##VIDEO ID:4Uo9gwlxWgM## like to call to order the meeting of the township of Hamilton Tuesday September 3rd 2024 please rise for flag salute flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all adequate notice of this meeting has been provided pursuant to the New Jersey open public meetings law by posting a notice of this meeting on the bulletin board in the municipal building and by publication in the Press of Atlantic City and Star Ledger on January the 6th 2024 Mr Chek here Mr lws here Mr patali here Dr Witherspoon here mayor Shanker here can we have a moment of silence for private reflection thank you okay um so we'll start out with a couple proclamations uh historic property recognition to Linda mesano and Abby Aon I probably just butchered your last name names close close my last name is Shanker mine got butchered my entire life also the township of Hamilton Historical Society Museum if you guys want to come on [Music] up I'm sorry oh okay I'm sorry the historical preservation commission is is going to present these proclamations all right Hamilton Township of Hamilton historic preservation commission Maz Landing New Jersey excellence and historic PR preservation whereas the H the township of uh Township Committee of the township of Hamilton the citizens of the township local organizations and outside entities have endeavored uh to preserve and protect buildings and sites in the township of Hamilton which are deemed to have historic significance and whereas the historic preservation commission strives to support the efforts of the township committee to preserve and protect the properties uh that have values um that have valuable historical uh significance and add to the charm of our historic maze landing and whereas the township committee and the historic preservation commission recognized the hard work and dedication of our residents who have worked so hard to successfully preserve the historic Integrity of our homes and properties and keep the history of T of the township alive and fresh on the minds of everyone now therefore be it proclaimed that we the members of the township committee and the historic preservation commission Township of Hamilton County of Atlantic state of New Jersey on this day August 19th 2024 honor 6056 Main Street Linda maseno and Abby Aon in recognition of their hard work and commitment to preserving the original historic character and charm of their property and uh it's signed by uh mayor Shanker and uh at dep that's for you guys great job great job [Applause] all right the township of Hamilton historic preservation commission Maz Landing New Jersey excellence in historic preservation whereas the township Committee of the township of Hamilton the citizens of the Township's local organizations and outside entities have endeavored to preserve and protect buildings and sites and the township of Hamilton which are deemed to have historic significance and whereas the historic preservation commission strives to support the efforts of the township committee to preserve and protect the properties that have value uh that have valuable historic significance and add to the charm of a historic maze landing and whereas the township committee and the historic preservation commission recognize the hard work and dedication of our residents who have worked so hard to successfully preserve the historic Integrity of their homes and properties and keep this the history of Hamilton Township alive and fresh in the minds of everyone now therefore be it proclaimed that we the members of the township committee and the historic preservation commission Township of Hamilton County of Atlantic state of New Jersey on this day August 19th 2024 honor Township of Hamilton Historic Society Museum 49 M Street a recognition of your hard work and commitment to preserving the original historic character and CH properties thank you very much guys [Applause] uh let's move on additions and deletions to late agenda items to be considered for Action tonight we have 7A uh AC salons limit LLC uh also known as Super Cuts 540 Hamilton Commons and 8A a resolution establishing the Mount Laurel subcommittee and appointing members go move we have a motion second have a second any questions all those in favor signify by saying I I all those opposed the eyes have it early public comment on agenda items excluding items listed for public hearings we have Michael Murphy for 3B excuse me oh Michael that was for 3B I love his T-shirt you okay I'm fine my name is Michael Murphy I live at 1378 Sitka Avenue um I just don't think it makes sense to vacate 100 ft of a th foot Street for future development I mean if if they develop the street what are they going to do they're going to push the snow to the end and then leave it there there's not enough room for a cult to sack the whole street can't be closed because you'll landlock other property owners okay okay thank you appreciate your comments um anyone else debor Krauss for 3B 7400 TR foood Lane I'm here about the street vacation um I'm not going to landlock anybody um there are four paved roads um if you you see the map there are four paved roads this is this is Memphis that blue 100 ft is vacation these are all paved roads all the way around there is nobody going to be landlocked at all um I appreciate the fact that that Mr Murphy wrote in here that he didn't want to hinder any development which is exactly what I want to do I want to develop the properties um I need to vacate the road for this property that we have buy the township property in the yellow and put them both together because you need an acre out in the Misa Village Zone and the only way to do that because of the way the properties are so cut up is to vacate the road give the frontage back to the properties and the property would be one building lot um the only other um person who had a who was worried about it was man in the pink and the pink he has Road Frontage on uh West Point and he has a way into Memphis Avenue from Melvin Newton um he also can go straight through his property and over to his two properties it