Borough Council - Regular Meeting

Good.

This meeting is called to order in accordance with the open public meetings law. In accordance with chapter 231 of the public laws of 1975, adequate notice of this meeting has been provided. This meeting of February 2nd, 2026 was published in the Courier News and Star Ledger and placed on the burough's website in Bolton board at Burough Hall. A copy of this notice is available to the public. A copy of the statement shall be included in the minutes of this meeting. Mayor Brian Gallagher here. Council members Terresa Bonner here. Andrew Ki here. Glenn Deny here. Randy Pittz here. Gina Stravik is excused this evening. Roger Verm

here. All right, please stand for the salute to the flag. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Okay. Motion for approval of the minutes of January 20. So moved. Second. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Kiy. Yes. Glen, yes. Randy Pittz, yes. Roger Verm, yes. Okay. Departmental reports and notices. Effective April 1, garbage bags of solid waste are no longer allowed to be placed on the curb for pickup without being placed in the appropriate garbage receptacle. Uh Kevin, I know we talked last time about having a a garbage seminar at our one of our uh next uh upcoming council meetings. I think we'll be at the next meeting on this.

Okay. All right. Thank you. Good. Uh and then again, uh and we'll keep putting this out. Election district number eight is moved from Lincoln Hose on Warren Street to the Somerville Civic Center, 24 Robson Street. That's right here. Okay. Next up, uh item number seven is a proclamation for Black History Month, February 2026, a century of Black History commemorations. And I do have a proclamation here uh that I would like to uh to read. And and I think when you think about black history, it's not just uh past, it's also current. Um it's also recognizing the uh the volunteers that we have uh in all aspects, the employees that we have in in all aspects. um our fire department, our rescue squad, our police department, um our merchants downtown as well. So um with that, uh whereas Black History Month provides an opportunity to recognize, honor, and celebrate the history, culture, achievements, and lasting contributions of African-Americans to the burrow of Somerville, uh state of New Jersey in the United States. And whereas the 2026 Black History Month theme, a century of Black History commemorations, marks the 100th anniversary of organized efforts to preserve, study, and promote black history. And whereas this theme honors the legacy of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, whose establishment of Negro History Week in 1926, laid the foundation for what has evolved into Black History Month, an annual month-long scholarly and sustained movement dedicated to the study, teaching, and dissemination of black history. And whereas for a century, black history commemorations have expanded public understanding of the African-American experience, corrected historical omissions, and highlighted the essential role of black Americans in shaping the nation's social, cultural, economic, and political life. And whereas the Burrow

of Somerville is committed to fostering an inclusive community that values diversity, promotes equity, and encourages education, dialogue, and reflection on our shared history. Now therefore, be it proclaimed that I, Brian Gallagher, mayor of the Burough of Somerville, do hereby proclaim February 2026 as Black History Month in Somerville, and encourage all residents, schools, businesses, and community organizations to observe this month through appropriate programs, activities, and educational initiatives that honor a century of Black History commemorations. Uh, a well done proclamation. Kevin, I would ask uh I think it's appropriate to get this to the Ubuntu Cultural Pavilion. Uh those are uh two folks that are steeped in uh black history in Somerville, and I think it's appropriate to get that uh to to them.

Sure. All right. Thank you. Uh up next, we have uh first off, uh as they do every year, the environment mayor, before you jump to discussion, we have a committee reports. It was on the bottom of the page. Oh, did I skip right over that? You were too excited. All right. Oh, yeah. It's It is there, isn't it? All right. Committee reports. Uh, Andrew.

Yeah. Um, historic advisory committee met this week for or this month for a reorganization. Uh, we're happy to kick off the 250th year. We're looking forward to a lot of good events and good uh times to get together and remember why it is we became a nation. Um, one of those events coming up is on Washington's birthday, the Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage Association will be having a new look, Old Dutch Parsonage uh, architectural research and historical rehabilitation lecture on Sunday the 15th at 3:15 if anybody's interested going over to the old Dutch parsonage in uh, in in Washington's house, Wallace House, sorry, where Washington was. My apologies. Um, other than that, uh, we look forward to having another meeting coming up soon and being involved in a lot more events, uh, as the year rolls on, but we're kind of waiting for the snow.

All right. Thank you, Glenn. Uh, I have nothing except the Environmental Commission. We'll meet here next Tuesday, February 10th, at 7 p.m. And we'll hear more from them in a little bit. Great. All right. Thank you. Thanks, Teresa.

Okay. So, for the uh Somerville Public Library, they've started holding some of their larger programming at the uh Somerset County Business Hub at 50 Division Street in Suite 400. So, they've been trying to get their programs back up and running with larger memberships. So, one that's happening tomorrow is Paint Your Date, uh, where you bring a date or a friend, uh, for a painting challenge based on a viral Tik Tok where couples paint each other. There'll be a photo booth, snacks, and more. And then on February 9th at 6:30, there's going to be a pottery handbuild workshop. So, you build the piece there. Um, and then you pick out your glaze and then you go back to the library in two or three weeks to pick it up. Um, you can go to clsnj.org to check out all the programs that the the library is offering and to register. The DSA's Gallentine Chocolate Walk that is happening on February 12th at 6 PM is sold out sadly. So, if you didn't buy your ticket, sorry. Try again next year, I guess. Um, but the participants will be enjoying a stroll through downtown Somerville, stopping at a variety of shops and restaurants to collect gourmet chocolate treats and sweet surprises. And the wildly popular Candlelight Concert Series is continuing. Believe it looks like they're added they've added more dates. Um, tickets sell out sell out fast. So, please go to downtown.org to reserve your ticket for an upcoming performance. The next show is February 28th with a tribute to Coldplay and Queen. That's it.

All right. Great. Thank you. Ready.

Thank you, Mayor. Good evening, everyone. I'd like to share a brief property maintenance report covering the period from January 1st through January 30th, 2026. During this time frame, 20 properties were cited for property maintenance violations across the burrow. Of those, 12 resulted in notices without fines, while eight cases included monetary penalties, totaling $2,800 in issued fines. The most significant area of concern was snow removal and sidewalk clearing, which accounted for 15 of the 20 violations. This continues to be our primary compliance issues during these winter events. Additionally, violations included three occupancy or bedroom related violations representing in 15% one [clears throat] rental registration violation and one other general property v [clears throat] maintenance issue, excuse me, each accounting for 5%. We ask all residents and property owners to please do their part by clearing sidewalks promptly after snowfall, ensuring properties remain safe, accessible, and compliant, especially for pedestrians, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. Taking action early helps prevent violations, improves public safety, and keeps our community moving during winter conditions. Overall, this report highlights the ongoing need for timely snow and so sidewalk maintenance. We will continue focusing on education first with enforcement when necessary to protect the safety and quality in life in our burrow. Thank you.

Thank you, Roger.

I I have nothing this evening, but I I would like to to piggyback on what the councilman said, and I think we've all seen it around town. Everybody's, you know, if you live on a corner, you got to help out your neighbors. We are a walking [snorts] school district and we need to make sure that the the the sidewalks are safe, as the councilman was saying, for our students as they walk uh to and from school because again, that we have the walking school bus that meets for Vandervir. Um, and it's essential that our our neighbors and our constituents go out there and and shovel for uh for themselves and if they need help, um, I'm sure they can check on a neighbor or worst comes to worse, we can always reach out to the DPW if it's something that that at this point, unfortunately, since we're dealing with perafrost, um, you know, it might be good to reach out. But I've definitely the Glenn and I were having a conversation on the way here. There's a lot of corners that are have not been done well and the residents have to remember residents and businesses have to remember the corner. If they are a corner lot, the corner is their responsibility.

