##VIDEO ID:xN2qX8QqElk## live from [Music] [Music] [Applause] this well there's a delay on [Music] that or [Music] seven ass [Music] they've numerous because everyone else we not do [Music] about 7p [Music] did you get rain [Music] yes that's corre yes need [Music] that was wonderful [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you [Music] [Music] what's that I saw you [Music] you [Music] [Music] [Music] thank you this being h New Jersey open public meetings act been advertised retrospect open board downstairs all official B social media channel uh I ask for those of you here with us uh this evening you please put your phones on silent you need to speak anybody pleas M Morales s here Mr Woods here thank you very much the first item on the agenda this evening is the public portion of the meeting anyone from the public come for and speak on any topic pleas for state your name and address for record hello good evening my name is Alex Diamond I'm at 105 Westminster Aville mayor council I'm here on beh of the commission and the Green Team to give you an update on the tiny bar project and how we're going to use the GR that we received um we received a grant of $2,500 from the New Jersey shade tree Federation and I did want to read what they said in giving us the grant it's really very um very nice that sh Tre Federation noted that merchand tiny Forest project was quote an exceptionally creative example of transforming public space into valuable Green Space and L gettis who was at the conference where the grant was um presented as said that people from other municipalities were coming up and were asking her about this project so it's created quite a lot of buds among other shap tree commissions and all this project it's um it's something that they're really looking to do uh to give you a little recap a tiny Forest is not a forest of tiny BL trees it's a full it's a fulls size trees in a very small space so what you do is you plant densely in this space three to five trees per square meter which is very dense you plant native plants and you plant trees such that you create the layers like with a natural Forest so there's canopy trees there's midsize trees there's unders trees and then on the margins there's shrubber um you plant seedlings not saplings so the difference would be for a street tree we plant saplings those trees are about 1 1 and A2 Ines in diameter they're about six or 7even feet tall but for the tiny bar is with my ceiling so they're like look like Twigs they're about under under 2T tall typically 12 to 18 in tall um the site was selected previously the site we're going to use is on the west side of the bike path between Clinton and yland avenues what's currently there is a flat open space uh it has a ground cover grass and nonnative weeds it's just m very short right now there are no trees or shrubs there that we' be removing so it's it is just this grassy place um we will be using the grant this year the full 2500 so what we're going to do is uh first to prep the soil the area where planting in is 20 ft x 20 ft which is 400 sare ft the site does have room for a larger but for the amount of money we have and also since this is our first planting thought it would be better to keep it a little smaller so 20 x 20t 4 Square we will have a contractor removed several inches of soil replace that soil with a good Forest Loan something suitable to the trees and then we'll plant 8 to 20 trees and the contractor will do that now 8 to 20 trees is not going to fill the space but it will be a start there so our plan then is to have a second phase of planting in the spring oh just let me say that those trees that we're planting are sourced from um a nursery pands nursery which specializes in trees native to New Jersey so for the second planting to fill in that three to five trees per square meter we uh intend to Source the trees from directly from the New Jersey chain Federation you may know that they give out seeding TOS every year um so we can get quite a few seedlings from them they'd be about this big they're Fair generally and our idea for that planting in the spring of 2025 is to make that a community event so we would invite people and groups that are interested in the project to come and plant with us that way we have a fun Community event we also have the opportunity to show them what we're doing um on their behalf and to educate them about the benefits of having this this tiny Forest there um once that's done in the fall we have to go to back to the um conference the shade tree conference and report on what we've done Prov them with pictures and let them know the progress we've made now um the evenings will be established plant in two to three years and in about 10 years it'll start to look like a forest it'll be tall enough um you know there's a old saying you probably heard it before the best time to PL the tree was 20 years ago and the second best time is now so we will be planting now um that is the end of my update and I really thank you all for your support of this project it it's it's been a bit of time coming but it's it's really an exciting Pro one comment I just want to make sure we mark off where the TR works yeah oh sure that's part that's part of the whole thing of planting you always do the one do that on street do that with everything justes and Stiller we don't want I'll talk with the with the director about it and Al you do you guys have like a drawn out um like overhead of out we do have over okay yeah you that that way I get to DPW make sure that thaten square in mdle green square okay we don't have any yeah she mentioned always check before they did and to wellow my first thing make sure get mow my second thing I know that the