okay here we go good evening I'd like to call to order the December 5th 2023 Oldbridge Township council meeting please rise remain standing for pledge of allegiance for our prayer and for a moment of silence I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible liberty and justice for all as customary in this chamber we stand for a moment to remember those who are protecting our freedoms both here and abroad for our First Responders for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice and this evening please pray for peace all over the world a moment of silence please our prayer Mr pisti dear Lord bless thy servants in the ministry of public affairs who who serve thee in this chamber give us quiet minds and hearts that we may hear your voice help us to know when to speak when to be silent give us the strength to uphold right and oppose the wrong and Grant that we have a good conscience and at Soul at peace with thee and with one another a amen amen please be seated roll call council person dearo here council person dama here council person Desai here council person Garcia here council person Dr Greenberg belly here let the record reflect that council person Murphy is absent council person pasky here Council vice president Walker here council president soar here and Mr Murphy councilman Murphy did call me just before and let me know he will not be here this evening this meeting has been held in conformance with the open public meeting act notice has been given to the official newspapers of the Town Township on January 6 2023 and has been posted in public places next open public meeting of the count Township Council will be held on Tuesday December 19th 2023 at 7:30 p.m. thank you very much everyone welcome to the meeting and we will begin with presentation of Awards in recognition of police officers good evening mayor thank you council president good evening everyone thank you for joining us tonight uh a special night where we're going to recognize some police officers for their actions over the past previous months I would ask acting Chief Don Fritz to please join me our first officer will be receiving the public service award I would ask detective Jessica Caffrey to please come forward on January 5th 2023 while working a road job detective Jessica Caffrey provided medical attention to an employee for the traffic plan company the employee sustained a serious injury to his arm at the job site prior to the arrival of the first aid detective Caffrey applied direct pressure as well as a tourniquet to his arm to prevent further loss of blood the individual was transported to Robert Wood Johnson Hospital where he underwent surgery for a damaged blood vessel detective Caffrey's prick response in treating the injury alleviated the possibility for a more serious outcome it is my pleasure to present detective Jessica Caffrey with the Department's police service award [Applause] congratulations our next award is a police Commendation award I would ask police officer Jeffrey carabin to step forward and police officer Robert jenss you didn't get the uniform memo on May 5th 2023 officers Jeffrey carabin and Robert jenss responded to a call inside a food establishment on 516 regarding a male individual carrying a concealed weapon the officers entered the restaurant and quickly identified the individual removed the weapon from his possession handcuffed him and led him out of the establishment without incident to the 15 employees and 30 patrons that were in the restaurant at that time following the incident it was discovered that the weapon was stolen from North Carolina and contained prohibited armor piercing rounds I am proud to present officer Jeffrey carabin and police officer Robert jenss with the Department's police Commendation award thank you [Applause] gentlemen our next award is the meritorious service award I would ask police officer Michael bchi and police officer Thomas Rothman to please come forward on June 5th 2023 officers Michael bchi and Thomas Rutman responded to a call for a father son dispute when they arrived at the scene they were advised that the son was in possession of a knife and threatening suicide the individual admitted he wanted to die and was screaming erratically and banging on the window the officer's demeanor remain calm and they were able to maintain an open dialogue with the individual after approximately 40 minutes the officers along with the assistance of a family member were able to convince the individual to exit the house and be transported for treatment it is my pleasure to present officer Michael bchi and officer Thomas wuthman for the Department's motorious service award thank you guys than our next award is another Mator service award I would ask detective Sergeant Robert melusi detective Phillip Bel belgio detective Daniel Greco detective Jake Canelo police officer Dominic Bolan and police officer dougas rhods to please come forward on December 9th 2022 detective Sergeant Robert ausi detectives Philip belgio Daniel Greco and Jake Canelo and police officers Dominic Bolan and Douglas rhods responded to a call for a suicidal male who might be in possession of a handgun through their observation of the individual it was determined that he was highly intoxicated and having a mental health episode during their conversations with the individual it became apparent that this could turn into a hostage type situation when he refused to leave his residence and would not allow his wife to leave either after approximately three hours of negotiating in 20° temperatures a highly volatile situation was resolved without any injuries so I am pleased to present these officers with a Department's motorious Service Awards thank [Applause] you for ladies and gentlemen as I read those uh letters commendations and record that would truly transpire to realize what these young men and women do do to protect us at all times so please give them another round of [Applause] applause next sign board ready Matt thank you thank you if everyone looked to the TV screens when I am speaking tonight we're paying recognition for a project that went around town communication boards a communication board board is a large symbol-based communication method for children and adults of all ages who require different forms of communication the boards are gaining popularity all over the country and are all in all environments and serve the entire Community they promote Independence Foster socialization and provide inclusion for all the communication board was donated by SEPTA were beautifully framed by the oage high school wood shop students under the direction of Mr Andrew borello and Mrs Nancy kland the communication boards were placed at the following location by Eagle Scouts under the direction of Kevin Kevin Gallagher our scout master for troop 129 the following Eagle Scouts will get their Eagle badge through SEPTA communication board project at Higgins field it was Thomas Fulton at G Park sha Barnett at mamino Park Xavier medali and Veterans Park Ethan Smith as you can see this was a Township wide effort by many groups so I would like to invite up the following in attendance tonight to be recognized for the great Community project representing SEPTA our president Diane Michael Diane please step [Applause] forward vice president Kim ventola treasur of Colleen is Colleen here Colleen is not here but Colleen KH played of crucial role and secretary push Carr is also not here but let's give them a round of Applause they started this and got it done [Applause] amazing stay here stay here stay here it's going to be a while uh representing o High School wood shop class are teachers Andrew borell over you here [Applause] and Nancy [Applause] coglin representing the Boy Scouts or scout master Kevin Gallagher please step [Applause] forward and the eagle scout Thomas fton [Applause] you let's give these people a big round of applause and our other Scouts that are in this [Applause] room thank you everyone thank you go get [Music] them okay well thank you everyone that was really wonderful Oldbridge is is just an amazing place to be part of so I want to thank everyone we will start to be going into the body of the meeting so if you wish to stay you're more than welcome to and if not we will not feel put out if you decide to call it an evening so thank you very much for I okay all right next will be our bill list Mrs Walker accounts payable December 5th 2023 12,860 74029 payroll November 23rd 2023 1,151 4675 payroll overtime November 22nd 2023 29,000 $ 52429 and that concludes the bill list Mrs Shapiro can we have a breakdown please of the overtime thank you council president um as councilwoman Walker indicated overtime for pay period November 24 2023 was $29524 29 uh sworn police overtime in the amount of $1 14,738 770 deduct grants in the amount of $411 20 deduct etto in the amount of 8,456 for a total of $ 5,871 representing 70.5 hours for men and women that worked um injured on duty and or light duty was one officer and just so council is aware um there was a slight uptick due to elections during that period the elections