has nothing to do with the 100 feet that I'm requesting so that's that's pretty much what I wanted to just you know explain to you there are four Road frontages um Mr Murphy sits on three with Memphis Avenue being one of them which they'll still it'll still be there um the man on West Point he has three ways into his property they have Melvin Newton West Point and Memphis Avenue uh the only one that didn't would be the pink and I think that's Mr Keller um which has access through West Point and he also has access through Memphis and he also has access to these two small Lots uh that are on uh that he could walk right straight through his property to get to I know that he was concerned about getting out to strand Avenue which is over here and his actual property is closer to Melvin Newton so that's what I just wanted to explain when you're looking at the map uh and the the answer that I gave um with the color coding it just shows you you know what what the what I'm trying to do and all it is is to take that 100 ft um I think that was about it uh the straight it it would just allow me to to put the two properties together and buy the other property from the township which the township makes a lot of money on these land sales and that's what I'm trying to do trying to give you money so um uh and that's that's about it just all the streets around it are all paved um this is just 100 foot and it does not landlock anybody okay thank you thank you anyone else Brett that's it okay uh we have um a presentation from Hometown Heroes program hello everyone my name is Mike dorbo I'm with the Hometown Heroes the name of my company is holiday outdoor decor we manufacture and and different types of holiday decorations and also banners that uh are decorating your streets now I believe the banners for the Falcon uh school they're a 30in wide by 60inch long then you have the ones on Main Street look like they're 24x 48 and I also brought a sample here of a HomeTown hero Banner which is 18 by 36 if uh you want to take a look that and I'll leave them behind I also have some hard copy uh information that I can leave behind with everybody and a business card with the hometown HERO program it's actually we're the manufacturer you would own the program to design it any way you wouldd like to recognize anybody that you want be it uh uh alive or past or or even uh people within the community that have done some wonderful things such as the historians you could even do banners for them depending on what you would want to do um we have a a a way for the uh organization to collect the information and then send it to us and we would produce the end product be it brackets or or the banners or or just just the banners maybe you can use the brackets that are already existing which will help with cost um a lot of different municipalities and towns will either have the individual is invest in the B Manner and then the town will invest in the bracket or the town will do everything but again it's it's your program I have information that I can leave behind and email you and you can decide on how you want to run it and I'd be more than happy to help and guide you through that situation um a lot of the BFW are running the program or the scouts um where they're they're earning badges for recognizing or even High School uh seniors that are looking look for a little extra credit to to produce a uh a program and run it and see it from beginning to end uh you know it's that simple if you have any questions I from anybody I'd be more than happy to answer them for you or concerns or whatever anyone from committee have any questions just one question um I did like the banners that you um that I seen do you put them up or do you just give them to us to do it we we can install them if you need to um about 95% of the time the DPW within the town usually will will do that for the town or there's people that are in the uh that that might have a bucket truck that would want to donate their time they might even be soldiers themselves or again the scouts I've even seen the Scouts have platforms where they're doing the installation also and we have directions on how to do that but it looks like you guys already you already have add them up and you understand what is going on thank you anyone else I know uh AC corer Township did this I guess last year um they started out with it um working out in Lancaster County I've seen them out there over a year now I've seen them out there and talked to them with our mayor talked to the mayor about it and and he had noticed it too so I think this is a really good idea um maybe something we start small with this year and expand each year um but obviously it's something we need to discuss and and figure out if we're going to you know have the families or whoever wants to wants to buy the banners and then go from there it's going to be a little bit of leg work but I'm sure you'll work with us if we decide to go down this road absolutely a lot of it is done on online where the families can actually sign in uh download the picture put the information in there and then that's sent to us so it's it's it's a fairly easy process be more than happy to help how long of the turnaround time if you want them for Memorial Day we're going to need at least about six to seven weeks because everybody wants to get them up before Memorial Day okay if we were to do a program right now you'd probably see them in about two weeks if not less just the time of the year is is tough so what the municipality will do or the individual they'll put a time frame frame they'll say we're you know word of mouth is one of the best ways and once once somebody sees a banner and again I'll leave this one behind um I can leave get other sizes too but uh once the program gets going it it can get very large where you're going to run out of maybe um lamp posts so you can do a three-year program uh then the banner can go to the individuals who own it then you can put up another set or if there aren't enough to fill the the polls for this third year or whatever you can put the