[0:07] This meeting to order.
Please rise and salute the flag.
[0:12] » I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America, and to the
[0:17] republic for which it stands, one nation
under God, indivisible, with liberty and
[0:23] justice for all.
[0:28] » Roll call, please.
>> Mr. Meen.
[0:30] » Here.
>> Mr. Wakielski.
[0:32] » Here.
>> Miss Castoni.
[0:34] » Here.
>> Miss Devenezia.
[0:36] » Here.
>> Mr. Balin is absent. Miss Mazie.
[0:40] » Here.
>> Miss Lopez.
[0:42] » Here.
>> Mr. Weisman.
[0:43] » Here.
>> Mr. Lynch.
[0:45] » Here.
>> Mr. Plasternak.
[0:47] » Here.
>> Mr. Henry.
[0:49] » Here.
>> And Miss Bonswich is here.
[0:54] » Notice of this meeting has been provided
to resolution adopted by the mayor and
[0:57] council on December 15th, 2025 as
regular meeting of of the mayor and town
[1:00] council at the Boonton Town Hall, 100
Washington Street, Boonton, New Jersey,
[1:04] and by electronic mailing to the
citizens of Morris County and the Daily
[1:06] Record newspapers, through posting on
the town website, and by filing copy of
[1:10] the same with the town clerk.
Members of the public were also
[1:12] permitted to submit written comments
prior to the meeting via mail or email,
[1:15] which may be summarized or read in their
entirety during the public comment
[1:19] period. All public comments, whether
during the public portion of the meeting
[1:22] or submitted beforehand, shall be
limited to no greater than 3 minutes in
[1:25] duration.
Now, we'll move on to our
[1:28] administrator and committee reports,
starting with Town Administrator Neil
[1:32] Henry.
>> Thank you, mayor. Highlights from the
[1:34] administrator's office for the time
period of June 1st through today that
[1:38] are not included on your agenda are the
following. I've begun the transition
[1:43] planning on all projects being handled
by the current town administrator to the
[1:47] new incoming town administrator. I did
have the occasion to attend a mandated
[1:52] court appearance last week on a personal
matter.
[1:55] I would like to announce the
installation of 14 safety sticks on Main
[1:58] Street beginning in July. This is new
equipment being tested to help enforce
[2:04] parking laws already in place.
The safety sticks are solar
[2:07] solar-powered with radar technology to
detect and document vehicles illegally
[2:12] parked in no parking zones. Photographic
evidence of each violation will be
[2:17] reviewed by the Boonton Police
Department personnel and if warranted, a
[2:22] violation will be mailed to the
registered vehicle owner.
[2:25] Safety stick personnel will not have
access to the Department of Motor
[2:28] Vehicles DMV records.
Any DMV record searches necessary for
[2:33] enforcement purposes will be conducted
slowly by authorized Boonton Police
[2:37] Department personnel and tomorrow
morning we will begin sharing the safety
[2:42] stick information on our website. Phase
two of the town's veteran banner program
[2:46] is now complete. I'm happy to report
there are over 100 banners that are up.
[2:51] Phase three will commence in January for
the next round.
[2:55] And this afternoon I our new
superintendent Eric Orr, our new DPW
[3:00] superintendent Eric Orr and I met with
members of the OEM team to update each
[3:05] other on best practices moving forward
on storm management. That concludes my
[3:09] report this evening.
>> Thank you. Any comments or questions for
[3:12] Mr. Henry?
[3:15] Seeing none, we'll move on to finance
and personnel.
[3:17] » Council member Weisman.
>> Thank you, Mayor. In our last couple of
[3:20] meetings we've gone over a number of the
change orders that are in this agenda as
[3:25] well as continuing work on closing out
the last budget issues
[3:28] including salary. There's some in this,
there'll be some other additional salary
[3:33] ordinances in our next at our next
meeting. And continuing some of the
[3:39] other projects that the committee is
working on, but our most our most timely
[3:43] stuff we really been focused on lately
is all represented in this agenda, these
[3:46] change orders that we take.
>> Thank you. Any comments or questions
[3:50] from Council member Weisman? Seeing
none, we'll move on to police committee.
[3:53] Council member Cascone.
>> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[3:57] Police Committee met on June 9th. We had
a wonderfully productive meeting.
[4:02] We can confirm that the camera project
for Boonton has been funded. This will
[4:07] provide cameras in
um
[4:10] areas such as Canalside Park, Peabe Park
and Main Street. The speed signs for
[4:15] Washington Street, Morris Avenue,
Vreeland and Oak Street are being
[4:19] installed this week. So, keep an eye out
for those.
[4:24] Um
There was an accreditation board meeting
[4:29] last week on the 11th with Chief Patanik
um
[4:33] and uh Captain Lamandri went to or
Oh, Lieutenant Mondino.
[4:40] Um
and
[4:42] it was it went well.
It went well? That's fantastic. That's
[4:45] what we want to hear.
Uh [laughter]
[4:50] Uh there was a discussion about the Tone
Road and
[4:54] 287 North intersection to see if we can
um
[5:00] remediate some of the issues that have
had with the residents of Tone Road. I
[5:04] can confirm that the street painting for
287
[5:08] that indicates that 287 ramp is not
visible. It is gone.
[5:12] So, that needs to be redone.
Um but that is something that we are
[5:16] taking seriously and looking into. Um
There was a discussion about
[5:23] um left-hand turn issues for Division
and Main. This is also being looked into
[5:28] and we will have further information
later. Um one last thing is there is a
[5:33] summer camp that is being um
held for the sixth graders of John Hill
[5:39] School. This is being run by Officer
Hopkins. We have about 26 sixth graders
[5:44] that will be attending and I'm sure that
they will have
[5:47] week.
And that concludes.
[5:49] » Thank you. Any comments or questions for
Councilwoman Scotto?
[5:52] » I have a comment. I just want to also
reinforce what um Neil said about the
[5:57] safety sticks. Um just want to make sure
we have this documented and recorded.
[6:01] So, installation of the safety sticks
will be um
[6:05] going on Main Street beginning of July.
This is new equipment, but just reminder
[6:11] that it's new equipment, but it's it's
it's being installed to enforce the
[6:16] already laws that have been in place.
