City Council - Regular Meeting

Okay. Working. Mayor, I'd like to call to order the regular meeting of the Elwood Park Mayor and Council for December 18th, 2025. To order at 7:02 p.m. On roll call, we have council members Fisolo here. Golbeck here. Samson present. Sheridan here. Choicy here. Council president here. Mayor Kleti here. We have a quorum. Thank you. Thank you. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. How's everybody doing out there? Great. Great.

Great. Great. Right. Beautiful time of the year. Celebrate Christmas. We just left Thanksgiving. We got New Year's coming and we all have a lot to be thankful for. Uh I think that's the most important thing that we settle in and we and we just take that sentence for for the moment and say to ourselves yes we do have a lot to be thankful for. Okay, we got a lot to do this evening. So if you would all please stand for our prayer flag salute. I would appreciate it. Oh God our father, we ask you to bless our meeting which we entrust to your friendly fatherly care and protection. Please remove all selfishness and prejudice from our hearts and implant therein a keen sense of justice and a greater love for you and our neighbors. Guide us in our deliberations so that our decisions will always please you and bring your peace and happiness to our community. Amen.

Amen. 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, with liberty and justice for all.

Whereas chapter 231 of the public laws of the state of New Jersey require at the commencement of every meeting a statement of compliance be read by the presiding officer. Now therefore be advised that the meeting requirements for this meeting have been met by publishing a special notice in the record in Herald News and by posting such notice in the office of the burough clerk as well as in a public place within the municipal building. Also by notifying interested citizens said notice was posted and transmitted on January 3rd, 2025 and published on January 8th, 2025. Okay, first up we have approval of me of minutes. We have the October 2nd, 2025 work session, the October 2nd, 2025 executive session, October 16th, 2025 regular meeting.

May I have a motion to approve the minutes? So move second. Any discussion? Did we get both of them? Yes. Okay. Call the role, please. First by Council President Pel Green, second by Councilman Folo. On roll call, we have council members Foso, yes. Golg, yes. Samson, yes. Sheridan, yes. Tracy, yes. Council President Peligine, yes.

Motion carries. Next, we have presentation to the residents assistance program from the homeowners association. I would like to call forward Mayor Kleti, Council President Lorine Peligreen, um Chief Felgno, and Angela Fava to be presented by Linda Colini and the homeowners. Anyone else taking pictures? Okay. Yes. Homeowners association. Once again, we are so proud to give you this check in $4,000 for the resident assist program. wonderful work. [applause] [applause]

No, I want to say something.

I just want to say thank you to Linda and all the members of the homeowners association. Linda helps us every year with this and we're able to buy so many toys for our children in need. We helped over a hundred children this year. So, she does so much good work for our community. She's always giving back to our schools, to every organization to help. And she puts in a lot of work and effort to be able to do that. So, we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Our pleasure. And we really appreciate everything you do for our community. [applause] Want to get one at a time. You want me to talk?

Yeah. [laughter] want to get in with us.

I'm about to say with the homeowners and Linda, not only does she donate to this organization, but many organizations in the course of the year, she's doing doing what is right for the town. She's consistent and I always say even though I'm looking at the check here, show me the money. Here's the money. Right. So, u and it's going to a great cause that um is administrated by this young lady here and her staff members also. Uh everybody here gets credit for it. It's just uh one good, beautiful deal that we're dealing with here. [applause] our last donation this year. So, in 10 days, we'll start all over again. [laughter]

That's all we want. I'll see you again.

You're welcome. Thank you everybody. Homeowners Association 23rd. Don't forget there should be Okay. All right, mayor. After this, mayor, I'm going to um have the board of health come. What time? Before.

Okay. After I let you know. Okay. At this time, we have a special presentation to the Wallace family from the Elmwood Park Police Department and New Chamber of Commerce. I will turn the meeting over to Chief Figno.

So everybody, this is Christa. She's a professor of ours here in town. She's a resident. Sadly, um she lost her husband. Um a few months ago, suddenly um Chris uh got sick one day. He went to the hospital and a week later he's have three children, young children. They're beautiful people. They're part of our community. It was instrumental in the little league. Our children are in our junior academy every year and we really our our heart went out to the family. So we rally around her to help her out, raise some money for her. Joe with the homeowners Joe. So we partnered with him to do this car show. Um, it was a really nice event and we raised a lot of money for Christa and her family and she's getting emotional and that's okay. Let it go. And Joe [applause] [applause] talking about the holidays, but we're here for you. We're your friendly, too. And whatever you need, we're here for you. Hold on to that. Take a picture.

[applause] [applause] Thank you.

Okay. Okay, we have one more presentate well two more um but a presentation that was left off the agenda mistakenly. We have the board of health that would like to come forward. At this time I would like to call forward John Dearzio the president um and the fellow members.

Thank you mayor. time. Every every year we have an event and it's um our fifth annual Elmo Park celebrates seniors and it's just a growing event and we have so many wonderful volunteers and uh what we like to do is we like to thank all of them every each and everybody cuz without them we wouldn't be able to have the event and we have so many volunteers and people that are passionate about our senior community and the board of health and um one of the recipients this year we want to show our recognition uh to him because he's done he's been with us for like three years already and he gives a lot of his time and it's really appreciated because he does a setup. He does the takedown. Uh we had a car like a a classic uh antique car show too uh along with the event and he brought his his classic car. Um so we're so appreciative and if we can just call Michael up. Michael um

Rivero. Thank you Michael. [applause] Thank you so much, Michael. We truly truly appreciate it because without your help, you know, [laughter] and um and we do have a appreciation, a certificate of appreciation for you. Thank you so much. And the board of health of Elen Park would like to present this to you. Thank you. Thank you. [applause]

[applause] Can we take a picture? Can we take a picture? Um [clears throat] Joe, can you do you mind taking a picture? Uh board of health. Lorraine and do you want to get involved? Eric, do you want to take a picture? Everybody, Board of Health. Yeah, of course. Let's go get take a picture. Don't get the weight.

I see everyone. Thank you. Thank you. [applause]

Do you really want to say all those names? Uh, where is she?

Sh. Um, we also have a list of our thank you lists. So, can we read that? But it's going to be the three of us and we should go over it pretty quickly and this way we don't have to wait until the public session. Um along with this, we have so many people that we'd like to thank because there's so many people involved and a lot of our uh a lot of it comes from donations uh from people from the local establishments in town and even like through other towns too and without them we wouldn't be able to have the event like you know a wonderful event that we have because they donate items to us and then we actually give them back to our senior community or our community and nobody pays anything. It's all donated and it's just a way that we give back to our community. So, I'd like to just I have a list of all the thank yous because every year uh the board of health would like to thank each and every person that contributed because it's they're just so important. So, I'd like to firstly thank the Elwood Park Board of Health. Um well, President John Morzio, uh vice president, uh Luchia Entrary, treasurer is Janette Randazzo, secretary Chennet Morris, Clarissa Proctor, Doris Wetler, uh Lorie Spiero, Angela Craft, and our council liaison Lorraine Pellegrine. I'd also like to thank Mayor Kleti, uh Chief Felgno, and Roy Vicano for all their support throughout the years and for this event here.

Okay, crazy. Yeah. And everyone that helped make this year a success. El Dente, Amy's Royal Treatment, AP International LLC, Avante, Birwood Deli and Liquor, Blue 42, Seros's Hair Pavilion, Kanti's Funeral Home, The Craftsman, Elwood Park Barberhop, Elwood Park Diner, Elwood Park Pharmacy, Fair Lawn Diner, Four Seasons, Francesca's, Glorious Flores, The Entrary Family, Lorraine and Pete Peligine, Eminem Liquors, McRumbs Bakery, New York, uh, New Jersey Giants, Parkway Diner, Pay Less, Pay Less Liquors in Delhi, Pizza Town, K Pasta Restaurant, Saddlebrook Diner and Sarah Shopright of Elmwood Park signed up Simone's Haircuts, SK Nail Salon, Saring Car Wash, Sound Stage Entertainment, Taste of Italia, The Pet Care Market in Loi, The Spice Room, Vicarios, Vilma's Nail Salon, Veto's Pizzeria, and over the 50 incredible vendors. You want them here?

Yes.

Also, the people that we'd like to thank are the dignitaries and the officials. includes the Congress, Congresswoman Nelly Poe, Assemblyman Al Abdullies, Bergen County Sheriff uh Anthony Kuruton, Commissioner Maryanne Amarosa, Tom Sullivan, uh Jeremisa Ortez, Steve Tanelli, Elwood Park Council, and the uh Dale F, excuse me, Dale Fava, and the staff of the Elmo Park Recreation Center. Also, we'd like to thank the volunteers that participated. Mike Spierum, Sanjabellastasteri, Isabelle Bellisteri, Amy Clusette, Jeannie Fretag, Rene Renee Marie, Tessa Adams, Na and Mimi, Jay Newman, El excuse me, Alexandra Curtio, Vinnie Randazzo, Jennifer Randazzo, Mike Wilkkey, Ralph and Terry, the [clears throat] Morris family, Michael and Brian, Maya Morris, Pierre Lewis, Mia Morris, Pierre Lewis, Karen Pena, Diane Bombberg, Stern, Chip, and Melissa Jüger.

Thank you everybody. Thank you. [applause]

Okay, our next presentation is recognition of service for Councilman Golc. I will turn the meeting over to Mayor Kleti. Well, there comes a time when we all hang up our spurs. I think it's uh a little premature for this young man though hanging up his spurs. Um talking about that councilman that's sitting to my left here, Mr. Golden Beck. uh from the years of being here, I recall him coming into these chambers as a very young man, maybe 15 years old, 16 years old. And you still look the same, by the way. Uh very concerned, you can see involved, wanted to be involved. And one specific item that I recall was when uh there was some controversy going on about the tank on the corner of the Boulevard and Market Street. U him and another gentleman came in and they defined actually it wasn't a tank, it was a has another name. It looks like a tank to me. But uh and uh that just stood out in my mind how he he took the time, him and his colleague to investigate what type of a equipment it was. And it it only lent itself to helping us make the decision that we were going to renovate that tank. And there it is. It's still on a corner. Um, over the years, uh, we've we've had some good conversations, I would say. Uh, I got to be honest, I'm going to miss you. Uh, I miss the bantering. I I miss the bantering. I'm going to miss that. And, um, I will say this that when you, uh, go up and down the boulevard and Market Street and you see those village lights, this man was very

instrumental in bringing them to Elwood Park. So with our deepest appreciation, we're proudly honoring Daniel Goldenbeck for nine years of dedication service to the bureau of Elwood Park. Public service tenure council member January 5th, 2017 to April 30th, 2019. Mayor, April 30th, 2019. December 31st, 2019. Council member January 2nd, 2020, December 31st, 2022. Council member January 5th, 2023, December 31st, 2025. With gratitude from Mayor Kleti and the town of Elmouth Park to [applause] [applause] want to speak

at the end. At the end everyone meeting the last one before you go.