ging Club work really hard on a project over by the community center and then it was broke down so and it was it was not intentional you can also look into um getting some kind of fencing around it two to three years it wouldn't be a permanent fencing right yeah stdi than but not always looking for projects like that so thank you anyone else from the public speak on any to0 uh anyone wish to come forward and speak on that pleas for state your name address right heing none we'll close public hearing on ordinance 24 adoption of 2410 adding article commercial wood first second any discussion on motion yeah this some of the I think this is the original one yes and I was going to suggest I'm sorry for not speaking soon this may one to be Mr spaz and I were going to discuss the some of the changes that have been done to the to the one the model or that came from the state and maybe inting my only concern is this isn't address the way it's so specific the way it's written is out so it doesn't streaming Netflix online anything like that El I'm not sure if it would be Brad enough for that but I mean the first paragraph really say picture fil and we know nothing to that way we discussed this last first we go forward with this now at least and when something comes up one there's going to be another [Music] [Music] okay Woods your your motion on table here uh so I will motion to approve tonight withs that we we'll come back to this uh make some of the operations by move forward as as necessary any other discussion on roll please Mr Fitzgerald hi Mr M yes Mr per yes Mr yes Mr Woods yes thank you very much next we have the approval of the V have first me from Monday October 14 those pres Gerald who can vote on those a motion to approve council meeting minutes from octob 14 second motion second all in favor the from the 28th which other than the the change for the the date month being September to October in the actual minutes of the top uh that's a minor typographical error those that can vote [Music] EXs thank you okay uh mayor 23 Road program completed work the final paper for reement um work and the been completed construction perment I Believe been closed out warant information been received work on GIS we close to being G facility locations may have one in the field and good g m work on somets ongoing completed Cur work country sidewalk driveway St pip work we've you know sure that it's accessible for voting tomorrow and did it R today [Music] and accessible one good thing is we're able to replace the concrete driveway and sidewalk behind the entrance and exit it's a lot less deep than it's been so hope that's one all right uh and we will be meeting um after the Thanksgiving around that Thanksgiving before Thanksgiving to talk about the multiuse path reconstruction and anything else from Mr Le are you on of the sewer collapse for the Damage Done by the contct no [Music] no okay anything else thank you Tom resp oh uh from Senator Booker uh this was read sort of Out Loud by McKenzie at the event but uh it's a letter congratulating us on our $850,000 m p so an event a check presentation event uh the 22nd so that's all anything else all right coun Mr Woods thank your honor quick update from shry and you heard the the presentation on the tiny Forest we received that grant funding that the shade tree and gr used to start developing that plan uh and the shry will be meeting not this next Thursday for their monthly meeting in November uh from Green Team the plan they'll be meeting next Tuesday is that y we're moving forward with a meeting next Tuesday as of now um and think joint L board has anything pending I haven't seen anything come through so there's no schedule Mee for joint L board next week and that okay questions thank you very much Mr thank you H to have DPW this month um chrismont continues to recuperate at home he is doing B I spoke with the the chief last week or yes last week and um he's on the menend uh we currently have two Public Works members are working their way towards completing their C testing to help offset with crisping out uh trash truck uh has getting its hydraulic cylinder replaced so we continue to keep that together as best we can um Outlets were installed over at the Gazebo that was part part of that work was completed when the Gazebo was first done the um the conduits were in place but now they've officially been installed um we've already done one work through the community center to clean up leaves or another one will we in the process of Wellwood they go in they do One initial clean up and then they kind of try to keep up with it through the the remainder of the season um four sewer calls completed as well as six orders open and Clos very report tonight calls last month guys have seen there was firece be a social media post your guys way to say no backyard fire um even Chief P said that trees fire 15 that small they will Department willing people watering theirs should not do should not be watering theirs either okay thank you [Music] very no report from the police they a couple more days to okay thank much one we have our fin report this evening uh we're going to transfer [Music] 32645 School Board um so be asking for that later on I also have an update on the uh registration last time we discussed theide keep our fees as they were versus the new safety uh it was determined that we could keep our fee as is so we are keeping our fee as is those bills will be going out uh December for a January 1 deadline so we'll be on January 1 two days and then July 1 six months so every six months the fee is assess properties every six months the fee goes up so until year five where pass out so so resum this jary a call why we stopped was because the county