##VIDEO ID:w3t5FxmjJpc## okay good evening and welcome to the January 2nd 2025 council reorganization meeting in compliance with the open public meetings Act of New Jersey adequate notice of this meeting was provided on December 10th 2024 by sending written notice and electronic notice to the courrier news and the breeze posting on the website and the bulleon board in the municipal building and filing with the Township Clerk I would ask those of you that are able to uh please stand uh troop 46 of Martinsville will be presenting colors leading Us in the Pledge of Allegiance following the Pledge of Allegiance if you could please remain standing for the playing of our national anthem thank you e flag of United States of America stands Nation godice [Music] tlight [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] Rock through the night was still there [Music] thank you next I'm going to invite Rabbi Dan sburg of Temple Shalom uh right here in Bridgewater to come up uh for an invocation Rabbi good evening happy New Year catch when you invite a rabbi I would like to say a couple of words before I say a couple words blessing before the blessing one of the blessings of beginning a year of New Year and new session here is that local government is not federal government and local politics are not federal politics and the ability just to focus on getting things done without all the distractions and without the level of ranker that can come when people think one way or the other that this or that the fate of the Republic depends on it just being able to do things for your neighbors for your friends not for people on the screen or for somebody far away um it really makes a difference um and i' would like to offer a blessing for this endeavor we pray to the source of Life known to us by many different names we are grateful to live in a country that strives for liberty and justice a country where the people have the privilege to choose its leaders and to invest them with their Authority we pray for the people of our Township people of all ethnicities and religions and careers and incomes and interests and walks of life who make our Township a blessedly diverse Mosaic for all of us may this be a year of health and peace a year of sustenance and safety together in true Harmony may we work to safeguard the ideals freedoms and institutions that are Pride that are The Pride and Glory of our country our states and our Township we pray for the leaders of our Township Holy One send blessings upon our mayor Upon Our council members together with all of our Township's other elected and appointed officials keep them in good health and Grant them the wisdom to administer all their duties with fairness and sensitivity May their confidence always be balanced by humility May their decisiveness always be balanced by their careful consideration they listen closely and speak deliberately they be animated Always by the highest ideals of Public Service measuring their success exclusively based on what is best for our Township may they go forth in peace to work together to bring Justice safety and prosperity to our community consistent with the highest ideals of our nation that all are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights that among these are life liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all this we pray and let us say amen amen thank you roll call please councilman kush here councilman cill here councilman nalis here cman pedroso here president tring here uh the next item on the agenda is selection of the council president for 2025 um before we move to that I would be remiss if I just did not take a brief moment um serving as the council president sitting up here on the deis and facil it ating the meetings is the easiest part of being council president there is a ton of things that go on behind the scenes working with the administration on agendas working with the clerk's office putting packets together last minute changes um working with legal counsel on guidance on the various pieces so um having served my first term as council president uh I would be remiss if I did not take a second to thank the administration the ladies in the clerk's office and Mr corini and his staff for all of their help and support in the last year so thank you um with that uh moving to the selection of council president five years ago when I was first elected to this governing body um councilman naralis kind of took things under his wing and helped uh not only councilman kers but myself become acclimated to the council and and make sure we were set up for success to be up and running in as short of time period as possible and that leadership that he he showed 5 years ago sits in my memory today and so I can think of no better person to nominate to take over as council president from me than councilman nor Galis I will make that motion second it okay we have a motion we have a second unless there's any discussion take a roll call councilman Kush yes councilman codilla yes councilman nalis abstain councilman pedroso yes president ring yes with that that concludes my time as council president so I will uh uh pass the seat to council president nor Galis thank [Applause] you hey thank you next item on the agenda is the selection of a vice president uh we have with us today Philipe pedroso who has been a uh long-term member of this body he is a an attorney of record uh he's a business owner he's a family man and he has lived in more sections of Bridgewater than the rest of us combined is that five or so I I don't I don't know how many eight different houses eight different okay so that tells you something folks uh but anyway uh it it is my privilege to to nominate phelipe pedroso as vice president for calendar year 2025 do I have a second I I'll gladly second that second that roll call please councilman Kush yes councilman cill yes councilman pedroso obain councilman ring yes president Nogales yes um this this year we're going to do something that's slightly different we have on the agenda an item of the selection of the clerk of the council in the pl in the past we have automatically assumed that Grace would be the clerk for the council sessions uh but embedded in our bylaws is the requirement that we select person so therefore I am going to nominate