I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America indice if you guys could just keep standing for a minute it is military appreciation month i' like to have a moment of silence for all those that never made it back thank you okay roll call please mayor mlck here council president conahan here councilman KS councilman dinino here councilman Dodie councilman Quinn here councilman Rex here administrator of the play here and attorney corini here okay we're going to switch up the agenda just a little bit tonight we're going to start with the appointments pillars of middle sex Edward J Johnson Jr I have to say I can't think of a better choice I say that every month every time we do one of these but I think Eddie you know I've been doing this for a really really long time on the school board and I have to say in all the time I've been doing this I've received two letters yours was one of them and it was one of the most heartfelt things coming from the other side of the aisle you know and sometimes when you're doing this you get to the point where it's like why the hell did I ever decide to do this what am I out of my mind you saved me dude you brought me back thank you um Michael you're up kick it off yep okay our third bill middle sex Eddie Johnson my friend uh in addition to what I'm going to read um Eddie's a lot of us knows this no know this he's dedicated uh I don't know how many hours but has helped hundreds and hundreds of residents over the years since 1960 I guess when you open your practice with uh really free legal service all pro bono um and I I say hundreds it could be over a thousand or 2,000 but it's something I wanted to add and it didn't make but you've helped a lot of people so uh pills of middle sex ed Johnson Jr whereas the governing body of the B of middle sex recognizes that in order for a community to thrive and succeed they must rely on the service and support of its residents and whereas the wisdom history commitment and passion that so many of our residents exhibit and extend to their neighbors in the burrow make them pillars of our community and whereas in the spirit that mayor M would like to honor and recognize individuals throughout the community who have made exceptional contributions to the bur of middle sex and whereas Edward Johnson has been a long-standing resident of middle sex bur for the past 88 years whereas during this time he's been an active member of our community in various capacities as a member of the library Board of Trustees from 1962 to 74 chairman of the parish Financial Council and a 20-y year long Usher at Our Lady of Mount Virgin volunteering his time teaching students taking a citizenship exam and volunteering his time teaching English as a second language at middle sex library in addition to O and whereas Edward Johnson has dedicated numerous hours documenting the history of the burough through various mediums which include publishing the history of middle sex burough Library participating in the committee that wrote two different picture history books about the burrow and his current project that will be a complete history of middle sex coming soon whereas Edward Johnson became a lawyer in 1960 after which he opened his law practice in the burrow where he served as the burrow attorney for 35 years the library board board attorney for 50 years and the fire department and the rescue squad legal council for 59 years and whereas throughout his career he's aided the bur and its residents with many issues which included running Federal interference with numerous entities such as middle six C County sewag Authority the njd and many others and he supported the buau in their efforts to get the federal government to build flood walls and Dread streams to alleviate severe flooding issues within the municipality and aided to get the federal government to remove remove the toxic soil within the burrow at no cost and whereas Edward Johnson throughout the years has demonstrated praiseworthy service and commitment to the burrow by integrating himself as an essential part of the community and now therefore I jack mayor of the burough middlex state of New Jersey along with the middle sex burough Council and I'm on behalf of the residents of middle sex wish to thank Edward Johnson for all of his dedic dedication sacrifice and labor work thank you baby thank [Music] you one nice thing about being semi retired that anyone have to wear a super tie anymore I want to thank you Michael and mayor and members of the council for this honor I'm proud to be following the footsteps of John and Sheila Ferman who the first recipients of this award this year I thank the mayor and councel for recognizing the services of of those who have gone before them and who have never received the thanks that they truly deserve I should note that this award has now been given to two people in my generation we were not the greatest Generation that honor goes to our parents but I think that we are perhaps the next greatest generation and that we have carried on their tradition I'm also glad to say that there are some people today and I specifically include like Onan who are following in our tradition and who believe that there is nothing better to do in life than to help your fellow man people in my generation were taught to love and help their neighbors to respect their Elders to obey the law to honor their teachers and to work hard we worked hard I started with a paper rout then did landscape and I cut grass for many of my neighbors using a cast iron pushed lawn mower which was difficult to push before you even started to cut the grass I shoved snow for many of my neighbors I worked in many menial Jaws including at a sewer disposal plant doing you know what and I learned to appreciate and respect hard work we played hard and we were outside all the time we didn't have organized teams manicured playing fields we either played on vacant fields of which there were many or on the street but we were outside playing all the time from morning to night except when we were at school or at work when any of the neighbors needed help the whole neighborhood joined in to provide help we knew all of our neighbors and we got along together we were a mixed breed we were all basically immigrants my grandparents came from Ireland and in Germany most of my friends were second generation polish or Italian and most of them were bilingual we also had friends who were black or Spanish we all got along together and there was very little discrimination the second world war I'm sure helped that attitude since people of all colors and Creeds fought together to save our country from Germany and totalitarianism and as a result we learned to respect each other regardless of our religion or skin color I am a product of my generation and most people of my age and there aren't to many more or less are like me we were taught to work together and to help each other and we're told that we had to try to make the world a better place in which to live today as I see it we live in a world where people think first and foremost about themselves about me and not about us we no longer have volunteers like we did in the past I attribute My Success to all the help that I have received from others first and foremost from my wonderful wife Mary L she keeps me in line and makes sure that I stay humble or at least not obnoxiously proud and she is always there to support me she came in the big city in St Paul Minnesota to balr New Jersey in 1959 and took a job teaching math in the book school system because she wanted to see the Atlantic Ocean and she intended to stay here for one year and then go to Japan and teach there for a year however I had a girlfriend who had graduated from B Brook High School with me and who was teaching at B Brook and she introduced me to