was do to that program that person went out of business they had a new person that person then didn't do anything with it and lost that contract we then had to handle it in house now handling it in house so that's not looking forward there the other thing is on the vacon and properties we do have two additional vac properties was added to the listar abandoned so we have a total of 18 16 vacon two abandon where we're now we sit total so hopefully now if this be in place this will hope get that number back down to 10 12 question hear none thank very much all that I have is Veterans Day we will be closed our offices will be closed tomorrow is election day and everything is scheduled and looking good with Community Center and um I think that's and monster was great that's all I have that nothing to okay uh nothing from the commity development report that you havec [Music] beginning ofing because ofays with there's a lot of okay all right we'll see about that [Music] okay nothing I don't have old business uh new business [Music] discussion uh so this was something uh the business Association came and gave a report at the last meeting I believe on 14th uh where they discussed um an idea about business registration uh for businesses in the burrow uh and [Music] [Music] so it was sort of Left for Council to review have discussion I think at this meeting about what council's pleasure was on how we would whe we would consider this and if so how we would want it structure um as it's being proposed looks like it would be bur's responsibility toister hold doll monies and charge those to businesses um Council F I mean some of you were here I think in the presentation so my question would be a mandatory reg I don't think it's explicitly stated here but any business register is that the proposal yeah we if we I I don't know um I'm not sure not not as it's currently drafted I I don't believe you know as being proposed um my biggest concern about it was uh we're taxing it we're collecting it what do we what control over how it gets used to be maintain it would appear n uh or little um and yet we're the ones who people will say the businesses will say oh you're not a business friend you're not business friendly you're charging you're taxing us through this other thing so I I mean that's a major concern I have um and one of the questions that I thought is if the Business Association is creating a five 1c3 they have financial institutions and why wouldn't this just be part of what they would collect from those that would be interested in being involved I know it won't be as effective if that's the way that it was handled but um I don't know um I'm not I'm not sure you know what what do Council how question sure um right now the meral Business and Professional Association is is kind of keeping a list of businesses brick and mortar there's roughly just under 90 Brick and Mortar businesses um the discussion with regards we're not a 501c3 we a nonprofit entity we cannot be a 501c3 because of a professional association um so we're nonprofit as we've registered with the with the state and the federal government um the discussion with regards to why business registration ordinance vers a an association for volunteering like so so we looked you know went down three possibilities a bid like wood and hanfield we're just not there we just don't have the volume of businesses and we're just not at that point and just the structure of that seems extremely challenging right now based on where we're at in our business Community um we looked at uh you know professional association The Business Association we have about 20 of those 90 businesses that actively participate um and those are the ones that are doing all the work um so but the entire business Community is getting the benefit from the work that those 20 businesses are doing so the other thought would be that it would be a mandatory orament so that all businesses similar to the fire registration thing um we have to put into this because they're all getting benefit from potential things that the bur could do bur beautification social media is the biggest one right now we're fundraising for the Business Association through t-shirts and through different you know the haunted walking toward different things that we're putting that effort out and doing to try and spend a social media presence that only benefits the town at large bringing more people here is going to help you know kind of put us put our down on the map and it's going to help improve the the business district and it's also that's also going to bring potentially more businesses that want to come here but right now we don't have a social media person or a company or anything that does that professionally we do it on our own and right now we're paying for post on our own out of you know fundraising money so I really feel like if we're going to step this up and do something bigger and better in town to really try to attract other businesses and get some of those some of we have a lot of abandon not not being used commercial properties in town to try and get businesses here we need to kind of Step this up and so the discussions we've had with those 20 or 25 businesses that come to our quarterly meetings is this is probably the best way to go is for The Bu to put in a mandatory ordinance for the businesses there are to do a little bit of research other towns to do this Maple shap has business registration bring more businesses loses $50 initially and it's a $25 fee annually um obviously cols with hfield have a bid so that's a different structure but businesses do pay based on their BD um Cherry Hill has a business registration fee it's based on the type of business and you know they