because he celebrated his 50th birthday oh you guys hear me yes okay it's recording in progress came up okay so happy birthday to chubs and then to Louie anytime Community needs something he's willing and able when it comes to D and donates and he's done it so many times now I think everybody knows to call him because he he does a great job at that so congrats I also do want to recognize um the police and EMS of course for everything they do to keep us safe so thank you for everything there and to our clerks same thing thank you you take on a lot and we greatly appreciate all the work that you do um in terms of some updates I just want to mention you know this weekend we have a few different activities taking place we have our Friday Night concert on uh May 24th at 6 PM in Wilmore Road Park um we're excited about this we have two local bands playing um as well as about 20 or so vendors and a couple food trucks that will be there selling some products handing out some information as well as some food and other desserts so if you're not doing anything on Friday night please stop by uh the concert uh starts at 6: pm. and then the next day on May 25th we are going to hold our annual Memorial Day Parade in conjunction with the American Legion Post 108 the parade starts at 10: uh hoping to finalize all the details this week with the participants as well as just coordinating with the police department DPW and others to make sure that we are all set for anyone that is part participating an email will go out with the details we will have signs at each Street with the location we'll also have some volunteers to help coordinate um we're hoping that everybody can arrive no later than 9:40 at your uh location because we do want to start at 10:00 a.m. and just once the um parade does end just make sure everybody sticks around for the Memorial Day services that will take place led by the American Legion as we remember those men and women that gave the ultimate uh sacrifice that's it for me thank you thank you councilman Vin cherry and please do take good care of yourself um I know there's a big weekend coming up and there's a lot of work ahead of you so take good care of yourself I have to ask I wasn't going to ask I understand Bella note that where that name came from but for the life of me chubsy wubsy you got to tell me did that name come from The Rascals or what I'm sorry can you come up to the microphone and for the record you just have to state your name you don't need to State your address chubsy H your your real name for Negron thank you so one day I have a man cave with a lot of toys that collector say I was young and I owned the bar before chubsy wubsy so my brother we used to hang out downstairs playay cars drink a little sangria and um he said you're like a little we was watching little rasos he was like you're like a Norman you like a oopsy wopsy and then he was like we should call you chubsy wubsy my brother passed away um I sold the bar and I thought about it I said you know what I'm gonna try it out so I named chubsy wubsy and I became chubsy wubsy and the best thing I ever did thank you for your story thank you so much we have uh five uh new banners that are going to be going up uh Hometown HERO program paty epino he's the 128th Army Air Forces Willi William Timon US Navy Aviation Fire Control technician second class we have Corporal Walter n n marowski World War II US Army Air corpse Jack Marcus Vietnam veteran US Navy Aviation machinist mate jet a jet agent agent engine mechanic third class and our first female Hometown hero private Caitlyn C US Army medic medic you know it's interesting when I read these names I look up the individuals that we often think that those veterans always on the front line but there's many uh veterans who work uh fixing engines doing food and other things to make sure that the country stays safe so I'm really happy that we're going to have five new HomeTown hero banners going up and also I'm really excited we have a new program for those Hometown hero uh Hometown hero ban banners you're going to be able to uh look them up on Google Google Maps uh you can explore a Hometown Heroes feature with an interative goo Google Map showcasing the precise locations of their of the L one banners this map not only pinpoints the exact spot where each Hometown hero uh Hero's Banner is displayed but it also offers a brief biography deal detailing their service as well as a picture of the actual Banner that's the that will be that is displayed on Main Street in Little Falls um upon selecting the name of the veteran from the list of the local Falls Little Falls Heroes users will be directed to a specific location of their Heroes Banner on the map and the map uh provides a navig navigation instruction guiding the families directly to the street Pole where the banner is I was using this today and it's uh quite quite accurate I want to thank uh Tyler um from the rec department who put this together um it's it and it gives you voice directions right to the banner so it's I'm really happy we're only one or two towns that have this and as I mentioned before our goal is also to have a voice biography of each veteran uh so that you can link in and hear that uh 31st is our Spring Fling we have over right now 65 seniors attending it's going to be John Morano in the accents playing look forward to a really good time of food and dancing uh and uh I want to comment on um we took a look councilwoman councilwoman habits and myself went up and down uh mosart and Cherry Street um seeing that new pavement and asking the residents if they want trees in front of their houses there was one resident that does May um most residents did not want trees in front of their homes the shade tree is uh requesting that we put cherry trees on Cherry Street in mosar at that intersection so maybe we can entertain and see uh if we could get cherry trees I know the engineering wanted dogwood trees but maybe we could swap them out and put cherry trees on mosart and Cherry Street we'll move on uh does the attorney have anything to report this evening no council president thank you have a motion to open the meeting to the public this is for agenda items uh moved by councilman habets second by councilman Murphy this is a voice vote all those in favor I I all those opposed Madame clerk anyone wishing to address the township Council may do so through the council president it is preferred if you give your name and address for the record comments are to be limited to three minutes however however if appropriate you may be granted additional time and the sole discretion of the council president members of the public who have joined the meeting virtually and desire to provide comment shall raise their virtual hand in the zoom application the meeting moderator will acue the members of the public that wish to provide comment and the council president will recognize them in order members of the public who have joined the meeting by calling in must press star six to mute and unmute themselves and star N9 to raise their hand members of the public who have joined the meeting via the zoom application must click the reactions icon and then the raise hand icon once the process is complete we will return to the regular order of business thank you madam clerk the floor is now open you could come come up to the podium or speak by Zoom yes it is if it's agenda items you can speak sir just you could just state your name not your address my name is Sean May Mr M can you just make sure we hear you by the mic if you talk yes thank you uh my name is Sean May and I just had a quick question on the the zoning ordinance 1493 that's coming up the I just would like a clarification where it says uh shall not be performed between the hours of 6 pm and 7 am on weekends or weekdays and or between the hours of 6 pm and 9:00 a.m. on Saturdays and federal holidays unless such activities can meet with limits set