Mary Lou I was pretty smart in those days so on our first date I took her to the New York City to see the Metropolitan Opera House to see of the Opera Hosta and she was overly impressed I liked Opera and I used to listen to the met each Saturday on the radio but I had never gone to New York to see an opera all I can remember from that date was it was much better to listen to the Opera on the radio than it was to see it in person it was really ludicrous to see this huge soprano sitting on a small bench hugged by a fat little tenner and both of them nearly falling off the bench as they sang their famous duet in their Opera however that worked and the rest is history if it were not for my wife we probably wouldn't have a library in this town when the idea of a library for Middle sex was first broached in the late 1950s there was very little support for it I was not in favor of having the town spent a lot of money to start a library when we had such good library in BW when mayor Walter rery created a committee to study whether or not middle sex needed its own Library he appointed my wife as one of the founding members of that committee and that committee recommended that the town get its own library that became a hot issue in Middle six at that time a group of residents formed what they called the friends of the taxpayers and they fought tooth and nail against having a library established in midx my wife convinced me that I should support the library and I joined with several other residents to try to convince the people in town that we should have our own Library were it not for her prodding I would not have done so and I'm so glad that I did she is also the reason that we have two really good picture history books of the bur of middle sex published by Arcadia press when that company approached the burrow and asked if anyone would be willing to write a book about the history of the burrow my wife said that she would be because no one else volunteered to do so she was the one who organized the committee who got the people in that committee to get pictures from the public and who organized the captions for those pictures so that we now have two published picture histories of the bur there is a famous saying that goes Every Man Has a better woman at his back or something like that well in my case I've had had several good women in my back at home I've had my wife my daughter Jenny my sister Karen they've always been there to provide support and encouragement at work I've had the support of several women keep can be honest and working hard starting with Barbara Benson then Patricia Martin now with rosary fedak and one who really makes me to the Mark is Susan theost I've Had The Good Fortune to have worked for and with so many really wonderful people Marty mankevich was my mentor he taught me all about politics and he was a great mayor he was completely dedicated to his job the bur Ronald dois was my hero he was taught by Marty and followed in Marty's footsteps he was unbelievable he worked 40 hours per week at his job as a chemist and he then worked 40 hours more as a mayor John Ferman was responsible for getting a senior citizen housing project in our town in addition to giving his talents as May there are many people both male and female who have given of their talents to help the bur and I am glad to have been able to join their ranks today more than ever we need people to volunteer their services to help others too many people today think only of themselves it's me first we don't like other people they're different from us they're black or brown or yellow or Worse still they're we are all the same whatever our color or Creed or origin we must learn to work together and to help each other it's hard to love and it's easy to hate but we must learn to love and to work together and to make this world a better place there are many women in this town who will never be recognized for all the good work done by them such as Anam Mana skage Kathy and Barbara Ferris Blan stoies Susan Edwards Beverly Weber Shirley Penrose Emily desens these are just a few of the women who come to my mind there are many more who I am not included and I apologize for those that I have not included I am a history B and I believe that history has many lessons to teach us if we wish to learn but unfortunately we never seem to learn civilizations have always been cycal civilizations start at the bottom and slowly rise to the top I think that America has done that we reached our apigy in the 1950s when America was the arsenal of democracy and we helped England defeat Nazi Germany and thereby save civilization we were the city on the hill everyone in the world looks up to this what has happened since then when I was growing up I could never understand how the German people allowed a person like Hitler to get control of the entire country unfortunately now I know how that can happen I see it right here in my own country we are no longer looked upon as the leaders of civilization we have ignored the environmentalists who have preached dunesday to US unless we alter our environmental practices and look what has happened we have tornadoes every day for months on end not just one a day but several every day we must Heen back to what we were in the past and halt this road to predition I apologize for sermonizing you on this occasion my wife told me to shut up and just say thank you for the award you however I cannot and good conscience do so I fear for the future unless we change our path and reach back and regain our past values what is my advice to you number one don't stop working work is what PE keeps people alive you must have a purpose in life and works gives you that purpose don't reile number two if you are lucky enough to have money to take care of you and your family use some of that money to help others or if you don't have extra money give them your talents and help other people when you help others they in turn will help other people it is much better to give than to receive you get so much more when you give to yourself and help others as the Christopher's model goes better to Light One Candle than to curse the darkness I have tried to light that candle today rather than to curse the darkness that is developing our country thank you and God bless this whole assembly wa a good thing you did that off the C I don't do those anymore all right I'm I can't remember that much anymore okay thank you thank you thank you everyone do the other okay the we're going to get back in gear here the other appointment please we have appointing Dan Kon as alternate 2 on the environmental commission motion second motion second call roll call okay coun council president Conan yes councilman yes councilman Quinn yes and councilman Rex yes okay okay at this time if anyone wants to leave uh because they were here strictly for the pillars of middle sex Now's the Time to do it but if you guys are not ready to leave we have an excellent presentation tonight uh this is going to be given by Lenny vial no pressure Lenny that's going to be a tough to follow I think I'm going to have to resed um and well deserved my friend I know you were part of the screening um you no and Betty CL who hired me so 25 years ago so my hat goes off to um all right so we're here we finally got to Heather Lane I know uh we've been waiting a long time approximately I want to say two years to the old mayor that's sitting in the front we spent a lot of time and effort on this former mayor for I'm sorry former May sorry may see that wasn't me John I didn't have to tell you you were done and all that good stuff I mean listen I feel like we've been chasing our tail for so long here and uh my heart really went out to these residents who were really getting no answer uh I think Dave was President Kev was pres to one of our