out there's there's better pedestrian access it's going to be a little safer you'd probably cross at the the end of uh East Prospect there there is a crosswalk I believe I'm trying to picture it in my mind right now instead of having to go down and then cross over kind of like three lanes of traffic over there how you would now so we actually we feel it is a lot safer um to access and a lot safer actually waiting there for the bus to that's great news we'll we'll provide more once we have a solid plan in place um and we are planning to uh beef up the Ballard situation and really make some heavy duty footings there to protect it better too not only the bus station but it would appear that the area where the current bus station has been hit if I remember correctly three times is there any discussion about perhaps putting a jersey barrier on that side of the exit to prevent people from just flying right across that um that one has not been discussed we discussed it once before when the first time the second time it was hit and what they did was they um when you come off the exit they made like the road a little bit different like the design of it or the shape of it or like it was a little rough but when we asked them to do that they said no but we could ask again given that it's been hit a third time after they turned down the jersey barrier perhaps we could persuade the do to reconsider their evaluation I agree with you 100% but you know the do unfortunately I do I I would like to thank whoever decided to make the burrow calendar a 13-month calendar when I flipped the page that was a lovely surprise thank you g welcome and on the water if I may go back to that subject do we we expect to actually have that update this week I know where I'm in my area of town just down the road from traphagen there is a lot of discussion about the water quality I will say that I have not one but more than one bottle of water sample on my counter an analyzing this not uh the way I used to but as a white paper analysis and it comes in various color gradients so we are very interested in the results of this investigation is that Mr Mayor possibility to have firmly this week we can work on that yeah I I feel pretty confident we'll have it by the end of the week is there anything that can be shared with us this time not much beyond that um I we really want to try and do this strategically and not get any mixed messages so I don't I don't want to provide anything now that we don't have firmly from our our consultant yet perfectly understandable and I look forward to it thank you Mr Mayor thank you so you know cuz I know you're very concerned about the world like everybody else is at the reog meeting we did talk about another uh group of people coming in to take care of everything for us and we do have a committee set up and at the meeting I said that we will bring in a a resident of the burough will be on this committee so we did reach out the administrator reached out on my behalf to the resident and the resident accepted to be on the committee that's great news thank you so much have a good evening thank you for your time oh thank you anyone else even Bruce Mitchell uh my issue and question is pertains to Traffic Safety and particularly the uh what was discussed a few months ago about having some sort of signage uh on Prospect Street and over by prent what is the status of that okay uh thank you be um yeah we actually just received our second blinking crosswalk today or yesterday yeah it was delivered um yeah today so we had one previously one got delivered today so we're actually hoping if the weather continues to cooperate um DPW is hoping to get one of those sets installed on Crescent um I within the next month or two um that's kind of the first one we want to tackle and then thir the second one will go in front of the library here on East Prospect um we did also order this an additional speed feedback sign to replace the one that's out right now on East Prospect um so hopefully that'll be coming in soon that was already placed and uh we are looking at additional stop signs still um along noming Center trying to work through that with our engineering firm that did the previous traffic study and then just additional kind of more mobile uh speed feedback signs too that we could start to just move about town could we possibly look into the possibility of having not just a traditional stop sign but a stop sign with lights that flash like Ridgewood has uh all the stop signs in the world make no difference as you know yourself people fly right through whether it's a red light a green light stop sign they're going to ignore and go right through uh the other night I was driving down Prospect Street past nordom and I was driving 25 mil an hour as you're supposed to and two cars right past me uh and kept on going just kept on flying you never see police down there uh there's never any effort to control it from my perspective and my fear is eventually someone's going to get hit like the student that got hit over by by Crescent and I really don't want to see us wait until that happens I remember years ago there was a an accident on a Prospect Street in which a child was hit and I believe was killed this goes back several decades ago can we get this fixed before we have a fatality yeah and we have been working on that we actually did um propose some stop sign locations in that area with our our traffic engineer and there is a whole process for stop sign so it's we can't just decide we want to throw stop sign up on this corner you know it has to be backed by an engineering report a traffic study changing the ordinance um so they they didn't really warrant the stop signs at the locations that we selected at the time so we do want to revisit that because it has come up a couple more times uh maybe we could tweak things a bit and try and get something in but we are working through that respectfully a stop sign isn't going to solve the problem yeah understand so is there police presence that could be placed on the bottom a prospect we we try and put police out as much as possible for enforc especially traffic issues and they do try and make passes they try and focus around the schools specifically um but as we all know they they get called out to other calls frequently that that take priority unfortunately I completely agree with you and understand maybe we could put a car out there with nobody in it like everybody else does in other towns yeah it's an option we could try and be creative and and come up with some different solution thank you thank you anyone else if not uh do I have a motion to go into close motion by Mark second by Joe all those in favor all those opposed there will be no action after the close session