forth and tables one and two all motorized equipment used in construction and demolition activity shall be operated with Muffler at all all other times the limit step forth in tables one and two do not apply to construction and demolition activities also had a question on Sunday work there's prohibited except for the general repair or maintenance of property by owner um question is for that particular piece is uh should be a time limit not before like 9:00 a.m. on a Sunday you're talking about the uh emergency see it work if a homeowner has to do on Sunday yeah well it says for General Repair right it shouldn't be before 9:00 a.m. I mean there's no why would you be cutting gr like leaf blowers earlier than 8 o'clock or something like that right here there's no limitations so I I think the intent of this and mayor correct me if I'm wrong the intent of this on Sunday was for like emergency work and you know to tie governments and that's fine emergency work is fine it's just like General loan maintenance of something or he's banging around at you know 9:00 before 9:00 in the morning that you know there's no there's no restriction on the the residential size it's 9:00 am so I didn't see why there shouldn't be one for business side so you're looking for this governing body to enact a time time uh start time of 9:00 am on Sunday work yeah for for maintenance stff um Mr cruch do you have a comment on that the ordinance doesn't allow Sunday work for commercial Zone right you're talking about regular residence like residential Zone allow Sunday work is prohibited except for General Repair or maintenance on the property so there is work allowed but that's that's not for commercial property am I correct Mr May that's that's commercial Zone that's commercial Zone yeah yeah unless there's a repair that needs to be so what you're saying in in the commercial Zone if there was an emergency repair they'd be able to do it that's what we're saying than we fine but this says general maintenance which is a difference there is a difference mayor you have a comment I don't want to split hairs but I've been living with this for almost two years now okay no we're here to address it there's not splitting hairs we're here to address it mayor you have a comment to this I do I want to look at the specific language of it and what I may recommend now is that we table the adoption of it this evening to ensure that every bit of the minutia which is important in this ordinance is adequately addressed and and I don't want to prolong the adoption of this but I also don't want the adoption to be incorrect so if if that means waiting another you know couple of weeks to to pass it that may be the what needs to occur but you're correct I don't want there to be uh any discrepancy or disparity in what the language reads you want I I don't want to hold the rest of meeting but clarification of the other the other section before that what was what's the intent there what do you mean Mr um unless such activities can meet the limits of the set worth in tables one and two and then the uh all monor equipment used in construction demolition activity shall be operated with muckler liit set forth in table one and two do not apply to construction I'm not sure what you mean what's the intent there Mr cusher you want to comment on that please the use of the tables has to do with the decb right U so if you're under the decb but you're saying construction does not with that right it's that's the that's the vehicle portion that doesn't comply it has to be have a muffler on it seems like they it seems like it's for any noise that's I don't believe it says that I think it says for for Motor Vehicles not clear okay Mr may we probably end up tabling this to make sure we have great uh that we get the language strained out but the let me tell you this well that's fine I get it right because there's another building that's going to go up eventually and I don't want to have to go through this again y um the attend of governing body is to uh for Sunday it was more or less emergency work and not just common work I'm cool with yeah emergencies right you know well council president it's also the intent that a homeowner who's looking to Mo grass him Sunday is also able to do that that's or or make General repairs around their home and of course right and and I I do believe that as as I am looking at it we can have some additional uh clarification added to the ordinance um and absolutely I think tabling at this meeting I'm not certain if Council will advise us that the modifications are substantial enough that we need to reintroduce and then subsequently adopt uh if they are considered minor changes we may be able to just move straight to an adoption but absolutely I I don't disagree with you and I'd be happy to touch base with you this week about the the very specific concerns and make sure that they are addressed I appreciate that does council have any comments regarding this noise ordinance from the resident councelor I've made notes on this I'm going to have to talk to um my colleagues and figure out a way probably clarify language clarification will probably be the way that' be great thank you any comments from Council Murphy so if we do table this today this just gets pushed off to our following meeting to approval we'd hope we'll see yeah right unless the changes are so substantial that roduce it to then adop after potentially right depends how how much the changes have to be okay but we'll get it right one other one for the other U the ordinance for the I'm sorry can you bring that mic a little bit closer so we could hear you thank you the ordinance for the um pedestrian walkway that's coming up yes I saw there was some not notations I think it was on a photo for about 180 feet and where does the 180 feet start are you talking from Steven Avenue St from Stevens to down Warren towards center right it's because affects my driveway right correct it it will not affect the driveway uh 180 I taped it off 180 feet is a little bit past my property line so no you it will not be by your driveway yeah I I I can assure you that It ultimately will not interfere with the entrance to your driveway whatsoever okay uh that will be your property will be very close to where the plaza would theoretically start um but it would certainly not impede you having access to your driveway whatsoever yeah great um as long as I can get back out of the driveway and make you know sweep that' be worthwhile you'll be fine absolutely all right perfect do you have any objections to The Pedestrian Mall um other than only thing I do have a question on is the Ada parking and how that's going to relate and sorry the what parking parking where that's going to be moved from in front of the library to I'm not sure where it's going um I do have concerns of if it's going to Stevens the having an handicapped or an elderly person open the door Stevens is probably not the smartest thing um sure so I I can comment on that if Tok council president mayor I've had some conversations with the library uh and what the discussions have been is potten there are currently there was one Ada spot in front of the library um not too long ago recently this Council uh in increased that to two spots that be the council needs to approve it because they all need to be marked with a sign and and striped in blue and I understand that right in front of the library is where those two current spaces are on Warren Street uh there is a bunch of discussion about potentially even increasing the number of spaces because they are heavily used to a total of three to four spaces uh with two of them moving to the what is now the back corner of the Civic Center the I'm sorry the back corner of the municipal building lot which would be closest to the library itself there is also a space directly across from that um and on the space closest to the front of the Civic Center itself uh there's