e e than you I call to order I open the Bernards Township committee meeting for April 9th 2024 please stand for the flag salute flag United States of America and rep it stands God indivisible andice I'll read the opening meeting uh statement adequate notice of this meeting was posted on the bulletin board in the municipal building one call your way Basking Ridge on the township website an email to the Bernardsville news whiy The Courier News Bridgewater tap into to.net patch.com and filed with the Township Clerk on December 18th 2023 any motion to go into close session will include those matters discussed at such closed session will be disclosed to the public when such matters are finally determined and there is no further reason to prohibit the public from disclosure of information relating to such matters the meeting rules adopted by Township committee no new business will be introduced after 10:30 p.m. public comment will be accepted at all meetings speakers will be limited to five meetings each five minutes each all meetings will adjourn no later than 11:30 p.m. Christie roll call please Mr bman here miss DTE McCarthy here M Fields here Mr MCN here mayor Acy here chrisy do we have an executive session this evening none this evening mayor great then that brings us to presentations um the first presentation that we're going to do is for the Ridge High School girls swim team resolution 224-1 185 recognizing Ridge High girl swim team 2024 group a New Jersey state champions and North 2A section title Champions I'd like to read um some of the elements of the resolution and then we on the de will speak to we will vote and then we will invite the coach to come up and read each of the girls' names for their recognition so we are Beyond excited to acknowledge this historic team for joining us tonight thank you for making the time some of the important parts of this resolution include the fact that they are not only the 2024 group a New Jersey state champions but also the north 2A sectional title Champions this swim team competed in the 2023 2024 season the team exhibited tremendous teamwork flexibility Ingenuity under the coach's leadership and whereas the Ridge High School girls swim 2023 2024 has won the group a New Jersey state championship and count Somerset County and North 2A sectional title Championship Bernard toship is extremely proud to be the Ridge High School girl swim team's Hometown and wishes to recognize and honor them in their accomplishments this are some of the elements of this resolution and each of the young women's names are listed as well as the coaches I'd like to see if anyone on the Das would like to make any comments please sure I'll start hi I'm Anna dwarte McCarthy so we were talking about you at my breakfast table this morning my husband was a Ridge High School graduate and he said well why are they being recognized my soccer team was Runners up to Central Jersey and I said they are state champions so well done congrat congratulations all those hours and hours and hours of practice the frustrations the achievement and the teamwork and the individual success it all comes together so we couldn't be prouder of you you are such wonderful ambassadors of this community and just really happy to see you here tonight and to present you with this resolution so congratulations so I'd like to say congratulate I'd like to say congratulations to each and every one of you it's quite an accomplishment winning the states and may you continue to swim through life successfully and I also want to thank your parents I know all the hours not personally but I've heard many stories of the many hours that you've spent at the pool and your coaches who have supported you none of us got anywhere without support and help from other people so thank you to your coaches and thank you to your parents and congratulations again congratulations team um we know you don't experience this type of success without the dedication and commitment to your craft to your sport um you guys didn't just have a great season you had a perfect season um and that's extraordinarily rare we come to expect great things from Ridge High School we come to expect great things from our our our our kids here in Bernard's Township but this is just the ultimate achievement it's absolutely outstanding um I looked at the roster of of of teammates you have swimming among you and I did not notice a concentration in any one class so it looked to me like we've got a club that has a good mix of freshmen sophomores Juniors coach you haven't built a winning season you've built a program and you should be extraordinarily proud of that because the program will not just Inspire the the young girls in the current team but girls girls to come behind them to join in future years uh it looks like you're building quite the Legacy for for for Ridge Athletics uh and it's just a pleasure to see so thank you for continuing the tradition of Excellence at Ridge High School uh ladies here's to a perfect season you guys deserve [Music] it I can't say it any better than my colleagues but I'm consistently amazed about um the achievements that the students at Ridge are able to do and this girls swim team is no exception so I too would like to congratulate the parents coaches family members and of course the athletes themselves for this tremendous achievement hats off to you thank you and I will close out comments um I want to speak on a little bit of a personal level I recognize some um amazing athletes um my children have swam in the Pleasant Valley swim team so everyone knows that that's maybe a fun thing to do um but you know it was so much fun to watch many of you swim over the last few years and it's it's not just about the swimming but um many of these young women are really great people how they interact and Inspire um some of the young children on the deck and and teach them important things is really important your you know you're creating you've got your team here um but you are influencing the younger children and I'm just speaking about it from my children and and they're excited to swim in the Pleasant Valley swim team again and I see some of our former leaders of the PBP swim team here so guys it takes a village um many of you especially the seniors you've been swiving over a decade this didn't happen by accident you have spent years in the pool all year round so tremendous commitment um tremendous congratulations I I understand some of you have the opportunity to continue to swim which is wonderful in a competitive area for the rest of you many of you do what many of us parents want we just want our kids to know how to swim for safety reasons so