##VIDEO ID:g38n_rcnz3E## live e e e e I there no one here yeah I mean I'm sure they do you think so mine are very short look that's it I've seen vide shorter than normal I'm not yes welcome everybody uh if I could have everybody stand for a moment of silence and salute to the flag to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible liy and justice for all adequate notice of this meeting was provided to the Union County Hawk advertised on January 4th 2024 notification was sent to the Star Ledger and is posted on the municipal website the municipal public bulletin board and filed in the office of the municipal clerk informing the public of the time and place according to the provisions of the open public meeting Law chapter 231 pl1 1975 roll call please Mr Arthur mayor bloomstock here councilwoman Bodo here councilman Foley here councilman Lazaro here councilwoman ndi she is excused councilwoman salmon here council president Carney here uh roll call of staff and professionals please John Arthur bur administrator here Adam Aon ber bur attorney here Doug stoer chief of police okay um before we go to our regularly scheduled items on our agenda with our reports um I want to quickly have uh Megan Avalon come up to to speak with the council I appreciate her being here Mr Arthur asked if she could come and speak with us a little bit she's the director of the Westfield Regional Board of Health which Garwood is a part of um and at our last meeting um I know there was some questions about Chief do you help him with the there you go we got it um there were some questions about the spraying of the brook um which is something that we uh have done each year and and there was a resolution up to contract out with the company um to do that spraying and I know there was some concern and some uh questions uh from council members and so uh Megan you've been kind enough to be here before to talk about this a little bit so I'm going to just turn the floor over to you um if you could give us a little bit about your thoughts on the issue sure so um rodent complaints are something that we see in all the towns it should be on okay um and we get them frequently from Garwood uh around the neighborhoods where the brook runs right um rodents really like that type of environment they really like uh water source and sometimes individual properties the things that we like on our properties um you know rodents also like right so it's a nice um area for them to live especially when the vegetation is overgrown right the vegetation being overgrown gives them cover but more importantly when we get complaints complaints it makes us it makes it really hard for us to determine where the rodents are coming from uh we do provide the burrow with a preventative Pest Control contract and included in that is a walkthrough of the Brook annually but the problem is if the vegetation isn't cleared we can't it's it doesn't make any sense for us to do the walkth through because we can't see where we're walking so the process um a little bit this is to remove the vegetation corre so that then the board of health comes in and does this walkth through and does the baiting correct okay and it and and just the removing of the vegetation itself uh is something that we recommend to prevent Road infestations right just clearing the um or or minimizing that overgrowth really helps a minimize rodents and you say minimize I want to point that out because I know we we I get a lot of well if we've been doing this why or there's still cases of it um and I guess you would say it's not a complete elimination it's a mitigation yeah it's impossible to eliminate every Road in in Union County right where it's not a problem specific to Garwood we see it in all the communities we serve and you know I joke with my staff I say you know the rodents were here long before us they're probably going to outlive all of us right uh but we do the best we can to decrease the numbers um as much as possible can I ask you um we are a part of the Regional Board of Health um what do the other municipalities do with their water sources with you know anything that they have in their municipalities so I don't believe any of the municipalities have like the typ of of water source that that that runs along um Garwood but we do treat um the other public properties in a similar way um so we have the same recommendations for all the communities and if there is an area in another municipality that we serve that has a similar type of problem the recommendation would be if there was any sort of overgrowth that we would need to clear that out okay um I have a couple more comments but I'll I'll wait and see if anybody has another question for Miss Avalon any questions I I'll just ask a a very direct question is the uh the application of this safe yeah um so so the application uh you know um that the uh vendor has previously used right um is EPA approved for this type of environment and I I do understand the concern for sure you know chemicals um are are never um you know I understand that people are nervous like about just chemicals in general but I will tell you from a public health perspective um the the consequences of having a rodent infestation in my opinion clearly uh really outweighs any you know potential downside to applying chemicals you know rodents carry many different types of diseases uh they carry ticks they carry fleas um and you know they're they're known to make people sick where the chemicals that might be sprayed are all EPA approved okay so this is this is something as it as the health officer that you're recommending for Health and Welfare it's not just one it's one part one piece of a larger yeah rodents in particular rats bring so many things that are detrimental to human health right especially if they're in close proximity to where children play and where you know um pets are and and things like that so uh you know in my opinion um I I would always say anything that you can do to help um reduce the number of rodents living in close proximity to Residents uh I am for that uh what safety measures are put in place when when spraying to broke uh I I I don't do the spraying myself and my you know my um Health Department doesn't but I do know that whatever vendor you choose is licensed and there are very strict parameters and protocols in place from the D and the EPA hi do we know what they do in Cranford I know you're in westfields but does anybody know what they do in Cranford no okay anybody um so thank you for answering everybody's questions um what I wanted to say was I I do appreciate the conversation because um nobody likes to hear chemicals and we all hear about the Roundup and and things like that and and it's it you know nobody likes to deal with it um this was brought up at our last meeting by a resident who I see is here today and he um actually asked if he could put together a plan for you know to show us a a management plan um and I actually last week I spoke with Mr Arthur and um councilwoman Bodo and we actually had a discussion about coming up with a comprehensive uh rodent plan um management plan and some of the things that I I know all of the council members received an email today with that plan and and and a lot of those things that were in that plan was actually part of our discussion um and so it is something that I think we need to do in addition right now to the spring because I do think a lot of the things that we we want to incorporate into a management plan there's a lot of Education there's a lot of enforcement involved and it's it's there short-term goals and long-term goals I'd like to achieve with it in the meantime however I have been getting a lot of um anecdotally a lot of calls um I know we've seen online there's been a lot of things about different rodents and and look the rain is certainly not helping this is when that you're going to hear this from residents that that they're seeing these things um but I would like to to let the the public and Miss Avalon know that I will be working with Mr Arthur and councilwoman Bodo to put forth some sort of plan and to and to work so that we can add some things so that hopefully there comes a time where maybe we don't need maybe we're seeing that the M other mitigation factors are helping and we don't need to use chemicals I think at the moment a lot of those goals are going to take some time for us like I said to educate the public and then to work on enforcement so um th that's my two cents on it I'm not sure how the rest of the council feels about um bringing back that resolution uh we can have a discussion about it now or we can wait any I mean I'm I'm comfortable having the conversation now um I mean my my position is similar which is that I think um as our health officer has clearly expressed um and I I think it's it Bears repeating is that the chemicals that we're talking about using in the C in in the in the gar Brook are uh EPA approved and then on top of that the potential arms of uh you know the you know of of these animals you know and the diseases that they bring is much much bigger than what any chemical could you know infect or which we're not we to our knowledge is not doing any harm to our community so I feel like it we have to move forward with uh using this vendor to continue to spray and remove the plants and then I'm I'm 100% in agreement about a comprehensive rodent uh plan that we can look at long term and I thank Mr nearad for providing such some great um a great starting point for this conversation for us to move forward um because you know I think it is really important that people are educated because I think there's simple things right that people need to constantly be reminded of and there's people who are moving moving out we have uh you know