also some discussion about adding some on stepen AV I know you said you know it might not be smart if somebody open a door onto onto stepen AV we have in most municipalities on main roads Ada parking spaces Main Street has one between Center and Stevens uh on the Northern side there's one on the southern side between Stevens and Patterson a in front of PNC Bank so it's not uncommon to have Ada spaces and in fact the space that would be on Stevens's AV uh while as part of the streetscape that is going to be coming past Steven AV or I should say coming up Steven's AV there is going to be a ramp installed where there's currently two or I think maybe three steps uh leading to the library from Steven's AV it's going to be graded so that there's a ramp heading up that direction as well so that anybody in a wheelchair could also access it that way which would actually be a closer access than the current one on Warren Street so it is certainly not something that we have not thought of uh there has been a bunch of discussion about it and again the total number of spaces is a little bit in the air but uh you know and the net effect on total parking is also minimal because Stevens a will actually gain a handful of parking spaces because of where the new crosswalks will be uh for children crossing the street there uh and where the current bus stop is and all of that so the net effect of parking spaces maybe a loss of one or two overall in total um but we're going to restripe these the former Municipal Building lot to increase the number of parking spaces pretty dramtically concern I have since I live there I see you how much they ask people actually use these spots and sometimes they have trouble and stuff so you help them along access will actually be easier that's great be now again somebody with a cane it may be a little bit more difficult if they're parking in the municipal building lot but somebody in a wheelchair access would be easier because it would provide a level surface straight across to get in rather than have to deal with uh drop curbs or or the lack thereof currently okay great and then final question I have on the this uh pedestrian walk by is the finish what that final design is going to be and the finishes it will have do you you says that it's going to be totally up to mayor's it's like having seen some no offense but some decisions on finishes of buildings and what townships approved I'm kind of concerned so unfortunately there's little that a municipality can do to dictate finishes on buildings or colors of buildings um but fortunately there will be say on what this final project looks like and some thoughts are a similar stamped pattern to that we have in front of the rec center currently uh the building itself it is a uh sort of a big it's a stamp Pap look but we can we're going to try to save that one huge tree that is in front of the or I should say to the right of the current uh mun former Municipal Building uh in that grass area uh and and again it will be sort of a a concrete with with smaller trees throughout in order to keep somewhat of a green feel in fact we'll be adding a lot of greenery because there's currently no trees in the middle of the street which we'd ultimately have some trees in the middle of the street I guess another a very good example of what it may ultimately look like on a much smaller scale is in the middle of our municipal building parking lot the uh the area that has the benches and the flag on it currently uh with the stamped concrete there the colors May differ from that because it should probably match our streetcape a little bit more um but that's sort of the thought right now great thank you very much mayor you might as well entertain at this time how this process with the street Scapes and what the governing body uh is looking to get the grant to do this yes so great news is right now we currently have a large Grant to bring the streetscape from Main Street all the way up to Walnut which will bring us right past the current library and the area of Warren Street that is currently in discussion uh there may be a period of time where that area is not a plaza per se but more of a closed down street until there's additional funding to make the Improvement to an actual Plaza uh but what that will do is it'll encourage and Foster sort of an area for meetings and various Town activities and things which will be located right between our library former municip ipal building and our Civic Center giving a lot of walkability and interconnectivity to those three uh buildings that are all located in one little area so it's something that I look forward to I'm hoping that big future events can be hosted there and we could have a lot of town activities in that area uh the floor is open Mr uh councilman vincher you have anything you want to add at this point no I don't thank you the floor is good evening John ver uh 110 re avue Little Falls nice seeing everyone for the record Mr vaner does sound a little bit like Darth Vader so appropriate thank you Mr vadie I mean that in the nicest way possible but uh and congratulations Cynthia always service with the smile so you know nice from the very beginning from when she came here uh so want to speak in favor of this pedestrian Plaza uh we took a look back at our records and the Historic Society looks like this goes back almost 70 years in the master plan so I applaud this group for finally taking the initiative to look at it and do it it it's a real conflict seeing the cars coming out of there and what's happening on Stanley Street and trying to eliminate the curb Cuts you know from a public safety standpoint I just think is amazing and I really thank you for that um from the function of economic revitalization of the town and what's happening with the old town hall and Ethan and the bean and The marel Visitor Center such a perfect dovetail into having events there and um you know we'd love to have a seat at the table to discuss you know the particulars of it and how that would work happy to hear that the tree will be saved and uh to create some much needed Green Space in that area but um I think that is really great and I pleased your effort thank you Mr better you you mentioned conflict to to to the cars you want to talk about that what do you what do you mean we probably all witness this and I see it spending uh a lot of time being at Old Town Hall and it just you know when um law enforcement is not there and the kids are still there trying to cross and the cars are coming out sometimes they barely stop so there's just you know you see um you know a lot of near misses it's it will be very nice to eliminate the curb Cuts uh I'd love to see every curb cut on Stevens as you're doing this uh you know new pedestrian area from Main Street to Walnut um I think we're only left with maybe one or two curb Cuts but um having that gun and having a w for the kids to cross maybe even with a a beacon or something flashing there you know to be looked at you can look at what they did on South Park Street in Montclair they created a really nice pedestrian they still have a street there but they have a very nice pedestrian area so I think you know eliminating the conflicts of those cars you know making a left or right there is going to be huge and it's a great uh you know first and foremost beautification is great but Public Safety is the most important thank you Mr kushia there's someone that would like to speak okay Miss Goldstein can you hear us yes okay the floor is yours thank you this is Sarah Goldstein I live at 260 Main Street in Little Falls um I had some questions about again this um Warren Street closing off part of it uh where will there be parking when you want to use the library so the parking uh for the live Library will be uh in the uh parking lot of the old police station and also at the Civic Center okay so that uh area going to the parking lot is not what you're closing off