##VIDEO ID:iW_1EWYfOSA## good evening in compliance with the open public meetings Act of New Jersey adequate notice of this meeting was provided on December 21st 20123 by sending written notice and electronic notice to the courrier news and the breeze posting on the website and the bullet board in the municipal complex and filing with the Township Clerk roll call please andan kers here and cill here andalis here pedroso president ring here I would ask that if you're able please stand and join us in the Pledge of Allegiance I'll ask councilman noralis to lead us IED Al to flag United States of America to the rep for it stands one nation under God indivisible andice all right Township Council reports I'll start with councilman cordilla my report this evening is going to be pretty short um I just would like to take this opportunity to uh at this time of year to wish all Bridgewater residents the best of health wealth and happiness uh to enjoy the holiday season and perhaps take the time to maybe looked at the holiday season Through The Eyes of a child I think that's in my opinion the best way do it uh you know kids are always smiling they're always laughing and I think the uh I think the world needs a little bit more of that so God bless you all and best wishes to all Bridgewater residents thank you councilman noralis thank you Alan I appreciate that um welcome to the last council meeting of the year I attended the uh Somerset County Planning Partners Forum guest presentations included a climate change realization group The New Jersey water supply Authority and lastly a group from the Somerset County local Safety Action Plan also attended the viewing for Jerry Doyle husband of scarlet Doyle our long-term planner uh Scarlet retired earlier uh this year attended the the holiday party for the residents of centerbridge number one which is the uh retirement home owned by the township uh I am a member of the board of educa the board of directors on on Center Bridge one uh building owners whose electric service is provided by Jersey Central Power and Light should be aware that the company is installing new smart meters uh that should simplify their meter reading but more importantly enhan their ability to be able to track powerder outages and in some cases improve improve their restoration ability uh there is a possibility that a uniform jcpnl worker or their Wellington subcontractor may have to enter your location feel free to deny access to them if you have any concerns about your personal safety as this is the last meeting of the year I want to take a moment to specifically shout out for uh ring our president for the work the diligence he has provided in fulfilling that responsibility during the course of the year and and as importantly the work that he and councilman kersch have done in working finances throughout the year uh Merry Christmas if you celebrate happy holidays if you do not and stay safe thank you thank you and thank you for those comments councilman kersch thank you Mr President um I had one item I I missed last last last time so I'll just go back and state that on Monday December 2nd I attended the um uh Bridgewater senior's lunch uh that was my second second year doing that that's a great a great group very vibrant Group C certainly they have um uh you know added a lot of value and continue to add a lot of value to our community uh on uh the 10th La week ago Tuesday the zoning board met uh heard two cases a um addition of a second floor to to a residence in Martinsville and a solar array in the fer neighborhood planning board met this just this past uh Tuesday uh and we approved a uh a minor subdivision uh in the Bradley Gardens neighborhood with the multiple conditions uh we also completed uh the hearing uh for what is essentially the transfer uh of um uh residents in a hotel to uh an alternate um uh extended Stay Hotel uh on the site that used to be the day is in uh Chick-fil-A was also heard uh continues to make progress and anticipates to be concluded uh during January of 2025 uh yesterday uh I attended the employee lunch so it was certainly nice to see uh many of the employees uh and and uh take take a a little time just to uh celebrate the holiday season I also want to acknowledge the um uh hard work and diligent of our president this year Tim ring uh We've now come full circle this group of five of us have now both been president and been Le been led by each other as president so um I think we all know um being the council president is a responsibility that we all willingly take on and and councilman ring Tim I want to say uh a job very well done thank you and then just final thing I want to state is uh we we may or may not have commentary about how we handle public comment and I just want to Simply state state from the beginning there there's been some commentary about how um uh we don't value public input or we don't like it or we don't want it um and I you know I can only speak for myself but I certainly can also share my observations of my colleagues here first that couldn't be further from the truth and second I don't know what what evidence there is of that I mean if that's an opinion people are certainly welcome to have that um but you know it is part of our agenda uh we value it I value it and um you know it'll continue to be part of our agenda and that's uh the conclusion of my report thank you so um for my report this evening uh just a a brief commentary uh yesterday I sat out or got in the car to travel to a dentist appointment and traveled down North Bridge Street uh a county road to find that the county had authorized psng to close the road going Southbound and divert traffic so I figured okay I'll head over to Prince Rogers and go out to 22 that way to go to Branchburg the traffic on Prince Rogers was backed up all the way to North Bridge Street lo and behold at the same time the county authorized uh North Bridge Street to be shut down the state authorized a contractor to close two lanes of 206 southbound next to the mall the week before Christmas and it just created quite a traffic Nightmare and as I spent 25 minutes to move between um basically the municipal complex to Route 22 I thought about it quite a bit and one of the things I'm going to pursue after the new year is speaking to some of our state legislatures I think we need to have a better even if it's a simple database coordination between the various levels of government because we have Municipal roads we have County Roads we have state roads in this Township and when one's closed it creates a domino impact on others if the count he's not talking to the state and vice versa it creates a challenge and it's not just a challenge for me as a as an individual I think about the people from out of Bridgewater who were looking yesterday to come into the township the week before Christmas and spend money at the mall that get frustrated and get a bad eye on Bridgewater so I just share that and it's something that I'm going to attempt to pursue after the new year with our state legislature to see what can be done um with that um want to Echo um councilman cilla's comments about the holidays as well as councilman nalis and councilman kershes uh whether you're celebrating Christmas um Hanukkah or uh dwali or Quanza Festivus Festivus enjoy uh enjoy the time with family take advantage of it um I also want to some kind words were said about me serving as council president um I will tell you sitting up here and facilitating the meeting is probably one of the easiest parts of the role of council president I look back uh you know there there's so much that goes into preparing the agenda uh and and and getting things lined up for the meeting and that's where the real work goes on behind the scenes uh so I just want to thank Grace and her team for their patience with me over the last year as well as the administration as well as Mr corini for all their efforts to help me uh try to become a better council president unfortunately even it's my last meeting when I'm done here we have to go backwards because I forgot the minutes I skipped them on the agenda so not perfect um but lastly uh I will just remind the public that the township council reorganization meeting for 2025 will be held on January 2nd at 7 pm. um and uh as the that is the reorganization of the township Council and as we normally do um we invite the mayor who's always invited to every meeting but we invite the mayor to come give a a Township address but that meeting will be held at 7 pm. that's my report I know you just walked in councilman pedroo do you have a report this evening I do hi good evening apologies for being a little late my babysitter was a little late today uh hi good evening everybody thank you for being here tonight it's nice to see so many faces first of all I want to wish every everybody a very merry Christmas and a happy Hanukkah and a Happy New Year hope 2025 is going to be great for everybody uh I got a brief statement all right I catch my breath here uh since November residents across Bridgewater and surrounding areas have reported frequent drone sightings these drones are often described