e e e e e e e good evening everyone in accordance with Section Five of the open public meetings act be advised that a notice of this meeting was made by posting on the bulletin board in town hall and forwarding to the officially designated newspapers that this meeting would take place at Town Hall at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday April 16th 2024 meeting details and the draft agenda were also put posted on our Township website please stand to salute the flag roll call vote please Mr Cen here miss puus Deputy Mayor sakandi here Mr Stoler presid mayor Romano here thank you okay before we consider approval of the agenda I'd like to make a motion to revise the agenda and add resolution 24-29 titled a resolution of the township Council of the township of Milburn permitting commemorative Flags to be raised as an expression of government speech I'll second that roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor second Andy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you may have a motion to approve the agenda as revised may I have a second second all those in favor I any opposed may I have a motion to approve the April 2nd 2024 regular Township committee minutes may have a second second all those in favor I may have a motion to approve the April 2nd 2024 special Township committee minutes may I have a second second all those in favor I uh I uh Proclamation okay so we have the National Public Safety telecommunications week and today we have with us supervisor Britney Guerrero Wade Communications operator Christian suula suo CH Chulo sorry and Alexander Leon totz from the Mountain View Mountain Valley Emergency Communication Center and committee M stoer scheduled to present the proclamation okay present or testing whereas emergencies can occur at any time that require police fire or Emergency Medical Services and whereas an emergency occurs The Prompt response of law enforcement firefighters and EMS Personnel is critical to protection of life and preservation of property and whereas the safety of our police officers firefighters and emergency medic Personnel is dependent upon the quality and accuracy of information obtained from citizens who contact the Mountain Valley Emergency Communication Center and whereas Public Safety telecommunications are the first and most critical contact our citizens have with emergency services and whereas the public safety telecommunicators are the single vital link for our police officers firefighters and Emergency Medical Services by monitoring their activities By Radio providing them with information and ensuring their safety and whereas the public safety telecommunicators of the Mountain Valley Emergency communication centers have contributed substantially to the apprehension of criminals suppression of fires and treatment of patients and whereas each dispenser has exhibited compassion understanding and professionalism during the performance of their job this year now therefore be it resolved by the township Committee of the township of Milbourne New Jersey hereby proclaimed the week of April 14th through the 20th 2024 as national public safety telecommunicators week and join us in honoring the men and women whose diligence and professionalism keep our buau and citizens safe thank you so much thank you okay reports me St would you like to go first sure Recreation committee uh t-ball girls Recreation Softball Youth curric Clinic start this week uh reminder to all residents that pool memberships are due before for May 1st to get the free guest passes uh discounts are available for individuals who register for multiple memberships P golf tennis and pickle ball uh explores next board meeting is on Thursday April 18th at 6:30 in the same room uh Stafford media consultant training session is on Friday April 26 at 12:30 pm uh in person at Town Hall and the bakti barn Birthday Bash milburn's favorite yoga studios is celebrating their 14th anniversary on Sunday April 28th free classes begin at 8:30 a.m. and go through 4:30 p.m. uh vendors will be on site from noon to 4m there'll be an evening devotional concert at 6 PM uh for more information follow up on Instagram affordable housing Jared caner is going to give an overview today of where we are uh and then as a just a final report um it's with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of David Stone on the morning of Friday April 12th 2024 after battling pancreatic cancer for nearly 18 months he was a devoted husband father and grandfather cherished by his family friends and Community uh David married his high school sweetheart Nancy and they established the esteemed jewelry business Nancy and David fine jewelers uh their store is downtown Milbourne it's been there since 1998 uh they also donated a town clock that you see on the corner outside whenever you go by uh David leaves behind his beloved wife of 41 years years they were actually as I said High School sweethearts so that may the memory of David Stone forever be a blessing and may his legacy of Love passion creativeness and resiliency continue inspire all in milberg thank you uh committee M Cohen yeah I'll be brief um just wanted to say this is the last week to make donations for the annual library book sale which will be held um on Saturday and Sunday May May 4th and 5th uh Saturdays all day 8:30 to 5 and then Sunday it's 1 to 4:30 so if anybody's still looking to uh do their spring cleaning the library certainly would like to take the donations for the IDE books thank you Deputy Mayor sakandi sure uh so the environmental commission held an information session about ways to reduce the environmental impact of lawn care this month this was a great first session and residents that attended were able to engage in a robust discussion about the issue we heard from environmental Advocates about ways to phase out two cycle gas powered lawn equipment we also heard from landscapers about perceived challenges they would face as a result of the phase out this is clearly a complex issue of a lot of moving parts and the environmental commission plans on having additional sessions on the topic in the future uh in May they're going to be having a session that's geared um towards landscapers and we're going to try to get all of the landscapers that work in town uh to come and participate uh in that um so you know that date is to be determined once it's available we'll we'll put that out there publicly um Earth Day uh is there's going to be an Earth Day event on April 28th um it's going to be at Taylor Park in the bower Center uh between 12 and 3 it's open to the public and a lot of the programming is focused on uh kindergarten through fifth grade um for you know most of the activities so that's interest to you please have check it out uh the planning board uh met um earlier this month and unanimously passed a resolution finding the sh Hills Village historical district designation which is on for second read tonight to be not inconsistent with the and for those of you not familiar with this planning board phrase it basically means the planning board approved designation uh that's all I have for now thank you Mr McDonald um just a few brief reports um letting the public know that on Thursday evening April 18th we'll have a flood resiliency presentation um information can be found on the website this is at 7M via Zoom um with uh two special guest speakers uh and it will be moderated by uh fire chief robaria who is the Township's OEM coordinator um also tomorrow at noon there will be a police information session on um uh from the police department uh speaking about the ways that they are protecting residents from home burglaries and car thefts and also ways for residents to protect themselves from home burglaries and car thefts um some just uh important information uh from the Milburn PD uh in addition uh many people have noticed that uh Washington section is uh has been milled um this is the restoration done by psng for all the uh months of work that they've been going through uh we just ask people continue to be patient we do expect C within the week um uh for those roads that have been Mill a reminder to those on uh church and and ocean mechanic that the township is um performing those jobs and we'll be milling and Paving them over the summer um and uh the rest of our 2024 Road reconstruction projects will also be bit out uh late April uh early May uh for a June July start hopefully uh to uh not be impacted uh to not impact the schools uh before they let out so that's all I have thank you Mr can thank you mayor good evening everyone um so as everybody's aware or may be aware um we were in court on April 9th um on our fair share housing uh case um what was before the court were motions from fair share housing Corporation RPM the designated developer and the township all motions sought to enforce a settlement agreement um RPM and fare housing had motions to enforce certain Fort orders um and I guess I'm I'm going to try to go slow and try to explain what happened and and and the Township's position um first off I think it's clear that the township fully intends to fulfill its fair share housing obligation and I think that came through in all the papers and all the hard work that this committee as professionals have done uh throughout the process um so ultimately a lot of people are asking who won and I think I think that's a a good narrative as as to who won so R RPM and fare housing Corporation were saying that the township violated the settlement agreement materially by not meeting certain dates within the settlement agreement violated court orders that we were ordered to do certain things by certain dates um and the township had not done that the township countered by saying that the dates in the agreement for instance that December 31st 2021 was so far in the past that clearly both sides consented to an extension of those dates and we shouldn't be to those dates and ultimately the township has found N Main Street not to be a feasible site uh fair share housing Corporation and developer countered and said that the township has acted in bad faith that N Main Street is a realistic site to be built and that the court should force us to build there um ultimately the court found that the township did violate a settlement agreement because we didn't complete certain things a couple years ago in 2021 there were certain court orders in which the court found that we didn't comply with like entering into a Redevelopment agreement by December 16th last year it was hard to argue as a Township that we complied with certain dates when clearly those days have passed those actions have not taken but we talk about the outcome and what we wanted to accomplish and what the township wanted to accomplish was to find a realistic opportunity to put its affordable housing obligation and meet it and what we were asking the court as our remedy was court please give us 90 days to find the realistic alternative that's what the township asked the court to do that day and I just want to go through some of the things that fare housing Corporation asked the court to do fer housing Corporation asked the court to find the township daily until the Redevelopment agreement had