you can do this for fun or Club teams or or whatever but just please know that you've done amazing things you've done something that no other Ridge swim team had ever done no one will ever forget you for that um but you've done it with Grace um and you have a tremendous amount to be a proud of and your parents again thank you for all that you've done to enable these women to achieve and obviously the coaches the hours that you put into over the years tremendous congratulations coach would you mind coming up and I'll let you read the names and ladies you can come up when your name is called and we'll stand in front and we'll take a photo um good evening everyone thank you so much to the mayor and the Town Council for having us tonight and thank you to the parents who have joined us and all of our swimmers who came tonight and made the time um I obviously couldn't say it better than those behind me did we have amazing group of girls I would just add be beyond their talent in the pool they are amazing humans they are incredible student athletes but also Scholars um at school they take their academics very seriously many continuing on to wonderful programs in college we have a many volunteers on the swim team that give a lot of time to and dedicate to the community as well so I want to make sure we honor that and it it hasn't gone past me that this is one of the last times this particular group right will be all together so enjoy it and for our seniors who are graduating make sure you come back and visit and support the team because we are truly building a program and it takes this is a team that I won't you know forget no one will forget we're the only the fifth team in all of Ridge Athletics that have had an undefeated season and won the state championship it's an amazing accomplishment so when you hear your name if you can come up stand behind me so we can recognize the girls uh first up Julia beverini Victoria doat probably down there make aine Amelia Ellis Jenny Gal heon uh Charlie Gary Kieran goth Caitlyn feroli Olivia gal Beth Higgins I know it's a lot of clapping we got a lot of girls Natalie hbr Angelina hang Pak joani um I have to move down a little bit more we can make two rows maybe too um did I just call P sorry um Esther kiss and her sister King aiss Ana kutson tally Lake Lily manino Sammy we Neeve O Sullivan Alysa Paka Vivian Shen Olga summerh holder Alice Sue Emily Thompson Maya Tindale Maggie Lou do I clearly skip um Emma wck and Arisa Zang that is our amazing 2024 ridg girl swim team group a champion sectional uh final Champions as well congratulations thank you so much for having us should we try to take a picture if we do like two rows can you move in a little bit yeah two rows I love a picture yeah I know he we move move down too microphone oh hey hey guys really quick shout out sorry who we looking at [Laughter] Mitch what of those will be good you did you get it J go ahead we'll wait for you oh my God was like sorry don't my shoe your dad wearing your your like jacket yeah how do you not slime it says thank you so much sorry I thought it was his thank [Music] you thank you Mitch yes okay I'm good on you for doing it yeah was they they kicked this deadine so many times this time maybe it's so yeah so this is a very experienced group they know that after the presentation they're welcome to leave that goes for anyone else so we're excited that you're here so feel free if you you're welcome to stay the entire time but you are also welcome to leave so so um the rest of our colleagues may I have a motion so moved second good Christy roll call please Mr Balman yes Miss DTE McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you that was fun so now moving on to another wonderful topic Eagle Scouts resolution the tremendous achievement that you have um accomplished I want to read just a little bit about um the um information in this resolution Joseph William and Aiden members of troop 555 of Boy Scouts of America have been active Scouts demonstrating outstanding leadership within the troop and have contributed many service hours to their Community during their years of scouting and whereas of the total National enrollment of The Scouting program only a small percentage re reached this prestigious rank which Joseph William and Aiden will carry as a badge of honor now therefore be a resolved that the township committee offers its best wishes to Joseph William and Aiden for continued success and congratulations for Personal Achievement that will serve as a reminder of the importance of the pursuit of Excellence throughout their life congratulations for achieving Eagle Scout I would like to ask my colleagues on the de for any comments gentlemen uh congratulations I'm always really uh a struck by what young men are able to achieve in in attaining Eagle Scout which as you all know is no easy task and I really think these days in many ways it's harder than perhaps it used to be I think young people are pulled in many different directions with many different obligations athletic academic other extracurriculars um applying to college is certainly a lot more challenging than it ever was before so to show the you know dedication and focus what it takes to achieve Eagle Scout is just tremendously impressive and it's something that will you will carry with you throughout the rest of your life you know when I speak to people you know looking for different positions or something something like that when they have Eagle Scout on their resume that's really impressive and I'm sure that like any Scouts you guys are humble and you're not going to be shouting it from the rooftops but your parents should absolutely so but you have a lot to be proud of a tremendous tremendous achievement and you are the best of the best when it comes to this so thank you all and congratulations Joseph William and Aiden I had the pleasure of speaking with each of you and look forward to being at your court of honor on Sunday representing our Township committee uh one common theme that you all spoke about was that as you were younger you watched the older Scouts going through the ranks and that now that your time has come it feels a bit surreal and I can appreciate that um each of you through your projects which are exceptional have created value for our community the pathway at the Environmental Center the trophy cabinet at St James and also the outdoor seating area at St James are new resources that will be enjoyed for years to come you've also each learned and experienced that having goals can help you achieve and succeed leading up to this moment that you are reaching and being honored with the highest rank in scouting