we do have a lot of renters who you know every year we could have a new renter that aren't familiar with the proper procedures so I think these are are long-term goals that certainly I would love to see happen but uh in the meantime I think we need to to spray the the brook I just have a question the water in the brook does not go into the water supply or anyone on anything like that yeah I mean it's eventually it's not we're not taking our drinking water right out of the Garwood Brook do you have a on that yeah yeah I haven't seen anything this year but in in the past the chemicals that were used were EPA um registered to be used near award so um you know that that was taken into consideration in the when choosing which product yeah and wouldn't that be pretty well treated by the time it made it to well yes that any water gets completely filtered through the treatment center yeah I mean and it's it's also just to clarify it's not that they're putting it in the water right which I think is important right it's they're they're putting it on the the plants that are on the gaban that are on the side of the brook obviously yes is it possible that some of that could potentially leak into the water sure but I think that given the fact that we've been assured that it is EPA approved but long term I love to not use this I mean we've been talking about trying to find other Solutions um for sure but we haven't we just haven't found one that has been able to to work and I I think maybe this long-term comprehensive plan is a great pathway for well that's that's my thought I think it's time for for this uh comprehensive plan so that we can attack it from different side so um and thank you uh Miss avalone for for coming in tonight um I I haven't heard any new information uh here tonight regarding this topic uh nor really in the the email that that we received some of these things I've heard kicked around and discussed for years and I pointed this out at our last meeting when I lost the vote uh to table this in the first place the Topic's been examined and reexamined in Garwood for well over a decade and many councils have sat here many times and heard from professionals from the Bro engineer to our health officer that uh this vegetation management method is both safe and it's essential uh for the community's Health and Welfare so I I agree with councilman Lazaro and and you I would love to get to a point where we don't have to do this but I think we're more aspirational than operational on a plan right now and without a viable alternative I think this Council has a clear duty to act now for the greater good of the community even as we agree to work towards a change in the future okay anybody else same I did vote to table that resolution but after hearing all the complaints and without having a consise plan I think we do need to spray but I am fully on board to you know discuss Mr ne's plan and definitely work to do away with the chemicals I uh I agree with that uh statement I do feel that the the need is imminent um the risks uh regarding the uh rodent population uh needs to be minimized and I agree um doing it now and and looking for a plan uh in the days ahead I mean mayor I I just would like to point out that this this comes up every year when the resolution hits the agenda yes and you know if we're making this commitment now I I'm assuming this will come to um committee yes and it's something that we can put in place and then maybe have something to present next year as a viable alternative I I fully support that yes and and again it's going to take some planning we have to look at what resources we have what resources we might need um but we have our our marching orders to to get started on that and I think it's it's high time we get started on it but um I'm fully willing to do so so um okay I will thank you Miss avalone I will um I appreciate you coming and talking with us as usual um and I'm going to uh then move back to our regularly scheduled programming on our agenda um and you're you're free to to leave in case you really have an interest in some of this stuff thank you um we will move to our report from our burough attorney uh nothing need a report okay uh Mr Arthur do you have a report for us yes so we put out uh requests for proposals for a concession um company at the Athletic Field Complex um it's available if you go to the garwood.nj Recreation director for a lot of a lot of hard work putting together the the RFP um we're working to schedule upgrades to our security camera system at the Athletic Field Complex we were waiting for uh Camp to end which is in ending tomorrow um which actually leads me to the next part I just want to thank everyone involved in the camp from the volunteers to the directors to the counselors to the parents um and fire department for doing the water play days and uh public works for being on top of a lot of different things um on a day-to-day basis to make sure that it's it's functioning and the schools for providing a facility on days like today when it's uh rainy so just want to thank everybody involved for that um signage uh for additional Park Mobile spots are underway and we will update our parking map once that's all done and again thank public works for that and this fall and early winter assuming our bond ordinances that is on the agenda tonight is uh introduced in past in the next couple meetings we'll be working on the shade structure at the Athletic Field Complex and the flooring here in burall okay that's it for me thank you yes it was a fantastic summer camp um my daughter had a great time I know so thank you to all of those involved DPW fire department our rec director our camp directors and uh having the school available on rainy days which this week has been quite fun with um has been a real big help so thank uh the board of ed for that um it's been a it's been a great summer it really has and um and again another big thank you to uh miss lysc our rec director for the RFP for the uh concession stand that it's quite extensive and took a lot of work um so I will uh I have a little bit of a rapport um I just want to start off by congratulating Chief stoer and the police department um Garwood has once again been recognized by njt in their safe roots to school program the safe roots to school program recognizes communities that are committed to encouraging walking and Bic bicycling to school and ensuring that the safe routes to school programs are implemented and this includes comprehensive crossing guard policies um as well as extensive crossing guard training and Outreach and Garwood has been accredited silver in their tiered program which is truly an achievement for municipality our side so thank you once again uh Chief and to the whole department for keeping our school children and all of our pedestrians safe uh the Lions Club will be having their annual senior picnic on September 14th this free event is open to all seniors in Garwood uh we'll have hot dogs hamburgers corn and some special bingo games so make sure to spread the word it will be at Nights of Columbus at 12: p.m. I also want to remind everyone that the municipal Alliance is back up been running and will be holding their first meeting in September uh we are looking for volunteers so if you would like to find out more about it you can head to garwood.nj um and lastly just something I would like to put out to the council and get their feedback we have the uh Union County kids and Rec Grant uh application due and so we need to talk about if we want to go out for it if we do what we want to go out for um and so I know the community engagement committee uh has spoken about it uh with Mr Arthur and so um our chair isn't here but I know she left some did she leave a report to talk about it with you council president yes she gave me her committee reports and it's in there okay um I would like to talk about it at this point so if um if there's anything that councilwoman noi wanted to relay and then we can all on it I mean are you okay if I just read that part of her her report to the record yeah let's read it in um all right so this is from councilwoman n's uh Community engagement committee report um the community engagement committee met to discuss the kids Recreation trust application due at the end of August the committee unanimously decided that it is in the best interest of the community to apply for these grants to use on a variety of needed upgrades as well as completing regular maintenance uh we discussed using the potential grant money to improve the gravel p Pathways uh resurface the basketball court and install additional water billing water bottle refilling stations uh these improvements and regular maintenance of our recreational areas reflect a very small portion of our overall municiple budget and yet are essential for the continued enjoyment and use by the commity community of the facilities if the finance committee cannot recommend the expenditure of the Matched grant for this fiscal year then we can ask them to reconsider it for the following year uh not applying for these grants in the first place however is imprudent matching grants provide municipalities with the necessary funds to maintain and improve our recreational facilities and we we would be shering our duties to leave that potential money for our community on the table and uh if you're listening Council man oldi I hope I gave that Justice uh in my reading okay and I second what she said so okay there you go um so I guess that's two for applying uh for the rec Grant um can I so the before I open it up the community engagement committee had a couple of items they were looking at the basketball court was one I heard yeah resurfacing of the basketball court um probably take up most of that Grant