I thought that's between Stevens and um going in that direction you you'll still be able to access the parking lot where the old police station is to park okay thank you you're welcome thank you for joining us this evening is there Mr Kush Is there a reason why our speakers not why we okay the the floor is still open for those that are attending please come up you're welcome to come up miss m Janna Cooper 47 o Crescent um I'm calling I'm talking about The Pedestrian uh paa that is being proposed uh first question forgive me for my ignorance and I'm not up to speed has this already been approved is this already something that's going forward or is this just in the planning stages at the moment I guess I need clarification on that Miss Cooper this evening before the council body is to um to put the wheels in motions so to say to look at to see if we would get funding and to look at the designs and if we don't get funding and if the governing body doesn't like the designs then nothing's going to happen Okay um the the concerns that I have I guess are we don't even have anyone renting these units that are being built currently we don't even know what the uh what's going to happen with the traffic what's going to happen with you know the flow we're we're then taking away Warren Street which is nonresidential except for one home that is currently there and we're going to take all that traffic flow and put it onto Walnut Street which Walnut residents have already complained about all the cut through for their street because they're trying to avoid the Main Street Fiasco uh wouldn't this cause a problem getting rid of a an EG like a a especially when these the parking garage for this new building that's being built when people need to get to the light they're going to have to go up they're going to have to go across they're going to go when kids are going to school back and forth that at least with Warren Street open it's a cut through that they can get to the light to make the left if they have to make the light that was one of my concerns the second one of my big concerns would be clearly handicap parking um Stevens Avenue is a dangerous Avenue the the cars they don't observe the speed limit let's face it and you have an older woman getting out and opening a door and she's elderly and she can get out and she's already got a little bag of books and she's trying to get whether you ramp whatever unless you've got a good plan for that I I don't think that it's really a feasible uh solution uh also my son utilizes a a a a power chair and he us uses a handicap van with a ramp that has to deploy and for the safety of him I don't know how safe that is for him to be deployed on Stevens Avenue if he wants to use the library so I went into the library today because I I even did a walk all the way around the block to see what the viability would be for something like and ask the library staff is there a side entrance over here is there a reason why they're considering putting it on Stevens and they look completely flox and actually asked me to attend the appoint attend the meeting tonight because of some of their concerns as well because a lot of the people that come there especially moms even with the story time they've got little kids in toe do you really want them like having to walk even farther and Clement weather uh the elements and and such you know I remember taking Josh to Story Time and having to carry him if I have to go all the way across and carry the kid even further I mean whether it's beic and beautiful or not which I'm not saying no completely but I really think we need to think about this a little bit longer and also see what the impact is going to be when you do open that and also what about the corner of Stevens and Main right now it's green it's beautiful why not put something there instead I just don't know if this is really a has been thought out well enough I'm not saying I'm kashing the idea because I am 100% for the more green space we can get the better for this Township we need it absolutely but right there I don't think is the best place for it to be and I'm I'm kind of questioning why we would be doing it anyway if we have a farmers market that's very successful at the police station and and right here in this parking lot I'm not EX sure why we need to do it and if we do have events that are that of that magnitude or that size we generally close off Steven A we have the July 4th celebration here and everything works out well so I'm kind of confused as to the area that we're discussing to potentially put this so my concerns if somebody wants to address thank you you could St at the voting if you want y yeah you can so this way um to answer your last question about about the corner of Main Street in Stevens that is privately owned property it's not owned by the township uh so that's those houses that you guys took to you know took down so you can put parking like by the school correct they were privately owned as well right that that's correct but the township bought them we don't I don't think it's why can't we buy the property that's there on the corner the township could probably make an offer if we if we even increase the turning lane there instead of these semis like taking like everything off at that corner yeah the township could buy the property if it was feasible and and if the governing body wanted to spend those monies but uh that would probably be Miss Cooper a very expensive proposition on this governing body to buy that corner lot well what about that that abandoned property that's in over by shoe markers that hasn't been developed in years what about maybe making that a beautiful like Township kind of like green space as well is that a potential or is that a possibility that is also privately owned and to buy that from the develop the owners that own that now that would be a a very Financial big lift on this Township to buy that property on Main Street can I can I ask a question I know maybe I'm off paper and I'm off like you know what I'm supposed to be is there anything on the law or in the books that basically when a developer buys a property in town a a not a residential I'm talking a building like for uh Business Development why is there nothing in town that basically tells them okay if you don't develop this within 3 years because the first thing they do is they knock down the building because the taxes are far cheaper on a vacant piece of property as opposed to a rateable that they take down immediately we've had in Little Falls to live with Cyclone fences and ugly things all over town in fact you can't even walk on Main Street right now I that I don't know what's taking so long to get the sidewalks done I can't even take my son to like breakfast over at the diner because can't get there um at what point in time do we kind of look at these developers and go hey you're in default you need to you know I know that when I was working for a doctor's office that caught fire he had three years to get that building back and running or else he was going to be fine why don't we have something like that for developers that buy these raise the stinking property and and make it look horrible and we have to live with it that's not like an aesthetically pleasing look so why can't we is there something right now in the books that deals with those type of issues I'm just wondering I'm ignorance they're wonderful questions I do want to Circle back to your concerns that you first came this evening to and we'll address these concerns they very important about the Ada parking uh that's important um yeah I mean if this governing body goes through and makes this pedestrian Plaza you won't be able to park in front of the library that would be out of the question I have a 90-year-old friend of mine that lives up the street from me who specifically asked me to be here she was a little too tired to come tonight to ask these questions for her