been implemented and the zoning had been passed the fure housing also asked that individual council members be F fure housing Corporation asked the court that all zoning land use and development ordinances uh um be suspended until we do these activities fare housing Corporation also order asked the court to order that no development applications of any kind shall be reviewed by the township until we take care of until we enter into the Redevelopment agreement and start building on 9 M Street RPM again asked that the court order this committee to enter into an RDA to enter into a financial agreement and force the township into those agreements and force the township into Building 9 Main Street and ultimately what the court ordered was although we violated the settlement agreement that alternative sites can be looked at the court denied the remedies that RPM sought and fair share housing sought so although the court found that the township of Milburn um violated certain court orders and was not in compliance with the agreement it it went into the agreement um we were arguing and some of you had the agreement that we fell into G which is as soon as we determined that nine main street was not feasible that we as a Township could look for realistic sites what the court ordered was we were actually in Jay so we didn't we did not supply that timely so the court appointed a special Master to find to to take basically take our suggestions and find another realistic site um including N Main Street if that site is deemed realistic um as those who have found the cases the township has looked for realistic sites we were working with the special Master to meet our obligations the court was clear that those affordable units need to be in the downtown um so we need to find 75 units in downtown and we're working with that court appointed special Master to do that um but realistically although the court may have ruled ultimately finding that the township was a default of the settlement agreement certain court orders it was really a battle over relief and what relief would be sought and and how this would be remedied and what the township really wanted to do was to take control of its affordable housing obligation put those 75 units in a location and again it comes down to the obligation of the affordable housing site the the the DPW site 9 Main Street the dump site whatever you want to call it was not a feasible site it would not it was not realistic it would not you would not get 75 affordable units there in any time frame if ever what the township is looking to do is to fill it oblation in a better way find sites that are more beneficial that can create a more realistic opportunity and and get done quicker so in that in that regard the township with its goal in mind to complete its affordable housing obligation as swiftly as possible believes that although we're not saying we won but what we're saying is it's an outcome that we believe is better for the residents at the township of Milburn and better for those future residents who will fall into the affordable housing category so in that regard although we ask that we not be found to be non- complying with the orders and the settlement agreement the ultimate outcome I think to this committee and this governing body is acceptable and that is what we wanted to do we want to find realistic sites that can bring affordable housing to the township over um so that's that's basically my report matter but I'll take any questions from the committee if there are does anyone have any questions for Mr caner no thank you mayor thank you okay so um just going to remind everyone that founding day is just about a month away present Ed by the cultural engagement diversity and arts committee Ceda on Saturday May 18th from 12: to three the rain date is on Sunday the 19th at Taylor Park and Bower Center and Taylor Park's also celebrating its 100 birthday so um there's going to be live 19th century music mil will community art project art project the environment Environmental Education yard games chalk Chess music and dance this hisorical tours um Taylor Park Cleanup in the morning um some refreshments throughout the day um they are we are still looking for volunteers so if anyone would like to volunteer that day you can email M msh CED gmail.com so the event uh like I said 11 o'clock in the morning with the park cleanup with the environmental commission the the mill wheels will be on display from 12: to 3 we have 12 12 12 Community organizations that have participated um and um so please mark your calendars and we hope to see you there okay public comment when invited to speak to offer your comments please come to the Lector and clearly state your name and whether you are a Milbourne resident and or property or business owner please do not provide your full address seeing our meetings are recorded and are readily available to the public for the convenience of our community there's a remote option if you called in and would like to to comment please press star six now if you are attending by computer or electronic device please click the raise hand button and be sure your videos on when you comment all members of the public wishing to speak will be put into the queue to address the committee to help facilitate an orderly meeting and to permit all to be heard speakers shall limit their comments to one three minute session you will be prompted when there are 30 seconds remaining a reminder this is not a time for dialogue or to debate a matter and this is a time during our business meeting for the public to offer comments I will now open the public comment period hello Township committee eor vety 180 Myrtle Avenue Milburn thank you everyone for taking the time to be here with us today um I wanted to just briefly share um that I support the motion that was passed at the of the meeting about raising a flag up specifically I'd like to ask that an Israeli flag go up in front of um our town hall and that um it stay there for a considerable period of time um the reason for that is because Israel is a Ally of our nation it's um a nation that is under great stress right now given the actions of what happened on October the 7th um with the attack I just came back from a two-e trip to Israel um where I volunteered with an organization called sarell if um anyone's interested in learning more I can share more but it's an organization that helps those um in Israel affected by what just happened in my travels I met with um people of all Fates um of um the the Christian faith the Muslim faith and of course the Jewish faith I met people that are not religious I made people who love differently than the way I love and people of all different races and ethnicities from all over the world um and everyone I met with including the father whose daughter was raped at the Nova Film Festival prior to being murdered um is very supportive to our nation and that's the flag of our nation I get very happy when I see the flag of our nation go up um and I think if um if that flag could go up alongside our flag that would make many members of our town um happy and proud that we live here so um I just wanted to say that this is uh a morally significant issue for many of us in town I would be very supportive of it um and I thank you for your time and consideration um God bless America I'm Israel high thank you I guess it's my turn second my name is Jeffrey Phil I live in a poet section I am a Prem Midtown direct um Citizen and I am a proud complainer um I want to start talking about the agenda first of all about the bill list there's a question now we heard the narrative from the municipal attorney I hope that the township gets a copy of the transcript of the whole argument in the hearing and let the public decide really what happened um because the judge did find in the order that we acted in bad faith um one of the things is oversight of our professionals this goes back to maraziti Falcon I made an opah request I just don't understand you know about like some of the things I feel like we're dealing with the CIA now that there's redactions on everything that we get that there's no way really to monitor you know what is being done and the work product of our Municipal attorney um as to ology if you look at their bill list payment there's a payment for um about the rent control inventory and why are you paying for something it hasn't been shared with the public or have you received it it seems like we give money out but we don't get anything in return on your agenda there's a bid for some parking lot work what parking lot I mean I don't think that's hard that we should know which parking lot that you're fixing is it the paper mill one it's the paper mill one why are we doing work before we acquire we have not done a acquisition ordinance for that property um what's the status of 22 East Willow Street do we close how do we fund it um as to I am a supporter of Israel but the questions I have as to the walk-on resolution is not about whether I support Israel or not it's about the rule of law one I would like to know from our mpal attorney what is the emerging Health public safety issue requiring this or resolution we just told to us here before why told us on Monday two a resolution how what's the lifetime of this does this expire on December 31st of this year and that we had to adopt a policy because there's a question if you're adopting a policy a policy is done by ordinance and it seems like we've gone back in time to many people around the room to the first meeting in September 2021 no 2020 for black lives matter flag raising I wish Tara was here because she she could defend what happened what is the policy I'm not against Israel I support Israel but we have to be understand the rule of law how we do things and Mr caner you should tell me whether the open public meetings act whether this is being done properly under that and whether this is going to just expire after one year in its proper way if we're going to do this forever it's done by ordinance I'll speak later about what happened yesterday at be property man conf hi Diane Eglo Township resident I agree with the TC's decision not to close Main Street this summer the orange Jersey barriers are unsightly traffic north and south or Main Street becomes unbearable by 9:30 p.m. downtown and Main Street are empty and dark and yet Main Street remained close and shuttered for 247 for 60 days I was a volunteer for 15 years on our Town's first aid Squad until you are in the back of a rig going lights and Sirens with or without paramedics performing Advanced life saving you cannot understand how every minute counts it's harrowing the standard will not the intended beneficiary of the M stre Main Street closer closure absolutely more than doubled their capacity for what a $400 fee I was I heard perhaps they would donate all their lovely tables and Tents to the town as a thank you for their past three years of benefits all topic paper mill I was the first resident to bring the huus of the paper mill request for No Strings Attached ask of7 A5 million doll gift in the township I am pleased in essence they were forced to make what seems like concessions they will continue to pay their