older ones back up again did that answer your question I kind of went off noet no I we appreciate your time coming here anding this to us this is a a a wonderful thing I've seen it as a matter of fact dub boy is the town next to my wife's Hometown in Pennsylvania yeah so they did it there they did it in Clearfield which is kind of where I saw it for the first time um and it was just such a nice as a matter of fact they're they look just like those um it's just such a nice thing to do I think that um we should get the veterans Advisory board on board with this and put something together and try and move this as quickly as possible um and decide how we're going to do this I don't think there's anything anybody who would be against it believe me I think it's a wonderful thing you guys do thank you very much and it was a veteran that started the program for us in the company I want to thank Brett thank you for having me down I I wasn't sure what I was going to be coming into so kep it simple and by all means I'll leave my card behind and some more literature uh feel free to contact me and I'll send you whatever you need or answer any other questions okay EXC great thank you so much thank you appreciate it um do we need to do anything official to to have us look into this no mayor thank you it's only on off for discussion so direction if you want to move forward and put it out to the committee there's nothing all right with that let's let's move forward with this let's let's put together something with the veterans Advisory Board and uh see how quickly we can get this done what a mayor will it just be for veterans or it will be for any Hometown person no just just veterans somebody who serve I think starting off we do just veterans to see how many only ask the question because he said it could be veterans or anyone that we saw that I think event but I I would like to start with just veterans so we see how many we have and then like you say you don't want to I would assume this could be down R50 down Main Street I mean we have quite a few polls but you never know you never know all right Brett thank you um 3B Street vacation request on Memphis Avenue so I know that we've had our professionals look into this and I'd like to hear what they have to say about it so I don't care Bob you want to start Ken I I can start May if you'd like I've had the opportunity to take a look at the application that was made uh for vacating that portion of the paper Street also had the opportunity to meet with the township administrator the other professionals including Mr Watkins tax assessor we reviewed all the circumstances behind the applications as well as taking the step of reaching out to uh the potentially affected uh residents or homeowners or land owners uh regarding that paper Street based on all of those circumstances um at this time based on the multiple objection received I believe one uh land owner spoke out tonight we've received another written objection um and based on the current layout ownership of the surrounding properties it's our Unison and recommending to the committee that the street not be vacated at this time under these circumstances um as committee knows with vacating the street it's a discretionary uh function of committee as a whole it's not mandatory it's up for discussion tonight the standard for vacating a street upon applications what's in the public interest based on the fact that you received multiple objections from effective homeowners uh that's one of the the main factors that went into our basis for making that recommendation in the committee um and like I said said we had opportunity to discuss this at length and and we're in unison making that recommendation okay thank you Bob you have anything to add nothing to add I concur with what um kid St stated okay yep all right so this is just up for discussion um yes mayor it's just up for discussion we would only need formal action if the committee decided to authorize us to move forward with an ordinance for the vacating the street um if committee upon if you want to take a Voice vote to get the opinion of all committee if you didn't want to move forward with vacation this time there would be no formal action okay so I'll I'll make one comment and that is very basic that we vacated a street a few years ago and at the time um we were told by our professionals not to do it and it was done and we ended up having problems because of it so um comments from anybody on the committee no I support our professionals you know that's what we pay them for to come and give us the committee recommendation so I support what the professionals have to say okay I agree with that and uh just wanted to throw it out there that uh that one that did get vacated and we got sued uh I voted no on that just to be clear she did anyone else so I think we're in uh Unison that we are not going to move forward with this at this time thank you mayor all right thank you for your opinions appreciate it uh we'll move on to four public hearing adoption ordinances ordinance 2081 2024 an ordinance at the township of Hamilton County of Atlantic and state of New Jersey amending chapter 203 article 12 section 121 establishing the design standards for major subdivisions uh you want to give us a brief before I turn it over to the public yes thank you mayor I believe we discussed this two meetings prior this was an ordinance that was drafted based on the recommendation of Hamilton Town planning board uh after reviewing that section of the code uh there was a fear that the the current language prior to this amendment allowed for uh driveways uh open up the major of roadways so this was a amendment that they requested we drafted it it did go before the Hamilton Township planning board at the August 15th meeting uh they indicated that they reviewed it and they agreed with it based on their their prior proposals and they did not suggest any changes off for adoption okay thank you with that being said I would like to open this up to the public this is a public hearing anyone in the public like to speak move