Okay. Okay. Okay. uh on all three, well actually four items that we honored. Uh we're going to have the council comments. We'll start off with uh Eric on the end there, please. Councilman. Thank you, mayor. Um I'm going to keep my uh comments condensed and as brief as possible because obviously we have a long night to begin with. So everything I've seen here tonight is an example of the heart and the dedication of the residents of this community. um from Linda Colbini to um Joe now with the with the Chamber of Commerce and Lorraine the RAP everyone involved here if there's a problem we'll fix it and the uh the recipient of that um of the Wallace Award uh Christa um the perfect example we came through as soon as we could and we gave you the best assistance we could so that's just moving to me it truly is Mr. Galbec, epic story. Your story uh kind of reminds me as as being a Garfield native reminds me of Tom Dutch. Tom Dutch was the youngest mayor in the city of Garfield, I believe, in 1978 or 79 and his uh career path is similar to yours. However, you're bailing out and I'm not quite sure why, but I wish you well. Um I enjoyed the la It's only been a year, but I have enjoyed sitting on a day next to you and you and I also have picked each other's brain. So, um, good luck and best wishes. Happy, uh, merry Christmas and happy new year.

Thank you, sir. Thank you, Councilman Councilman Folo.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, I also want to keep the the first ones condensed and then I have something uh to present to Dan. I want to thank Linda and the the homeowners association for all they do for for our community. uh to the Wallace family, a coach, a mentor, instrumental in our in our uh community, and um you know, she deserves she deserves it. And again, like the chief said, if you ever need anything, we're all here for you ever uh forever. Um also Joe Oswald and the uh uh the Chamber of Commerce, great job. Um and the Board of Health, John and the Board of Health, great job also for for what you do uh for our community every year. I am honored to recognize a public servant whose commitment to Elwood Park began long before he sat on the deis. Councilman Dan Golbec has given nine years of service to this burough as a councilman, two years on the board of education, and has been in elected office since the age of 18. Public service has never been something he tried. It's always been who he is. I began my own journey at 26, but I watched Dan grow into this role from a young age. I remember him coming to council meetings as a kid with photos of damaged sidewalks and curbs, speaking with confidence and purpose. That same care and passion has never left him. Over the years, Dan helped pave hundreds of roads, plant hundreds of trees, bring lighting to the boulevard through grant funding, deliver a state-of-the-art turf field, and yes, even fighting to bring Wi-Fi to our public library. He stepped up when this burough needed leadership. served as mayor during a time during a time of need, defended Elwood Park against unnecessary lawsuits, and always kept the focus on the residents he served. But Dan's greatest contribution may be the example he set, showing young people of Elmo Park that involvement matters, that service matters, and that your voice can

be the difference. While his presence on this deis will be missed, tonight is not goodbye. It's simply our opportunity to say thank you. I got Dan uh a gavvel because a gavvel represents leadership, responsibility, and the decisions made in service to a community. Dan carried that responsibility with integrity and heart. It is my honor to present him with this engraved gavvel which reads, "Councilman Daniel Golbec, your service leaves a lasting legacy in Elwood Park." Dan, thank you for your years of service, your dedication, your lasting impact, and most importantly, your friendship to me and my family. Elwood Park is better today because you served. Thank you, Dan. [applause]

Thank you, Councilman. Councilwoman Sheridan.

Thank you, Mayor. Uh, first of all, um, Linda with the homeowners, great job as always. Um, the Willis family, good luck to you. If you need anything, we're here. I'm sure it's never going to get easier. It's the first set of holidays. Reach out to us if you need us. Um Joe, great job. Um looking forward to working with you. Uh naturally, police department always does a good job. Um Mr. Genac, I've spent four years here with you. I've learned a lot. Good luck. Be well. And I hope you do. I hope everything works out for you. Thank you.

That's all I got. Mayor, thank you. Uh, Councilwoman Councilwoman Tracy.

Um, I also would like to thank Linda Colamini and the homeowners association for their generous donation to the residents assistance program. Um, just on Tuesday, she made a generous donation to um the board of ed to be uh used for our three grammar schools. I Linda, I so appreciate your commitment to this community. Um, to the Wallace family. I know that nothing really will ever ease the pain of losing your husband, the children's father, but I hope that you found some comfort in the love and support from the community. Um, John and the board of health members, um, thank you so much for all the work that you put into park celebrate seniors. It's always uh such a wonderful successful event and I had no idea that there were so many people and so many businesses aside from the vendors who you know I I could see there obviously that contributed to um to making that day such a a wonderful success for our seniors. And then um I'd like to thank outgoing Councilman Daniel Golbeck. Um, I really truly wish you success in your future endeavors. Uh, it'll be interesting to see what you do next. Um, I just hope you don't come back and run against me. So, anyway, um, that's it, mayor. Thanks.

Thank you, Councilwoman. Council President Peline.

Yes. Again, I want to thank you, Linda, from the bottom of my heart. You help the residents assistance program so much every year and you help the whole community. You work hard and all the members work hard with you and really you make a difference in our community. So, thank you to the Wallis family. You've been through a lot, a real lot, and you're continue to be in all of our prayers. I'm glad that we did a wonderful fundraiser uh with the chief, the police department, and the new chamber of commerce with Joe and we all kind of rallied together to try to help you and your family the best we could. And we want you to know that like everyone else said here, we are here for you. Whatever you may need in the future, please reach out to us. We want to support you. We're a loving town. And one thing I like to say about our community is when someone's hurting, when someone needs us, we do all rally together. And I hope you feel the love from all of us. And to my colleague Dan Gullibac, I've known you for a long time. We've had our differences at times, but um you really had the best interest of the residents in your heart. And one thing that the mayor did say with the lighting on the boulevard and um Market Street, it's it's beautiful. And that was your vision. It really was. And that forever is going to be there because of you, because of your vision of it. And every time we ride down, still me and Pete were riding down today and I'm like, "Look at the lights. Look how pretty it looks. It's so festive." And that was really your work. So, we appreciate that. We appreciate all you've done. Again, there's differences here and there, but sitting up here is never easy. It It's tough decisions. It's not an easy job. and [clears throat] um you you've done it for many years and we thank you for your service for all these years and I wish you nothing but the best. I really do. You're you're an intelligent young man and I think you will go far. So, thank you for that. And

to my colleagues on the board of health, I get the opportunity to work with these people on a monthly basis. I've been doing the board of health for years now and they're the best group of people. They really are. They they care about our community so much. They work so hard and uh they really make a difference. So I want to just thank you all and I'm happy to be a part of such a loving group and a loving family. Thank you, Mayor. Okay. Thank you, Councilwoman. Councilman Golden.

Thank you, Mayor. Um I want to start off by thanking Linda Colini of the Homeowners Association for the donation. I've said this once before, but we have a big crowd tonight, so I'll repeat it. Uh, long before Linda would come with the checks, the homeowners association has been donating to community organizations for for many years. We're going back decades, many years. It kind of went under the radar, wasn't recognized, but it's important to to note that it didn't just start yesterday. Um, I I want to thank uh Mr. Joe Oswald and and and your wonderful fundraiser with the Chamber of Commerce, and I want to wish the Wallis family all the best in the in the days, months, and years ahead. You and your children. Um, you know, our hearts are always with you guys. Um, to Mr. Demarzio um who who took over the board of health and really really ran with it. I mean if there's ever an example of a community member being appointed to a board and just really taking it on as their personal like like passion and project um that's uh Mr. John Dearzio and his colleagues on on the board of health. Um so uh again tremendous event and I you know as as I go back into just being you know an average resident I I look forward to to watching that. Um I want to thank my my colleagues for their their kind words tonight. Um there's no like big reason why you know why I'm didn't want to run again. Um you know sometimes in life you just feel that it's time to to use your time and do other things whether that's business, work, relationships, friendships. Um and this year I just felt, you know, it's it's it's time to to create some space to to pursue other things that I uh enjoy in life. Um I'm a a proud resident of Elwood Park. I bought my own home last year. So, I I look forward to, you know, staying in this community, staying involved, sitting out there with you folks, and holding this council accountable starting January 1st. Um, but I I very briefly want to just talk about 10 bullet point items of things I'm proud of. Um, not that I did, but that I worked on along with colleagues that are here and and in the past. Um, in the last nine years, um, you know, we were

lucky to have several years of zero [snorts] tax increase on the municipal level. We put together a joint, uh, tennis court project at Elwood Park High School. They stood dormant for 7, eight years. We came together to to fund that project and get it done. Um, right around when I started on the council, our police department was down to 35 police officers. We're now over 50 and fully staffed, making sure our residents are safe. We in uh we launched a program 222 new trees by 2022. We we were successful and the town is healthier and greener for it. Elwood Park has one of the best the best fire department stipen programs for our hardworking volunteers, one of the best in Burn County, if not the state of New Jersey. We reduced the speed limit on East 54th to 25 miles an hour.

[clears throat]

We uh got the veterans monument project done at Burough Field, the turf field at the rec center which is used by hundreds and and thousands of children. And my my my personal pet project, the the lighting project, um which everyone can see now, but the part that wasn't mentioned tonight is that's just the first part. Phase two, $700,000 in grant money will take us all the way to Route 4, uh we have $700,000 from the federal government to continue the the the project on Market Street, all the way to the Saddleberg border. And just in last week's paper was yet another grant to get us to Route 46. Um hopefully within three or four years, our two main drags will be beautifully lit up um as a as a point of safety, as a as as a point of pride. Um so I I I thank you all. Um I thank you all for your comments. Um I'm still a resident. My my phone is still on and uh I I thank you all again. Thank you. [applause]

[applause]

Thank you, Councilman. I'd like to say to the Willis family, uh, I apologize for the last event. I wasn't capable of being there, uh, but my heart was there. And, uh, just, uh, my view of of Chris at the time. It's, uh, it seems like he was one in a thousand, one in 10,000. Every once in a while a person comes along like that. Uh it's just they're pure. They're totally into what they're doing. There's no BS about them. They're totally given of what they they're supposed to be doing. And when and when the time came and the children weren't actually involved in the sports, they stood on and for many years after that, that was total dedication. Uh, and I I think that's how he'll be it's his image will be indelible for for for the rest of the time. And what he's done for Elwood Park is here. It's not going nowhere. And it make it makes us even better for that. So, uh, my blessings to you and your family and to Chris. He's he's listening right now. He's, uh, I think he's probably saying, "Let's play some ball. Um, as far as u the board of health goes, uh, I think we have one of the best board of healths in the in the county of Bergen. Uh, they they reach out far beyond the the their dos and don'ts that they're supposed to do. They've created a whole different image of the board of health of Elwood Park, how they extended it out to the seniors. And uh, John and company, I take my hat off to you. a state of course and we do appreciate your existence. I feel so blessed that I I have the opportunity to be the mayor

of this town with the people I'm surrounded by. Uh they're not talkers, they're workers, and for that I am eternally grateful. Well, that's all I have. Uh I think I've reached it all. Okay, we're moving along. [snorts] All right.

