##VIDEO ID:dKhKvu3iB00## one minute warning what who's coming we have uh the peeee team yeah finally I knew they didn't make January I um well I'll put on my report Dr klopp is retiring after 50 years of the practice in yop and many years on the board of health I think about a dozen of them as uh president is that the dog shooter that's our vet who does the rabies clinic does the rabies clinic also yes so I wanted I want to talk to you guys about doing a proclamation for him be good yeah he took over for I forget and I can't remember the BET name he took over for but that that's great the guy he took over for was like a horon cow doctor he was a livestock doctor more than a dog and cat doctor we also have to remember Doug we said we bring him back right right yes okay well we'll talk about that okay that's seven Rudy just so you know okay that's a good one Matt thanks Matt the um 7 p.m. work session thanks Rog work session uh Tuesday um January 21st 7.m work session of the White cour Township committee is now in session Lo call please miss buganski Mr lanee uh here present Mr Madigan here Mr melon here and mayor boa here one this regular work session meeting of the wof township committee is now in session in accordance with the open public meetings act notice of this meeting appears on our annual schedule of meetings a copy of said annual schedule has been posted on the bulletin board in Memorial Town Hall a copy has been filed with the municipal clerk and has been posted on our Municipal website and a copy has been emailed to the record The Ridgewood news and the north Jersey Harald news all newspapers having a general circulation throughout the township of wof at least 48 hours prior to this meeting the agenda thereof was similarly posted filed and emailed to said newspapers thank you Nancy can we confirm that the uh finance committee has reviewed and signed vouchers they have okay I'll take a motion to open the work session for 10 minutes public comment Period 2 minutes per speaker so moved second Mr Lane I Mr Madigan yes Mr melon yes and mayor B uh yes with an affirmative vote the motion is approved okay we have a 10-minute public comment period at this point two minutes per speaker for public comment on any governmental issue that a member of the public feels may be of concern to the residents of the township of wof if you have a comment please step forward to the microphone if you wish to make a comment uh there being none make a motion to close the public session second thank you Mr Lane hi Mr Madigan uh yes Mr Malon yes and mayor B yes with an informative vote the motion is approved thank you Matt a review of the 8 PM business agenda sure uh several resolutions uh two contract Awards uh on the agenda uh having to deal with tax appeals um we have four resolutions uh that we are reestablishing or reopt as part of our application for sustainable Jersey they are the Green Team uh the Green Building policy the land use Pledge and the green lighting policy uh resolution authorizing the purchase of a Chevy Tahoe uh through the hgac cooperative for the police department a uh resolution authorizing our shared service agreement continued shared service agreement with the county of Bergen for our employee assistance program uh resolution 77 authorizes an extension uh which is permitted by the director uh and local Finance Board of our budget process dates this previously was not a requirement it's a new requirement from the state in order to use the extended dates that they provide you have to pass a resolution uh used to be you just got that extension automatically 78 is a budget transfer for the 2024 budget year um our professional service award for our uh Municipal financial advisor and our continuing disclosure agent and finally a resolution authorizing the submission of the 2025 local Recreation Improvement Grant and this is for the rehabilitation of baseball fields at Community Park uh there's one motion which will be read to the record at the 8:00 pm meeting and that's all I have with regard to the agenda uh moving on to some administrative items uh just a reminder that our new listening uh assisted listening devices have been installed in this room to better serve those with hearing impairments anyone in need of these devices should reach out to the municipal clerk uh there's also signage at the door uh that has been posted uh we are awaiting a start date for the town hall roof replacement unfortunately the cold weather and the winds over the past two weeks have pushed back our anticipated start date um once I have a revised schedule I will be advising you U but once start Ed there saying that the substantial part of the job is 3 weeks the finance committee is diligently preparing uh for the 2025 Municipal budget we met again this morning uh finalizing our Capital requests uh to facilitate the early February passing of the funding ordinances we hope to introduce the 2025 Capital at our next meeting our first quarter GIF safety meeting will be h on February 25th uh I want to thank uh welcome three new and new new or newer employees to the township who uh recently started in the recent months and weeks first we have Courtney dosen who's an administrative assistant in the municipal clerk's office we have Mia portello who is uh a new technical assistant in the building department and we have