Safety sticks will be solar-powered with
[6:21] radar uh with uh radar technology
to detect um
[6:28] to detect the vehicles who which are
illegally parked. Um photograph evidence
[6:32] will be sent to the Boonton Police and
will be reviewed and warned
[6:38] and will be warranted
if a vio- if if there is a violation
[6:42] will be mailed to the um
the offender.
[6:46] Safety stick personnel will not have
access to DMV records and any DMV
[6:51] records searches necessary for
enforcement purposes will be conducted
[6:54] solely by authorized Boonton Police
Department department.
[6:58] And tomorrow morning, like Neil said, we
will be sharing this information on our
[7:03] web- website. So, take a look if you're
interested in finding out more
[7:06] information on
this new enforcement. Thank you.
[7:11] » Thank you.
Moving on, I'm Planning Board,
[7:13] Councilwoman Mazur.
>> Yes, thank you, Mayor. So, the Planning
[7:17] Board met on June 10th
and there was a discussion to revise uh
[7:22] the process of expedited waivers of site
plan.
[7:26] So, just so I can explain this to you,
it it's called an ES- a EWSP and it's a
[7:32] process which an ordinance does support,
26-21,
[7:37] and it's allowed to expedite any kind of
site plans for the B-1 district, which
[7:42] is the business district in Buellton at
that would be Main Street. Um this
[7:47] expedite this expedited site waiver
allows for B1 owners to make changes
[7:54] from their commercial uh businesses to
residential or mixed-use.
[7:59] Um what the planning board wanted to be
able to do is possibly have some
[8:04] oversight on this if that is possible
because currently EWSPs are becoming
[8:10] more and more frequent. I believe we
have three uh that that a committee has
[8:15] um taken in to take a look at to make
sure that there are going to be no
[8:19] structural changes done to the outside
of the building. It would be all done on
[8:24] the inside.
So the question was should we have the
[8:28] planning board
be an oversight committee for something
[8:32] like this. So that is that is something
that the
[8:35] planning board is kind of tossing around
and we're trying to figure that out. Um
[8:40] and the reason for that is is when
you're going from a commercial space to
[8:43] a residential space, they want to make
sure that there's no tiny living spaces.
[8:47] They want something appropriate if there
is going to be residential.
[8:51] Uh the mayor did make a comment at that
particular meeting and said residential
[8:56] businesses on Main Street are really not
beneficial to our commercial
[9:02] um
to our commercial businesses.
[9:05] The resi- the residential. Am I correct
in saying that?
[9:08] » I said that.
>> All right.
[9:10] I Okay.
>> I'm happy to make a comment when you're
[9:11] done.
>> Okay, that's fine. I didn't I didn't
[9:13] want to I didn't want to speak for the
mayor, but I I thought there was
[9:16] something like that. So
um that's that is what's happening right
[9:19] now. There was a memo that was asked to
be written
[9:22] um
uh by Chris Colley. He works for
[9:25] topology and he'll be uh
um addressing some of those concerns in
[9:30] moving commercial spaces into
residential spaces with these types of
[9:34] applications.
And that concludes my report.
[9:38] » Okay, I'll fill in a little bit. This uh
process is pretty unique to Boonton.
[9:42] There's very few other towns that offer
this and it was designed to streamline
[9:45] if if there's a commercial enterprise
and they want to switch from one type of
[9:48] commercial enterprise to another type of
commercial enterprise. So, they didn't
[9:51] have to go to planning board and take
them months perhaps and and all kinds of
[9:54] fees. So, it was designed to streamline
that. Uh in the last couple of years,
[9:59] there have been no additional
residential units permitted other than
[10:02] ones that were grandfathered and they're
now permitted. So, now we're seeing some
[10:04] changes from what was commercial space
to residential space and we want to uh
[10:11] perhaps revisit, you know, what the
residential standards are on our our
[10:13] Main Street and perhaps exclude the
residential conversions from this
[10:17] process. We don't want to slow it down
for commercial enterprise because if,
[10:21] you know, if there's a vacancy and it
was a you know, a a deli and now it
[10:24] wants to be a restaurant, we want to you
know, that to be as quick as possible.
[10:27] So,
>> That Maybe that
[10:29] » That was the correct comment. That was
the correct comment. My my mistake.
[10:33] » Yes.
>> So,
[10:34] » Sorry.
>> Yes.
[10:35] » Clarify um
that um these residential conversions
[10:40] are are restricted to second floor and
above spaces. It's not street level,
[10:43] correct?
>> It's not street level or or basement, I
[10:46] don't think. So, I think it's
>> It I think one actually was
[10:50] semi-basement. It was basement in the
front but walk out in the back. So,
[10:54] we're trying to have planning board uh
review, you know, for years and years,
[10:57] probably decades, you couldn't do any
additional residential. But now that we
[11:00] changed that, you know, perhaps this one
fell through the cracks and we're going
[11:03] to make sure that there's planning board
review or or that's a proposal, you
[11:06] know, has to come before this board for
change in ordinance but we'd like to
[11:09] have uh planning board approval when it
converts from commercial to residential.
[11:13] » And then that would come to this to the
the governing body.
[11:16] » it's an ordinance, so yes, yeah.
>> So, I think
[11:18] » But I think it's going to initiate as a
uh recommendation from the planning
[11:22] board.
But we've seen three so far this year.
[11:26] Okay. Any other comments or questions?
>> I'm sorry. What was the name of this
[11:31] » That's you.
>> [laughter]
[11:33] » expedited waiver.
>> Yes, an expedited waiver site plan.
[11:37] And there is a currently a committee of
three, I believe, that that oversee this
[11:42] right now, and that's where those plans
get looked at.
[11:47] You know, to make sure that they conform
with zoning and things like that. But,
[11:50] to the mayor's point, we want to be able
to possibly have oversight on it as a
[11:54] council.
[11:58] Anyone else?
You have another question? Sure.
[12:01] » So, this would um
expedite commercial to commercial,
[12:06] commercial to resident, and
>> No, no, no. It right now it allows, you
[12:10] know, if you meet certain criteria
and there's no changes
[12:15] I don't know if change is the right
word. Uh if you want to go commercial to
[12:18] commercial, you can do whatever you
want. Right now, if you want a
[12:20] commercial to uh residential I assume as
as long as whatever the the the code is
[12:25] for residential, you can do that. But, I
think the planning board would like to
[12:28] have some oversight when it goes
commercial to residential. But, we still
[12:31] want to have it be as streamlined as
possible for commercial to commercial.