Okay. Moving on to ordinances. We have ordinances on second reading. Let me get myself situated. Resolution R-369-25 introduced order in December 25-31 on second reading. Whereas the public notice has been given by the burough clerk that an ordinance entitled bond ordinance to authorize the undertaking of storm insanitary sewer improvements at various locations and buy and for the burrow of Elwood Park in the county of Bergen, New Jersey to appropriate the sum of $400,000 to pay the cost thereof to make down payment to authorize the issuance of bonds to finance such appropriation and to provide for the issuance of bond anticipation notes in anticipation of the issuance of such bonds was introduced and passed in a meeting held on Thursday, November 13, 2025, and that further consideration of this ordinance will be taken up at this meeting, whereas all persons interested in said ordinance were given an opportunity to be heard concerning the same. Now therefore, it be resolved by the mayor council of the bure of Emwood Park that an ordinance entitled bond ordinance to authorize the undertaking of storm and sanitary sewer improvements at various locations and buy and for the burough of Emwood Park and the county of Bergen, New Jersey to appropriate the sum of $400,000 to pay the cost thereof to make a down payment to authorize the issuance of bonds to finance such appropriation and to provide for the issuance of bond anticipation notes in anticipation of the issuance of such bonds Pass on final reading.

May I have a motion to open to the public? Second. Anyone from the public here to speak on this ordinance and this ordinance alone? If not, I'll close the public portion. May I have a motion to adopt the ordinance? So move. Second. Call the roll, please. First by Council President Peligine, second by Councilman Samson. On roll call, we have council members. Yes. Golc. Yes. Samson, yes. Sheridan, yes. Troy, yes. Council President Peller Green. Yes.

Motion carries. Next, we have resolution R-370-25. Introduce ordinance number 25-32 on second reading. Whereas a public notice has been given by the burough clerk that an ordinance entitled an ordinance amending section 7-35.6 handicap parking in a municipal parks to add Cherry Hill Park was introduced and passed at a meeting held on Thursday, November 13th, 2025. And that further consideration of this ordinance will be taken up at this meeting. And whereas all persons interested in said ordinance were given an opportunity to be heard concerning the same. Now therefore it be resolved by the mayor and council of the bur of Elma Park that an ordinance entitled an ordinance amending section 7-35.6 handicap parking in municipal parks to add Cherry Hill Park pass on final reading.

May I have a motion to open to the public? So move. Anyone from the public here to speak on this ordinance? If not, I'll close the public portion. May I have a motion to adopt the ordinance? So move. Second. Call the role, please. First by Council President Pel Green. Second by Councilman Golbeck. On roll call, we have Council Members Folo. Yes. Golc. Yes. Samson, yes. Sheridan, yes. Choice, yes. Council President Pellegrine, yes.

Motion carries. Next, we have resolution R-371-25. Introduce ordinance number 25-33 on second reading. Whereas the public notice has been given by the burough clerk that an ordinance entitled an ordinance enacting burough code section 20-5 use of personal recreation transport vehicles on Burough Turfield to address Turfield safety and maintenance was introduced and passed at a meeting held on Thursday, November 13, 2025 and that further consideration of this ordinance will be taken up at this meeting. And whereas all persons interested in said ordinance were given an opportunity to be heard concerned in the same. Now therefore, it be resolved by the mayor and council of the Bur of Elwood Park that an ordinance entitled an ordinance enacting Burough Code section 20-5, use of personal recreation transport vehicles on burrow turf fields to address turf field safety and maintenance. Pass on final reading.

May I have a motion to open to the public? So move. Anyone from the public here to speak on this ordinance? If not, I'll close the public portion. May I have a motion to adopt the ordinance? So move. Second. Call the role, please. First by Council President Peligreen. Second by Councilman Foso. On roll call we have council members Folo. Yes. Golc. Yes. Samson. Yes. Sheridan. Yes. Tracy. Yes. Council President Pellegrine. Yes.

Motion carries. Next we have resolution R-372-25. Introduce Ordinance number 25-34 on second reading. Whereas a public notice has been given by the burough clerk that an ordinance entitled an ordinance amending section 16-1.2 two, lawns and shrubs height restrictions and 16-1.3 failure to maintain lawns and shrubs to address private tree hazard remediation by the burrow was introduced and passed in a meeting held on Thursday, November 13th, 2025 and that further consideration of this ordinance would be taken up at this meeting and whereas all persons interested in said ordinance were given an opportunity to be heard concerning the same. Now therefore be resolved by the mayor council of the burl park that an ordinance entitled an ordinance amending section 16-1.2 lawns and shrubs height restrictions in 16-1.3 failure to maintain lawns and shrubs to address private tree hazard remediation by the burrow pass on final reading.

Motion to open to the public. So move second. Anyone from the public here to speak on this ordinance? If not close the public portion. May I have a motion to adopt the ordinance? So move second. Call the roll, please. First by council president peligine. Second by councilman folo. On roll call we have council members for solo. Yes. Golabbec. Yes. Samson. Yes. Sheridan. Yes.

Troy. Um actually I would like to make a motion to table this for further discussion. I'm not very comfortable with some of the language in it um that gives the discretion to the bureau. Um, we have a we already have a motion. Okay, then I'll vote no. Okay, council president. Yes.

Motion carries. Moving on to our consent agenda. We have the following resolutions. Resolution R-373-25, approval of payroll. R-374-25, approval of bills list. R-375-25 authorized vacation buyback. R-376-25 award of bid 2023 Green Acres Program and Wood Drive Park. R-377-25 resolution to refund taxexempt veteran. R-378-25 resolution to refund tax exempt veteran. R-379-25 amendment to the 2025 fire department clothing allowance. R-380-25 resolution to relocate a bus stop. R-3 381-25 appointment of police towers. R-382-25 approved handicap parking space veterans place. R-383-25 appointment of firefighter. R-384-25 resignation of firefighters. R-385-25 person-toperson liquor license transfer. R-386-25 resolution to approve the consent agenda.

May I have a motion to accept the consent agenda? So moved. Second. Any discussion? Call the RO, please. First by Council President Pel Green, second by Councilman Golbec. On roll call, we have Council members Folo. I'm going to recuse on 382, 383, and 384. I'm going to vote no on 376-25, which is the Elmo Drive. Elwood Drive Park improvements. Yes to the rest. Okay. Glick. Yes. Samson. Yes. Sheridan. Yes. Tracy. [clears throat]

I'm going to recuse from R-379-25, R-383-25, and R-384-25. Yes to the rest. Council President Pelgraine. Yes. Motion carries. Chenet, just um real quick, I forgot 379 as well. Okay. To recuse. Okay. Okay. Moving on to departmental reports. We have the board of health meeting minutes from October 20th, 2025 and the library board meeting minutes from October 20th, 2025. May I have a motion to accept the reports? Some move. Second. Thank you.

We have the two. Correct. Any discussion? All in favor? I. Okay. Mayor, this concludes my portion of the meeting. I will turn it over to you for council reports. Okay. Council reports. Um Mr. Folo, we'll start with you.

Yeah, Mayor. Mine is uh going to be quick. I just want to clarify my vote uh today for voting against the um Elwood Drive park improvements. Um, one of the reasons why, well, the reason why I voted against it is because, um, I don't think it brings out the full potential of what could go at Elwood Park, uh, Elwood Drive Park. Um, after two years of planning, there was supposed to be a pickle ball, uh, court there, a volleyball court, um, and a lot of things for the residents. Uh but with an over $200,000 grant that we got in the pre-election move, uh this majority decided to take that out uh to present to the residents that they weren't spending over the grant. However, it it seems that we spent more money than what it would have costed us to put those things there just in redesign and engineering fees and cancelling other grants uh that we were supposed to get for improvements like uh the marina by the uh by the river. Um, so doing all that and then moving uh to redesign the um turf field um the the phase two of the turf field actually costed us more money than giving residents more options at Elmo Drive Park. So my vote was no just because I think that Elmo Drive Park is a great park to redesign in a certain way uh and in a move to show the residents that they were saving money actually costed us more money. So that's why my vote was no. Other than that, progress. Mayor,

I'd like to fact check that a little. Councilman, uh, regarding uh the um the park and the amenities that have been stricken from uh from uh the proposal. The only reason we're not putting those amenities in is because the grant does not cover it. and we're all cognizant of of taxes and to where we would have to come out of pocket and the taxpayer would have to pay for that. As far as the marina goes, uh once again, we got to be cognizant of taxes. There was that was1 to$1 there. And at this at this point, there was no no made no sense or was not affordable for us to continue on that project. All right, moving along. Uh, Councilman Samson, did I get you already? No, that was before. Okay. Yes, sir. Thank you. The I have one small comment. As far as the uh Marina Park is concerned, as the mayor said, it was a lot of money on our on our end to uh match that grant. And also it makes no sense to me to make improvements to a park that's uh regularly floods and no one can assure could assure us that there wasn't going to be damage to things that we spend money on. So uh that's my opinion as far as my committee reports. Um I attended the planning board meeting last week. Um uh the MLB project is is stunning. It's awesome. It's huge. Uh we we uh approved their sign package. Um Elma Park's existing sign uh ordinance is very limiting and that big huge building which has no exposure to any residences, excuse me, [clears throat] offers a big um area for them to put uh signs up, electronic signs. I made sure the stipulation went in that in that approval that there shall be no live

video on those signs to distract passing traffic. Uh that was the uh planning board meeting. Finance committee met finance committee met yesterday. We paid our bills. Our own our own EMS service continues to be strong, busy, and responding to our residents emergencies. Uh response time typically is when was it was within 3 minutes. So 3 minutes from the time you call for an ambulance, no probably no more than five, you're going to get an ambulance there. We have one available. If there if it's two calls or three calls at the same time, then we're going to have to get assistance from outside agencies. We're doing our best making it as strong as possible. And we're also uh plans are evolving to replace an ambulance that's at the end of its service life. They're both old, but the uh obviously the first one's going to get replaced. Uh we're going to do the best we can to get funding for that and get that done shortly. My other burrow activities uh uh attended the tree lighting and we welcomed our new Elfie. If you've seen Elfie sitting next to the Christmas tree there lit up and also the manura lighting at Burrow Field. I attended both the homeowners party as well as our AP party last week which were well attended and great events. Uh AP um Jana doing a great job as president. Um I make sure that my wife helps you as her vice president. I kind of make sure she's out there giving you a hand. Uh it's been a very busy time lately. Great things are happening in Arlma Park. Merry Christmas. Happy holidays and let's welcome in our new year on a strong note. Mayor, that's all I have.