lease because that was the original deal with the 2008 bailout that's not a concession that's their obligation that they wanted to reneg on it's fair that the town will receive the new parking revenue from the acquired lot because now the town reimburse them for that I'm disappointed that the board had not made any other Financial concessions both director salaries are Preposterous for regional theater $350,000 each and the $40 million construction project that according to Mr stots the town will reap the benefits if that is so I have a very serious proposal I would like to propose that the paper will formally change their name to the Milbourne Theater Playhouse Milbourne is is known to be the most affluent town in New Jersey and its reputation is renowned I am told that people from India and China look up milour Township with looking to move to the states that is a fact so I believe since you believe I believe since you believe the playhouse is worthy of another multi-million dollar cash infusion it is more than fitting that the name change to the Milbourne Theater Playhouse is fitting and I'm not saying that factiously the other thing is I see that we are a tree city which I find also kind Preposterous since there are no trees in downtown milour Avenue is void of trees I think that is something that really has to be addressed other thing um when we got the speed hump on Ridgewood Road be by Ivy we were told we'd be getting a crosswalk there is that on is that slated okay great thanks everybody thank you good evening Dave Cosgrove resident um wanted to comment on uh ordinance second reading 2667-20 um and just urge that I I support that and um thank the people who worked on that for all the hard work on that and urge all of you to vote Yes on that thank you hi my name is j morale Township resident I'd like to start tonight by thanking all on the township committee for the their efforts on behalf of the community a few Kudos first the mill and pave work not only in the Washington section but in the gunwood section has started as well as per the township website very much appreciated it would be awesome if the rest of the work schedule for the spring and summer could be added to the website next to committee men Stoler for his comments regarding group think and the importance of diversity of opinion if a committee is is only made up of members that support the opinion of the committee chair what's the point of having a committee just appoint a chair and let them make all the decisions and related kudos to Mayor Romano for saying publicly that she would support a candidate selected by a majority even if it wasn't her choice and not only that but she had already done it it would be great to hear all of the committee members make that pledge not just the mayor so kudo's mayor Romano on the topic of selection to committees it was dis hunting to hear some members of the public speak against a candidate based on their professional background and I know other objections were raised but I'm specifically talking about their professional experience those that volunteer to serve seldom have professional background in the area they volunteer they have an interest they likely have spent significant time and effort learning about the topic they attend meetings asking questions they do research but generally don't have a professional background how many members of the zoning and planning boards have been professional planners or Architects how many right commission volunteers have professional sports management experience or degrees in physical education how many people on the shade treat committee hip en Foresters or arborous how many on the TC have a degree or experience in Municipal law or planning I trust TC makes decision based on many factors and I hope that professional experience is not a disqualifying Factor thank you anyone before we go online Susan Valas Melbourne resident okay so you'll know why I'm here I understand Main Street is going to remain open yearly I have to applaud this decision I am looking forward to its new location which is also used for the Milburn Street Fair I am disappointed however in the 546 people who signed a petition to close it I do believe that if they had experienced what my family had they may reconsider that a life is worth more than having fun we all want to fun I get it but not at the price of someone's life someone mentioned that a street is to go to and not through at your um I believe it was on the article tap into so it must have been uh during a meeting well a street is really a to get from point A to point B it's not for entertainment we have to get the vehicles through in an emergency the most logical place to carry the fund and entertainment is at the Town Hall Plaza not Main Street the main roadway to a hospital the businesses will do just fine like they have all winter long like they did before covid they will do fine why put someone's life at risk I do have to say thank you for keeping it open all year thank you thank you all right we're going to go online we're going to go on online just hold tight good evening hello I'm just starting my video If you give me one second thank you so much um I apologize I've got too many windows open okay I don't need to see myself hey everybody I hope you're all having a great night I'm just going to just read a little thing that I wrote um I want to start out with my by unpacking a little bit around the subject of Shame Management in politics in almost every Township meeting someone who has succumbed to the illness of toxic positivity lashes out at the many people whom I have come to see as milbourne's friends and allies against systemic corruption within our Township governance they whisper in almost every Township meeting the terrist words of shame to try to shrivel our spirit passion and drive for the truth they call us complainers whiners extremists or carens a derogatory yet popular colloquialism that conjures up the image of a white middle-aged woman with highlighted hair that leaves you in their dust leaves you in the dust with their fuss don't ever utter those words in my presence as they reflect on who on those who do I'm not saying the committee is saying these things I'm just saying it's been a lot of comments from the the public the many people who come to these meetings are very skilled indiv intellectuals that do heavy Research into the inner workings of Milbourne town ship and take the time to review the Township's intended decisions and strategies in advance to steer the ship that Milbourne is away from the rocks and into the calm seas at Sunset consider us the palace guards that protect Milbourne from the persecution of villains who give away pieces of us to developers to Essex County and Statewide political interests investors among un other unscrupulous bodies who viate the essence of Milbourne the good people they we are good people and passionate in intrinsically care deeply in our soul about the future of our Collective home Milbourne I'm proud to be surrounded by such talent and ethics emanating from each of these persons who embodies the power to stand up and speak logically without fear to do what is best for Milbourne as I continue to open my eyes I cannot help seeing a lot of negligence and political chess that continues to ur for the benefit of others who are not residents in this community the township employees and committees should not be financing any any any projects other than taxpayers and residents needs a good example is crime Frank and Ben are very focused on making our Township safe are the other people on the Das focused on this there have been three robberies in the Fairfield section recently and a creative and concerned Township resident took matters into his own hands and I commend him for it to prevent future robberies a group of close to 40 or so residents got together in the Fairfield estate section hired a security guard I'm not participating but a lot of people are to to patrol our neighborhood through only though only providing protection for the residents that have financially contributed to it it appears the annual salary for the security guard tops off at 102k so if all 100 homes approximately participated it would be about $1,000 annually for our share right now for these 40 residents it's about 2.5k annually in addition the homeowners have political Campa campaign siiz lawn signs I'm sorry your time is up thank you more seconds no I'm sorry all right I'll finish it up later thank you so muchette good evening can you hear us this Sherman can you hear us oh there she is sorry good evening um a quick question please Sarah Sherman resident um the resolution that was proposed at the beginning of the meeting which uh stated that it would permit commemorative Flags to be flown I think it would be helpful for that term to be defined um because the first Speaker during com uh public comments spoke about flying a national flag I'm not objecting I'm just asking that uh given our uh let's say history in the past here um with very controversial uh attempts to fly the black lives matter flag I know we do fly the rainbow flag um I would regard that as a commemorative flag of some kind it is flown for a uh limited period of time and I think that's a you know a part of our Township now we have a ceremony to go with it what exactly is meant by a commemorative flag thank you thank you okay whoever wanted to come back to speak right now hi Dominique erso resident um I know that in some shape or form we all experience loss but in this town I wanted to ask if we can have a moment of silence and everyone can stand and people can participate online for two prominent people in the town that passed away both Chris Palumbo and David Stone they're both amazing residents and business owners that have had a big big imprint on this town I know I've touched many people so in respect is that possible we could do that okay sure thank you when would you like to do that now would be appropriate if we all could stand sorry if that's too much to ask thanks thank you yep thank you Charles banara uh resident of Milburn Short Hills for 27 years um being met my comment our public record I just want to go on public record that once again uh speaking for many residents in town I we are appalled and object to the characterization of Milburn Township residents and the volunteers on our Township committee by RPM developers as being elitist uncaring and unwelcoming search the public records no one has ever spoke out against bringing lower income families or persons into our town ever no one has ever objected to the concept or need for fair share housing we objected to the manner in which a problematic polluted site was forced upon us and our future residents we objected to unrealistic time frames never did we object to welcoming needy people into this town into fair share housing I just want to make that on public record and I hope RPM developers is listening because I personally am appalled by your conduct thank you anyone else from the public I will now close public comment the township committee will now consider cons oh I'm sorry um Deputy Mayor would you like to comment public comment sure um so Mr Feld you've complained