congratulations to you to your scout leaders and your families for this recognition this is an extraordinary achievement and I look forward to seeing you again on Sunday for your court of honor so congratulations gentlemen the uh Dedication that it took to see through the accomplishments to obtain Eagle Scout the follow through to get each of those things done um and and the where with all are are in and of themselves skills that are going to follow you through the rest of your life save for the many experiences that are represented on the sashes that each of you wear right you built those over time you built those with pride and you deserve this recognition if it feels a little surreal it may but it tells me in my heart that you didn't do it for the glory you did it for the value of what it meant to you as an individual Scouts as an organization and all of us as proud residents of Bernard's Township guys thanks it it inspired even those of us sitting on the de right I look at what you guys have accomplished and I'm like man we can do anything thanks congratulations congratulations with an um exceptional achievement and like my colleague said it's true uh you will carry that with you for the rest of your life so when you tell people you know that you were an eagle scout automatic people know uh people will respect you for the fact that they know how hard it was for you to achieve Eagle Scout and I am just amazed sitting up here month after month so many um of your um fellow Scouts have achieved this and that says a lot about uh your leaders that um they work with you and they inspire you and they help you now it's your turn to inspire those in your in your group to achieve Eagle Scout and and you know how hard it is but um I know you will support them and be there but you are exceptional uh men I'm so proud of you and uh thank you for inspiring all of us and thank you to your leaders who do an amazing job working with you and and getting you to the heights that you want to get to so thank you I want to First apologize that I don't get to go to your um your awards ceremony so um there's a few fun things that you get to do when you're on Township committee um besides marrying people which is super fun um I really enjoy the scouts so um thank you to committee woman uh D McCarthy for for uh participating with that um I like to go to them genuinely because I love to learn about our young leaders and to see the amazing things you accomplish and I'll just say that I remember when my oldest achieved the Gold Award so the equivalent of the eagle on the Girl Scout and she got all these letters from all of these people in government you know at the various levels and she's like why is this and I just don't know if it's that in the government um that we we make it a big deal because of the values um that you've demonstrated and that we are so grateful and excited for that and and we want to encourage others to achieve that so I just want you to know that that some of us old people really find them to be amazing amazing um and I know as when I did human resources when I was a recruiter um people that had Eagle Scout for the men or uh Gold Award for the women they stood out that will be something that no one will ever take away from you so obviously you've learned so much to get through it's not just about the award right it's the journey that you went through to get there but I also want to recognize that you didn't do it alone your parents have invested years in you um and to help you enable you to achieve all that you have and obviously your scout Masters and all of the leadership you've had all along the years so I have a sixth grader in Scouts um and a fourth grader so I have a a Cadet and a weeow so I am hopeful that we can keep them to be able to achieve what you have been able to achieve so again gentlemen congratulations so what I'd like to ask for us on the day is if we could please do um a vote May I have a motion please so moved second chrisy roll call please Mr Bowman yes Miss Duarte McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you so what we'd like to do now is we'd like to present each of you so we have three individual resolutions we would like to have each of you come up um and take photos and we'd like to also invite your parents if you'd also like to be in the photo as well so come on up and would like to do individual Family Photos okay who's firstc good to see you congratulations and thank you for thank you so much thank you you congratulations congratulations and as we said before if you'd like to stay you're welcome to or if you would like to leave you're also welcome to we're moving on to our our last and very important presentation Christie could you please share resolution 2024-25 naming roadway connection of the municipal complex and Ridge High School as Captain Ford Shaw away and scheduling the dedication thereof on April 12th 2024 so this is a really important um resolution and they're all important but this one is particularly special so there's a lot of words on this and I'm just going to pick off a few things um Marine Captain Ford Shaw was from Basking Ridge New Jersey and graduated from Ridge High School in 2002 while attending Ridge High he was the student body president and captain of his varsity lacrosse team the ridge Red Devils the boys lacrosse program honors Captain Ford Shaw by choosing the player who best embodies his Spirit character and dedication to wear his jersey number three as Ford did that player displays selfless leadership and the team first attitude in his memory and Captain Ford Shaw became the marine officer after graduating in 2006 from the United States Naval Academy with a Bachelor of Science and political science and accepting a commission selecting infantry from the basic school and went on to serve his country for 9 years until his loss in 2015 I will continue there's there's many awards that he um very graciously received but instead of going through all these details um I want to give my colleagues on the deis um a moment to speak I also don't want to take away from the event that we're doing on Friday that we are very honored to do so um I'm going to save more of those comments for that so I'd like to invite my colleagues on the deis for any comments that they'd like to make on this resolution please if I may mayor um good evening uh last year we were approached by Rook donu um a student athlete at Ridge who was so inspired by Captain Ford Shaw's life and extraordinary sacrifice that he proposed to us that we bestow this honor which in no way could ever match the sacrifice that Captain Shaw made for his country and for all of us um