different paperwork for certain types of businesses um Washington Township has5 business registration fee for their for their Township um interesting enough Burlington County actually reserves a business registration fee for the county of Burlington for businesses that that register that open within within the county itself so I thought that was interesting it's a County registration um so I mean this is kind of the discussions that we've been having and we feel like we're trying to kind of stend more economic growth of our businesses and try and put NCH on a map try to get more businesses here get it to be a spot that people want to come um you know and that's what we're trying to do and how we do that those were the you know this was a thought process so we're certainly in you know would love to have that continue to have that discussion if it's something that you know your questions about that's kind of where we're saying I can tell you that the current board is in favor of it's the current Nur Business and Professional Association board which is an elected board um okay Council questions so I mean from the town that you was think that Maple Shades downtown is probably the most similar to what we would be doing here uh said said that that was $50 initially $25 some point years um what do you know what their enforcement mechanism is they do not they do not I think that's going to be the hard part okay we're towards these fees and people say I want what's what can we do right make yeah I don't I don't know what I mean what happens with the fire registration is there there penalties on that if people don't pay the fire registration I know it's 35 their state law their state law that reques yeah I don't know I mean some of this might take a little bit of research that's kind of kind of coming to to council and to Mayor just to have these discussions you know we know it's not going to be like an automatic thing Tim I don't know if you have any background in this you know so the the ordinances that I the one that I'm familiar with specifically is a Mery ordinance but that's specifically in there and that's the revenue comes into the town and it's used to offset whatever type of inspections or anything like that has to be done by the town on bus that's I was just looking some of the just going through some of the ordinances here uh in terms of whether or not we can put an ordinance in direct funds to another entity we would have to or we could segregate those funds the the ordinance that I'm familiar with the funds just go into into the general uh into you know the general talk so to speak and um and then the enforcement mechanism is like anything else it's a you know violation of the our ordinance right yeah I know some discussions about it going into a trust that's earmarked for business items or not items but but you know beautification social media marketing that would affect all the businesses in the downtown a very general generalized trust that could be used for that that would be something that would be kind of an indirect whereas you know the revenue would coming in the council will determine that x amount of dollars is coming in so we'll put that money over to do unification of the downtown something that fact not a direct U Revenue Source an indirect Source if you if they you know that that was the way it provide grants from it provide a grant to say marke Association I guess my question is really on the budgeted side of this how do you $400 you collect at all then there's also 5400 $5,800 a year soci $450 a month how much really thres be useful that move Aus everybody paid it and it's like year after year after year and then like just things like power washing the sidewalks of the West End and you know and and things that within the budget the the burough budget that it's it's an extra like it's not necessarily a thing you can afford but it would look really nice to have that have that done you know the biggest one for us is a social media you know company or person or intern that can be paid to run the social media one that's not within the Business Association that owns a business here because they're a little biased right you know we have multiple photography places we have multiple physical therapy like it should be even across the board so um yeah know I don't know I think it's definitely something to think about any so I know we spoke when we had the you guys have word Eclipse about trying to bring as many of the businesses on board with the ideas possible knowing kind of speaking to what mer spoken to before you're going to have some businesses that are probably push back against it because they just going to see his bra um have you guys been to any quarterly now for the Business Association as a whole the the um the board meets monthly um so the quarterly meeting has been on the last three or four agendas with discussion we had a large meeting that was hosted by um at photography that this discussion happened with regard to an or with regards to a voluntary Association which again people are like well people want to join this and that could be opened up to outside of Merchantville it could be opened up to multiple areas to be to join our Business Association I just don't know if we have the the want for people outside of Nur to join us right fence has Pac already um and you know we a lot of businesses are part of feat so um so yes has been discussed multiple multiple times from like on a personal level because I know I remember when um you guys formalizing in the beginning that you guys were doing a lot of Outreach actually going stores and speaking to some of the owners have you guys done anything like that in regards to this we had you know