about the redactions and the bills it's my understanding that the legal bills the particular line items may have sensitive um descriptions in them uh perhaps Mr caner can can comment um as well but you know it's my understanding that that's why those are redacted because of its time spent on you know matters that are due to un litigation it's best not to put that out there um let's see um the status of 22 East Willow Street um hopefully Mr McDonald can provide an update on that because um I'm curious as well um see Miss Eglo um thank you for your uh comments about the main street closure uh I think a lot of us are uh delighted that we were able to find a solution uh that allows for um a number of different businesses in town to participate in you know the new street closure and the new area that we've designated is going to be a lot less disruptive um and is certainly going to be a lot safer from an emergency uh perspective so I think that was a great compromise and uh I think it's going to be a really great experience this summer um I toall Plaza um let's see here um Mr moral so um I see that you you felt the need to weigh in uh on how we do the committee appointments um you know I said this last time um and I'll say it again a municipal land use board is different from other committees in that the municipal land use boards and specifically the HPC if you actually look at the ordinance uh that says how the committee members are supposed to be picked it says that they're actually you know they would prefer to have people that had an architectural background a design background Etc you know skills relevant to the board position uh in the case of the individual um you know that came before us uh at the last meeting that individual did not have any of those backgrounds um so I think that's an important distinction to make um let's see this best um you you took issue with um those in the audience that may refer to others as complainers um I I agree I I think that residents should not refer to one another about complainers uh for residents to come and take the time to come to a meeting shows that they're concerned about something or you know they're engaged with our community and have thoughts or information that they want to share and yes um people that tend to not be in agreement with what's going on in town are potentially going to be more vocal and we we respect that and we encourage that um it's important to hear all different voices um so I really hope that members of the audience would refrain from referring to one another as complainers um perhaps you know some of the people that come up to speak that refer to themselves as complainers could set an example by not referring to themselves as complainers because I think that just gives uh other members of the audience permission to do the same um let see uh for uh Miss Sherman's question um so the commemorative flag I I agree that could use some clarification but if you look further on in the resolution um it clearly lists uh number of different types of flags um that would be flown um and so I think in this case uh it specifically lists the national flag of the state of Israel so I think that makes that pretty clear um and uh Mr Vana um I appreciate your comments and uh we too as Township committee members have found some of RPM's actions to be disrespectful um to put it nicely uh so I appreciate your comments thank you sure thank you uh off of Frank's last point there on RPM you know they put in writing calling uh Milburn sh Hill residents as inmates running the Asylum so I don't think anything could be more disgusting or demeaning than that statement so we'll leave it at that so Mr B we agree with you thank you um not a whole lot here Jay you know big thank you big believer and you know in in group things is a lot better we eliminate group think it's a lot better than having dissenting voices 100% I could not agree with you more um Miss Valas welcome thank you for everything you've done uh and uh with respect to the flag the Israel flag um you know that means a lot to to to me personally and to to the committee uh and can I say what's that yeah so so uh you know in so we'll talk about that a little bit later after the vote uh and then uh once again uh you know that's great that moment of silence for Mr Palumbo and uh for M Mr stun yeah I just want to thank everybody most of the comments for statements there weren't there weren't a lot of questions um just to be clear we have not approved that that res that's the flag is part of a resolution all we've approved so far is genuinely agenda to include it so that's coming um but I appreciate it's nice to see sometimes people coming up ra comments Thanking us for what we do it's not it's not all adversar so I enjoyed seeing that right thank you I I also just want to thank everyone for their um comments tonight positive comments uh I I also feel Town Hall Plaza is going to be successful this summer um I I know it will be um the only thing I want to add about um the last meeting with the uh HPC appointment was that I was upset that that volunteers information was made public whether it was his his credentials you know his background what he brought to the group um I thought that that was only known amongst the committee so I don't know how that information did get out there but um I just want to just remind everyone that you know there's so I don't know I'm not making any accusations or anything but that information um needs to stay within the committee believe that information was on LinkedIn so I believe that sound some I'm not accusing anyone I just made a stat I just made a statement thank you but it was it was embarrassing um you know to watch that last the last meeting um oh I'm sorry um so on 22 East Willow that closing is imminent um Mr caner can uh add some um color to that however just to answer the question of where the funding is coming from uh the township committee last year passed a ordinance uh to fund that purchase in the amount of uh 2.2 million dollar the the bond was actually for 2.5 uh in anticipation of any uh repair or minor work that might be needed to be done to the property um but the purchase price is 2.2 and that was already authorized by the township committee um we had anticipated closing on April 5th however that's been delayed slightly um just in terms of mil more trees on on murn Avenue I know uh Miss Eglo and I have had this discussion in the past as well and and certainly I think we're always open and looking for additional opportunities to plant trees but we've also planted 72 trees trees um in the uh downtown area uh sometimes these are constrained by various factors underground utilities storefronts wires above the above the tree uh things like that so not every every space is feasible um but but certainly always open to uh to explore additional opportunities for Street trees uh to Mr Mor Ali's comments about the rest of the uh road paving we will have a one pager that we've put out the last few years uh describing the road reconstruction projects for 2024 uh locations uh funding all of that uh that can be found on the Township's website not up there yet but it will be um and just to add some clarification to the resolution about uh the advertisement for bids on parking lots parking lot retaining walls um agree that it could have we could have had a little bit U more clarification on it that is for the paper mill um Lots A&B which are not the pro property that we are in the process of purchasing but it is for the um one of the projects that was described um you know in uh in in the presentations about the funding for the paper mill uh there is a retaining wall issues on Lots A&B ice ice sheeting and water uh intrusion on those lots and that is the advertisement for the that thank you mayor um as a 22 Willow closing uh it's just been slightly delayed uh we're just waiting for clearance title company we think it should close this week either probably Thursday iide to guest um as to the resolution that's on for tonight I just want to give some clarification it's not allowing the township to put the Israel flag on the poll because it's a poll and they could raise a flag without a resolution what this resolution does is as a protective resolution there was a Supreme Court case called shirli be city of Boston a cited in the resolution and it contrast of two different municipalities and the idea is we don't want our flag polls to become a public for we want to maintain control over flag polls so that any flag request by any member of the public um it Shields us from having to put every request and every flag up what we're saying is and it comes right from the Supreme Court's decision that this is decision of this committee to put this flag up so the flag pole is not a public form it's an expression of government and unfortunately there's groups out there that take advantage of certain situations and when they see Flags go up they come to municipalities and they say put my crazy flag because you put this flag up and I'm not I'm not judging anybody's flag but you can't stop them from doing that becomes a limited public form just like we can't stop what you say at the microphone the microphone is a limited public form so what this resolution does it protects the town from MB bur and allows this committee to make control of its flag call as not a non-public form it's it's a form of public speech for this committee as to Mr F's Point as to whether or not it should be a resolution or ordinance um the committee wanted to get the flag up as quickly as possible in response to what's been happening world I don't want to speak for them um so a resolution will protect us in this instance and Mr F's right I understand it's law it does have it will it will sunset um I think this committee is committed to possibly introducing an ordinance to permanently put put this in place but I just want to say this ordinance does not compel them to put flags on it just is advising everyone that these flags are being put up as um as public as as Government speech and not as a from Resident request it's just to protect the township um and the word commemorative if we want to strike it from the resolution I think it's superus but um again I think that um Deputy Mayor pointed out we list the actual flags that are that we currently permitted to put on our flags and we could always add to them so I don't I don't think it takes away from it uh consent agenda items May I have a motion to approve resolution 24122 through resolution 4 -127 which are listed on the consent agenda I have a question on that on the consent so it seemed to me that there Alex I know we talked about it but I'd like you to talk about it again front of at the meeting there seemed to be a lot of uh property tax appeals that were settling more than I've ever seen in the year and a half that I've been doing this and that seemed surp you know seemed unusual to me so I asked about that and I know you explained it to me but I it would be great if you could explain to the public why that's happened um so so the township um is consistently uh under appeal uh for property taxes and sometimes those numbers are quite High um sometimes we're able