[12:37] Good?
[12:40] » [laughter]
>> All right. So, if if I have a commercial
[12:45] um on the second floor, and I now want
to move that to residential, that's what
[12:48] we're speaking to.
>> You're permitted to, but we're trying to
[12:51] uh the what the planning board board
would like to do is perhaps have
[12:55] planning board review before it's just
automatic.
[12:57] » Got it.
>> And I think we also want to review the
[13:01] the standards for residential, because
when we allow residential, we didn't
[13:04] address what minimum standards might be.
[13:09] Okay.
You can go yet.
[13:13] All right.
>> You're fine.
[13:17] » So, I want you to understand.
>> So, and what was the So, what is the
[13:21] process now? Like, if I want to do
commercial to residential, it's just
[13:24] like a like I to planning board, it has
to
[13:26] » No, to
>> not currently. Not currently. We're
[13:28] trying to remove the commercial
residential to have that come before the
[13:31] planning board.
>> Okay.
[13:34] » For years and years and years you
couldn't go to you couldn't add any
[13:36] additional residential on Main Street.
>> Got it.
[13:38] » And then we we passed the change the
ordinance maybe 2 years ago that
[13:43] permitted that.
But
[13:45] this expedited
>> waiver waiver
[13:49] » Yes.
>> [laughter]
[13:50] » wasn't existing before. So these
commercial residential got caught up in
[13:55] that and I don't think that was the
intent.
[13:57] » Okay.
So Louisa, there's still a committee
[13:59] that reviews this.
>> Yes.
[14:01] » It just doesn't come before the planning
board.
[14:03] » Okay.
Okay.
[14:05] I think I got it.
>> I'm just going to give you a quiz so
[14:08] Next up
Board of Education, Council member
[14:11] Cascone.
>> Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
[14:14] Uh Board of Education met on June
evening of June 8th.
[14:18] Um
Let's see.
[14:22] Uh
We wanted um was the uh last meeting
[14:26] that the uh student representatives um
from Boonton High School and John Hill
[14:31] School were presenting to the Board of
Education. So we'd like to congratulate
[14:35] Nicholas Fava and Ivana Rebello um for
presenting um for John Hill School and
[14:43] Boonton High School respectively
um all year. They did a fantastic job.
[14:47] It was
and they got um little plaques. It was
[14:50] very nice for them to be um recognized.
>> Good.
[14:53] » Um there was an AVID accomplishment
presentation. So um I don't know how
[14:58] many people are aware of the um AVID
um
[15:03] program that goes on within John Hill
School and Boonton High School. Um
[15:08] Booton uh Booton is actually a national
demonstration school for this program.
[15:13] So we have other schools that come to
and other um board members from other
[15:18] districts that come to our school to see
how to implement this program. So, out
[15:24] of um the schools in New Jersey,
specifically for Boonton High School,
[15:28] Boonton is one of three total national
demonstration schools within the state
[15:32] of New Jersey.
Within the entire United States, we're
[15:36] one of 207.
This is
[15:40] honestly
a a something
[15:43] that should be screamed from the
rooftops for Boonton. We are, you know,
[15:47] we we are a demonstration school for
this fantastic program that a lot of the
[15:51] students like to be in. It gives them
um
[15:57] better understanding of how to work
within colleges and to move forward with
[16:04] their greater academic
um
[16:09] accomplishments. They learn how to take
better notes. They
[16:14] they learn how to interview with people.
They are interviewed by board members
[16:19] and how they like the AVID program and
they are quite articulate. And our board
[16:24] members were extremely extremely proud
of the students that were uh that taken
[16:30] part of the last demonstration that came
to our school.
[16:33] Um so
um
[16:38] There wasn't there wasn't a whole lot of
this meeting. It was winding down for
[16:41] the school year. Um
And there was a a bunch of personnel
[16:47] changes. That's all within the agenda.
It's too much to mention here, but that
[16:50] agenda can be found on the Boonton Board
of Ed website. Um I highly suggest that
[16:56] everyone take a look. It's very
informative. Their meetings are also
[17:00] open to the public and on Zoom.
So, if anybody has any questions,
[17:04] they're there as well.
And
[17:07] um
We they had their HIB self-assessment
[17:11] for the state. Each building scored a 77
out of 78 and the state has accepted
[17:16] those ratings.
>> Thank you.
[17:18] » So.
And that's it.
[17:20] » Any comments or questions?
>> I just one question which is when is
[17:23] graduation? Do you know?
And if you don't
[17:28] I apologize.
>> It's on Monday for John Hill.
[17:32] » 23rd?
>> Week tomorrow.
[17:34] » For John Hill or for the high school is
different, right?
[17:36] » Are they both the same day usually?
>> Oh, is it the same day?
[17:41] » Anyone else?
Okay, next up Boonton Holmes Library.
[17:45] May be Mayor Lunch.
Uh there was a meeting uh last Tuesday.
[17:49] Uh rather quick meeting that followed
the the grand opening for the teen room,
[17:53] which was funded by a I believe about a
$20,000 uh bequest from a member of the
[17:58] Cerbo Lumber family and they used
basically all of it for the uh
[18:02] for the teen room.
Um they're rolling out a potentially
[18:06] discount membership for our neighboring
towns. Uh presently I think for $250 you
[18:11] can have access to all the uh county
libraries all the municipal county
[18:16] libraries and Boonton uh Holmes Library
is considering I I believe uh working on
[18:21] the plans to roll out perhaps Boonton
Township doesn't have their own library
[18:24] for for a lesser fee just to use our
library and our programs.
[18:27] And their audit's complete. Uh a couple
minor uh things that the auditors found
[18:31] but nothing significant. So I think
they're pleased with that.
[18:34] And that's my report. Any comments or
questions?
[18:37] » Uh I would like to say that um Thea and
I attended the ribbon cutting for the
[18:42] teen room and it is it was lovely.
>> It was a wonderful event. The space is
[18:46] fantastic. I love what they've done.
It's it was really well done.