and we worked through that with the Board of Ed obviously wanted to speak to the shaw family and make sure that this was something that was in keeping with um the memory that they have and that we all have of U Captain Shaw um but uh I couldn't be you know more more proud to um move this resolution naming this road that's right next to Ridge High School um and it will be you know a constant reminder to students at Ridge um ad infinitum uh of Captain Shaw's Legacy and um I'm just honored to be able to uh vote on this resolution on the renaming of the gr I'd like to say um thank thank you Andrew uh the shaw family knows um Andrew worked last year to to get this done for the request so I wanted I want to acknowledge Andrew and the board of aded for working but especially Andrew because I know you spent a lot of time on that and I I just want to have that acknowledged but I want to say um this is such an honor um we know each other and uh we we sit up here and we want to make a difference and uh your son gave service and service to make a difference and for us this is making a difference we're so honored to be able to do this and like you said his memory will live on for forever he'll always be remembered um and I'm just so honored to be part of this and and to be able to make a difference in the community but make a difference in your life by by having this honor for you and this memory here in this town and um his service you know has always been recognized and will continue to be recognized for the for the rest of uh eternity so uh just want to say I'm looking forward to Friday and and thank you and all the honor and all the grace that he received it's because of you for being wonderful loving parents and I I want to thank you for that because I know you and I know how much uh love and family means to you and so uh all the all the love and respect like I said and Grace that he receive it's because of both of you you're beautiful people and I'm so privileged to know you and have met you so I'm looking forward to Friday um the the stretch of pavement may not be uh terribly long but it was a long time in coming for those of you who know it connects Ridge to the municipal buildings parking lot and allows overflow traffic to escape at certain times um and and it has improved conditions uh a at the high school during rush hour um but it's more than just a stretch of pavement it is an example of what happens when the school board comes together with the township committee and works collaboratively we work together with Department of Public Works and all of our administrative staffs on both sides come together to achieve something for the collective good um and there can be no more fitting a name than to attribute that type of coming together for all of us to someone whose memory is precious to the residents of Bernards so I I I hope and I pray that those who travel it travel not just on on Ford Shaw way but in the Ford Shaw way thank you for your commitment thank you I'm gonna stop right there I normally don't comment but my law partner who sits right next door to me Michael Morano uh was a graduate and a good friend of your son and I mentioned this resolution and the naming of this street and uh Michael just wanted for me to send his remember es and admiration for your your son so I wanted to comment too um you know I'm new to the township committee so I want to acknowledge all the hard work that was done in collaboration and the family's uh commitment to this to bring It Forward you know we think about Basking Ridge as a historical town and there are landmarks such as the brick Academy or the uh Farmstead Arts among others that have the aster house and that's the look back and we think about those as prominent residents and I like to think of the naming of this road as our look forward um it encapsulates character of someone who as others have talked about with leadership service excellence and the ultimate sacrifice and I hope that as we look at our Township's timeline as we look forward that Captain Shaw will join those prominent residents a 100 years from now people will know his name it's a phenomenal Legacy and I'm very uh you know I'm sorry about the loss of a young life there's nothing more tragic and I'm hoping that this is some small way that this town shows its commitment to his life to his sacrifice and to the family so I I'm glad that we're able to do this so I can't promise that I'm not going to um lose it mon when I spoke to you I was not able to um keep it together on our phone call um it's important for us to recognize Our Heroes and we are just honored to do that I'm not going to again I don't want to give away any of the stuff that's going to happen on Friday because I want everybody to come um and and honor him but I did want to give you a little preview of not only just the process because most people don't get to see behind the behind the curtain um I was so that you know again Andrew and the Board of Ed they did all and the Department of Public Works did all the hard work last year in putting the road down so um I got the honor to to do this part which I mean this is like the icing on the on the cake right um and if you can imagine you know you think about a student brought it to our attention and we brought that students suggestion to life it was it was brilliant thank you um so we're very excited to do this um when we talked the town when I I came to Pat and I'm going to put you on the spot Pat when I came to the town I said we have to do something special and he said what do you want to do and it was it was whatever we wanted to do he amassed the very talented leadership team that he has chrisy was a part of this Jennifer Gander from Parks and wck because that woman can plan anything um even Ryan Wallace Ryan he heads our Department of Public Works okay that's roads and important infrastructure that I think most people just kind of gloss over and maybe don't think it's very interesting he's extremely creative so both Pat and Ryan um they came up with what is the designation of the road it's not just the strip of road it's also a portion here on the municipal to give it a little more length because and I'm completely selling you out on this because he wanted the name he wanted the poll that will hold your son's name he wanted to be prominent he wanted it for everyone to see it so I'm not going to say where it is you'll see it on Friday but he made sure it was in the right place very thoughtfully that engineer thank god um and then Ryan made sure that the type of poll which I won't give it away but it's a very special poll um that will have multiple purpose so I just I want you