because she is one of those ones that brings her little bag of books to the library and it's so much easier she you know for her to get out of her car she's got guaranteed parking and she goes right through the front makes easier mayor you want to comment hold on mayor a second please councilman Murphy real quick um is it is it possible to see if the engineer could potentially put a uh design or layout of what this may look like so that residents could be able to see hey here's where the spots may be you know it doesn't you know I think conceptually everyone's for green space in that area you know being a little beautifi beautified um but is it potential that we could maybe next meeting see if our engineer could put something together so that we could all take a look at it and the residents can see and say hey here's where the parking spaces may be this way everyone can have an idea of you know where they may go and and their feelings on it yeah I see no issues and and having an our engineer put together a plan that would show uh where the Ada is and give all schematic of of a of a plan it may not be a may may not be the plan that the governing body would put a stamp of approval on but it would be something to go off of these brants that you guys are trying to get is there a time of of time frame because I feel like we're moving a little too fast before we see what the impact of this building is going to have and all the new residents and such and what the traffic's going to be like and I don't think a traffic study done in the middle of summer before it's even filled is going to be something that's going to be even helpful so I really I don't even know what the anticipated opening date is for these new apartments or whatever they're building I it looks like they're almost close to uh you know completion but why don't we kind of like put the brakes on until we really see what the impact of all of this extra construction is going to do to especially that area of town which is already really congested it's the lifeline of our entire town and we don't even know it's going to be like when all of this is done and finished so maybe kind of like put the brakes on because what if there's an accident on Main Street what do they do they usually detour and divert traffic down Warren not and now it'll go down Walnut and then they have to make a left when kids are crossing the street because that's the main intersection where most of the kids go across the street because the visual is a little clearer there than it is on Warren but then you're going to take that away I I I'm just I'm not I'm I'm trying to figure out the the Mind thought I'm trying to look at it from different angles and I'm not against like I said Green Space I'm a huge proponent but I just don't know if this is the right place for it to be uh the the time frame to address that question this is a grant so we would try to put that um in Motion in June and see if we would get the Grant and if this was to go through we'd probably try to complete this project in 2025 but mayor you have comment yeah I I think Miss goober a lot of what you said actually affirms The increased Safety and Security especially the students in this area and the reason being uh Warren Street is frankly dangerous with all of the kids that are crossing the street in that area we have we have an extra Street by our school it's an extra place for students to cross not only across Stevens a but then also across Warren Street which adds an additional element of trying to cross kids safely in that area we are eliminating one of the crosswalks that could potentially be dangerous by eliminating Warren Street altogether If This Were to pass and as far as your concerns there's no vehicles aside from one home that has access on Warren Street uh there's no access to the new development on Warren Street no all of the access is from Center a Out Center Street and they have to get to the make the left well the left term could be made right off of Center a as they are now and we all know that shower it's almost impossible to make a left from don't block the box that has been added and to your point cars have not been stacking or queuing in that intersection because we haven't opened up the the new building well again to that point there was 50 the same comment was made several years ago when 50 units that were approved 15 years ago at the Abbey uh were actually built and everybody said the intersection of Center and Main Street is going to be a disaster there's 52 in three bedroom units 252 253 bedroom units at the ABY there has been no increased no visibly increased traffic at the intersection of Main Street and Cav and since the don't block the box has been painted traffic has been flowing extremely well there because there is a red light just a couple of you know 100 yards away at Maine and Stevens and because of that it creates breaks and gaps in traffic where people are able to access Main Street and by sending these vehicles if they were trying to access the light further from the school where children cross we'd actually be increasing the safety further you're sending them to walnut walnut is a major and again I I I don't believe anybody's route if they are exiting that building will be either Warren if it's open or walnut if Warren was not they would head to the intersection of Maine and the will head there as well I'm sorry the cars will head there as well that's correct and the children will be there so I really don't see the students won't be at the intersection of Main and Center so and and then to your next Point um as far as the sidewalks on M and Stevens I know you had a question about them and the delay unfortunately psng has taken months to get electric to the box that has been installed uh ever since the light pole went up we've been waiting on psz and to they did install the meter un fortunately the electricians at psng that install the meter are not the same electricians that actually get power to the meter from the lines blows my mind but that's the process there's different divisions for every single component of installing that box so we're waiting for the electric to get from the lines to the meter before the traffic company can come back and fire up the new lights disable the old ones at which time the old lights can come down and the concrete can be you know poured in that area be responsible for putting something on top of all the rocks and Pebbles that they have why can't they put like a metal or a wooden or something that you can even walk across you can't you can walk there now for somebody to twist their ankle and fall down so yes and and and the contractor has been back a number of times at the engineer's request to add additional gravel and to continue to keep it you know safe enough that at least pedestrians can Traverse it I'm not saying it's the most ideal but it it meets the engineers requirements of safety in that intersection again I don't love it I hate the orange fencing all around it it's not aesthetically pleasing but this is one of those hurdles that we just need to get over to to to get us to the finish line so you have no time frame on that one you don't know it's psg's time frame and I have a number of requests through our local uh liaison to psng and unfortunately it has been taking a quite some time uh the other question that you had I have a few I'm sorry no that's okay um had to do with things like the farmers market and the location of it now um you know in in conversations with this Council um we are looking to develop an EMS building the funding for that has been approved uh some you know earlier this year or I should say last year uh and finding the Loca the right location for the M EMS has been challenging but something that in conversation with all of these council members uh it looks like the ultimate location for it will be the rear corner corner of the parking lot here at Town Hall