Well said. Thank you. Um and and I'll uh join you in that. Um I live on a corner. Um there are a number of uh corners that are not shoveled and they need to be shoveled. Um, it's a problem. You know, it it really is it's difficult. I said this at the last meeting. I used to love snow. I don't love snow anymore. Um, and and it's a challenge. Uh, we sit up here and, you know, we hear plows did a great job. We hear plows did an awful job. It doesn't even look like the plows came down my street. Uh, we we hear it all. Um, and I think what people have to remember is that we had 14 inches of snow. We had two inches of ice on top of that snow. Um, and then we went into perafrost. We went into the Arctic and it froze. Um, everything locked up. It's not going anywhere. And quite honestly, it's not going anywhere probably for another two weeks. Um, you know, we're looking at next week highs of eight degrees. So, it's a challenge. Um and but it's not a challenge that none of us have have ever faced before. It is snow. It will disappear at some point in time. Um it is going to go away. Uh so I ask for patience. Um I ask for a little understanding. Um, I can tell you if you park if you leave your car parked on the street, uh, the burrow, uh, provided residents with about 175 tickets for parking on the street, uh, over this storm. And yet, I still got calls, there's people parked on my street. And I also got calls that I've been parking on my street for 30 years. I never got a ticket until this year. Uh, I actually had somebody stop me to tell me that. and and so they got away with it for 29 years and they're mad that they got it on the 30th year. So So it's a challenge. Um you know, our

DPW was out, I think, for 18 hours straight. Uh the town is done both by DPW and by uh a contractor. We had 28 pieces of equipment on the road to try to to keep up with this storm. It was a good storm. Uh we got a lot of snow. Uh so patience um some understanding and uh and some uh awareness of your neighbors. When you p leave your car parked on the street, it affects about a half a block. So don't leave your car on the street. You're going to get a ticket. Um and people aren't going to get around your your street easily over the ensuing two weeks because you left your car in the street. Um, now there's still some cars that haven't moved since the storm. Uh, those are now going to be addressed as well. So, uh, we can see those. There's one right over here on, uh, South Bridge Street and that's going to be addressed tomorrow as well. I saw that coming in. So, um, again, patience, understanding. Um, I think the contractor overall did a decent job. I think the DPW overall did a decent job. Are there some problem areas that still exist? Absolutely. Uh, but that is the nature of snow and that's the nature of a storm. We typically have a thaw right after a storm and it really starts to recede quickly. It's not going anywhere and it's not going anywhere for a little bit of time yet. So, um, that's what I got. So, um, we did item number seven. Item number eight, uh, discussion points. We have two, uh, the environmental commission annual report. This is something the environmental commission uh, does every year. uh it's a welcome addition to our meeting and they uh they have an opportunity to talk about the things that have gone on over the past year. So

thank you mayor. So as the liaison to the environmental commission uh I just want to applaud the huge amount of dedication and the fact that they're so willing to debate in order to refine and uh improve everything that they do. And you're going to hear from them the accomplishments that uh we've uh done and accomplished for the town and as a commission in 2025. And even on this cold night, it's so great. We have Larry and Tom and John and Jerry and Sandy and then Jeff and Tim Marie are going to be talking us through some of this. So sit back and relax and we'll see what's going to be uh up for 2026.

Awesome. Thank you guys so much for for having us. Um I am Tim Deal. I'm the chair of the Environmental Commission. Jeff Kaiser, the vice chair. Yeah, thank you guys so much for for having us. This is um a great way to just kind of recap everything uh that we accomplished last year. It was um a really a momentous year in a lot of ways or at least it felt that way. So um we're excited to talk through with you. Um can we get the presentation? So we understand that you guys have um quite a full agenda. So we'll try to um you know be as efficient as possible. Take the time you need.

Okay. Okay. Cool. Um great. So, um, our mission, as we've said, um, probably every year for a long time, uh, the Somerville's, uh, environmental commission's mission is to educate, advocate, and promote, uh, best policies and practices for the bureau's environment and the health and safety of its residents. Um, so educate, advocate, and promote are uh, themes you'll see throughout the the presentation here. and they're kind of the pillars that that we try to um you know work our our our projects around and and um live up to. So our team is um completely volunteerrun. Um we have different titles like teacher, activist, engineers, mother, father, entrepreneur, students. Um and as you can see on the right we have a great number of people who are either returning each year. Um actually pretty much everybody is returning each year. Uh, and then we have a good number who have been here for more than five years. Um, five years or more. So,

team Marie, can you pull that microphone a little closer to you? Thank you.

Yes. That good. Okay. So, we are affectionately calling 2025 the year of the volunteer. Um, it all goes back to the time, talent, and dedication that our volunteers were able to provide for us this year. That that really kind of moved the needle. Um, one of the standout stats here is that in total, uh, between the commission, the green team, and our local group of volunteers, we logged, 1700 hours, which resulted in, um, a little over $66,000 worth of budget saved um, for the bureau. Um, we also uh were granted from various um various funders uh, over $25,000 worth of grant money. And we always like to kind of tally up how many actual plants we were able to add to the uh Somerville local environment and we're we're over 350 this year. So um really just an awesome awesome year of volunteer work. So um first we want to talk about um education. Education is um a huge component of of what we try to do and um provide sustainable education for our neighbors. um the first piece of which um has to go to the Earth Day weekend. So, we provide each year three different opportunities for people to get involved depending on what they like to do. Um there's a volunteer opportunity, there's a um town swap where people can reuse, reduce, recycle, and then um the Earth Day green fair, which are the photos shown here, which is really just a a great community event. Um and despite some rain this past year, we still had an awesome turnout. Um so, Just wanted to show some smiling faces there and the the DPW guys who who are part of that that event and that weekend for us too. Um so quickly um one of the ways that we do reach our neighbors and reach our audience is through these live events. So Earth Day is a huge component of

that. Um as part of the volunteer effort that weekend we had 76 total volunteers come out to collect over six cubic yards of waste. Um which is awesome. And we were able to uh donate and give out 350 plus um tree seedlings and herbaceous plants that we were giving out at um the green fair. And then uh as part of the green fair, we invite various um local partners and sustainable groups to come and table at the fair and provide that um you know hands-on education to uh to our neighbors. So, and another couple different ways we um uh you know interacted with the public and educated the public was through National Night Out. It's a fantastic event for you know for Somerville to get together and everyone to mingle and for us to you know interact with the public. We had through National Night Out as well as the uh street fair uh which is the electric vehicle car show. Um we had tons of signups for volunteers that we then used throughout the year to to for our various projects we're going to talk about. So, and the electric vehicle car show was again it's at the street fair. We had several vehicles there. We had education that we provided uh the public um interacted with uh the Somerset um uh count Somerset committee on EV charging. Um so both of those were very successful.

Yeah. And then um we also were able to provide two different uh seminar style um events. So, the first one was all about New Jersey's changing climate and talking about um where New Jersey has been from a climate uh story and where it's headed in the future and then followed kind of bookended on the other side of the the calendar um with the climate proof your yard which was kind of a action plan for how to um you know use the information you learned in the first seminar. How can I actually implement that in my own backyard to to be planting and landscaping for the future? Um we in addition to all of the in-person events um which are really rewarding for us, we also have other communication channels channels that we leverage. Um we launched a newsletter uh this year. So I'll talk a little bit about that. Our social media continues to be um a really great way for us to meet our or to reach our um our community. the environmental commission page on the government site. We have used that to kind of post article style um educational posts and we also revamped um the the way our page works since the website was kind of overhauled in the last year or two. Um we also have the kiosk at Carol Pedager Park, kind of a more bulletin board style um uh advertising kind of thing that that is updated quarterly. And then I tried to count it's at least nine tap into articles that we were featured in which um is just great to kind of spread the word past just our our local Somerville environment. So I just wanted to talk a little bit about the newsletter. Um it is a really great way for us to to reach our um volunteer base and um kind of tout some of the the uh the projects and and achievements that happen throughout the year um to our community. So it

includes uh upcoming events and volunteer opportunities uh different tips and tricks to make your house more sustainable or you know other kind of ways to be a little bit more sustainable. Um and then we also tried to do a sustainability spotlight um which is kind of an article style uh piece of the issue um where you know we highlighted for instance the uh Somerset County Regional Farmers Market and the Wallace House and we try to just promote our neighbors and um you know what they're doing in terms of sustainability uh so it you know kind of benefits everybody. Um so on average we're reaching 190 to 215 or so um people through this newsletter and we do the quarterly newsletter version once every quarter and then we also use it for ad hoc volunteer requests. Um so um it's been a huge success and we will continue to to leverage that. Okay. And now we are going to talk about some advocacy in terms of policies and different programs um that we've been able to provide for our community. So firstly we've got plans, resolutions and ordinances. So um the first one is the environmental resource inventory which the planning board had asked us to um make updates to and um just provide the most updated snapshot of of what that inventory looks like. Um, and then you guys may remember the skip the stuff resolution that was over um, the spring and summer. Um, that you guys helped us pass. And what's really kind of cool about that is actually [clears throat] in uh, Governor Murphy's last day in office um, he got a lot done that last day. And one of one piece of legislation he passed was the Skip the Stuff um, as a a statewide uh, bill. So, it is now signed into law and I just feel really proud that Somerville was able to kind of put our name out

there as as supporting that even before it was passed at the state level.

So, also the the uh the D also has been updating its environmental practices and and and and rules and laws. And in the inland flood and protection rule in 2023, there was two different um regulations that came out of that. One was the tree removal replacement as well as the new storm water regulations. uh the environmental commission uh studied those issues. Uh we talked to experts and uh we uh provided our uh recommendations to council as well. Now we're working with planning board on with those recommendations to um help them through their uh deliberation. Um as well as now since the also one of the things Murphy also um uh signed was the real rules which is now going to change. We're going to have to um revisit that as well going forward. So we're we're here to help. um when when when called upon. Um also the other thing that we're uh we're um happy to be work on is is the planning board asked us to be involved in the u master plan. So we set a subcommittee up together and we studied best practices for storm water management uh talked to experts as well as well as you know study other towns and manners in which you can do better storm water management and we put together a uh proposal for the planning board which they will review at some at some point in time. So uh we're We love that type of work and we're we're proud to be involved with it.