EJ ller our new Fire official and I just want to welcome them all aboard uh we have received our final order for revaluation for the 2025 tax year here from the bur County Board of Taxation we are preparing to uh by putting together our necessary requests for proposals and working with our vendors to ensure the tax maps are up to date and more will be discussed on this in our future meetings uh the last day to schedule a bul collection pickup for January 30th is this Friday a reminder that first quarter tax bills and first half sore bills are due February 1st and finally many projects we have many projects underway uh and we have many project projects also in the planning stages these include work on plans for renovation to the police department Road resurfacing document retention uh Centennial celebrations are annual fireworks uh the required and necessary code updates that are needed uh closing out existing grants applying for some new ones but more details on all of these projects will be forthcoming individually and then finally uh there are some updates on affordable housing but I'm going to defer to the attorney on that thank you Matt question I ask a question sure Matt could you just clarify for all of us for the record the uh revaluation that the county has come back after originally notifying us and US ask it to push it back a year and where we are now I kind of know where it is but just for the public record so we did send a request to the county tax board asking we received preliminary notice that we were going to have a 2027 revaluation uh we've we politely asked the County Tax Board to move it to tax year 2028 as you know we're in transition uh between tax assessors right now um and also with regard to updating our tax maps and transitioning uh to a u GIS system for that um initially the wording that we got was shouldn't be a problem don't worry about it and then uh Thursday or Friday last week we received the signed order from the tax board from their June 8th meeting uh that was then January 8th or June January 8th sorry January 8th meeting that was then subsequently approved by the acting director of The Division of Taxation at the State uh saying that we do still have a 2027 revaluation so uh it will it takes some time to just gear up administratively before we even start so you know all the work really has to the evaluation work really has to be done by October 1st 2026 and probably about a year so we we need to to to we need to get moving um so unless we hear otherwise and we're still going to try some administrative uh Pathways to get it moved to 2028 but we are preparing anyway because anything we prepare now even if we get moved to 2028 will need to be done anyway so what's the approximate cost of a reevaluation that the Count's mandating the do so average number is about $100 per line item say we roughly have 6,500 line items so just the revalu the basic revaluation part would cost us 650 650,000 650,000 we probably need about another 100,000 uh in an independent appraiser to help us evaluate our 4A properties those are our commercial properties uh that's outside of the revaluation company and and then I would say we probably have about 25 to $30,000 worth of tax map work that has to get updated uh to help us move over to the new system um so all in all we're probably going to be somewhere around 800,000 which is a burden to our taxpayers even though correct there's a mechanism to pay for it but our taxpayers have to come up with $800,000 correct so the county gets an updated revaluation they did 10 years ago correct okay thank you while we're on the subject um was it pointed out at all to the to the tax board that from Strictly an inconvenience um standpoint that 2026 is our Centennial year and it's going to be we're going to be occupied tremendously with that is is it worth pointing that out it could be worth pointing that out um I would have thought that the transition between tax assessors and the I agree but and the surveyor yeah would have been the would have been our help um we can always try um I'm not really sure how it's going you know where it's going to go um Dave and I are still trying to discuss our options for appealing this okay again you know we're not looking you know we we we discussed this openly I think three or four months ago right or or two or three months ago we're not looking to say we're not doing it we're just asking for a onee post one year extension right yeah which I think is reasonable in light of a number of factors exactly so we should try it again and put as many factors on it as we who makes the determination M so it's a recommendation from the county tax administrator to the county tax board right the County Tax Board ultimately votes on it if I recall correctly there's five members on the County Tax Board and I saw there was only three signatures on the resolution so I assume they only had three members at their meeting who who the the count the county tax administrator who who does that person report to the county tax board okay and that's that that board is appointed by the governor by the governor so that's the Govern comes out of the governor's office all right so while they call it the Bergen County Board of Taxation and they actually have Bergen County letterhead they are officially a state they are really a state board great