mayoun comp de 1823 theet is officially called order and mayor i i i Peter G do Solly swear do Solly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution of the United States Constitution of the United States and the Constitution and the constitution of the state of New Jersey state newey that I will bear true faith that I will and allegiance to the same to the same to the government to the government establish in the United States establish to the United States and this fa in this fa under the authority of the people under the authority of the people I will Faithfully Faithfully partially and all du of all du of office may may to the of [Applause] [Applause] hello [Music] f we have the o forr I I Jamesy Sol s you sol s that I will support I will support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey and the constitution of the state of New Jersey that I will bear TR fa and I will fa in alance in aliance to the same to the same and to the government and to the government established in the United States established in the United States and in this state and in this state under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I will Faithfully that I will Faithfully partially partially and justly perform and justly perform all the duties all the duties of the South River Council M all the duties of the of ACC according to the best of [Applause] my thank this evening have I hen we Solly swear we Solly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution and the constitution of the state of New Jersey of the state of New Jersey and I will bear and that I will bear true Faith true faith and aliance and allegiance to the same to the same to the government and to the government established in the United States established in the United States and in this state and in this state under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will faithfully impartially impartially and justly perform justly perform all the duties all the duties of the office of of the office of the B council member sou council member according to the best of my according to the best of my [Applause] this is Hagar I'd like to do the O for first second assistant chief Scott wol I don't believe he's here so we're to in that case we're going to move to First assistant fire chief Willam I William Smith I William Smith do Solly swear do Solly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution of the United States the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution and the constitution of the state of New Jersey of the state of New Jersey that I will bear true faith that I will bear true faith and Allegiance and allegiance to the same to the same and to the governments established and to the governments established in the united states in the United States and in this state and in this state under the authority of the people under the authority of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will faithfully and partially and partially and justly and justly perform all the duties perform all the duties of the office of of the office of first assistant fire chief first assistant fire chief according to the best of my abilities according to the best of my abilities so help me God so help me [Applause] God this aard for fire chief hi hi Craig a Miller Craig a Miller do Solly swear do solemnly swear that I will support that I will support the Constitution the Constitution of the United States of the United States and the Constitution and the constitution of the state of New Jersey of the state of New Jersey that I will bear bear that I will bear true faith and Allegiance true faith and allegiance to the same to the same and to the governments established and to the government established in the united states in the United States and in this state and in this state Under The Authority Under the authority of the people of the people and that I will faithfully and that I will faithfully impartially impartially and justly and justly perform all the duties perform all the duties of the office of of the office of South River fire station number one Chief South River South River fire station fire station one Chief according to the best of my abilities according to the best of my abilities so help me God so help me [Applause] God thank you can we all stand up for the pledge allegiance United States of Silence mayor gy here here councila here councilman deian here councilman kiny here councilman kenzel here Council ala here now we're going to go into mayor Thomas [Applause] good afternoon Happy New Year hope everyone had a great night there's quite a few people like to recognize in this room before I get started Council first and foremost my wife Maggie my daughter's em and Cali miltown mayor George Murray judge Leon I know I saw him welcome and a good good and great uh friend of mine special guest bab you know when I first started politics um I was just a kid actually in this school uh where I got appointed by the late chief I uh back in 80 888 into 91 I was put on a municipal lines who would have ever figured going stand up here today years later I was asked to actually run for Council which was in 99 into 2000 unfortunately as much as it sounded like it was a glamorous thing thank you as much as it sounded like a great thing to do um I backed down I told myself that just because I'm a South Riv resident I really needed to learn what South was about so I ended up being put on the planning board thanks to Tony and from that point on I learned so much about the the world of development this is what got me so intrigued with how South River is now