Awesome. So, some residentbased programming. Um, this first one, the energy efficiency program, we've been doing it since 2023. It's essentially a awareness campaign um which is supported by PSENG and Sustainable Jersey. Um, and it's just to let our our neighbors know that there are these free home energy audits available um that can both make their houses more comfortable and um also more energy efficient and it's all in an effort to put a little less stress on the grid and um make our town more more energy efficient.

We had another great year with the street tree program. Uh so this is our fourth annual year. Um was it I think it was two years ago we actually put an advertisement out on on on online and we got an overwhelming response from the public and in fact we such an overwhelming response is that we are now still going through the backlog of people that are looking would like to have a street tree. So if people don't know when developers you know remove trees on property if they don't replace them then they pay the burrow and that money goes into an account and we use that account uh to then plant trees in front of people's houses that want them. And so, um, we plant 19 trees again this year. We have plenty more people that are interested and, uh, something that, uh, we think is, um, a very important, uh, important thing for the town. Um, plenty more places for trees to go. Uh, and we're looking forward to continuing that program into the future.

Oh, right. And of course the uh yeah, so the Somerset uh county is is uh going through an EV charging have a EV charging council and so they approached us as far as getting the word out for um to to get people to take the survey. They needed people's input and so we did some advertising for them. We're going to follow up with that council, that committee um uh this year. So stay tuned for those that that um those notices that we'll send out uh to learn more about where they're going to be putting charging in in the in the county, how they're going to use that money. And so we're interested in in being involved in that.

Yeah. And then um the downtown street trees. So these are the the conversation that we've been having um it sounds like for years forever [laughter]

about the the the street trees on Main Street. Um, so it sounds like there is going to be some movement um in in the early part of this year to do a test run or two about um some of the the suggestions that we provided last year. So, we're excited to see where that continues to evolve and uh and participate in that one. And then um just this last bullet here, the community poll. So, um, we have this really fun, uh, piece that we do at each of the in-person events that we attend, um, where we have an interactive display for, you know, just to kind of get people talking and, you know, come and it's a it's a beautiful design, uh, by one of the EC members and, um, you know, people can kind of essentially vote for what they feel is the most important thing for Somerville. Um, and we use this both as a way to talk to people in person, but we've also been using it as a way to kind of have a gut check on on the pulse of where where people, you know, want to want us to focus our time. Um, so you can see these results from the uh national night out uh poll, green spaces and tree planting, energy efficiency and renewables, and native plants and biodiversity are the top three. And honestly, those are three of our biggest um you know, items. So, we were very glad to see that that is lining up so well and just a great way to to talk to our neighbors and make sure we're we're on the on the pulse. Okay. Green team programming. So, um this is the 2025 was the fourth season for the J Scott Community Garden. Um this continues to be an amazing pillar of our community. um Rebecca Wrightman GOP and Jerry Dapio. Jerry's here tonight. Um they are the leaders of the garden and um very much supported by the

green team as well. Um this year we had 40 lottery applicants and 16 plots to actually fill. Um and throughout the year they were able to do three workshops, two volunteer days, and then um you know, you can see that that part of the the workshops was um having some of the Girl Scout troops come and do kind of a cool activity. So, it's really um it's really kind of evolved into uh this really incredible space within our community. And as you can see by those numbers on the left, the demand for uh for plots in the garden far outstrips what we have to offer. So, um we're really looking to expand the garden in 2026 and are excited um about some of the brainstorms we've had for that already. So there's also there's a few uh rain gardens you might know of um along Carol Pedro Park that were just in in need of some [snorts] serious maintenance and not just maintenance but completely revamp. And so Tom who's in in the audience here uh you took charge on this project um and we needed to we had there's three uh rain gardens. Uh we with a host of volunteers over four days we were able to completely revamp them and then get them back into better shape. So those rocks need to be pulled up, the sed sediment needs to be moved out, the grass needed to be pulled out, the the weeds and everything needs to be pulled out. They really needed to be completely rejuvenated. Um and so uh over 4 days um of work and then throughout the the springtime uh we were able to get them back to basically fully operational, get the mug wart out. Um and it it was um so appreciate Tom's efforts and leadership on that and now going forward we can these will be we'll we'll keep to maintain them uh as we go forward. Um it's a great um example of um how green infrastructure when maintained can can filter the water that's coming off the off the road and

then can provide some good storm water um uh assistance in that way. So as you can see they're they're flourishing now. So that was a a great uh host of volunteers that came on a very dreary day that that morning and and and dug up the ground. So that was that was great to see.

Yeah, that that first volunteer day was quite a slo um removing all the turf grass that had invaded and uh it was very rainy. So we were happy to have as many people um who showed up. So Tom did do all the, you know, he continued to do the manus through the year. And then this photo here shows um they actually added in some new uh native plants where all of that mug wart, which is an invasive species that had completely invaded uh one whole section of one of the beds. So they were able to um fill that back in. Uh so they should be more beautiful than ever next year. All right. So um we also work to kind of promote and build partnerships with other um local groups and through that secure resources to power our different projects. Um you guys have seen this slide before. It kind of enumerates the different local partners um that we you know work to build those relationships with. It continues to evolve and um we'll be talking about some of them specifically on these next slides. Um this year for our grant submissions and partnerships um we had 25,750 total in external budget that came in um for the community. And not to mention we actually also secured I think 150 is an underestimate of the live plants that were um provided through a mini plant grant through the Native Plant Society of Somerset chapter. Um, so Native Plant Society uh provided the live plants and they also provided a $750 mini grant for a project that we implemented at Vandervir which we'll talk about. Um, and then the midsize grant for the home energy efficiency um, which is through sustainable Jersey and PSEG. And then we also had a larger grant uh, from the same funders uh, for a habitat restoration along Peters Brook which

we'll talk about. So these partnership projects um really stacked up this year and they were they were so such a great example of um you know kind of the dedication uh of of our community to to bettering the whole community. So um the one on the left here is the Vanderbeir Elementary School courtyard. Um, this was funded by the Native Plant Society and almost all of that funding went towards actually purchasing the native plants that were um planted by a select uh group of the elementary school students and some EC volunteers. um they are looking to um use this space as an outdoor classroom and um so I know that they're speaking with uh CED um who's a a local nonprofit to build that outdoor classroom out a little bit but this was kind of a first step in in beautifying kind of a forgotten space. Um, as part of that project, we worked closely with the Vanderbeir um administration and uh we were able to do a all school assembly for um kind of an educational component about what are native plants. We had an expert come who could kind of speak to the kids at their level and um tell them why these plants specifically are so important and and what they're going to bring to to their their new outdoor classroom. Okay. So the collaboration at the Wallace House. So uh this has really been um pioneered by our um commissioner Jerry Dapio. Um she has created an amazing relationship with Paul the historian at the Wallace House and they've got all sorts of really cool ideas um hopefully coming up for for this next year. He's got a lot going on with the renovation and everything. Um but um I know that they're they're always thinking. This specific photo

here shows um a simple planting um also donated by the Native Plant Society um where Jerry and a few uh volunteers were able to help beautify their their entryway sign and um plant plants that historically would have been there. So, and then the Hollyy Street medians planting. So, this one was um really headlined by um John Gurino. He was the one who applied for the mini plant grant through the native plant society. Um the these two medians on Hollyy Street are a common um walking path for kids going to school and um they're kind of had you know just turf grass a little bit forgotten um and an opportunity to really make um make a beautiful statement. So um they were able to pull together a volunteer effort within like a week and a half or something. It was a little bit of a volunteer blitz, but um hopefully looking towards uh great results in the spring as as things kind of uh come in. And then we also have been working or building a relationship with um the high school um Michael Scumba. He's one of the history teachers. He also teaches a um climate projects class. Um so we were asked to go and attend one of the classes at 7:30 in the morning. um and uh provide some kind of feedback for the high schoolers who are doing these different climate projects. Um and it was great. I brought my coffee. Um and then in addition to that kind of work, we also have been asked to uh you know, not consult but advise on the rain garden installation which is happening in their courtyard. Um it's this huge grant going on at the high school. I'm sure you guys have all heard of it, but it was a really fun day. Um they had thousands of plants that that we made a slight dent in. So, it was

good. And I did forget to mention for the Vanderbeir and Elementary um for that project that was head headed by uh John Gino and Rebecca Wrightman, both of whom have uh students at Vandervir. So, you know, just kind of a really uh touching touching project for for all. Okay, this is the last the last leg here. Um, Petersburg Habitat Restoration. So, um, this is a really exciting project, um, and sort of Jeff's brainchild, so I'm gonna let him kick it off.