to um settle these and get them off the dock it quickly um we we have approximately um 200 uh pending tax appeals uh in the township unfortunately um this has been quite uh has become a little bit of a business um for some attorneys where they automatically file appeals sometimes people that own the homes don't even know they're filing appeals um and it is something um that needs to be further discussed and addressed um you know not only by uh the the committee but also by our tax assessor's office so I think that's something we'll be discussing in the future but if you feel like you've seen more I you know I think that we are we're pretty consistent in the number of appeals that we receive um and sometimes they take longer to get off of of the docket sometimes there are multiple multiple years multiple dockets um when it comes to the appeals but uh this has become somewhat of an automatic business um uh especially in uh in this community I'm assuming that other communities are feeling the same type of pinch do you think it's going to Spur a townwide reassessment no no um I I think that I think our I think our ratio would end up doing that um before before that that happens you know um right now I think the Township's ratio is about 83.5 so uh you can you can anticipate that um sometime in the future next year two uh maybe three uh we we'll see some sort of reevaluation based on that ratio but I don't think the appeals are spurring would spur that it would be our it would be our ratio so may I have a motion or want me to repeat it a motion to approve resolution 24122 through resolution 24 d127 which are listed on the consent agenda may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor Sandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you are there any comments from the committee in regard to resolution 24-1 128 may I have a motion to approve resolution 24-28 may have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor sakam Mandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you are there any comments from the committee in regard to resolution 24129 may have have a motion to approve resolution 24129 so move may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor sakam Mandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes okay I am going to introduce ordinance 2671 d24 for sponsor I would like to present an ordinance entitled ordinance 2671 d24 an ordinance to amend and supplement the revised General ordinances of the township of Milbourne chapter 11 tree preservation the purpose of this ordinance is to make permanent permanent changes to the Township's tree preservation code the tree preservation code including various fees and definitions has not been updated since 2015 the following revisions will reflect the increase in tree prices fees for tree removal a desire to protect trees on construction sites and establish a registration process for tree removal companies to ensure quality tree work in the Township in addition several definitions have been added to the tree preservation ordinance to further guide residents and tree companies doing tree related work or general Construction in the ordinance I move that this ordinance be taken up and passed on first reading and that the Township Clerk be authorized to have the ordinance published in accordance with the law in the item and for hearing and final passage on Tuesday May 21st 2024 may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cen yes Deputy Mayor Saka Mandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes okay ordinance 2672 d24 I would like to present an ordinance entitled ordinance 2672-20 an ordinance to amend and supplement the Revis General ordinances of the township of Milburn chapter bh4 retail food establishments the purpose of this ordinance is to make permanent a change to chapter bh4 retail food establishments to establish a reinspection fee the New Jersey state retail code njac c824 requires that the local health authority inspect every retail food establishment as often as it deems necessary in order to ensure compliance with health and safety standards of the state of New Jersey this ordinance will establish a reinspection fee of $150 a new section bh4 d211 will establish under chapter bh4 for this purpose the existing license fees for retail food establishments will remain in effect I move that this ordinance be taken up and passed on Final reading and that the Township Clerk be authorized to have the ordinance published in accordance with with law in the item and for hearing and final passage on Tuesday May 12th 2024 may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr colen yes Deputy Mayor sakandi yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes committee man Stoler you are scheduled to sponsor ordinance 2673-20 thank you I would like to present an ordinance entitled ordinance 267 3-24 temporary closure of Town Hall Plaza between Essex Street and Milburn Avenue pursuant to n j.s. a.40 col 67-69 in the township of Milburn County of ess6 New Jersey the purpose of this ordinance is is to aish a temporary street closure pursuant to njsa 467-1600 Town Hall Plaza between Milburn Avenue and essk Street for outdoor dining and permitted uses beginning July 1st 2024 and ending September 2nd 2024 as you know this is the uh street right next to town hall uh this is really the compromise the community came together and uh for programming and for uh community and bringing the families out Etc uh versus uh closing Main Street uh between uh Essex and Milburn Avenue I move that this ordinance be taken up and passed on first reading and that the Township Clerk be authorized to have the ordinance published in accordance with law and the item and for hearing and final passages on Tuesday May 21st 2024 may have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor Sandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you committee M ster you're scheduled to sponsor ordinance 2665-1 4 good I present for consideration an ordinance entitled ordinance for the purpose of committing a crime including tampering with or committing the theft or unlawful taking of a motor vehicle breaking and entering burglary and home invasion tonight is the time for the public hearing and final passage as advertise in accordance with law I declare the hearing open anyone I move that this public hearing be closed and the ordinance be adopted on Final reading and the Township Clerk be directed to publish the ordinance by title as passed on Final reading in accordance with the law may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor sakandi yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you committee and Coen you are scheduled to sponsor ordinance 2666 d24 excuse me I present for consideration the an ordinance entitled ordinance number 2666 d24 an ordinance amending the Township Code of Milburn by amending chapter 2 entitled Administration by cre creating new section 2- 49 entitled nepotism policy tonight is the time set for public hearing and final passage as advertised in accordance with LA I declare the hearing open my name is Jeffrey fil Milbourne resident in the poet section I I just basically want answers to what questions I asked when was introduced um there was a delay in adopting this best practice ordinance and at the last meeting you did make a change of like one word and the real one is two really issues is clarity as to what boards and commissions would be subject to this nepotism policy because there's a question of what is are visory committees excluded or is it just listed to all the committees or boards that you have to file an Ethics disclosure statement I think if we are upfront saying what boards we think are appi applicable to this this would help people and also I think the The public's entitled to know who's been grandfathered by this ordinance because we delayed adopting best practices should been done like last year um who is there any person on the board or commissions or employees that are grandfathered by this uh new F thank you anyone on um I just the I'm sorry did you want to do you want to answer or yeah I just wanted to answer the the easy one I'll leave the harder one to you the U the word change was just that was incorrect it was a before that should have been an after so that was just you know it made no sense The Way It Was Written originally it was just uh a miswording of of of the word so that did not that did not change the meaning as for whose grandfather I know that I leave to you if that's something we have to discl we need to disclose I mean if you're asking me I don't you don't have to disclose that and I think that the ordinance is clear on its face you like to add anything Mr okay okay Comm okay I move that the public hearing be closed and the ordinance be adopted on Final reading and that the Township Clerk be directed to publish the ordinance by title as passed on Final reading in accordance with law May second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor Sak Mandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romana yes thank you Deputy Mayor you are scheduled to sponsor ordinance 2667-20 I present for consideration an ordinance entitled ordinance number 2667 24 ordinance designating the Short Hills Village historic district as a historic district pursuant to the historic preservation ordinance of the township of melbour tonight is the time set for public hearing and final passage as advertised in accordance with law I declare the hearing open mayor for the record uh we received um re see some comments um today from 85 willin Road LLC I see their attorney uh in the audience I had a conversation with him so I just wanted to not for the record that the objection uh to the ordinance uh was accepted it's being reviewed and I'm going to put a call his to the attorney thank you anyone from the public anyone online okay I move that this public hearing be closed and that the ordinance be adopted on Final reading and that the Township Clerk be directed to publish the ordinance by title as passed on Final reading in accordance with law may have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor Sandy yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes committee and Cohen you are scheduled to sponsor ordinance 2668-20 I present for consideration an ordinance entitled ordinance number 2668-20 an ordinance to amend and supplement to revised General ordinances of the township of milberg chapter five boards committees and commissions statement of purpose purpose of this ordinance is reestablishing the shade tree Advisory Board and estab and establish the appointment of members by resolution and simple majority vote of the township committee the township further wishes to establish the general functions of the shade tree Advisory board for reference to Future members of the board tonight is the time set for public hearing and final passage is advertised in accordance with law I declare the hearing open I move that this public hearing be closed and the ordinance be adopted on Final reading and that the Township Clerk be directed to publish the ordinance by title as passed on Final reading in accordance with law may I have a second second roll call