thank you thanks anyone else questions no no uh M I may not have heard it did you mention the addition to of our new member um for the shade tree commission I did not all right so we Nancy you want to we have a new member we have a late motion to appoint um UD cukin to our shade um our shade tree commission and uh Roger and I interviewed her today so okay so we'll add that as motion B to the agenda yeah I have it I just you don't have your new copy sorry we have all the paperwor he has everyone has sorry I was looking at the the previous copy of the agenda that's what I thought I brought up thank you uh Township committee Roger you want to start can I go last R if you don't mind sure last or next to last last last go last last I'll go whatever the end Pete all right thank you man um how was your trip by the way it was good it was great it was great yeah I have a welcome backc back thank you thank you I have a uh brief report um before I left we um myself um Rudy and Matt attended the uh WF ambulance dinner at the uh Brownstone it was a great dinner and just want to congratulate all the new officers for 2025 and uh speaking of Centennial that's going to be kicking off next week the uh first meeting there's a lot of work to be done so it's going to be get a little bit of the framework and then uh we'll go from there with input from Township committee other boards and uh and other uh residents of the town and that's all I have tonight that was brief yeah Tom GL you went first because that was brief you didn't have to wait for me to go through by lit me welcome back uh a couple things uh last Monday I was at the the rec board meeting uh which we had over at the library they were very accommodating to us we had a full uh all the members were there including three new M members who were in attendance uh many routine matters everybody caught up people got sworn in we reaffirmed some of our codes of conducts and other necessary for the uh wck board and then uh we had a presentation and discussion on baseball particularly uh the teams in grades 5 to six which uh was just a very preliminary discussion even though it went on for quite a while they also attended the senior lunch last week many were in attendance it was a good meeting they probably had almost 50 people there people were very enthusiastic glad to be there and uh it was a good positive meeting uh Rudy and I uh attended father Steven's official 25th anniversary mass and celebration uh on January 11th the church was packed the service was phenomenal his remarks were spot on and they had a very nice reception in the gym afterwards that um everybody seemed to enjoy so again congratulations father Steven it was a great event uh let me see here one two three four okay I attended the Chamber of Commerce meeting this morning along with uh the mayor and uh a police chief and our two lieutenants it's a good meeting it's a big meeting there a lot of people there administrator was also there and um they swore in their board of directors a lot of enthusiasm a lot of cold people were happy to be inside at Blue Moon for the meeting thank you Howe Felix BR for hosting and uh kept everybody warm it's a very very good meeting we're fortunate we got very vibrant chro Commerce and um I just also wanted to note um over the weekend Joey fukko in town who's a senior at rampo High School uh he's he's the Bergen County champion in the 144 weight division so that was quite an achievement for him and uh he dethroned the previous champion at that position so want to congratulate uh him and then finally uh Pete and I uh had a uh Finance update meeting this morning we reviewed as Matt put up mentioned some of the capital items particularly focused on the police and the fire department this morning so more more to follow that's it thank you thank you so Rie you want to go last last yeah please thank you all right okay so as Pete mentioned uh he and I attended the Ambulance Corp um reorganization dinner annual dinner at the um at The Brownstone and Patterson and enjoyed the usual Sumptuous cocktail and and or derve hour which is on over the top they always do it over the top it was a very nice event I swear in the new officers and um and as Pete said it was a very a very cordial um nice event um on the eth I attended a planning board which was kind of a nothing Burger we um May was there as well we memorialized uh two resolutions one Everett Street office that's the old house on the corner of Everett and um and Highland that's going to be behind Aldos that's going to be um renovated um we memorialized the Ridgewood water Cedar Hill Avenue treatment plant and we carried the application for completeness review of um the Cedar Hill a shopping center by Route 208 so it wasn't much to do um as Tom mentioned on the 11th he and I attended father step vector's 25th anniversary mass at St Elizabeth's it was a very moving and uplifting um uh service which was really very enjoyable and very good and very crowded good for father Steven on the 12th I attended the Northwest Bergen mayor's meeting in Ramsay at a restaurant and Ramsey and uh the primary discussion there were other things discussed but um Center on affordable housing and the lawsuit that Montvale is in the lead on and participation in that I I think that's going to gather steam as we go uh we elected officers the president