as unus unusually large some as big as cars or buses despite mounting pressure from both Republican and Democratic leaders the Biden Administration remained silent for weeks until December 12th when John Kirby spokesman for the White House National Security Council issued a statement claiming federal state and local authorities could not corroborate any sightings this contradicted a closed door briefing to New Jersey legislatures where Department of Homeland Security officials reported that these drones operated in swarms had EXT extraordinary battery life were invisible to infrared cameras and undetectable by radar Days Later Homeland Security secretary Alexandro Mo moorus acknowledged quote there's no question that drones are being cited end quote from the beginning residents have been assured by the Biden and Murphy ad administrations that there is no public threat yet no details have been provided these sightings have been confirmed by politicians media law enforcement and countless ordinary citizens including myself as a licensed private pilot trained to distinguish aircraft I have personally seen drones on two separate occasions these were not airplanes and response to Growing concerns yesterday the FAA imposed temporary flight restrictions for drones over 22 areas in New Jersey after weeks of denial from the B Biden Administration about the drones existence or any Potential Threat yet no explanation has been given for this abrupt policy shift the lack of transparency from federal and state leaders is unacceptable while I commend state senator Doug steinhardt assembly Republican leader John Deo and assemblyman Eric Peterson for demanding answers Governor Murphy response has been inadequate despite access to State Police and National Guard resources his administration initially echoed Federal empty reassurances and failed to take decisive action after weeks of inaction and no information the governor's response this past Monday was to tell new jerseyans to quote calm down end quote with all du respect Governor that response F Falls for short of what we deserve a month has passed and we are no closer to understanding what's happening the most plausible explanation is that these drones belong to a US agency conducting a classified operation if so the government owes the public an honest explanation at least enough to assure citizens without fostering fear or distrust the alternative that these drones are foreign private or complete unknown raises serious National Security concerns without clear communication speculation runs Ram rampant are these drones foreign surveillance devices device contractor tests searches for uaps radiation or other threats the absence of transparency only fuels anxiety today Bridge township is passing a resolution demanding accountability from state and federal leaders it's time to stop stop dismissing the Public's concerns our government must Step Up provide answers and rebuild trust the media must continue to press for the truth and residents should take action contact Governor Murphy President Biden and Congressional representatives to demand transparency and accountability we deserve to know the truth thank you council president thank you all right um before I go to the mayor's report I am going to correct my mistake uh and go back to approval for minutes we do have November 14th and December 5th uh I'm going to move them individually um since I was not at the December 5th meeting I'll start with November 14th I'll move those minutes as amended I'll second all those in favor I I opposed all right for December 5th I'll move them for acceptance okay I'll second uh all those in favor I I anyone opposed let the record show I abstain for December 5th thank you move to the administration for the mayor's report thank you um certainly I'm behalf of Mayor mench want to extend appreciation to council president ring for his service this year it's been U pleasure to work with you in that capacity Tim and uh hope that uh uh we will continue to work in the same uh way uh next year and Beyond um couple of things one is uh we received a notice today uh one of several notices over the last few days from New Jersey American Water uh indicating that and I'm just going to read it um so not to leave anything out New Jersey American Water teams are continuing to flush targeted areas of the Ron system and perform additional sampling throughout the communities that are reporting a changed odor in the water additional Laboratory Testing of the samples confirmed that water meets state and federal drinking water standards we're working with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to determine if any other course of action or Pro proc precautionary measures are necessary we will continue to perform targeted flushing and sampling throughout the system tonight we will provide another update on the alerts page of our website as soon as more information is available um I wanted to just make a couple of comments to address some questions or comments that have been made at recent Council meetings regarding the Township's finances um there were some statements made that I would like to correct and clarify regarding the 2024 budget one of the comments that was made was that U residents were given one day to review it before the council approved it uh that's incorrect the council introduced the budget on July the 18th it was posted on our website on July the 19th uh it was published as required by law and uh for 28 days the required amount between introduction and public hearing and adoption uh August 15th was when the council held the public hearing and approved the 2020 24 budget 28 days between introduction and uh public hearing and and final passage there were other series of statements made uh about uh taxation levels uh levies um lots of figures were thrown out um but uh one of the things that certainly is important to uh to understand that taxation levels are impacted by property assessments and fortunately in a community such as Bridgewater property values have continued to appreciate certainly over the last few years anywhere from a 7 to a 9% increase in assessment levels has increased properties property values uh residential and even commercial fortunately even in Bridgewater we've continued to see an increase in commercial property assessment and that certainly does impact the levy uh there other statements that were made that we trying to provide comparisons between the township County and State uh excuse me the county Township and School District budgets uh one of the uh points that was not made that certainly is relevant when there was an attempt to make a comparison between the township budget and the School District budget uh the school district District received a 12% increase in state aid uh in 2024 as compared to 2023 which amounted to a um over a $1 million increase $1.6 million increase in state aid that again certainly did not impact the tax levy that the school district put forth for the property taxpayers in Bridgewater Township um last comment and then I'll conclude uh comments were made about the audit uh and questioning the timing of the audit in the council's consideration of the audit for the previous year uh the audit report uh was issued on July the 26th the council approved it at its August 15th council meeting and um uh along with not just the approval of the audit but the corrective action plan and um and U so just wanted to clarify uh statements that were made for the record and for the benefit of the public that's all that I have thank you m m Mr President if I could just be recognized very briefly to to also um well first of all thank Mr papis for that um commentary excuse me I'm sorry there's one other point I I wanted to mention there's a a commentary made about uh Surplus and the amount of surplus that is used well each year uh local governments use Surplus and each year Surplus amounts are generated uh no one knows in any given year what amount is going to be generated a decision is made a proposal is made by the administration the council makes a decision as to how much of a surplus to use and uh I looked at a figures over the last five or six years uh Surplus generation ranged from in any given Year from uh $3 million $6 million $5 million uh8 million so uh it we don't know exactly what Surplus amount would be generated in 2024 that could be considered for use in the 2025 budget but again the suggestion was made that the level of surplus used and the amount remaining was an irresponsible decision in the record if you look at budgets and you look over the last few years how much has been generated how much has been used how much has has remained for future use and consideration again that is important to understand what the facts are I'm sorry Mr kurage to interrupt you no no that's you you still had the floor um you know I just want to want to quickly State kind of our philosophy um each year we have to pass a budget we take that responsibility very seriously but each budget is within the context of the previous year and the next year and um we uh have not and not will not make decisions