So, we we we applied for this grant, right, this through the, um, sustainable Jersey grant. And so, we had a lot of ideas in order to go after this $20,000 grant. We the commission had a we had a ton of ideas. And so, we voted on which one we wanted to go with. And so we we thought of um this idea was to was a couple things alto together you know uh the Petersburg greenway everyone walks the path and everything and but not too many I don't see too many people go down to the water you know go down to the actual brook itself and when you look at the brook it it gets hit hard by flooding it's it's eroded um there's a lot of like invasive species it's kind of all um you know it's just not as inviting space and so would there be a way of doing some erosion control as well as inviting um people down to the brook, beautifying it, and also getting, you know, um native plants in there as well. And so we put this proposal together and we were able to secure the $20,000 grant for this. And so one idea of just this one spot to, you know, repair this bank, sh it up with with native plants, um and put a path down into a into a into a bench. turned out we could do a lot more with with that than we could do that and plus a lot more with the $20,000 and so um Tim will take you through the through the rest but um we we were able to expand that.

Yes. So uh this map here just to orient you on where along the greenway this is. It's between Bridge and Grove Street um kind of below the the gazebo. Um, so the orange uh oval there shows where our original target uh you know habitat impact was. And after an expert um habitat restoration specialist walked us through the uh that section of the the park, it turned out to be a lot greater of an opportunity for um the funds that we were we were awarded. So um in all it's uh an 18month process. Uh we are we are half well pretty much halfway through. Um and uh so this kind of walks you through the different the different individual sub projects. And then you can also see that we're going to be adding educational signage and and the the uh bench that Jeff mentioned. And then we were also able to add this nice um uh extension of the pathway which is um gravel. and thank you to the DPW for for that work. So, um just to quickly walk you through each of the sub projects. So, the stream overlook um it's it's the original target um that we were looking to affect. So, this is one of the only places along the brook where you can actually see the brook. Um it's a very heavily wooded uh buffer which is very good in terms of erosion. Um, but you know, given that this is already open, we thought it was a great spot to both um help with erosion and make it um, you know, a little bit more beautiful and inviting. That spit um, it's hard to see on the photo, but this whole section here is on a lower plane than the hill. Um, so it almost looks like maybe the bank had sort of collapsed into the brook and that's

where this little jetty settled. So, we spent um a couple of volunteer days uh weeding that um free of invasives. There was an invasive grass down there. Um and we plan to plant that back up. Um, and the habitat benefits are that it's all native plants, but then from a, you know, kind of scientific background, we're planting a diverse pallet of plants down there so that their their roots are going to essentially kind of create like a web because they each root differently and they're going to hold the the bank back from erosion. You know, that's the that's the hypothesis there. So, and then the shrub LA. So, this is a small project that we've actually already implemented. Um, we added nine different shrubs um along the left side of the pathway there. Um, this is coming uh from the opposite side of the the gazebo. Um, but that helped just kind of add different uh diversity to the greenway. A lot of what we have there are um specimen trees, but we didn't have any specimen shrubs. So, the shrubs add winter habitat for birds and um overwinter food. Shaded Grove is um a small project where we're hoping to add kind of a secret uh little pathway with native plantings. Um, and the cool part about this is, um, there's so much wooded, uh, cover along our bank that we're hoping that if these plantings really take off that, you know, this kind of experimental plant pallet could be used in other places along the brook to restore some native plant material back into our wooded buffer. And finally, the pocket meadow. So, um, this is going to be a little bit of the showstopper, a beautiful wildflower meadow that you'll be able to see from the street and, um, walking, uh, along

the path. It's going to be a pretty big area here, but be behind the workout and then, uh, before that that large tree. So, um, this is going to be great for pollinators and birds and really just protective nice habitat um, throughout the whole year. So, um, just wanted to show some of the volunteer day, volunteer, uh, photos here. Um, this was when we installed the small wildflower area that's going to be near the stream overlook, that first project we talked about. So, this, you can see, is the new um, gravel pathway that the DPW added. Um, and while we were there, both volunteer days, people were walking along that pathway and biking along that pathway, and it was just really heartening to see it being used so immediately. Um, this is the shrub, some of the shrubs from the shrub alet. Um, and then we had a whole slew of volunteers show up for the first planting for this in October. Um, and they got all they got like 500 plants planted within an hour. It was it was pretty pretty incredible. Um, and really just a a great way to start the the project. So, next up we'll be focusing on the Shaded Grove and and Pocket Meadow into 2026. So, that brings us into this slide. So, looking ahead for the coming year. So, we really still expect to continue to educate ourselves and the community um through really focusing on on community education. And one of the pieces we really want to focus on this year is the importance of trees and green infrastructure to kind of tie into the larger conversation we've been having around storm water and how individuals can um impact that on on a local community level. Um like Jeff mentioned, there has been some evolution in um the MS4 D

requirements around storm water. So, we want to educate ourselves on that and we'll look into whether anything has changed now that Skip the Stuff is um at the at the state level and we will continue to advocate for green space and our tree canopy. Um so that first piece has started there. Um the residential street tree program um as we mentioned originally the demand for um street trees really outstrips the budget that we're allocated each year. Um, I know you guys are are working on determining the 2026 budget. So, I would put forward here maybe um some budget towards additional street trees past what uh we have allocated in the developers budget. Um, and then in terms of our green teams work and goals, um, the garden expansion there is start as well because, you know, we're looking into different funding opportunities for how to expand that. But, you know, different structural elements like the fence, um, you know, some of the those foundational materials that would be really helpful if that were um factored into the the town's budget for this year as well, so we can we can reach um reach the community at at, you know, at the level that they need for us. Um, okay. And then in terms of kind of the overall goal for the year, um I would say that we're looking to present Somerville as a leader within our neighboring communities, um and really find ways to lead by example. Um so you know we will of course continue to impact the local environment um with the grassroots volunteering which has proved to be so successful this year um and also the researchbased behind the scenes work um that usually revolves around ordinances and revolution resolutions. So just a a semi-ending slide here. Um, I wanted to just take a moment that to

say that our work really could not be done without the support of the volunteer base that we have both from the commissioners themselves and their unwavering dedication, the green team and our um, ever growing list of volunteers. um we really work to create an environment um within the environmental commission that allows people to to really use their interests and harness their strengths to impact the community. So, you know, many of the projects that I mentioned were specific people were raised their hand and said, "I want to do this. This is a project I'm passionate about. I think we should do it." and we made it happen because those people were willing to to really um you know go out on a limb for for those projects. So that's what makes us so successful is is really the work of our volunteers. So we'll continue to to promote that. And then finally and lastly, of course, um our our work uh comes from our volunteers, but it's also entirely made possible by the support and trust from uh the council, from Mayor Gallagher, and from the DPW and and other facets of the of the bureau. So, um thank you guys so much for for having us. Um I'm sure we went over 15 minutes, but um thank you. Thank you so much.

I think it was worth it. That was a a good presentation. Glenn, you want to kind of lead off if if you have anything?

I I I'm just, you know, it's funny. I'm part of so many of those different things and yet sitting here listening to it and seeing it all, it's still uh it's kind of amazing how much really comes together when everyone kind of pitches a little bit in. Um I just wrote down three C's, you know, collaborative, a lot of community outreach, and then the connections, uh connections between all the different ideas and concepts, but then also the connections formed between people. you know, we're talking about a lot of the sustainability and ecological benefits, but there's also a ton of benefits between all those people kind of getting their hands dirty together, and that's kind of an un that's not even calculated in any of those slides and uh and seeing that firsthand and witness it with my son and and all the people kind of pitching in. It's incredible. Thank you.

Any other comments? Um, I would just like to say, I mean, I've said it before, probably in after the last year's presentation, but, um, I'm really proud that I live in a town where our environmental commission is so strong and forwardinking. like you're thinking of ways to help prevent further flooding and um and and I think the work that you do every day is astounding and I'm just very thankful for it. So, thank you for the presentation. Thank you for everything you do. Thank you for the outreach that you do in gaining more volunteers and involving, you know, the sustainable businesses on Earth Day and things like that. It's really truly amazing. So, thanks appreciate that. Thank you.

Yeah, there's uh no small efforts. Thank you guys so much for the time and efforts you put in to make us a more sustainable community. Thank you. So, I think that was a wonderful presentation. Um the work that you did last year and the proposed work this year, um we're we're going to be working together a lot between the planning board and the burough council. There's a lot on our plate over the next year and uh and I look forward to it. Um I just thought it was a very informative presentation. So, thank you. Couple of quick questions. Sure.