is Mayor Tom jordano from Waldwick vice president is Mayor Dedra Dillan from Ramsey and the uh Treasurer is Arman far F dallash can't pronounce it sorry from Upper Saddle River um on the 15th I attended a library board meeting um which was uh a good meeting um nothing spectacular the the real news was 24 2024 circulation for the first time has exceeded pre pandemic levels so that's good they do a great job at the library and uh as Tom mentioned today I attended the chamber he and I attended the Chamber of Commerce meeting with Matt and chief Murphy and lieutenants uh KAC and stto and it was a good meeting um I talked a little bit about um our upcoming Centennial which we're working on and Pete just alluded to and and um I talked about a little bit about the uh affordable housing numbers that we're looking at in the fourth round and uh but it was it was a good meeting well attended and uh I think that's all I have Roger okay thank and thank you Rudy for uh for letting do at this point now you can talk as long as you like well oh easy there oh Nancy this you see can't get any respect all right okay firstly uh I had the uh the pleasure of attending the Ramapo Indian Hills School Board uh Rog meeting uh we had an opportunity to have a uh a board president but uh that motion failed uh we do have a board vice president from woff uh and the rest of the riog took its course uh under the Department of Public Works we completed the Christmas tree pickup today uh so that's all done uh the snow removal in the past storm we just had went extremely well and we continue to do pothole repairs uh under historic preservation uh I attended my first meeting as the liaison and uh we resolved an issue of an improvement that's going to happen to the old Brownstone which is right on the corner uh right off right down the road here so it's going to look a lot better than it uh does now okay uh on the fire department I attended uh two department meetings uh one with was uh a a course on uh saving people that may fall into the Ice uh it was really you know it doesn't happen a lot but when it does you know we're there to to save people's lives they uh have specific equipment and all of our our folks are trained as to exactly what to do so that they don't get dragged into the ice as well it's uh it was very interesting to see exactly what the process was uh under Parks uh the budget for the count count is finally approved and the money is in the line item uh $940,000 for the environmental uh uh park off Crescent AV for those improvements which uh I would I venture to say 940,000 should be uh a decent number to see some uh visibly visible improvements uh as Pete alluded to and you briefly alluded to I I mentioned the uh Centennial coming up at the fire department because the qu whiteoff fire department actually preceded uh us being the uh Township of whiteoff so uh they'll be obviously I asked them for any ideas thoughts and any uh historical information that they may have I also did the same at uh with Andy uh cban at the whiteoff reform church which is the oldest uh Church in town and uh you know there's if anybody has any thoughts or ideas as to some events that they think what may be appropriate uh please let myself repeat know and we'll get that on the agenda to discuss as we uh we move forward with all the activities now lastly uh I mentioned January 1st that the uh the elves didn't do a job well enough and getting something that I had uh ordered for uh former mayor mó so the elves finally came through and uh I have a little presentation I'd like to make to you Matt if you could just uh like we talked about I got this for you stay there we can stand over there so uh this is from Kathy and I it's a it's a a little token of our appreciation for the fine job that you did on behalf of the citizens of white thank you Kathy here it is thank you very much you got it okay than you're very welcome you're very welcome thank you uh there is a story because I I got the idea it basically it's a badge that says mayor uh the New Jersey seal wof New Jersey Pete melion and I checked the spelling of his last name at least seven times but years ago you used to be able to order a badge that was a a police size uh badge uh if you recall there was a woman that flashed a badge from on the Palisade Interstate Parkway don't you know who I am and she's trying to defend her daughter and she's absolutely horrific to the police officers well the fact that she did that and she was not a police officer or a fire department personnel the state legislature passed a law that you cannot no longer if you're a mayor or Township committee or anything like that can't have the larger badge but they came up with a what they call a mini badge it it is attractive they still fit my name on it so what they still fit my name on it that's right I thought oh my God my heart just skipped a beat I thought I thought you were going to tell me there we misspelled it but as long as sounded like not as long as one you push a button and it pronounces and well that's it sir still can't pronounce those you got to get um no one that introduced me last year could either so yeah he was he was uh you know he was called Pat Mone one me I don't know how and and then how do you how do you all up Pete right so in any EV congrat ulations and you did a great job and a little token