that are going to to imperil us uh in a future year and I think that any implications that we are doing that or intend to do that and that's an opinion which people are certainly entitled to um but it's it's it's not supported by fact the fact is uh you know we aim to continue to provide outstanding services at the most affordable price possible year in and year out and um you know we're not we're not looking to Kick the Can down the road we're not looking to um uh you know have pain now so there can be gain later or gain now so there can be pain later that's just not the way we operate here thank you thank you we do not have any proclamations uh next up sorry we do not have any proclamations uh next up this evening is a presentation uh from stal Quarry uh regarding their operating license this governing body has a uh statutory requirement to issue a license every year to uh the Quarry in order to operate um and I know sometimes uh members of the public get a little concerned or or feel impacts related to the blasts um I just wanted to clarify that the the blasting component at the Quarry is regulated by the state of New Jersey Division of mining I believe it is labor I'm sorry Department of Labor that's right um so that is outside of our scope there we we do have a a small scope there of of what is uh in context for our review um I know that councilman nalis has been in conversation with Mr branch and arranged for him to come here this evening so I don't know if you want to say anything before Mr Branch starts no actually I'm sure Mr Branch will eloquently be able to describe the issues but uh he had contacted me uh because as as the president has already said if we don't approve a mining license for they have to stop operation on January 1st and they have been a responsible member of our business Community for decades and decades and if I if I look back to when I first came to the council one of the first questions I asked of Mr Branch 20 some odd years ago was how much longer are you folks going to be in business and he said probably 45 or 50 years uh there's a lot of rock there well over the years they have the lot of rock but he's going to tell you right now that some of the product that they used to push aside as overburden uh and was useless before is now a valuable product because people need clean fills so they uh they're still in the 35 to 40e range even after all these years so Mr Branch why don't you uh tell us what's happening at the Quarry please would thank you uh thank you everybody for allowing me to be here tonight um my name is Thomas branch I am the EHS manager for stola construction materials we are the operating entity for the Quarry which as you may have read uh was purchased by Arosa on October 1st of this year however stola construction materials Inc is still as I said the operating entity of what we're here for today to obtain our mining permit um as most of you know uh we own and operate the 380 acre Quarry uh located at Route 22 in Chimney Rock Road it's been there since the 1890s for those of you don't know it was originally identified to be a copper mine back in those days copper was found to be a valuable resource it was continued to be mined for many years thereafter and once that material was exhausted it became a ass salt mine or what we call Trap Rock material um each year as uh council president ring indicated that we are required to appear before for the township uh committee to request a renewal of our mining license um that application was submitted to the township on November 1st of this year uh we believe that that application was deemed to be complete as we are here tonight to make our presentation for what that requires um the information that I'm going to talk about tonight is going to identify the number of shots how many tons of rock we extracted from the Quarry as councilman norgal D indicated and then I'm going to move into uh illustrating where we are in the mining of the Quarry for what we've done this year and what we plan to do next year um during this year uh to this date we've uh conducted 57 shots or as you said blast events uh producing approximately 2.8 million tons of rock um all 57 shots to date have been recorded and uh information transmitted to the Department of Labor all but one uh were con uh determined to be in compliance with the standards established by the state of New Jersey uh stola as I've mentioned in years past we maintain a call list for anybody who would like to be in uh you know U notified of a shot of that day uh we believe this is a way of communicating with our neighbors to allow them to know when a blast event is scheduled for that that day and understand what it's all about um as councilman noralis mentioned in addition to the 2.8 million tons of rock we've been able to identify the fact that the Shale material that was previously considered to be unusable is now qualified to be a clean fill um as councilman nor Gallas indicated this came out of what is known as the dirty dirt legislation that the D approved uh years ago or the legislature approved several years ago and this was in response to Bad actors um disposing of material or soil or fill material that had contamination uh contained in it so as a result many of the needs of construction projects that require fill material are turning to locations such as the Quarry for Native material that has been there for years and that there isn't any concern for such contamination that is not allowed As We Know um and then as I wanted to uh indicate also and I touched upon it last year um it was after several of the flood events that occurred Downstream from where our Quarry is specifically in Manville uh that prompted the D to ask us would we be interested in participating in another flood control project specifically utilizing the Quarry as an area for where storm water could be held back uh during those events and released at a later date on a lower flow condition so we essentially accepted that opportunity we engaged a company called AECOM they're a nationally known engineering company that has worked with the Army Corps of Engineers and we're looking forward or we're looking towards working out a flood control project as I said that would allow diversion of storm water during Peak flow events to essentially be stored in the Quarry in its elevation or its lower elevations where those Retention Ponds are located and then be allowed to discharge over a period of time thereafter so again we're in the evaluation stage of that right now I know the county of Somerset is involved in that process as well uh Joe scoan if you know he is the Somerset County uh storm Water Management Consultant he's participated in this program as well so we're looking forward to uh working with them as we go forward I'm going to step over here to the easel and I'm going to talk about where we've been sorry um yeah good thank you so as you can see here I'm sorry for the audience they can't see but this is our uh 2025 mine license plan uh this is essentially the same plan that was presented last year and approved it's identifying however if you compared last last year's plan to the center of the Quarry where specifically this primary is located a primary is the first step in the manufacturing of crushed rock after it's been shot from the wall what we call Shot Rock The Shot Rock is brought up to a higher elevation where this uh primary is located that that material will be crushed to its initial size of probably 3 to 5 in and then from there off to various secondary Crushers where it gets reduced down to 3/4 and obviously down to 38 which is used for asphalt we are now in the process of relocating this primary to an area further to the uh South that's going to allow us to place the primary on an elevation that is already considered to be final for the Quarry and then at that same what that'll appr what that'll uh give us opportunity for is to take the large amount of uh material or rock that exists under the primary so that's what our Focus Fus is right now is to prepare this area for the relocation of the primary and then to remove the rock that exists underneath it the other areas that we're working within is along the north ridge or the North uh area up here uh and then also on the western side as we get over here to the western side of the Quarry so sorry Mr Branch just for reference can you maybe just reference where perhaps say Frontier road is or you talk about the north sure so again just to orient everybody uh the South uh would be uh towards Route 20 uh 22 uh East would be Chimney Rock Road North would be uh up to uh the um Haley Court area up where cell tower is yep and then West over here is where steel Gap Road is okay thank you so again uh this plan uh represents essentially the same areas that we've previously been approved for uh in mining it's just that in this area here is there's going to be a concentration of removing the material out to allow us to relocate the primary to the South and then we will uh convey the material over to the existing secondary so again it's an effort to bring the elevations down to the final uh