to close public a motion to close public portion have a second all those in favor I all those opposed uh chair will accept an adoption motion for an adoption so moved second we have a motion we have a second there any questions comments reic we do a roll call Vote for This Please Mr Chief yes Mr laws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes all yes and adopted thank you B ordinance 2082 2024 an ordinance of the township of Hamilton County of Atlantic state of New Jersey amending chapter 203 article 7 section 44 to allow agricultural use in a regional growth area District ga-1 again if you don't mind thank you mayor if a committee recalls a few months back Pleasant Valley Farms came before committee and asked for preservation of Farmland uh committee unanimously approved that request it then went through it was DP that that reached back out and said that we need to update our zoning to allow for that agricultural use um there are many other uh municipalities that do allow it in that zone this is just updating the zone to allow for that agricultural use so that the Pleasant Valley Farms can take the next step from their preservation Journey um this also went in front of the planning board and was in unison with their proposed uh review as well they uh ask for no additions or changes to the proposed ordinance okay thank you this is a public hearing anybody from the public like to speak on this matter yes yes we didn't vote yet I I went ahead of myself s anybody like to have to say anything about it or if you want to speak step up to the microphone it's okay we rarely don't yell at people you're in support wait till you're up there wait till you're up there so I can hear you name and address your name you can hear me outside name and address please my name is Teresa fante 1924 Drake Avenue hello Teresa I'm concerned because we need farmlands now more than ever there's 50 I mean 5 billion acres in the state of New Jersey out of that 5 billion Acres there's only 750,000 that are farms that means that there's 99,900 farms in the state of New Jersey that's it we're the guardian State there is let me see if I get my numbers St 4 billion 250,000 Acres that could be developed that are not preserved for far we need to keep this we need it okay otherwise we're gety thank you very much appreciate your comments you know exactly to say anyone else in the public like to speak yes sir Jason how 7611 wouth Road I just want to say I appreciate the mayor and the committee's work on this and uh going to ditto Terry's comments and if anybody has stopped there and gotten apples in the fall you'd probably vote yes thank you okay thank you anybody else like to speak motion to close motion to close public portion we have a second all those in favor I by saying I all those opposed the eyes have it I make motion to move ordinance 20822 second excellent we have a motion we have a second any questions comments Rita Mr cheek yes Mr L Mr patali Dr Witherspoon mayor Shanker yes all yes and adop thank you than you who doesn't like apples come on that's right that's right we weread glad to do it thank you C ordinance 2083 uh 2024 an ordinance of the township of Hamilton County of Atlantic state of New Jersey amending the ordinance number 1674 d2010 an official zoning map to and the official zoning map to delete and remove recreational overlay district and Outdoor Storage overlay District within Hamilton Township in industrial Business Park it's pretty much self-explanatory so I'm not going to ask you to do what you do um anyone from the public like to speak there is a public hearing motion to close motion to close and a second all those in favor of closing public portion I I all those all those opposed did I just say all those opposed anyway um eyes have it you caught it no one else chair will entertain a motion to accept to adopt I'll make the motion to adopt thank you second second any questions or comments hearing none Rita we'll do a roll call on this one too please Mr cheek obain Mr laws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes four yes one exstension motion carries thank you uh we'll move to five introduction of ordinances public hearing to be held September 16 2024 a ordinance 2086 the number on your sheet is wrong yes it's 84 2024 an ordinance to the township of Hamilton amending chapter 225 parks and beaches and chapter 235 processions parades and public assemblies um give us a brief I think we discussed this at the last meeting but for those who didn't hear it or weren't here yes thank you mayor this uh this ordinance actually serves a dual purpose at first as I worked uh with Chief Sam Bron on this to update both 225 and 235 because some of the language and the positional titles were dated certain positions Township May no longer have so we updated so that the contact people for those sections were current so Township administrator uh youth services and production coordinator so that it was very clear when you go through the code the second in the second part of this ordinance uh was to establish what we discussed at the Le last committee meeting uh regarding the hockey courts the second court that will remain closed in coordination with our discussions with uh d as is funded Parkland as part of Green Acres uh and to establish a uh reservation system how that reservation system will work essentially boils down to a 2-hour Reserve period with a sufficient notice uh a small nominal administrative the uh $15 per reservation to allow uh for that one to remain closed while the other remains open uh based on all the reasons that we discussed last time so this ordinance would essentially boil it down uh to formalize that direction the committee gave last committee meeting okay thank you thank you anyone on committee have any questions concerns hearing none uh we move to introduce so moved second second any uh all those in favor I I all those opposed guys have it let's move on to number six Awards bids contracts and change orders resolution to award the first year option for bid 2023 -11 snow plowing for Warner