Thank you, Councilman. Councilman Goolenbeck. [clears throat] You know, Mayor, in in all the years we've been serving together, I think the one subject we had the most passionate arguments about was grants. And normally I'd be all over this debate between you and Councilman Folo, but being that it's my last meeting, I'm going to let it go. Though I I tend to agree with Councilman Folo more. Um, happy holidays. I wish everyone a happy new year. And uh, as always, at the end, we have our public portion. I look forward to hearing what our residents have to say on on various issues. Thank you. Thank you. Councilwoman Sheridan.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, basically the tree lighting, we had a lot of people. I just want to say thank you to the um Ela Park Police Department, our fire department, and our DPW. Um, we also had the snowstorm and on top of the snowstorm, we ended up having water mane breaks. Um, our DPW was out there almost three days straight. So, I just want to give a big shout out to them. Great job. Um, I also want to wish everybody a um happy holiday season, a happy new year. Uh, be safe out there and um, God bless Elwood Park. That's it, ma'am.

Thank you, Councilwoman. Councilwoman Troy.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, for my wreck update, the Elmo Park Recreations partnered with Latin Heat Moves and the Elmo Park Latinos Association for a free dance workout on December 22nd at 7:30 p.m. in the Senior Center. You can register online at latinheatmoves.com and use the code EPR to get the class for free. Um, my board of ed update. Um, let's see. Uh, as I mentioned previously on Tuesday, the board of ed um at the board of ed meeting, I was honored alongside um Councilman uh Samson and Linda Colombini to present uh a check in the amount of $3,000. Preschool enrollment opens January 12th through the 30th. You must provide proof of Elma Park residency by presenting a copy of a deed, a property tax bill, or a copy of the lease that includes the children. Additionally, they'll need to present any two of the following: a current utility bill, a homeowners or car insurance, a payub, or a driver's license. Uh let's see. Um children that are eligible for preK3 must be three by the uh by October 1st, 2026. And for preK4, they must be four by October 1st, 2026. And then uh the Elmo Park Patterson Elks Lodge will be hosting a winter readalong on January 17th at 12:00 p.m. at the lodge for grades 1st through 3rd. The title of the book that's being read is The Biggest Snowman Ever. Every child that attends will receive a copy of the book. Do a build a snowman craft and be served lunch and dessert. If you'd like your ch your child to attend, uh you could RSVP to me at 2011-674-6589.

And then lastly, I'd like to wish the residents, Mayor Kleti, um my fellow council members, the chief, and all of our employees, uh a happy and safe holiday season. Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman, Council President Pel Green.

Yes. Good evening, everyone. My residents assistance program update. Last week on December 11th, 12th, and 13th, we had our annual toy store event to help those in need. Over 100 children in our Elwood Park community will have toys for the holidays because of this event. Also, 60 families in need will receive gift cards to Shop to ensure a nice meal for the holidays. Thank you to my team, Angela Fava, Dion York, and our police department. A big thank you to our businesses, our families, and our friends and our residents, and all the volunteers who are always there to help us. Thank you to the mayor and council for always giving us support for this program. our community working together makes this program thrive and be able to help so many in need. God bless you all. And just just a little note, you know, I I read these things and I read facts and I read numbers, but when you're in that room with the parents that come in and they say to us, they say to the team, "We may not have had a toy for our child this year." And some people might say, "Really in Elwood Park, does that really happen?" Yes, it really happens. People are without food. People can't give their children toys. People can't pay their bills. So, this program is a blessing. And it's a blessing because all of you, all of our community rallies together to make this program a success. So, again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart so that we can help others. My board of health update, their next meeting will be held on January 12th at 7 p.m. It will be their reorganization meeting as well as their regular meeting. All are welcome to attend.

What was that? Lastly, I would like to wish everyone here and at home a happy holiday and a happy new year. May 2026 bring us all good health, happiness, and most of all peace. Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman. And I would just like like to end up by saying uh merry Christmas and a happy new year, a safe one and u a prosperous one. Uh but before I we continue, we have a celebrity in the audience here that has just arrived. Uh I believe you all know him. Mr. Wimbley, would you please come up? Would you like to say a few words?

Yes. Yes, I would. Thank you.

Uh good evening, Elmo Park mayor, city council, residents of Elmo Park. Uh it's really uh an indeed honor and we had a vote in session today, Dan. So, we're flying up the highway to make sure we made it here to be here with you today. Um, I can remember, I guess, 14 years or so ago, Dan helped me in my first campaign when Pathmark was still here and we were hand out literature in front of Path Pathmark. Uh, Councilwoman, you know, about those Pathmark days. So, Dan, uh, it's been a pleasure to watch you grow, uh, not just politically, but as a man. Um, it's a pleasure even to see you on the soccer field uh when I have to do a double take to make sure it's you working soccer games, but uh your best is yet to come. Uh you are a true star when it comes to not just politics but people. Um your respect that you've uh garnered not just in uh Bergen County but throughout the state. I recently had a conversation with somebody in the state of New Jersey about you and you're known statewide and um I can say I'm proud to serve not just LD35 but here in New Jersey that you are just getting started. So on behalf of myself, Senator Benji Wimberly, Assemblyman Albaziz, Assemblywoman Shiovanda Sumpter, and Assemblyman Le Kinyatta Stewart, we just want to present you with a proclamation which is going to be read into record and is signed by Senate President NickQatari and Speaker Craig Coughlin, uh, honoring you for your superior service as a councilman here in the Burough Elma Park. God bless. [applause] and like to wish everybody else a merry Christmas and a happy new year. God bless.

Thank you, Senator. We appreciate that. [applause] Wings are mere blue 42. You got it. Yes. Go Giants. I don't know about [laughter] Okay, moving along. Um, at this time, that will conclude our council comments. Uh we will open the floor to the public, but before we do that, I know we have a lot of people here uh concerned about the Miller Avenue and the sober living. I'd like our our attorney to read an opening statement. Mr. Attorney,

thank you, Mayor. I know we had some comments last week and there were some questions and a lot of Could you get a microphone? Excuse mine.

Better. Yep. Much better.

Uh so there was a lot of uh discussion at our work session. Was it last week, two weeks ago? Um about the cooperative sober living residences. uh some questions about uh the bureau's role with respect to uh licensing of these um facilities, how the locations are selected, etc. Um the bureau has a fact sheet that I prepared that is I believe on the table in front of you, but just before the the comments are opened, uh a quick overview. Uh so lure as a cooperative sober living residence, uh which is a class F license is governed by state law and the department of community affairs uh rules. Operators submit applications directly to the state and must comply with certain state requirements regarding the operation. Uh that includes having an on-site supervisor and certain program uh and activity requirements. Class F licenses uh are also periodically uh inspected by the state department of community affairs as part of its lensure process. Uh the bureau does not select the sites for cooperative sober living residences and has no control or involvement in the state's licensor process uh or decisions. Uh there are no restrictions under the law regarding the distance from schools or churches or any other businesses. There are also no restrictions regarding the number of cooperative sober living residences which may operate in a municipality. Uh questions or concerns about the lensure that is granted by the department of community affairs uh can and should be addressed to that agency. uh the bureau can't speak to those licensing. [snorts] Um the bureau receives notice directly from the department of community affairs after a class life a class F license has already been granted to a specific residence in the bureau. Uh once it is licensed by the state, the department of community affairs becomes the sole enforcing agency with respect to uniform construction code and regulations governing rooming and boarding houses. Uh that's again a matter of state law which which trumps any ordinances that the bureau uh might purport to to implement. Uh state law also

specifically exempts cooperative sober living residences from certificate of occupancy requirements in certain circumstances including where uh it involves a single family dwelling in a group R3 or R5 zone. Uh so long as those residences are being utilized by no more than 10 occupants excluding staff and operators. uh sober living homes finally are protected under the federal fair housing act and the New Jersey law against discrimination which prohibits discrimination based on disability including addiction. Uh the the burrow consistent with state law treats cooperative sober living residences in a non-discriminatory manner. Um and that is the the overview that we wanted to make sure the residents understood given the the level of confusion that seems to exist in this area.

Thank you Mr. Attorney. We have a copy of that in case any of our chief said it's in in the front. Yes, in front. We do have copies in case any of uh the residents uh care to have a copy of that. Uh so may I have a motion to open the floor to the public? Some move second. If there are no objections, I will open the floor to the public. Anyone care to speak on any topic whatsoever? Uh that we'll start with that lady. She had her hand up first. I asked you, it seems like there'll be a lot of people commenting tonight to uh keep your uh comments to about five minutes so we can have the opportunity of hearing everybody speak and let's remain civil.

Yes, ma'am. I thought it was 10. I prepared 10. My hit the button. It's got to turn red. There you go. Hello. Okay. We need your name and address.

Uh Sharon Coaches, 52 Miller Avenue. And I would like to address first the residents from the DB Living Silverhouse that are here. Um, I worked for 36 years with the children who suffered the consequences of addiction. I am all about children and I have scars from it. So don't take anything personally. I'm about the kids. So I hope you understand. My name is Sharon Coaches and my family and I have been taxpayers and residents for this Elmo Park community for over 50 years. I am here tonight because children on my block are being put at risk and the children with the legal p the people with the legal power to prevent that have chosen not to act. The property at 58 Miller Avenue of the Piso House is located just 50 ft from a statelicicensed preschool and only steps from middle school, grammar school, and high school. The assertion that the building department was unaware of the preschool is not credible. That preschool has operated for 18 years, holds a five-star rating, and was subjected to a surprise inspection only after I questioned how a sober living house could be approved next to it. Approving this peer-run residence with no license, no licensed on-site supervision beside children is not an oversight. It's a conscious acceptance of risk. Relapses, impaired judgment, and impulsivity are wellreognized realities of substance abuse. Placing such a facility next to schools creates a foreseeable preventable danger to children and choosing to ignore that danger is an affirmative decision. For the past six weeks, I've documented incidents, asked direct questions, and followed every proper channel. What I received in return was silence, dismissal, and deflection. That is not leadership, and that is not lawful. Addiction is a legitimate medical condition with real recovery needs. Yet the placement at the Solo House ignores those needs entirely and fails both the Sober House residents and the surrounding community. There is no public transportation, no nearby

services, no stores, no meaningful recovery infrastructure, and all which are state requirements. Another serious problem in violation is that the individuals have been living at the VO house for the past 2 months without proper documentation or fire inspections. When confronted with the issue, the building inspector brushed it off at me and said, "I'm not a detective." Despite multiple eyewitnesses confirming that the residents already live there, this is not a minor oversight. It is a clear failure to enforce basic safety and legal requirements. We already know what happens when risk is ignored. The burrow has lived through that before when a state placed resident struggling with addiction on Miller AB caused a fire that killed her, nearly harmed an elderly landlord, and forced an entire neighborhood to evacuate. That tragedy is not in the past. It continues to shadow every resident that lives on Miller Avenue. Mr. Robert Kenny of the DCA, who is very transparent, confirmed that zoning and land use decisions, property maintenance enforcement, and parking regulations are the responsibility of the local authority, not the state, and that the state oversight of these facilities is not indefinite. After the first year, all responsibility returns back to the local government. After the initial year, the bureau is required to inspect these properties and enforce compliance, but documents prove this is not happening. State records show multiple properties in our town are violating both state and local rules. If violations like these are allowed, it raises a serious question. Why is the municipality failing to enforce its own laws? According to that website, the River Road House has 15 residents. The Lincoln house has 12. The Van Riper House also has 12, far exceeding both the town ordinance of two residents per bedroom and the state limit of limit of 10 per house. Yet, these residents are left unchecked. More alarming is an operator publicly stated he intends to open more sober houses in Ellen Park and has been contacted by members of the burrow for guidance. This placement of a