with potentially additional spots being added along Maine and and and and Union AV so that we don't lose a number of parking spaces here for people to visit us at the municipal building and I say that to say that the farmers market will likely need to be relocated in the future and finding the perfect location for that could be a challenge and conversations discussions have been this pedestrian Plaza or this area that's closed off in the future as one of the potential wouldn't be a good idea I'm sorry School one's parking lot in the back you don't own the school one parking lot okay if it's part of the township I I thought you could use it that's the School Board of Ed they are an entirely separate governing body we have nothing to do with their budget we have nothing to do with their Lots their buildings they don't come to us when they have a roof leak they have to repair that themselves it is entirely on them now that's not to say that we don't have a relationship or partnership with with them but it would certainly be something that you know again we don't have authority to approve which then leads to the next question of you know where could there be parking and yes we do have a new lot going in in that area and I'm not saying school one parking lot is not a good option for us in the future it may very well be uh but what about the two houses you knocked down won't that be a parking area as well it will absolutely well will we be able to have access and maybe close that off on a Sunday and have the farmers Mark we could but I can tell you one of the biggest concerns I hear every single day is a lack of parking in our downtown so removing or eliminating parking in our downtown on a Sunday morning when all of our businesses and ERS and eateries are very busy might not be something that we're looking to do especially bringing in dozens and dozens and as you heard 900 almost a thousand uh people at the farmers market this past weekend bring that number of people with additional vehicles to that parking lot put the Overflow go to the Civic Center where you're you know the the senior Civic Center or whatever like I certainly could again but that would be you know some bit of a walk for them to get there again these are all options I'm not putting any of them off the table uh I'm just you know stating that finding another location for it in the future is something that we we may very well have to be looking to do uh because again there might be a building in the location where the current uh Farmers Market occurs so those are all things that are certainly being considered um again I I don't think that I can tell you that the schools certainly support the closure of Warren Street because of the increased safety to pedestrians and especially our our students who again would have one less Street to cross when they're running across that that area there they run across to the library anyway so that's my concern as well because that's one of those things that they go directly for so my concern is that's they're just going to cut across regardless because you know talky like eighth graders because I have one right but at least they now no don't have the option to also cut across Warren Street well last question any idea when they're going to be opening the uh apartments on Main Street that they're just finishing up I do not know the timetable on that and again out of like the Wheelhouse the citizens has that been 100% rented yet I don't believe they're at 100% I do believe that they are approaching you know getting almost completely filled they're not 100% that we keep building things and things that we already have aren't being filled so that's another concern but we'll Circle back because that's not on the agenda so I think I'm done right well we want to address your question about um having uh areas that are owned and not developed you mentioned that question this evening uh the governing body does not have authority to force a developer to build uh the as long as they keep the property safe the Builder is at their own time frame of when they would like to build but can't we change that in our bylaws for our town could we change to force a builder to build or a home um I don't know Lego can we can we do that can we change an ordinance you were forcing my doctor to have to have his building either you know completely renovated or ready for business in three years time after a fire I think I can answer that a little bit keep if you don't rebuild a building that has burnt down and the zoning in that area does not just generally permit that building in that zone or there's variances that are needed it the variances that they may have had May expire meaning you would not be able to build that same building in that location without getting variances which if the town has changed in some way in that area may not be looked favorably upon and that building may not be able to be there in the future so that's why there are that's why that may have happened there I don't know all the facts about it or surrounding that circumstance what I can certainly tell you is that you know there there's there's probably a lot more of that consideration that went into that there but we can potentially look into something like that I don't think so Township we we'll we'll have a council review it I we have some buildings in our Township as you know that have been the same way since I moved in 33 years ago and they haven't changed and you would often think why does the owner or a developer do something with those properties but that's up to them as long as they keep them safe the governing body can't force someone uh to to do something with the property and my last last question uh handicap accessibility to the multiple um businesses that are in town I know that uh for some it would be difficult and it's I guess a money issue I'd really like to see what the grants that we can kind of get to make uh ramping to make it accessible for my son to be able to go into taco Affair to be able to go into various uh he's lived in this town for over 30 years and he can't enter a lot of the businesses that are in his own town because they're not handicap accessible and if I'm not mistaken I believe June is handicap awareness month if I'm not mistaken can't but anyway I think that's it I've given you enough and you can like chew on it and circle back to me and let me know I would appreciate it thank you for your comments this evening Mr cooa is there anyone in the chat that like to speak to us this evening he's not is there anyone else i' like to come before us and speak on any of the agenda items please state your name you don't need to State your address hi AJ Alvarez good evening evening um I just wanted to um if you can hear me okay bro broadly speak uh in favor of The Pedestrian plaset having not seen any final uh layouts for it um but also um full disclosure I am involved with the rehabilitation of Oldtown Hall um adjacent to it and my background is in architecture and to to address some comments about the parking and specifically the Ada parking um I'm sure there's a way to create a layout that makes everyone happy but even if there isn't I mean that they're called Ada parking spaces because there are certain protections there are certain criteria that those parking spaces have to meet um as far as how far away from uh the buildings that they're serving they are what size they are the ramps that uh lead to or from them Etc so I do think that closing that portion of Warren Street with a properly designed space will work I think it's a great idea um also for the for the comments about um how we already have some green space in town and Parks Etc we do but there's a difference between the Mars Canal Greenway and Wilmore Park and uh and and what this space would be uh a pedestrian Plaza for it's located um I think would be fantastic at the uh intersection of Warren Street and Stevens Avenue