okay thank you very much Mrs Shapiro do I have a motion move it second a move by Dr Greenberg belly second by Mr pasky roll call council person dearo yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg B yes council person pasky yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes motion carries okay next will be public hearing second reading ordinances H1 ordinance implementing the provisions of the title 39 New Jersey motor vehicle statutes subtitle one with various traffic regulations applicable to The Oaks one development schulmeister Road and Aster Circle regulating the use of said roadways does anyone have any questions okay it's open now to the public anyone wish to be heard on H1 seeing no hands I will close the public portion and go to roll call please council person dearo yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person Pas gidy yes yes nobody made a motion did you take a motion oh I didn't do oh my goodness all right I need a motion I'll move it okay move by Dr Greenberg Mr dep second it and that roll call starting again council person de Caro again yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person pasidi yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes eight yeses thank you okay next is discussion ordinance amending Oldbridge Township Code chapter 108 of the code of the township of Oldbridge entitled construction codes uniform specifically 108-446 good evening council tonight I have uh two ordinances actually for discussion and most of it is actually housekeeping um the first one is U chapter 108 section 4 which pertains to uh building department fees and the Amendments that you see in front of you are actually already a part of the UCC uh our code should have been updated but we have not updated our code since 2017 and um none of this is different it's already there in the UCC code I just want to incorporate it now because for example electric charging or electric vehicles wasn't a thing uh until recently but now we need to add it because when uh people come in for permits electric permits uh they always ask where is it written in the code we follow the UCC guidelines we charge them based on UC C but it's not in our code so I want to ensure that we include all those uh updates with the rates uh in our code as well the other thing that we didn't have or rather we had an S1 and S2 Group which pertains to warehouses we already had it in our code and it was fixed at 7 cents per cubic foot uh until now we didn't have as many warehousing projects but when now with the Redevelopment plans that we have written we are constructing them it came to our attention that we are charging uh a higher rate than what UCC recommends UCC recommends uh between 2 cents and 4 cents I did look at other towns that have similar uses and they all charge like for example Edison charges 2.25 cents Monroe charges 2.4 Jackson charges 3.5 so everybody has it between 2 cents and 4 cents we are at 7 cents the only Town two towns that have it at 7 cents is serville and Oldbridge I don't know who copied whose rate but but it just doesn't make sense when everybody else in the state has it based on UCC so we're just making it competitive the other regulations uh related to S1 and S2 theyve always been part of UCC code so the way permitting fees are calculated even if the warehouse is like 65 ft the the fees are calculated they are capped at 20 ft when calculating the volume and the fees Associated uh it was always in the court when we did um Kennedy International because that was one of the warehouses that we did in the past we did calculate it the right way it was just not in our code so it's a housekeeping matter I'm just trying to fix and update the code but those are the changes anyone have any questions for V and Council I think we have a responsibility to update make sure our codes are accurate and in compliance that want to developer D it is in writing and as venina finds things I said the charging station New but we have to put it in writing and who knows what's coming down the line um but so this is going to be constantly a living document where we have to stay up with the times in order to maintain credibility that makes sense I think also Mr Mayor one of the other concerns we had with um especially use groups S1 and S2 there there should be a correlation between the fees charged and the work being done um and so uh there was a concern legitimate concern that that wasn't the case um that correlation did not exist so in that instance when that happens that opens the towns uh the township up for being well you would Tim you know the challenge the feeds being associated with because you can't you're not supposed to be um making a profit on these types of situations so again I think the changes that were recommended by uh the construction code official and the planner uh are consistent with what the Vina had said the uniform construction code and what would be appropriate giving um you know when you look at surrounding communities as well thank you anyone no no questions then I would ask consideration to put this up for first reading can I get a motion second okay move by by Dr Greenberg Bell second by Mr jaama roll call council person darara yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person pidy yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes so eight yeses public hearing set for December 19 2023 okay thank you thank you Council you're welcome okay next discussion ordinance amending Oldbridge Township Code chapter 250-1414 B entitled subdivision 250-1414 entitled waiver of fees thank you chairwoman um the this ordinance is fees related to The Land Development ordinance or the development applications that come in I'll go with the easy one first section o which is waiver of fees um we have currently uh the ordinance allows the council to wave uh application fees pertaining to obmua or nonprofit organization such as the Oldbridge Fire Commission but it's specific and it only exempts the Fire Commission it does not take into consideration other nonprofit organ organizations uh I would like to recommend that we add that any nonprofit organization that is operated with volunteers be exempt and the council has the ability to wave fees because recently I came across a request by Oldbridge softball girls team uh they wanted to change the lights uh at the um grounds and that triggers a variance and requires review by the planning board when I calculated the fees the fees turn out to be $5,000 it is much more than what it would cost them um and we we're not asking for waivers on the professional review fees or the escros this is just the application fee so that the council has the ability to wave such fees so that's the change that is recommended the other one and this has been somewhat on my radar for the longest time uh ever since I took over planning department is amended site plan or subdivision fees many of times it happens that a developer or an application has to come back for minor changes on the site in our fee schedule there is no category for amended site plan or amended subdivision plan there is a category for amended General development plan but not for smaller applications sometimes it is quite uh it's astonishing that uh they have they're coming back in 6 months they've already paid a high fee and then they come back and they have to pay the entire fee because there is nothing in the ordinance that allows it uh in the past the towns I've worked with they usually have a cap 25% of the original fees 30% of the original fees I'm recommending that as the administrative officer I have the ability to reduce the fees when deemed necessary to 25% or lower and uh the maximum would be 50,000 the reason I have that 50,000 is some of our sites are huge and the fees are calculated based on the lot area and the square footage of the building if the area of the lot is large the fees are exorbitant some of the recent ones I have charged 250,000 200,000 in just application fees and when the developer goes to an outside consultant like DP and DP requires some changes they come back I am a little I feel awkward asking for another 200,000 or 250 because my professional review time or other professionals review time is covered by escrow this is just the application fee so I would want to request the council to uh change the ordinance to give me the ability to reduce the fees to 25% again Council Common Sense we want to help our our nonprofit volunteer organizations if they want to do improvements on their facil facilities giving it some flexibility and again with the with the larger projects if they have just a simple change to make not it doesn't make any sense to have to pay that fee again a full total fee so again just a common sense approach to sense Bill anyone have any questions I just want to say I appreciate you going through and and trying to do what what you can to help the residents especially the nonprofits because you know they're just trying to do you know they don't make a lot they don't make any money you know they only make what they can you know to support themselves