grades that um are approved for the Quarry any questions on the mine Plan before I go to Reclamation anyone have any questions on the mining plan okay so together with a mine plan we prepare each year a Reclamation plan as to what's proposed for when and how we're going to complete the Quarry um as you saw in the previous uh poster here or board um most of this area is still open for Mining and also uh final grading but what wants to be highlighted is this area up here for what we're creating as a future detention Basin and that's consistent with what I mentioned earlier about preparing this for a potential diversion or a storm water basin that could be used from the middle Brook and diverted into the Quarry so we're going to be looking at expanding the actual detention Basin here to the north as we mine out the additional material and ultimately be able to store water in here as we have to if that if that study proves proves uh to be a a positive element other than that um we've all seen the final grading and uh restoration Reclamation I guess you would say along Chimney Rock Road specifically uh the high wall area that was here originally that separates the um actual Public Works facilities and uh areas to the north along Chimney Rock Road so again this information uh we're working with staff right now to prepare more detail as as to how we're going to accomplish this Reclamation as we complete the rest of the mining operations within the Quarry if you have any questions on Reclamation anything else so just add a curiosity the Reclamation plan that you prepare uh I know you some discussion with the township do you have to share that are you required to do that for any other entity is that something you have to share with the state every year or specific to Bridgewater Township okay I mean uh we have to prepare a plan as part of our application each year that includes the mining plan and Reclamation plan okay we're working with the staff on being able to provide additional information as to the details as to how that's going to be completed in various stages within what was originally identified back in 1978 when it was a ski slope well that was one of the options Council yes I remember never got there but anyway um yes as you said this information has to be provided each year we're going to provide more detail to that and I believe as I know the obligation of stola is to present the information to your planning board as it is required in the town ordinance so we've done that uh two years ago U this past year we gave various tours to the planning board members I think we've met with the staff at least one time so again this next year we'll be fine-tuning a little more of what the Reclamation program is all about sure well as you said earlier councilman or Galis uh I'd say we're at about 30 to 35 more years with the additional information that we presented about the Shale material becoming a beneficial use now so uh that's pretty much the estimate so I think to that point and we'll talk more about this when we get into the resolution but um I think one of the things that we as a governing body have to look at you know uh I was on the planning board two years ago when they did their presentation and they talked about different options and no disrespect one of the options that was suggested for part of the Quarry for 30 to 35 years from now was a gas station um I I think this exercise of asking for a Reclamation plan uh with their application each year we're we're kidding ourselves because they're trying to use a crystal ball to figure out just think about how B the buildings in this town and the uses of them have changed over the last five years pre-co versus postco with Office Buildings retail all of that I think when we when we try to look 35 years into the future to say what can we build there as part of a Reclamation plan it's a guess cuz nobody you know 35 years from now Elon Musk could want to build a drone recharging station for people to travel to them to the spaceship I mean we don't know and and I think that's a Suzanne we just lost our monitors thank you sorry so I think that's something that we as a governing body need to look at that ordinance next year and if I can say this I believe that effort at that time two years agoes was part of your rezoning or re-evaluation of your master plan and I think there was interest in trying to understand how that could work towards some future planning for the Quarry and we were certainly willing to put together what we thought was the best guess as you thought as you said towards what ultimately this could become but again there's two terms one's called Reclamation and one's called Redevelopment so obviously in our Quarry operation Reclamation is the process in which we're stabilizing the slopes we're preparing the site for its future Redevelopment okay Mr Ring just ask a question of Mr Branch Mr Branch the the documents that you're referencing uh are they dated and uh what are they specifically called oh uh the first is the 2025 mine license plan uh that's dated August 30th 2024 and the second document is a 2025 Reclamation plan also dated August 30th 2024 and those were provided with your packet correct uh yes I think there were several copies provided thank you very much welcome there's no other questions I in closing would like to again just thank you for the cooperation we've had with the town communication we believe is key to allowing everybody to understand what we do how we do it I've always uh indicated that anybody has a question please call me they can call me personally uh and we'd be happy to address any concerns anybody has thank you thank you over the past uh calendar year since you were last here have any of the blasts uh at stola exceeded the government maximum allowed yes the one uh was on November 26th um it was identified that we had just gone slightly over the peak particle velocity uh standard uh at the that point um this was something that um we identified as an anomaly in the geology it wasn't expected obviously uh we've had shots since then in that same area we have not had an exceedance in other words we made an adjustment understanding what the conditions were but that in my experience here in 21 years that's the first time we've exceeded uh Peak particle velocity um in one of the shots that's correct did the state take any action on that or uh that is that is pending we were issued a notice of violation uh we've asked for an opportunity to present information to the state that' be the Department of Labor okay we have a meeting set up in the near future with them that's correct is that still a third party contractor that does your bless yes M and Scott um they too were going to be issued a notice of violation for energizing the shot that existed or created more of the created the violation so they too will be a part of the process so again as you said when this such situation occurs we are issued a notice of violation and we have to address what we did to correct that problem thank you anyone else all right thank you Mr Branch you next up is item nine meeting open to the public um entertain a motion I make second second all those in favor I I opposed all right the meeting is open to the public members of the public wishing to address the councel on any matter will be allowed three minutes to speak unless there's unusual circumstances would ask that you and you please come forward please state your name and address if you do not feel comfortable stating your address for the record I believe there's a sign-in sheet there as well hi there MERS of the council good to see you again Mr pois my name is Brian Delaney I live at 1827 Ridge Road in Martinsville New Jersey and I'm here tonight representing the Spring Run community in Martinsville as you may know Spring Run has been petitioning the township to improve our roads and infrastructure for the last several years most of our roads in our neighborhood have become too dangerous to be traversed by children are disabled in elderly residents or anybody by Night Public Works has performed pothole repairs annually but the Band-Aids are insufficient for our highly active community of 83 families if we have a Spring Run board meeting poker night social gathering at the community pool we can't walk nor bike for feel of rolling an ankle or taking a spill parents myself included struggle to weave strollers around the cracks and holds and children need to be driven to local parks to ride their bikes we also have a storm waterer management issue which exacerbate our road deterioration during significant rain events the water from Mard drive to the northwest of Spring Run FL clows into a pipe that spits right out into the pap militano backyard and then through the mastriani property before it turns West Circle Drive into a Whitewater River scouring the boil O'Hara and oristano properties these deluges have cost these families hundreds of thousands of dollars in Damages furthermore they cut off road access to all 15 fam families living on West Circle Drive thereby trapping them and restricting any emergency access last month we met with