[18:50] » Almost 100% funded by a a bequest from a
former resident.
[18:57] Moving on, Parks and Rec. Councilwoman
Meaney.
[19:00] » Thank you, Mayor. Um unfortunately we
were not able to meet in June. We did
[19:03] not um have a quorum. A number of people
were out of town. So uh no major
[19:07] updates.
Our resident uh Rec Director Tracy Prior
[19:11] is also our resident weather guru. She
was uh quick on the draw of canceling
[19:16] last uh or rescheduling last Friday's uh
movie. It's going to be moved to next
[19:21] week on the 24th. So, it'll be at Grace
Lord Park. Come on out.
[19:25] Enjoy a good time. Um some work has been
done up at Peppy. The uh gazebo was
[19:30] power washed, some of the holes were
filled.
[19:32] Um so, it's freshly redone. So, that's
going to be look nice. Uh
[19:36] there's some gate issues go up there
that's underway and um
[19:40] Councilmember Cascone, I love hearing
that the cameras are finally going up in
[19:44] Canalside Park and Peppy. Um there's a
lot of work, a lot of expenses that are
[19:48] going up there and having some eyes on
it to slow down, prevent vandalism would
[19:52] be go a long way. So, all good news.
Thank you.
[19:56] » Thank you. Any comments or questions,
Councilmember Mean?
[19:58] » I have a question for Councilmember
Mean. The uh misting flowers in Peppy
[20:02] Park, I understand that they were not
winterized correctly and are currently
[20:08] inoperable?
>> That's correct. I Tracy, would do we
[20:11] have a plan to get those fixed? Did
[20:16] » Okay.
>> Uh it is not going to be replaced.
[20:21] There was something happening during
winterization, I believe. Uh that's kind
[20:25] of the word and the answer I'm getting.
So, unfortunately, we're in the process
[20:30] of finding someone that can come in and
fix that.
[20:34] But, they they will be done. They are
working on it. I
[20:37] can't tell you how quick it's going to
get done now, but I expect it to be
[20:40] done.
It's going to take some time.
[20:43] » Okay.
Thank you.
[20:45] » It'll be done in time to winterize them.
>> [laughter]
[20:49] » Anyone else?
>> Thank you.
[20:51] » Okay, moving on. Fire Department,
Councilmember DeVaney.
[20:56] » Fire Department, let me find my notes
here.
[20:58] Um
Uh
[21:01] So, the Boonville Fire Department
celebrated their 135th anniversary with
[21:05] a picnic and a group photo on the 31st
of May. I will tell you I was not able
[21:10] to attend that, but boy it smelled good.
Um
[21:14] uh
in the month of May they responded to 38
[21:18] calls of varying types for an additional
14 of mutual aid. Um two of note uh that
[21:25] are outside of the month of May is
earlier this month uh in the middle of
[21:28] the night our fire department was called
out with three alarm fire in Denville uh
[21:33] which seriously damaged a cafe
on West Main Street. Um there were a
[21:38] number of other departments that were
called out to that fire and and you
[21:41] know, it's just an example of of how
important mutual aid is in in in all
[21:46] these towns that that um have volunteer
fire departments in addition. Um they
[21:51] were called out to a fire in Mountain
Lakes just yesterday, a house fire. Um
[21:55] you know, that was knocked down fairly
quickly and thankfully no serious
[21:58] injuries considering that there was a
party going on at the house at the time.
[22:02] Um and uh
there was one other thing that I was
[22:07] going to say and now it's on my brain.
So, that concludes my report and uh
[22:13] Oh yeah, there there
Nope, it's
[22:16] word up, you know, uh
mark your calendars for the Labor Day
[22:20] parade and the carnival.
>> Are there any comments or questions for
[22:23] Council member Devenezia?
Seeing none, we'll move on
[22:28] to tonight's [clears throat] main event,
presentation from Boonton Main Street on
[22:31] the the work they're doing at Town
Square Park.
[22:42] » There's a microphone that may or may not
be on.
[22:47] Do we have an easel?
[22:57] » There's a mic in front of you too,
Frank.
[22:58] » Okay.
You said You said it was at the bottom
[23:01] of the note.
[23:04] It's possible that
[23:07] » All right. Okay.
I want
[23:12] » Everybody
Hello.
[23:14] » You can take the mic out if you want to.
>> Sure.
[23:18] Okay.
My name is Mandy DeNezio. I'm a resident
[23:21] of Boonton and I'm here with my team who
I'll introduce shortly. We were asked to
[23:25] give a informational overview of the
project that we're doing at Canal Side
[23:29] Park. So, that's what we're here for.
Um we really have just prepared a
[23:33] general presentation. So, if there are
questions or things that kind of go
[23:36] outside of that scope, we'll just ask
that we can get back to you with any uh
[23:40] formal responses, but this is supposed
to be like an informal informational
[23:44] overview.
Um so, what it is Um if you could go to
[23:49] the next slide and my friend Neil's
going to be There we go. Um so, it's an
[23:53] effort spearheaded by the Boonton Main
Street Design Committee to reclaim the
[23:56] green spaces of Canal Side Park and
convert them into stunning native and
[24:01] non-invasive gardens. So, where? The
area in uh scope of the project is along
[24:07] the Main Street side of the park within
the stone retaining wall. You can see
[24:11] part of it here.
Thank you, Frankie. That you can see
[24:14] zone one there. It's the area that's
inside the retaining wall.
[24:18] Um it's going to be divided into zones.
Um we're going to complete one zone at a
[24:22] time cuz it's a really long park.
Um and why are we doing it? The park is
[24:27] currently overgrown with invasive
species, which is both bad for the
[24:30] environment and bad for Boonton,
creating beautiful natural seasonal
[24:35] displays will draw visitors and
revitalize interest in this incredible
[24:39] park while restoring areas targeted by
the whole Highlands Coalition and
[24:43] providing a healthier ecosystem. So,
when?
[24:47] Starting in summer 2025 and running
through at least 2028. The park has a
[24:52] very long footprint. It's a It's about a
thousand linear feet. So, as I said,
[24:56] we're going to work on it in zones, and
the idea is that we can kind of focus
[25:01] and deliver
like zone by zone
[25:05] to the residents of Boonton year after
year, so it's like something happening
[25:09] every year.