you're very you're very welcome thank you Rudy with that my remarks are done thank you Ro good job yeah thanks you reminded me of something now I I neglected to thank our plow Crews for yesterday morning they did a very good job very good the um I was out early and the town streets were really in good shape tu8 was in good shape the county roads were in good shape but not as good so don't get angry I forgot one thing my wife said before I came here she goes are those two lovely ladies going to be there tonight it's cold I said I will bet you that they're there so I'm she's GNA be here for 8 o'clock so she'll see you thank you Rudy all right Dave yes uh let me address our affordable housing um where we're at we're kind of following two tracks we've got the fourth round at the wonderful state has uh demanded that we come up with Our obligation number so next week the 29th we're have a special meeting to pass a resolution as to that number uh if you may recall the DCA came up with a number of 387 but Beth mcmanis our affordable housing planner believe she can get that number down Matt and I were on the meeting with her I guess a week or so ago and then each of us have talked to her since so hopefully we'll get something or we will by at least by the end of the week and that number should be down but we do have to pass a resolution uh we had hoped through some of our litigation that was probably hope is probably the best way to say it might have gotten a stay uh those uh efforts for the most part have failed at the motion level in the litigation I'll get in the litigation in a minute though there is a hearing on the 23rd this Thursday we're another order to show cause on the rules asking for a stay I don't think that's going to happen so we're going to have to go ahead and pass that resolution and then we need to file that within 48 Hours of that approval or at least at the latest by the 31st so um that's what we're going to do next week um the litigation itself mayor had mentioned um obviously being led by Mont Vil uh their mayor as well as Mike Collins who they retained to do that uh just so you know where we're at um we filed the fifth amending complaint because we've added some other counts to it as well as we have 27 municipalities that have joined in on this litigation um as of today uh we did file some motions to try to have it stayed or at least having the pause in filing this obligation uh those efforts at least at the initial stage were not successful and again I don't think we were're that confident would work but we needed to do it anyway I think a lot of this is getting out there the word out in the public that we're U basically objecting to this fourth round the way it's being done the rules that are set and that's what this order show on Thursday is really objecting to how the some of these rules were done by the administrative director of the courts and the housing uh and mortgage Finance Agency they've kind of there hasn't even been public comments on it they've just come up with the rules uh so that's what that motions about let me just go through um our the counts that are in our complaint I I know some of this I've passed on to you and I did uh drop off the press release that went out last week we uh regarding the litigation but just to kind of tell you the counts that are there uh we're asking for our first count saying that the terms of round four uh exceed the requirements of the general welfare Clause uh and whether they are consistent with uh Mount Laurel's constitutionally uh we're also arguing that's an unfunded local mandate fails judicial review under the 14th Amendment equal protection fails judicial review under the Equal protection analysis under the general welfare Clause of our state constitution uh judicial review of legislation and Zoning violation of Separation Powers that's a big one because you have agencies that are setting rules that aren't even the judges nor the legislature they're just basically delegating it out of there so that's probably one of the strongest arguments we have that these rules are just coming from a non elected body nor even the courts uh invalid ointment process that kind of goes to the rule process uh invalid appointment of retired judges not on recall and the reason for that is that they're not bound by some of the ethical rules so they could be working for some of the agencies such as fair housing or for uh some of the planning agencies that we don't know about because they're not under the ethical rules and that's another one that counts in our complaint um again the unconstitutional rulle making which is going to be argued on Thursday uncons delegation to the uh administrative director and un unconstitutional illegal rulemaking by the hmfa which is mentioned in the press release so that Fifth Amendment complaint has been filed um we're in it for the long Hall at least the municipalities that want to stay in this thing and I think it's good on many levels just to continue to get the word out Statewide and as Mike Collins our lead counsil point out it's really not just a matter of fourth round this is something that's going to be we're going to be living with at least through 10 years on this round and even further so it's something that we really have to take Serious not just okay we'll come up with the 387 or whatever less and we're