I assume yeah if we chose to to use it for that um the gravel Pathways within the within the rec complex itself uh just giving them a refresh and then uh we had discussed additional water bottle refilling stations just as we get more use out there um those the the few that we have are very well used yeah and I I something I we can also look to the Green Team to maybe if we when we get certified again for a another Grant from sustainable Jersey um okay so let me open it up feelings on this draw polling in regards to the basketball court what you know I I was there not too long ago because we had the discussion Finance um I we felt that it was it it had some cracks but something that could be filled do you think that this is something we can wait on um because in my observation it was you know something that can be pushed off for another year or so well yeah it those were the top three items that our committee came up with as uh with good potential for the application to get the funding approved it doesn't necessarily mean that we need to do that specific item within the next year but I will say from my first year on Council when we had a buildings and grounds committee resurfacing that basketball court has been the punch list for buildings and grounds that now it's it's 2024 so it's something that's going to have to get done at some point um but we don't necessarily have to do that particular project next year or any given year um I'm in favor of of uh applying for these grants uh I chose to not uh support applying for a grant last year um I think that you know I generally don't like the idea of us not applying for a grant two years in a row I think in general we I think we took a break given the circumstances of our finances at the time and also I think in general um that you know I think it just starts a trend of being like Oh we just can't we can't do anything um and I you know I think last year the circumstances just a number of things presented themselves that made me uh you know hesitant to move forward and as we see with this upcoming funding for the uh the roof structure that we're bonding for that is coming from previous Rec grants that we have applied for that were not fully used so if for example we decide that we're not going to use it for the basketball court then maybe two years from now we will have something that we do want to use it for so I do think that there's value in that and so I will be supporting this Council woman did you yeah so we actually did talk about the basketball court in Finance we all went down there separately we all kind of had the same thought that it really wasn't in terrible condition maybe it could be resurfaced I'm okay applying for the grant but I'd rather see us wait and put it towards the turf than do a project like like I won't support any of those projects I'm okay applying for the grant but I I don't think that these are a necessity I'd like to see us hold the grant for I mean I think the turf's going to be in the next two years two to three years I think we're going to have to do that the the point of the County's trust for this though is to incourage municipalities to invest in things that aren't Necessities because what's the first thing that's going to go if you're in a tight year it's going to be public spaces historically so that the the intent of the the grant is to kind of push us in the direction of doing some of these Community improvements that we might otherwise not get to in a regular budget I understand that it's just it's still like I don't support the shade tree that the shade at the rec center this year I I just don't think we're in a good enough spot to be able to do that I get what you're saying well that I just want to so the public knows like to point out that shade structure is being half funded with grants that we already have right so this is do we apply for another one but that one is sitting there and count said to us basically use it or lose it we have gotten that so I I'm okay applying I'm not okay spending it on any of these things the only thing I will be okay spending it on is replacing the turf okay and I just want to say and that's fine I want to say when we have to fill this out we do have to specify something and so we will have to pick what we want to specify if appr proof for the grant do they expect money to be spent uh in a certain time frame it's a I think 24 months 24 months they were a little lenient during the co years but um very very recently they uh reached out and and said here's the this is the 24mth deadline what's you know what are you what are you doing with it so yeah which is why I say that the shade structure grant that we're looking to use um is it's part of that use it or lose it that they've pretty much said yeah but yes it's a 24 months and that's 2020 and 2021 right or we did 20 last year 22 it's 21 and 22 you did not apply in 23 um yeah and ultimately we don't we don't have to do anything with it we'll just have to give it back if we don't use it in 24 months and I will say they have been very good about changing the scope like obviously we didn't have the shade structure put in for this Grant and uh for 21 and 22 but now that we have that leftover money and it's something that we saw you know on the survey that a lot of people wanted and you know the our rec director was able to do a lot more research this year to come up with something more affordable it was we were able to change the scope of that so we could ask um M Miss lysc to apply for something and then hopefully if we needed to change it or wanted to change the scope of it in two years we could I mean mayor I again I'm sorry Council sorry I just I didn't to put my two send in but I'm just that we all get to put our two cents in that's well you know sitting up here um unfortunately councilman ndi isn't here um but I I I don't want the what the language on the application to be a sticking point for anybody um I just do want to point out the the gravel Pathways is something we've discussed uh for a few years that would include uh maybe some some ground lighting improvements in that area um you know for the purposes of the application I I I just feel like the turf field they're going to tell us no that's something that that's not it's it's maintenance of an existing thing is is a thing but considering I I just don't think that's going to fly um and I'd hate to get nothing so uh I would suggest Pathways and the refilling stations leave the basketball court out and um see what we get off of that and then the same thing you could potentially pull it with a following years and get something a little bigger out of it if the need is there at that time can we do the gravel Pathways I know mayor mentioned that the Green Team grants could maybe fund those water fountains done one maybe I mean how many would we be looking to upgrade again this is this is aspirational not operational um the County's been letting us change the scope um hopefully they're not listening too closely to this tonight as as we we do this uh wildly in the open but no I mean legitimately the the county is not trying to withhold money from the municipalities they created this fund for that purpose I know there's you know several of the County Commissioners this is like a pet project thing for them uh including commissioner Kowalski who lives next door to us um I think she was the person who uh Champion or she's one of the champions of this in the first place if memory serves um you know I'm look I'm comfortable putting whatever you guys want on there I just think I'd like to keep those two things in the conversation because especially the gravel Pathways is something I've tried to get done before and just it's like everything else when you get down to the nitty-gritty of Finance we can't afford it in any given year that we're talking about it my next question is because I haven't seen the gravel pathway so I don't have like the kind of image what you're looking for in my mind is there any way that we can maybe table this in for another meeting so I can just get some more information well this is a straw P right yeah we're just straw pulling but I think the application is due what I what my suggestion is going to be is that we put in as of now if if everybody agrees and wants to do this or the majority the gravel Pathways and the bottle stations if everybody's against the also so comfortable I I personally am okay with putting in the basketball court I mean there's a reason why the the basketball court was it was brought up by and and I agree I did go look at it and I I you know I it definitely has some cracks in it could it on could it degrade further to a point where maybe we might feel we want to pursue this next year it's possible so is it possible that it still might will be okay yes but not applying for it means that they're not going we're not going to get any possibility to use it so I don't have any problem applying for all three items that were mentioned that's personally let me I do think that if we lowball what we're asking for we're just going to get less yeah we always we always go in high So speaking to to Mark so can we add potentially to redoing the turf well the you're that's talking about a couple hundred, project right so we do have the trust fund which is what we've been building up to to there's not a lot of money in there at all I don't think yeah there's it's building building so um we I don't think we can go in with an Ask of $150,000 or anything like that so right so but can we just have the verbiage in there so potentially if we don't buy anything this coming year with this grant it's in there for next year and then maybe we could do the turf we have to give costs we have to give estimated costs so I don't I mean I think