Grace as the selection of the clerk of the council for the year 2025 have a second roll call please please councilman kers yes councilman cill yes councilman pedroso yes councilman ring yesalis yes now this is an opportunity for me to say a few words so I'm going to get down there because it'll be a little easier thank goodness my notes are still here that's always a concern let me tell you right uh good evening uh ladies and gentlemen welcome to the Bridgewater council reorganization meeting uh this is uh one of the more important meetings that we have over the course of the year and today is a very special day in the life of our Council as we shift some responsibilities for the year I want to thank Tim ring Alan Cilla Michael kersch and Philipe pedroso for selecting me as president uh this is my fifth time as president in my 21 years on the council and I think they think that maybe this time I'll get it right but before I talk about my new assignment I want to introduce the folks who are the real heartbeat of the council you all know who have seen jff Grace Nunu who heads the clerk's office as the Reg registered municipal clerk working with Grace Now ladies I'm going to ask you to of course to stand up uh Juliano kho is the Deputy uh municipal clerk and you see her up here on the de anytime Grace is not able to make it uh working uh with her are very ay produced uh is Ali gust who previously worked in public works and Natalie Troy who just recently transferred from the tax collector's office uh they are the true face of the township and also the ear of the township if you happen to call thank you ladies for being here and thank you for the support you provide to this Council every day of the week I also want to personally thank Township administrator uh Mike papis who very patiently and promptly returns calls and emails and makes the council and the council president jobs bearable Michael wears many hats as he manages the various departments including Finance Human Services Municipal Services which in itself is an umbrella Organization for Public Works roads buildings grounds sers and Parks he also coordinates with the police department and the Municipal Court thank you Michael for your work but before I delve deeper into the council work let me touch on the things that the C Council does not do it is very important for the public to understand that why we as councilmen have a wide range of responsibilities we do not plow your streets for in the winter we do not engineer flood or Road jobs we do not supervise the individual departments or negotiate with the board of education so uh many of the concerns that may affect you personally and your quality of life if you present those issues to the council uh we may in fact have Mr papis and his part of the organization share some of those things to be able to help and now for a few thoughts about Council responsibilities the council is the legislative arm of the government legislative powers are exercised through resolutions and ordinances and in rare cases investigations resolutions are basically decisions to do something or in some cases do nothing an example would be hiring a contractor or a professional with a particular skill ordinances are a little bit more complex an ordinance is a law or regulation enacted by the council acting as the seat of municipal government ordinances govern matters not covered by federal or state laws focusing generally on local issues such as Financial bonding land use land purchases and sales zoning noise control and compliance with state and federal mandates to name just a few now that you have heard the cliff notes version of the council activities what are my thoughts about the job as president principally there are three main tasks uh for the president the first is to plan the council meeting and special meetings where necessary this involves careful coordination with the administrator Michael papis the council clerk Grace Township attorney Chris corini seated behind me among others including outside parties where were necessary preparation for a meeting will vary greatly as some items will be relatively simple and others may be weeks and sometimes months in planning another duty is to administer the council meeting serving as the chair and conduct the activity as a judicial function principal among that responsibility is the facilitation of orderly Council discussion and usually but not always voting on a particular issue some issues are passed by a simple majority of members present and some require a super majority of four of five uh public input under the agenda heading open to the public is a fundamental tenant of our form of government the right of the public to speak to the the council be they residents business owners or visitors is embedded in every single council meeting as president I will take the responsibility to be a good listener to the public as one of my most important functions over the years I have sometimes seen the need for the president to keep the public speaker focused on Township issues and concerns this is in my opinion one of the toughest parts of the job as moderator only only time will tell how how well I do this year the last formal job for the president is more or less to be the public face of the council any Bridgewater resident or business owner can reach me uh either by phone or email to the clerk's office I put a small pile of business card they're brand new business cards by the way uh they say on presentent so they must have just printed them up within a few minutes uh but anyway please feel free to take a card after the meeting and you have my home number uh the only thing I ask is no calls after 9:00 please um I will not purposely talk about the many Township accomplishments in 2024 I will leave that to the mayor and to my fellow council members as they address you in a few minutes in 2025 Bridgewater will face numerous challenges not the least of those being the affordable housing regulations forced Upon Us by the courts Bridgewater has over the years been a great Steward of affordable housing unfortunately the previous process has been scrapped and we will be faced with in my opinion an arbitrary additional allocation that that will be of concern to our reg residents you will hear more about that topic