meetings with several meetings with the Corp uh if we were getting nowhere right and it just seemed no one was going to help us we put in for the resilient Grant we had a lot of funding that we were trying to get from the state that the Burl did not get any so um we took it upon ourselves thanks to your mayor council for their support and allowing the town Harris our engineer to kind of go go to town this thing so uh let's begin uh we'll do questions after as we go if you'd like but uh I got before and after so this is the whole stage of everything from the beginning right so this is what we were up against at five and six Heather Lane total loss of property from five was approximately 20 ft that was Roland's house over there which was condemned um and this is what we had to work up against site preparation uh rthur came in helped us out uh with the excavator we had to clean up the whole embankment from obviously you can tell all the erosion that had caused and it was progressing right so aside from the initial aside from the initial loss that we had um it just that last storm in October I think started taking Kemp X property and uh it was just the weather was not playing on our side we were trying to get over there every chance we had we could the site preparation mainly obviously that involved bring in all the materials as well because we didn't just wake up in the morning and say all right we're going to start so we were all ready to go we were just waiting for that open window um so This Is Us boots on the ground uh we had to clear out the whole embankment uh we raised up about two feet of uh a ledge we did about one and a half inch Stone those string lines there are obviously to make sure um I'm staying along that Ridge and then we rip WRA the side of it but you're going to see these other slides um so um here's another one where the excavator was just clearing out and this is pretty much the process that took forever right so a total of 96 bin blocks used 2x 2x six so the bin blocks are approximately 3,800 lb that's roughly two tons um it's very heavy so um these pieces are like Legos right so they intertwin together and they lock into place it's just we had to get the first layer level if you didn't get the first layer level then obviously um the rest of the wall could actually collapse so that's what really took a lot of our time so we knew that going into it it was going to take a couple days just to get that first layer but um we managed to get it over there and the other Crut we had issue we had was bringing that block to this location so you have to remember so I know there's a lot of material being used we couldn't access Heather L at all we couldn't bring anything from that side and U the closest staging area I had thanks to Greenbrook was um the old Nursery over on 22 you're looking at 200 yards away so to bring each individual we had to bring those in one by one just to get an a stream so it was a lot it definitely took a lot of of wear on us um especially getting all that material over and these are just the placements on how we're placing them you see the 2x two the 4x4s or 6x6 is on top we used those to get everything level to place it into the ground we also created what was an inverter so where you see you'll see the picture at the end um not only did we do the wall we put a diverter toward the wall even before it gets to the wall so all that hydrostatic pressure that's coming from that water from that stream is going to hit this diverter first to kind of kick it back so between Tom Harris who could not be here he did tell me he apologized Tom was on site every day too as well um that was going to alleviate some of that pressure that was going to hit that wall and create this issue once again and here is kind of the whole process here right you kind of got to you could tell by that ladder in the back that's an extension ladder right look how high it has is we had that there because we were making an attempt to go up that way but we all had waiters and had to walk across the stream every single day we couldn't climb up so the area was back filled with 3/4 clean Stone that's just clean Stone it's good for packing um the stone that was used as a base was one and A2 inch stone that got us the level and then the geogrid and the geotextile was installed in between each layer so it's kind of what I told FK cage it's pretty much a big retaining wall that intertwines that geog grid into each lay a block and goes all the way up uh here is the same thing the base was leveled half inch one and a half inch placement of block bins begins all blocks had to be leveled in plump rip wrap was placed in front of first layer if none of you know what rip wrap is it's just big Stone so the whole front layer you look at it from the front is covered in rip WRA so that's also to help secure that that bottom that bottom wall and here is kind of your placement of your first row already this is only half the half the property the approximate linear foot was 300 linear feet total across wall that was done and we were looking to we were definitely looking to do the three layers up right but I managed to uh to be able to go four on five Heather because he had his depth for his property was about 17 18 ft high and here's some more pictures of the excavator just handing it over um and US VI so we Viber plated every single layer so as we did the back fill we Viber plate we pack down from every single layer so every layer that's that's how much fill is behind that whole wall so it's not just dirt down there where you see the wall is back filled with nothing but Stone here's the guys working on the geogrid installation um this is the first level obviously going up uh overlapping it from each other um and then once we had the geogrid after the first layer the next layer came on top and you can kind of see in the back end the staging in the back where you have I have some clean Stone over there so we were like a well oiled machine over there I had guys in the loader 200 yards away bringing up the blocks I had guys bringing up material because we had to keep we couldn't leave everything on site because if we didn't have a flood we would have an issue CU all our material would be out the window so um yeah it was a it was a big group effort here's the uh geogrid installation once again you kind of see more about how it goes up to his slope right up to his foundation that's our bural engineer all the way up top um and Chris my assistant superintendent he was the main guy all the way top there's the back fill again this is the next layer as well and this is the the last layer of installation of the vegetation grid so this was a problem we had an high rate residence and she's going to be coming I'm sure to a council meeting Lucy Goose's up there you see we protected her with uh there was a goose out there all right yeah she made the cup there was a goose out there laying on her egg and uh listen I didn't I love animals and I didn't want to bother this this goose and so we set up the tires and gave her little habit p and she was okay came back day I know the neighbors appreciated that she's not even a middle I don't I don't even think she's a middle six res she's definitely not paying taxes but I had to make sure I I I set up Lucy over there uh which I hope she had her her for her five right I think I counted five in there were only three uh yeah so that I had to show that because I know the mayor stopped down this is kind of a side by side of you know what we were dealing with this is where my levels and all my string lines were going that way we were straight I had it work I couldn't bend the initially me and Tom Harris were looking to do a full curve but you can't do that with block very little play so we ended up approaching it as like two separate