we should all know how much the turf is going to cost yeah I think it's coming we've talked about it but if we're you want to just do the turf that's going to knock out anything else and we wouldn't be able to do any other verbiage with any of these additional things because they wouldn't I mean we would have to apply for a $300,000 Grant at that point I mean it's okay they're not we we normally get I just want I want to be able to be prepared I don't want to see us put the entire redoing of the turf on the taxpayer I and I don't think anybody up here wants to do that so well that's I'm just trying to be prepared that's okay so if we don't put any anything in there about the turf then I don't support going out for a grant because I don't support those three projects okay what does everybody else think do you want to go out for what do do I have a straw poll that everybody else would like to go out for the grant yes yes Sean councilman fing no yes yes okay so three two then what would you like to do go out for what should we direct our rec director to put in so you said that the count has been good about changing the scope we are able to perhaps not use it and then hold it for another year which could in fact help us do the turf if in another year you didn't want to do any of these yes okay and yeah it's something you could put towards it it just again I don't if we just put the turf on there and the amount that that quote is going to be we don't have enough population to justify a grant Award of that amount from this particular program I didn't say only put the turf I said add the turf on to right but we're talking about when you apply for a grant and we say okay the basketball courts we know what I believe um Miss ISAC did about 880,000 no it's actually came in it's only 13 or so oh for a complete resurface okay um do we even know we usually timeline of the turf like is there a specified requirement of when we have to repace the turf talk about it with Mr Harris who was a certified Turf specialist and he did say we had a number of years left we haven't had anybody come look at the TF I mean we've had we've had some we've hired a contractor we had somebody come out and U maintenance maintenance every year I don't I I I have no understanding as to what the actual timeline is I've heard some people say that you've said two years I've heard some people say five years I really don't know so educated on the term totally agree but that's why I'm like hesitant to say let's apply for a grant for something that we may not need for a time period that's way in the future that I'm not sure of when that's going to be so given the fact our our timeline we don't have a a specified timeline for when we need to replace the turf but we do have needs that this committee has decided are important in enhancing those particular areas and the fact we have the ability to change the scope if so be it I think that's that's why I would say as much as I you know totally when we get to the point where we need to replace a Turf let's apply for that for that year for that Grant that's what I would say yeah I I would agree that we try in that year but I I mean I don't want to speak for Mr Harris who isn't here anymore but I believe we were more than five years away from that's required replacement of the turf so we're outside the scope of this particular Grant anyway if it's a 24mon turnaround so I I mean again I don't really care what we write on it as long as we apply for it and we maximize what's available to us okay well we um have a majority then that want to apply three to two and then for those items that the committee put forth we can put that in um and see what we get and see what we do with it then well any of that would come back before the council anyway because we'd have to bond to match or do a resolution to match out of operating the difference so or the the match so it would come back to us anyway correct and you'll need a resolution on the 2 second to even apply so we'll we'll put that together was time yeah yep all right that is all I have comments from Council councilwoman Bodo thank you I want to officially congratulate councilwoman councilman Foley and his wife Lena on the birth of Jade Olivia who is ABS beautiful can't wait to meet her um so congratulations I have something to share I it's kind of a little show and tale so I'm going to show you and then I'll tell you I've been working on this for a little bit so this is a sample and um let's see I'll show you and then I'll give you the details of it hold it for that here Council woman go up there so the camera can see you turn around two steps back they get the idea though I think if you come in the center here and back there you go all right they get the idea that's great looks great get to [Music] St council president you can do that while Council councilwoman speaks um so these are the military tribia banners um they because you know we all want to honor our garwood's heroes the names were gathered from the memorial tribute day observance list this was definitely a collaborative effort um I'm really grateful to councilwoman ndi Miss Carl Lombardo our administrator the recreation director our DPW foreman and last but not certainly least mayor blumenstock who has been extremely supportive and has answered all my phone calls and answered all my questions um I really hope that this is something that brings our community together that's a sample so it's not a picture of any of um the people we have it's not the name of anybody we have um we've gathered all the names we've cross check we have pictures I actually have a call tomorrow with the rep from the military tribute place to let us know how it would all pan out and hopefully next meeting I will have a concise answer of how it is going to work work out that's great I'm excited this I know it was a lot of work getting all these pictures together and verifying names and we actually learned a lot some things that we didn't we had a little you know uh backwards we actually we we can now fix and uh it it's it was great I appreciate uh you doing this Council woman you came to me and asked if you could do it and of course by all means take it take on the project and you have so um um I'm glad that we will have these in time for Veterans Day that we can put up so it's been a long time coming so thank you thank you anything else um no that's all for me okay oh no wait sorry I do have one more thing um you will see on the agenda resolution 2414 142 uh for the hiring of a full-time DPW employee I ask for Council support as this will alleviate the absence of the employees on workman's compensation thank you thank you councilman Foley uh no comments at this time councilman Lazaro no comment um council president do you have anything else from councilwoman n ndi in terms of council comments uh no council comments their committee report councilwoman salmon no comments and council president Carney uh thank you mayor and welcome back I'll be looking forward to seeing you at every meeting for the rest of the year uh um and also uh congratulations to councilman Foley and his wife on the birth of their beautiful daughter uh Garwood newest resident yeah great to say uh I have two quick things to thank chief stoer for tonight uh first he's been actively leading an ongoing recruitment process uh and tonight's consent agenda shows one result of that with uh hopefully another coming soon uh hiring for law enforcement positions is becoming much more challenging across New Jersey uh so we should acknowledge the time and attention Chief stoer is spending uh both filling these vacancies and also ensuring that Garwood is getting quality officers uh the chief has also conducted countless personal follow-ups with uh residents and local businesses as the burrow continues to roll out the paid parking program so Chief thank you um we have more to do though so I will see you at the next committee meeting uh and also at our last meeting um I touched on the outstanding item that we had in the police committee with the resident permits on the 300 block of Myrtle uh because we were missing a few council members at the last meeting um I wanted to push it off to this meeting when we have almost full attendance um and just briefly touch on it again and get a fresh uh straw poll before we uh you know started putting in work on an ordinance and committee okay so um I don't know how you want to do that well I think the topic has has obviously been covered and I hope in all this time everybody's done their due diligence and come up with whatever um opinions that they have and I appreciate taking the time to you all taking the time to really dig in and and figure this out um so I guess I will really just go around in straw poll um and have you you I know councilwoman ndi uh was a part of that discussion so time did she give you indication so we'll know her straw poll oh yeah she she told me um what to say at straw poll time and um okay I I I've we've spent a lot of time on this topic and I've spoken on it several times so I wanted to give everybody else a chance before I okay wait in again but I do have what I said her and I worked on it together so or what I have here we've worked on it together so okay if I can go last oh okay all right um so I will straw Paul everybody and um I guess the question will be do you want um the 20 uh the 24-hour parking to remain let's do it that way as is remain remain as is woman no no yes no uh Council yes um all right what I'll I'll just say is uh we've heard the residents concerns on this block um I simply disagree that the momentary inconveniences of the permits outweigh the community benefits from the paid parking program so uh I believe uh if we were to establish an island of free parking