Um so, the goal for 2026 is to
[25:13] reclaim the area of the park adjacent to
the Plane Street parking lot, which we
[25:17] are referring to as zone one. And who
So, I'm Madigan Easy. I'm the leader of
[25:22] the Boonton Main Street
um design team. I've got Frankie
[25:27] McDonald's here, who's a design
committee member and a Main Street
[25:30] business owner.
Um our subject matter expert, Daryl
[25:34] Jones, he is a former Boonton resident
and um Morris County park employee. And
[25:40] um our another subject matter expert is
Kyle DeVecchio. He's a Boonton resident
[25:45] and a landscape architect. So, you can
see we've got a lot of brainpower and um
[25:50] I also want to give a huge thank you and
recognition to Natalie Spingold, who's
[25:53] the leader of the Boonton Main Street
and has given us a tremendous amount of
[25:57] support. And a thank you to Tracy Prior,
who has enabled us to do this project.
[26:03] Um
So,
[26:05] how uh this is going to be a
volunteer-led effort, so BMS design
[26:09] committee will take responsibility to
secure all the resources that we need.
[26:13] We had an initial budget of $5,000 from
BMS and have been awarded 3,000
[26:18] additional dollars from the Highland
Coalition, allowing us to continue in
[26:23] 2026. Um we received permission from the
town via Tracy Prior on June 10th of
[26:29] last year, and we have a certificate of
insurance in place and have been working
[26:33] ever since. So, here's an overview of
the project and what we've accomplished
[26:37] in just over a year.
So, if you could scroll a little bit,
[26:41] yeah. So, step one, I'm going to turn it
over to Daryl.
[26:45] » Sure.
Thank you.
[26:47] Uh
Yeah, um
[26:51] So, uh I came into this as a natural
resource manager for the Morris County
[26:55] Park Commission. So, we have some nearby
properties, Tourne County Park, Pyramid
[26:59] Mountain, just up the road. Um invasive
species management is a um
[27:04] growing effort and a necessary part of
manage managing our natural areas. Um
[27:10] and there's been an increased
importance on managing those spaces in
[27:14] between urban parks, green spaces, and
really any opportunity that we can um to
[27:20] eliminate emerging invasive populations
and promote native plants specifically,
[27:25] um you know, is why I really came on
board here. So,
[27:29] uh when we came into this project, um
the first step was kind of identifying
[27:33] which species were on site. Um coming up
with a a schedule, um different ones
[27:40] require a different timeline for control
methods um to give us the best chance to
[27:45] economically kind of um set the stage
for the native plants and the
[27:50] wildflowers and um beautification that
we want to do following up. So,
[27:54] uh we could go to the next slide there.
Um so, we identified a list of uh
[28:00] species in zone one. Uh there are some
additional species that we've identified
[28:04] further down the line that will will
update this list as we go. Um I won't go
[28:08] through all these, obviously, but uh
I'll just highlight a couple.
[28:11] Uh there's some really aggressive vine
species. So, um
[28:16] invasive species for those of you who
aren't familiar or just as a reminder,
[28:20] um they're
uh species that have been been
[28:23] introduced outside their natural range.
Uh and in terms of plant species, they
[28:28] can become super aggressive and inhibit
native plant growth and disrupt local
[28:33] ecosystems. Uh and in this case, um the
invasive vines that are growing in Canal
[28:38] Side Park really inhibited um zero
native plant regeneration. Uh so, we
[28:44] really needed to wipe the slate clean
and give us a nice
[28:49] uh
planting um slate to kind of build off
[28:52] of. Uh so, black swallow-wort and
Japanese honeysuckle were really the
[28:56] main targets here that were growing as
one large monoculture across the whole
[29:01] site um that we really had to uh
uh reset completely. Um so, we'll get
[29:08] get to how we did that in a second. Uh
and just one other one that I wanted to
[29:12] note, you may have heard of tree of
heaven or Ailanthus altissima. Um that's
[29:16] the preferred host tree species for the
spotted lanternfly.
[29:20] Uh and so, that was growing uh and still
is growing in large number throughout
[29:25] Canal Side Park and some of the adjacent
properties. Um especially the small
[29:29] trees that are growing out of that
sloped section can support thousands of
[29:33] the little nymphs that then will uh
emerge um later on in the summer, grow
[29:38] into the adults that we see flying
around uh Main Street. So, um so, that's
[29:43] kind of uh our approach to this uh
invasive species um control that we
[29:48] started last year.
Uh and if we go to the next slide,
[29:53] um
so, these are a couple just example
[29:56] photos of how um
some of these species uh
[30:01] and we can go to one more slide.
Uh so, really there's usually a a
[30:07] combination of approaches that you have
to do um when controlling invasives.
[30:12] Uh usually it's a multi-year effort.
It's always better to be um extra
[30:16] diligent early on and try to get um
uh exhaust the seed bank that may be in
[30:22] the soil. Uh so, we really wanted to
spend the whole first year really
[30:26] removing as many invasives as we could
and introduce a little bit of
[30:30] competition um
to the space as well. So, uh to minimize
[30:35] the use of herbicides, we really
emphasized mechanical control methods um
[30:40] Um, and uh ended up going with a
solarization technique, uh, which I
[30:44] think we do have a a slide that shows
what that looks like. Um, it consists of
[30:50] dre uh,
fixing thick plastic clear tarps over
[30:54] the entire slope after we went through
with hedge trimmers and cut everything
[30:58] back. Um, this uses the power of the sun
to just basically cook everything even
[31:05] through the soil and um, and sometimes
it can actually exhaust the seeds that
[31:09] are underneath. Uh, but again, this is
something that we've had to do two
[31:13] summers now. Um, we're really taking a a
thorough approach and Frankie has been
[31:18] instrumental in getting that uh, on on
schedule, so. Um, do we have a slide of
[31:23] the
next slide? Okay.