growing and we're going to make it grow even more within a two or three years I had the opportunity to learn so much from so many Architects developers Engineers planners you named it I did it at the time I was doing this all on my own within the first three years or four I got to meet somebody I'll never forget her father till today I hear him still saying this you're dating the eater and you're dating South River and the reason because he knew how much I was invested in this town this is home as the years went on I joined more members more committees the Committees consisted of the economic development commission brought South Cruz night and District I even joined the South fire department and if that wasn't enough we got engaged and I remember her saying going to stay in South I said absolutely this is where I grew up this is my home bought a house not married now came to big question I'm going to run for a councel I'm ready for this so we did and one handome thank you she stood by my side regardless what the circumstances were with then my first term into my second we're expecting our first child you would have thought she was going to say no she didn't she stood by my side we had our second child I had my second win it was a handsome great campaign that year came to my third and I did the wise thing because now we were expecting a second I said I'm going to step down by held on to South River's committees planning board Economic Development commission Municipal Alliance I did it four years later I decided I was going to come back came back with the ex- mayor Ray ever and I couldn't have a better year coming back and we won H you stood by my side regardless what the circumstances were came down to my fourth turn we did it again she was still there she stood by me the only difference now is I had two little kids that were growing up in a world of politics they didn't know nothing more than just that then year ago this time I remember mentioning I was going to run for M I got tell you I was during dinner and I was expecting a total negative side of her but she pushed me she she motivated me to do what I did and I don't know how to thank you man for what you have [Applause] done love you new chapter not now like I said started this a year ago when I told my family I was going to run famili I'll never forget my daughter Emma she did something that I never thought she would do she ran out of the kitchen pretty upset so rightfully so she had this one comment that I'm going to say this out loud to everybody in this room and the comment that she said to me was you're never going to be around anymore this is something I learn especially from you R right that we hold a law we hold a rule and the rule is simple whether you're in the political Arena you're a first responder you hold a members committee person whatever it may be the one thing that we all stand by is family comes [Applause] first that kind of EAS her up but two days later here I am coming home and I got my dog waiting at the door like normal and next thing my dog happens to be my daughter Emma and she had a lot of paperwork on her showing me how excited she is that I'm running for mayor she did a full-blown report on what the mayor's position is this is my 13-year-old so she asked me what we had to do and we had a long trip ahead of us it was going to take two miracles first miracle was the primary we knew we were up against a really really hard battle John krenzel has been a longstanding mayor has been a very well decorated person he has been a fixture in this C but it was time for a new look and a new Boulder look at sou River growing growing into this new future she helped me she helped me in every possible way through campaigning through going through all my advertisements going through social media going through meetting pleas holding the camera she did it we won won came now Miracle number two Miracle number two is going to be a little bit more difficult you have to get the whole party together and we have to work with this whole entire town move the town forward to a New Vision to a bolder look I can tell you this much here's a 13-year-old daughter that did not need to be doing she didn't have to be with me doing this she could have been with her friends I'm sure you had Frankie's ear teaching her everything about politics that's what she did she stood by my side andem I cannot thank you enough there's not enough words in the world to tell how much I love what you did and we have a long way to to make this [Applause] to they always say where there's a good one there's a bad one not exactly my 9-year-old defines three words motivation determination and aggressive and the reason I say that is because of what she did she was a little girl in a school that she would approach each kid that lived in South River and tell them you better go home and tell your mom and dad and I was getting phone calls from parents and teachers telling me what this little kid was doing she went to so many mean greets with me I have to tell you Cindy I remember we went out walking started at 7:30 in the morning we walked so many steps that I think my watch stopped working after 12:00 around 3:00 we came home we had to eat we have to eat I dozed off like what any old person would do to wake up to her standing over me saying we're not done yet we still have to go out and walk I cannot thank you for what you have done [Applause] one thing tell you about D and she actually motivated me to do this was the night of the election after all the numbers came in and we looked really good I remember her sitting on my