sober house is not hopeful and only accepts a perceivable risk to children. Children are not collateral damage. Under New Jersey law, children are a protected class. The law does not require certainty of harm, only foreseeability and the ability to act. You have both. One of the statements claiming that you will treat this like any other house is not neutrality. It's turning a blind eye to danger. This is not like any other house, and the law does not allow you to treat it as if it were. State bill S415 requires criminal background checks for these homes. A bill uh Assembly Bill A3556 requires an additional on-site supervision during school hours for sober rooming houses located within one mile of a school. The state will now allow any child inside the sober living house without their legal guardian. No child is allowed inside is meaningless when resident freely move throughout the neighborhood. The risk is proximity. The risk is exposure. The risk is what happens outside where children and residents inevitably cross paths. Attorney Trent stated that residents will not have cars, which by the way there is no guarantee, and therefore the recovering will be walking throughout the neighborhood. Mr. Kenny from the DCA confirmed that sober living residents and their guests are fully allowed to have cars on the property. There are there are also three there right now in the vacant house. This council must decide whether it will enforce existing laws, protect children, and safeguard taxpayer resources. Despite having clear authority, the burrow requirements should be zoning review, parking analysis, and safety based site evaluation. Even when residents ask for one on the on the record at the December 5th meeting, we were dismissed. And yet, the violations continue, the profits grow for the sober living enterprises and the community pays the price. When will our leaders stop looking the other way and start protecting the residents they swore to serve? We already have five of these facilities and adding Miller AB will make six within our two square mile burrow. Hackinack has the

same amount and it's double our size and our population. Saddlebook has one. Fairone has one. Our neighboring towns, their officials honestly, but the rail wire ours who decided that placing another facility on a street saturated with children, steps from schools, athletic fields, and one near the rec center was acceptable based on what safety review? Based on what written findings? Based on what? Professional assessment. Towns including Montville, Emerson, Westwood, and others united in a coalition to prevent the unchecked overpopulation of sober living houses, taking decisive action to protect their communities. Elmo Park treat as if they're just a house without adequate consideration of the risk for both the community and even the residents of this sober living house. Nothing in state licensing removes local authority. Dr. Klein from Bergen County Mental Health Services said it clearly. Local municipalities are responsible for zoning, land use, house maintenance, and parking. Think about this. Would you would anyone consider placing a sober living house next to one of our marijuana dispensaries? Our town has 25 licenses for those businesses. Of course not. That would not be acceptable. This is the principle at stake. Municipal decisions must must protect public safety, comply with the law, and serve the welfare of the entire community. So tonight, what actually have you done to protect all of us? Under New Jersey law, these rooming houses are inspected once a year, increasing to twice annually, starting around March. Twice per year. Is this a good level of inspection? When a home is located next to a sober living house, that raises documented safety concerns. Homeowners may be required to disclose that information when selling their homes. If we fail to disclose it, we can be sued for non-disclosure because buyers have the right to know about conditions that could materially affect their safety, comfort, or property value. This means homeowners, the taxpayers that fund your

salaries, are stuck paying the price for your inaction. Property values may decline, insurance questions may arise, disclosures may be mandatory, and the financial burden falls entirely on the taxpayers. On top of that, many residents are now forced to invest in costly personal safety measures entirely at their own expense. Neither the burrow nor Miss Folo are covering these costs, creating a real financial burden on families who simply want to feel safe. Beyond the expense, residents might also be subjected to the trauma of listening of witnessing relapses and overdoses in their neighborhood. We saw that already on Miller Avenue. Families invest their life savings in their homes. They deserve clear, honest answers, not evasion, not silence. This is not stigma. It is about fairness, property rights, and responsible town planning. Councilman Fisolo is publicly listed as a liaison for child and youth advocacy, a role meant to protect children in our community. Yet, a family member of his is the one placing a sober living house directly next to our children. This raises serious questions about whether the interests of children are being put first. Mayor Kleti and the council hide behind it's the state, but under New Jersey state law, they are failing their fundamental duty to protect the children and have focused on protecting sober house residents. This council still has both the authority and the obligation to act. And the public is watching to see whether you will. To the mayor, the chief, and the building inspector, what you have demonstrated on Miller A is not leadership. It is a raw misuse of power. You pushed through a predetermined agenda behind closed doors, stripped residents of a meaningful voice, and knowingly sacrificed the quality of our life on our entire block. Hiding behind a hostile, disrespectful attorney will not protect you from accountability or from the fact that you have trampled the rights of the Elma Park law- abiding residents. I'm not going away, and neither are these concerns. I will continue to speak up, speak up until this burrow addresses them openly and

honestly because silence helps no one. Not the residents of the sober houses, not the families next door, and certainly not the children who walk past that property every day. We need to protect our children. My conscience is clear because I've acted to protect them. The responsibility now rests with you, the council. Everyone in this room tonight, remember when you vote, remember exactly who's responsible for these decisions because their choice affect your property, your community, and most of all your children. Thank you, [applause] Mayor. Mayor, before we mayor, before we go on to another resident, uh I think it is unfair to associate me with something that a family member is deciding to do. I have zero say on this. If the the property has anything to do with with the decision that we have to make, I must recuse. A family member could be a criminal. A family member could be uh the president of the United States. a a family member could be a murderer. It does not mean that it it reflects on me. I'm going to continue to fight for the children in this town. I'm going to continue to be an advocate for the youth of this town. And I'm going to continue to fight for the residents of this town. This property of a family member who doesn't even live in state who I have not spoken to for about 8 years should not reflect my tenure on the council. Should not reflect any decision that I make on the council. Uh so to to to name it the F solo house or to name it uh to call me out because it is a family member is just unfair because it's not my home. I'm not up here making the decision to rent my home out uh to to something that the the town has concerns with. Uh so I think it's just blatantly unfair uh to associate something that a family member is doing or deciding to do with uh my tenure on the council. And that's that's what I'm going to say

about this. Thank you. Thank you. [applause] Anyone else care to speak on the matter or any matter for whatsoever? Yes. Yes, sir. Name, rank, and serial number. Steve got Did you get that? On behalf of my [clears throat]

I was hoping my voice would carry. Good evening, mayor and members of the council. My name, as I stated, Steven Kosovich on behalf of my mother, Phil Kasovich, residing at 40 Godwin Avenue. I'm speaking tonight to urge the council to proactively draft and adopt a municipal ordinance to regulate the density and placement of cooperative sober living residences or CSLRs within our township. Our goal is not to exclude individuals in recovery who are protected by the Fair Housing Act, but to ensure that these residences are integrated into our community in a way that is sustainable for both our residents and the neighborhoods. Currently, without local ordinances, we risk clustering or overconentration, which research shows can actually undermine the very normalization and community integration that these homes are intended to provide. I ask that the council look at the following three pillars for a new ordinance. Reasonable spacing requirements following the lead of townships like Randolph and Rockaway. We should implement a minimal distance minimum distance such as 1,000 ft between CSLRs. This prov prevents any one block from becoming a de facto institutional zone and preserves the residential character of our neighborhoods. Protected number two, protected zone buffers. We should establish reasonable buffers between these residences and sensitive areas like primary and secondary schools. A 1,00 ft buffer consisting with our existing drug-free school zones provides a rational basis for location while still allowing ample opportunities for housing elsewhere in town. And number three, strict licensing compliance. Under the new 2025 New Jersey state law S2952, the state has increased penalties for unlicensed homes to $25,000. and our local ordinances should require all CSLRs to provide proof of their class F license from the DCA to the township clerk. This ensures that the town is aware of these homes and can verify they are meeting the mandatory twice yearly state inspections. Thank you.

Thank you. [applause] Anyone else? Okay. Yes, there

your name and address. Vana, 207 Elm Street. And um kind of funny, last time I saw Mr. Folo, he was my political science teacher. [laughter] Um so I hope you know whether you agree with what I have to say or not, you're proud of me. So, okay. [laughter]

Good evening. My name is Vana. I'm the daughter of Sonia Seta Zaninoich and Petra Zaninoich who have been homeowners in Elmo Park since 2008. For the past 18 years, my mom has been the sole owner and family childcare provider of our inhome family child care called Early Arts. I brought her flyers if anybody wants to see if you want them. My mom actually could not be here tonight to speak on behalf of her business herself as she is busy working with children. So, I jumped at the opportunity to speak on her behalf as it gave me the chance to do something I don't often get to do. Brag about how amazing my mom is. Since 2008, my mom has been one of the best preschool teachers. Not only caring for children while their parents are away, but passionately teaching them about the world. She has made sure that children leave her program more than ready for kindergarten and that every child has a positive and fulfilling experience in her care. She's so passionate about her job. I often complain that she never stops talking about it and it has slowly taken over every corner corner of our home. Everywhere I look is some art project that her students did or toy castles that we can't touch because she promised them it would remain exactly the way they left it before they returned tomorrow. She works tirelessly and this shows through the relationships she still has with her preschool students years later. Last September she attended one of her preschool students from 2009 sweet 16. I am beyond proud of my mom and I'm grateful for the pillar of the community she has become. During co we learned how important family child care homes are and that without child care society simply can't move on. She's not just an essential worker but one of the most underappreciated. Family childare homes are notorious for their low ROI and are often called passion projects within the childare industry. A large reason for this is because under New Jersey state law, family child care homes are not allowed more than five kids at one time. This puts a cap on how

much the business can grow and how much income it can generate. We respect these rules and have always abided by the guidelines set forth not just by the state but by the city of El Park. These rules are in place to protect the children of Omo Park and to put their safety and security first above all else. I am here today to ask you, have we done the same in regards to the halfway house we're planning to establish one door down? Our concern is not with the concept of sober living itself. We do not intend to discriminate against individuals in recovery and fully respect the protections provided to them under state and federal fair housing laws. Our concern lies in the question that the same way there are rules in place preventing family child care homes from operating in a way that could potentially harm children, have we considered the placement and regulation of such a facility within a tightly packed school- centered residential neighborhood like ours. Unlike some New Jersey municipalities, Elmo Park does not appear to have an explicit school buffer requirement for sober homes written in its zoning code. At the state level, New Jersey does not impose a universal ban on sober living homes near schools. However, cooperative sober living residences must comply with the rooming and boarding house act and any applicable local land use regulations. Recent state actions reinforce that sober homes must follow municipal zoning requirements. The town of Elmo Park and the governing bodies elected into office by us, the residents, holds the power to pass ordinances to regulate where sober living homes can be located, adding control beyond just the state rules. We already have five in Elmo Park, one of which is directly across from the middle and high school. This one is going to be within me feet of our preschool, which cares for children under the age of five. At current, Elmo Park does not have a clearly stated ordinance that establishes a minimum separation distance between sober living homes and schools such as my mom's preschool, which is one house away. Townships such as Howell and Lynwood have at at town council meetings just like this one made

the decision to establish ordinances which require sober living homes to be a thousand feet from schools and other sober homes, creating clear zones and guidelines for these residences. Just like anything else in our city, sober living homes have the possibility to either thrive or fail and cause harm to the community. This is true in the case of our family childare home as well. There are rules in place that do not allow for us to care for more than five kids at a time as it would pose a safety risk to the children. All we are asking for is that the same way there are rules and regulations in place for that, we establish rules and regulations for sober living homes as well. So yeah, thank you. [applause]

Mayor, anyone else? Mayor, can I just say something? Vana, I'm proud of you. Um, you know, yeah, I I was Vana's teacher. I remember her getting straight A's in my class. Her writing was superb, and now that I just saw her speaking is even better. So, uh, I'm glad you're doing well.