in a few months Land Development will be another top issue this year the texture of our town is changing as large campus locations are no longer in Vogue these changes will be handled on a caseby casee basis we will address and resolve situations in a careful and thoughtful way in 2025 just as we have in previous years in a few minutes I will read the names of dozens of residents who volunteer their time and talent to work on the various townships committees boards and commissions for the betterment of our town they reive no compensation for their efforts I believe they simply want to keep our town being a wonderful place to live and work those folks along with our fire and EMS volunteers deserve your thanks and your respect I wish you all a happy and healthy New Year and and ask God's blessing on our town and its people thank you [Applause] now we're honored to have with us mayor Matthew mench mayor of Bridgewater and he will give his state of the address okay I'll come back thank you good evening um before uh begin I want to just take a moment to do a few uh housekeeping items uh first of all I'd like to recognize our assembly Representatives who are here sem minority leader John Deo and Eric Peterson thank you both for being here tonight and for uh your representation of us and our residents in Trenton uh we appreciate it and we appreciate you being here tonight with us uh we also have a board of ed member Jennifer lochran who is here uh thank you Jennifer for your service on the board of education um and uh I also note that Jeff fous is here who is our zoning board chairman um so I want to recognize uh him as well um I know a lot of you who are here um I'm not going to name everybody in the room because we would I'd be pretty much naming everybody I think who's here who has uh who helps make this Township run uh whether you're a staff member you're a volunteer um or your family member supporting one of our elect officials staff members uh or volunteers um it takes a team to do everything that we do as a Township um the the other two things I'd like to to do just as a um moment of silence just to recognize the fact that uh there were two uh you know two events of significance over the past week uh former President Jimmy Carter passed away um and uh you know my father-in-law tells a story that um my in-laws immigrated from Portugal in the late 70s and Jimmy Carter of course was President then and my father-in-law you know believed correctly that he had come to the the greatest country on Earth and was so happy to be here and Jimmy Carter was president at the time so um if my wife had been born a boy her name would have been Jimmy After Jimmy Carter um we don't talk politics by the way of me and my father-in-law because I don't know that we were on the same page on the greatness of Jimmy Carter versus Ronald Reagan but um but I do want to take a a moment of silence uh for President Carter um and his passing and I'd also um you know while we were all well probably most of us were sleeping at the time but uh while we were celebrating the new year of course there was a terrorist attack on our residents our citizens in uh United States in New Orleans so for for um those victims of that attack and in membrance of Jimmy Carter i' ask for a moment of silence for those thank you so uh with that good evening Happy New Year to our our Bridgewood residents honored guests council members and everyone watching at home thank you for joining us this evening as we reorganize the Bridgewood Township municipal government it's a privilege beyond measure to stand here before you once again as your mayor I am proud and grateful for the opportunity to lead and serve all Bridgewater residents for another year tonight as we reflect on what we've accomplished and look ahead to the work that remains let's remember this progress is built through vision collaboration and hard work over the past 5 years we have laid a strong foundation for our community's future and together we will build upon it to ensure Bridgewater continues to thrive for generations to come we've already seen tangible results our focus on Public Safety has strengthened the bond between residents and our Bridgewater Police Department led by Chief mitzak who is who is here with us thank you chief uh our programs like Bridgewater Shield the assistant police academy and the women's self-defense class have not only been successful but transformative making Bridgewater a model for other communities and reinforcing trust between our officers and our residents and I'd like to note that some of those programs are not always traditional policing programs like our community policing program that we have and take real leadership from Chief msac your Command Staff to make sure that we had full buyin from our department and that these programs are successful and so uh we appreciate the partnership with the police department and everyone who made these things happen we've also prioritized long-term Financial stability by budgeting responsibly we've balanced the Township's needs while planning for a sustainable future we approached this with the same care that you would for your own family ensuring that every dollar spent is done so wisely and for the purpose of delivering services to you at the same time we've remained Vigilant in protecting the Privacy interests of Bridgewater residents this past year we successfully prevailed in a lawsuit against Rise Against hate which sought to access and exploit our residents private email addresses this Victory underscores our residents our firm commitment to safeguarding your information and ensuring that our local government acts as a shield not a conduit for those who would overreach in the coming months we are excited to launch a new Township website a modern user-friendly platform designed to improve communication increase transparency and make it easier for residents to access services and information this upgrade is a significant step forward in our commitment to better serving you and keeping you informed around the clock but our focus on connection doesn't stop there over the next year we will expand community events to bring Bridgewood families neighbors and businesses together whether through festivals or opportunities to engage with local government