Construction Incorporated Egg Harbor Township New Jersey not to Reed the amount of $50,000 for the period of 10124 to 430 2025 motion second have a motion we have a second are there any questions or comments hearing none Rita let's do a roll call for this please Mr cheek yes Mr laws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes may Shanker yes yes carry thank you B resolution to award bid year 2023 Safe Streets to PR Transit program Park Road sidewalk project to Charles marandino LLC amount not to exceed $267,800 so second we have motion and second just so everyone knows this is for the sidewalks and the and the improvements to Park Road correct are there any questions or comments hearing none read it roll call vote please Mr CH yes Mr laws yes Mr patali stain Dr Witherspoon yes oh I'm sorry mayor Shanker okay man you really lost your looks just alike four yes one exstension motion carries I'm a yes by the way in case you miss that enthusiastic yes ah Lord help me um where were we 6 6C resolution authorizing purchase of FS 3000g tanker on freight liner from ffi apparatus through Houston gallon area Council Cooperative purchasing program in the amount of $491,000 this is a fourman tanker truck which will be be going to the wouth fire department motion second motion we have a second we have any questions concerns comments read a roll call vote Please Mr Chek yes Mr laws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes yes and Carrie thank you D resolution authorizing a one-year option for bid 2021 d04 excuse me uh Cooperative Fleet Maintenance and Management Services transdev also known as first vehicle in the amount of 63148 5855 a non-targeted hourly rate at $50.95 and a a excuse me yeah non-targeted overtime rate of 58 $58.39 per [Music] hour this is the company that does all the maintenance on all our Township Vehicles including ambulances fire department and um a police department have a motion second we have a second Rita can we get a roll call vote Please Mr Che yes Mr lws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes all yes and car um we'll move on to number seven consent agenda I'll I'll move 7 a to g p h yes okay we have a motion for 7 a to G second we have a second are there any questions or concerns hearing none all those in favor signify by saying I I all those opposed guys have it H resolution resolution authorizing the release of performance guarantee for artist walk major subdivision phase one in the amount of $430,500 posting an exception acceptance of a resolution of governing body for 2-year maintenance guarantee in the amount of $ 64,66 59 as recommended by the township engineer Robert Watkins and his correspondent stated 8 1424 um so does this is this the final this is it for artist walk this is sorry this is just to release phase one um performance guarantee to get a maintenance Bond um the other phases still have maintenance Bonds on the record as holding by the township and I know I asked I asked Brett today to make sure they have an HOA cuz I know a couple months ago or a year ago there were issues out there some of the people that lived out there didn't know well claim they didn't know that they had to have an HOA you know when this was all so they they do have an HOA the the owner of the property I believe it was um papon homes controls that HOA until they turn it over and they should be turning it over when the performance guarantee is released okay we did get confirmation from um papone and the attorney for the HOA that they are okay with everything um we're not going to release the maintenance bonds until we do a final walk through um probably in another month the other maintenance bonds are up for phases two through five I believe so very good we'll confirm everything okay yep I have a question they the residents there came to the planning board and that this would be under the performance guarantee for the bus stops the slabs for the bus stops I don't know what phase it was has that been rectified at all I don't believe so and unless the Board of Ed did not want to have a set bus stops for those spots because sometimes they changed their bus stop pickup locations okay um that probably just was never installed at that point cuz back then it sub uh those subdivisions were reviewed by the school board and they picked spots but since then they always start to change those locations yeah and I know recently um the board president or board president came in and said that they've been relocating those spots presently so I don't think uh putting them out there at this point would be benefit if anything would fall under the maintenance botom thinking to we can include it in that correct yep thank you okay very good [Music] any other questions comments we get a motion I'll motion to move seven each second we have a motion we have a second any questions comments hearing none all those in favor signify by saying I I all those opposed the eyes have it number eight Personnel uh personnel's a resolution establishing the Mount Laurel subcommittee and appointing members um this commit will have to do with uh our what's it Kaa yes yeah our Kaa that's ever changing again this year um last meeting we we uh chose an attorney a firm to handle this for us who specializes in this kind of thing so this um we're going to vote on this but the the two there's going to be two members of Township committee which will be the Liaisons from the Community Development housing liaison community development director the solicitor affordable housing Council chairperson of the planning board and the T Township planner that's the resolution before you what's your pleasure I just have one question here it says to be released by the state in October 2024 get will we choose it to today is it we're just putting a a committee together to deal with whatever comes down from the state oh go see and this would deal with the the the rents and the high prices of the rents and all of that okay there's going to be a lot of updates and regulation changes coming through DCA regarding affordable housing the subcommittee