walls but intertwined we cemented the inside the middle of them so they are inlock together wh REM and here is kind of another picture of you kind of could see the rip wrap on the outside of it now um that's all rip wrap what you see in the front of that stream while we were in there we also scoured the stream uh we also dug up some of it removed any sandb bars and any BS that was there that it just hasn't been cleaned up by the state in forever right and that's the problem is nobody's doing anything so um there goes the rip wrap on the entire perimeter for the Pro project and this is the clean fill that was installed over the last layer of back fill so those clean fill is just obviously just to get our land back and then after that um we went with um top soil and see so we also extended the the drainage for you residents over there um Roland I know you're out here I attached your two gutters that were over there I attached them to that big cut that's going over perfect I don't want any water getting behind this wall 10 backck I did the same thing to your property so no AGA is going behind this wall because that's going to be a problem right so uh I know Chris was on top of that to make sure everything was pitched correctly but yeah this is your finished project right here um we gave him back about 20 ft he had this was all gone up to his foundation both of them I mean were that were Ken beex those are his drugs right there on the right side that was all gone so none of this was there uh two years ago um and I there's one more slide yeah here's Ken Ken Beck's property because I did a number to it k uh I'm sorry not Ken Beck R roll thank you for letting me use your property for staging too as well I hope I cleaned and power washed your bu block Al I'm sorry I was in the machine I made knock a couple things but um you guys were all very supportive over there I gotta say you guys were a blessing to deal with I know I was there you know at 7 in the morning every day and we work 15 hours days so uh yeah I do appreciate all the support from that whole neighborhood over there there's your drainage line coming out and here is your project cost right now so right now this is your project cost my man hours are not up there right my man hours are up there for how many total hours were used we'll start with the top the bin block obviously sight preparation took about 80 hours because there's an a that's over there from parsa we had to go in and shrimp some trees to be able to get our heavy equipment in there um uh rothberg excavator the tree contractor uh brosber was very good at this I mean nothing beats a very good operator which definitely assisted uh and the material staging which was the stone the rip wrap you know that took a lot people don't realize a job like this that I know everybody thinks like they couldn't believe we did it in five days every time the residents came home they were like oh my God I can't believe how much you guys did but it took 160 m hours to go get that material because I have four big dumps and I had to shoot them to the Quarry and it just took a lot of coordination between uh you know Chris and myself to kind of get this whole thing together um even the rip wrap 100 total use was 170 tons of rip wrap 310 tons of 1 and 1/2 in stone and 460 tons of 34 clean that is a lot of material so uh a lot so listen I'm not quot myself on this but that wall ain't from any so you're good that geogrid textile various tools of rear 3500 man hours during the project was 400 hours because we had eight guys on staff there um and we worked I was Loof on the ground with them from 7 in the morning to 7 8:00 at night so total man hours for the entire project start to finish with 640 hours so um and my last slide is special thanks Tom Harris Ker's engineer it started out for me and him sitting here with you residents and doing up some sort of design on an napkin I think it was and then you know me and him are going to be in engineering magazine because I mean he he's he's just amazed at how much work was done um and I couldn't have done it without my guys I mean this was not I don't want to take any credit for it it's all my guys I mean Chris every single DPW got pulled their weight whether it was the garbage truck driver finishing his route and me sending him to laquari to get four stones to to the guys on the back that came and helped me out with the little things that needed cuz we couldn't get certain things there you know so so this was a group effort on behalf of my entire department um Chris and Glenn Chris from LL uh and Glenn from rothberg Glenn was my operator best operator I've seen and uh Michael of play for all the support I would check in on him he knows I wasn't available for the week and he has been nothing but fully supportive in anything I've wanted to do with this project since he came into this right I mean he came into this of us fighting a twoyear and iate residence I think that was your first meeting of my business administrator so cut him some slack he's a good guy I kind of like him and carollyn venson I got a thank her that's my CFO she made the numbers work listen I kept tallies of all my uh of all my estimat of all my billing and the problem with the billing and even getting this material is they don't put anything about these quars on the ticket so I don't get the bill until it comes a month later so Ken made it work appropriated what we needed and obviously uh last but not least the mayor and Council for the full support because I know this has been a long time to and uh I appreciate just letting me go at this I appreciate also Mr dinino councilman longtime veteran of the uh DPW he was Boo on the ground so I got to give him that um he jumped down there with me to assist he wasn't really doing much like he was thank you so much but but other than that thank you so much thank you to the residents of Heather L and everybody for all the love support and hey L stay up we got a little something here for you just a little citation citation citation to extend my sincere congratulations and appreciation Department of Public Works through extraordinary hard work and creativity and developing planning coordinating and creating a structure State stay for further Rel lame their recogniz Michael watch TV come on guys all you DPW guys anyone's here get up there and I think the chief is going to give me something yeah that's called a ticket great thank you thank you hey guys before uh Lenny before we go away does anyone have any questions for Lenny while he's here comments or comments we'll take comments I just want to say thank youer I live over I wasn't I'm going to reiterate everything that man said exactly right they worked their asses off every time they came down there they kept it clean they kept it organized and at the end of the day they care just like everybody else just like you gave Mr Johnson his award about caring and and and giving it back that's what this means to as L residence it really does because nobody listens keep on that keep on that Army court because they're the ones that are responsible they're not off the hook yet at the end of the day Lenny and his team did an outand job anybody El our expectations the guys worked really hard they did a fabulous job thank [Music] very I have lived in Middle uh 1998 to California this this is what I call a bless something I never expected and I am overwhel and I'm blessed to have no the ex mayor mean some of the people around you have really Express that uh love for me and my family much I can say I'm over I appreciate all your all your support the ground is now bigger which is translate into higher app I just want to say the pictures are great you know we're in culture now people watch things on TV all of a sudden the project goes up Bo over um I want to