about a year ago we had discussed that with the stores that you know like we have access to for those owners so like I said you're not not we're not going to get 100% of people to be fully honest but the ones that have been very active in the association probably all which you guys don't know because you just see them participate in things in town or or make donations to the bu or do activities and events they're the ones that are saying this is this is the right thing right way to go we know what shade or any of these other communities that that ly this business registration um fee do we know what they utilize those those fees were are they dedicated in some way I don't know but I can I can do some research and try and find out so I don't have a problem doing that me I think if we Levy a fee it has to be something that's directed back business that's how we get that's how you have the protection because if we liveing the Fe we control what how it's used oh yeah abolutely I me that's we have to no I I agree you and then it also is our person has to work on it and you know in a very already very very very very skeleton cre uh grp that we have Ian at 5400 90 and 60 went that direction that would that's enough probably just to get someone to buy social media ads like get the small [Music] the whole year I would say I would want an inter working on this because it's the and you know controlling what it sent and how it s now we have a responsibility that the only thing I can tell you is that I think the alternative what you're listening what you're hearing to the business Community is that you have about 20 businesses that are contributing a lot of money to a lot of better events and they're saying we need the other businesses that aren't contributing still benefiting from all to kick in something and they should have some stake in the game and unless Council does something so they going to burn out those 20 businesses and you're not going to have their support in the future so that's that's that's what you really got to look at is do you are you worried about the 20 businesses that are there trying to help you out versus 70 that aren't showing up but pay is that going to supplement businesses work I think you're probably right I think we always hear 80% businesses don't do any 20% is everywhere I don't know if that $5,400 gets those other 8% businesses to do anything and still the same 20 do work no it still might be but at least it's a you know it's something it's better than nothing yeah curent right now the merville business professional association we hold the list of the contact list of all the businesses we have you know Rebecca asking us hey can you send this email out to the business Community we gladly and happily do that because we love the communication between the bar and which isly our kind of you know our online handle I guess you could say so it's actually been a really good positive sort of back and forth over the last year or two um with the bar so I don't know for me I just want I think that's that's a good thing out of all this I want to keep that felt so I just don't know you know this is one idea and I get I I hear I hear the some of the reservations and like I understand that but at the same time What do we do what's the next step like moving our business Community forward I think the issue here is it's just going to give enough concentration here do this kind us enough concentration to really utilize it the way you're talking I think I don't what your sense is what the result is is 00 get us there is going to get us a lot of other businesses that just loan and grown because they don't want to pay they don't see benefits then third part is our staff are going to be responsible for this you know $450 a month social media that might help a little you're not get we're not those promises I mean are we over promising what we're going to get in return on this it's not like we're ra $20,000 to have some part time some this work you could have Public Works have someone you know pay for someone with power watch before events I just wonder if we if we're getting what we actually want out of this this is doesn't really Drive change I think it's a good dialogue so I think um but I I tend to I I tend to agree with Dan I'm not sure it's comprehensive enough to make as big an impact that we both want and so more than just that um if this is an element of it that might be an element of but there might be other things we have to to be able to drive interest Revenue to be able to support the type of um communication that you're talking about and driving interest I think it's well beyond just the the ordinance here um so let's keep discussing this I mean the whole point of half of Rebecca's position and Mar before her was this right right exactly doing what do last couple years um and so so yeah we definitely been discussing with Rebecca and we had discussion with Denise and so you know it's it's not something we're taking lately we do think though that the amount of the fee as it continues to move year year year can ultimately be helpful so it may not be helpful in the first year or two but it can be helpful down the line okay um thank you yeah we'll talk thank you app uh we resolution to read by consent agenda any done uh I'll read the M resolution 24103 vetan allowance and resolution 24104 2024 budget transfers a motion first [Music] yes thank you very much um next we have the financials which [Music] Mr yeah so again resolution discussed 206 Mr Mr fitzerald Mr M yes Mr yes Mr yes Mr yes okay thank you uh any announcement session [Music] I actually just got a I just had an gr for business expansion open outside ofen keepe there has yeah so we keep Ane [Music]