lap and she was still teary eyed and I asked her what the problem was the problem was that she was disappointed that we're not going to walk anywhere she motivated me to do something that's going to be creative and that is that yes we are we still walk as a new mayor we're going to go to the resid I want them to see who I am and for that rest we're going to let them know we're out there with the res so yes we arec honey I love you so much [Applause] for so to Mr dominiki he has sworn me in five times four as councel one as the mayor I can't have a better person swearing me in and I keep joking with him telling that one day we're going to go to the mansion together Mr Dominic thank you for being there for [Applause] me to my two candidates Jim krinski and Han uh we had such a great time walking here good we learned a lot um I know this is a learning curve for you we're all here to work together we're going to make this happen we want to move Southward forward Jim no words could express my thanks to you what you don't know about Jim is he has been a long life resident and he has served for the town in so many different ways he has been a counsilman several times but one thing I've always had uh respect for Jim and until today still call him sir is the idea that he has served for our country and I have the most outmost respect for you for just that thank you sir for [Applause] being I would like to take the opportunity to thank you all for coming today it means a lot to me to have your support as we begin my tenure as mayor and as we begin the New Year in South r as your mayor I would like to build a foundation set by my prors former mayor John krenzel and council members we have high hopes for the future of South D it is my hope that as we as Council can work together regardless of party lines along with the residents of South River to move the borrow into a better and more prosperous future we can begin this encouragement at with encouragement sorry we can begin this encouraging Economic Development with that within the world it is absolutely imparative that the burough continues to move forward and change with the times we cannot remain stagnant and wait while the world changes and progresses around us we also understand the concerns you continue to have about our town we do hear what you're saying one of the biggest concerns and priorities is the state of the water infrastructure in the plal we have already begun to work on infrastructure and we are moving forward with repairing water water l in phases we will get this work done a recreational facility for the children of burrow is another priority we are actively looking for opportunities to develop and move forward on plans to open a burrow bre Center this way the children have a place to go where they can learn interact and grow these children are the future of South there's also a focus on enhancing servfaces for the residents of South in the burrow of offices everything from exceptional customer service to prompt turnaround times again all in the interest of moving South River forward as mayor I plan to hold a a forum to give residents the opportunity to get involved in the community and to have your voices heard all are welcome to bring your concerns no concern is too big or too small most importantly any ideas you have to improve the B are welcome the decision of who sits in a mayor's seats is made by you it is a new year and now is the time to work with us to move South into the future we will work together to make that happen but Community involvement your involvement is needed we encourage you to reach out to us whether through monthly sorry whether through Forum by coming to the counil meetings calling emailing texting whatever you could do to get to us we're here here for you our doors are here we work for you you don't work for us we're always here no matter what I thank you I thank you for coming out today and showing your support and I look forward to working with throughout with you throughout the term as mayor and fulfilling our hopes for the future of [Applause] South and I have one more thank you this was a question that my daughter call once asked me while we were in the trou who is your hero and I answered them saying the Hulk remember that of course I never answered her question by reverse it she gave me an answer right away I'm not going to tell you who it was but here's your answer my hero is a person that stood me up he stood me up taught me how to walk he showed me our path my hero told me shows me that no matter what comes at you how it comes at you you have one job one job is to make things work don't let thees happen my hero if I fell back he stood me back up my hero if I fell to the side he straightened me he was there for me no matter what the odds were my hero showed me how to get where I am to he brought my hero the person that watched me and my two brothers my hero a 90-year-old man [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] last past year he not only came out and campaigned with me he even went out and put out signs he went with me to meet and gree he was on social media which I would have never thought and it was pushing my name like was going out of St dad I cannot thank you enough for what you have done for me and what you continue to do for us I love you so [Applause] much once again thank you again for coming have a happy and healthy New Year look forward to working with you we're always here [Applause] for well as many of you know I'm pretty longwinded uh I'd like to thank you all very much for all your support and everything we're