[31:27] Yeah, I don't think I'll pass back to
Amanda for it this point, but
[31:31] » Thank you. Thank you, Daryl. He's got
all the technical knowledge. Um, and
[31:35] then as far as then what's next is we
get to plant it up, which is very
[31:38] exciting. So, I'd like to give a
disclaimer. It's going to look worse
[31:42] before it gets better. You have to trust
the process. So, we had to, you know,
[31:46] solarize and add the tarps, which might
not be the most beautiful thing, but
[31:50] just wait until you see what that
enables. So, if you go to the next
[31:53] slide, um,
this is our current state. So, we have
[31:59] we, Frankie primarily, and [laughter] a
few other people have really removed a
[32:04] lot of the invasive species there and we
all work together to put the tarps on.
[32:08] The section in the middle what we had
the tarp on all summer last year. And
[32:12] then once the tarp came off, we were
able to plant rye seeds and what that
[32:17] does is stabilize the soil so it doesn't
erode and it also blocks some of the
[32:22] native spe- or invasive species from
coming back. So, right now this is what
[32:25] it looks like and then we're going to
talk about where it's headed and I'll
[32:29] have my friend Kyle take us through
that, but go one more slide.
[32:34] Um, again, yeah, about 90% of the zone
has been at least remediated, so we have
[32:38] the rye grass growing there now. It's
like a temporary measure, and when we
[32:42] when we're ready to plant for real,
we'll remove the rye grass.
[32:46] And then you can go one more.
So, the vision. So, uh what inspired
[32:51] this all?
Um you can go one more. There's
[32:55] beautiful public gardens like you see
the one on the left is
[32:59] um
by Piet Oudolf, who actually Rosemary
[33:02] has
introduced us to. He's done the um
[33:06] Highline Highline gardens in New York
that you see up all along the Highline.
[33:10] He also did um
He didn't do this, actually. Somebody
[33:13] else did it, but the native plant garden
at the New York Botanical Gardens at the
[33:17] top right. It's incredible. I highly
recommend you go. Some of the
[33:20] inspiration for our project. But then we
took that and we handed it over to Kyle
[33:25] cuz Kyle's actually a landscape
architect, and he's been donating all of
[33:28] his services for free to design this um
park. So, thank you, Kyle.
[33:35] » Hi.
[33:37] » All right. Don't worry, I'll send my
bill later. Um
[33:40] » [laughter]
>> Uh so, the plan is pretty simple. Uh as
[33:43] you can see in the aerial photo, uh it's
an area that backs up uh a lot of
[33:47] community events in the area. Obviously,
that's the farmers market that we're
[33:50] looking at now.
Uh so, it would be great to get a nice
[33:53] backdrop for that area. Um
again, like I said, the plan is is
[33:56] pretty straightforward. We're going to
stick with woodland edge line plantings
[34:00] along the borders. Uh so, on the left
where the trees are thicker and heavier,
[34:05] we're going to stick with things that
dwell in the shade, uh tolerate dry
[34:08] soil, and are are zone hardy.
Uh again, everything we're going to do
[34:12] is is native planting. That's the big
emphasis right now, which is a nice
[34:15] change of pace from what I deal with in
my day-to-day life. Uh everybody wants
[34:19] to design a a hydrangea and boxwood
garden. So, to do something that gets
[34:23] back to local natives and fauna is
really uh is exciting for me.
[34:27] Uh same goes for the right side of the
project. You'll note that there's a a of
[34:30] shade coming off of a a structure over
there. So again, it's going to
[34:33] accommodate a more
shade heavy planting. As we move towards
[34:37] the middle of the project, there's going
to be two main swaths. Everything is
[34:40] going to be planted in in mass. So
there's going to be, you know, figure 5,
[34:44] 10, 15 of each plant to generate a zone
of interest. Um
[34:49] And we've worked really hard to make
sure that everything that we plant is
[34:52] going to bloom at a different time. So
we're going to have constant interest
[34:55] throughout the year. Even when we get to
the fall and winter months, we'll have
[34:58] things like the fragrant sumac, which
even though it doesn't
[35:01] give off the most beautiful flowers, it
does have a beautiful red foliage. So
[35:06] things that are going to constantly go
off. You know, we'll go from one flower
[35:08] to the next and generate more interest.
But to get back to the the central
[35:12] layout, we're going to move from sort of
a grassland area,
[35:16] which will be, you know, swaths of
beautiful grasses, some tall things like
[35:19] goldenrod, things that support local
wildlife, lots of butterfly uh
[35:26] loving plants or vice versa, butterflies
that love the plants.
[35:30] Uh and then as we move over to the to
the right side of it, we're going to do
[35:34] specifically sort of a butterfly garden.
Uh we also envision an area along the
[35:38] road where we might be able to get
sculptures maybe from Broadfoot and
[35:41] Maine or some local artists who we can
display in that area as well.
[35:45] I think it's a great opportunity for,
you know, the community to to come
[35:48] together and enjoy the space.
[35:53] » You can keep going.
Did a very, you know, general idea of
[35:58] what it might look like. This is the AI
generation, so please don't hold us to
[36:02] it exactly.
Um but you get the idea of it's a little
[36:05] bit wild, it's a little bit like
um carefree. It's not like a structured
[36:10] garden, you know, that you see in
everyday homes. It's it's got a lot of
[36:14] life to it and a lot of natural quality
to it.
[36:17] You can keep going.
Just another look at the same idea.
[36:23] You can keep going.
And then again, just want to reiterate,
[36:27] it takes time. These species are very
stubborn, so we might be going back over
[36:32] things a year later and then a year
later.
[36:35] Um so, we do expect it to take several
years.
[36:38] And then the next slide, please. Um
after we complete that, we want to keep
[36:43] going. The goal is to just do the entire
thing. So, we will take this area and it
[36:48] might not be exclusively natives, but it
will all be non-invasive plants. And you
[36:55] can go ahead and go forward, Neil. We
want to turn it into like an evergreen
[36:59] spring blooming forest. So, imagine
not hydrangeas. You got that in my head.
[37:05] Rhododendron, mountain laurel, azaleas,
um things that all bloom in the spring,
[37:10] but also stay green all year, so that is
just always something beautiful, but
[37:14] there's this like burst in like May to
really generate interest. So, that would
[37:20] be, you know, 2027 and beyond. We
haven't quite gotten there.
[37:24] And then next slide.
And then so, how are we going to do it?