so thank you for doing that I think that's a great idea yeah it really is a good initiative thank you okay so if no one has a question then I would ask for a motion move it second okay moved up by Dr Greenberg Mrs Walker second roll call council person de Carol yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person pas gidy thank you via yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes and thank you eight s's uh public hearing set for December 19th 2023 yep we really do appreciate thank you mayor okay next is ordinance of the township of Oldbridge oh I'm sorry go ahe this one gets referred back to the planning this one gets referred back to the planning board we have a meeting coming up on 14th so we should be ready for this all right thank you so much yeah no thank you all right so then they'll let us know on the 15th what happens okay all right okay next is ordinance of the township of Oldbridge amending chapter 5 administration of government Article 13 Department of police the code of the township of Oldbridge entitled Department of police by amending section 5-1 04 promotion to Sergeant and section 5 of sorry 5105 promotion to Lieutenant good evening good evening good evening Council joining me as acting Chief Don Fritz uh we come before you tonight for discussion item um it's pretty self-explanatory changing the promotion process to Sergeant and also including the testing for the next rank of Lieutenant we believe this is important to move the Department forward in the in the coming years if not decades um Don can go into some detail how long this has been in place and for the reasons we want to change it why we want to change it and how we're going to change it I don't know if you had a chance to review it uh I believe again it's common sense when it comes to Promotions within the police department good evening Council um our current promotional process has been in play for well over 30 years um I believe it's initial the initial running of this ordinance was to correct wrongs from decades ago um it has since turned into its own little its own little monster when you uh when you hire candidates to become police officers there's a selection process when we promote to Sergeant there's a selection process when we promote to Captain there's a selection process and chief there's a selection process but there's no selection process for the rank of Lieutenant um this the the current sergeants we have are excellent sergeants um but we have had history in the past where some sergeants weren't so good and unfortunately they just hang around long enough and they could promoted to Lieutenant just by occupying space so we came up with a uh a promotional ordinance um similar quite similar to The Selection process promotion to Sergeant for the lieutenants if you have any questions if you had an opportunity to review it and you have a specific question it might be easier okay now maybe go to some details about there'll be a test involved so uh I will I'm sorry all right so similar to the uh Sergeant test there'll be a written written examination um by the chiefs of Police Association state of New Jersey there'll be an oral examination same thing by the chiefs of police from the state of New Jersey and then finally there'll be a a local uh interview board um with the mayor the chief of police um and some other select individuals uh we raised the minimum score to pass from 70 to 80 um raising the bar just a little bit and other things will be taken into account uh disciplinary record if any training will all have uh points performance evaluations not this time around um but the next Cycle Performance evaluations will be calculated they'll come up with a numeric value and they'll be factored in as well and so uh we believe a more fair scoring and a Level Playing Field as the process as you go through the process where does this not one item that SS or balances the scales all the way to one side where somebody doesn't have a chance um to discourse sucessfully so right um again for 30 years did the the current ordinances weigh heavy on seniority if you had an opportunity to look at it um and in the past it happen uh almost every test where you have an individual who scores very well very very well through all three phases and then the end senority gets factored and and they go from the top of the list down to the bottom of the list um that's inherently wrong should not be based solely on seniority um seniority has a place we have not removed it um we just made it more fair so yeah I'm sorry so was was there a specific compelling factor that you that you are coming up with this now I mean is there is there specific problem with the current Sergeants that that you feel that you need to put this in place now currently or you know what what was the compelling factor for this it was time like I explained um we have had in the past we've had um uh Sergeant maybe not do their job as well they could have or should have and all they have to do is hang around long enough and they get promoted to Lieutenant and the problem doesn't go away MH uh like I said before the the sergeants we have now are all excellent sergeants has nothing do with any of them individually it's just time how many sergeants do we currently have that are 17 17 and when do they so they've all taken the Sergeant's exam at different times obviously right or that's correct yeah so um let's say there's a sergeant that maybe took this Sergeant's exam five years ago right is that no three years three three years that's right I did read that goes back I did read that three years so say three years ago and they're waiting you know they're on the list now all of a sudden they're like they could maybe be the next one to be promoted and now it's that's gone for that person that list expires when it done March yes so any promotion done before that time would be uh using the existing list this is when this list expires the new testing will go so so the the S the 17 sergeants that are on this list now right I'm trying to understand what you're saying the 17 there's a list now that has names right those would be entitled to the promotion to the rank of Sergeant now that list is expiring 2024 in 2024 do they have to retake their Sergeant ex would have to retake it anyway in three years there'd be a new test in place regardless okay um and have you how do the have you spoken to the current sergeants now the 17 have you gotten feedback from them you know good bad proon how they feel about this I have spoken to them yes I I approached the uh SOA uhuh U the sergeants and it was a hard no they don't want to have to take a test and I understand that right it's human nature no one will I understand that the Sergeant's exam is very grueling very very stressful very difficult as it should be right right right right um do do officers do they have to take continuing education credits to same know like in my profession um you have to take in order to keep your yourself current you have to take like continuing education and whatever to keep yourself current we consider it training Don if you wantate training is tremendous it's mandatory okay training it I'm just trying to think like if they've gone through the Sergeant's exam but I so they have to take the sergeant again exam again in three years every three years they have to take a Sergeant's exam even if they're already a sergeant you wouldn't take Serge Sergeant this is what I'm asking so you're not making a clear I don't think huh this is patrolman wanting to reach the rank of Sergeant right there's two there are two lists there's a there's a uh Sergeant eligibility list that exists and then is there is there a sergeant list for eligibility for lieutenants that exists yes right now under the current ordinance under the current ordinance at seniority as the sergeant sub seniority of Sergeant is the order which you make lieutenant and those are the 177 officers that's correct right so I I thought you said before that in three it expires in three years and then they have to take another test we were talking about the Sergeant's test no no no no I was asking you about the lieutenant they would have to take a lieutenant test a sergeant who wants to be a lieutenant they don't have to take the test a sergeant who wants to move up to the rank of Lieutenant would now be required under the new ordinance to take a test okay and they were not required was there any kind of interview process before or is it just like oh hey there's an opening you're next in line you have it yes yes if there's an opening they were next in line okay yes regardless of the performance of that officer I I feel like you know if someone took the Sergeant's test and they they went through all of that you know because what I was reading here is that um you know the you know knowledge of police whatever all the criterias that are on the test right knowledge of things I feel like they it's it was the same criteria as to be used for the sergeant so they already took that test about with their police knowledge and things of that nature now is this test what's going to