acknowledge the fact this was impera dangerous for uh it may sound dramatic but these guys really did put themselves and put their lives at risk uh unfortunately it was an accident St korth not long ago a contractor I believe like been working on a St project and was buried alive in the hole just that quick uh he didn't go home and every night days these guys showed up and did the work they did was say that potentially someone could have gotten seriously hurt so I think that come well just beyond going Beyond themselves to do what had to be done with getting those materials pool and so forth they put their lives online and they got in there and work thank you you know what we do appreciate that because believe me you know I went down there a few times and I was able to say this is definitely outside of their wheelhouse they put a lot of time and effort into doing it right is you know Lenny as much as he was trying to figure it out how to get it done he was you know him and Chris you guys were training as you went you know the other guys cuz you know we try and do the right thing that's what we're trying to accomplish but number one for us was we don't want anyone to get hurt because you know 100 adab boys and one of those it it's not worth it you know and that's one of the reasons the citation there it was something outside of the ordinary they did a fabulous job I think and um you know one of the things that is coming up is that we did have a meeting subsequent to that when we found out that we weren't getting $5 million as a matter of fact we didn't get $5 and I had a meeting with Michelle masacus and um and Brian Lee and Michael was there and actually Bobby was there and it was at a it was at a republican fundraiser but we we basically let them know we're not happy and this is not over so they're planning on having uh they're trying to coordinate a meeting with us because you know it's one thing to do to to go above and beyond but this really fell on the the way I see it is on the backs of the taxpayers you know and it's the right thing to do definitely and then when people aren't ready to help you you know we're middle sex we're going to help ourselves you know and now we're going to go back after them and say Hey listen you guys did nothing for us nothing zero and I'm a little upset about that to be quite honest he asked for $5 million doar you didn't give us five bucks you couldn't even you know you didn't even pay us for the material that we went we went ahead and did it because everyone's like oh you shouldn't do it don't do this you know you're going to start a whole big problem what are we going to do let people's houses fall and that's not what we're made up here we're here to try and do the right thing and that was the right thing to do period mayor Emeritus I got to tell you you know I've been there almost every day couple times a day throughout this entire project I'm was just amazed it looks like it's such a professional job over and above the uh your workstation I mean who expected that two years ago but I got to tell you I am really upset that all these government officials that I try to get over there personally and everybody else between the governor's office uh several Senators uh de oh yeah we'll help we'll help but where the hell are they where were they so kudos to you and and the DP thank you mayor if I may my firm's in towns all over Central Jersey Lenny I've never seen a project like this done in house like this if you if you bid this it would have been 10 times more expensive Yes actually I wanted to add to that sorry my contract you know for the residents this is just you know Food For Thought I know they have gotten quotes to get that fixed and you're looking at 275,000 per resident so you're talking a little over a half a million dollars to do what we did that would have been my guess Lenny H I know I was there one day with Lenny and the guys and was it Carro however you pronounced their name was there they main guys like you guys did a fantastic job now they're doing multi-million dollar projects and he was impressed by the job so yeah I mean a lot of this just so you know just so your res Council knows I mean me and Chris have 25 years experience right I'm started here Chris too as well so we f a lot of stuff that we don't do now but U carb did help me with certain things to where what I should be doing and like tricks to the trade right and uh we wouldn't have been able to do it without Tom Harris and certain a lot of these uh options that we had to be able to do this so they were very impressed as well so thank you so much I'm glad you put the research in CU now that we have your guarantee that it's going to last longer than we are that's a good thing going all right very good Michael Michael thank you mayor um first of all Kevin thank you for noting that there was a danger consideration in this and it it shows you how incredibly dedicated our Municipal Employees are that they were putting the you know the importance of doing something like this for the public ahead of their own safety although we were taking safety very seriously I'm really glad you raised that I want to say two things that have impressed me so much just I've been here when I got here this was under discussion and we were all very concerned about it and never once did I hear from anyone in middlex and certainly from the mayor and counsel this isn't our problem we don't care it was always we've got to make this work we've got to you know protect one of our own and our community and you contrast that with the total well disappointing amount of support from other levels of government it just shows you the value and the importance of local government and I think what you have here in terms of departments like public works and other departments here and all the department heads incredible talent but also a desire to do good and to serve I'm just so proud of them um I was going to I was thinking here we're watching this amazing feat of engineering and design and and and putting this into place and I thought you know the um it was something the Army Corps wouldn't do for us we asked them to do it it's something the Army Corps probably couldn't do and uh it shows you what can be done at the Grassroots in the community so I I couldn't be more proud of the team we have here and may of the mayor and Council former and current that had the leadership and the and the willingness to take on this responsibility thank you anybody else guys uh Sheila um I just would like to say thank you to the guys uh but this is not a this is just not a one they are like that all the time I know from working here that there wasn't one time that I called DPW that I couldn't get something to I or pick up somebody or do anything they could do to make my job of future everybody else's job these guys own this town they love it head job to talking is talking about the ethics and helping and working hard for the community and if you haven't got Fone you got challeng give it and I thank God for that um I remember let first started work watch and all the other during this we are always the first time drive out that way out drive out that way me count we are always cleaned up as quickly as possible you know Bobby right y um and we have them Tok and you know you Bo you're garbage say thank you and you plowing the street say thank you off the cold drink off the C they keep us Ming they the guys that do the job all right last call anybody else at this point we're all good okay we're going to take a quick five minute break because uh we're going to get on with the rest of the the the proclamations and everything else when we come back and we'll take us all the way through so five minutes guys Lenny have a good night thanks again it's time for some Pro I got to get to one that I