Anyone else care to speak? Yes, sir. Hi everyone. I'm uh my name is Mark Manani. I own the DB House Sober Living, which operates four properties in town at 413 River Road, 88 Van Riper, 564-566 Market Street, and uh 2011 Lincoln A. And um I brought a bunch of the residents of which this is a a a small portion of the people that have gotten and stayed sober as a result of living in an environment that I provided. Um I am also a person, just so you guys are aware, long-term recovery. December 5th, I've celebrated 14 years sober. Um this is not my house. [applause] I don't have any prepared statement. I didn't know what to expect. I just showed up cuz I caught wind of it on Facebook and uh and wanted to come. And the only thing I can really share with you guys aside from some of the things in the law is that I've done this 413 River Road. There's a lot of things that are being said that aren't true. It is inspected once a year by the fire department acting as agents of the state of New Jersey to comply with all laws and licensing requirements. The licenses are posted on the wall. The DCA sends out people once a year to check everything that is going on. nothing is above, nothing is below board that's done there. The the the the uh requirements and the allowance for residences, they come in, they measure the rooms, they make sure that the uh homes are wellkept. They um they make sure that you're not going over an occupancy. They're very strong with those rules. So, everything is allowed. There's separate licensing, for example, just to kind of address the River Roadhouse. It's a two family home. It's got six uh eight bedrooms and five bathrooms. That's why it's allowed to kind of go over that 10 person limit to address the the 88 van Riper. Yes, on

the website it says uh 12 beds because as he read it is 10 residents and two operators. Those are the people that are tasked with making sure that the rules are being followed. It's very strict. We drug test and breathalyze. There is zero tolerance for use of any mindaltering substance in the house. the residents that come in just so you're aware as residents conser I probably would be the same way if I wasn't a sober guy who lives this way right the truth is is that these are not state funded facilities these are rent based these could be your boss your son your daughter your father your mother your brother your husband and your wife that's who's here if these guys and girls were to stand up and again this is just a fraction of the people they're working members of the community I am a taxpaying individual in town I don't use any resources if you want to pull records. I opened the the Market Street house in 20120. The amount of police, fire, first responder calls is two in five almost coming on six years. Um there's never been a crime committed by a DB house resident. I've seen things in the past on Facebook if an addict or alcoholic were to relapse that they would go and rob the neighbor's house so they become a target. I can promise you that that's never happened. The most the the person that you should be afraid of is the active alcoholic and addict that lives on the other side of you that is an active addiction that is doing these things. And let's not let's not keep our heads in the sand and not think that that is actually going on in this and every town across the country. The opiate epidemic has killed tens of thousands of people in the state of New Jersey over the last 10 years. It's a fact. You can look that stuff up. I don't want to comment on the law. I appreciate a lot of the things that were said. I appreciate the way that the town handles all the good things that happened at the beginning of the meeting and I I can't I can't make anyone accept anything. I can't I'm not here to change any real minds, but if you'd ever want, you can reach out. My number is the one on on the the website. I I have a thing where when anybody goes on my website,

right, it alerts me on my phone and I know that someone's about to call me and I saw a lot of Elmwood Park in the last few weeks coming up and now I think I understand why. and it was just people doing some research on what is going on there. I'm an open book. Last week, if you were to come to the VFW, we're there doing a recovery meeting and dinner every night. It's open to the public. Last week, we had 200 sober alcoholics and drug addicts in the VFW at six veterans place. Anyone could have come. It was a great time. Not one person drank. Not one person did a drug. I mean, this is the type of stuff I I would say, and I'm not going to speak for these guys. I'll speak for myself. If it wasn't for sobriety, I wouldn't have anything that I have in my life. Just like the daycare center. We I don't think anybody's looking to impose. This is not my house. Just so you guys know, I'm just speaking on behalf of what I do. It's still a labor of love. It's not that I'm out here printing money and getting rich off of the the backs of down alcoholics and addicts. I'm in the I've lived in two of the four homes with the people that were in there in the in the period of time getting it started, making sure that it was going to run the right way. I it's not going to be a blight onto the community. Um and and I really don't know what else to say, but if there's questions or you want to come to me after the meeting, I'll hang out for a little bit. I I'll answer any questions that I can in in the way of experience. I can tell you this, most people in town hadn't even known that anybody was there. And the reason that the state designed the laws the way they did and took the power sort of away, the way I understand it, is because of this. because if it was up if if they had to ask permission prior to opening, this is what would happen at every council meeting in the state and people would be unhoused and and have no chance of recovery. So, I mean, that's kind of the way I think that the the the law was written and um we want to be a part of the community and I think we are a positive member of the community in Elmo Park and and beyond. Fair lawn is mine. Uh and Saddlebrook is mine. One of the things for the for the council to sort of in in Saddlebrook, I had to fill out

a paperwork just recently because I know that there's um low-income housing requirements. That's a big battle in the state. I'm not an attorney. I don't know. But those those beds in that town are going to go into their aotment of what there's required. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but it's just something that happened. I would open more in Saddlebrook and Fairlaw. It wasn't I I didn't do one because they told me I could only do one. I did one because it's one of the more recent ones that we did. Um, but we're not trying to flood the town. It's not necessarily that way. It's just we're helping people and I can't there's more people looking for this sort of help than I can possibly provide as it currently stands. So, um, thank you. Thank you, council.

Thank you. [applause] Thank you. Anyone else care to speak? Yes, sir. Good evening. One at a time. One at a time. Yeah, we only got one mic there.

Good evening. Um, I didn't come prepared to say anything but just tell you the truth. Uh, my name is Lewis Cthine. I'm associate pastor at Friendship Baptist Church in Batesville, Arkansas. I left my church home and moved up here because I believed in my friend's vision and I believe in sobriety. I'm the resident at 58 Miller. I've been there for the last two months. And it's a beautiful home. It's going to save lives. And I'm going to be the facilitator over that home. I believe in what God is doing. Now, listen to a lot of talk here tonight talking about community this and community that, neighbor this, and neighbor that. All we're trying to do is help somebody learn how to live. Mark, thank you for your speech because you spoke a lot of truths and thank you for that. I know you I know you personally, but what I'm trying to say is we're not the villains here. We're just trying to help family members. We're trying to help people learn how to live. We're not perfect. We're not perfect at all. And people know that. Just the other day, I had four officers come to my house. Why? Because there was a package at 52 that the driver had left for the second time. And I did not even I'm wondering where my packages and it was on my phone. And I called Amazon. They said, "Well, he said he took a picture. It's at 52 Miller. I knocked on their door. I did what the app told me

to do. I knocked on their door. I left a message. I didn't only go once or twice, but I went three times. Just being a neighbor. I'm not angry. I'm not mad. But nobody ever came to the door. One of the boxes was thrown back on my step at the bottom, but it didn't belong to me. It belonged to my neighbor. So, I politely took it to them. But I sat in my kitchen doing my homework because I'm in college online. I'm trying to get my doctorate and a knock was at my door and there were four police officers at my door. I politely told him to come on in. They asked me, "Did you have a do you have a problem with your neighbor?" I said, "No." I said, "I went over there, knocked on the door inquiring about my packages." They were like, "Oh, well, we got a call and said you were doing this and you were doing that. My life is an open." How

how did it end up? Did you get your packages? I never got my packages. I got my piece. [laughter] I got my piece. And and and you know, I They refunded my money. We We clearly get your point. But what I'm saying is I'm 52. I'm 58 Miller. I'm there by myself. I'm waiting for somebody to come in who needs some help because if we don't help the next man, then the next man may not get some help. We need to help each other. All I've heard was community this and community that. We're supposed to help each other. Lend a hand to your neighbor. I want to I want to read one thing. I woke up this morning and I read Proverbs every day. That was a good start waking up,

right? Am I right?

Yes. Yes. [laughter] That's the best part of it. And I didn't I knew we were coming to this meeting, but this is what really started my day. It was Proverbs 18 in the New King James Version. It says, "The first one to plead his cause seems right until his neighbor comes and examines him." See, we would look as as as in the recovery community, if we did not come and have a voice against the ones who don't want us to be there, they win. We have to show them. We have to show the community by being of assistance, by being of service to one another, by helping the elderly, by looking out for the kids walking down the street. I have all girls, three granddaughters. So, I'm very passionate when it comes to children.

All right, sir. Sir, it's just, you know, I sir, I hate to I don't want to interrupt you, but I just want to say thank you and we thank you for what you've said tonight. Is a safe haven. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. God be with you also. I just want to say good morning. Hold on, hold on, hold on. Please come forward. You want to speak? Yes, I do. Come to the microphone. Give us be calm. Be calm. Just on the motion. Sorry, guys. All right. My name is Mirroski. I'm living in 22 Mill Avenue. And guys, I praise you for whatever you do. Hats off for you guys who sober up. Yes. Sir, sir, sorry, sir, sir. Yes.

I'm sorry. I I allowed the other gentlemen too to face the audience. You have to address us. Yes. I just want to tell you just be be please concern. We have a children's. We have a two girls walking every day there. I I appreciate what you guys doing there. I am not against you. Whatever you guys doing but who going to pay for safety? Who going to pay for something when somebody going to hurt my my girls? I would not leave this thing alone like that if something happened to my girls. I'm not says it's going to happen but nobody can guarantee me. Please understand that we have a fears. Okay, we know what drugs can do. I have a brother who is alcoholic.

You guys is alcoholic. Okay. And I know what you know addiction can do to somebody. So, please take care of our kids. Thank you. Thank you, sir. [applause] Anyone else care to speak? Yes, ma'am. Welcome.