to know that um there was a lot of thought and effort and love that was put into this because we want this to be the tribute that your son deserves so I'm going to ask for everybody to come to this on Friday at 3:00 and I can't thank Mona enough for your vision for helping us to bring this to the view that you think is most appropriate for honoring your hero son so with that I need to ask Andrew I'll make the motion second Christie roll call please Mr Balman yes Miss DTE McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you what I'd like to do is I'd like to ask Mona if you and your husband would come up and receive this resolution I lied when I said I didn't want to say anything Rook Dono is here Rook can you come up you start want to thank actually we want to thank all of you this is just a wonderful honor for our son so we appreciate it and I'll save the rest for Friday should than than than than you amazing presentations tonight right so we will be moving along Christie any public work session please none this evening mayor any reports none any correspondents none this evening then that brings us to public comment comments are welcomed during the public comment period during this meeting on any agenda item or any matter over which the township committee has jurisdiction however if an ordinance is listed for its own public hearing on the agenda please hold your comments for that particular public hearing the public comment portion of the agenda is not structured as a question answer session but offers an opportunity to share your thoughts with the township committee the committee may or may not address these these comments during the meeting however all comments are considered to address this body the speaker must come forward to the microphone and state his or her name and address for the record each speaker is limited to 5 minutes the clerk will keep time please promptly yield the floor when the time is called and return to your seat your cooperation and adherence to these Rules of Order will ensure an orderly and respectful meeting I open public comment an forani D um I just something that's been on my mind for a while and now reading the Bern real news and seeing that the election season is starting again um I feel that last uh election season a lot of people in the town were kind of upset about the number of signs that were going on for um that had been put out for such a long period of time and I think this was across the board Republican Democrat independent I just think most people felt that this didn't do anything to beautify our town I think this has come up as an issue before um but I guess I have a hard time wondering why people might not or the committee might not be um open to um putting some kind of rule out to say no signs so perhaps after 911 for the national election um it would also save a lot of money I know last year there was some bad blood people were saying signs were stolen Etc um I just don't see any downside really of saying let's just wait let's keep our town and then maybe after 911 people can go gungho with their signage thank you thank you to Stein ver Side Drive I just like to thank the um committee and board of education for um naming that road after um Ford sha I personally knew the child when he was growing up he was good friends with my stepson and many a day he's over at the house either rough housing or going fishing over to the swamp so thank you thank you hello Nancy Dandrea Vander Drive uh couple of things first uh garage sale was uh successful uh cold but successful uh so I'm I'm a garage salesperson so I really was glad that that happened um and I didn't know about the sign comment now I have to refresh some of your memories some of you didn't know this but about two years ago I was asking about a a limit on when signs can go out and I actually did say can we wait till after the 911 ceremony for the November election um I just think it would be better looking for our town to wait and have that like so that they're not littered all over uh Harry Dunham Park area as we're all going there to to be at the ceremony uh for the primary um maybe May 1st maybe third week of April I mean just uh I know primary is really not a big thing in our town we usually don't get primary but I know you want to get your name out there so maybe May 1st you know something like that uh but yes I would really like to have a limit on when signs can go up uh we are one of the I know there are towns in Somerset County that do have ordinances that say one month or they say you know uh six weeks or something they do have those and they're not just Democratic towns they're Republican towns uh meaning Republican majority uh so maybe consider that I like the 9 after the 911 thing I really I live in the Hills so I really don't like driving by Harry Dunham and seeing all the signs and we haven't even had our ceremony yet so uh that's about it thank you so much and again thanks for the garage sale thank you anyone else if not then I will close public comment that takes us to staff comments Township committee comments and board leers on reports Pat would you like to start please uh yeah nothing nothing to evening mayor thank you Christie none this evening thank you mayor Mr Bardo none this evening mayor thank you okay then committee woman dorte McCarthy sure thank you all right I'm going to start off with uh thank you for the comments on the signs since I'm starting with the environmental commission report um and certainly there's concerns around how we dispose of the signs and the waste it creates but differently uh the friends the library approved a $2,000 budget for the environmental commission to purchase plants for the library Garden where we were developing a pollinator garden and uh one of the things that people may not know is that there's been a significant decline of insect and Bee pollinators over the last few decades and the impact this can have to the world food supply is pretty significant in that crops that are pollinated produce more than onethird of the world's food supply so the creation of the pollinator Garden is a way to encourage residents to start thinking about the use of native plants along that line we are also uh partnering with the Great Swamp Watershed Association for a plants or pollinator sale and this enables residents to buy native plants and to start to really consider not to purchase invasive plants and if you look on our website you'll find the full list of plants grass and other things that are creating Problems by destroying national natural habitats so again please consider doing that um and then our shade tree commission somewhat related is