have to read with the big words that I don't know all right we have a few proclamations coming right now um I'm going to take the shortcut version that uh conahan told me ALS Awareness Month 2024 whereas ALS known by many as Lou Grace disease is a progressive fatal neurogenerative disease in which a person's brain loses connection with the muscles slowly taken away their ability to walk talk eat and eventually breathe and whereas every 90 90 minutes some someone is diagnosed with ALS and someone passes away from ALS and whereas on average patients diagnosed with ALS only survived two to 5 Years From the time of diagnosis and whereas ALS has no cure and whereas people who have served in the military are more likely to develop ALS and die from the disease than those with no history of military service and whereas securing access to new therapies durable medical equipment and communication Technologies is of vital importance to people living with ALS and whereas clinical trials play a pivotal role in evaluating new treatments enhancing quality of life and fostering assistive Technologies for those living with ALS and whereas we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Ice Bucket Challenge through a renewed commitment to Galvanize public awareness and support funding leading to significant investments in ALS research and whereas the ALS Association as the largest philanthropic funer of ALS research globally has committed over $154 million to support more than 550 projects across the United States and 18 other countries and whereas our commitment to accelerating the pace of Discovery remains unwavering fued by the hope that one day ALS will be a livable disease for everyone everywhere until we can cure it and whereas ALS Awareness Month increases the public awareness of people with ALS dire circumstances and acknowledges the terrible impact this disease has not only on the person but on his or her family and the community and recognizes the research being done to eradicate this disease now therefore I jack michek mayor of the burough of middlex state of New Jersey along with the middlex burough Council on behalf of the residents of middle sex to hereby claim the month of May as ALS awareness month I call upon all Americans to join in supporting ALS research advocating for increased funding and standing in solidarity with those affected by this Relentless disease uh and witness thereof I set my hand in the seal the burough of middle sex to have fix this 28th day of May 2024 okay that's that one military appreciation month milary appreci appreciation marel whereas in 1999 Senator John McCain introduced legislation designed had designate to designate the month of May as National military appreciation month and both the Senate and the House of Representatives adopted resolutions call for Americans to re to recognize on US service members during National military appreciation month and whereas National military appreciation month is celebrated every May and is and is a declaration that encourages US citizens to observe the mon as a symbol of unity and whereas these service members are true leaders in our community who imp part courage honor Valor and dignity to their fellow Americans and whereas during military appreciation month we are reminded of the essential role that the United States armed forces has played in the history and development of Nations and the world and whereas the month of May is characterized by six National observances which highlight the contributions of those who have served Loyalty Day on May 1st public service recognition week May 5th to the 11th Victory Day in Europe AKA Day on May 8th military spouse appreciation day on May 10th and Armed Forces Day on May 18th and Memorial Day on May 27th and whereas the power of middle sex deems it our responsibility this month to and throughout the year to honor support and recognize our service members and Veterans and to remember with deep gratitude those that have given their lives to defense of our freedom and therefore now I jack m ick mayor for Middle sex state of New Jersey along with middle sex Bar Council and on behalf of the residents of middle sex do hereby procam the month of May as National military appreciation month in the Bor of middle sex and encourage all citizens to recognize the service of all current former military personnel and take part in all national observ all right thank you last but not least Bobby proclamation of National Public Works week whereas the Public Works professionals focus on infrastructure facilities and services that are of vital importance to sustain to sustainable and resilient communities and to the public health high quality of life and well-being of the people of middle C barl and whereas these infrastructures facilities and services cannot be provided without the dedicated efforts of Public Works professionals who are Engineers managers and employees at all levels of government and the private sector who are responsible for rebuilding improving and protecting our national Transportation water supply water treatment and Solway systems public buildings and other structures and Facilities Central for our citizens and whereas it is in the public interest of citizens specific leaders and Children of the fal of middle sex to gain knowledge of the main knowledge of and maintain an ongoing interest and understanding of the importance of Public Works and Public Works programs in the respective communities and whereas the year 2024 marked the 64th annual National Public Works week sponsored by the American national National American Public Works Association can Canadian Public Works Association now therefore I jack molai mayor of the burough middlex state of New Jersey along with middlex burough Council and on behalf of the residents of middlex du haite designate the week May 19th through 25 1924 at National Public Works Meek I urge all citizens to join representatives of the American public works Association and government agencies in activities events and ceremonies designed to pay tribute to our Public Works professionals Engineers managers and employees and to recognize the substantial contributions they make protecting our national health safety and advancing quality of life for all thank you all right tonight we have no ordinances for introduction uh we do have some for public hearing and final adoption we have ordinance number 29-24 and ordinance vacating a portion of factory Lane I'd like to a motion to open the public motion second all in favor I I I okay anyone wishing to step forward state your name and address seeing no one come forward I like a motion close motion second all right all in favor I all right I'd like a motion to approve motion to approve second okay okay council president Conan yes Council Dino yes councilman Quinn yes and Council Rex yes okay moving on we have ordinance number 21 21-24 in norance amending chapter 367 swimming pool Municipal of the municipal code of the Bure of middle sex to clarify C Provisions thereof a motion open to public hearing motion second second all in favor I I okay anyone stepping forward okay no one stepping forward uh motion to close motion second all in favor I okay motion to approve motion to approve second okay council president Conan yes councilman toino yes councilman Quinn yes Rex yes right motion passes next one we have ordinance number 21 22-24 an ordinance to amend the code of the burre of middle section chapter 332 sewers Section 3 32-43 C sewer use charges re I like a motion to open okay public second all in favor I I I was waiting John M 39 as promised from the last meeting I was going to find out exactly about the sewer rates and how they were uh how they were related and um after three or four conversations with a spokesperson from mcua and with Tom Harris