Hi, Rebecca Colandiski. I'm at 20 James Court and previously uh I forget my address. Fmouth Avenue for 35 years. Homeowner in the community since I've been 10 years old. Um, nothing against any of these sober living uh households, but as a community, we need to take care of our community first. And Mr. Folo, I take exception that you were defending yourself, it's your name. You have no choice. It's your name.

What does my name have to do with with anything that's going on? So, if something happens at your home, if something happens at your home that you owned once, Hold on. You you you addressed me. If something happens at at your home that you own on Falmouth AB and a family member had bought it and something happened at that home, am I going to blame you? I'm saying don't defend yourself against that. You have the same name. There's nothing you can What does that have to do with anything? You're defending it. And she didn't say anything about you. I never said I never said if I was for against any facility.

Is that in the community? We had no idea of what was happening that we have seven of these homes in this community. It just came upon us when it became 52 Miller a and next to it. No one that I know and I have plenty of people in my family that are public officials, friends, family, and they didn't know that this was happening. They didn't know that there were seven sober living households in this f in this community. And all of a sudden, it's all over. There's one in Fair, one in Saddlebrook. We have seven. And why? Why? And who's responsible? That's all we're trying to find out at this point in time. Who's responsible for allowing it? And again, no disparaging any of you.

I think I think we can answer that answer that question. That would be the state. Well, that's not what the that's not what is being said here tonight. Who and this is the first that I'm hearing. Who would be responsible?

I don't know. Is it the state? Is it the B? Is it the county? Is it the municipality? If the local authorities have any kind of say so, we should be involved. Communities should know that this is happening. We have to know when there's a pedophile that lives next to us. And I'm not saying again, I'm not I I'm all for rehabilitation. All of us have been touched by people that have problems. But this is not the way to go about it to just surprise residents and all of a sudden you're living in a community that's residential that's affecting my home values that's affecting everyone's home values because of the fact that they're just put in these places. So, we want to know as a community, we want to know as homeowners, as taxpayers, as voters. We want to know why this is happening, how it's happening, and why that they're able to skirt underneath certain laws, zoning laws, parking violations, residency laws, occupancy. If there's occupants that's supposed to be 10, why are there 12 and 14 and 16 in different houses? It doesn't make sense. I can't put 16 people into my home. I can't put 10 people into my home. and I have a four-bedroom home. So, why is it allowed in these houses? Why is it allowed to just show up and with no no further no previous anything

to our community? This is our community. We all grew up here. I know many of you that you grew up here. And again, it's no I'm all for rehabilitation, whether it's alcohol, drugs, whatever it is. I'm very happy that these people have the opportunity to do this. I just don't want it to be surprised in my home or next to my home tomorrow or yesterday when these zoning laws and everything else has not been addressed. Thank you. [applause] Anyone else care to speak on on this subject or any subject? We've we've heard from you already, dear. You want to speak again?

Oh, we're going to let this gentleman, he's he's new. and then we'll get to you.

Hi, my name's Ivan. Um, yeah, when I first just came into, you know, the the room and um everything that was being spoken about with the community and all the help that you guys have been doing, it was it was very um how could I say it? It was it was very intriguing to see how you guys are, you know, helping everybody out and doing all these different events. And I'm like, how could I get involved? You know, that's what I'm telling myself. I was like, I I I should talk to some of these people afterwards and see how I could be of service, right? Um I am also, you know, I'm the owner of 58 Miller or well, not the owner. I'm the renting 58 Miller right now. Um and we are fully going every every step that we have to take, all the legal things that we have to do, which is comply. We have a co we do have a fire. We are not going to have over 10 residents just like you guys had mentioned. You know, we're following all the rules that are being told to us. All we're trying to do is just be part of the community, be of service to the community, you know. Um, you know, Mark mentioned a lot of good good points, right? Like there are background checks done. There are things that people are vetted before coming in. Usually, if a person goes into a sober living, it's because they want to do better. It's not because they have to. It's a it's a they're they're willing to go and live into a place like this to to better their lives, you know. Um, and you know, I'm I'm just, you know, I'm a little a little upset about what's going on and and I don't want to be a disturbance. The last thing I want to do is not be wanted in a community, you know. Um, so basically all all I wanted to say was that, you know, all we're trying to do is just contribute, you know, um, and get involved and kind of help out what's going on here in the town, you know, and and however we could do that, that's how what we would like to do. And um you know I'm also in recovery and and and I'm not ashamed to say that. You know uh maybe three or four years ago I was pretty ashamed to say that but today I'm not ashamed to say that cuz my life is different today. You know I show up to meetings like this. I go and do service work. I talk to other guys. I try to give a helping hand you know and um you know I don't want to be a disturbance. That's not what I'm here for, you know.

and and if if if we cause any any issues for you or anything like that, then yeah, come come talk to me and and and you know, if it's really that big of an issue, you know, but there's nobody even living there. There's only one operator in there right now. We're not even open. There's one car in the driveway. Nobody has overdosed there. There's nobody living there. There's not even beds in there yet. So all those things that were said, they're not really even factual, you know, about overdose on 58 mil. That's never happened. You know, there's one one person living in there. Until we get DCA approved, nobody's going to be living there cuz you're not allowed to. We're following all rules and regulations, you know, and and if if it becomes a problem, I will leave. You know what I mean? Because I don't want to be unwanted in a town. That's the last thing. I didn't I didn't sit there sit there and say, I want to go move into 58 Miller and it's going to be a problem. I didn't think it was going to be a problem, you know? That's that's not what I thought it was going to be. I thought like, you know, there I went to a concert and it's the last thing I'll say. I went to a Metallica concert and and they asked how many people in the in the crowd have somebody who might be suffering from the disease of addiction. the whole audience raised their hand. I'm sure people can relate, right? To have a place for people to go and to get better. I think I think that's a solution, not a problem. That's all that's all I got. Thank you.

Thank you. Yes, [applause]

back in um Mr. Fos's political science class, he told me that we're allowed a rebuttal in a debate. Um, I just I feel like we're all getting very emotional from both sides. I think objectively the fact of the matter is what we're asking for is an ordinance not to not allow um sober living homes in EML Park, but to consider the distance that they are from schools because as my neighbor who I just met today, sorry I don't want to turn around but it's nice to meet you. I didn't I've never met him before. Um said that or maybe it was the other guy, I forget. It's they're just people. It's like as if it's your brother, your sister, your aunt. I have a sister who I don't know where she is due to addiction. I have an aunt who I don't know where she is due to addiction. Neither of those people, if they decided to get help, I would want them near a school because when they were going through addiction, and addiction has a 90% relapse rate. It's just part of the disease. They would harm their own mother to get to whatever it was that they needed at that time, whether it be drugs or something else. I don't mean to interrupt you, but let me ask you, I want the attorney to answer this question.

Does she have a contention in terms of distance from uh school? Mayor, that's what we discussed in the executive last time. I prefer not to discuss it. I think that's a ter. All right. Go ahead. Continue, dear.

My my point is it's not the issue of sober living. We all need sober living in the society. I know this from my own family. The issue is if two doors down is a school that is where we are asking you all to do the research same way as we have done as the residents into what we can do to kind of separate those two because like I said I have had in my family addicts because it has a 90% relapse rate who have harmed their own mother in order to get to whatever it was they needed. So I do not want children to be close to that because I don't want them to be the person who's collateral damage in a situation such as that. So that is my point. My point is we're just asking you to look into ordinances that might allow a distance from schools. Anywhere else we can have as many sober living houses as we want as we need but just not next to a school. There children are a protected class. They can't speak up for themselves. And I just I feel like that's common sense. So, Mayor, Mayor, in response to her in response, sorry, in response to In response to her, uh, concerns and comments, uh, can I make a motion to create a committee to look into this and then maybe have something for our next, uh, council meeting? I won't be on the committee because some people think uh my name uh works against me. but um you know for three council people to be on a committee to investigate the ordinances that other towns have and then come back to the council and uh investigate what we could do on this topic in regards to moving forward with uh you know sober living facilities and all that cuz I'm sure uh we could take ideas from other um communities and and and things like that and try to come to a consensus that would make both the council comfortable and the residents as well. No, maybe we could commit uh make a committee. I make a motion to create a committee. Is there a second?

I will second that motion. You second it. Yes. Okay. And I would like to be on the committee. Any discussion with that? Okay. Uh who would like to be on this committee? Lorraine. Yes. Pam, you should do a vote. There's a motion on the floor. So vote on that. All in favor? I'd like I'd like I can't Who is on the committee? still vote on this because [clears throat] you're not voting specific this property. This is about processing myself. Okay. So, we we need a vote. We need a vote. You can do purple. All in favor? Okay.

So, we have a motion by Councilman Foso and second by Council President Pel Green to create a sober living committee to discuss ordinances. Is it all in favor or a vote? All in favor? All in favor? Against. Okay. Okay. Now we need to form the committee now or you can do it later. That's up to you. Mayor, let's get it done now. Yes, I I understand your uh desire to get it done now. However, excuse me, January 2nd is the uh reorg meeting. We want to consider waiting till uh the first uh meeting in January and you'd rather

I'm just I'm just think I'm just talking out just thinking out loud. That's a table until our work meeting in terms of naming the actual Oh, okay. I said, mayor, any any committee you formed today will cease to exist at the organization meeting. So, you'd have to create do it. Do it again. Okay. So, we'll we'll just null and void that for now. You can still But your consideration is recre. Sounds like an idea. Thank you. Thank you. We try. Thank you, dear. Okay. Anyone else care to speak? [applause]

Yes. Uh, yes, ma'am. We need your name, rank, serial number, firstborn. We need the whole bullax.

Good evening, mayor and council. My name is Kimberly Emanuel Boyd. I reside at 59 Miller Avenue. Um, I just want to let you know that, um, I've had I had a lot of contact with the, um, family that actually lived across directly across the street from me. Um, very nice family. They had two young girls who went to the school. Um and um the last interaction that I had with them um the husband, the father came over to say goodbye to me because they actually had to move out of that house because um they told me that the landlord um had increased the rent so so expensive that they could no longer live there. So, I expressed concern and he said, you know, we were going to move a few blocks over so that the kids could continue to go to school. So, I just want to make you all aware of that. Um, again, I have no problems with addiction. I lost my ex-husband 20 years ago to um a heroin overdose. I have lots of addiction in my family. I am a registered nurse for 30 years, so I understand. But the safety of the children is is is absolute. I mean, I've lived there for almost a year and I cannot tell you how many kids I see up and down that block for Halloween. It was we had tons of children there.

So, thank you. I'm sorry to hear about your husband. [applause] I just want to I just want to say one more thing about the committee. Um, if we can at the reorg when we re-up this committee, if we could add two community members to the committee as well, if they we'll take resumes and and stuff like that for for people to have some community input uh on the committee so we could work together as uh with the council and the community to to come up with the consensus. We have any volunteers out there? Okay. What?