be different about this T you know what I mean like I think the role of Lieutenant is much different than the role of a sergeant especially in today's policing so it makes sense that that Sergeant needs to test for requirements of a lieutenant and it has changed and Don you can elaborate on how policing has changed and the role the lieutenant plays within Oldbridge as opposed to the role of Sergeant pleas Lieutenant is not on the road he's now considered Administration he's running an entire Squad whereas a sergeant might be going to be responsible for a few men he's on the road um but the lieutenant at the end of the day is the officer in charge of the entire town when he is Lieutenant behind the glass during his assignment so there's a big difference in responsibilities all right um I'm just not sure how I feel about this so but thank you I don't know I don't have any other questions thank you it's never a bad thing when people test never anyone else on my left Mr dama so what is how does this look as compared to the other towns surrounding us sville Monroe East Brunswick what are their what do they do for their Superior officers for promotion oh you can my God you can run uh any combination um Sera would be civil service those rules kind of a little B yeah so I mean the non- civil service right okay so non- Civil Service towns a lot of towns have tests for promotion some towns usually smaller ones do not um the uh the head law enforcement officer would pick for promotion with no testing no no criteria um which is probably a lot of reasons why we got away from that again three and a half four decades ago and started actually having a test because back then we didn't so we didn't have a test 30 some odd years ago for S yeah back then the chief would just pick um and everybody would be u in an acting position indefinitely for years and that's never a good practice no I mean I I I don't agree with having acting forever right that's not uh that's not the way to one build morale or build a a strong Department I'm just trying to understand and um like where did all of all of the thought process that went into this right so it looks like some of it is um the seniority is being cut like it's being weighted differently and things like that I'm just trying to understand that there is like a model that we've looked at or multiple models that we've looked at throughout the state or even throughout our County that factored us into landing on what we landed on well what we did here is again senor already weighed heavily um if you factored out the way the uh Sergeant's test worked to get promoted to Sergeant you took a written you took an oral test and then you had a local interview and then those three scores would be averaged together so each part of the testing your your job knowledge would only count for a third of your final score and at the end your seniority would be added full value so seniority had three times the weight is in the other portion of the test which like I stated before it would actually flip that list you'll have people who have job knowledge lots of training and then they go from the top to the bottom of the list so you're saying of a uh 100 Point test 33 points are knowledge based 77 points are based on seniority that's how it is now is that what you're saying no what I'm saying is you take a written test yeah you got a 70-year better to go on to the next phase so you have a numerical score say it's 100 just for ease of numbers you go to achieve police interview it's another test it's an oral test same thing you can score up to 100 points so now you you have you have 100 in the first phase 100 in the second phase you go to a local interview you leave that interview and you did exceptionally well you have another 100 average together it's it's 100 that's your final score 100 and then your seniority gets added to the top so if you're here 20 years now I have 120 that's your final score but each portion only carried onethird the weight of the other two portions for job knowledge for testing the written only really had a third of the weight the chiefs of police or had a third to weight the local or had a third to weight but the seniority had full weight full weight and all we're doing now is we're not removing seniority senority has its place it's important but it's not the deciding factor it's not the overwhelming Factor when it comes promotion to the next rank okay I mean it's a lot here I mean this ordinance came out at least I started looking at it early this morning so I I have a lot of questions that I'm going to have to go through so you know based off of what happens here I'm love to meet with you the township attorney the mayor um talk through this and understand it absolutely I wouldn't be here unless I didn't believe in this in fact I wanted to bring it to this council's attention much sooner so this needs to take place if you want to maintain a credible Police Department in a town this size needs to happen with within a short amount of time I would like to meet with all of you but at the same time you know should we move this to Second reading I also would like to round table with some of the officers as well just to kind of understand to get their thoughts and feedback it's really not the process of the council to to do that councilman dep Palama you should not be interacting with the police officers that's not your role as a councilman not you want to talk to the chief fine not the officers and that goes for the entire Council you have questions you ask me you ask Donnie okay I I'll have the questions but I mean if some of them are residents I can meet with them right so you do that or Union Representatives right Mr decide did are you I'm no no I'm I'm good Mr decide did you have okay and how about now on my right start Mr and I'll work I have a I'm sorry good did you want to go first no go ahead um well thank you for looking at it I guess you know uh it's worth looking at um each level uh in the police department like I heard the sergeant test is very difficult right is there a test before that other than the hiring process no so um So currently uh a sergeant uh would would get to the level of Lieutenant um with no testing it's just like longevity and then the next step is Captain that's correct okay is there a testing process there there's no test but there's a selection process okay so it's not by seniority okay so um how about from Captain to Chief there's a process in the ordinance for that Pro there there is a process in place is there a testing no testing no So currently there's only testing for a sergeant and now we want to add the lieutenant what about the next level to Captain and the next level to Chief that would be up to the councel I mean if we're doing it there why not doing it for all the levels well that's up to council take a little bite at the Apple this yeah this is this is the critical step this is the critical step to go from Sergeant to Lieutenant because of the role the lieutenant plays within this department this is critical and as Don said that there is a selection process from Lieutenant to Captain it's not based on the next guy in line makes a recommendation three and then the mayor gets to decide who those captains are same thing with the chief there's a process that you go through to name a chief so there's a process in place there is no process in place for lieutenant the next guy in line gets it automatically okay thank you and as we've done so much things to improve the department we've raised the educational requirements to get on the department it just makes sense to keep going and as you said maybe in the future continue up the chain of command yes thank you I am familiar with the with the process as I you know you guys know I was a cop I didn't do well in testing but I was a cop my concern is I wouldn't want to be that Sergeant that's sitting number one for a promotion to Lieutenant my question is how many Sergeant do they make average a year every two years is there is there such a number uh no it has to do with attrition um as openings come available we we we go off the list for sergeant and as a opening for lieutenant would be the next Sergeant on the list so there's a good chance those 17 sergeants that have been waiting there's a good chance them 10 of them won't get made Sergeant or they they may retire by then of course it's so it's hard to say pretty much that that chance exists but it also exists now I mean nothing says there's going to be an opening for lieutenant anytime soon well my my my thought is this testing process if you rank them number one to 17 the guy who's number 17 may have a better chance at getting Sergeant by taking a test as opposed to a waiting his turn let's say that's my thought on the other hand I wouldn't want to be number one or number two or number three and all of a sudden my chance is gone that's that's my only issue Mr Garcia I've been on both ends of that Spectrum exactly what you talked about so I understand where you're coming from so Mike my my thought is how soon are we going to do this can we at least get I don't maybe at least the top three sergeants made when needed of course and then maybe get into the testing I don't know I just don't think I wouldn't want to be I wouldn't want to be a sergeant in waiting all of a sudden the rules change at Point at some point in the process you're going there's going to be somebody um not happy no no I understand but that should bring out the best in everyone that take the test no I no I got you one through 17 if all 17 sergeants wanted to take the lieutenant test that should bring out the best in all 17 have to offer and then the the person who's not waiting in line but the person who's more qualified for the position will then get it no I totally get that point I just I I I keep dwelling on the part I wouldn't want to be let's say a top five guys all of a sudden the rules have changed now I got to take you know and now I'm now I'm waiting even longer depending on how I I score on the test or you're waiting even less if you're number five you could be number one no I get that so that's that's that's my only issue with that so so we don't know what time frame we're talking about six months nine months to to for what for taking a test uh early 24 yeah early 24 yeah as I said the existing list expires so we're going to need a test prior to that expiration so that the next group of individual ual getting promoted will be in place I got you okay that's all I got thank you thank you this Walker and I don't either so at this point I will ask the the council if they would entertain moving this up for first reading and that'll give you enough time to have asked your questions and two weeks and I do encourage everyone if you have a question please I you know I mean it's important this is a big decision so if you have anything that you you know wish to look into by all means just one more thing you keep saying it's going to expire but the sergeants are still the sergeants they're still on the list so you keep saying it's going to expire and you're no the patrol men are on the list for Sergeants wait wait there Patrol I'm talking about going up from Sergeant to Lieutenant is really what's being changed here so that list is not expiring we don't have a list you have a list for Sergeants sure you do you have 17 sergeants if you want to call it a list it's well there is a list of names of 17 sergeants right and as soon as that was given then there'd be a new group whether it be the same one through 17 maybe it's two one three four five so the ones that took their so is there any way is there any way to say okay we want parent L this has been in place for 30 years and it's it's not working um according to you guys um but is there any way for the current sergeants that are there now to have the same have what what they thought when they when they uh achieved Sergeant status and they thought they were going to be on the list is there any way to just kind of when you when you do this uh this ordinance change have it be for the people that are taking the Sergeant's exam now and moving forward like not including those 17 that would be decades it's just counterproductive if you're talking about some type of grandfathering for the sergeant sat are there now by the time you got through that it would be we wouldn't be here so for the past 30 years you just don't think that it's been working you think that there are people over the past 30 years you think there are I don't believe it's working I wouldn't be here if I thought it was working so so what you're saying right now is the 17 sergeants that are there you don't you don't believe the next jump to lieen should be a test that's what I believe in there should be a test for lieutenant regardless of the individuals that are at Sergeant right now okay thank you anyone else I don't want to no everybody else is good okay so then as I said before um I'd like consideration to move it up to First reading is there an ability to do that this evening I need a motion good I'll move it okay and I need a second second okay so we have a motion in a second and we'll go to roll call and this is for first reading only council person dearo no council person dep I just have one question before vote um should this go to Second reading Mark how much of this can be amended based off the conversations that we have over the next two weeks I mean the question becomes if there if they amendments to the ordinance does it sub would those amendments substant change what the ordinance is trying to accomplish uh and then if and I wouldn't know that until I changes are right and then if it's so so substantial that it changes it then it almost becomes a new or then you know you would have to adopt amendments and then uh you wouldn't be able to adopt it on second reading you'd have to have um and because for at the end of the year it has to be adopted within this year because you can't carry over ordinances from one year to the other a different um governing body correct you you right everything everything everything dies uh as of 1231 I'm going to vote Yes but um just because I think that conversations need to happen and if it makes sense for everybody involved then we'll have that discussion at the next meeting council person Desai yes council person Garcia I'm going to abstain to this point so I have more knowledge and more information on what's going on I'm still still confused over it okay council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes for first reading council person Pas skidy yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes like I said anyone who has any questions from the council please make sure that you reach out in these two weeks so you can make an informed decision and something you're comfortable with so that was six yeses a public hearing set for December 19th 2023 okay thank you thank you Council okay thank you thank you acting Chief God bless somebody okay ordinances for first reading fr1 ordinance of the township of Oldbridge vacating a portion of Township right of way not needed for public use and authorizing sale of the same do I have a motion move it do I have a second second okay move by councilman dep second by Dr Greenberg V roll call council person dearo yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person Pas gidy yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes eight yeses public hearing and second reading set for December 19 2023 F fr2 ordinance amending Oldbridge Township Code chapter 10 section 10-25 of the township code regarding speed limits speed limits on schulmeister road and Aster Circle move it second okay mooved by Dr Greenberg Bell second by Mr petti roll call council person dearo yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person petti yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes that's eight yeses public hearing set for December 19th 2023 fr3 ordinance amending chapter 10 traffic section 10-1 19.7 B of the code of the township of Oldbridge do I have a motion move it second move by Dr Greenberg belli second by Mr pitty roll call council person de Caro yes council person dama yes council person yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg B yes council person pasky yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes eight yeses public hearing set for December 19th 2023 next will be our consent agenda I'll ask for a motion in a second and then I'll bring it out for separations move it second move by Mr jaama second by Mrs Walker now we'll go for separations council person de Caro any items for separation none thank you council person dama no thank you council person Desai no council person Garcia none thank you council person Dr Greenberg Bell no thank you council person P giddy no separations thank you Council vice president Walker No thank you and council president soar no thank you okay so roll call vote for the entire consent agenda council person de Caro yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person Pas gidy yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes eight yeses report of the Township Clerk I have no report council president report of the township attorney nothing report Madam president and administrative report Mrs Shapiro thank you council president um this is the administrative report dated December 5th 2023 I have six items for you tonight beginning with item number one fiscal year 2024 njdot local Freight impact fund Grant application the township has prepared an application to the New Jersey Department of Transportation for their 2024 local Freight impact fund program to fund construction of the Jake Brown Road South connector Jake Brown Road South connector will provide improvements to 3,250 linear feet of roadway and connect White Oak Lade extend to Oldbridge mwan Road middx County Route 516 a resolution approving the sub submission of this application in the amount of 3,521 120115 is on tonight's consent agenda item number two Park and Recreation winter program registration the Park and Recreation winter program guide is now available to view online registration begins on Tuesday December 19th at 6m some of the programs offering include ice skating lessons Ceramics karate cardio kickboxing yoga Robotics and coding classes for more information please visit www.ge.com Recreation or call the recreation office at 732 721-5600 extension 4999 item number three anchor program deadline is approaching the anchor program provides property tax relief to New Jersey residents who own rent property in New Jersey as their principal resident and meet certain income limits the current filing season for the anchor benefit is based on 2020 residency income and age the filing deadline is Friday December 29th 2023 most homeowners can file online or by phone with an identification number and pin renters might may file online and do not need ID and pin for more information visit nj.gov treasury SL taxation SL anchor item number four Bond anticipation notes sale on Thursday November 30th 2023 the Department of Finance received four bids for the sale of $6.1 million of bond anticipation notes scheduled to mature on September 13 2024 the winning bid from Piper Sandler and company has a net increase cost of 3.85 95% OR7 $7 5,972 the net interest cost range from 3.85 95% to 5.5% item number five fall leaf collection fall leaf collection continues this week in Wards four five and six Public Works will begin the final rounds of collection and all Wards on Monday December 11th please make sure your paper leaf bags are at the curb this Sunday night and kept outside all week rain or shine if your leaves are not picked up by December 18th please email public works oldb bridge.com or call extension 6140 item number six mayor Henry's 2023 clean team team recap mayor Henry's clean team would like to thank our great volunteers from 2023 we welcomed over 65 nonprofit groups to the cleanup program this year together they cleaned up over 2100 bags of garbage and bulk items from our roads beaches and Parks we would also like to extend a huge thank you to our auxiliary police officers and Public Works staff the program could not with run without them and that um council president concludes the administrative report thank you very much Mrs Shapiro does anyone have a question or a comment okay then I'll ask for a motion to accept second okay moved by Dr Greenberg belli second by Mr deama roll call council person dearo yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes council person pasky yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes yeses next will be public comment on any subject matter for a maximum period of 3 minutes the public comment portion of our meeting is to allow the public to bring to the council's attention their concerns or comments this section is open for any topic or items in the consent agenda in accordance with njsa 10 go 4-2a and the Oldbridge rules of council the council asked the public to Lim their comments to three minutes or less only one member the public shall approach to speak to council at a time the council respect the Public's Time by refraining from any comment until the speaker has finished with their alloted time it should be further noted that the public comment portion of our meeting is not structured as a question and answer session a member of the public has questions they seek answers to an appointment can be made with the corresponding Department's office during regular business hours the Township Clerk will regulate the time during the comment portion of our meeting thank you very much is there anyone in the public who wishes to come up this evening and be heard okay gentlemen good evening just your name please Michael krinski good evening council president council members mayor my name is Michael krinski I'm currently the vice president of PBA local 127a which represents the supervisors within I don't mean to be disrespect sounds like it's on are are you a police officer I am yes take it off we just want make sure no problem so I'm currently the vice president of PBA local 127a which represents the supervisors within the Oldbridge Police Department I want to start off by saying thank you for honoring our fine men and women of the police department for the awards given out earlier tonight it was wonderful that our outstanding officers are recognized for their actions protecting the citizens vbridge um normally Awards like this are only recognized during Police Week in May so it's nice to see things uh you know in December around the holidays um that being said um I stand to you in front of you today to discuss the proposed ordinance change to the administrative code of the Oldbridge Police Department spe specifically the change discussed earlier involving promotions I'm sure I'm not sure if most of you are from Amil with the current process and it seems like you weren't due uh to earlier questions you had um but I'll give you a brief oversight I've been a member of the police department for 20 plus years I myself have taken three promotional exams testing process is a vigorous and timec consuming process that every candidate takes part in everyone who has taken a promotional exam knows what a toll it takes on both the candidate and his or her family as it takes at least 6 months for studying preparation for this exam as someone who participated in the process multiple times I could tell you firsthand it's not perfect we heard it here today but what process is I'm an advocate for fixing what's broken and making it right you heard tonight that we were opposed to it we're not opposed to changes we're opposed to this particular ordinance and this change back in February I had discussions with the acting Chief and the mayor about promotional change in this ordinance we were all in agreeance that at some point it needs to change there needs to be some kind of change but no discussions have taken place on this change for over six months now so imagine my surprise when I woke up this morning to see this proposed ordinance changed on the agenda I have read this ordinance this ordinance does not to change the process for the betterment of the tire police department and we as members of the police department specifically the superior officers cannot support it we took a unanimous vote against this particular ordinance I don't want to get in specifics because I only have three minutes of your time um and I'd like to sit with you guys I know you were told not to speak with police officers but I urge you at any point if you would like to reach out um we can discuss it I'm worried this ordinance change as it reads now will lead to costly lawsuits that neither the town nor the Union want to waste costly tax dollars on I would welcome any one of you today to reach out to me like I said and discuss the issue in for further detail more importantly I do not think a change in a depart in this department of this magnitude is something that should be considered at this particular time we have been without a chief of police for over 2 and a half years now we've endured multiple acting Chiefs who have led the department in different directions some good some bad now there is finally light at the end of the tunnel mayor-elect Mrs Walker has publicly stated that making a police chief is a priority I believe she even said she would appoint something in the first 30 days I applaud you for this okay please reach out to me thank you very much is there anyone else in the public who wishes to come up this evening and speak please good evening good evening Council good evening mayor my name is hammad I'm one of the nurses at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital that I'm sure everybody here has has heard of has been on strike so today I stand before you uh to address the critical issue affecting our community the understaffing of nurses in our hospitals whether that be Oldbridge Robert Wood PRI Amboy it doesn't matter our dedicated nurses are facing unsafe working conditions leading to burnout and compromising the care that our residents deserve nurses at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital have been on strike for more than 120 days 120 days these people were called Heroes a few years ago nurses and other hospitals are in the process of taking strike authorization votes advocating for safe Staffing safe Staffing involves evidence-based nurse to Patient ratios this is crucial to ensuring the safety of both nurses and patients currently there's a bill pending both in the assembly and the Senate a 4536 and s304 in the legislator in the legislature that establishes minimum registered professional nurse staffing standards this bill awaits a Committee hearing and we urge everyone here to support it we kindly ask that you consider passing a municipal resolution in support of the bill to which I emailed everyone uh earlier today and adding the resolution and and creating a resolution and adding a resolution to the agenda in the next council meeting by doing so and V voting in favor you express you will be supporting safe Staffing and the well-being of our residents in our community tonight along with a bunch of fellow nurses we voice to the council our support for this resolution it's a crucial step towards ensuring the health and safety of residents of Oldbridge of our brother sister townships of everyone in the state thank you very much thank you thank you is is there anyone else in the audience who wishes to be heard this evening anyone else no then I will okay yeah come forward good evening good evening Council and mayor my name is Ryan seagull from East Brunswick I was previously a resident of Oldbridge for approximately six years I'm also one of the nurses that has been on strike for more than 120 days at Robert Wood Johnson Barnabas in New brunsw uh this past Friday it was announced that a tentative agreement had been reached between the local nursing Union and the hospital to clarify the strike is not over yet and members still need to review the details and vote on whether or not to accept the terms however regardless of the nursing strike in New Brunswick coming to an end in the near future or not it is extremely important that the safe Staffing bills be passed throughout the state of New Jersey so that all patients can be cared for safely by their nurses we need support from all of our local officials this is the reason we are asking for the support of Oldbridge Township by passing a resolution supporting the passing of safe Staffing bills s304 and a 4536 one of the questions we get is how can we mandate ratios when there is a shortage of nurses there are many licensed nurses that no longer work as nurses due to the conditions they faced while working at the bedside nurses are discouraging their friends and family from becoming nurses due to the conditions being faced nurses are searching for nursing jobs that don't involve working at the bedside if they're truly is a nursing shortage by not implementing enforcable safe Staffing standards the problem will only become worse if conditions at the bedside are improved more nurses will want to continue working at the bedside more individuals will want to become nurses and perhaps most importantly studies show that safe patient Staffing decreases mortality decreases medical errors and decreases the amount of time a patient must stay in the hospital just for starters please reach out to us if you have any questions we'll make sure that you all have a copy emailed to you after the meeting and thank you for your support is there anyone else in the audience who wishes to be heard okay then seeing no hands I will close public portion and I'll go to Council comments council person Dar Caro yes thank you um thank you all for coming tonight um I we just got your email a little while ago so I did I did glance it glance through it but I've been aware of your situation for uh quite some time now um I would wholeheartedly support a resolution to support you guys and I would urge the rest of my uh colleagues to do that if there's a way that we can um I see that you gave us a short version and a long version um and I don't know if the rest of my uh colleagues have really had a chance to look at the email so um I don't know if they would feel comfortable putting that resolution up tonight cuz like I said I think it just came around 64 to 7 tonight um so um I would certainly love to put it on the agenda as a discussion item for if that's I don't know if that's possible for next meeting because I whole wholeheartedly support you guys and I see nothing absolutely nothing that would prevent anyone from you know being okay with this you know it's it's all about Staffing you know and um you know definitely as as someone who you know has had a son in the hospital as someone who has had a mom in the hospital the nurses are the backbone you know you guys you guys are there and um Staffing is very important so that definitely so um [Applause] so okay um next um my question for um uh our legal council I guess um we are allowed to speak to union leaders as Union reps or or No like is there a legal what's what's the legality there the fuler ACT indicates that um Township employees uh questions regarding and union rep as a Township employee or be communicated uh through the administrator that's way that's way the fauler ACT works because the fact that employees administrative employees or administrative employees clerk's office is the is is the council's uh purview uh so that's uh that's the way the Min code set up I think there's a provision and and the statutes set up I think that's a pro the provision in our code as well the mic the state statute on fa okay thank you um okay so um the other thing I you know just a couple of of uh nice things that I wanted to discuss first of all I want to congratulate all the um all the officers for uh their Awards tonight you know definitely it's it's a wonderful thing when we celebrate our police and we should always um show them our support and um you know definitely you guys are all great you all deserve Awards um but you know congratulations to the ones who um received Awards tonight um just real quick with this um with this ordinance uh preferably I would like to hold off until January to even discuss it because you know we're we're in the end of December now things are going to change in January I feel like now is you know now is not the time I would like to personally like let's just wait until January to even have any discussion further because it looks like as the vote was tonight it was moved to First reading um but that's one person's opinion um anyway um so congratul also um congratulations to my very good friends Diane Michael Kimmy vanola um for your uh SEPTA board um reception and uh you guys I I remember when you guys started this and uh I know how much work you guys put in and also um Colleen and push um and I know how much work you guys put in and and your heart and soul goes into everything you guys do and um uh Nancy and uh Andrew Bor Nancy cogin and Andrew borello also for their wood shop um you guys are awesome and uh I was there at Lombardy field when it when it went up and uh it was just great and uh troop 129 for their uh getting their Eagle Scout badges and um I I can't remember Thomas fton is his name yeah that he was here tonight for the Higgins um so really you know you guys are awesome but you know that you know I know you know I think that um anyway also I wanted to say um I wanted to thank our economic our director of Economic Development Steve mcus for inviting Council to um a very early Friday morning a very early news interview um Channel 12 came out and um and did a uh basically a highlight I think we chose maybe six businesses um Steve M uh well between um director mamakis and um Channel 12 they chose 12 uh six six businesses so we highlighted jeppis Cozy Cafe the golf course ice cream monster Jenner Rose and Barry the hatchet and um it was really wonderful those were only six businesses we have so many businesses that we can highlight in Oldbridge and um I would really love it and I think I heard him overheard him talking about doing some sort of monthly uh highlighting all of the businesses monthly um to just really bring to light all of the wonderful places that we have here in Oldbridge so that was really wonderful and uh it wasn't so much fun getting up and getting there for 5:00 am. but it was worth it we had a lot of fun so um on that note I think I am done thank you council person dep thank you to the nurses for coming out um you know just know that you guys have supported I didn't get a chance to review your email yet um but I will and look forward to seeing it in a future meeting so um know you all are supported one of my best friends and his wife are both nurses I understand the flight I understand what you guys are going through so know that you are supported by by Folks up here and and even throughout our state also congratulations again to the 11 offices off um honored tonight right we appreciate your dedication to the township and its residents you know we're a great community in part due to the work that you all do um just know that there are Advocates throughout the town throughout everywhere that support all of our police and tonight was a great example of honoring them on a lighter note um you know happy Hanukkah to all those celebrating um this week you know as we enter this holiday season let's just make sure that we reflect on our time with our family and friends not take it for granted um I think it it's been talked about a lot you know there are a lot of people who are going into the holidays different this year whether they've lost loved ones um different situations that have happened in their life just make sure you reach out to them during this time this is probably the hardest time of year I remember losing family members and you know day over day goes by but then all of a sudden you're at a Holiday thinking about your loved one and it is tough make sure we reach out to those folks and um you know give them a hug give them um a warm embrace on the phone um then and finally you know there's a lot of holiday events and celebrations that are going to be happening over the next couple weeks you know leading up to New Year's not to be safety patrol but you know just make sure that everyone takes special care for not only you but others around you are getting home if you are in any way impaired by any take in Uber take a lift do whatever it takes necessary to get home to ensure that not only you return to your loved ones but those around you uh returning to them as well and thank you and uh Happy Hanukah again council person Desai thank you for all you come out today I go every two months the for the fusion and I know the how good the nurses are treating patient and I see all of you standing on the road and piting I will support if our Council give us okay that we can make the resolution I'll be the first to vote Yes at the same time I would like to send a greetings to the Jewish community of Oldbridge hanuka is coming just in two days so I believe they should enjoy it's a peace celebration and along with the hanuk kai pray that the conflict in Middle East which is going on and killing both side should stop and there should be a Harmony between all kind of community either Christian Hindu Muslim anybody we all are human so one more time I promise you all that if there is something we can do it I'll be the first one to vote yes thank you council person Garcia yes thank you I also want to thank and congratulate the police officers tonight that received their Awards like I said police don't get recognized nowhere near enough not just in orbridge throughout the country please work hard you know and they should be honored maybe more often so congratulations to the to the honores tonight they did a great job and to the guys who didn't receive Awards thank you as well because you we need the cops you guys do a great job uh what else do we have Matt I want to thank you for doing a great job with Recreation that was a great event tonight it was it was it was perfect the weather was per even got decent weather so it was great so thank you you you and your team of course and I as well support the nurses we need nurses uh I just couldn't imagine going to a hospital without nurses so I'm here to support you I'm sure the whole council is here to support you so you I'm sure you'll have our support so thank you for what you guys do and uh and happy Hanukkah for those that celebrate that's all I have thank you council person Dr Greenberg Bell yes first of all thank you all for taking the time and coming here tonight as the evening started out we see um that we do have a lot to be appreciative for and to be grateful for and the Ws for the police I think it's very important that we do this so the township realizes what they do and that they are recognized for the um really The Valor that they portray every day protecting us and it's very important to um to really bring attention to that and focus on that as far as the nurses you know it is sad I'm in medicine but with animals but I do see that um as nurses I say that all the time in our schools people aren't going into medicine as much as they were before into nursing and I think in years to come you're going to see shortages we're seeing them in different fields of medicine now I don't know you know when I was growing up that was something that everyone aspired to do to go into medicine whatever field it was um and that is changing now so it is a concern and I thank you for sending us the email we will certainly read it and do our due diligence and pay attention and we are supportive because really you're supportive of the people that are in the hospital to take care of them and uh the long hours that you do put in the stress um and I notice when you are in the hospital we say it all the time from when we I was young younger we had what uh candy stripers I don't even think you might even know what they were at the time but uh there was all different levels of nursing um that really focused on the the really progression of Nursing and it's gotten very Advanced and it's very stressful so thank you for uh presenting this to us and I um applaud you for all the effort that you do you know not only for nurses but for now going through this and it's difficult time so I know this Council will do its work and and pay attention you know to that um I just want everyone to enjoy the holidays enjoy your families and friends um show gratitude for what we do have and um I I'm really when I look around at the Town everyone and different entities does put bring everything's together um everyone has different interests different Focus but all of us together is what makes this town really great and um we got to keep on going in that direction and I just wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and happy Hanukkah thank you council person pesky yes thank you you know um I'm sure most of us have been in the hospital and the nurse can make or break your uh stay and um I've never had a bad experience um I don't know anybody that's had a bad experience but I remember people having good experiences especially by caring nurses and I think that our our country has gotten off track uh when it comes to medicine and it's seems to be more of a money-making business Arrangement instead of a caring facility and I think that's part of the problem I think you know uh you know the medicine should not be included in our um stock market it should have nothing to do with it it should be separate should just be about caring for people and uh what it costs it cost and that's it um of course you need management of course there's abuse and so forth and so on but really comes down to care so I appreciate um all of you coming tonight um and I thank you for the email and I'm sure you're going to get support from from this Council uh I'm sure that we'll we'll get a resolution together and um and submit that um we have to do our due diligence we have to read it and make sure it's you know it's the language is is clear and you know it's worthwhile sure it is um but um but thank you thank you very much and I too want to wish everybody a you know happy Holidays happy Hanukkah Merry Christmas and um happy New Year oh we'll be back one more time okay all right well no one's promised tomorrow so we don't know what's gonna happen so I'll get it out had of time thank you Council vice president Walker I too would like to thank the nurses for coming this evening I was at the Christmas tree lighting so I didn't have time to read the email but I'll read it when I go home I support and love nurses my husband was in the hospital for over six months and if more for the nurses I know he wouldn't have survived we talk about it all the time and we're forever grateful and thankful for you and um we I know this Council as a whole is going to support you 100% also I want to thank our police officers tonight that were re those that were recognizing those that weren't because they put their lives on the line every day for us and I'm very thankful for them and also I just want to wish everyone a Happy Hanukkah we'll be back for Christmas so which everybody stay safe [Applause] council president soar yes U well I will make it unanimous about the nurses uh about a month ago I had a really really bad fall and I I was attended to it was you know it was really amazing how well I was taken care of and I'm just one in hundreds that you see all the time and sometimes you know you're at the end of the rope and here we go again but um I just want to thank you because I'll tell you why during the pandemic if it wasn't for you guys you were amazing and you really really were you were Grace undress and I could I know myself I wouldn't have had that wherewithal so really know that you're appreciated and like Mrs Walker said we got it a little late so I really didn't get to read either but we will definitely have it on you know next next council meeting which is the 19th so do know you are supported and you are a appreciated thank you so much and of course I'll Echo naturally everybody else's uh comments about the police and SEPTA as and the Eagle Scouts I mean that's that's Oldbridge and they just work together and everyone here has that kind of an attitude thank you Matt it was a great program Lisa everyone and it was just fun to see the kids and the faces you never you know you always forget and then they see Santa and it's it's like oh my God and I'm a I'm a new Grandma so I'm really enjoying it all over again but it was it was a wonderful evening thank you very very much to everyone out there happy Hanukkah and uh make sure like Eric said you're safe and you have a great holiday season Take Care thank you thank you so I just wanted to make one quick announcement um our next meeting is December 19th but also our reorganization meeting is scheduled for January 1st at 12 12 p.m for anybody who's interested in in attending the meeting yep okay it'll be here in the courtroom thank you very much and I'd like to ask for a motion to adjourn second roll call council person Dar Caro yes council person dama yes council person Desai yes council person Garcia yes council person Dr Greenberg Del yes council person pasky yes Council vice president Walker yes council president soar yes thank you we'll have a great evening motion meeting is adjourned at 9:05 p.m.