Mr papis hello Michael Bill Burr Daniel Ahern on site to discuss these deficiencies and we all agree that the roads and the storm water though interrelated need to be treated as two separate Pro projects from a funding and management perspective therefore as we enter the Final Phase of Bridgewater's ro road Improvement project we humbly and earnestly implore you to include the repaving of spring runs roads into your 2025 Improvement plan however please don't lose sight of the T time sensitivity of the Mard to Spring Run storm watera improvements as these massive rainfall events increase in frequency as does the threat to our physical safety and personal properties we've already made known to Bill Burr and Mike papus we are happy to help in any way we can please review the supporting documents we prepared for you as they visually support these significant safety concerns with that we kindly invite you and yours to come by Spring Run for Our on Christmas Eve for our annual Lumin Aries display and hopefully next year we'll be able to enjoy them safely on foot we sincerely thank you for your time and your service and hope you have a wonderful holiday season thank you sir thank you and may I pass these out to you guys um if you want to just leave with the clerk she thank you thank you theary display is at what time what time DUS a DUS sun goes down beautiful all right thank you it's a longtime tradition Mr Ring yes can I just comment since uh Mr Delaney and others have CA came uh bill Dan and I were there uh we were happened to be there on a day that it was raining not terribly hard but it was raining and we're very familiar with the challenges that they've described and uh uh certainly bill Dan and I committed to the group assembled that we would uh include that very very seriously in any recommendations for 20 25 um we've continued to have those discussions internally as recently as yesterday and uh we'll keep you posted but thank you very much for [Music] coming any other member of the public wish to speak hello [Music] hi my name is Carol and Joya put my address on the paper thank you um Mr Joe so thank you so much for addressing the Drone issue I had brought it up last week and it sounds like everyone has been paying attention um I'm also aware that there was um a mayor meeting on December 11th um that was hosted by the New Jersey State Police I'm not sure whether mayor mench went or not I did not see a statement on the township um Facebook page um I was able to hear uh a summary from a mayor of Belleville who summarized what was discussed at the meeting much of what um councilman pedroo had said um one of the things he was proposing was that townships would Institute local ordinances that would prohibit temporarily um drone activity at night sort of a local ordinance now I don't know if it's something bridgew can do um I understand that we have no fly zones instituted at the request of PC psng regarding our infrastructure and their um facilities but that's only over pscg sites that's not over the entire town before I came tonight I was with some friends we went to North Branch Park and they were having a demonstration for me of a private drone and I thought it was very interesting I wanted to be sure I knew what a drone looked like it sounded like that I wouldn't confuse it with something else that I might be seeing um and it's not as though I'm interested in inhibiting anybody's freedoms but I think during this time especially given the water situation and not really knowing and the timing of the an Announcement by New York um American water and the institution of these nfly zones within hours of each other I just think it might be worth considering maybe extending that um restriction locally if we have the authority through the office of emergency management or any other way but just to give the residents a little more um um peace of mind that in the evenings when these drones are particularly flying uh that we don't have to worry about anything in our local area just a suggestion I thought I'd pass on thank you thank you Jan G Gyer um I just want to say happy holidays and happy New Year to all of you and I will see you next year in 2025 2025 thank you thank you [Music] [Music] [Music] uh my name is Daniel sininsky uh I do appreciate that finally uh after uh beginning to ask the questions that I had about the judge uh about the budget uh in June uh June or July that there's been finally some uh answers to the questions that I was asking although not all of the questions that I was asking were addressed and uh uh I do want to make a couple of comments someone had said said that uh there were a lot of numbers being thrown around anytime that I came up here and spoke to this Council any numbers that I was throwing around were coming directly from the budget um I also uh want to point out that um the purpose of the Surplus uh is kind of as a a bit of a savings account to be used when needed so the Surplus you know free quently year-over-year is tapped into as a part of the budget process that's true but uh the uh in 2024 uh $6 million was taken from the Surplus that was uh an unprecedented amount and I would challenge Mr papis to look uh over the past 5 years and uh communicate to the public the lowest amount that that Surplus has been brought down and in 2024 it was brought down an unprecedented low amount of $445,000 this Administration keeps wanting to talk about the the the the tax um uh percent I'm sorry I'm uh losing the the the the correct word but what the administration will not address is the tax levy of which $6 million was used in order to deliver the tax levy at an unprecedented 11.6% increase so I think the discussion about the budget uh is an ongoing discussion and it will be uh very interesting to see as we are drawing down the year the years almost over um what the the uh real picture of the 2024 budget is going to be and I still have very strong concerns about what is going to happen to replenish that $6 million surplus thank you Mr President thank you any other public comments okay I just want to uh clarify for the last since 2019 2019 budget $5 million was used of surplus for the budget in 2020 $6.3 million was used in 2021 $7.4 million was used in 2022 3395 million was used and in 2023 6.1 million those are the facts sir thank you any other public comment seeing no one rise I move we close public input I'll second it all those in favor I I opposed all right public comments closed next up is resolutions our first resolution is 12a 2025 stola Quarry operating license block 711 Lots 34 and six Chimney Rock Road Bridgewater New Jersey 08807 in Somerset County um we all do have the resolution in front front of us um in light of some of our conversation this evening with Mr Branch as it relates to the Reclamation plan um the resolution in front of us does have stipulations uh for a uh Reclamation plan to be submitted within uh the next year um I'm going to move 12a with a modification that stipulations 1 two and three be stricken from the resolution I second that modification to 12a okay we have a motion we have a second any comments I was just going to say I would support that okay yeah I'm going to support the the resolution uh stola conducts activities in Bridgewater Township that are regulated by the state of New Jersey um when really not out a position to we don't have really legal standing to even change whatever the requirements are and they are good good neighbors they they they have a u history of of compliance um I believe that they have certainly have good faith and blasting in compliance with an occasional goof uh but uh they have to answer to the state and I think that they they do try their best so I'm certainly okay with this resolution just a clarifying question so so the The Proposal is to amend what we see here to um the motion is to approve what we have here minus stipulations 1 two and three on the back page there would not be any stipulation it would be before 2025 period yep and that's the end of the resolution yes yeah okay I I I'm I'm comfortable with that and I will just before we have a vote on this we'll just say I'm going to personally commit that I think next year we need to refresh this I think instead of require you know as Mr Branch said every year when they submit their application for Renewal they have to submit a Reclamation plan I think it would be in everyone's much better interest if you know every three years or so they came in and did an update on overall Quarry operations status the way things are looking um I think to do a Reclamation plan every year is just a bit much but well and i' I've had private conversation and I've said the same um you know if there can be General guidance on where they think they're headed that's certainly helpful but certainly as as was pointed out uh Clarity on what's going to be 35 years years from now is is impossible to have Mr chair if I may for as long as I've sat on the township Council we've listened to uh Tom make presentations regarding the Quarry and those presentations and questions have changed from you know how many blasts did you have and uh