we want to strengthen continue strengthening the sense of community that makes bridgew special as a large sprawling town like Bridgewater we don't have a traditional downtown so we need to make sure that we take extra steps to make sure that our residents have a place to gather have opportunities to come together and to celebrate being here in Bridgewater another critical Focus has been and will continue to be land use and land use development this year we are finalizing both of our new Township master plan and open space and Recreation master plan with input from a great many residents through online surveys public information sessions and emails that have been solicited just from interested citizens these plans will reflect your voices and priorities and ensure that we preserve the character of our community while guiding thoughtful strategic development this is a blueprint that will serve Bridgewater's growth over the next 5 10 and 25 years into the future we will use all the tools our disposal to implement these plans in the positive direction that we want as well as to protect against development that we don't some of this will involve using the area need of Redevelopment process which is a tool that provides us greater control over the land use processes including detailed site plan Authority open space or Recreation requirements and the statutory requirement to consent to or approve future sale of property and to make sure everyone understands how important that can be our Bridgewater Common Mall is an area in need of Redevelopment which means one we've received over the years a lot of Revenue off of the mall we share in profit sharing with the mall it also means that we have to approve any use that goes to the mall unlike a a uh an applicant who can matter what it is they can appear in front of a zoning board they can go in front of Jeff's board and ask for permission to do what they want and there's certain legal standards they have to meet if you're a Redevelopment Zone you have to come to the council and we can just say no so um this is an important tool for us to make sure as these campuses and some of these larger properties look to their future that we make sure we know what's going there now what's going there in the future and that we're able to make sure that we protect our community from current or future overdevelopment that of course leads into one of the most crucial topics that will be facing us over the next year and years coming on land use which is the absolute overreaching and burdensome harmful affordable housing mandates pushed down upon us by an activist Supreme Court and A legislature who has completely given up their responsibility for enforcing and creating laws and programs that provide affordable housing without destroying Suburban communities and make no mistake what this affordable housing mandate will do is destroy Suburban communities like Bridge Waters by forcing hundreds and thousands thousand of units into communities that cannot support the infrastructure the educational costs or any other resources that are needed to provide for that level of housing the state has continued to do this it's social engineering at its worst it's profiteering by individuals who and companies who don't care where they go or what harm they do but want to make a buck off of townships like ours and we will continue to fight that every step of the way our community is one that welcomes everybody we have housing from the top to the bottom we will continue to provide meaningful opportunities for affordable housing that fit our community that meet the needs of our community and that provide an opportunity for people to come to Bridgewater we will not support a mandate for hundreds of units in our case if it was built by solely by developers that use a percentage of that we'd be facing 25 500 more units in Bridgewater so we will continue to work with our team to find ways of minimizing those impacts whether that's through thoughtful planning whether that's through public private Partnerships to cut back on the numbers or whether that's through taking our case to court if we need to to fight what we believe to be over burs some and improper numbers for Bridgewater and for the state in addition to to these larger um long-term projects we're also continuing to prioritize some of the the projects that meet needs of our residents uh more personally uh through our Bridgewater reach program we providing tangible Aid to families struggling with the opioid crisis right here in Bridgewater we've recently funded educational assemblies for high school students helping awareness and educate our young people about the dangers of addiction that program by the way I had sit through it um I know there's not a way of showing it to all of you here but it was an unbelievably impactful program that included residents from Bridgewater who have passed away or suffered because of the opot addiction and crisis in brid in this whole area um which hopefully will have an impact on the students to see it's not just people far away in some unknown town in some State that's not here it's right here in Arc Community additionally we were proud to announce a new partnership with communities in crisis a local nonprofit organization to place an on-site Community recovery Champion here in Bridgewater this individual will provide critical resources education and support to Residents impacted by addiction they will also serve as an extra resource for our Law Enforcement Officers as they interact with individuals suffering from the disease of addiction ensuring those who need it can access help we know the road to recovery can be long and difficult but by working with our Community Partners we're taking concrete steps to ensure that every bridge would resident vulnerable to addiction has the support they need of course these progress has come with challenges we remain Vigilant we will continue to protect taxpayer dollars by keeping our Municipal budget lean and sustainable while maintaining our services impact that our residents deserve and require we'll ensure Public Safety by supporting our police department and working tirelessly to raise to keep Bridge order a safe secure place to live work and raise a family we'll preserve open spaces and invest