[37:28] We do have a team. Um we have at least
five or six core members and then we're
[37:33] definitely gaining a lot of interest
along the way. We do have monetary
[37:37] support from BMS Main Street, so thank
you for that. We have our $3,000 grant
[37:41] from the NJ Highlands Coalition and we
just completed our application to get
[37:46] another one, so we're hoping, fingers
crossed, they like the progress and
[37:49] they'll fund us again.
Um Kyle has been working on actually
[37:53] obtaining water access from Boonton
Sewer and Water, so that's part of what
[37:57] we want to um curry your support for is
they've offered to give us a meter on
[38:03] the hydrant that's down there, so that
we can use it to water the gardens.
[38:08] Um
we're looking for support from you guys,
[38:11] just really from
a a
[38:14] not emotional us you know, just support
generally and like the goodwill of so
[38:21] that you guys feel like you're in the
know and like wanting to be a part of it
[38:24] or and things like that. And just
patience because it is going to take
[38:29] time. It It's going to take several
years to get through it, but we think
[38:32] it'll be really cool at the end. So,
that's what we have.
[38:37] » Thank you all.
[38:42] Any questions?
How's that questions?
[38:45] » I I just have maybe one or two.
>> Let's go for it.
[38:49] » Um
Question Question number one I think is
[38:53] Kyle, is that your name? I I'm blanking
on people's names.
[38:55] » That's okay.
>> Um
[38:58] how much maintenance is this going to
take it while it's getting established?
[39:02] I understand once it's once it's firmly
rooted that probably that maintenance
[39:06] requirement comes down, but you know, as
as we're starting this off, you know,
[39:11] » That's you know, I think yep. Off the
bat, I'm sure that there's going to be a
[39:15] lot of mechanical hand weeding that's
going to have to take place
[39:18] unfortunately once the solarization is
done and we've we've knocked out figure
[39:21] 95% of the weeds, it's going to require
our dedicated team to continue to go out
[39:26] there and and maintain from a weed
perspective. From a watering
[39:30] perspective, you know, our goal is to
plant mostly in the fall to minimize the
[39:34] amount of water that we're going to
need. Plants can establish their root
[39:37] systems over the winter and then usually
by the time the spring comes back around
[39:40] they'll need minimal intervention if
any. If we end up with an exceptionally
[39:44] dry spring, then it will of course
require a little bit more assistance,
[39:48] but
you know, our plan is to be as
[39:51] straightforward and economical about
this and well thought out as possible to
[39:55] minimize impact to the town and
to the plants of course.
[39:58] » Well, it's certainly an improvement over
what's there now, so
[40:02] » To be fair, a dumpster fire might have
been an improvement, too, but
[40:06] » Um
I have an idea for the area by the
[40:10] waterfall, but that that we can take it
offline.
[40:13] » Sounds excellent, yeah.
[40:16] » Okay.
>> Um the one it looks great. Is
[40:20] is there opportunities or do you need
volunteer help from residents and how
[40:25] how would you envision that and how can
we get that going?
[40:27] » Thank you for asking. So we have our
Instagram BMS design team. So we're
[40:32] encouraging people to go through there.
For anybody who doesn't have Instagram,
[40:36] I can share my email with everybody
after the meeting.
[40:40] So you would just reach out to me and
I'll get you get anybody set up with
[40:44] There's plenty to do. So yes, thank you.
Yep.
[40:49] » Yeah, that's about the size of it. So
there is volunteer portal on there which
[40:53] goes directly to me and then BMS did it
through BMS for them and
[40:58] so just go to the BMS website and you
can volunteer. We have a volunteer sheet
[41:02] on there now. And so they will be put to
the pot to be put to this.
[41:06] » I have one other question.
In addition to the funding from Boot and
[41:10] Main Street and from the Highlands
Coalition, is there an opportunity for
[41:13] private citizens to donate or or help
fund this project?
[41:17] » Yes, I think along the same lines on the
BMS website, we do have a portal to
[41:21] donate directly.
[41:25] » Um we've
had that happen
[41:27] before and then and we'll just make sure
because
[41:29] I I see it all it all comes directly.
>> Yeah, it's all coming through BMS. Yeah.
[41:35] Thank you.
>> But there would be a way to earmark that
[41:37] donation specifically for this project.
>> Yes. Yes, so we have actually our own
[41:41] bank account within BMS.
>> Perfect. Thank you.
[41:46] » Anyone else?
This may be something they could perhaps
[41:48] partner with green team.
>> Yeah, I've spoken to Missy DeSalvo.
[41:53] She's interested in getting our teams
together as well.
[41:56] The green team, right? Yeah.
>> Well, thank you all for stepping up and
[42:00] trying to make our town more beautiful.
>> Thank you. Appreciate it. Thank you for
[42:04] your time.
[42:10] We can leave these here if you guys want
to look at them.
[42:12] » I don't need that.
>> Okay.
[42:16] » Thanks very much.
[42:20] Moving on to consent agenda, resolutions
26-145
[42:24] through 26-171,
can I get a motion to open this up for
[42:27] council discussion?
>> Move.
[42:30] » Second.
>> Ms. Cascone.
[42:31] » All in favor?
>> Aye.
[42:32] » Aye.
>> I have a one quick comment. Uh 26-151
[42:36] will be pulled. It was uh to fill a uh
position that the um person who had
[42:42] accepted no longer was interested in the
full-time position. So, we will not be
[42:45] voting on 26-151.
Other than that, do we have any comments
[42:48] or questions?
>> Yeah, just one, Mayor. Um
[42:50] although on the advice of council,
although it's not required, just because
[42:54] of my leadership role in the Boot and
Saddle Club, I'm going to recuse on just
[42:56] 26-165,
which I'll do when we do the roll call
[42:59] vote.
[43:01] » Anyone else?
[43:04] Then I would close council discussion
and call for motion to adopt
[43:09] consent agenda.
>> So moved,
[43:14] Second, what?
>> Uh Mr. Weisman.
[43:16] » Okay. Only one bite each, please.
Um can we get a roll call, please?
[43:21] » Ms. Allen.
Ms.
[43:23] Cascone, sorry. Ms. Cascone.
>> Yes.
[43:26] » Ms. Devenezia.
>> Yes.
[43:29] » Ms. Horton.
>> Yes.
[43:30] » Ms. Eagan.
>> Yes.
[43:32] » Mr. Kermian.