Um, one, I love access to the brook. Uh, I think that's extremely important that you're combining, you know, bank restoration, but with also the understanding that people like to see the brook. Yeah,

it is a hidden gem. It gets, you know, some areas it's very tough to get down to the brook, but other areas when you walk and look at the it's beautiful. It really is. There's a lot there. Um, there's a a gentleman in my neighborhood who whose friend is a a biology teacher and he would take when the kids were little, he would take them on brook explorations and he would literally put boots on and they'd walk down the brook in the shallow parts and they'd pick up rocks and look at salamanders and crayfish, you know, all that fun stuff. And it's cool. It really is. Definitely. um the the native plants that you're you're planting. Yeah. Um

do they help to keep out the invasive species as well? Do they do they work that way? Do they you know uh there are some of them that do um kind of create clumps and everything, but invasive species are unfortunately something we're just going to continue the name. Yeah. We're going to continue to have to to maintain. Um and that's that's part of the long term. You know, I mentioned the 18month uh project implementation timeline. That doesn't include the maintenance that the environmental commission will continue to to oversee um along that that section of the brook and the the rain gardens and

you know all those within our purview. So, so to that end, um I don't know whether you've heard about it, read about it, and you may even already be aware of it, but um Duke Farm is doing a bank restoration along their property to kind of bring back the the native species along the bank. Cool. Um and and I look at that and I know I've talked about this before. If you walk down our green uh uh Petersburg Greenway, well the rare river greenway now um along the Rarent River there is bamboo, invasive bamboo,

and it is just multiplying. It's it's really bad. It's it's it's getting bad to the point where during the summer it's it's overgrowing the path. Yeah. So, you know, maybe maybe let's take a look at what Duke is doing because they've got the wherewithal to do it the the right way and maybe, you know, maybe getting a hold of their plan and seeing if there's an opportunity to understand how they're going about it and if they're facing some of the same challenges we we are either on the rare or even in the brook. Sure. So, yeah, it's a great idea. Yeah. Um, we can reach out to them about that project specifically. They also have a benefit of um they have a deer exlosure for their whole

acres and acres of property. So, that that's beneficial. Um, I do remember the bamboo. I think we determined that that that specific spot wasn't in the burrow. Was that what the Does anybody remember what the Wasn't it? I don't remember exactly what the because we looked into it like maybe this time last year. Maybe it was a little longer ago. It is the burrow. It is burrowed property. Okay. Maybe we'll revisit that. Yeah, because we didough. We did some research a number few years ago on bamboo. Um, and it's tough to get rid of. It's very hard to get rid of, but um but yeah, we'd be happy to take a look at it. We actually, it's got to be going back 15 years. Tom may remember this.

Um there was a gentleman who came in and did a presentation on how to get rid of bamboo and it literally was taking a syringe and injecting it into almost every stalk at the base and it would kill the root ball or whatever it is. Yeah. Very, very uh very tough. Really tough. Um but no, I thought the it was fantastic. I thank you. I thank all of your volunteers. Um, this burrow is run on volunteers and obviously you've captured that spirit and uh and are turning it into action. So, thank you. Yeah. Thank you. Thanks, guys. And I'm glad you got Tom back out again. It's good to see you, Tom.

All right. Um, item B is a request to craft local policies on the use of municipal personnel and resources in connection with federal immigration enforcement activities. I think this is a result of a letter or an email that was received. So, does anybody want to take that? Yes. So, we received uh a letter from from one of our residents uh asking us to craft some language to deal with the current um

ICE um actions that are going on. Thank you. That's the put it. Um so we recently um in line with the county commissioners uh signed our support on for the immigrant trust act. Um back in 2018, the New Jersey uh attorney general passed the New Jersey Trust directive. Um and in that directive, if I can read a few things.

Yeah, go right ahead. Um, New Jersey law enforcement officers will not assist federal agents conducting civil immigration enforcement activities unless certain circumstances are outlined. I'm going to read the rest of those. New Jersey law enforcement can assist federal agencies with the enforcement of criminal investigations or when exigent circumstances exist, such as circumstances when the safety of fellow officers or the public is in jeopardy. New Jersey law enforcement will comply with and enforce arrest warrants only when the warrant is signed by a judge and not by ICE officers such as form I200. Um, and the immigrant trust directive does not prohibit a law enforcement officer from requesting information to complete necessary fields in the arrest database such as place of birth uh, and country of citizenship. officers shall not provide any non-public personally identifiable information uh regarding an individual. So there's a lot of things that that the attorney general has already set forth and I think the uh the spirit of the immigrant trust act was to codify that to make sure that it was put and and the this board put that forth. um what our uh resident asked for the the two things it's a it is a resolution but the major parts of it are are uh in a therefore resolved limitation on burough assistance. No burrow employee, including any member of the Somerville Police Department, shall assist, participate in, or provide support for federal immigration enforcement activities conducted within the burrow where the federal officers involved do not clearly display identifying information, including name or badge number sufficient to permit uh reasonable identification of officers involved. And number two, uh, no burrow funds, equipment, property, facilities, or other municipal resources shall be used to support or facilitate federal immigration enforcement activities conducted by officers whose identities

are concealed or obscured in a manner that prevents reasonable identification. Um and then it it goes on to say essentially that you know if something were to compliance with a federal a valid judicial warrant which is what's in the uh federal immigration um directive emergency assistance which is also in the directive uh and uh routine information sharing required by state which is also in the directive. So the the the caveats are already um seen to inside of that directive. I do understand the concern of presenting oneself as an officer. Uh we have had in neighboring luckily we haven't been uh impacted by it but there have been neighboring towns. Uh it happened in was it Raridan?

Hillsboro had had well what I'm saying is yeah there was there was Hillsboro in another town where someone was driving around Readington. Readington thank you was impersonating an officer. Um and so there's been a couple cases of those types of things and I think um not saying uh I think people people have always done that um have have there definitely has been you know circumstances where folks impersonate officers. Um, but I do understand the the rationale behind being able to make sure that the people who you are are um being um are interacting with that's there we go are that people that you're interacting with do present themselves and are able to make themselves known. Um I don't know and this is a question for Jeremy. I don't know if we can regulate that a federal agency to keep their masks off and be clearly identified. [snorts]

There are some pretty significant limits on the um what the municipality can and can't require of federal officers. Um what you I I think you're heading in the right direction. If the council was inclined to had to do something like this, it would be to condition it on some sort of an effort on the the federal government, federal officers to uh comply with certain conditions. So, for example, we we won't cooperate with you if you remain masked, for example, of what I'm talking about. So, you can you can condition our municipal officers cooperation with the police with federal agents, but you can't really control the behavior or conduct of the federal agents. And I think, you know, the the the spirit of the immigrant trust directive again was crafted in 2018. So, we're looking at something now that is not currently dealing with some of the things that we've been witnessing in the news, whether it's Minnesota or some of the other other areas. Um, and you know, we know that ICE has been in the general area. Um, but I I do understand even from anyone's standpoint of if you're going to be approached by law enforcement, you know, our our our officers, the one thing that I can say about our officers is they are part of our community. When you look at our police officers, they they're out and about and that that builds that trust and they are very good at building that trust. They're involved in in our DARE program. You know, they they are involved in, as I said before, the the walking school bus. We know who they are. We trust them based on that. Um I I don't know what we can do again and I know we talked about conditionally. Um but I think that that goes a long way. It goes a long way to have it where people feel they have a job. ICE has a job to do. their their main task is to remove criminal behavior um of illegal immigrants just as the police are

charged with removing criminal behavior of anybody that that is in in our jurisdiction in our in our bureau. Um but again, I think it it creates that level of comfort and understanding if you know who you're dealing with.

Other discussion? Uh, I think there's a lot going on right now with uh, newly elected uh, Governor Cheryl that she's been discussing a lot in the news that she's planning to do. I think that um, you know, she's talking about making sure that agents are don't have their faces covered and things like that. I I think and and it sounds like she's looking to take steps soon to make it more official what you know what the state will uh decide is you know the way things should be handled in the state with ICE. So I I feel like we will watch what's happening at that level and like you've said we've the New Jersey has already done quite a bit to you know in the past. So that's all I'm saying is just you know it's it's already happening at the state level and I think we'll we'll watch to see what happens there. So, so at this point

I don't Glenn I got something but I didn't want to jump in front. No, go ahead.

Well, I mean the uh at the state level the Immigration Trust Act, whatever it was we wrote the resolution for, didn't pass, right? I mean, it passed the houses, but wasn't signed into law by the the governor. Uh what did pass was that they um the immigration enforcement activities cannot occur at public facilities, right? Um, one thing I'd like to philosophically discuss or at least put out there for us to to contemplate is that the Somerville Police Department does have a great relationship with the community because they're here to protect us and most of us, you know, will understand that and act with them appropriately. I would hate for them to lose the trust of the community by not acting in the protection of citizens in any type of circumstance, especially residents, specifically residents of Somerville. So, that being said, I mean, I don't know. We can't regulate what the federal government does. That's not up to this council. But I would like to see some language where we put somewhere or at least a directive that makes it clear that, you know, our police department is for protection of Somerville residents and is not for the enforcement of the current administration's whim. So, at the time being, I'd like to see us come up with some language that walks the appropriate fine line uh of not uh trying to tell anybody else what to do, but making sure that our police department are for the protection of us. That's my main point

in the directive. So, in the again the integration, the act did not pass. It was one of the things that that didn't get through there on the last few days. But in the directive it does state uh that that the local police department's responsibility is to the residents and to it in it does talk about um harm to police off but as police officers. So they in the directive it does say that their first responsibility is to the residents and it to their to their brothers and sisters on the force. I mean, more to the point in my mind, uh, the way that I would like to I don't know how we would regulate this, but I would when we see these images coming from across the country, the police that are involved are typically facing the crowd with the federal officers at their back, allowing them to do whatever they need to. I would like us to write an ordinance that has it the other way that our police officers face the federal workers doing their jobs and that they protect and don't take this stance of defense against our citizens. However, we do that. I don't know exactly how to write that into law. I know this is a discussion, which is why I bring it up for discussion purposes, but there should be a way that we feel protected, not threatened by our own police, should something happen where people show up in their community to document or be aware of what's happening with some type of enforcement action that's happening. And our police should be there for us, not for the protection of the the federal agents to be honest.