giving away trees on Arbor Day which is Friday April 26 from 10:30 to 1:30 at the Environmental Center on Lord Sterling Road this year there's a limit of One Tree per person tree two per family and then this is uh notable is that the shade tree commission will be having 10 trees planted at Pleasant Valley Park in partnership with the Garden Club and these are 10 oak trees and it's in honor of the garden club's 100th anniversary in Basking Ridge uh our DPW crew will be planting the trees and it's a beautiful enhancement it's going to be in the upper parking lot which right now um is pretty much black top so it'll be really beautiful there uh moving on Municipal Alliance is a showing of screenagers tomorrow at the high school and this is an important documentary examining the impact of the digital Aids on teens decisions uh relative to substances such as vaping drugs and alcohol and then lastly I wanted to comment that I attended the fabric of Bernard's women's fulfillment panel held in March that was hosted by mayor AC uh we had seven local women and it was a great conversation on how women have achieved fulfillment the challenges that they face and continued to achieve regardless and mayor you did an excellent job facility it ating the panel uh then I also joined mayor AC this past Sunday at the Islamic Society of Basking rdge Interfaith iar marking the end of Ramadan I was a really well attended event including the New Jersey State Attorney General Matthew platkin who emphasized the importance of non-discrimination of reporting any type of bias and also the importance of the Muslim Community to our community and to our state was a really wonderful event um and closed by emphasizing that the mosque is open to all of us and that it's a wonderful way to encourage Interfaith dialogue that's it mayor thank you Mr bman uh just a few uh things from Parks and Recreation tonight mayor um Parks and Rec is still accepting membership renewals and applications for PVP uh opening day for Pleasant Valley pool is going to be Saturday May 25th um Parks and Rec is also continuing to recruit summer employees lifeguards they're seeking customer relations and maintenance positions um in candidates are being interviewed now so if you know anyone who might be interested um let them know and we're asking for applications ASAP spring into summer week takes place next week during school spring break uh parks and wreck programs are free and will uh highlight many spring and summer program offerings that we have uh there will be tennis and basketball clinics free art Workshop uh and annual Fishing Derby at Southern Park um I went to that last year it was really cool um and uh parks and record is now accepting applications for the 2024 mayor's Arts award in student individual and organization categories deadline for submission of candidates is April 30th visit Bernards dorg for more information that's it tonight mayor thank you committee MCN yes um I just wanted to address the sign issue that came up and I think that there are people who are genuinely genuinely on different sides of this issue um to me though um it's fundamentally a First Amendment issue um and I think that our political speech is the highest order speech um deserving of the most protection um and I also believe that you can invite back and forth at a minimum litigation at a maximum if you seek to impose the sort of restrictions that affect not just campaigns of people on this Theus because we all run obviously that's why we're here but many other campaigns uh of people who are running for different offices and what have you so um I see it as a First Amendment issue and that's why I would not uh impose restrictions on signage thank you mayor thank you deputy mayor that was fast okay first want to say um on Saturday I attended farm and farmsteads uh quarterly meeting where we uh talked about um their membership and finance and the most important thing is um I spoke on behalf of the township committee and just let them know that we support them and that we're here and whatever they need um we're going to um be there for them so um but it was it was very nice to see everyone they members and Hana was there she's a member so it was a good opportunity um and I really was and I told them how much I enjoy working with Farmstead as their liais on and helping them in any way that I can uh Liberty Corner uh fire company had their fundraiser on Saturday uh comedy night thank you to all those who attended appreciate your support they always need donations and so this is a way for you to donate and also um have a night of laughter also the um Liberty quter fire company did assist with the fire and Bedminster in the Hills so I'm sure saw the um saw it in um one of the um media online um they did go to the call and they did help out with the fire in Bedminster and they did let me know that they were going on the scene when they were going on it they um did contact me and let me know about that also um the library the library um friends of the library hosted on Saturday um an afternoon tea fundraiser and it was quite amazing they had the young kids there was like an orchestra they had the violin playing and pretty tables and and tea sandwiches and auction it was just it was just so lovely and so many PE uh women brought their their daughters it was kind of a daughter mother daughter te fundraiser and it was it was just so lovely um so that was the friends of uh friends of the library that rais money for the extra things that are needed for the library that they can't um Finance themselves so we appreciate them uh the friends of the library hosting um the fundraiser also uh the deer commission they're just pluging along our numbers are down as far as uh last year actually they're pretty way down so um as far as the population of deer they it's not as high as it once was when we started the program so it's it's very very successful and I really mean that when I say very very successful the numbers are very low We compare every year the numbers and we go back as 10 as far as 10 years to see you know this month and how many we um how many we have and um it's it's really really low so uh ALS Al um I do want to say the garage uh sale was happening because as I was going to library and Farmstead and here and there I was out and about so I saw you know I saw everyone out with the garage sale uh yard sale garage sale I saw a lot of people participating driving all over town it was very busy so thank you mayor for that initiative which you started last year I appreciate that and lastly um before I speak I want to ask the mayor the women's form that we had the panel that was recorded