done with this thing it's not going to be done um this has continued on and it's you know as you know it's been going on for decades now and I don't think it's solved any problems about housing in the state so um I think it's good that we joined in on this and I think it is gaining some steam at least getting some more press out there and I think you know even in treaten as they see the pressure I think it's good politically as people start to hear more about it question uh it's along the lines of what you just stated is there a concerted effort to get more Jo uh towns to join this effort I I think so I mean I can't say that you know I it's been discussed on some of the meetings that we've had but I think the idea we're hoping to have more as it's people hear more about that the litigation because every time that's that's why we filed these we a fifth am minute complaint because a few more municipalities have jumped in on it the one thing that could be discouraging to some is that well you've filed some motions and they weren't successful but a lot of the Motions are necessary to get to the next stage yeah even to the Supreme Court which you know we may end up being it at some time down the road but that's we have to do that really to set you know kind of create the case and to create a file and uh in this so some of that may have discouraged some others from joining in but every time we kind of have a meeting of the attorneys there's another municipality or two that jump on yeah it'd be great to get a hundred absolutely well I mean you know the Supreme Court was where this decision came out of so right yeah where was this meeting on the I'm sorry where was this meeting on the 23rd what is that process the court the the uh Superior Court here there'll be a zoom meeting um I can probably send you a link to it so anybody can actually listen in and watch it so oh good and then once you go to that meeting and you bring these things up it takes x amount of time for them to get back to you or well like the order to show cause asking the judge to to stay back you know there was an argument on December 20th and he came up with his written decision he said it was going to be by the end of the year came out like on the first or second a written opinion on it so I mean these things are voluminous briefings so I mean I've got you know couple uh bankers boxes in my office just of all the already the motions and pleadings and so forth in this but again we're not even at the stage of actually looking at any the substantive counts that I just said this was all motion practice so far so we haven't even gotten the subst of issues um are most of the towns that are with the Su now Bergen County counts um yeah Bergen couple pic um and a couple from all over yeah have we have we been sent a list of the towns I can I can say could you do that be interested to know show cover of one of maybe our level we could you know absolutely I mean what you'll see is it's mostly Suburban towns similar to ours they're the ones that got hit the hardest with the numbers of course you know the urban towns aren't in there because some of them had like nothing sure and some of the areas up in the highlands or you know the um down pands they didn't get hit very hard either so you can imagine who jumped in first you know I know this is contrary but you would think that an urban community would want that because there's the most need for it well I mean it just it's just this is part of the the issue when you look at the fourth round they Ed some of the the philosophy that was back when they first the first melt Laurel one and two and the problem is that was when you saw big migration out of our urban areas but you're starting to see some of it coming back in and they're using some of the same philosophy how they're coming up with the numbers to your point Roger that they haven't necessarily gotten up to speed on that you know Jersey City and uh nework and some of these other areas there's kind of a migration back hobok and like some of those areas in Hudson County that in the 70s people were moving out of now they're moving back in but they're not toally exactly so that and that's not being totally uh put into this whole calculation it's a good argument for that okay um now for a meeting date we had um I had sent out next Thursday to what's that the 28th 29th 29th no you were away I don't know if you got that it's Wednesday wnes I'm sorry Wednesday I'm sorry Wednesday Wednesday to 29th Wednesday to 29th you're okay with that okay so and and may had responded that she's okay we just need a time well you wanted at time wanted after six o'clock yeah I'm good anytime 6 on I prefer not before 6 so 6 7 o' about I'm I'm good with six six work at six yeah I don't problem long I may I may have to join remote I just don't know we're we're we're figuring on that okay yeah we're figuring on that okay so um Dave Matt 6 okay that's fine yeah okay there six o'clock on Wednesday the 299th okay okay all right thank you Dave thank you anything else for the work session take a motion to adjourn so moved second am I missing something here uh hold on Mr L have to close right we're we have no nothing else Mr Lan I Mr Madigan yes Mr melon yes and mayor bua yes with an affirmative vote we are adour okay all right be back in uh 23 minutes it is got a man B Je