So, and the directive does say that, right? But the directive is a directive. It's not a law. We don't have anything on the books that makes it any clearer or more clear as to what our intentions are and if we're going to take a step in that direction. I would think philosophically we'd like to land in the place that makes it clear our police are for protection of us.

Well, I can say having sat on this board for a number of years now. Um that the the protests that we have had in this burrow have been an example to other towns and other states. um our our constituents, our residents have we there's been multiple protests since I've been here and even before that and you know the mayor can speak to it as well. The one thing that we do very well is get our point across but in a very peaceful and in a very um respectful manner. And so again, our respect is for our police officers. Their respect is for us. I think that you know there's that other piece of it that we can't But I would say that that again I think we conduct ourselves because we know that we have the support of the people of the first responders that are around us. I understand what you're saying. Um but our past past history here and what I've seen our the protests that we have have been again exemplar.

Right. I'm not so worried about our our folks being the violent ones.

Understood. Anybody else? Uh I don't know how we as a body would go about codifying it in that. Um I hear Andrew and the ability to support our residents in all manners and not support things that are happening that could be a violation against the oath we all took for the constitution. I don't know how to codify that. um sort of with Teresa as well that looking for direction and support from the state and how they're giving, you know, because they have a little bit more um pull in this game as far as dealing with uh federal agencies than we do. Um so I I guess I'm I'm I'm torn in that manner of, you know, trying to find that balance of supporting our residents, uh supporting our local police, um and also making sure that people are doing their jobs appropriately. And I think again you both make a great point and we've I think we've touched on this the last time that we spoke. Following following the state, following the county gives us more legs to stand on. Um if we are an island unto ourselves dealing with the federal government, we don't have that support. And I think it's important that whatever it is that this body ends up doing, we know that our state supports us. This is a a very divisive issue. Um we are trying to make sure at the end of the day that our residents are safe. That's that's it. And that our police officers are safe. And we don't want to put anybody in a position where that could be compromised. And I think that, you know, with with what's going on with the new government governor and and everything that's already been put on the books and and the mayor has had we've, you know, talked about this a

little bit. there's a lot that's already there that helps and supports this. Um, but again, I think that this having, and I think you're both right, knowing where our state is headed will give us more ability to do the right thing and not put us in jeopardy where we're doing something that could be misconstrued as um, you know, against the federal government going along with the constitution as Glenn said. Any other comments?

Um, I just, um, you know, it's hard to put into words, but all but one of us on this council are very, very white. And I want the residents of Somerville to feel that they're all being heard. they're all being respected and they all will be able to feel safe going about their day. Um, and this is something I think about all the time. Um, you know, just making sure that we're keeping our community safe and that they feel confidence in us, that we're we have all of their best interests at heart, not just the ones that look like us. And I think that it sometimes can it's easy for us to have this conversation because it doesn't we don't walk out the door every day feeling scared. And I just want everyone who might be watching this to to know that uh we care about your safety and we're going to do whatever we can to make sure it stays that you stay safe. Anybody else? All right. Um, this issue brings up a lot of emotion. Regardless of where you sit on this issue, it it is an emotional reaction and I think that is part of the challenge that we have. Um, I've heard discussion tonight about what our PD should do. Our PD sits and they do the right thing every day 247 365 and I have the complete and utter confidence

in any situation that they will do the right thing. They've been doing it forever. And to try to codify how a police officer is supposed to act, it that's I I just don't understand that our police officers know what to do. They know the right thing. Um, I agree with Teresa, Roger, Glenn that the state, there's a lot of moving parts right now and the state is in the midst of trying to figure things out and what how they want to react to what's going on. They'll react. It's going to take time because there's how many legislators that have to figure it out. If we can't get seven of us to agree on issues, getting that many legislators to agree is difficult. But what I don't want to see is an issue like this divide our community. I said this the last time. As soon as this governing body starts tackling federal issues, we've got a problem. It has never happened before. I've been involved in this town for 25 years. we don't take up federal issues and when we do it leads us it leads down a path of divisiveness and if we're trying to create a colle that's together that's what we have so I think we need to tread very carefully in how we react to issues at the federal level and even at the state level folks we have a lot of issues to deal with that affect our 2 and 1/2 square miles. Might this affect us? Yes. But the state has to come up with some of those

solutions. It's not always up to us to figure that out. And when we start to tread into these areas, you can see I mean, you can feel some of that tension up here. And I don't know that that it's really appropriate. Now, I know what some folks will say. Well, yes, it is because somebody has to I I get it. I hear I hear the arguments on both sides. I get it. My concern is Somerville and the residents who live here.

That's my concern. The safety and security of our residents. And you know what? We have it. So, I agree. Let's see where the state is going. Um, and I would just caution in the future, as I said at the last meeting, as soon as we where does it stop when we when we start entertaining federal issues, where does it stop? So, we need to be very careful where we tread with that. That's just my caution. Um, all right. with that CDBG discussion. Uh, Safe and Sound Some Some Somerset is presenting an application for intensive case management for survivors of domestic violence, and they are seeking uh $95,000 from the uh community development block grants. Um, in order for them to apply, we have to actually open up uh for public comment. And uh I will open up the meeting for public comment on the CDBG application for Safe and Sound Some Some Somerset. Hearing no public comment, I'll close. And Kevin, nothing else that we need to do on that?

Uh no, that's it. Mayor, you you'll see a couple of these coming in front of you over the next couple weeks, right? Okay. Thank you. Uh at this point, I will ask for a motion to open the meeting to the public. So moved. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Kiy, yes. Glen, yes. Randy Pitts, yes. Roger Ferm, yes. All right. Uh, public meeting is open. Please state your name and address for the record and please address your comments to me. Uh, up there.

Hi, Mayor Gallagher. Council, it's so good to see you. Thank you for taking time this evening. My name is Mallalerie. I'm a homeowner in Somerville. I live on 41 Raw Street. Um, I just wanted to add a few thoughts regarding the conversation that we just had about our municipal protections. So, one point that you made, Mayor Gallagher, is that we should not be involved in federal policy. I completely agree with you. It made me proud to hear you make that statement. What I am very concerned with and the point that I'm making is that the federal government should not be imposing itself in our municipal local government. Um, we are not taking on a federal issue by making clear that our community is going to honor our resources and our law enforcement by ensuring that those who are presenting as law enforcement are indeed part of public safety. Um, you made another point that safety is had Somerville has had safety. I feel so safe in Somerville. I am so grateful to our law enforcement agencies here because I personally have uh you know looked to them and and gone to them for help to ensure that our community is this safe place and it has been but safety is had until it's not right these communities around us I work in Morristown right Morristown felt safe my co-workers that are homeowners that live are residents in Morristown felt that they were safe to go to their laundry mats to go to their stores until we've seen new enforcement there where my my co-workers, right, are not sure if it's safe to go to the grocery store or the laundry mat, right, when they see vehicles that are unmarked, when they see people posing as law enforcement that are not identifiable. Um, you know, you made a point, uh, Councilwoman Bonner, about waiting for the state level to act. Um, you know, that approach works until it doesn't in

the same vein, right? So, we've just seen um initiatives fail at the state level that we were looking to for guidance and protection. So, what I'm asking the council to consider and understood this is just a comment is are we going to look to protect ourselves and our residents, right? Are we going to consistently have this approach of waiting for state action? And that's just a question for our council. Um you know, the mayor of Jersey City passed an executive action. Um some of you may be aware on this exact topic. Um, we're seeing municipalities all across the country. Uh, you know, where I'm from, San Jose, uh, California, all over the country. We even have Midwest cities. I'm happy to provide a list if it's helpful to our, uh, burough attorney of the actions that municipalities have taken on this subject. What I want to be very clear about just as a concluding point is that, uh, I care so deeply about Somerville and I care about protecting our municipality, our resources, and our residents. And there is a doctrine in the legal field right the anti-comandeering doctrine. This is well settled legal precedent that says you know the federal government cannot impose state or municipal agencies to take action you know absent some you know very special circumstances. What we have been seeing is the commonandeering of municipalities and state resources right by our federal federal government which is antithetical to the established law under the anti-comandeering doctrine. We are not trying to get into the subject of immigration. That is blatantly, clearly, unarguably a federal issue. We are actually only, as a resident, I am only trying to have the conversation of ensuring that our municipal resources, our law enforcement agencies maintain that respect, the safety that Mayor Gallagher, you've been pointing to, we've had the, you know, luxury of experiencing for so long as tenure that that maintains. And so I have want nothing to do with the federal, you know, a federal issue. I

want nothing to involve myself in a federal issue. I only care about Somerville. I'm a Somerville resident. I love this community and I thank you for your consideration. Thank you very much. Thank you. Other public comment.