is that online so I want to really encourage everyone so the event that the uh mayor's initiative the women's panel was so inspiring and especially for me it was women of all different backgrounds telling their stories their trials and tribulations in life how they get through them whether it was their family their career their children um it was an amazing amazing panel of women it was an amazing experience for me personally I've been telling everyone about it so go online and watch it it just was just so inspiring Ing and it just you know as women we go through so much and it's so nice because sometimes you think you're going through something in silence and so to hear all these women in different stages of their life to go through similar things that you're going through and and for some of them to say I'm going through this and this is how I got through it and so that was an opportunity and it was just such a wonderful Learning lesson so thank you mayor was wonderful experience I'm thanking you personally and um if you get a chance like I said go online and see it it's really worth saying so thank you thank you so um I have some updates as well um thank you to each of our uh ladies on the the de um the Fabrica Bernards I did want to do a shout out um for from that event um Michelle matakas assembly woman matutas came and um we are very grateful for her to come and speak um and I wanted to thank um personally the deputy mayor and committee woman DTE McCarthy for coming and assisting um during that event and our our amazing panelists I wanted to mention them by name um Dolores Sarah Dr Shila clot Shannon ninski Rose salaki Emily soken Christina winterfeld and Jane Zang each of these women um we tried to purposely identify someone that anyone in the audience could identify with because we wanted someone to take away that there was something that was meaningful to them so it is recorded and I would love to see what becomes most popular video I mean I had to be honest Shawn McCarthy with the taxes I think right now he is out in front um the police might be catching up the February 22nd um even though that's two and a half hours in duration I think they should get their winning for the longest um but I think that the women really put put it out there so um I really hope that people are able to view um it was very heartfelt and just a wonderful program so I'm very grateful to each of these women who contributed to it switching to April the 6 the townwide yard sale so um thank you to everyone who participated um I understand that things went well um we tried to take learnings from the first time and so I hope from what I gather um you know business was brisk and uh we didn't have as many early birds like we we tried thank you christe for trying to put things out there um to discourage people from being early birds um so just grateful and again now is the time that if you didn't sell stuff please donate it to St Marks is collecting as well as Atlantic visiting nurses that's why we call it the Green Yard Sale the point is is you drag every stuff everything out you don't drag it back in your house you donate it for it to go to the greater good and then when they're done with their sales then they turn it over to others so it helps to keep things out of the landfill I happened to be donating myself at St Mark's today and they said they were at the brim so um I think that's a success that we helped to drive donations to that so that's why we do this uh so I'm very excited about that so um that'll be something good if you need to go to that particular rummage sale that's coming up this weekend um and then Sunday was amazing um committee woman you know uh you were there as well Dr shre invited us to attend the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge the Interfaith ifar and um really he really tries to impress that it is open to all and and that it's a welcoming um environment and and it really is it was a wonderful event and you know for instance he had six different leaders of different religions that talked about the significance of fasting in each of them so again showing how that really we are all related and and have a lot of similarities even though we might be very different so I'm very grateful to to him and and his warm welcome um it was a wonderful event and um I was just very grateful for it so now that is in the rear view mirror let me tell you about what's coming up so um here's some fun dates and times um we are from a Fabrica burner's perspective I am beyond excited um we mentioned at the very last at the last meeting for any small business owners I am very grateful to the county to allow us to also partner with the basketball Rich Business Association to hold here April 29th during Small Business Week a program that will benefit small business owners so we have someone coming from the NJ DEA the New Jersey Economic Development Authority who will be talking about grants and what she told me was is these grants are just sitting there and people can apply to them and they're not too much work to achieve so I would love to see if any of our small business owners can get them so please prove her right um so please come and learn about this we are going to record this and we are partnering with the Basking Ridge business Alliance so this will be something if you can't make that please and please share with all of your friends who are small business owners if the money is there I would love for you to have it the other super exciting thing and we we don't have a flyer on this jet but some of you um enjoyed the focus on seniors Fabrica Bernards last fall we're doing it again June 1st and in light of the fabulous construction that's outside that impacts our Mobility for those that might have mobility issues I'm very grateful to the county to allow us to do it at the Basking Ridge facility so the county um center that is on Mount AR Road that's where we'll be and I'm taking the feedback from the wonderful folks that helped us before and they said how could we improve it we're doing it 9 to 12 so we're doing it in the morning so that way um and Mobility will not be an issue so I'm very excited about that more will come out that is a true collaboration with the county so uh we are working closely with them so there will be announcements coming out but again this is a collaboration uh with the county to make that happen so our focus on seniors that for those that we're not aware we bring four levels of government so seniors can know what are the resources at the federal level at the state level at the county level and at the local level so every senior can understand where their tax