vote Please Mr Cohen yes Deputy Mayor sakandi yes Mr Stoler affirmative mayor Romano yes thank you okay we have we don't have any old business um new business zoning definitions would you you like to yeah um just by brief introduction um we have a few ordinance uh zoning ordinance definitions uh that need to be addressed um and we have Mark liner from topology here tonight to describe this to the township Committee in the hopes that uh there will be consensus to move forward with these zoning definition changes uh at the next Township committee meeting for introduction good evening committee members for those who don't know me who I haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet my name is Mark liner I work with Philip apron sing Grand pedo with apology as a town T planner um as um McDonald mentioned uh the ordinance is limited to only a handful of definitions whether they're amendments or new definitions to address some priority items that have been sticking points for the boards um and as well for the township as a whole um these Fallen generally into three groups um some residential uh bulk standards including uh adding a definition to basement amending uh the definition of Flor area ratio residential as well as uh including definitions for a story or amending the existing definition for a story and adding a definition for a half story uh these are all some interrelated to each other uh with some having greater priority than others uh the two uh or three most important ones in this case being the floor area ratio residential definition this speaks to uh massing intensity of one two family homes in the township and the existing definition is outdated in relation to uh ordinances that have been passed previously specifically it's limited to contemplation of only the first and second floors of homes uh so for example we now have uh permission for a half story two and a half stories maximum in the residential districts so any half story would not be permitted we also don't Define half story yet which is where those two definitions come into play um in addition the story Amendment uh explicitly excludes basements uh from consideration towards the F which is why in turn basement is defined uh then the second group of definitions pertaining to garages um both the residential kind whether attached or detached um those being called private garages as well as uh non-residential parking like surface lots and uh parking these are not currently defined by the code even though they're used uh throughout in various regulations whether they're permitted uses or requiring all homes to have a garage and what we've been hearing from the Zoning Board in particular is uh cases where someone provides a token garage uh that whether by Design or uh scale cannot feasibly accommodate an actual vehicle and meet the int of the ordinance so the intern uh that is stipulated within the the garage private definition included in this ordinance to one Define what a garage is both by providing accommodation for that parking space as well as ensuring there is sufficient clearance to access uh that parking uh Associated definitions for detach and attached garages as well as structured parking and surface parking and lastly uh amending the existing definition for public use this is intended to better capture um modern public activities what they be on or off uh land owned by the township to facilitate the town's ongoing operations under uh the township development regulations and zoning ordinance thank you does anyone from the committee have any questions I just wanted to say I confirmed with Deputy Mayor sakam just did surface at the our new uh or newly expanded zoning code review subcommittee which is our process now so and it does have to apply so it's important that we follow that process that anyone else have any comments I have a comment you know seems like a basement a story a half story uh garage would pretty much be solidified here in 2024 wir is in terms of the definition are is it being changed or redefined for a certain reason or I'm just trying to understand the Genesis of the why we're redefining these Concepts mhm um I touched on a few of these and I'll try and summarize them in the groups that I discussed them in regarding the garages um you know these things can be evident on face until someone finds the loophole or tries to play with a definition um so and generally speaking it's the best practice when we don't have something defined in the code but it's an operative term whether that's as a permitted use or in some kind of Regulation it just leaves the potential for unintended consequences and removes agency from the township um and as well particularly with the garage situation I described the particular need in that case and then the broader side definitions are just for a comprehensive incorporation of garage definitions um can you give me an example of an unintended consequence so for example um regarding the surface parking lot definition for example I mean for a garage sure U well that the prior example that I gave regarding an undersized garage you know you you put on a door but the clearance is too low or the walls are too tight or you um lay it out such a way where you can't get a car into that garage safely or physically so for a home that built 150 years ago like mine that has a very low garage can I build a bigger one under that definition to become a garage or I'm just try to follow so any existing condition is protected as an existing either conforming or non-conforming condition so no one is obligated to have to go and remodel the garage to make sure it meets some kind of Modern Standard uh I do note that the the private definition only speaks in two Dimensions about clearance to the side and the front and the back of a vehicle it doesn't provide for a minimum clearance for a garage um but yeah uh the intent is not to encumber existing homeowners and their garages um okay so this is looking forward yes okay but I think the point there you build AO if you build a pseudo garage you do that to get more on the on your actual property right like in terms of the mass and the the size of building that you're building so you're required to build a garage but you only build a shed but because there's no clear definition I just find it hard to believe we don't have a definition of a garage no you'd be surprised you know some of these things have been on the books for a while and you know as um you know Matt find it out um people have found loopholes so in this particular instance what was happening is you would have people come building houses and shrinking the garages so that they could maximize their interior space they Shrunk the garages so much that you couldn't really fit a modern car inside and you know that can be problematic going forward especially if that neighborhood is one that requires there to be a garage if you build a non-functional garage then that's going to force someone to park outside and not be able to use it you know properly as a garage so it's important as these loopholes come up um and as these um these problems are found within the existing codes that we rectifi and you know what's happening is people are having to go before the Zoning Board of adjustment etc etc so you know codifying these things helps um you know prevent people from having to necessarily but in a perfect world don't we want to go away from Cars we want Walkers we want bikers we want environmentally friendly homes you know I wouldn't do nothing like nothing more than get rid of my cars be able to walk and bike everywhere so you know how does that fit in find that ironic considering you just got a new vehicle um you could have got a bicycle instead or electric best bu but um no I look I I think if the zoning requires you to have a garage that's intended for to be able to house a modern vehicle you'd be doing a disservice to the neighborhood and the potential property values um in the future if said garage could not accommodate a modern car I also think some of those definitions are lacking because everybody says oh we know what a garage is we don't have to Define it until somebody stretches that definition exactly in a in a you know in a way to get something else that they want so this helps yeah I'd be interested in seeing what the actual definitions are so we have a consensus to move forward yeah yes okay thank you so much thank you okay public comment this public comment period is to allow for final comments from the community when invited to offer your comments please come to the leor clearly state your name and whether you are a Milburn resident and or property owner or business owner please do not provide your full address seeing our meetings are recorded and are readily available to the public a reminder that in order to help facilitate an orderly meeting and to permit permitt all to be heard speakers shall limit their comments to one three minute session would anyone like to speak hi debie Frank Township resident um just wanted to say as an aside um every year I get two or three letters in the mail to your point asking me um from attorneys offering me their services to file tax appeals which I must say I've never taken them up on but still I do get it so I'm sure if I'm getting them a lot of other people are getting them um what I wanted to just kind of mentioned was the issue of Street trees I know that just as someone who you who you know would go down I still miss those big gorgeous trees that used to line Rector Street I mean old shade trees they were beautiful um but in terms of Milbourne Avenue I would think that there's also aside from the wires and things like that there's Al also a challenge with the amount of Paving because it doesn't necessarily accommodate the spread of roots they can't grow really underneath the paving which means that they are much more liable to be blown over in a storm and do a tremendous amount of damage um so I my guess is that in terms of Street trees and heavily paved areas you're kind of limited as to what trees you can put in and you always need to be cognizant of the fact that you are doing the trees and the people and the businesses no no good if you are planting trees that will be vulnerable to storms which we're getting more of thank you I'm Jeffrey Feld and M resident first I want to thank Christine and her staff and and how they respond to Oprah they give us the documents when they receive them and I hopefully you can investigate whether we could put a link of the recording meetings on the agenda Center so like next to the minutes um you could be able to link the recorded meetings the reason I say that an issue Rose regarding a planning board hearing where I gave sworn testimony and comments and I'm admitt it from the minutes the minutes do not reflect that I spoke and three other people who were sworn in um or referenced in those minutes is that a coincidence I don't know um see like that um I think we should have a little disclosure about there was a case management conference yesterday at be properties um even though Mr caner is the attorney of record uh trial attorney he did not appear there were certain statements that were made representations that