Hi. Um Tim Deal, 76 Culver Street. Um I want to echo everything that um my neighbor uh said. Um, I will admit she is much more prepared to make this public comment than I am. Um, I think that this is um an incredibly um inflammatory issue and really scary and um and unsettling and almost dangerous for a lot very dangerous for a lot of people. Um, in terms of um, you know, some of the comments that that were said here, I would be interested to know specifically which other federal issues you're referring to in terms of comparing these issues because I agree that um, you know, this this isn't really a federal issue. This is getting closer and closer and closer to home and we are hearing m many more anecdotes um from surrounding towns and the county and um it's getting very very scary. Um, and you mentioned that the police um, you know, the the police force continues to make the right decision every time. And I I applaud the police um, you know, training and, you know, whatever environment they promote here in at the Somerville PD to uh, allow their officers to make the right decision in every situation. But this is such an unprecedented time and such an unprecedented uh like insertion of the federal government into our local municipality. And um I think that having some sort of guard rails for our police will only allow them to make that right decision for our community in the time um when it's most needed. Thank you.

Thank you. of the public comment.

Robert Mater, 120 Facil Street in Manville. Um, rise to speak tonight about something that happened right by Michael Le Park about a week and a day ago. Just want to inform you about it uh and propose some solutions. Um, so I've been working uh for the past 12 and a half years as a youth pastor of Crossroads Community Church. you may know, uh, we purchased 147 East Main Street, though I'm no longer employed by the church. Um, I do have a heart for the youth of the church. And, um, back in, goodness, this must be early 2020, I reached out to the mayor at the time, Mayor Sullivan, and on Park Avenue, there's a crosswalk that leads from the church uh, over the street to uh, the Michael Le Park. as you know, there's a swimming pool there, basketball court, splash pad, and then the beautiful Peters Brook, uh, which is lovely to go and take your kids to explore. So, I reached out or a number of people at our church reached out and and we got an in street yield sign for pedestrians just because we noticed on Park Avenue, it's very straight and so cars just go whizzing, whizzing by there. Uh, even I myself sometimes go a little too fast on that street. So, we got this in-person yield sign and it's it divides the road in half and cars slow down and they kind of figure out which way they have to go around this thing because it's right in the middle of the road. And um I I believe that that was doing a lot to help the safety of our kids, especially in the summer. In the summer that park fills out and then right across the street there's a convenience store and so kids want to take the shortest possible path. So, having a marked crosswalk there is really important. uh 2021 when Ida came through. Uh I remember the storm carried away our our in street yield sign and I hiked down into the Peters brook halfway down the eroded slope. I found it covered in mud, carried it back and placed it back in the middle of the street because I

believed in it. Um sometime after that it was removed. I don't know by who or or when. And to my shame, I didn't uh I didn't make a a deal about it. Um, may I approach I have some pictures just of the intersection from 2020. Thank you.

Those are just for illustration purposes to show what it looked like prior to uh Ida. Anyway, those road markings are now gone. Even though the apron that leads down uh is still there, there's no yield sign. Anyway, about uh eight days ago uh in the morning, uh a family was late to church and um a young boy, a six-year-old was struck uh in the street. Now, it's probably was a perfect storm uh dealing with some of the snow and some some other things that were going on, but uh I just want to uh encourage you all tonight. Uh, I think there's this is an easy win before the summer comes uh for the burrow to look into perhaps uh repainting that crosswalk, perhaps uh making it a litup crosswalk just given the sheer volume of kids who come through in the summer. Um I think it's only really a matter of time until another pedestrian accident happens there just given the high flow of traffic, the speed of traffic. And so I just ask you to look into it uh and consider taking action. I'm not a man of many means, but uh if funding is the issue, I will go hatinand to raise funds for this crosswalk just because I see many children cross this crosswalk all through the summer, all through the year, and many of them are precious to me and uh none of them uh deserves an unsafe crosswalk. Um and so whatever it needs to whatever needs to happen, if there's fundraising that needs to happen happen, I'm happy to help. Thank you for hearing.

Thank you. Thank you for your comments. Any other public comment?

Hi, Suzanne Mater. I'm with him. Uh 120 Fusilla Street, Manville, [clears throat] New Jersey. Um I'm also here just to talk about the incident that occurred uh a week and a day ago when uh the six-year-old was struck on Park A. Um I want you to know that I actually have a great amount of both respect and compassion for you. Uh I have been on counsel before. Um, I work for a municipality. I get all of the calls um about the snow um and about safety and uh I know how difficult it is to sit where you sit. I know how difficult it is to sit where you sit. Um it is not an easy job. Um keep up the good work. With that said, I want to give you a few things to please consider. Um because I know that in our interaction with um uh the administration of Somerville before the main argument against this was that we don't put crosswalks where there is not an intersection. Um and I want to combat that if that ends up being a part of your discussion. Um I would like to preemptively try to argue against that point um with a couple of quick ideas. Uh the first is that I don't know if any of you know strong towns. Um strong towns is an ideological framework a lot of planners uh sort of and and and do talk about walkability and sustainability, a lot of green stuff which is really good. Um Somerville already does a lot of Strong Towns related sort of good stuff, walkability, um streetscaping, uh lots of really good stuff. But one of the founding principles of strong towns and ultimately any good urban planning is that pedestrian human behavior takes the shortest route from the place that they are to where they want to be. And good government, responsible good government does not neglect reality but reacts to

it. And so when you have what you have here, which is if you think about it, almost a comical amount of pedestrian touch points, a park, a playground, water, basketball courts, sports fields, a church across the street, a convenience store with, by the way, a ton of great Gatorades and snacks for those summertime availabilities. And if you go 50 yards around the corner, one of the best ice cream places in all of Somerset County and one of the best sandwich spots, uh, sandwich spots. All of that to say, I urge you to consider the actual behavior of not just the congregants of Crossroads Community Church, but the parents and the uh the other children of both your town and all of the visitors that you get because Somerville does things so well. I urge you to please consider continue to doing those things well because ultimately when we talk about safety because we've talked a lot about safety tonight. This is an actual safety issue, right? One that happened 8 days ago, right? An actual thing that happened right here in your 2 and 1/2 square mile town. That situation, thank the good and merciful Lord, resulted in a kid who had some chipped teeth and a couple of stitches and is going to make a full recovery. This public comment section would sound and look a whole lot different if that weren't the case. And I would ask us all to think about the next time because ultimately choosing to not keep the crosswalk in a good condition is one decision. Choosing to remove the striping entirely is another decision. Those decisions matter when it comes to pedestrian safety. And I would ask you to think about what would happen. What would this public session

look like if another child gets hurt in that very very normal easy crossing when pedestrians go from point A to point B in the point A to point B in the shortest possible way. I understand that it may not actually be sort of within this typical way that you think about planning, but again, I would just ask you, good, responsible government reacts to reality and deals with it rather than stuffing cotton in our ears and saying, "Well, that's against the rules. We don't do it that way." Um, thank you for your time and your consideration. I really appreciate it. Thank you.

Any other public comment? Good evening everyone. My name is Larry Cleveland. I live at 34 Grant Avenue. And what woman said is actually very true. We do have a crosswalk with no traffic light at the the geran way or Gia.

There's a crosswalk there. People have to stop for people walking and there's no traffic light there. So there's no excuse. They can't use that as an excuse. The state, as you remember to the planning board from two years ago, they said they're going to put in a crosswalk across West End Avenue going towards the back of Immaculate Conception Church. Very few people walking across that street over there going to the Catholic school, but they're going to spend thousands of dollars and putting striping in a speed humps. We can put striping back in. I just I agree with her 100%. Makes sense. Her too.

There you go. Thank you. That was the mildest you've ever been, Larry. No, you're sitting down. Go. [laughter] Any other public comment? Hearing none, I'll ask for a motion to close. So moved. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Terresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Kiy. Yes. Glen Deny. Yes. Randy Pitts. Yes. Gina Stravik. I'm sorry. Roger Vroom. Yes. [laughter]

Public is now closed. Um I agree with you. Uh what I can tell you is u not this council but um very similar situation. We have the YMCA uh in the in the center of town and the YMCA had asked for a midblock crosswalk to go to Carol Pager Park. All for it. I think it's a great idea. That's where the kids are crossing.