dollars go and what is at their disposal and how they can tap into those resources so please note that June 1st the announcement will be coming out in collaboration with the county now understanding Bernards a couple things uh we've talked about understanding Bernards is our initiative to understand how the town Works um Parks and Recreation May the 6th 6 PM that's been a flyer out there but I wanted to give a little visibility on that so thanks to Jen Gander for doing that presentation many residents interact with Parks and Rec so please come and listen to all the amazing things that they do um and I also mentioned the last meeting affordable housing affordable housing is something that is happening in the state of New Jersey this year and and we are very fortunate to have some of the best planners that we've hired and they are coming to present to us just the facts ma'am so they are coming to present May the 29th at 700 p.m. it will be here it will be recorded So this is something we want our residents to understand what is happening in the state and how it can impact our Township last but not least um in terms of fun updates and this was a hot one today the MVC the Motor Vehicle Commission thanks to assemblywoman matak cudas we were given the date of May the 10th to have a mobile unit here on site and it was especially interesting for those that want to get the real ID update well I wish we could have sold tickets for that Christie did you said we sold out sold out in one hour correct fa and so then what caused them to do they added another date May the 3D and how long did that one last barely an hour as well yeah so um I think that that is hopefully a strong signal that we and Bernards would love these things and so we are at we need to um see what they come back with if we can get more dates but again a huge thank you to the township for agreeing to host this vehicle uh on this mobile unit here on site um and you know if there's any more information Christy and her team will push that out so again thank you that was like yeah Taylor Swift tickets I don't know Olivia Rodrigo it's like insane so we're GNA try to get more but we'll we'll see so exciting so I have a couple other updates um it wouldn't be a meeting without safety updates um you know at the March 26th meeting sha McCarthy introduced the budget and he spoke about all the Investments that have been made into to Public Safety the public hearing on this budget will be April the 23rd and we invite everyone to come and listen learn and comment um other things that I've been doing related to this topic I mentioned March the 26th the New Jersey Conference of Mayors um we kicked off the auto theft task force that is a subcommittee that I requested and I'm leading and so I look forward to additional updates on that topic um but we are working with Mayors across the state to get the the attention of the state to understand that we want these issues to be addressed and we need different types of laws so our law enforcement can enforce that um another topic is the Somerset Hills Public Safety Committee so you may know that we are working with five other towns and they are also proceeding in the um uh the ordinances uh so we were the first uh adopting our ordinance on March the 12th Bedminster followed suit on March the 18th and Far Hills just on Monday April 8th the other towns are in process we are still working with each other and we are meeting Thursday so more to come we are working with all of this you'll hear more about this topic and then just even last night um Chief Burger Sergeant B uh Sergeant Bal deseri and detective mohul um we all went to the Barons and we spent um an hour and a half with some very interest residents on the safety topic so um please know that our chief our police chief is amazing and his staff is amazing and their commitment to ensuring resident awareness and understanding is remarkable so again thank you please know that again we know how important um safety is to our residents and it is top of mind and the last but not least um I mentioned the affordable housing we do have that understanding Bernard's presentation at the end of May um we will update uh you know in the near i' say probably um prior to the event in uh late may we will be updating there is a web page on the Consultants to help us to provide additional information on the affordable housing topic but please know this is all over the state and you can easily Google that but we will continue to remain that we will be transparent with you as much as possible um balancing all the communication releases with those that potentially could be used against us so with that let's keep moving on we are at fire and rescue appointments resolution 2024-25 appointment to membership in Township of Bernards volunteer basking Rich Fire Company number one ad Del Patel full member may have a motion so move second Christy roll call please Mr Balman yes Miss DTE McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes m Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you then going to unfinished business ordinance 2548 accepting a repairi and Zone conservation easement on property located at 286 South Maple Avenue block 1701 lot 22 from Robert J gck Jr and Teresa gck to the township of Bernards and this is a public hearing I open the public hearing and welcome comments seeing none I will close the public hearing may I have a motion may I remove that ordinance 2548 be adopted and advertised as required by law second clerk roll call please Mr Balman yes Miss DTE McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you taking us to new business please consent agenda the items listed in the consent agenda portion of this meeting have been referred to the township committee for reading and study are posted on the agenda on the website are considered routine and will be enacted by one motion of the township committee with no separate discussion if separate discussion is required the item may may be removed from the agenda by the township Committee Action and placed on the regular agenda under new business would anyone like an item removed from the consent agenda no thank you mayor no then may I have a motion please so moved second Christie roll call please Mr Balman yes mrte McCarthy yes Miss Fields yes Mr MCN yes mayor AC yes motion carried thank you going to minutes March 26 2024 Open Session minutes and March 26 2024 close session minutes may I have a motion so moved second all in favor I I moving on to Executive session none this evening mayor then that brings us to adjournment may you have a motion motion to adjourn second all in favor I I good night good night e