how many complaints during the year and so forth and hang on a second I'll somebody shut the door it's partially open but open thank you yep the other no sorry Mr Branch we have to have the door open the outer door the outer door Alex you're on the clock go open that door or Joe Bell by work can do it yeah right the only comment that I have is that over the years just as we've seen this evening there has been a very clear description of the it needs to be open reactivity Mr Bell the door has to be open in order to comply with open public meeting thank you Chief you're good all right can I continue yes all right sorry for the interruption want to State my opinion that over the years Mr branch has always made presentation that were logical we could follow year toe and what I'm pleased to see this year is they've added a new a new piece to it uh to consider some flood control M flood mitigation work at the Quarry to help other portions of Bridgewater Township uh I you know I for for me I think it's a no-brainer to support the operation thank you I think you know I I the most Junior member sitting on the day is here but um with no dis disrespect to any of my colleagues I think I probably understand the Quarry operation better than just about anyone here and for the public uh for the first 26 years of my life I lived the closest house to the Quarry um as a kid I was woken many mornings by blasting um I know what it's like I've I've experienced it firsthand um and understand it so um but if there's no other comments we'll take a roll call on 12a councilman kers yes councilman Cilla yes councilman nales yes councilman pedroso yes president tring yes all right 12b is authorizing budget transfers for physical year 2024 Appropriations in the amount of 91,4 n61 um if no one objects we'll take uh B and C on consent C is authorizing budget transfers for physical year 2024 Appropriations the amount of 276,000 9121 in the sore fund Mr papis uh be happy to take any questions I think it's self-explanatory but if I'm happy to respond to any detailed questions anyone has okay move 12b and C I'll second any comments I think more for the more for the public listening in all all the council is being asked to do is basically shift money around from one one account to another but nothing is being uh there's no additional uh taxes or no additional expenses okay no other comments roll call for consent councilman K yes cman cill yes cman Nogales yes councilman pedroo yes president ring yes 12d is a call for immediate Clarity and transparency from federal and New Jersey State authorities on drone operations across Somerset County and the state of New Jersey uh I know we've had some discussion already on this this evening um this is an issue I reached out uh I guess it was last week to uh Mr Corsini uh and asking that we could prepare a resolution because I was uh concerned about this um not going to reiterate the the comments made this evening um but I I will um thank Mr corini for getting this done and I will move 12d I'll second it Mr President yes just say I just uh was reminded that the mayor did participate in a telephone conference actually I joined him it was hosted by the White House Office of intergovernmental Affairs were representatives of the FAA FBI Homeland Security I think those were all of the federal agencies uh mayor did participate there were uh I think four or five mayors that were actually asked able to ask questions and I know that both the mayor and chief Mitek have issued public statements the mayor uh uh issued a video addressing this issue as well I saw both thank you I have one question for for Council um do we have any authority to to do any control of all FAA all I thought the answer was no so one one of the residents uh brought up the mayor of Belleville who who happens to be a friend uh I will reach out to him uh see what he cooking up um I will say that I think you're right councilman oralis I think that uh well he's a very good mayor and a very conscientious one uh I think probably he's over a little ahead of his skis but I will check in with him and see what he's come up with so based upon the state comments I mean some of our state that that's one of the challenges of the state they have no authority to go into the airspace and do anything about it because the airspace is regulated by the FAA and even if we did have authority enforcement would be what very difficult although maybe I wouldn't put pass John mitzak in the back there but I think I think it would be very tough but we'll look at it I'll give I'll give uh the mayor a call and see what he's uh what he's got on the drawing board and give you some comments so townships townships that have uh small airports have dealt with this issue and perpetuity and they have no jurisdiction to make any regulation whatsoever involving uh FAA rules or airspace so I feel very confident 99% certain C that we have we would have no legal jurisdiction to regulate drone flying because it's regulated by the FAA and therefore that law would take precedent over whatever we do yep I I agree with councilman pedroo but I'll check in with the mayor there was you know it was shared in some of the news outlets there was an incident I want to say now about two weeks ago where um aeromedical helicopter was requested into Branchburg to fly an individual that was seriously injured in a car accident they were not able to land and because of the drones in the area um the aeromedical helicopter is operated by the New Jersey State Police it's flown by a state police pilot other than saying we can't land there there was nothing the state could do about those drones flying there because they have no enforcement power so all right we have a motion we have a second any other comments I'm just gonna I'm just gonna yeah I'm just going to read my my statement again for the no I'm just joking no Cella the way the way I understand this this resolution is a a request for action on the current situation you know with references to the President Joe Biden and Governor Murphy but I'm I'm thinking yeah we we could do this all right but would it be uh for longevity would we be better off having a resolution you know where we would reference the uh commander-in-chief and the governor of the state for any future activities and responsibilities to protect us as residents certainly something we can look at in the future I mean I think your statement is valid however what's happening at the current time is so so pressing and I think urgent and important uh that these leaders need to act now and we're asking them uh to really act right now like act urgently and make a response to our community and and to the and to the people at large which they deserve to know that's what I think so I view it as something that's being direct to the current leadership to do something now like I said I would support this now but uh knowing in P past work that uh we've done with Homeland Security there are other issues other spots in the town that could certainly be added to this conversation which right now is would not be proper but I think a resolution to protect a stronger resolution for future activity I'd like to see also okay y dly noted any other comments if not roll call councilman kers yes cman cill yes cman Nogales yes councilman pedroo yes president ring yes 12E is authorizing an increase in the amount of 280 48144 to Horizon Blue Cross of New Jersey to provide medical Assurance to the township of Bridgewater for total annual premium of 6,828 14414 for 20124 U it was this is just um clarifying with the uh end ofe uh reconciling of number of people covered which can slightly fluctuate during the course of the year and similar to what had been done this past year thank you Mr peris we would still have the December bill to add to this uh this is supposed to cover the entire year oh that's what I have been told and I will if that's incorrect I will correct but that's what I've been told for the [Music] year we have a motion I'll make that motion second move it okay any further comments if not roll callman kers yesman cordel yesalis yesman pedroo y president tring yes we're going to take 12f and 12g on consent authorizing I'm sorry 12f authorizing an additional $10,000 to Scott Mitzner Esquire for municipal public defender for a professional service contract for the year 2024 for a total amount not to exceed 30 ,000 12g authorizing an additional $224,000 for John Lanza Esquire municipal prosecutor for the professional service contract for the year 2024 for a total amount not to exceed $104,000 uh we uh for the past two years now have um incorrectly estimated the number of uh sessions in 2023 and 2024 uh we are going to ensure that this does not happen again in 202 5 so I apologize for the confusion um the number of uh sessions that e each individuals have attended as uh I could provide that to you Mr Lans appeared 63 of 69 Court sessions in 2024 Mr Mitzner 49 uh there are the the public defender is not uh required to to um attend every session uh the court administrator groups those appearances where a public defender is required to uh increase