in our Parks our Fields our Greenways to give current and Future gener ations places to learn and play we will support our local businesses large and small by fostering a sense of community where businesses can Thrive and drive economic success for all of us at the heart of these initiatives is a simple truth that Bridgewater succeeds when we work together whether it's success of the reach program the combat opioid crisis the Reconstruction of over 250 Township roads or the collaborative input into our master plan we've proven that by coming together we can achieve Real Results as we move forward let's commit to that hard work together to making Bridgewater a place where families can flourish businesses can prosper and children can grow up with opportunities to achieve their dreams at the heart of this progress has been a successful collaboration with our dedicated and hardworking Township Council I want to take a moment to thank the council members for that dedication their tireless work and commitment to bridgew success um I could not do this we could not do this without the partnership between the council and the mayor it makes everything work incredibly smoothly and uh I'm absolutely thrilled uh to have Howard as our council president this year um he has been a mentor for me I've probably said this in other reorgs uh but since I first got on the council in 2008 and um Howard's wisdom and his Steady Hand uh you know he's he's seen it all you you've uh five terms your fifth one right as a council president so uh you know Howard's seen it he's he's been there he's done that he um and one of the things that I find most important it's may not Shock anybody to hear that a lot of times politicians think they know everything uh and that they're always right um and uh sometimes having that person in a room that is not afraid to tell you you're wrong uh is very helpful and uh Howard is somebody who has that ability to do it he can do it with a level of um the respect that he's earned throughout his years of service on the council and to this community so when he speaks he's he's listened to um and he has I think a a attack that does it too when you tell us that we're wrong that uh you know you know it's not always gentle I wouldn't say he's always gentle about it um sometimes it's very direct but um always done in a fair way that's thoughtful and um it's nice to know that you know where you stand with somebody and where they think about an issue so um I'm thrilled and Howard's been there since I started here and I also want to just take a moment to to recognize Tim for his work on the on the as council president this past year and um you know different bond with Tim but of course but Tim and I ran together so um when you have that it's a a different relationship and uh Tim you did a great job as uh where this side now uh as as council president and uh we'll we'll see when uh how you do on your fifth time as a council president we'll uh we'll compare so uh thank you to uh Tim and to Howard and to all the council members um who have made this uh this job a lot of fun um most days um it's uh it's a great town I love being here I love being the mayor of this great community and um thank you all for allowing me to do that to working with all of us here and being part of our team to make sure that we can deliver for our residents and we can continue to fulfill the promises that we made when we were elected that we continue to make each year when we stand up here at our reorganization meetings and to make sure that this town can continue to be one of the greatest in New Jersey so thank you God bless you all God breast Bridge order and uh have a great and happy healthy 2025 thank [Applause] you Grace reminded me very subtly that one of the things I passed over was item 10 which is council member statements is uh this provides an opportunity for Council folks to address everyone here including those on TV uh and offer comments uh if I started to write Allan is there anything that you would like to say yes first of all and not the least I'd like to thank Howard and Matt for taking up about a half hour of things that I was going to talk about and I'm sure you don't want to hear those things all over again it's a pleasure to to work with both of them and as a u councilman I'd just like to say to all residents of Bridgewater Township that the commitment that we have as members of the governing body is as strong as ever and I assure you that as polite and as everything is smoothly going along this evening that's always not the case there are at times debates different voices of opinion and as I was told many many years ago being on a Township governing body is a game of compromise and I truly do believe that and I thank all my fellow um me council members and the mayor's office for for working as a team this past year um I'd also like to recognize the efforts of all the people the residents who volunteer to serve on our boards whether it be the planning board with John the board of adjustment direct board open space board all of the time that gets put in in hours over the year over the year to serve the residents of Bridgewater uh really get they're not noticed you know do they get complained about at times yet they do get complained about but I'm here this this evening to say thank you to each and everyone who does serve uh I truly do appreciate and recognize the the time that you put into your positions on different committees for our police chief and Public Works God bless you guys uh when things are going smooth nobody thinks about you but when things are going go in bed you're the first two people we think about where's the police officer I need some help or public works you know I got a big I got a problem in our street or whatever the case might be the the dedication and the work that these fellas do with their departments to me is simply amazing and I thank John and Dicky for your Crews and your teams for the work that you do and for your leadership and also in Bridgewater Township we are very blessed to have emergency service organizations such as our Fire Res our fire departments which are all volunteer and our EMT or rescue squads who are all volunteer uh the hours that are put in by all of these guys volunteering their time is astronomical