were made to the court one that the it's the decision of this the township committee who's the defendant of that case to litigate and not mediate this matter and I don't know if that's really the position of the current um Township committee but that was said to the judge um it was kind of outrageous that the associate said it took three months to obtain the file since the substitution Council because they were substituted councel in mid January and they said you just received the file um the judge made some comments one he's well aware of Judge Santo maro's decision and the press releases that came out about the community and because I brought him up to speed about certain Decisions by various judges um state decision about bring the boundaries in of the Main Street application and he start of said Mr pH when we if we do go to trial this is the road map to get that information into the court and that's usually a strange thing in a case management conference where the judge is giving me advice as to the procedural road map but I think the public is entitled to know if it's really the policy and the position of this new calendar year 2024 um committee because you're I guess replace the defendant that you want to litigate and not mediate and even though judge in April 2021 so Essex County super presiding judge judge Moore recom highly recommended that you mediate not litigate this statutory excuse thank you J Mor Al resident first Kudos on the selection of Town Hall Plaza as an alternative site for the street closure um like others Dave Cosgrove and and Diane Eglo um I think this is a great solution uh you've got restaurants like saigan Cafe and lastrada that don't need to cross Essex from Milburn hopefully they'll participate in there um if there is concern about safety um I know we got a flashing crosswalk on Milburn Avenue if we need to pull one on S6 fine um all in all I think this is a great solution uh that continues the outdoor dining experience started during covid and eliminates any hindrance to Emergency Services to motorists and reduces neighborhood cut through traffic so kudos for that and I'm not even sure who came up with the idea but Kudos it's it's a great solution um I'd like to go back to my point um uh and and just reiterate um the statement I made uh and I and I said I hope that the TC does not disqualify anyone because of their professional experience I did not say they should not take it into account I did not say there may be cases where it would be preferable there was a resident who after listing an a volunteer's professional background said that they were unqualified and my point is you should not disqualify people now Deputy Mayor sakami you seem to be indicating that you thought maybe they should be disqualified because some required a preference but that is not what I said my point was simple do not disqualify People based on their professional experience thank you thank you I have a really bad voice I'm sorry Jean past um I'd like to express my condolences to the amilies of the Palumbo and stone uh and I also like to um remind people that Jesse Lou also passed recently he was an exemplary Town volunteer he sat on the board of education for a number of years and he had other significant volunteer positions so I hope can include him in our thoughts and prayers I really like Diane's suggestion about considering renaming the paper mill or at least considering it um I'd also like to ask Alex about the Memorial Day Parade Insurance um does every organization have to get a policy which ran about $700 it puts a burden on volunteer organizations and I understand there may be liability but it is a burden so um the other thing I wanted to ask about was um the bare properties hearing I also listened and I wonder why it's the policy of the town to litigate this issue of a municipal statutory interpretation I think mediation makes total sense it seems wasteful uh public spending to get into a trial and a legal battle with neighbors I hope that the town will meet with the parties and try to find a compromise through mediation and I want to comment I do disagree with Jay and the mayor's characterization of the discussion and public comments um at the last meeting about the HBC appointment it sounded a little bit like an attempt to embarrass us and chill our speech we're sincere residents we have legitimate honest concerns both the chair and the TC leaon expressed their needs and there was only the intention by all to ensure this critical land use committee got an appropriately experienced member appointed we should desire this for all our committees this kind of vetting has been somewhat absent it seems for far too long political appointees seem to be the name of the game and I think it's changing and I'm glad to see that I applaud Frank's adherence to his campaign promise to ensure committees and Boards seek to have as members the most experienced and appropriate appropriately qualified volunteer members thank you thank you hi again diano um I didn't say this in the first I didn't have time but I zoomed into the last TC meeting and realized many people may not have the agenda in front of them as they zoom in and we did not and actually some of the audience may not have it and a quick moment to read the item would add you the transparent and clearer understanding of what you were voting on just hearing a resolution or item number number or a batch of number provides little or no context thank you mayor you responded to me you said it wasn't done that way but actually mayor bur and me we did read what the resolutions were even it's just saying tax appeals um like I'm not clear what this flag policy is so you held up like a two-page document but I have no idea what that is and you know obviously I'm very pro Israel our daughter lived there for five years I've been there several times but now will a pro Palestinian flag will somebody come up and want to raise that I don't know I think I was part of the Hill BLM flag movement and it was very divisive it was got very angry and I remember saying at the time we need a policy so if this is the policy I think before you voted on it you should have showed it to the public I have no idea what it is I would like to know before you passed it but you've passed it already um I Alex you know I've heard every reason why not to plant trees on milour Avenue Milbourne Avenue is a cement Street and there you look at chadam and Madison I'm in New York City they have trees everywhere they have a lot of cement um I just think you know you go down Milbourne Avenue it's not attractive the whole way from town hall all the way up to Oscars oh all up to footnotes there's no trees so we call ourselves a tree City the neighborhoods are beautiful my family plants trees constantly on our property um other thing is thank you Jean I hope we can get a little movement going on changing paper Mill's name since we keep investing millions in dollars on their behalf and it should be the Milbourne Regional public Playhouse or theater but I believe as they keep asking for millions and saying what benefit Milburn is getting milburn's got the benefit well we should have the naming rights and maybe when um mayor and Alex Goes to the next board meeting which are not open to the public I haven't heard one um report do you go to the board meetings mayor I don't no I thought the mayor was allowed to go now well yeah but I I work during a day and I'm on seven committees I don't go to that I haven't gone yet but well it would be nice to hear a report what goes on at that board meeting before they come and ask for another like multiple million dollar infusion of cash thank you like where is their Capital fund Drive how's that going looking for $40 million and I'm not anti- paper bill it's not about that it's about the ask if I may weigh in on the paper mill Playhouse naming I think the paper mill Playhouse name is known far and wide nationally perhaps internationally I think it would be a mistake to move away from the term paper mill perhaps put Milburn in front of it and call it the Milburn paper mill playhouse but I don't think renaming it from something that is recognized so widely uh would be a wise decision I'm sorry to disent with some of the others but I think and thanks again and uh commit M Cohen you said it was unusual to hear so many accolades I think they deserve it I think you all deserve accolades and thanks for the job you're doing so again thank you thank you uh Richie cyber the Milbourne resident I I just want to say that I think it's a beautiful opportunity to put that Israeli flag on the flag pole Israel is very important to the United States to a lot of people that live in this town people in the world I think it's a great statement I think a lot of other towns will follow thank you thank you anyone else before we yeah Antonio vodka toship president first and foremost thank you for all the work you guys did on Town Hall Plaza um you guys know that was near and dear for me and I app appreciate the fact that you guys conceded and came up with a solution other than that um I had a little bit of a brain hiccup before on one of the um what you sponsored about the uh burglary and protection um I guess my question is my family comes first and maybe this is even a better question for the gentleman in the corner uh as a legal firearms holding resident which is safely tucked away is there a boundary is there a boundary to protecting yourself to what could possibly happen okay um next week thank you thank you anyone else before we go to the video anyone online Christine b getting back online um I'm going to interrupt my regularly scheduled program about the police presence and by the way I love the police in town a lot they're awesome I want to talk about the group think issue and the directed comments that were indirectly directed at me tonight miss Rano I was not embarrassed by my choice to attempt to get on a committee I've actually tried to get on a lot of committees and I've written resumes and letters never got an interview as an HR Manager I am sure I'm sorry I know you're an executive so I apologize as an HR executive I'm sure you're aware of what LinkedIn is and it is a public resume site I scard is LinkedIn site that's it and you're allowed to do that as most people do implying that a member of the TC committee gave me information that's already on LinkedIn is a deflection I have every right to point out someone's lack of skills for a committee another examp sample of political shaming committee members are drivers of our Township strategy they count lot while the gentleman is a lovely person and I quite like his personality and he speaks beautifully he did have preferential treatment and he was obviously tipped off to bring in-person references to meeting no one told me I could bring an in-person references to a meeting and that no one in the committee told me that just letting you know you also know that you should hire as an HR executive and select on Merit not other check the box issues or for shifting political needs that are desired of the township that is not to say someone without experience as J Mari Al pointed out cannot be on a committee clearly there's lots of that and I'm sure if there was a committee that I wasn't experienced on but I had passion this man has no passion for this committee he wants to dismantle it it's very very obv VI and he has no skills so I pointed that out and I find it a little strange honestly it really comes across as something that doesn't look legit that's how I feel if I offended somebody I greatly apologize but I'm here to tell the truth and do what's best for milman Township now getting back to the police officers I don't have much time I just wanted to point out how do we give $7 million to Papermill Playhouse for their bathroom Renovations and other things are supposedly safety issue and we don't have we have 2.5 policemen on duty at night we need 18 cops actually 18 and you know and I'm like so if we gave them 125 and I don't know what they make so maybe they make more I'm just estimating it's like what a million eight didn't we spend like8 to10 million dolls on the complete streets Fiasco and now we're talking about redirecting traffic again I mean can we just have a safe town I mean can you imagine when word gets that you actually thank you I'm sorry your time's up thank you Patrol on your own so thank you so much and thank you good evening hi good evening Perry erso how are you tonight good um I just like to kind of um Echo what Diane egler was saying I apologize it's do not work right now um I think she mentioned something about the item so I'd like to bring this current TC um up to something that I spoke about probably in 2021 when I first got involved in 2020 um that I came to the real uh understanding that the township actually get paid franchise fees in the sum of I haven't I don't know what the recent number is and perhaps you could tell me but somewhere over $300,000 and part of that contract with the franchise fees is that we're given a a channel local access Channel and I'm wondering if that's something that you would like to uh give light to and bring back to life that would be wonderful um also I'm sorry as a representative of be properties I was also on that the representative of attorney saboni that I guess was uh he didn't s uh let every the audience know or the judge know his actual position but was he actually filling for attorney caner and um he publicly stated and during that conference that the township of Milbourne his clients which I'm which is the township of Milbourne is not interested in a mediation I've heard that with a prior Township committee publicly stated by at the time he was not a deputy mayor but committeeman vignac says we will litigate to to the end because we can so I'm not sure if that's the feeling of this current TC but my attorney has multiple times tried to you know get in a room and let's talk about this I mean we're very approachable and I just don't understand that why we can't come to some type of and get in a room and have a conversation so thank you and I would appreciate um maybe a raise of hands of which TC members choose to uh litigate and not mediate thank you so much have a nice evening thank you yes Sarah Sherman resident um I want to thank Mr caner for clarifying for me that the flag poll uh will not become a public forum but is an expression of uh government so I'm going to agree with him that um perhaps the term commemorative is uh Superfluous even though it is in there and I have to say I'll I'm I'm going to agree with former mayor Eglo that um just having a number for a resolution for someone and I do read all the agendas is not very helpful it would really have helped if uh someone had read the re resolution I'm certainly in support of it and in support of raising the flag of Israel but um it just sort of was added at the very beginning no one knew what it was and then all of a sudden it was voted on so I would have liked to know so please consider in the future if you're adding something like that that you uh be a little more explicit in advance thank you thank you Mr we're done right there yes okay so I will close public comment Mr can would you like to respond I just respond quickly on the be properties litigation um it's been my legal opinion that the committee not address pending and act of litigation and giv to litigation strategy and whether or not uh mediation is appropriate or not something discussed the committee uh en closed if we like but I will say for the record that um there is uh under uh New Jersey Law there is mandatory um mediation there is a mediation scheduled it's two hours free to the litigant and that is being scheduled so there will be a mediation in the matter thank you would anyone else like to offer any comments to yeah so to that point and I know what Jared just said but uh you know as a TC member I'm always about mediation versus litigation I'll put that right out there and and it's my understanding that there is a mediation scheduled for two-hour event correct it can go longer but the mediator donates two hours of this time okay but that is on the calendar to happen yes very good um and then um you know Mr phelp for the procedural road map that the judge is asking a lay out I please you know lay out the the the uh the information Highway for the judge uh if they've requested it as as requested that's that's a great benefit to everyone uh J morale U uh and Antonio braa um I'm going to defer to our attorney about gun gun safety rules but Jay throws a fantastic gun safety uh uh seminar and uh and and puts on the was it the orange that hopefully you can come to town again and put on you know for guns in the home obviously stowed away but in a safe locked uh Etc always always best practice and uh he has a fantastic job so hopefully Jak will bring that back to the township committee sometime uh soon um terms of the paper mill playoffs I been you know uh that's put to bed uh I think it's being somewhat mischaracterized it's not a giveaway um it's an investment in the future of Milburn uh we're getting a direct local impact of $3.8 million per year uh which is about 375 patrons dining in msh prior to an event by the way I saw gun and powder this weekend it was fantastic uh it will be on Broadway soon believe you me uh just a fantastic show also in terms of the paper mill you know we ended up putting in $7 million investing in the paper mill 3.8 million a seven you know $7 million $5.8 million 30-year bond in return we're getting you know we had a $1.8 million property we're getting uh for you know for the next 30 Years $3.8 million direct impact on uh on our town spending Etc we're getting entire $36 million of Capital Improvements on a Nine Acre property that we own outright we own the building outright we own the all of the contiguous land underneath it outright Etc uh so let's not mischaracterize it as a giveaway it is an investment in our town and culturally and educationally as well uh for for this uh for this town um what else do I have here R Richie cyber thank you on the Israeli flag for the support uh eagor as well uh we will be raising the flag at the end of the meeting tonight we after the meeting's adjourned we're going to go outside and raise the flag of Israel uh so I hopefully if you're here you can stick around and participate and uh and let's wish to Nick's luck in the playoffs I see you have your Nick sh off so all right thank you committee com deputy mayor uh I do have a comment so from Mr morali we certainly don't disqualify People based on their professional experience my reasons for wanting to disqualify the individual uh for the HBC uh last week was because that individual had taken a public position against historic preservation and in my opinion that would be like pointing a climate denier to the environmental commission it just it doesn't seem like the appropriate thing to do uh and that's why I stood firmly against it so I just wanted to make that clear uh since it's come up a number of times um Mr uh as you've heard um sounds like there's going to be a mediation scheduled so based on that I would say you know the the town is mediating um so I'll leave it at that um let's see um Mr braa um I don't know that it would be appropriate for uh the township committee to weigh in on the legal complications of using a firearm uh for self-defense um I know that in New Jersey it's quite complicated I think there's a duty to retreat even though we do have a castle doctrine um so I would suggest that you perhaps um seek professional counsel uh to get an answer to that question um because I think it is an important question and I think that people in town should know what they are aren't allowed to do I just don't know if this committee is the appropriate body to um make uh you know give legal advice um see um Miss aklo um you know I I think the reason that we refer to the ordinances by number is it would take quite a while to go through and read out the title of each ordinance especially when we have you know a list of resolutions we do make the agendas uh available on the front desk uh so anyone that comes comes to the meeting uh can pick it up if people are attending online uh we have the agendas posted online uh so people can follow along you know I do get what you're saying um but I find myself I you know I have to follow along and look uh and then I know what the item is um you know if there's consensus to to read it out we can explore that but uh I think that you know some of these are are pretty long in their description just the title the title yeah I mean some of these some of these titles are like um so um I do appreciate your comments about the paper mill um you know this is an area where Mr Stoler and I disagree um I do think that the um millions that were given to the paper mill are more of a giveaway I think the paper mill could certainly have raised the additional $7 million they needed from their donors um they have some fantastic donors and they've been able to raise a lot of capital in the past and I think in light of the fact that our town bailed them out in 2008 and that the lease payments that were set up then were supposed to help fund that bailout by then giving them you know this bonus uh set of of money um you know it's it's really the town getting into the theater business and I don't know that the town has any business getting into the theater business and I also think that there was a misrepresentation you know everyone talked about how it's important to support the paper mill and you know they made it sound like we'll lose all of the economic activity that it generates if we don't give them the money well the the thing is they're not increasing capacity in their seating right so um as a result of that they're not going to be bringing in more revenues it's not like there's going to be more uh business going to the town I don't think they were going to go anywhere uh considering that they had you know quite a bit of time left on their lease um so I think there were other options so I thank you for bringing that up and I thank you for remaining um a a reliable voice of opposition um when you see misuse of public funds anything else thank you Mr McDonald just one comment uh Miss P Pastor neck I responded to your email regarding insurance may have a motion to adjourn so second good night thank you