and the specialized Council will be adapting those changes as they're fluid moving forward so there's going to be a lot of Milestones over the next six months to come that's the purpose of this subcommittee because Co is substantially changing across the state it doesn't it doesn't necessarily mean that rents will go down it's just going to be applying they're going to be just going addressing the new rules of regulations or does what does that mean it's it's not for rank control it's not for a rank control board it would just be dealing with the affordable housing requirements that were part of Co before that are not going to be under DCA and updating the plan in accordance with the updates for for DCA not for rent okay so when we talk about affordable housing um what do we mean the the specific requirements from uh the Mount Laurel Doctrine um the Old Co requirements and different planning rounds I know that that Mr watkinson speak on that with planning board as well uh the master plan the Township's housing plan all of those need to get updated in certain cycles that are coming there's going to be another one that's coming down the pipe for DCA COA from the governor's office this year has been extremely restructured the regulations are going to change so the township needs to be ahead of that so that we can be in accordance to those regulations and that should be changing within the next six months to a year so that's with the affordable housing the planning portion of that goes along with that and the requirements all right only reason why I brought that up is because a lot of times when we say affordable housing what does that mean you know because especially when everything is very expensive you know around here so everybody saying affordable housing but affordable housing is $2,000 what do they call Affordable housing and as committee knows and as everybody in this room knows the definition of affordable housing is constantly changing with the state and the state's the one that's going to dictate what affordable housing is and then the township and the committee needs to be in accordance with that so so that's the purpose of the subcommittee so that we can become informed and we can inform you and uh give you recommendations moving forward thank you anyone else has any questions comments we have a motion I'm sorry no no I need a motion to move this have motion second any questions comments hearing none um you want a roll call yes roll call yeah let's do a roll call read Mr cheek yes Mr lws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes all yes and carry thank you approvals a minutes regular minute meeting minutes of August 19th 2024 we have a motion do we have a second second we have second all those in favor signify by saying I I I all those opposed I we have one exstension Rita four yes one abstention than you excuse me uh bills bill is total 4,259 73884 so Mo we have a motion we have a second second R can we do a roll call vote Please Mr cheek yes Mr laws yes Mr patali yes Dr Witherspoon yes mayor Shanker yes number 10 reports Mr administrator I just want to make a note that the project that you awarded for uh Park Road Park Road sidewalk project was uh 100% Grant funded I think that's important to know that the budget wasn't hit on that um last year we got $341,000 Grant funds you guys awarded a contract tonight for $268,000 um so 100% Grand funded and something that we need over there in that area very that's all I have thank you Mr solicitor nothing else to report from me thank you mayor thank you Mr engineer um I believe uh leapy field ribbon cutting was on Thursday um and then I did it with the administrator about Park Road um also due to the grant being so um High and the bids came in low uh our inspect ction feed should be able to be covered under the grand as well okay so good and um Underhill Park is um almost complete uh we're we got to fix a couple handicap ramps out there before we stripe it and put the signs up um unfortunately a street sweeper that came through that nipped the corners of those handicap ramps so they're cracked so we need to get them replaced before we stripe and then um the bathrooms are uh almost complete and uh we have to speak to um the contractor about some additions to the building perhaps if we need to with our grant money that we have there as well okay yep good anybody have any questions hearing none Township committee members Dr Witherspoon um yes I attended the back to school event at Davy's William Davy school it was a very nice event it was very successful um with the um with everything that was done there it was just done in order and I really really like it was a total success we made the paper so you know we were good you know we made the Press with the story and so I was excited about that I'm very excited about the ribbon cutting on Thursday I'm looking forward to that it's been a long time coming um but I'm very happy um about that and lastly I'm glad that we are putting a subcommittee together to deal with the affordable housing um act because this is very a very serious situation not only in our area but all over the country but we want to get ahead of it and so I'm happy the fact that a committee will be a subcommittee will be put together to handle those um to to handle that and that's my report okay thank you committee with Pali um to what uh what the doctor said about Thursday and the ribbon cutting out at Ley uh looking forward to that long time coming so happy to see that uh come to completion and uh still more work to get done out there but that's for uh the future um boat races this weekend Saturday Sunday noon to 4 um Art in the Park September 21st is Saturday 99: to3 at Memorial Park um September 11th Memorial that'll be at Memorial Park on September 11th 700 p.m. and if it rains it'll be here at Town Hall um please come out you know support these events if at all possible and um that's really it for me Reagan I'll talk to you later Maddie Missy I love you hope to see you soon thank you Comm committee M cheek well I'm going to Echo