and I would be remiss to not say you know God bless each and every one of them and thankfully I thank each each and one of them from the bottom of my heart for the service that they provide and for everybody here this evening and for all the residents of Bridgewater Township it's a new year I wish everybody the best of health and prosperity as we move towards through the New Year in 2025 and hopefully in 2026 we'll be able to say similar things God bless you all thank you thank you so um one of the risks you run when you uh publicly thank people is sometimes you forget somebody it's very easy uh to remember the people sitting up on the Das and the clerk's office and Mr Corsini in the administration but there's somebody who I forgot to thank that I'm going to do now um there's somebody who is behind the scenes uh someone who does a lot of stuff with our Council meetings uh before this meeting started was out in the hallway organizing boy SC um does our live streaming uh is actually the person that advances the slides and all that so I would be remiss if I didn't thank Suzanne Mater who's hiding in the closet over there making sure our live stream's running shaking her head no at me but I would just wanted to um publicly acknowledge her efforts as well so thank you thank you Mr President uh so first I want to say welcome to everyone and um it's great to see uh the individuals here in your various capacities uh representing our various uh volunteers appointees First Responders uh and those who really make a difference on a daily basis uh to uh move Bridgewater forward I want to just acknowledge that we've now completed a 5-year rotation um this group on the Das as your Council has been in place for 5 years and now each of us has completed a term as president so uh we have led and have been LED uh by each other and I think that's um you know that's an important uh an important accomplishment uh so to outgoing president ring um congratulations on a very successful year uh and to my other colleagues I just simply want to say how much of how much I've enjoyed getting to know each of you uh as we've worked on issues big and small uh over uh the 5 years I've been on on Council um priority this year will be continue advocacy uh it could be the issues that we've talked about frequently budget managing our government land use and smart development or a focus on what I'll call neighborhood and micro issues because if it involves three homes or 30 homes or 300 homes it's a priority it's a priority for you it's a priority for us sitting on this day and and holding this office is a privilege I do recognize that every day with that privilege comes the responsibility continue to to move our beautiful Township forward so in closing I simply want to wish everybody a Happy New Year and my share my sincerest wish that your homes and your lives are filled with the blessings of good health Good Fortune peace Harmony and hopefully at least your fair share of Happiness thank you thank you sir hi good evening everybody nice to see so many faces here tonight a Happy New Year everybody here and out there watching on YouTube as I was sitting here listening to everybody I guess last how fortunate we are to live here in briwn in America but I I grew up here different addresses I understand theity of are and really Bridgewater is a beautiful place we're very lucky to live here just uh help share that um I think the mayor mayor mench came here he made a promise to us first time he ran that he was going to protect our quality of life and he's been a jealous Fighter for us here brid ISRO of our community some needs something see a post on Facebook the way like we all come together in the community just to and each other so much then of course the fact that we have a great quality of life in town we love and also I can help but think of all the the volunteers that we have we have so many amazing Volunteers in this zoning board and the planning board are so important boards because they really are are also want to thank my fellow council members I mean I know we don't talk much about ourselves U but you guys here I mean I know fir hand how much brid is forunate to have group of guys up here who really spend so much of their time do so much behind the scenes without water finest um and I I'm never shy to thank the men and women of our Police Department really appreciate everything they do so make sure you take that word back to them because I know all of us here really appreciate them our citizens appreciate their service to our community so so thank you I give a shout out to Roman uh he's a reporter who we don't really talk much about kind of sits back there uh but um he comes to all our Council meetings and so you know the the media obviously are very important part of our society because they they help share to the people everything that go goes on up here and without the media the public really wouldn't know would be hard for the public to know uh what the governing body is doing um and so thank you Roman for always coming to our Council meetings and and getting the word out for everything that we do so really um everything else has been said I just wanted to basically um just really thank and acknowledge people uh I know that the administration is has fabulous staff and our clerk's office is amazing and everybody that works for the town's amazing um just want gu some focus on on the volunteers because they just they just give their time to the township and really help us uh make Bridgewater an amazing place to live so thank you all for being here thanks for everyone and um happy New Year again thank you Philipe uh we're now moving to section number 12 in the agenda and it's listed as mayor's appointment with advice and consent uh he has two batches and if it is accept to the council I'd like to do a consent on all of the mayor's appointments I'm going to read each and every one of them but I'd like to do them as a consent so we can save some time uh 12a is the appointment of qualified purchasing agent Sarah Housman as 2025 public agency compliance officer 12b authorizing appointment of William H Barr I fourth professional engineer of cers engine engineering and design as Township engineer for the period of January 1 2025 through December 31st 20125 in an