>> Yes.
[43:33] » Mr. Weisman.
>> Uh recusing on 26-165,
[43:37] yes on the others.
>> Mr. Miller.
[43:39] » Me?
>> Yes.
[43:41] » Mayor Merrill.
>> Yes.
[43:43] Moving on to unfinished business,
ordinance 17-26, an ordinance amending
[43:48] the revised general ordinances of the
town of Boonton and providing for
[43:50] licensing and regulation of massage,
bodywork, and somatic therapy
[43:54] establishments.
Can I get a motion to open this up for
[43:57] public hearing?
[44:00] » Second, Megan.
>> All in favor?
[44:02] » Aye.
>> Any members of the public wishing to
[44:05] come forward to discuss just this
ordinance, please do so. step forward.
[44:08] The microphone's here for 3 minutes.
Just introduce yourself and make
[44:11] whatever comments you like.
[44:15] Seeing none, I will close the public
hearing and call for motion to open this
[44:19] up to town council discussion.
>> So moved, Divinagracia.
[44:23] » Second, Mian.
>> All in favor?
[44:25] » I.
>> I.
[44:26] Any members of the council have comments
or questions on this ordinance?
[44:31] » I just want to thank our health
inspector who worked very really closely
[44:34] after we tabled this. You know, we
worked very closely to get this back
[44:38] together and I think it's a it's a
really strong ordinance. I appreciate
[44:41] very much his time.
>> And the um
[44:44] local business that was concerned
happy with this?
[44:49] » Yep.
>> Anyone else?
[44:51] » And dare I say I think this will be a
model for some of the other uh
[44:54] » Okay.
Any other comments?
[44:56] Then I will call for motion to move the
ordinance 17-26.
[44:59] » So moved, Weisman.
>> Second, Divinagracia.
[45:03] » Roll call, please.
>> Ms. Castiglione?
[45:06] » Yes.
>> Ms. Divinagracia?
[45:07] » Yes.
>> Ms. Lopez?
[45:09] » Yes.
>> Ms. Mazzei?
[45:10] » Yes.
>> Mr.
[45:12] » Yes.
>> Mr. Weisman?
[45:13] » Yes.
>> Mr. Okilski?
[45:15] » Yes.
>> Mayor Wind.
[45:17] » Yes.
>> Next up, ordinance 18-26.
[45:21] An uh for introduction and title only, I
believe.
[45:25] An ordinance updating within the town
code of the Town of Boonton chapter 27,
[45:28] article 4, Fire Department, and chapter
36, Length of Service Award Program.
[45:33] Can I get a motion to introduce this?
>> I'll move it, Okilski.
[45:38] » Second Castiglione.
>> Can we get a roll call, please?
[45:42] » Ms. Castiglione?
>> Yes.
[45:44] » Ms. Divinagracia?
>> Yes.
[45:46] » Ms. Lopez?
>> Yes.
[45:48] » Ms. Mazzei?
>> Yes.
[45:49] » Mr. Mian?
>> Yes.
[45:50] » Mr. Weisman?
>> Yes.
[45:52] » Mr. Okilski?
>> Yes.
[45:54] » Mayor Wind.
>> Yes.
[45:56] » Next up, town council members,
administrator, and town attorney
[45:59] comments. Um I'm going to start.
Um, as has been my uh uh
[46:06] principles uh
uh my process during uh
[46:10] my 2 and 1/2 year terms as mayor is to
recognize meritorious service. Uh this
[46:14] is our administrator's last meeting for
a proclamation. Please join me.
[46:30] I pledge allegiance to the I pledge
allegiance to the flag.
[46:33] Town of Boonton proclamation.
[46:37] Whereas Neil Henry is retiring as
business administrator
[46:40] for the town of Boonton having
faithfully served since May 2017 and
[46:44] whereas Neil has lauded has been lauded
by the mayor, council, employees, and
[46:47] residents of Boonton for his selfless
service and valuable contributions to
[46:50] the town of Boonton and whereas Neil's
Neil's dedication and leadership have
[46:55] helped guide the town of Boonton over
the past 9 years and whereas throughout
[46:59] his tenure Neil has provided invaluable
expertise, guidance, and professionalism
[47:04] in service to the town and whereas Neil
has brought his extensive expertise to
[47:08] bear as both business
business administrator and qualified
[47:12] purchasing agent, skillfully guiding
employees,
[47:16] mayors, council members, and residents
as they work together to shape the
[47:19] landscape and future of Boonton and
whereas Neil has devoted countless hours
[47:24] to the review, preparation, and
attendance of meetings and municipal
[47:27] matters in furtherance of the town's
success and whereas Neil's commitment to
[47:31] public service often requires
significant personal sacrifice for which
[47:35] his wife, Leslie, and his children,
Alexandra, Bill, and Ted have shown
[47:39] unwavering support and understanding.
Now, therefore, I, James Lynch, on
[47:42] behalf of the governing body and the
people of the town of Boonton, do hereby
[47:45] extend our deepest gratitude and
appreciation to Neil for his many
[47:49] contributions to the growth,
revitalization, and continued success of
[47:53] our community throughout his years of of
service. Be it further proclaimed that
[47:57] the mayor, governing body, employees,
and residents of the town of Boonton
[48:00] wish Neil Henry continued health,
happiness, and success in all his future
[48:04] endeavors.
>> Thank you.
[48:17] First of all, I'd like to thank the
mayor. I know how you are about
[48:20] proclamations, so this is a big honor
for me. So, thank you for that. Um
[48:25] I remember uh growing up over Mendham,
and I knew Boonton for the firemen's
[48:29] carnival. We used to come up here on
Labor Day. So, when I took the job in
[48:33] 2017, I didn't know much about Boonton,
uh but I've
[48:37] obviously learned a lot about it. I feel
like this is my second family. I spent 9
[48:42] years here. I think I can say that
I'm leaving Boonton in a much better
[48:47] place than what I found it. I will thank
the mayor and the council for the all
[48:51] all of their unwavering support. Uh I
feel we've got a really great um
[48:57] employee base.
We've made a lot of accomplishments. Um
[49:01] so, again, thank you for this.
I am looking for a foursome on July 1st,
[49:06] so if anybody's interested, you can come
see me. