##VIDEO ID:brJZ00ZcgUw## good morning I don't always get to say that to start one of these meetings good good morning and welcome to everybody thank you all very much for being here for the last and final Board of County Commissioners meeting of the Year 2024 I want to begin with a roll call and announcement of the open public meetings law L County Commissioners Cruz here Duffy here Gallow here James leor here deputy director Lazar here director Bartlett here ladies and gentlemen the requirement of open public meetings law has been satisfied with respect to this meeting specifying the time date and location including the annual notice adopting a reorganization meaning file with the county clerk and post an administration building a mail to two newspapers in accordance with the provisions of the law thank you L please rise as you are able for the Pledge of Allegiance and stay standing afterwards Jo Al Al to the United States of America to the repic for it stands one nation under God indivisible liy justice for all as this is the fifth day of Hana I want to welcome Rabbi Randall Mark of shr Tor synagogue and Wayne to join us at the podium and deliver an invocation a shabash Our God in heaven above December is the time of year of the winter solstice the time of Darkness this indeed has been a year of Darkness often filled with hatred and bigotry hostility and violence in the wintry Winds of years's end help us oh compassionate one to find warmth in the presence of each other remind us that darkness is followed by light in your Oneness we are one though we often forget that we are open our eyes to see your image in the face of every woman man and child remind us at every turn of season in the years that all are equal in your eyes and so let them be so in our eyes each one beloved no one to you a stranger as your image is the source of all the colors of the human rainbow and striving towards your light of every way of loving and being so let us not put barriers among us as shattered trees Fallen across the road harsher still than the winds that chill our bodies are the winds that freeze our souls the icy daggers of hatred and IND difference that turn us from one another help us not to lose our way in the blinding storms that come when vision is lost and the Heart cannot see those along the way who have no place to go heating vents upon the sidewalk are not places to call home it is not a spirit of Charity you seek to instill but the pursuit of Justice that will give each one their rightful due disabuse us of the notion that coins dropped into a cup are enough to say we've done our part raise our voices to say enough of war and bloodshed it's waste of life and wealth that drains our communities of possibilities a backdrop for the violence that engulfs the great this great land of ours and tears our youth apart offering them no hope of spring and of blossoming yet to come in the uncertainty of beginnings let us see the light of hope that twinkles Among the Stars in a crisp clear sky and help us to know for a certainty that if we walk and talk together even in the darkest of times that light shall grow brighter through the night as we go hand in hand into the year ahead renew our faith in the possibility of realizing the vision you have given us of a caring and just society and a world at peace help us to know the others pain cause each to recoil at violence done to those who share our name may we build Bridges Here In Paya County between Jews and Muslims Christians Hindus Buddhists among others not to be dissuaded or divided give us the courage to be peacemakers in your name in the neighborhood that is our world let us sing of what might be and to each other say be strong be strong and let us strengthen one another and let us say amen amen thank you very much Rabbi please remain standing for one more moment as we remember all the men and women who have died while serving the United States armed forces all who have died from covid-19 especially the 2315 residents of the county and also our loss yesterday of the nation's 39th President Jimmy Carter thank thank you again Rabbi that was beautiful help yourself to a bagel while you're here uh and that goes that goes for everyone uh Matt says that having Bagels is what gets our our wonderful turnout today so um whatever works we'll do it um let's move on and can I have a motion for approval of the minutes of December 10th I'll make that motion second County Commissioners Cruz Duffy yes Gallow yes James leapor deputy director lazara yes director Bartlett yes can I have a motion for approval of the proclamations move it second County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leor yes Al lazara yes Bartlett yes that brings us to our administrator's report Matthew thank you director first we have a presentation of a a proclamation to Klein ribbon as they celebrate their 100th anniversary of commissioner Cruz and representatives from kle ribbon if you could come up as you guys make your way up here I just want to know obviously 100 years in business is a uh an accomplishment in itself your commitment and uh you know to our community in the city of Patterson and in the county of Pake is greatly appreciated um the fact that you're still here after so many years and your contributions yours and those who came before you but uh has definitely been a staple in our business Community as I said in especially in the city of Patterson but more importantly in Pake County uh so allow me to read this Proclamation uh commemorating your 100 years in business whereas the board of County commissioners of the county of Pake has the desire to recognize Klein ribbon in Patterson New Jersey celebrating 100 Years of trans tradition resilience and craftsmanship of ribbon making whereas Klein ribbon was founded in 1925 by Samuel Klein in the historic Patterson New Jersey Klein ribbon has not only survived but thrived through some of history's most challenging periods including the Great Depression prohibition world wars Global turmoil and pandemics Klein ribbon has contributed to moments of national Unity helping to restore patriotism with yellow ribbons that symbolize hope and resilience Samuel kleene has passed down his knowledge and strong work ethic to his son's Harry Klein Jack kleene and son-in-law Milton Wier who each played a vital role in shaping the company Klein ribbon later passed down the leadership baton to Raymond Klein Jack Klein's son who help upheld the family's commitment to Quality and integrity and whereas Klein ribbon is now led by Jeffrey kleene the son of Raymond and Samuel's great-grandson representing the fourth generation to carry the company forward Klein ribbon stands as a testament to the power of family and six generations of family heritage and unwavering dedication to Quality and Legacy woven into every ribbon produced over this past Century so now therefore let it be proclaimed by the pay County Board of County Commissioners that hereby publicly recognizes and Applause Klein ribbon for the significant contributions they have made and the exemplary service they have unselfishly devoted to the county of Pake and to the community and let it be further uh proclaimed that this board wishes Klein ribbon continued success in the many years to come congratulations [Applause] guys thank you share a few words with us it's been a hundred years you got something to say come on well I I can honestly tell you I'm thrilled and growing up in Patterson graduating East Side High School playing ball at hinchliff stadium with and visiting again in its new glory is a wonderful thing and it was tough years for my parents and uh here we are and thank you still going congratulations want to have the family come up for a photo have your family come up with a photo with the Commissioners sure gonna come right up here congratulations here [Music] com where should I go I'm a guy go here right here that's the yeah yeah yeah the all guys in the back congratulations guys conrat your bread thank you congratulations thank you so thank you very much for being thank you very much Congratulations by by susman proud of our thank you so much takes dedication director uh you can stay right up there next we have a presentation of our proclamation to Deborah Hoffman uh she retires as our e uh longtime economic development director so Deb not at all de join us and the end of an era um but it's a privilege for me as director of this board to acknowledge literally Decades of service which we're all about to hear about Deb so so glad that you could be here than you and receive this whereas the board of County commissioners of the county of pic wishes to recognize Deborah Hoffman as she retires from the P County division of Economic Development and whereas Deborah Hoffman during her tenure from 2000 to 2 24 demonstrated unmatched Innovation and resourcefulness successfully raising over $33 million in federal state and Foundation grants to support local businesses and economic initiatives and whereas Deborah hoffen was instrumental during the covid-19 pandemic directly awarding $8.1 million in Grants to support P County Business Community during unprecedented challenges and whereas Deborah Hoffman championed education and collaboration by spending by sponsoring 154 seminars we really counted this all up I count I I I I spoke at a couple of them but 154 seminars and special events for the business Community publishing 20 years of business directories advertorials and newsletters and conducting six business surveys to better serve the needs of pay County businesses and whereas Deborah Hoffman fostered creativity and economic diversity by establishing the pay County motion picture and television commission organizing 20 absolutely let's applaud that especially as the new Bob Dylan biopic that just came out was filmed in part right here in Patterson uh producing four short films and watching hundreds if not thousands more of student films over many years and solidifying pay County as a hub for arts and culture and whereas Deborah Hoffman spearheaded the creation of the comprehensive Economic Development strategic committee publishing two critical economic plans and facilitated the expansion and relocation of hundreds of companies within the county securing over $ 1.78 billion dollar in financing and creating or retaining over 6,300 jobs and whereas Deborah Hoffman's commitment to community well-being was evident in her management of the pay County Community Development block grant program since 2008 overseeing more than 29.5 million dollars in Grants to address critical Community needs and in creating the pay County Brownfield commission to remediate environmental hazards and whereas Deborah Hoffman has generously shared her expert expertise through service on numerous boards including 20 years on the pay County Workforce Development board Memorial Day nursery and downtown NJ as well as leadership roles such as president of the pay County Community College Foundation board and treasur of Memorial Day Nursery now now therefore be it proclaimed that the board of County commissioners of the county of pic does hereby honor and commend Deborah Hoffman for her distinguished service invaluable contributions and unwavering dedication to the people and businesses of P County and be it further Proclaim that we extend our heartfelt congratulations on her well-deserved retirement and best wishes for continued success and happiness in all of her future endeavors Deborah signed by every last one of us thank you so much for so [Applause] much thank you thank you so much I I really want to thank the Commissioners and the County Administrator for your guidance for your support uh you know it sounds like a lot to accomplish but no one does it alone you always have partners and without your support I could not have done it and I also want to acknowledge Kate mdun who's here from formerly from the Small Business Development Center was a big partner in every one of those 154 seminars right and Kristen Holton my former executive assistant really really instrumental and helping to put the film festival together and uh we have a couple of other Commissioners here marielen lions and Dolores oaski from the film commission I I thank you so so much much for coming out today and honestly Klein ribbon is one of my favorite companies in Patterson New Jersey and pic County but uh I really will miss everyone it's very hard to step away like very hard and I will also miss the camaraderie of all the other directors and the other staff it's everyone's been so welcome and opening and uh and openhearted so thank you very very much thank you for this honor it's very kind don't forget your dance oh and my wonderful my wonderful family your dance partner I forgot my dance partner Eric thank you Eric and my lovely daughter Leah thank you have come on you guys let's take a picture all right take picture guys you want to all come up come on thank you thank you so much congratulations thank you good thank you that's why I wore thank you very much thank you all really absolutely actually I'm gonna invite all my colleagues to stay down here for the last uh piece of the agenda Matt if I can dive right into it it oh yeah director by all means want to have all my colleagues stay down here at the podium with me this is a uh day of special recognitions and among many other things um the very last meeting for our colleague nicolino Gallow and we wanted to pause for a moment and recognize his three years of service I want to say personally Nick that um although we ran against each other twice in the course of that process on this day and in this office and when we were together at community events around our County you were consistently someone who was focused on the work that we do on a bipartisan approach to service to the county and I want to appreciate particularly your three years of service to this board and all the ways in which you were one of us and participated in uh in this great Endeavor of ours working across the aisle so I want to thank you for that and I want to give all of our colleagues a chance to do the same before we officially present you with this ticking clock Nick you know it's been three years and you are a Class Act let me tell you you have always been so kind to everyone and you know it doesn't matter what letter you have by your name because what H what really matters is that you along with the rest of us us were interested in doing what was best for the county and I will always embrace you as a friend and a colleague and I just wish you all the best of luck in your future endeavors Nick I'm going to miss the espresso in with that little juice you put in the morning uh you are a class actor no question about it and I'm sure you're not going away um service to the community so you know just the camaraderie you have uh amongst ourselves uh I gave you a bottle of Irish whiskey hopefully that turns you a little bit uh but I I wish you all the best I really do trust me thank you go ahead go thank you uh I'll just continue to Echo the sentiments of my colleagues it's been a pleasure to work with you constantly professional uh and truly uh seing firsthand the needs of the community uh that you um engage in and and always put forth no matter what decision is made uh it's always made uh with the uh community's best interest at heart so I want to thank you for that uh and I look forward to uh you know maybe seeing you down the line and continuing to work with you in some capacity thank you what you have to do to join them down the line and resign I'd tell you that just in case you didn't know uh so all the years I've been here and it's been a lot of years that I've been here uh I never got a bottle of whiskey from Terry Duffy he owns a bar it's a big bar in Patterson and everybody goes there except I tried to go there but he doesn't let me in and he wouldn't give me a bottle I'll see you when you drink it's not you have and it's not pretty it's not pretty but doesn't have to be that's the point of alcohol in the first place anyway uh thank you all for coming and by the way thank you for you you are a class actor you are a lot of fun to sit next to you get up a lot but other than that it's fun to fun to be around you you're up sorry come on little guy your turn okay well I'm going to be able to say something I Haven been able to say for the last three years um I never really liked you Nick no um we've had conversations in the past and conversations always U are always around the fact that uh you know it's it's important what we do here on this board but what's more important um is the love and the health of our families and uh so in the New Year I'm wishing you and your family all the love and all the health that you can possibly have thank you thank you so to Mark the days and weeks and months and years ahead this is from us to you as a memorial of your three years here maybe be I don't know what to say evidently as a republican I must have did a good job not too good no but I want to thank the board my colleagues here it's been uh quite an honor and a pleasure to working everyone here thank you you write that [Applause] yourself by the way we didn't put M yeah come on do we should we take a picture or is it is is it is it random to just have a picture of the seven of us why not okay now you get to be right you're in the middle time all all this time [Applause] guys I got thank you all right Matthew director that's else oh nope director that's all I have everyone have a happy New Year and here's to a successful 2025 [Applause] we bring us the county commissioner reports I just want to invite everyone to stick around uh after the meeting downstairs in the atrium we will be um marking the fifth day of Hanukkah with lighting of the manora joined by Rabbi Mark and other uh rabbis from here in Pay County want you to um please join us uh there will be bagels and even more uh down there we're not at the consent agenda okay yeah um and other than thanking my colleagues for uh a great year here at Center Stage uh with the appreciation of uh of being here uh in all that we went through in Pay County over the course of 2024 I want to acknowledge our extraordinary staff and administration um I want to acknowledge Matt you uh John and your boss our County C Council um 2024 was by no means an easy year uh from beginning to end I think a lot of us in a lot of ways are looking forward to putting it behind us but uh it was very rewarding for me to be here and to work with all of you so with that thank you very much and Sandy well thanks everyone for a great year um you know I think we have a common mindset that we're here to do a job that takes care of the people of this County and and our commitment to that it supersedes anything else that we do here in the county and those are the people that I like working with people like you who really do take into consideration everybody so I'm looking forward to another year and uh I'll see you on the other side Mr Cruz thank you director 2024 was a great year great year accomplishments uh in this County due to staff out there I want to wish you guys a Happy New Year to you and your family you guys do a great work we can't do this up here without you guys on the ground you're the front line uh making us look good and it's been said in the past uh so I just want to thank you guys and then I'll take a moment of a personal privilege just to thank de again uh when I first uh started in in my career when I joined the Chamber of Commerce and became the that c director uh that welcomed me with open arms uh asking to join her on many of those boards that she sits on downtown New Jersey Etc the film commission we work a lot together uh as I embarked in this Economic Development world I never heard of anybody before de me and I can assure you there will never be no one after so congratulations again de I wish you the best and'll definitely be in touch we're going to be celebrating January 25th at the Chamber of gala where Deb will also be receiving the faith and passion for all her work dedication to the city of Patterson and to the county of so looking forward to that Dev and congratulations once again thank you all I'd just like to Echo my colleagues uh sentiments the staff makes us look good I've been around enough to know uh Deborah once again I've worked with you closely and you are you're class actor as well um and I wish you all the best I wish everyone uh in the county and especially our staff and my colleagues the very uh happy and safe and healthy new year God bless us all God bless P County thank you and uh Jonathan is my sign up yet not yet we're working on that right bye thank you Nick thank you director I just want to say uh for the past three years I've learned a lot and working with all of you it's been a honestly a true pleasure so I want to wish everyone a healthy and happy New Year thank you [Applause] Bruce thanks we needed a little bit more morbid in 2024 thanks Bruce that's that we need a little bit more morbidity in uh in 2024 thank you okay Pasqual okay uh first of all I ask my colleagues to support 44 resolutions that my committee excuse me put together a significant amount of resolution that unusual for the end of the year and uh also would like to emplo excuse meion thank you [Applause] Pat so with no no Communications before we move to the oral por I just want to acknowledge our former County Administrator Anthony denova who's here with us today as well and I will take a motion to open the public portion second second County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes Jes po deputy director Lazer yes director Bartlett yes this is the part where the public can approach the podium uh you have up to 3 minutes we ask you to begin with your name and address and just take note that whatever you say will be part of the public record of today's meeting for the last time in 2024 I don't see anybody at the podium so I move to close the public portion County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leor deputy director Lazar yes director Bartlett yes all right for those of you following along we've reached letter L in our agenda um Council before we start moving on uh action items what do we need to know about L Andor about anything on our consent okay director there's there's no late starters and no closed session and uh we just need to amend M7 on the agenda the term is retroactive to November 1st 2023 expiring October 31st 2027 that's all okay and do I do we need to do a separate motion before m in order to make that yeah just to that Amendment yes please well let's start with L uh this is a two-thirds vote resolution uh Lou would you uh read it and then y call for a motion and second a resolution authorizing the Chief Financial Officer to execute the budget transfer between the 2024 budget Appropriations pursuant to njsa 40a colon uh 4- 58 second a motion in a second Le right County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leapor yes deput director Lazar yes director Bartlett yes so we've reached the consent agenda I will take first of all a motion to amend M7 as described by Council a moment ago second okay uh moved by leapor seconded by Cruz County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leapor deputy director lazara yes director Bartlett yes are there any items on the consent agenda as amended that any commissioner would like removed and voted separately okay seeing none I will take a motion to adopt consent agenda M1 through m85 as we just amended it I'm second okay moved by lazara seconded by Gallow County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leapor yes deputy director Lazaro yes director Bartlett yes new business I'll take a motion on Personnel second County Commissioners Cruz Duffy yes Gallow yes James leapor yes dep dor lazara yes director Bartlett yes and the bills the Bills second County Commissioners Cruz yes Duffy yes Gallow yes James leor yes deputy director Lazaro yes director Bartlett yes and with thanks once again to director just for um the reorganization U meeting for the Border County Commissioners has been set for uh for wed uh wed uh Tuesday o uh Tuesday January 7th at 12:00 noon here in this office in here and uh the ceremonial swearing in ceremony will be Wednesday at um January 8th at 5 at 4:45 sharp okay thank you so once more folks for those who missed it our government official reorg meeting will be here at noon on the 7th of January 2025 followed on Wednesday the 8th at 4:45 p.m. up at pcti with a ceremonial swearing in of sheriff Thomas Adamo and those reelected County Commissioners so with that and thanks for everyone's extraordinary work throughout 2024 I will take a motion to adjourn uh Cruz Duffy uh County Commissioners Cruz Duffy Gallow yes James leapor deputy director lazara yes director Bartlett yes thank you everyone right now 11:5 115