efficiencies and reduce costs and we do recover some of those if not most of it with the contributions that those defended by public defenders uh make um happy to respond to any questions do you know how much um um defendants contributed in addition to the 30,000 to um to Mr Mitzner I I don't know I can get that for you I did have it we we had discussed this a few months ago and and I had it uh I will get that for you I only ask it's a substantial amount of is it it is I only ask because when you do the math um I maybe I thought I'm sure there's a justification for it but Mr Lanza is making about 1,500 per court session and Mr Mitzner is making uh if you look at 49 courts he's making 600 per court session so I guess if he's getting supplemented and that number goes up no no the the Mr Mitzner uh was only present in a session and he's only there for the period of time required for uh Public Defender Services Mr lens is there for the entire court session there a difference in the amount of time that they uh provide to us prosecutors there for the whole session public defender just for whatever trial is necessary I think you just echoed what Mr Po said but thank you said in a different way yeah any other questions one question I was confused on on the number the number of sessions you mentioned both 2023 and 2024 right is this this is just for 24 but we made the same error last time and you had asked to and you supplemented the original okay so there's no 23 in this and there's no 23 component forthcoming correct correct correct thank you no other questions we'll take a roll call on consent I'm sorry one more yeah I'm sorry one more question Mr Lanza represents a bridge order does he also do the work for the other courts that we no no only Bridgewater yes sir and Mr Mitzner he he provides the service for all of the courts all the courts yes I thought somebody made it I'm sorry apparently we don't have a motion I thought we did oh I'm sorry I'll make that motion if you second okay if there's no other comments roll callman kers yesman cill yes councilman nalis yes councilman pedroo yes president ring yes 12i I'm sorry 12h authorizing dispersal of an additional $3,252 from the affordable housing trust fund for renovations and repairs for two low and moderate income properties through the Bridgewater housing rehabilitation program pretty straightforward but these are for housing Rehabilitation uh two small amounts uh that were needed to complete these projects move 12h I'll second any comments roll call K yes cill yesalis yes pedo yes president tring yes 12i is authorizing submission of the physical year 2024 2025 Bridgewater Ron Municipal Alliance request for application with Somerset County Board of Commissioners in the amount of $ 22575 36 this is an annual submission the uh I think it was the council president asked questions about uh clarity about what figure should be in the title the amount that we would actually receive from the county is $1,287 68 the township provides a $2,800 uh cash match and an in-kind amount of $8,400 and change uh but the county requires the format as presented with this amount in the title so since you mentioned my questions and comments I will share now I am struggling with this and whether or not I'm going to support it this is a Bridgewater Ron Municipal Alliance as noted in the heading um potentially the the the alliance will receive $1,287 of which the township of Bridgewater will write a check roughly for $2,821 and we will have an in kind match of 8,4 $56 and the burrow of raron who is part of the Bridgewater Ron Municipal Alliance will contribute zero um we're subsidizing rtin on this I realize it's a relatively small amount but I struggle with the fact that this is a Bridgewater Ron Alliance and we're funding it we administer it Ron doesn't contribute anything that's my comment I guess letot Mr Pap has respond to that um we certainly could request the buau to participate financially is there is there a benefit to having riton is there a benefit in the volume of numbers in the sense when it comes to the net gain from being in the alliance is there a benefit to us having ritan there even if they don't pay if if I may uh since I'm a member of the township representative uh on the alliance uh um this is fundamentally the Bridgewood Ron high school function is most of this and the thrust towards protecting our kids so although uh Raritan evidently does not provide a financial component uh they are a material part of our alliance educational program uh and therefore they they have representation on the municipal Alliance uh I guess um it's a legitimate question to say hey since they're members would they like to Pony up some dollars and how come they don't pay I'm sorry how come they don't pay like I have no I have no idea asking Mr papus like maybe you know uh this first time this has come up and I I can honestly say I never thought of it but it's I think it's a legitimate point and and to your earlier question you know the count the county Loops to get you know Ron didn't choose to participate we didn't choose to have rtin part of the alliance the county says it's a Bridgewater rtin Alliance the county clusters them where does this money go it's it's they use the money comes in the alliance def uh identifies programs to help educate on drug and alcohol abuse in the school system primarily so as councilman nallis mentioned um most of their efforts are done in the high school so if most of the efforts are in the high school we have out-of-pocket costs and in kind costs in in my opinion it should be an equal you know if if the high school is 70% Bridgewater students and 30% Ron students we should split those costs but that's me who sets the amount I think who sets the am questions are all valid and but I think not acting on it will just delay the program I I would ask that we consider passing this resolution has it's written and uh set the table for 2025 to get a better you know understanding of what rington contributes along with Bridgewater so I think we don't if we don't do this they don't get we the program gets halted I guess I don't dis that's why I said I struggle with it what's the deadline to act Mr papus I I believe it's the end of the year but I'm not I'm not positive about I'll move 12i I'm I'm sorry we have a motion I'll second we have a motion we have a second okay I I I'm very comfortable with what um councilman Cilla said that uh it is a a relatively small amount we are under a bit of a deadline but I think that uh by this time next year there does need to be uh Clarity and uh um uh an equal splitting or an equitable splitting I think uh that's very fair and I'd be happy on behalf of the council to U make that uh inquiry and ask for that uh support from the burrow fair enough I think I think then yeah you should put the parties on notice that this will be an issue 2025 but I I agree councilman cordilla the program does have value it's important enough uh for the kids at the school to be part of it I um so I mean they' be the ones suffering if we decide not to act on this tonight thank you I don't disagree said I struggle with it and um based upon our discussion I will most likely support this but um we'll think differently next year if it's not addressed so we have a motion we have a second any further comments roll call please councilman kers yes cman cill yesman nalis yes cman pedroso yes president tring yes 12j amending resolution 241-04 d006 authorizing an additional $ 17,500 to cers engineering and design 53 frit Road Sweet 110 Hampton New Jersey 08827 for additional Engineering Services for Township of Bridgewater for a total contract amount not to exceed $137,500 I understand that this is for some work that we did in one of the areas where PSG dug up before they repaved the road we made some improvements to sidewalks and some other stuff that was out of psg's scope uh and that's what this is for question please now our engineer Bill bur is he's a contract engineer but he works for cers I is this money we're paying to cers to cover his expense this is for um as Mr Ring said the area of town on east and west side of vasor Avenue south of Route 22 where psng paved those roads curb to curb a number of those roads had curbing that needed to be replaced in really bad condition there were some drainage issues uh that had to be addressed and because as part of ps's uh contract or or or the program they did not provide any Engineering Services and so we needed to address those in order to have those roads paved um so this was an additional project uh that Colliers engineering build didn't do it personally this was something that was beyond the scope of normally we would have had uh another engineering design firm work in the various sections but uh frankly I I made the decision because I knew Bill's firm could mobilize and get the job done in order to keep uh on schedule to have those roads paved before the winter I don't know does that answer your question Mr noralis not quite okay but I'll I'll kers has done a good job for us and certainly bill is a class A engineer uh I'll I'm I'll support this but at