thank you for your comments this evening does the council have any comments or um about the speakers this evening just a quick question councilman Murphy on this uh ordinance tonight for the uh uh pedestrian Plaza um I just want to understand the uh I guess time frame and layout of this so if we do vote Yes on this and this does pass tonight uh then we would seek to OB Ain grants on the cost to cover the cost or most of the cost thereof of doing a pedestrian Plaza um then I guess we'd go forward with the design approval if the council at that point does not like the approval or does not like the um uh design that's sent to us on where the parking spaces will be or the overall design of it can we at that point shut it down or what's what's the of that so the the council's not um even know if you approved this this evening moving forward and Council correct me if I'm wrong here it's not obligated to move forward if we get the grant money that means that we'd have to find the funds somewhere else and that may not be what this governing body wants to do so the project would end up not going forward if the designs came back and they were not acceptable by the discovering body again the project would not move forward am I correct Council yes council president right so that would be there's not this is not saying if we pass this tonight it's definitely a green light to do in The Pedestrian Plaza it's more moving forward to see what can be done and how it will be done and where the funds will come from to start the beginning correct right okay thank you council president you're welcome are there any other questions or comments just a quick councilwoman Patel just generally um is there a reason why we haven't first applied for the grant does this ordinance need to be passed in order for us to apply for the grants Mr crucia would you like to answer that the the the area needs to be designated before we can apply speciic specifically for it and it hasn't been so you're really designating the area at this point in time okay thank you that clarifies that's the way government has to work um we have to go through these passing of the ordinance in order to get the grant Mr Ben Cherry do you have any comments uh counc I was just gonna say because I know uh Mrs Cooper had a question about the property on the corner of uh Stevens in Maine uh yeah the grass is growing it looks really nice and the owner of that property was looking to put a post and rail fence as well uh to make it look nicer um in addition to like the beautiful grasset there no plans at this point with the property but at least there'll be a post and rail fence there as well to give it a nice look and probably some flowers uh or so there um and and I just think too um with this opportunity tonight that's on the agenda obviously like Mr coochie just said it's rezoning getting what we need place and then of course applying for the grant there's no guarantees with the grants but once we do here we can figure this out and that's where the engineers will come into play of course and designing the appropriate space thank you councilman Ben Cherry have a motion to close the public comment so moved moved by councilman Vel second by councilman vent Cherry this is a voice vote all those in favor I I thank you all those opposed the motion carries C motion to approve the consent agenda so moved moved by councilman Murphy second by Council woman habblet this is a roll call to approve uh the consent agenda council member Patel yes council member Murphy yes council member Hab yes council member V Cherry yes council president scova yes so we're going to table ordinance 1493 until coun uh until our counselor can RW this and come back and we'll see if we can bring this to the next meeting uh so table um ordinance 1493 will be tabled I'm sorry we need a motion I'm sorry I need a motion to table have a motion to table 1493 some Council Patel second by councilman V Cherry uh please call the RO to table 1493 council member Patel yes council member Murphy yes council member Hab council member V Cherry yes yes yes can I uh Madam clerk read ordinance 1494 second reading and public hearing of ordinance number 1494 an ordinance entitled 2024 Little Fall salary ordinance public hearing on 1494 is now open does anyone wish to speak on 1494 Mr kusia anyone in our chat room no one coming before this governing body the public hearing on 1494 is now closed have a motion to adopt 1494 so moved moved by councilwoman habetz second second by councilwoman Patel Madame clerk call the role to adopt 1494 council member Patel yes council member Murphy yes council member haetz yes council member van Cherry yes council president scova yes brings us to 1495 which is the um Pedestrian Mall and the governing body has a choice to either table this until the next meeting or to vote on this and proceed uh to see the plans uh we heard uh from the public uh those that were for it and a res res some residents uh concerns about ADA parking I would uh ask to table this until the next meeting until we could see a plan but the C I would ask the governing body at that next meeting to be willing to vote on this so can I have a a motion to table it so moved moved by councilman Patel second second by councilman Murphy please call the roll the table 1495 council member Patel yes council member Murphy yes council member ha yes council member V Sherry yes council president scova yes madame clerk read ordinance 1496 second reading and public hearing of ordinance number 1496 an ordinance entitled an ordinance amending the code of the township of Little Falls administration of government section 33 cannabis does uh um the public hearing on ordance 1496 is now open does anyone wish to speak on that seeing none come forward the public hearing on ordinance 1496 is now closed have a motion to adopt 1496 so moved moved by councilman H second by councilman Murphy please call the role Madam clerk on 1496 council member Patel yes council member Murphy yes council member habblet council member van Cherry yes council president scova yes have a motion to open the meeting to the public uh for General matters so move councilman Patel second by councilman Venter all those in favor I all those opposed motion carries Madame clerk anyone wishing to address the township Council may do with through the council president it is preferred if you give your name and address for the record comments are to be limited to 3 minutes however if appropriate you may be granted additional time and the whole discretion of the council president members of the public who have joined the meeting virtually and desire to provide comment shall raise their virtual hand in the zoom application the meeting moderator will cue the members of a public that wish to provide comment and the council president will recognize them in order members of the public who have joined the meeting by calling in must press star six to mute and unmute themselves and star 9 to raise their hand members of a public who have joined the meeting via the zoom application must click the reactions icon and then the raise hand icon once the process is complete we will return to the regular order of business thank you before we proceed Chief do you have anything that you'd like to tell the governing body this evening I'll be brief sir so happy to report that we um completed the distracted driving uh campaign in April that was the utex you drive uh we did receive 100 hours uh that we were authorized um for enforcement we did uh use all 100 hours uh that resulted in an additional 193 motor vehicle stops uh we wrote 102 additional summonses uh for the month uh 39 of those were cell cell phone violations so continuing that Trend uh we did apply and did receive the May clicker ticket uh Grant so we'll be doing an additional 100 hours of enforcement and that period is running from May 20th to June 2nd so two weeks abbreviated period but we're