amount not to exceed $120,000 number uh letter C authorizing appointment of Katherine sarmad professional planning of sarmad Planning Group LLC as a Township planner and award of uh Professional Services contracted an amount not to exceed 77,000 $500 for the period commencing on January 1st 2025 letter D authorizing appointment of Darlene green professional planner of colar engineering and design as affordable housing planner and award of Professional Service contract in an amount not to exceed $440,000 for the period of january1 2025 through December 31st 2025 to be funded from the C trust fund Mount Laurel expense account letter e authorizing appointment of Michael Sullivan of the firm of Clark Kon hin PC as Redevelopment planner and award a professional service contract in an amount not to exceed $20,000 for a one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 F authorizing and approving the the fee schedule for the professional legal services for Christopher M Corsini Esquire and the law firm of savvo Shaw gespi ogrodnik uh Fisher PA in an amount not to exceed $460,000 for the period of January 1st 2025 to December 31st 2025 we should have had your name in there also right after it it should actually be savos shock uh and then Cor but we we'll fix that uh G is authorizing and approving the fee schedule for affordable housing legal services for Christopher M corini Esquire and the and the law firm of savvo Shar corini Warner gespi ogrodnik and fiser Pa in an amount not to exceed $100,000 for the period of January 1st 2025 to December 31st 2025 moving to letter H authorizing and approving the schedule for tax appeal legal services for Christopher h corini esquire and the law firm of Sao sh corini Warner gespi ogrodnik and fiser Pa in an amount not to exceed $40,000 for the period of January 1st 2025 to December 31st 2025 authorizing Award of contract for Professional Services to John dritz Esquire of the law firm of given PC as Bond counsel for the calendar year 2025 J authorizing the appointment of Matthew jacobe Esquire of the law firm of clear Jobe Alfieri and Jacobs LLC as labor Council for the township of Bridgewater for the one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 in an amount not to exceed $120,000 moving to K excuse me authorizing Award of contract professional legal services Municipal prose U John lanzer Esquire in an amount not to exceed $80,000 for a one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 L authorizing Award of contract professional legal services Municipal public defender to Scott Mitzner Esquire for a one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 and an amount not to exceed $40,000 M authorizing Award of contract professional legal services first alternate Municipal public defender to Daniel frella Esquire for a one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 in an amount not to exceed $3600 n authorizing an award of contract to re rehabco Incorporated of 44 East Water Street Toms River New Jersey 08753 to serve as the Township's administrative agent for afford able housing and provide housing rehabilitation program services for a 12- Monon period commencing on January 1st 2025 in an amount not to exceed 100 thou $180,000 paid from the Township's affordable housing trust now that represents the state the the staff pronouncements uh from the mayor's side moving on to section 13 these are the mayor's appointment with advice and counsel for boards and and committees a appointment to the Bridgewater Raritan Youth Services Commission Matthew MCH Christine Madrid Daniel aern Lindsay shambach Item B appointment to the community Emergency Response Team also known as C Ashish thar Brian shansky Cheryl aista Colin trlo Dennis danzo Daren Patel Ed Schuler James Edwards Jason Shephard Joseph kusam Manu II Camal Al alfiero Kevin Kimmel Lisa Begley Leonard cont conino uh mesh Chandra Mary Beth anglehart Michael Harvest Nikki balini Pat Sullivan Richard Weedman Robin cusamano Steve cornello senior Wayne Carter and zuming Zen letter C appointment to the economic development committee uh Jason Gand and Sophia Georges D appointments to the emergency medical service advisory committee Timothy ring James Edwards Scott Stevens letter e appointment to the environmental commission Addison Riley Amy Lee Alonzo James Muro and Ray Vel now by the way James mura is the plan board representative uh to this body and Ry is the open space uh representative moving to F it's appointment to the greenbook Fred Control Commission Tom janova Alan cill as the county liaison Michael kers as the alternate Alon appointment to the health Advisory Board uh Bruce bonono appointment to the library Advisory Board uh Kimberly Osborne and Olivia Lopez appointment to the local history advisory committee Mauricio vesio appointment to the park board Ashley Secura Jennifer longren uh Jonathan Hill William Akin appointment to the ritton mil Millstone Flood Control Commission Alan Cilla as the council liaison Scott Stevens as the altern alternate liaison appointments to the recreation board Fabiola folino and Lindsay shambach appointment to the regional center partnership Michael mench I'm sorry Matthew mench Michael papis and Philipe pedroso as the council liaison appointments to the shade tree board Barbara Ranka by the way Barbara Ranka has served on that board as long as I ever remember God bless her uh Diane Marone and Jeremy Lee appointments to the veteran advisory committee uh Danielle Kola uh Michael mandez and Scott moraldo now that ends that lists all those people from 12 and 13 are the Mayors boards and commissions with advice and consent uh could I have a motion for consent approval for for sections 12 and 13 for the mayor's appointments I'll make that motion second a roll call please councilman Kush yes councilman cill yes councilman pedroso yes councilman ring president Nogales yes now moving to section 14 which are the mayor's appointments without advice and consent appointments to the local emergency management Council anit K sha Christine Madrid Christopher cini Howard noralis James Edwards John mitac John totson Michael VOR Richard Shimp Tom Scalera Timothy ring Wayne cter Scott Stevens appointment to the planning board members class Henry Wang yes okay thank you okay uh D appointment of planning board members uh class two member Michael papus class four member is Henry Wang class 4 morito vessio and alternate number one is Nan chadre appointment to the Somerset County Solid Waste advisory committee Tom janova appointments to the Somerset County development Consortium Scott Stevens the council hereby acknowledges receip of the mayor's appointment there is no action for us to take next now moving to council appointments uh a is appointment of the auditor Supple Clooney and Company 308 East Broad Street Westfield New Jersey 07090 uh- 2122 in a total amount not to exceed 65,500 for a one-year term commencing on January 1st 2025 B is appointment of assessment search Officer William H Burr ivth Township engineer item C appointment to the Bridgewater RAR Municipal Alliance Claudia baitman Howard noralis Joanne Bixler John metac Lynn Hurley Megan mench and Serena colado D appointment to the board of adjustment Andrew Fresco as a regular member John gasi as a regular member John culac as alternate number two and Claudio vessio as alternate number three appointment to the open space advisory committee James we Deli Ray Vela and Yan Ren appointment of the class three planning board member is Michael kersch appointment of the tax search search officer Blanca Lions appointment to the Somerset County Community Consortium Alan cill is the council liaison Howard norallis as the alternate appointment to the solid waste the County Solid Waste advisory committee Howard noralis as County liaison Michael kersch as alternate liaison appointment to the somerset Raritan Valley sorage Authority Howard noralis Council liaison Michael kersch alternate liaison appointments to the Summerset Regional animal shelter management committee Robert deani James widell Tony Hoffman Joan Flynn appointment to the Middlebrook Regional Health commission Howard nor gallis Timothy ring those were the council uh could I have a motion to confirm the council appointments please so moved second roll call please councilman kers yes councilman killer Yes councilman pedroso yes councilman ring yes president Nogales yes we we now reach the point of item number 16 which Oaths of office to be administered by Christ gini sir yes if you if you happen to have received an appoint if you happen to have received an appointment uh please um stand up and raise your right hand if your name was well I read the oath please repeat after me I state your name I Howard nor Gallas do solemnly swear do solemnly swear that I will support that I will support the constit ition of the United States 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 true faith and allegiance that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same to the same and the governments established and 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 I will faithfully impartially and justly faithfully and just partially perform all the duties of your board perform all the duties of several of of the township of Bridgewater of the township of Bridge Water according to the best of my ability according to the best of my ability so help me God help me God thank you Christopher yes yeah she left no for the people out there oh okay uh there there are a batch forms if you are had your hand up uh there are Oaths that you need to sign are they over there okay so right after uh don't run out uh Grace will make sure that everybody gets their package and gets an opportunity to sign uh now we're at the point of um oh we have some uh General business resolutions that have to be attended to uh at each reorganization there are certain items that have to be addressed and I'll read them as follows item 17-1 is uh 2025 General business resolution granting various authorities to Township staff and setting officials designations policies and procedures pursuant to various applicable laws number two the 2025 Township Council schedule of meetings very important 2025 temporary budget current Fund in the amount of 15, 371,000 28965 uh there's also a 2025 temporary budget sore utility in the amount of 3,468 18589 statutorily we have to we have to make sure we can pay our bills so it is a requirement that we establish that temporary budget U author number six authorizing Bridgewater Township engineer William H Burr the fourth PE of the firm of colur engineering and designed to execute njde and NJ do state of New Jersey and Somerset County permits on behalf of the township for the year 2025 did you get number five sorry did you read number five oh establishing cash management plan and naming official depositor thank you um those represent the resolutions having to do with General business could I have a motion to approve those resolution second second okay roll call please councilman Kush yes councilman cill yes councilman pedroso cman ring yes president Nogales yes ladies and gentlemen we're now at at number 18 which is the meeting open to the public uh members of the public wishing to address the the Council on any manner will be allowed two minutes to speak unless there are unusual circumstances could I have a motion to open the meeting from public moved we have a second second please second I'll second all those in favor I I I okay ladies and gentlemen we are now open to the public if you come forward there's a little sign-in sheet if you would put your name and address down for anyone who wishes to address the Council on any matter seeing no one make a motion to close public comment could we have a second on that second okay all those in favor of closing the open I I I okay we we now we are now at number 19 which is actually it's normally my favorite thing I was going to say since we not going to do it anymore since we switch seats do that come with the responsibility you you have the responsibility Alan just did it I'll second it okay all those in favor of adjournment please say Bye by ladies and gentlemen thank you very much for attending there will be Refreshments in the large conference room right next door and again for people who who have taking an oath please pick up your package sign your oath uh and uh Grace will will acknowledge it thank you again and God bless you one and all have a safe year productive very productive 2022 G to work on happy to happy to be with you again Howard thank you nice job Grace [Music]