everyone which I do quite often I was at the book bag giveaway at Davies with the hair you supposed to start with him this time yeah I know I knew you call that was very nice I I was there before you Dr Witherspoon I heard I I heard I heard you were there and then also I followed the leapy progress very long now and it's very very rewarding that the ribbon cutting is coming up and once again the 9911 ceremonies at 7 o' that's all I have thank you committee men laws yes uh the 911 uh ceremonies I'm looking forward to that I have my script thank you Reverend ash oh he left okay thank you Reverend Ash I'm prepared um that's always a a very very very good uh event we do a great job with that and remembering the lives of uh our fallen um also like to uh uh to say I'm really really excited about what's happening at leapy uh super excited about the uh concession stands being open and having running water and bathrooms out there I would like to say um this or at least make the suggestion if we can get the signs back up that say no dogs because there's been an absorbent amount of dog dung around the field there is a couple kids that that you know kind of got tackled in it this week and it wasn't good it wasn't good um yeah I heard about that one but um yeah so if we could just you know it seems like everybody brings their dog out there and lot them around R around free and I'm not exactly sure it was supposed to become a dog park but uh I'm almost sure that wasn't the initial goal so if we could if there's some way that we could control that Chief I don't know if you want to assign a task force for I talk I talk to Public Works they're going to reinstall the signs out there yeah missing they didn't see the sign they are going to reinstall they're going to reinstall thank you so much there's additional signs that you want we can do that too just let me know where you want to put thank you so much greatly appreciate it you're off the hook no you're off the hook again and last but not least uh there there was a another um well I did miss the the one at School uh as I mentioned there was two the second um um bookback Drive was at uh oakrest Estates um really really nice event uh they actually uh the AWI Foundation actually gave away 200 book bags uh some laptops uh married of you know uh personal items uh that our children need you you never know uh what people in need of and and the struggle that that people have on a daily basis until you actually open up and start trying to give back to them um it was really really exciting uh the organization that uh supported them was called uh give back it's a really really unique uh uh uh group where they provide uh mentorship and scholarships to students um and their goal is to help students who are you know less fortunate who other otherwise may not be able to attend college there's a grant funded for Rowan University um for about uh 20 million I think it is um for students to go uh to Rowan or to the uh Community College out there Rollins Community College um but it's now opened up to all colleges any kid uh college that a kit would like to go to um and they find themselves struggled uh this group has adopted maze Landing we're super excited about that um to uh open up their uh their nonprofit to our kids and and and help them navigate the Waters of uh college and success in life so thanks uh to the awish foundation and thanks to the uh give something back uh great job uh by both of those groups good thank you um I'm going to be brief I just I just want to make a comment that any meeting that we sit up here and and in the same meeting we allocate money to buy fire apparatus to protect our community and we sit here and talk about the completion of two projects that are for not only the kids in this community but the parents and other people from other towns that come here to our ball fields is a good meeting and this is one of my favorite things to do um is to make sure that the public gets what they need the other thing I'd like to mention is uh and on the lines of the affordable housing and what we're doing with this committee um some years ago there was affordable housing built on New York Avenue and I don't know how many units were there but I do know there was over 5,000 applicants to obtain those units so that was I'm going to say three or four years ago so I can't imagine it's any better so this this is something that we must address was it 10 that long ago aen you're making me feel old stop it was 4 years ago so it's it's uh you know it's a a a problem it's something we have to address and and again we have to follow the state guidelines so when you hear uh about affordable housing coming to the Township in the future please don't look at it negatively because it is a good thing to help people um affordable housing is not is good housing it's good people we're just trying to get by so with that being said I will open this up to public comment anybody I jump on something with sure with that with the affordable housing as as Brett knows every Sunday I drive around town with my dog and send texts to him and to him and you know there's this over here and there's piles of oh and Greg I'm sorry I sent text to Greg yeah you know what's going on over here and I drove through that development and I know that there's this stigma that um affordable housing means low income it's going to be it's going to turn into a dump well if that's been there for 10 years it sure doesn't look it yeah um it was clean the grass was cut um there was no it's it it looked great it really really did and that was the probably the first time I ever drove through there so I'm happy I did and then this kind of got brought up so it's it's weird how things work out but uh you know it's it's like I said it's got a stigma to it but that one worked out well and I'm I'm happy how that looks they're doing you know the people that live there they they care they take care of their place and it looks nice so you didn't get any texts about something in there it's a good thing you good I'm good thank you I feel bad for your