going to keep moving forward I started wondering this morning till I scratched my head and I say gez it's almost been a half a century that been a government service between fed federal state and local and it's where the time go once again everyone in burough South River thank you for all your support we will continue to work forward and we're here for [Applause] youc so I had my paper that I prepared but this is a prime example of working with this group um of course I'm a little nervous um Peter comes up at lips so I'm G to do a little a little bit that to learn as we go so he's teaching me he's even teaching me right now um before I read this I remember back in February so my phone rings and it's Tony seol the council president and says to me we the council think you would be a good candidate you knew me from high school um to run for Council in town uh pretty much just stood there for a second like whoa you know grew up in this town and then just had that feeling of La um told him yes the rest is history I got to know the I went to high school with almost all of them but got to know them on a different level and had a wonderful time running um for the Le and learned a lot um Bible that I have here today um is a Bible I found in my mom's room and it's a Bible that was given to her but she was probably like 30 or 40 from the church so I use that today so that that's my emotional part for today because they're not here but I'm sure she would be very looking down and be very proud of the accomplishment that I have that I can serve to the town that she within her whole life I wish to thank everyone for the great honor of electing me to serve on the Burl Council having lived in South River for over 6 years I know the town well and will do the best for it and all of its residents I realized full well the responsibilities and importance of this position and I look forward to the opportunity to give back to my hometown that's the key things to give back after living here my whole life is to get back to do what I can for all the residents thanks again for your support trust and confidence and a happy and healthy prosperous New Year here to all thank [Applause] [Applause] you all right we're going to be opening up the nominations for council member council president please like the nominee Jason Ola second nomination made by councila seconded by councilwoman ball is there any other nominations Council Bas yes councilman stea yes councilman deian yes councilman rensy yes councilman kzel yes yes [Music] so first and foremost I want to thank everyone to coming uh for coming today in May's uh remarks he mentioned about moving forward and making sure that we take the path together over the next year you know it's not going to be easy there's a lot of items that need to be completed whether it's the water getting a home for our children in town with with the rec center but one thing I do know is that we do have a mayor that's going to roll up his sleeves and be right by our side um to the council mayor Peter thank you for trusting me with this responsibility uh Tony you've uh said a a great example of what we should be doing and I look forward to following the footsteps let's get our hands dirty and get to [Applause] work Mrs can organizational consent resolutions 20241 to 20249 one rules of council two councila 3 2024 meeting schedule four 2024 temporary budget five official newspapers six appoint burrow attorney seven appoint burrow engineer eight appoint burrow prosecutor and nine appoint B [Music] by counc yes counc yes counc grensky yes councilman czel yes council president Al yes we are going to open the floor to the public 10 minutes please your name and your address your address anyone from [Music] public place uh first I'd like to speak to our outgoing mayor council you're one of the people I remember the first time I met you it was October 23rd 2017 ATF days after we on the house the only person I Cindy and after being introduced to you I said I work for city state and you said you work for City B do you want to be on the planning board and uh now City book is nationally known in the construction code and fire code meetings and somebody on her sta would be the kind of person you want to to a plan Bo or something this so um what you don't know is that it had long been on my pocket list to be part of a delber five back when I was in college I had the opportunity to be appointed to assembly I pass on and then after seeing the interesting work that they did regretted that decision and thanks to you one of my butt list items has been checked off the play board has not disappointed it's extraordinarily interesting work from the details that the applicants present to the application of the law it's definitely rewarding and satisfying work and I'm grateful for you appointing me to I'll have a number of treasure John princi memories moving forward but the best one of course will be when you offici at my wedding in 2018 and New Jersey Law grants former May the permission to officiate thank you so I I had originally proped months ago that Peter and John switch seats as kind of a compromise and it's a secutus route that we took to get here but here we are and all the reasons I said uh then would hold true today uh I spoke in favor of your nomination at commit and uh you know as one of two Republicans one in the presidential you choose to run for the full term You' be a formidable C and from an administrative standpoint knowledge and experience and institutional knowledge is asset to this body going for so I'm grateful that you have chosen to remain involved so thank you for that um now to our new man wow I mean if I had to pick one word it would be historic and your involvement since you joined us Republicans in 2018 it's been in the story The Historic blue W year more than 70 towns switched from Republican to democratic control but only two towns switched the other way one was bur of B and the other was the bur of South River with it made has again in 2021 when we swept all 14 election districts in town and then here in last 2023 one the contested primaries a challenger uh LED our ticket to a historic 60 speet uh one by the largest margin in years as May and uh but it's also historic in that we in South River have elected the first Egyptian American mayor in the state of New Jersey and only the second one in the United States um your campaign was bold I love the billboard it was genius so and your ideas from the water improvements the development ideas I look forward to what the B can accomplish on your leadership don't worry I will continue to attend Council meetings and bother you in the same manner that I bothered mayor for the past six years with my ideas both cot and practical and my occasional non like the sad Sor Saga of poor forgotten Moscow Avenue when I come across so I thank you I look forward to being service um moving forward well um and I all of the council members I I've said this before and so many times you folks come up here take on this job and all you hear is complaints and problems from the public and not often enough to somebody get up here and thank you guys for stepping forward and taking on this job which is mostly not thank and especially for our newest I will I will make it a point to remind you that I am grateful to your service uh taking on these jobs here um it's worthy work it's work worth doing it's wor work worth doing well so I thank every one of you for your uh efforts and work both in the past and weend so 2024 let's let's make a banner year [Applause] thank you Happy New Year everybody healthy New Year yes my name is denic and I'm a visitor here today and I just want to say first of all congratulations to everyone mayor and most of all my cousin H very proud of you I'm so happy I was able to make in today and I am out of town but I do love South River and thank you for let me speak again congratulations [Music] here so any problem and first of all congratulations to and the Administration I also like to Rich mentioned you guys not get enough credit lot of people don't so I take a challenge and take the opportunity to thank you guys for all the hard work you do I tell L people if you have a problem in the town you do not call White House you call the local C Adra mayor so it's always part of so a lot of work gets done C levation also like to opportunity to appreciate the Biv which made pres one of my events October pres [Music] of fusain development United Nations and I did we had next the school school I would like to thank at the time May commission is doing a great job appreciate that and I hope you guys continue doing that and I'd like work close partnership with extending all thank you very much [Applause] [Music] everybody afternoon Jim hson 38 industry first of all happy New Year certain to wish everybody a great 2024 16 years ago I stood up here to just like you congratulate you for stepping forward taking on this roing for resents taxpayers business owners everything Associated that and I forward forward great great opportunities [Music] bigger um Jimmy congratulations um when I was running I asked you to run with me and uh I congratulate you Contin up here as a Mr Mayor congratulations' been friends for a long time I wish you all the best I wish the entire cilent congratulations certainly have great shoes from and I guess I had maybe to two of your shoes too it's interesting too I want to congratulate and thank former mayor mrzel for your hard work your leadership years not only as may as counil as a thank you it's nice too we have two former mayor sitting up here two former mayors an acting mayor and everybody conratulations talkes I just want to say that past meetings I've have a little that my enre support I wish everybody all the best happy 2024 let make it a great year [Applause] congratulations anyone else from the public once [Music] twice motion close I like to just wish everybody a happy and healthy New Year and everybody stay safe thank you once again I'd like to thank everybody in the broad we do have our work cut out for us um we're here for you like I said once again happy new thank you [Applause] again thanks again for everybody for giving me this opportunity work this town and just keep in mind it's for the town it's for the residents which has been echoed by past council members and the current members we are here to do everything we can for this thank you for this opportunity look forward to the next year happy New [Applause] Year looking forward to the new year I'm here to help uh mayor gidney I wish him the very best in all his endeavors [Applause] thank you all for coming today um my fact up here is we are all s of high school graduates and I think we're pretty wrapped different years but everyone on the council I want to congratulate everyone today and wish everyone a happy and healthy New [Applause] Year what again just want to congratulate Hank Peter on their win want to wish everyone a Happy New Year that is all I have [Applause] you board of education for let us this facility to everyone thank you again for coming happy New Year and a happy and healthy day en [Applause] Joy journ by Council second by council president all