The council at that time said, "No, we can't do it." Um, it's just the way it was. So, I can't do what they won't allow me to do. Um, this issue came up prior to me coming back to this seat. Um, I agree. Uh, I also think there's other mitigations we should be putting in there to slow traffic down. coming off of 28. Um the curb is rounded there. So when people are making a right, they're they're still doing basically the same speed limit. So I'm going to refer Teresa uh to bring this to the public safety committee. Um a little

we've actually already been discussing this area. Yeah. So, um it is a topic that we're we're discussing now and yeah, I was actually gonna be talking to Kevin in the next um some questions that I have. You know, coming coming from the north, rumble strips to slow people down. There are things that we can do. Um you know, it's a very wide street. So, the the perception of speed for the driver is not as fast. Um and they're just Yeah. So, there is and there's a lot of interactions there. So, I agree with you. I think the question that we had or that the public safety committee had was is is it a state road? Is it a town road? It's a local road. I'm very familiar with it is a local.

Yeah, I'm very familiar with that. I've met people. Then it'll be much easier to take

the at that time there was no legislative authority for the midblock crosswalk. So in the burrow um you know there are those those ramps that are there that were put in under under um some sort of project. Um but there there's no crosswalk and and uh but obviously if it was on on a state road you'd have to get get their permission but that's a local road that's um it would just it would require local legislative authority. I think at the time, if I recall correctly, the municipality was not approving midblock crosswalks. In fact, they did not approve the one that sits across street from the county building where they cross correct

20 feet off the corner. Right. So, uh there there may be some other midblock crosswalks that that just don't have legislative authority. So, when when the borrow either paves it or or makes improvement to it, the ordinance is followed. So what I what I would also suggest, Teresa, it it it relates to um to this intersection, the travel on 28. Um when you're coming uh from the west and heading east and from the east heading west, the lanes are kind of like a no man's land and there is, you know, there's no marking. So, right, that's,

you know, when people are somebody may stop, somebody thinks they're making a left and you got cars going around. Um, when you're jockeying coming down the hill, even in your car, and you're you're going to go over to the right hand lane, there's somebody shooting right behind you. So, I think that's something that needs to be addressed, too. And then we can bring DOT or state representatives in. Okay, good. Those things the last meeting that was discussed. So, okay, great. You're on it. So, thank you. Thank you. All right. Uh ordinances for introduction. Uh ordinance number 2781 is amending chapter 75 entitled fees adding section six entitled special service charge. Kevin, can you give us a brief overview on this?

Sure. This comes about there's actually state uh authority for this. This comes about because the police department is spending a lot of time uh performing requests for opers regarding body cameras and just all sorts of um items that people are doing research on. So this just gives us the local authority to really match what the state state allows. It will allow us to provide a special service charge for work that um they're doing for for requesting of records. These are not like and I want to be clear, they're not like police reports. They're things that take days to to put together to redact blur out.

That's correct. So it's uh it's a process. But just just because it's a local authority, we do have the like I said, it does allow it under state state code to do that. Most municipalities do this. Okay. Public comment on 2781 is now open. Hearing none, I'll close public comment and ask for a motion for introduction. So moved. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Ki. Yes. Glen Deny. Yes. Randy Pitts. Yes. Roger Verm.

Yes. 2782 is amending ordinance number 27762 251103 establishing a salary range for employee titles to be paid to certain officers and employees of the burrow of Somerville. This is housekeeping that is done sporadically over the course of the year. Uh this just sets the established minimum and maximum amounts for various uh positions and titles within the burrow. Uh public comment on 2782 is now open. Hearing none close 2782. Motion for adoption or introduction, please. So moved. Second. Discussion. [clears throat] Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Kiy. Yes. Glendon E. Yes. Randy Pitts. Yes. Roger Verm. Yes.

All right. Amendance. Amending section 80-7 entitled additional required inspection and fees subsection C and D to clarify that the Burough of Somerville receives a fee unless waved by the burough council and the fire marshall, fire inspector or designate is paid in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement or salary ordinance. Kevin, uh, is that pretty self-explanatory?

Yeah. What what what [laughter] it is is to ensure that the municipality does receive the fee. There was a a a confusion in the ordinance that that appeared that the fire marsh or or a fire inspector would receive the fee. So, we the burrow receives the fee. The burrow pays those employees their appropriate pay overtime or otherwise. That's what this clarifies. Okay. Uh public comment on 2783 hearing none. Post 2783. Motion for introduction, please. So moved. Second. Roll call. Okay. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Ki. Yes. Glen, yes. Randy Pit. Roger Verm.

Yes. All right. 2784 is amending the redevelopment plan for the West Main Street redevelopment area, specifically blocks and lots as noted. uh pursuant to NJSA4A12A-1. Uh Colin, can you give us a brief overview on this?

Yeah, please. This is the followup to the planning board's study of an area in need and it adds the uh section of land on West Main Street from Dowy to where vets forms back with um Somerset Street. Uh it's proposing no changes to bulk standards. It's not proposing any of the properties um other than the commercial ones that could be redeveloped, the the private properties. It's it's taking them and saying that no redevelopment will take place there, but they will be able to participate in the benefits um in of any property being in a redevelopment area. For instance, if a property owner wanted to rehabilitate the house, they could get grants from the DCA to assist them doing it while they're in a redevelopment area, which wouldn't happen elsewhere. We've also got um a commercial strip down Dowy and ducking around Veterans Memorial Drive. Um [clears throat] they're not intended to be redeveloped unless the owner wants to do something with them.

Yeah. And so that that leaves the granite building in all its glory. Yes. Okay. We don't we don't one final thing. We don't propose in changing any of the standards or or requirements for building or rehabilitation. Okay. Thank you. Public comment on 2784 is now open. Hearing none. Close 2784. Ask for a motion for introduction. So moved. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Ki. Yes. Glendy. Yes. Randy Pittz. Yes. Roger Vroom. Yes.

All right. Consent resolutions. We have one modification on 071 uh which is authorizing free parking on February 12th for Gallentine's Chocolate Walk starting at 5:00 p.m. It should be um all lots uh will be free. Uh street parking will not that will the meters on the street will m be maintained as is. All right. So, uh, any pulled off for further discussion? 64. Okay. Any others?

All right. 59. Cancelling uncollectible taxes and issuing a refund to address known as 123 Davenport Street. 60 is authorizing the execution of a shared service agreement, Transportation, Somerset County. 61 is memorializing the green team members listed below with the term expiring 123126. 62 is approving opioid funding for challenge day activity. 63 is authorizing a two-year service agreement for animal control services with animal control solutions LLC. 65 is approving Somerville Fire Department application for Emma Hill. 66 is affirming change orders to RJM landscape and design contract and making findings required by NJAC as noted for change orders exceeding 20%. 67 is approving payment for $500 application fee for a grant from the hazardous discharge site remediation fund to the NJA for the remediation of certain sections of the former color technology site at 60 Cornell Boulevard. 68 is establishing the title of public works operations supervisor and adopting job description. 69 is approving Somerville office of emergency management application for Terresa Quinn as a volunteer. 70 is approving Somerville Office of Emergency Management application for Kevin Moore as a volunteer for CERT. 71 is authorizing free parking on February 12th for Gallentine's Chocolate Walk starting at 5:00 p.m. with change as noted. 72 is authorizing the award of a non-fair and open contract for environmental engineering services to Geocint Consultants. 73 is approving Kaylee Mccarinda as deputy treasurer effective January 1, 2026. We have a motion.

So moved. Second. Roll call. Council members Theresa Bonner, yes. Andrew Kiy, yes. Glen Deny, yes. Randy Pittz, yes. Roger Verm, yes. All right. Uh 064 is appointment by mayor consent of council appointing Dana Kessle to serve on the community animal response team term expiring December 31, 2026. Do we have a motion? So moved. Second. Discussion.

I just wanted some clarification of this position. U yeah, the CART team is the team that respond if if there's an evacuation and animals need to be cared in addition to the humans. There's a cart team that that um cares for those animals. Um I sit on that team. Uh Dana had submitted me her credentials on that. She has the credentials to sit on that team as well. And up until this point, Kevin's been I have two other volunteers, but they they're not trained yet. All right. Uh, roll call. Terresa Bonner, yes. Andrew Ki, no. Glenn Deny, yes.

Randy Pitts, no. Roger Verm, yes. Okay. Uh, bills and vouchers. Roger. I make a motion to pay bills and vouchers in the amount of 1,297,64751.

So moved. Second. Discussion. Roll call. Council members Terresa Bonner. Yes. Andrew Ki. Yes. Glenn Deni. Yes. Randy Pitts. Yes. Roger Verm. Yes. All right. Mr. Den, I will entertain a motion for adjournment. I move that we adjourn. Second. And I'll agree. All in favor? I opposed.