dog that dog loves it dude yeah head out the window ears flapping slobber down the side of my truck it's awesome okay with that I'm going to open it to the public anybody in the public like to speak or comment yes I would like go ahead a letter about rent control and I would like to ask when can we get it in the books to speak about it get something done anything done we're looking into rent control we just hired a new community development director that's one of his first action items to start looking into what what it would take in the different methods of controlling rent and you know in the state and how it would work here in Hamilton zjet we met about it today um he's got some ideas um just a matter um I think he said a couple months it would take to finalize something um to bring back to committee thank you you just didn't give your name and your address oh yes oh sorry my name is l Moy and I live cologne Gardens 1932 cologne Gardens apartment at 12 okay and I'm just working trying to work toward not just myself but everybody you know somebody's got to stand up and at least has got to be the one to do it right it happen and anyway thank you very thank you thank you that's nice glad he's going all I don't start cof Jenny ears 4812 Green Ash hearing about the affordable housing I live on the other side of the street of the one you were referring to Carl and it is kept better than Harding Room 2 where I live and every year and I don't know if rent control or ground I mean um association fees is part of rent control but they've been gone up $ 2550 a year ever since I moved in and the place is not maintained and kept appropriately I don't know what the rules and regs are Statewide or with what our new community development director will be doing but I just want to throw that into the mix please and that's part of what we're looking into because each development is different all the problems you're hearing are different situations and this is why we're kind of trying to get through the the weeds sort to speak okay anyone else Jim come on [Music] up on consent agenda 7h what do the letters H OA stand for homeowners association okay thanks thank you anyone else crafts um with the rent control thing um the the reason that I think that the rent control uh would be a good idea is because what's happening right now you have people and and I have some rentals my tenant are not paying close to what the government is paying um to put people in condos they sometimes they're four to $500 more than my rent that is the government doing this they are taking people that are working and they are saying to them well if you I know of one just heard about her $1,300 a month a two-bedroom over in Hardings run her landlord just told her $1,800 a mon month because if she doesn't want to pay it the state will that's who's putting people out of their condos interesting it's ridiculous COA I I've been paying into COA for every house that I buil every single house there is thousands of dollars that go toward Kaa so I've been supporting Kaa for years the house that I wanted to build on this property with the street vacation same thing I I have a question and I don't know if I'm allowed to asked the solicitor the question what's the question okay there were do you know how many properties were notified about that street vacation there I don't know pop my head the exact amount of properties that were notified but it's all the affected properties in an area um I don't know specific number okay because he kept mentioning multiple and you he said multiple multiple times multiple objections there was one objection from the man that couldn't get to strand Avenue from his 25x 100 lot Mr Murphy only had an objection because he said it was going to be landlocked it wasn't going to be landlocked they were two objections that were totally ridiculous I had no problem with putting a RightWay a a 15 foot RightWay between the two properties no problem at all if the man wants on that property there he says he can't get the Strand I put a 15ot right away not a problem but to hear that there were multiple people that complained there were six properties that were notified and we had two that sent back and Mr Murphy was one who encouraged development okay he was here tonight and he said it would landlock us he was wrong it's you can look at the map it's not going to landlock anybody um the laurale thing laurale there was only one paved Road in laurale and the people down the street that they were vacating had no access except through paper streets which was all wooded is that right does anybody know that was a couple years ago it was I was at those meetings but that that was a whole different ball game this property has four paved roads around it it Laurel one paved Road and they cut off the access from that one paved road down there totally different and the only other question I have is the state what or the law what does the law say about a street vacation can I answer that sure the law says that the committee it's a discretionary function of the governing body of whether they want to vacate it's not mandatory but ultimately if a committee is making a decision to vacate property including a street it should be ultimately what's in the public public interest so it's discretionary based on the committee so it's even with a right away I can't I can't get a street vacation that's what I'm that's what I'd be asking I could put a 15 foot RightWay right through the middle of the 50 Foot Street I mean it's an option and I'm just I I have no idea and I would like to I'll have to Oprah what the lawsuit was about and how the lawsuit was was um finalized but I have a feeling it was because they didn't have access on a paved Road [Music] okay anyone else from the public like to speak motion to close public second a motion to close the public portion have a second all those in favor signify by saying I I all those opposed we a motion for adjournment in order so moved second we have motion to Second all those in favor signify by saying I I all those opposed the eyes have it