some point I'd like to go offline with you make sure I understand it absolutely and with that I'll move 12j we have a motion do we have a second I'll second it we have a motion we have a second any further comment roll call councilman K yes C yes Gales yes pedo yes pring yes all right 12K L&M are all contract Closeouts I'm going to do on consent 12K authorizing change order number one final change order for increasing the contract price from 1,140 73491 to 1,157 476 an increase of 1.51% or $ 17,22 15 authorizing acceptance of the project release of the performance bond acceptance of the maintenance Bond and final payment to rivix yeah Contracting group 165 River Road Flemington New Jersey 08822 for the billion Morton and Klein Improvement project which includes the entire lengths of Frog Hollow Road Klein Place Morton Street billion Street ciment place to frog Halla Road funded through the 2017 2018 Capital sore fund 12 L uh authorizing change order number one final change order increasing the price of contract from 450 $ 51,4 6478 to 4 thou I'm sorry $455,900 78% or $3,515 authorizing acceptance of the project and final payment to Keystone Sports construction 1100 shell Lane Suite 104 Phoenixville Pennsylvania 19640 for the replacement of the synthetic turfield at the field known as the municipal complex located uh at 100 commonway Bridgewater New Jersey Jersey fund it through the open space trust fund account 12m authorizing acceptance of the project and final payment to Keystone Sports construction 1100 sh Lane Suite 104 Phoenixville Pennsylvania 19640 for the replacement of synthetic turf field at known as Turf 3 1000 Field located at 600 commonsway Bridgewater New Jersey 50% of which shall be reimbursed by the Bridgewater Ron School District in the amount of 423,000 count um any comments questions on the well let me first we have a motion uh why um I presume the turf fields were done under a contract where the um they agreed to do this for a certain amount why is there a change from what they probably agreed to in writing there was a um in the field there was a a portion that the base um once they excavated and removed the material they had to add some additional materials the rubber pellets and the the base there had to they they didn't really see that when the cost estimate was given and once they removed the material there was this minimal amount of additional material that was required aren't they really on the hook once they do a aren't they on the hook once they do the contract it kind of you know isn't not there a risk at that point that they didn't see this no we do we do change orders all the time based on Final I mean we've done probably a dozen this year doing three of them tonight yeah it would be impossible to perceive all of the issues that happen underground I I will tell you in this project there were a number of other changes and additions that did not make it to the council because Mr Burr was able to uh deal with it and didn't require this and he felt that this was a reasonable request the comment that I would make is if you recall I don't know I can't remember how many years ago it was when we when we did the to Park area and the problems that we found in to park uh caused tremendous price increases and scope of work changes and that only occurs once you get into the project dig up the street or get into the subsurface so I'm I'm while I agree with you know some of the comments that were made there are times where they're just out of our control and I think this is one of them I I did want to just make one comment on the first resolution regarding the billion Morton Klein project um over the course of this project there have been a number of the members of the public that have had concerns about the some of the conditions that remained after the Project's completion uh our engineering department um has been there numerous times uh I actually have been there personally uh just a few months ago to put my own eyes on the uh concerns that some of the residents have have had uh some have been fully resolved in some people's minds some have not uh there are a couple of instances where because of the drought conditions grass just didn't germinate this summer and so uh they are uh committed to coming back next spring to address that in a couple of instances U once uh weather conditions are are more favorable they there is also a 2-year performance bond that's associated or connected with this project so I think we are covered sorry I moved it we have a motion do we have a second I'll second it any further comments if not roll call kers yes cill yesalis yes pedroso obain president ring yes 12n is authorizing the execution of an agreement with communities and crisis Inc communitybased Treatment Services we had a presentation here a few months back and uh this is to be funded through the uh funds that we have received from that opioid settlement class action lawsuit so this is not coming out of the general fund correct okay move 12 then we have a motion do we have a second second it any comments or questions roll call cman kers yes C cill yes Calis yes coun pedroo yes president ring Yes 120 is a request for waiver for raffle Bingo application Fe in the amount not to exceed $760 for the Church of the Holy Trinity located at 60 Maple Street Bridgewater New Jersey 08807 for a series of instant Raffles to be held throughout 2025 um my understanding is the clerk and uh Mr corini's office has confirmed appropriate documentation is there I will gladly move 120 I'll make that motion to move it I think you're second oh who second it who first it I didn't hear him any comments or questions roll call councilman Kush yesman cill yesman nales yes cman pedroso yes president ring yes 12p is a modification of the 2024 202 renewal of plary retail consumption liquor license number 1806 33-21 d009 for Mish Joo Investment corporation trading as green 645 Route 202 206 Bridgewater New Jersey uh resolution with conditions um so some of you may know that the greenal grill has challenged the legality of some of the past conditions uh based upon some court rulings this modifies some conditions uh as well as reinforces um some of the previously issued conditions and removes a couple um I'll move 12p I'll second any comments questions I'll second it that would be a third but who said okay if there's no comments or questions we'll take a roll call cman kers yesman cill yes councilman nalis yes councilman pedroo yes president ring 12 Q is authorizing the appointment of special counsil for sore litigation my understanding is that uh one of the partners in Mr corini's firm has a PO Cal conflict So to avoid that special councel um so oh I'm I'm done I don't know if anybody has comments questions somebody wants to move 12 I think it needs to be done uh we you know we're moving on this and it would seem pretty silly to move forward and then have a conflict with attorneys so we get the special Council put in place and go get the job done would it be a appropriate to put Michael's name in The Heading so everybody knows he's the special counsel if you'd like sure yeah I'd like I'd like to see that special counsel Michael ver in the appointment of special counsel Michael yeah thank you so Howard is that a motion as amend it yes there's no uh there's no monetary cap on you as you know in the in the in the text of the resolution it says that we will address the the appropriation in our special Council resolution uh early next year probably in January move toq as amended as amended we have a motion do we have a second a second any comments questions if not roll call councilman kers yesman cordel yesalis yes pedroo yes president tring yes all right that completes um our meeting this evening that is open to the public we are going to have a Clos session before I read this do we anticipate any of these items requiring action afterwards okay so based upon that um going to uh item 13 is a closed session be it resolved Bridgewater Township Council this body will now hold a closed meeting to discuss uh affordable housing Redevelopment yard waste potential open space acquisition block 254 Lots 25 and 26 and contract negotiations for purchasing do I have a mo to go into close session I'll make that motion second all right all those in favor I I opposed all right wait the chief left he knows how to do it Roman have a good holiday thank you e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e all right uh we have completed our closed executive session I'll take a motion to resume uh public meeting I'll make that motion I'll second all those in favor I opposed none um we have no further items this evening I will look to councilman nalis for the last time in 2024 I will make a motion to journ this body wishing everyone a happy holiday whether it's Christmas Hanukkah or whatever and uh be safe we have second we have a second all those in favor I opposed we're adjourned was your finest all the years know your 20 years that was your fin was your finest moment like C I'm 100% serious put it better than anyone I ever heard right well done thank you it's what it is Allan is it's gang