um I finally got what I think we all need to know and ordinance 2122 -24 the relationship of flow RS and quantities used for billing under subsection 332 D4 43c are based on daily flow of effent tonnage and build per quarter we get a bill every quarter chemical rates I'm sorry for the minua here but I think it's important um chemical rates needed to offset natural bi bio remediation such as bods which is biochemical oxygen demand TSS which is total suspended solids and chlorine are determined over a 5-year estimate by MC other factors that are linked to overall billing include additional expenses from mcua such as their operation maintenance infrastructure improvements any debt service charges overhead and other store related costs these costs are a portion to each participant if if I remember I think there were five towns in the mcua operation therefore total flow times the current milligrams per liter mgl for bods TSS chlorine of anticipated usage for the following year is converted to tonage of effluent for billing purposes to Middle sex burrow as a general guideline and here's the important takeaway the MCCA expects an annual price increase of between 2 and a half to 3% for rates based on estimates every year which is so that's putting it into wonderful perspective lastly it's interesting that to note that when I took office in 2020 it was my understanding that mcua had discounted the prior 3 years of unpaid sewer fees from my predecessor down to $100,000 a year if the burrow would pay the $300,000 quickly unfortunately that became my problem but we handled it expeditiously thank you and my only recommendation is I think I would like to see another inii report because as many residents if we can discharge our uh dehumidifiers into the street not going into the sanitary Source because that's what it jacks up the prices you know U some pumps going into the U the drains for the sanitary that's that's what the the cost increases are so we could be diligent enough and spread the word to uh discharge it properly I think we can save a lot of money thank you thank you John anyone else okay motion to close motion second all in favor I I motion to approve motion to approve second all right roll call please council president conahan yes councilman Dino yes councilman Quinn yes Council Rex yes okay okay last one we have ordinance number 21 23-24 an ordinance Amendment chapter 320 of of the municipal code titled registration lamort motion to open motion second second all in favor I all right anyone wishing to step up seeing no one stepping forward uh i' like motion to close motion to close second okay all in favor I okay council president Conan yes coun dinina yes coun Quinn I motion did I make the motion I have you do yeah yeah yeah okay okay council president con yes councilman Deo yes councilman Quinn yes and counil re yes okay okay be amended um no okay no just this uh this ordinance is going to have a slight Amendment coming up we're just Chang in a couple of dates to make it more in sync with the year that we're trying to to to build the rates in so we don't have any uh duplicitous um that was a John word duplicitous charges in in 2024 when they should be in 2025 okay adoption of minutes please we have approval of the April 23rd 2024 regular and executive meeting minutes motion second all in favor I okay I and then I have approval of the May 14th 2024 regular and executive Mee meeting minutes motion second all in favor I I okay next up on the list is the mayor's report um we've had a few things going on but fortunately my report for you guys is going to be relatively short let's just talk about uh Memorial day yesterday I would like to uh you know it was a little disappointing the weather did not cooperate with us especially what the weather reports that were coming we went anywhere from sunshine and blue skies to a 1inch hail and uh it did make it a little bit difficult to make a a decision uh we did have other towns that did the same thing one of the things uh I would like to just throw out there is that perhaps going forward we should consider doing this celebration on the Sunday with Monday you know with Monday as a potential rain date going forward I don't know if that's that's something that's workable but I think a lot of some towns do that it's something we we may want to consider I do think that the American Legion did a a wonderful job yesterday uh on short notice they did have the the hot dogs and the soda and all that good stuff and it was a it was a very nice ceremony but I do think that because it was abbreviated that there were a lot of of residents that didn't show up to something that I think is a very somber event and that we can't we can't emphasize enough how thankful we are for these people who made the Supreme sacrifice so that we could have the freedoms that we have you know so you would never want to shortcut that um also just a couple of things that are coming up um next within the next couple of means we're going to have a a redo of the trash can ordinance um that needs a little bit of of work we just want to be a little bit more consistent in terms of what we wrote that we're going to do versus what we really do do so it's it's nothing major for for everybody but I think we're just going to make sure that the ordinance fits what we what we are actually doing in practice um we are still going to have a tree ordinance that we talked about in a workshop we're probably going to have another workshop on this before before it actually becomes an ordinance um because we're still gathering information thank you Claire you know of what's reasonable practical and what the true intent of the ordinance is so that we can we can do it correctly ly um the only other thing I wanted to do because I I missed you when you were when you came in Claire is want how's the tree farm going doing pretty good Hades you know some of the white di that I grew and this world had fun with them so so we're coming along things are good that's all right first year right we're doing we're doing well and and thank you for your efforts there um that's all I have so next up council president conahan uh thank you mayor um congratulations again to Ed Ed Johnson I I know he left he's our third pillar um I thanked Lenny earlier I wanted to just put it on the record and and thank him and Chris and the entire team I thought the work that they did was you know just exceeded all expectations I we've all seen like retaining walls like that on 287 and the Turnpike and the 287 in the turnpike even 78 route and um ours looks just as good if not better so um they did it in week they saved a lot of homes uh it's been in the works for a while so uh his presentation was was fabulous um our next department presentation will be at the June 25th council meeting R almost a month from now by the fire department uh the history room is coming along nicely at the library our DPW are everywhere um they're helping transform room as well so um the Legacy Lawn Lawn at the library looks really really great uh thank you to all who coordinated and helped attend the Memorial Day ceremony yesterday like the mayor said um especially our our thorough organizations that participated a special thank you to the rec department and our American Legion Post they put a lot into it um Community Day is h a week and a half away June 8th 2: to 7:00 p.m. in Mountain View Park it's it's rain or shine freefor all um our Police Department hosted two community events over the last two weeks they did the coffee with the cop they did pops with the cop pops with cops uh that was a newer one both events were extremely well attended um actually they were really more jam-packed especially coffee with the cop is really really well tended um with our residents a special thank you to Jolene Sergeant