within a block or two of the businesses along South and Center it would disrupt the paid parking plan potentially the entire neighborhood so uh councilwoman NY and I discussed this extensively after our last committee meeting uh that we were deadlocked in 2 to one um because she knew she would be away tonight so she asked me to relay all of these sentiments uh along with a commitment from both of us to review this topic next summer when the paid parking system is fully rolled out and we have a full year of uh numbers to Crunch so uh for the record uh I guess the way you asked the question uh yes we want to keep it so those are two yeses one for me and one for Council manold okay so the yeses uh take the majority so we will not be looking to uh revise the ordinance at this point I would suggest that perhaps we could look at it again in six months rather than than a year I don't mind doing an every six month check-in on something like this to see how it's going but then we'll also have some more data on Park Mobile um AB to be going well according to the data we have in now um I mean I I've been having this discussion with the chief about once a week so it's something that I'm gonna keep an eye on because um uh again we want to make tweaks going forward where uh we may need to and again we do make tweaks as as um we've spoken about I know you will be looking with the chief to look at the 15minute spots um you know where what we want to do with that so that there are things that are still uh in the works in terms of our parking plan but we will have two recommendations coming out of committee uh one will be for those 15 minute spaces uh I believe the chief was waiting to um speak to the engineer on the uh on the one particular space and then um also there's a change the chief has recommended uh in the area of Hartman park with uh just some signage and and how that's uh laid out so there's going to be a few more parking things coming out of our committee for the rest of this year so I I mean look at something we can discuss in every committee meeting if if you want us to okay well I I think we've given this topic a lot of of uh conversation and a lot of discussion and and I'm glad we did um but as a at this point we will keep the ordinance as is um anything else council president Carney oh this is still Council comments uh that's all for me mar thank you okay moving along to the minutes uh Mr Arthur minutes of the regular meeting of the mayor and Council held on July 18th 2024 can I have a motion to accept the regular meeting minutes as presented so moved second uh all in favor I I opposed okay Communications Mr Arthur raway Valley sewage Authority uh received and filed uh we're moving on to ordinances we have a couple up for adoption Mr Arthur can you read ordinance number 24-22 by title only ordinance number 24-22 and ordinance of the burough code of the burough of Garwood by amending chapter 21 entitled vehicles and traffic Article 1 traffic and parking section 21-8 paid parking zones okay do we have any correspondence concerning this ordinance no does anybody present wish to be heard concerning ordinance 24-22 okay seeing none can I have a motion to close public hearing on ordinance 24-22 uh second second uh any discussion among councel okay can I have a motion to adopt this ordinance so moved second uh roll call please councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I uh councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I okay Mr Arthur can you read ordinance 24-23 by title only ordinance number 24-23 an ordinance amending the burrow code of the burrow of Garwood by amending chapter 5 Administration article 8B entitled burrow administrator and assistant burrow administrator subsection 5- 51.2 3B duties and responsibilities of burough administrator do we have any correspondence concerning this ordinance no does anyone here uh present wish to be heard concerning ordinance 24-23 come up to the microphone please please state your name and address and limit your comments to five minutes uh good evening mayor ladies and gentlemen the council Bruce Patterson 325 will Avenue uh simple question uh just for the public could you explain what this ordinance is about thank you okay uh anybody else okay can I have a motion to close public hearing so moved second uh any discussion among Council okay this ordinance is um giving our B administrator um the ability to hire seasonal and temporary employees um it's basically just clarifying language Mr Abramson you want yeah just clarifying his power yeah it was a little vague as it was so um do I have a motion to adopt this ordinance so moved second a roll call please councilwoman Botto I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman samon I council president Carney I um Mr Arthur can you read ordinance 24-24 by title only ordinance number 24-24 an ordinance to establish a restricted parking Zone pursuant to njsa 39 colon 4- 1997. 6 in front of 953d Avenue in the burough of Garwood do we have any correspondence concerning this ordinance no does anyone present wish to be heard concerning this ordinance uh can I have a motion to close public hearing on ordinance 24-24 second uh any discussion among councel can I have a motion to adopt this ordinance so moved second second uh roll call please councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I okay we have one ordinance up for introduction tonight uh Miss Mr Arthur can you read Bond ordinance 24-25 by title only Bond ordinance number 24-25 bond ordinance to authorize the making of various public improvements and the acquisition of new additional or replacement equipment and machinery and a new Automotive vehicle including original apparatus and equipment in by and for the burough of Garwood in the county of union state of New Jersey to appropriate the sum of 440,000 to pay the cost thereof to make a down payment to authorize the issue isance of bonds to finance such appropriation and to provide for the issuance of bond anticipation notes in anticipation of the issuance of such bonds do I have a motion to introduce this Bond ordinance so moved second second uh roll call please councilman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I okay moving on to committee reports finance and Personnel councilman Foley we uh had a finance meeting on Monday and we discussed a shade structure which for which we were bonding and this shade structure is designed to provide safe outdoor spaces for Children and Families this investment is crucial for reducing exposure to heat and harmful UV rays encouraging outdoor activities keeping seniors and children safe and contributing to the overall well-being of our community families additionally we discussed a mandatory system upgrade for a police department and identified the cost-saving purchasing method that will reduce cost to our taxpayers that will Ser Ser the service will save our burrow money over the next 5 years enhancing our emergency response capabilities and benefiting Community safety thank you thank you uh Community Development councilwoman salmon oh sorry missed you fire and OEM councilman Lazar thank you mayor in the month of July a total of 18 incidences were reported that included four fire alarm carbon monoxide alarms four reports of gas odor one and one motor vehicle accident the Garwood fire department provided Mutual aid for both Westfield and planfield a total 20 firefighter hours the department conducted a cevo training seminar on July 13th and a search and rescue training that totaled 129 firefighter hours for the Department that's all for my report thank you now councilwoman s Community our planners continue to meet with the owners of the paper board and I will hopefully have an update at the next meeting uh Public Works councilwoman Boda thank you mayor I don't have a report I do however just want to point out in case anybody missed the notice street sweeping was suspended due to inclimate weather thank you uh police council president Carney uh thank you mayor I have last month's activity report for the Garwood Police Department uh which recorded 1,742 CAD entries uh in the month of July uh these calls included 124 motor vehicle stops 32 parking complaints 99 fixed traffic posts which are radar stop sign and distracted driving details uh 16 motor vehicle crash investigations 229 building and property checks 21 medical assists 89 community policing posts 35 walking posts 24 investigated suspicious person or Vehicles complaints and 22 criminal investigations and that's all for my report thank you council president um do you have a further report for Community engagement from councilwoman oldi uh I do I already read the recreation piece uh she also had something from gpac okay uh gpac remembers 911 uh the Garwood partnership for arts and culture would like to invite members of the community to share their remembrances of September 11th 2001 uh if you would like to participate please submit your original poems Pros or Memoirs of the events of 911 for consideration to C ndi that's c n o lde at garwood.nj place on September 11th at 7.m in Burell Hall looking forward to that um Library mayor's representative councilman Lazaro thank you mayor the library summer hours for the end of August are Monday Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday from 9 to 8 and Friday 10 to 4:30 some upcoming events well one event that is uh wrapping up is the 30th summer reading program has concluded with over 5050 children participating in the program having read over 49,000 minutes upcoming programming on August 13th at 7 p.m. there's a program called financial planning strategies Gil Abrams will address many aspects of financial planning including exploring strategies to help seniors lower taxes on Social Security and interest income on investment accounts she'll examine ways to protect investments in a volatile market and presents retirement strategies that could lower the impact of inflation and Market risk on current retirement savings registration is required and on August 28th from 10:00 a.m. to noon there will be the Aging service kiosk Union County divisions of Aging staff will be on hand to assist seniors ages 60 and over or their caregivers with information on services such as meal delivery resit care adult daycare and support services for caregivers and that's all for my report thank you councilman School Board liaison council president uh no reports to nightmare the next regular Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Tuesday August 20th at 7M okay thank you um for our senior report uh our summer Club dates have moved around a bit so our next club meeting is actually August 22nd at 12:00 p.m so join us for some lunch and bingo uh small business advisory council president Carney no report uh Board of Health Lea on councilman Foley uh no report tonight mayor the next Board of Health meeting is on September 18th here at Burl Hall okay uh planning board leaz on councilwoman salmon thank you mayor um no report the next next meeting of the planning board is August 28th okay moving on to officers reports Mr Arthur zoning Enforcement Officers report for July 2024 CFO treasur Bond anticipation note sale report okay do I have a motion to accept these officer reports so moved second all in favor I I opposed okay uh public comment if there's anyone in the audience who wishes to address the mayor and Council please step to the microphone and state your full name and address and please limit your comments to 5 minutes Johnny per 410 is pro sa Garwood ladies and gentlemen the council we need to back our police officers and firefighters and rescue squad Personnel they're out there 24 hours a day seven days a week even though the fire department and the risk is whatever volunteer outfits they're out there serving us and protecting us we need to back them up and every because they're the ones you can can on when you need help immediately there are the I I'll be there NE you fear kind of people that you can count on they have that I'll be there never you Fe kind of attitude that serves us well abolishing Police Department abolishing fire departments and abolishing rescue squads is not the answer and Mark well would I just say ladies and gentlemen should never be the answer we must back them up in every way because we need them every day 24 hours a day seven days a week every day of the year and the same thing goes with our soldiers Sailors Marines coast guards men Airmen of our our armed forces and I saw that uh I think the uh picture of that Marine that was shown earlier today we need to back our soldiers of sailors and Marines Coast Guards and Airmen we failed to do so during the war on Vietnam and we lost three men from Garwood who fought for us in that war they loved us so every day in a 100 ways they told us so and honesty and affection they told us so they loved us so every day in aund ways they showed us so with loyalty and bravery they showed us so they were our Defenders and they kept us free they took an oath to guard us and fought for Liberty they loved us so and we should [Music] know for we Lov the soul and finally ladies and gentlemen we need to pressure the state legislature in Trenton to force reopening to closed hospitals such as milenberg because what if another 911 attack occurs then we'll need those hospitals very very badly it's best that we prepare now to reopen those hospitals so that if if so that if and when another attack occurs we'll be ready to treat those who are wound injured and need medical assistance the soon activate closed offices such as milenberg better off we all will be do I make myself clear thank you thank you Mr PR is there anybody else in the audience to which is to address the mayor and Council good evening mayor and Council Bill near 320 Hickory Avenue I sense from the ear discussion how the council is going to move on this but I want to make this uh statement on the record and I will distribute uh newer copies because I did add something to this that that you received today so I'll try to go as quick as I can you know this is more than five minutes I know that you know I'll cut you off I know that you all receive my draft statement today but when I sent it to the business administrator this morning I advised him I was going to I advised him I was going to update it with something it just happened today this morning the EPA issued an emergency order to stop the use with pesticide dimethyl tetral tetral or doyl to to address a serious health issue now before I continue I need to say this is not what sprayed in the Garwood Brook okay it is not so I don't want anybody going off saying that it is okay um reason I bring it up is because I wanted to show why I'm opposed to spraying anything in waters that are used for drinking water and to answer a councilman's question earlier yes this water flows into the rway river the rway river is indeed used for drinking water in the city of raway now is it you know is it reduced in terms of its uh Power and you know is it dissolved absolutely okay but yes this water is used for drinking water um the bottom line is EPA took this action because unborn babies whose pregnant mothers are exposed to this chemical could experience changes to fetal thyroid hormone levels and these changes are generally linked to low birth weight impaired brain development decreased IQ and impaired motor skills later in life some of which may be irreversible now this chemical was approved and when you catch this 1958 to control weeds in both Agricultural and non-agricultural settings in 2024 66 years later we find that is injurious to human health sometimes what we approve as healthy for spraying today is found not so healthy tomorrow and I want everyone to recognize okay that everyone says oh these chemicals are fine okay we can spray it them EPA approved obviously if you want to get into DDT and so many other chemicals okay EPA approves they end up being not safe so please don't just accept that as they approve it the Spraying Company sprays four chemicals and I apologize I'll probably say these wrong amazer imazamox diquat dibromide and glyphosate two of them are recognized as carcinogenic so I want you to recognize that okay maybe you're not spraying them in the water but they are carcinogenic to humans the last one I could go on forever glyphosate is's a lot of argument about that um but it is used in Roundup okay and and um I would never Advocate the use of groundup I heard what the health office said earlier tonight but I really don't agree with her approach okay the way to get rid of rats and eliminate or or reduce their numbers it's nothing to do with the water it's nothing to do with the brook to eliminate their food if you look at other cities you look and I know we're not a city you look at other municipalities from New York to Bloomfield you get rid of the food and the food is the way you get rid of the rats no food no rats I know that's an exaggeration I recom I have 10 12 recommendations in in this report that I address to you and I want to kind of emphasize the first two because it's simply enforcement of existing ordinances we need whether it's the police the DPW the property maintenance officer I don't know who it should be it's your job to figure out who somebody has to stop allowing residents to put out the garbage prior to 6 PM the longer the garbage is out the longer the rats get to eat it so so please I encourage you please ask one of our enforcement bodies to enforce the existing ordinance the second one is not to allow residents to put out garbage in plastic bags that's an existing ordinance it needs to be enforced even though it's they're put out the DPW continues to pick up garbage in plastic bags with all due respect to the DPW you know I work with them every day we all do they've got to stop picking up garbage in plastic bags garbage has to be put in in containers metal containers preferably the current ordinance says you can put uh heavy duty plastic or metal with all due respect I've seen it I'm sure you've seen it too rats nor right through plastic so even ad ordinance has should be amended to to make it metal containers okay but no plastic bags again existing ordinance nobody's enforcing it perhaps somebody should start enforcing burough ordinances those start with those two next one has to do with restaurants okay again this was section 9940 the one I just spoke about was 999 you have about 30 seconds requires all food waste from restaurants are being closed being closed in metal containers okay um we need to enforce that a little more okay we need to have regulations on compost um we need to enforce other regulations that currently exist so um if you go through this and again I'll send it to you again I submitted to you an entire rodent management plan it's a adopted in Bloomfield other municipalities do it spraying to Garwood Brook is not going to get rid of rats with all due respected Health officer we need to get rid of their food supply and we residents are the ones who create that food supply we have to get rid of it ourselves thank you very much mayor thank you um is there anybody else who wishes to address the M Council please step to the microphone good evening mayor ladies and gentlemen the council Bruce Patterson 325 Willow Avenue it's actually a bunch of questions a lot of questions but the the rvsa oh thank you very much for Bill I mean I understand exactly what he's saying uh the rvsa uh you're you're talking about uh removing monies from the um sewage fees that are done to the houses in the uh property taxes I'm just wondering how is vermella going to work because they're working on a pilot system and their pilot system includes the rvsa cost so how is that going to work when you're addressing all this I've asked that in fact I think this is the fourth time uh also the the floor in burrow Hall I mean you brought it up again there's nothing wrong with this floor I think you said it was going to be $37,000 to replace and I know you're saying up there is bad so just replace that save the money save the tax pair money for some reason you're going to borrow understand uh the crossing guard status as they're becoming uh privatized I'm I'm just uh just a status of what that's about right now because uh school's coming up uh the kids grant that you were discussing in the uh budget last year you had $35,000 and from what I heard I guess it wasn't used and this year actually it budgeted zerar and yet you're going to go out for this grant so the question is how's this funding going to work where's the money going to be coming from the soldier Flags thank you very much that looks nice it does uh unfortunately the garard historical committee uh the mayor to disco previously had asked us and and it's just we have a lot on our plate but thank you for the council for picking this up and I'm just wondering where's the funding coming on that is is that going to be a sponsorship uh type of funding uh oh yeah could you explain where the free parking is uh you did that for the seniors thank you very much mayor um protm uh Carney he wasn't aware of where the spots are that you are so you could explain to the public the latter truck uh that was damaged I'm just wondering what the status of the repairs are for that what are we looking at as uh receiving it back when is that going to be uh question how many I asked this before how many parking tickets have been given out now that this parking program with the mobile app is in place here downtown uh questions on the resos 24-44 is a $100,000 special emergency note uh nobody really discussed it I I guess it's an emergency so but could you just explain what the purpose is of that thank you very much for the reso on the food drive I'll be I'll be volunteering for that of course uh reso 2443 is dedication by Ryder for the gpack so they could uh accept monies that are donated to the committee I don't recall something being done for the historical committee that I'm on maybe it was done before I was even on it back in 2000 but I know that that's just a comment I guess at this point I'll ask Sam about that so I guess that's it thank you very much thank you is there anybody else who wishes to address the mayor and Council okay can I have a motion to close public comment so moov second all in favor I I opposed okay uh Mr net thank you for your comments and again we did receive the plan and we we spoke a little bit about this in the beginning of the meeting but I will be asking uh Mr Arthur to set up a meeting between myself and between Mr Arthur myself and councilwoman Bodo to uh discuss uh some of those ticket items that you did talk about that I do think are on our books that we can work towards doing in the more immediate time um and we would be more than happy to include you in the meeting um as we talk about how to better enforce some of our existing ordinances um Mr Patterson I have answered the the question about the Vera Pilots with the sore and that they will be um a part of that program um Mr Abramson do you want to address that any further I know they're part of a pilot yes but they can be assessed to Sor Fe I don't think there's anything to say because you guys haven't even decided exactly and I would assume any of those details would have to be worked out just like any other details about the other residences in town any anything I am looking at how neighboring communities do do this and I put out a question to other administrators they they all do it slightly differently but there are different options so yeah okay thank you um the flooring I don't know if you've taken a look in the police department floor or back in burrow Hall administrative offices but it needs complete repair in some of those places and yes I understand your point that the carpet is fine however I do believe if we're going to replace some of it at this point we should replace all of it in one project it is cheaper than in a few years having to do uh other pieces of the flooring um and separating them out um and maintenance wise would be a lot easier than carpeting uh in here so if I'm not sure if the carpet is is your main issue with this but that's where I was going going with this however there are portions of this building that are in very much desperate need of being replaced including the back area of the administration and the police department um crossing guard status I really wasn't quite sure what you're asking there the everything is going Chief if you want to address anything going on okay so we'll be we'll be good to go um the kids wck Grant the money it's not coming from anywhere at this point because nobody is um we're just talking about applying for the grant for this year so Finance would still have to discuss it it might not be something that is even as we said it's a 24mth uh period that you have so it might not be something that we even do this year and it might have to be budgeted for next year um again this was just talking about whether to apply for it so there is no set spot for that right now um the Banners are um at this point I believe Mr Arthur you can answer that from buildings and grounds yep it's from our operating budget um the free parking um it is adjacent to the fire department lot uh that line of parking in the vermel 2 parking lot but the the the side that is directly adjacent to the fire department that that line of parking spots and um the signage is going to be replaced uh because it's not quite as clear as I would have liked it to be that it's shared parking and the chief and I working on that um I I believe they were ordered so hopefully they're coming in soon um and we can replace the signage so that it's a little bit more obvious to our residents that it's burrow parking as well um but that is the free parking is the ladder truck Mr Arthur do you have an update on that it is uh still waiting to be worked on we knew that when we went into it that the there's a backlog that you know um it's it should be within the next month or two um being worked on okay um how many parking tickets I CH I Chief if you want to speak to that or get the answer at another time um and we're almost there 24-1 144 it's not an emergency note it includes the emergency note um this is something that's housekeeping that's done every year um it's when we sell our notes it it lets the uh purchaser know the purchaser of the bond notes every year we sell our bond notes the the purchaser uh has to have this resolution so that their tax exempt um so this is very generic language we do it every year um when you see that emergency note it's including that emergency note that um was from Ida but it is not an emergency it's it's just housekeeping for the selling of our bond notes and the historical committee you yes I'm not sure if it was done beforehand but you do have a rider that would be the only way you could have your account um we had to go through it with Green Team and now gpac has it so at some point you were given a rider um so that you could have an account that links you to the burrow and I think that was it yes council president May if I may um I believe we forgot to check with uh our acting clerk if we had any uh other Communications I don't know if we have the motion to shoot that's my fault we usually do those after um but we do have one that was um can I have a motion to reopen public comment so moved second all in favor hi I know we did have a communication come through through email that was my fault let's handle that one thank you council president I will read it I was expecting us to do it after that I was gonna either way here it is we should reopen the comment okay uh this is from Michelle capab biano 404 Myrtle Avenue it's comments to be read into the record at tonight's council meeting miss Cameron please read my comments/questions below into the record at tonight's council meeting for public comment on the agenda for tonight in bond ordinance 24-25 there is a shade structure for the recreation Athletic Field Complex in the amount of 22,000 can you please explain one what exactly is this item two is this item a permanent structure or can the item be put up and taken down three why is this item needed now at the end of the summer for where in the 2024 Municipal budget or Capital plan is this item listed in bond ordinance 24-25 there is $56,000 in the fire department equipment this was listed on the 2024 Capital plan document and the amount was listed as 43,500 a difference of 12,5 500 please explain the increased amount exactly what each item is and each of their costs that make up the 56,000 total in bond ordinance 24-25 there is $37,000 for new improvements in flooring in the municipal building this amount is about 4,000 more than previously listed on 2024 Capital plan document please explain the difference in amounts and exactly what items and the cost of each item make up the total of 37,000 was there a Union County and question two there is was there a Union County infrastructure Grant received for this if so how much thank you Michelle capab biano 404 mortal Avenue okay thank you can I have a motion to close public comment so move second all in favor I I opposed okay thank you again um okay um Mr Arthur do you want to take the uh questions about the shade structure um and and the flooring as