looking to exhaust the full 100 hours uh enforcement on a community policing front council president um I'm sure you'll be hearing more about this but um it's not until September our community policing officer cor vanic will be out we're looking to do a senior citizen Police Academy be one day a week running uh from September 25th to October 23d about two hours and we're going to just start them off with a little Department tour keep it simple uh they'll be a canine demonstration we're going to speak about home security we're going to talk about how to protect yourselves against fraud uh Vehicle Safety our Traffic Safety Division went to specialized training to kind of evaluate how senior citizens drive and work through a period of how far away you sit from the wheel and are your mirrors set the right way and do you understand because cars are more like a computer and some of our elderly Generations a little bit more challenged when it comes to technology so the officers are specially trained to teach them how to hook up the Bluetooth so on and so forth so this is uh you know new and exciting for the department to bring us to the community um we do the junior Police Academy so this is just another evolution of that and we're going to look to Target adults 55 and older thank you Chief um I think that's a very good uh program mayor I'm glad to hear that program for the seniors U yeah the newer cars just like computers if you're not used to using all the gadgets it's becomes becomes a challenge so I appreciate that Chief can you go over um the violation of when people are talking on their cell phones like H what that how that triggers a ticket because I think a lot of motorists feel you know the cell phone can you just explain how that works well I I think the biggest misconception is that the public um it's you have to be using a hands-free device so you may not necessarily need to have the phone up to your face speaking just having the device in your hand texting uh putting in GPS coordinates or using Google Maps those all constitute a violation so when we're out doing enforcement if we see the phone in the hand legally it constitutes a violation because it needs to be a hands-free device um you know throughout my career I've enforced a lot of cell phone violations I usually would get the well I had it on speaker phone but it can't be in your hand you know and that was something that I always uh you know used to argue with the public about so when we're you know out there doing the enforcement we look uh distracted driving doesn't necessarily need to be a cell phone so you can have a dog on your lap you can be doing your makeup in the mirror you anything that's you're doing that's not paying attention to the roadway can constitute distracted drive and specifically hands-free devices that's more uh what people you know think of with the cell phone but it doesn't necessarily have to be even the cell phone in your hand it could be anything that's distracting you from the roadway thanks for that clarification Chief mayor you want to add something to that just simply having kids in the car constitute distracted driving only if you're driving like this I told you to stop arguing right so that's you know you turn around and you're conversing with your children for a prolong period of time then that could be uh careless driving also Chief also um do you want talk about another program that might be I did if I had time council president yours CH so uh June will be a pride month I know two years ago when I took over the department I was approached from uh by Lieutenant Gilcrest who's our lgbtq coordinator a program that is very near and dear to her heart something that she did a lot of research on is called the safe place program and we're looking to roll that out in June so just if I can just talk a little bit about the program we're going to part with partner with our businesses and our schools and there will be these decals that the business owners will outward face to the public and if you are the you know the victim of a hate crime um bullying you know student bullying you can see this sign whether it be in a school or out in the public and you can go seek Refuge inside the business and the businesses will be specially trained to kind of shelter call 911 and coordinate a response from law enforcement um it's not only you know lgbtq Community yes but it it could be a student that's you know feels uncomfortable and there's a stranger that they're not familiar with and they happen to be walking by one of these business they can also go in there receive shelter and then the business or the workers would call 911 for us so look more uh to our social media about the roll out of that program and I don't mean to steal uh detective Lieutenant Gil Crest Thunder but I know that June 1 will be coming quickly and this is something that she wanted to get rolled out thank you Chief from uh the public and the governing body of that program if I may one last update mayor so one last update uh that I'd like to give this evening uh the municipality since long before I was elected uh has aom email address for our website for all of the individuals uh that are employed by the town uh and it is something that I've always found to be I don't want to say inappropriate but not the the correct way to run a municipality uh I can tell you that we have spent a lot of man hours uh on getting us to a point where we are looking to get and I believe we now have finally received approval to move to a.gov domain moving forward it's not something that's going to happen overnight there is a lot of background work and it work that needs to be uh you know put forth before we were able to have the.gov website and email addresses but it is something that uh I can again I can tell you there's been a lot of work that's gone into we will have to change the name of the website from lfj moving forward because the.gov registry which you need to get approval from in order to secure a.gov website and domain has said that lfj is not unique enough because there's a little Ferry there's other things that could be confused as LF NJ it's not very particular about what it is that it is referring to uh so we are looking to get and secure the full approval for Little Falls nj.gov moving forward uh but again it's something that I've always thought and has always bothered me uh not having a.gov because the.com just seems uh less I guess prestigious and official uh I I know a lot of other towns have used the do orgs uh that's much easier to secure the.gov has a a full Federal registry and a whole process that you need to go through in order to secure it and uh a lot of thank you to our assistant business administrator Vince quatron and our Recreation director uh Tyler Pacer who have been working very diligently to move forward with securing this for us so so so thank you both for all the work that you've done I know I've seen all of the emails and it has certainly not been a Light Lift so thank you for all of that thank you mayor would anyone like to come up at this point before I close have a motion to close the public comment moved moved by councilman Murphy second by councilwoman H this is a voice vote all those in favor hi thank you motion carries I know so we're sorry about that speaker we're doing our best we'll have to take a look at that um Madame clerk uh Mrs Krauss that the proclamation is well deserved for you this evening I appreciate your professionalism and been working with you since 2016 um and I know this actually particular meeting although was seemed to be sure we worked through the weekend to make sure this governing body would be have an efficient and uh professional meeting so thank you for your endeavors uh and working with me have a motion to adjourn this meeting so moved move by councilwoman Patel second second by councilwoman habetz all those in favor I all opposed this meeting is now closed