Jolene Ario she coordinated both events and uh I look forward to National Night Out it's first week in August I know Joan will also coordinate that uh let's see I wanted to congratulate and welcome two new firefighters we don't get to say that often often enough Anthony Cardinal and Shawn ding they're both joining Parker Firehouse I think the training is in like September uh all of our schools will be busy on June the 20th uh hosting third grade ceremonies when they leave the elementary school we have eighth grade graduation on the 20th and we also have high school graduation on the 20th so it's it's sprinkled in throughout the entire day um and then filling in for Kevin tonight he wanted me to provide a quick summary of our municipal court report I'm going to go through that quickly and and that's it so this is for the month of April total tickets issued 566 it's a 25% increase from the month prior which is March 49 parking violations 50 57 moving violations 10 DWIs total criminal complaints 13 those are warrants and summonses seven local ordinance violations and six resoning uh total assess fines and costs were almost 40,000 bucks and the burrow is to receive almost $22,000 of that uh and there were no other news or updates with the court at this time and that didn't matter okay councilman Corin is not here councilman dinino this touch base on public works again I want to thank Lenny because uh we've had some talks about this I was out of the job with those guys they did a badul job as you all saw and heard them talk about nothing bad to say it's wonderful I mean we didn't do that I was there 363 we didn't do work like that so I commend them for that and also Memorial Day uh Jack I was there yes with you and great job the legion I have to commend them they they they had their short list then they they everything was clean as a whistle yeah that's all there public works was the main thing sure you did councilman Do's report councilman Quinn okay so I have nothing other than to say we've got to still go after the Army courp for heav Lan absolutely that meeting is going to that we're not letting them off the hook and we we went after them that night they've been going back and forth they're trying to coordinate a date and to to quote how could natural flow would be out of the school over the work but when you put these pumps in and turn them on that's no longer natural flow right you know what I mean oh yeah you know and and to go off of uh you know we did our initial report well one was that done 1984 or 1983 nothing changed in 40 years on nothing changed until it turned the pumps off yeah exactly you know all right councilman Rex no I don't mayor thank you so much all right thank you administrator's report please thank you mayor um I was very pleased to attend the Memorial Day celebration here at the municipal center and the American region yesterday despite the weather and a change of plans it was a moving and enjoyable event uh sincere thanks to everyone who planned and participated in the day events we have received 19 responses so that was as of last week so we may have more than 19 uh to the request for proposal the RFP for the Victor Crow Park and Annex master plan that is a tremendous show of interest from professional planning landscape and Engineering perks so I'm really excited about that on we all should be uh the second uh Surplus Municipal property for sale will be loot 306 lot 17 which is a parcel of land on the northwesterly corner of West persy and Madison Avenues uh before we first proceed with the sale the burrow will be resoning the site currently at Zone Municipal which means only we can do something with it and we'll be changing it to R50 one family residential which is the zoning in that aor uh Council resolutions on the agenda this evening include authorization for AB8 to provide Payroll Services to the buau for 2024 through 2027 approval to award the bid for tree removal trimming and stuff grinding to Predator tree service and authorization to execute the Joint Defense and common interest agreement on behalf of current and former members of the middle County Municipal joint Insurance Fund regarding the Bound Brook Road M 28 Street Street state beautification project we now have 28 beautiful new street lights that have been installed and public service electric and gas is now working on the wiring do lighting fixtures uh there would be no agenda Workshop session even and I believe mayor there will be there will not be an executive session tonight thank you okay anything else you good all right privilege of the floor uh please step up state your name and address John M 39 Road U couple things number one counil and Quinn brought up a wonderful point when those pumps are on you're looking at 100,000 gallons a minute ecologically how can that velocity not change the landscape how can that be outside right so thank you for bringing that up uh the Legacy Lawn gorgeous beautiful and uh I'm trying to get my family stuff in there uh to do it for next year but the ever expanding U Hallowed Ground looks marvelous so thank you Chris George and the staff and volunteers the other thing last thing I want to say about Eddie Johnson um as a public servant Ed Johnson espoused a great example of honesty integrity and Good Will these Pursuits were part of his character and for many decades his prowess and adroitness in handling burough Affairs was quite exemplary as a bural attorney congratulations Eddie for a well-deserved honor thank you all right anybody else Mr Povich nothing tonight all right anybody at this point okay motion to close second second all in favor I all right Linda take a deep breath okay we have resolution 156 2024 acceptance of standing reports resolution 157 2024 approving a block party to the residents of 300 green Avenue on June 8th 2024 resolution 158 2024 reimbursement of dog license fees in the amount of $40 for Susan Cardis due to insufficient rabes vaccinations resolution 159 2024 approval of the am of the amusement machine licenses for 2024 2025 for the B of middle sex resolution 160 2024 authorizing the tax collector to issue tax title lean redemptions through blocks 303 lot9 resolution 161 2024 authorizing ADP Inc to provide payroll services for 2024 through 2027 resolution 162 2024 salaries and compensation for certain officers and employees of the bur of mdle sex for 2024 resolution 163 2024 at the recommendation of purchasing agent awarding the bid for tree removal tree trimming and stump grinding to Predator Tree Service resolution 164 2024 authorizing the ex execution of The Joint Defense common interest agreement on behalf of current and former members of the midlex County Joint Insurance Fund okay does anyone want to pull any of these 163 163 M just okay that's fine all right could I have a motion approving all the other ones with the exception of 163 motion second okay any discussion no call the rooll please council president Conan yes councilman Dino yes Council Quinn yes Council re yes okay yes okay majority vote majority president vot not that's fine all right uh could I have a motion to approve resolution 163 motion second second all right any discussion all right let's have roll call please council president Conan yes councilman din name councilman Quinn yes and councilman Rex yes okay okay good all right uh non-consent agenda resolutions we have resolution 165 2024 pay all claims okay I have a motion second okay any discussion questions all right uh the r please council president Conan yes Council M yes Council Quinn yes and Council Rex yes all right very good we have no executive session tonight because there's been no updates on uh the items that are on there so we're up to motion for adjournment motion second uh all in favor I all right the next meeting is uh June 11th 2024 thank