well because we were working on that as well sure so the shade structure is a very large um it's about 74 74 feet in length 24 feet in width 8 feet in height that covers where the bot Court area is at the Athletic Field Complex the bot cour will be botch Court will be removed replaced with concrete thereby between the structure and the concrete flooring making essentially a picnic Pavilion type area um the structure is permanent it's expected lifespan of at least about 10 years but probably longer um it the top can be taken off it's like a very high heavy duty kind of nylon type material but the poles themselves are really really large metal poles just like the shade structure at Hartman Park if anyone has seen that um what as to the question of why needed at the end of the summer um it's I mean the Project's going to be done in the next couple of months maybe even early winter and part of it is that it's part of the 2021 grant that we really need to to spend at this point um but the lifespan of it again is minimum hopefully 10 years we'd like to you know take good care of it and have it last a lot longer than that so it's not just about this summer it's about a decade or two hopefully um where in the municipal budget or Capital plan um it's in neither you know the capital plan is always kind of a road map we did have a shade did Miss LC put that into the capital plan for the future she put it in as as something that we'd like to do yes was in a capital plan not this Ser but when we were looking at how to spend this this grant money that needs to be spent right you know now uh this was a project that we thought was um really benefit to the community and um you know it's a cost-effective way to do something that I believe this Council had been considering for a long time there was a version of this plan that was you know about five to seven times more expensive it was a stronger structure but um this will still be a great benefit to the community at a fraction of the cost so I feel like it's actually a really efficient way to to achieve the same result um as for the flooring um you know the process of doing a a Capital plan is it's it's a road map and it's often starts maybe even 9 months before it's approved so um you know quotes go up sometimes you know you you could ask the same vendor in December of 23 for a quote and then when you get the quote again in August of 24 their labor costs have gone up um material costs have gone up whatever it might be so you know there's there's just a difference in the in the cost sometimes um none of what we put in a capital plan in any municipalities is ever going to be set in stone because of those things and because of the fact that you know it's a long it's a short-term plan but also a long-term plan in some ways and was there an infrastructure Grant received for this yes the total Grant was 38,000 not all of that should be needed for the flooring project it is a matching Grant so we need to match all of it for anything we do and we're looking at you know other potential projects that should be able to fit into that Grant as well depending on what's left over after the uh flooring project okay I believe that answers everything except for the fire department the fire department um Council councilman lazro do you want to handle that one sure so the questions in relation to the fire department essentially the breakdown of that is the turnout gear the burrow is paying $38,000 to basically more or less match the $37,000 that they received in a grant then there is $6,000 that was budgeted for PPE 4500 for a knoxbox $5,500 for the ladder and then $2,000 is for bonding and advertising costs which has nothing to do with the fire department it's just the process of of actually bonding um and as far as the number that M kopia biano mentioned about 4025 I think was that the correct number she put on there so I looked back at the capital budget and and I think that there's a typo on that capital budget in which it the turnout gear originally says 275 and it really should have said 375 um because that was the the idea of the matching Grant but we reive 37,000 but they the cost of the turnout gear was 75 and so in order to buy that we needed to put out $38,000 but you know I think that's well worth it since this is gear that is protective of our department and they need it in order to make sure that they are you know up to date um and so yeah that's basically explains where the costs come from so yes you know it there was that sight typo but then in addition there's that bonding costs on top of it okay I also want to add in regards to the shade structure uh this year I really want to invest in safety um safety in terms of enhancing equipment for our First Responders or police officers but also safety for our children um as of now uh this area of New Jersey has had the highest temperatures in all of Northeast okay so we know that ensuring these shade structures uh they they can help reduce degrees up by 20 degrees it allows our children to create have an infrastructure where children and families can go outside play Connect and and really kind of enhance that Community Connection um but this is about safety um we see how hot it is and we also want to encourage outdoor playing outdoor connections and so forth so this is a a vital vital piece of infrastru infrastructure for our town and I'm I'm proud to have that installed here thank you when uh I don't know if everybody remembers but when Miss lysc did a survey a general Recreation survey I think it was the number one thing people were looking for was shade some sort of shade structure at the rec complex so um it's pretty cost efficient way to go about this um okay we will move along in our agenda um consent agenda does anybody have anything they wish to pull okay then at this point can I have a motion to adopt our consent agenda second a roll call Please Mr Arthur councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I okay um Mr Arthur we have any uh resolutions that are not on the consent agenda yes we have one we would like to add um one second got too many papers here that's okay it is 24-48 um I guess I should read the whole thing yes since it's not on the agenda be it resolved by the Council of the burough of Garwood County of union state of New Jersey hereby appoints John Arthur as Deputy clerk effective August 8th 2024 i' just like to add as a point of clarification there is no compensation that goes along with this ORD sorry about that okay we something we should have actually taking care of now we're we're getting there um okay so do I have a motion to adopt this resolution so move second uh let's do uh any discussion since it was not on the agenda okay let's uh do a roll call please Mr AR councilman VTO I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I uh councilwoman sammon I council president Carney I okay is there anything else uh any other resolutions not on the consent agenda that we would like to Mayor I'd like to make a motion to take from the table uh resolution 24-28 that was from the prior meeting's agenda correct um do you want to read it I can get it would it be easier if read the resolution for everybody uh so resolution 24128 uh be it resolved by the Council of the bur of Garwood County of union state of New Jersey hereby authorizes the mayor to sign a contract with great Blue Lake and pond management 980 old foundry Road Newton New Jersey 07860 for the 2024 vegetation Management program uh for vegetation control in the Garwood Brook at a cost of $1,200 for one application including all labor and materials okay um I think we've had a lot of discussion on it um so if everybody's okay we'll just go motion to introdu uh sorry to adopt I do do we have to I think we have to to untable take it back off so moved second okay roll call please councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I and now a roll call to adopt motion I'll make the motion to adopt second Mr Arthur yes um SEC sorry not going paper uh councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon hi council president I and I get to check another thing on my Robert's rules list yeah we have a lot of this all right okay um executive session we do have one tonight Mr Arthur can you read resolution 24-1 147 resolution number 24-1 147 close session resolution authorizing an executive session for the purpose of discussing contract negotiations in matters of attorney client privilege relating to the above and in accordance with any JSA 10 col 4-12 closed session meetings open to the public exclusion of public subject of matter um do I have a motion uh and just so the public knows um action may be taken um do I have a motion to adopt resolution 24-1 147 so moved second uh all in favor I uh opposed okay we will go into executive session thank you e I how are you based on the unform army h 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 okay do I have a motion to resume regular s so moved second all in favor I opposed that was council president Carney councilwoman Bodo any new business okay payment of claims Mr Arthur um do I read the whole thing here okay be it resolved that the following claims as approved be and the same or hereby ordered paid when properly signed and verified and the payment of payrolls as listed is hereby confirmed and ratified do I have a motion to adopt so moved second a roll call please councilwoman Bodo I councilman Foley I councilman Lazaro I councilwoman salmon I council president Carney I okay the meeting of the regular meeting of Mayor and Council will be held on Thursday August 22nd 2024 at 7M in council chambers information for meetings is posted on the Barrow website uh can I have a motion to adjourn so moved second All In favor I opposed thank you everybody 06 e