Yeah. Okay. when we uh when we get to it, we'll uh at that meeting uh we'll we'll pick two uh two people from uh from the neighborhood. Right. Right. Mr. Folo. Yes.

Okay. Anyone else here to speak? Uh yes, sir. Good evening. Um my name is Bruce Strickland. I'm at 566 Market Street. Um, and I'm so happy because it saved my life. You know, January 11th, 2025, I married the most beautiful woman in the world. February 25th, she passed away from cancer,

you know. Um, I went and moved back to South Jersey with my mother. However, I ended up becoming homeless and um I went to a drug treatment place in Williamstown in October on October 4th and I reached out to Mustafa who's a brother of mine to see if I can come to a sober living house and they agreed to let me come. I came on October 23rd and now I'm employable. I'm a productive member of society and I'm so grateful for [laughter] the DV house and what they've done for me as a human. I have my life back. You know, it's everyday fight this addiction thing. However, being living at the DB house, I can and will succeed. Thank you. [applause]

Anyone else care to speak in the blue? Yes.

Good evening, council members and residents. My name is Stella Lmberg. I am a resident of Fairwan and I come here as a supporter as well as one of the owners of 58 Miller Avenue. Uh that is a rental property, but I am one of the owners of the facility. I come from a family of unfortunately addiction. My dad is currently in a residence facility now for a number of years. He was able to obtain work. He was able to get sober. He was able to get himself up and running with the help of a sober living home. Seeing my brother go through treatment who spoke earlier and seeing the effect that it has caused on him. He is now a thriving member of the society. He wants to help other people. He is not only a community leader, he's also a speaker. He goes to facilities to give motivational speeches to help individuals looking for a better life. The people who are living in these facilities choose to do so because they are ready for the final stage before they're able to live on their own. they choose to pay the rent and live in a dorm facility because they c may not be able to afford. You know, rent is expensive. Imagine trying to get on your feet, get a job, and imagine trying doing all that while maintaining a livelihood as you become a a thriving member of society, giving back in any way possible. We are supposed to be stigmafree in this area. At least Fairon is. I don't know

about Ellen Park. Hopefully, you are stigmafree as well.

How are How would you say you're stigmafree and yet you you know the the the talking when the operator of the home came up and the talking because he speaks and may look a little certain way and the discrimination is right there. I it's it's pretty obvious. So I come to you as someone just to say please think about those individuals that you may not see that come up here may not have the courage to even come to a meeting. They have a right to a home to community. They are not looking after to hurt children. These are not pedophiles. These are people looking to start a new life. So, as someone who saw my a brother go through addiction and get not only clean but thrive in a community, give back, volunteer, constantly volunteering, by the way. But to also see my father living in in a home, finally finding his place knowing that he has a community behind him and it's I am a real person. You know the you don't realize who could be sitting next to you on a bus on a train that may have gone through it or have a family member going through it. So, it's it's really scary when you're not informed, but it's also scary to be alone. So, on this holiday season, as people are struggling to pay for food, let them have a community to live somewhere that's safe.

And when we looked at the residents, by the way, from we saw it, we tried to find any anything that popped up that may cause a problem. We are not trying to be a disturbance to the community. In reality, I I volunteer countless hours in my community and I plan to do so in this community and give back as much as possible. So, let's let's remember this is a supposed to be a stigmafree area and consider the positives of what could happen for those people that their lives are changed. Thank you. Have a great

Thank you, dear. [applause] Anyone else care to speak? Now, the I'm going to ask the the people that have been up here. Hold on. Wait, wait, wait, wait one second. One thing to say. Wait one second. It's not a stigma. But the people that have been up here, I'm going to ask them to make to keep it to two minutes. That's fine. All right. Cuz they've had to their say before. Go ahead.

It's not a stigma against anyone that's trying to live in these homes. We as a community, we as taxpayers, we as homeowners are just trying to find out how this happened, why we didn't know about it, who is benefiting from the rents from who who is benefiting. There's rent going into these homes and it's not coming back to the taxpayers. the homeowner is still paying the amount of taxes. And again, I'm sorry that you need to defend yourself about this because you have the same name and that's not anyone's fault to mention.

We got to stop. It's irrelevant, Miss I have to protect my colleague. Everyone here has spoken very factually and passionately and you know it's a it's a very easy emotional thing to to jump on him, but it is not but it's not solving anything at hand here at all. We're not here because there's a stigma against the people. We're You want to be wonderful community members. We welcome that. We welcome that. We welcome volunteers. We welcome your sermons. We welcome anything that you have to offer. It has nothing to do with you. This is more of a community action. Our community has beened by Excuse me. You You have to address us.

Our community has been affected by it. Me as a homeowner, I have been affected by it. Okay. if my values of my home goes down, if any of our homeowners values goes down, it's it's if it's it's impacting us and for us not to know about it, for us not to be aware of it. And again, it has nothing to do with the community members. I'm happy if they want to be community members, let them become sober, let them become safe, but not without us knowing. Mayor, if I may, mayor, [applause] the fell in the blue jacket has put his hand up about four time at least four times. Sir, just stood up.

Yeah, good evening. It's Peter living on the 87 Lee Street. So, it's very interesting that um I'm hearing the people came in last time for the meeting and they were dismissed and that's a shame on you because now because this young girl says how about do something and you all of a sudden come up like let's do a a group have a some kind of group to talk about this you know this means you don't deserve to that position you should be all dismissed because she should be running the show not you shame on you. [applause] Anyone else care to speak? Yes.

Good evening. My name is Sam. I'm at uh 2011 Lincoln. Um sitting here listening. Excuse me, sir. Did we get his name and Yes. and address? Go ahead, sir.

Sam. Uh, I've been born and raised in Bergen County my entire life. Raised in Mawa. I am part of this community. I have a house and I pay my taxes in Mawa. I've known so many people whether it be cops, firemen, people I went to school with, people on council, mayors in Mawa. I've known a lot of people. I'm raised by my father was in uh he he lived in uh Ridgewood, graduated in ' 67. My mother went to Oakland or Northern Highlands or I forget what what high school it is, whatever it is. But it's Bergen County the entire time. I am part of this community. Good people raised me. I'm a good person. I know it. Now, in one month from now on, January 17th, I too will have lost my wife for 10 years to brain cancer. I battled with it. No one in my family that I know of has any disease with alcohol or addiction, being a pedophile, anything like that. We're not perfect, but no one has ever struggled with it. I did. I had to go to a sober living. I've been through detoxes. I've never been nudged by a judge. I've chose this because I know that I need help. I need help. And I have a loving family. I got five nieces. I've been around kids. That's not a problem here. Not everyone is going to be like me. There are a lot of people that don't know anything about me. They see and hear and they fear. They don't want to get educated. They want to believe what they know and they hear the horror stories. I went to a sober living cuz I needed something that my family couldn't give me. They didn't

have experience with it. I have a second family. It's not my true family, but it's a second family. It's a it's it is a healthy environment. You will hear horror stories, but you're not going to hear something about somebody, you know, got a promotion or has met somebody else or has bought a second home. I'm looking to buy a second home. and I'm in a sober living. So, I guess what I want to just say is, you know, I hear a lot of passion here. I hear a lot of fear. Not everyone's going to be open hard and want to look, but you know what? Some people need it. And you know what? It it it doesn't take a a a recovering addict or somebody who's struggling with mental health or anything to do something wrong. It just takes a person that wants to do something wrong. Anybody could do something wrong. Don't shut the door on other people. Open your mind. Have your opinion. Come to places like this. Talk it out. It's a great community. Keep it that way. That's it.

Thank you, sir. [applause] Anyone else here to speak?

Welcome. Yeah, I just want to say that I just take offense that there's any prejudice against u sober living because it's it's not about that, you know. It's just about um the way everything took place. Uh we tried to come to the council tried to get some answers. Oh, it's a state. That's all we got. You know, I mean, we went there on on December 5th. She could have given us a little more input. And like I told you that day, I said it seemed like you guys really didn't care. And that's that's the feeling that we're getting. They said it's nothing against the sober uh the sober housing. You know, it's just all in about the uh the approach. That's you know, that's what I'm upset about. And Mr. Vo, I mean, you are a councilman. Okay. That is why you're being singled out when you took that position. That's what you have to accept. Okay? It's nothing against you personally. just that in your position. Okay. I'm sorry you took offense, but that's what that's what you have to take when you're in that position. That's we elected you to be there and to listen to us and to take that.

I am listening to I and I I propose the committee. All right. And which I'm not going to sit on to not taint it. Look what it took. No. No. We But even look what it took. It took all of us to be here today for it to happen. When we went there, it was a smaller group on December 5th. We could have done something that day. It took it to have a crowd, right? We couldn't take action in a work session. It's a work session. Okay. I said, "Okay, I know I know the lawyer said, "Oh, we can't have a paper trail." I said, "Okay, that's fine." I said, "Why don't Why can't we talk to somebody face to face without any, you know, just give us some input?

That's why we're here and I understand that's what you're doing." Okay, maybe a work session. But you could have told us, "Okay, maybe we can do that on the QT." Like I said, I I know most of you and I'm disappointed in you. Okay. [applause] Anyone else care to speak? If not, I will close the public session. 11th hour. I'm coming. You know me.

Darw Avenue. I live in this I lived in this town for 79 years. I've sat up there as the board of education. Everything that you put in here and volunteered. I sat and listened to what went on. I feel sorry for the the the houses that you were brought into and that this town was not told before this that you have to sit here and be abused and I apologize from the bottom of my heart and I know a lot of the residents too. It's not you. Doris. Doris, you have to address us. You remember

that? We were not that they were not told. The town was not told. It wasn't against the people that are here that want to be sober living. Mike, I know we have community policing. Is there any possible way of starting a program for these gentlemen and women to come and be with the, you know, the community policing to start a program for them? So this way that the members of this town can get together and know who they are and recognize them. So they're not saying, "Oh, look at this one. Oh, look at that one. Is that one belong to that?" This way at least they belong to our town. They'll belong to our family that, you know, I call this my family for so long. But I think, you know, we could do it. We can make them feel comfortable just like we feel comfortable. Danny, I'm going to miss you. I really mean all from B board of education with me all the way up to here. I wish you every the best of everything you could have for you and health and your family and everybody merry Christmas and a happy new year. Thank you.

Thank you. Anyone else care to speak? If not, I'll close the public portion. May I have a motion to enter into executive second? All in favor? Hi. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We can do that. Yeah. Whereas the open public meeting act PL 1975

chapter 231 permits the exclusion of the public from a meeting in certain circumstances. And whereas this public body is of the opinion that such circumstances presently exist. And whereas the governing body wishes to discuss attorney client privilege information minutes will be kept. And once the matter involving the confidential confidentiality of the above no longer requires that confidentiality, then the minutes can be made public. Now therefore, it be resolved that the public be excluded from this meeting. Where's the mouse? for fun. They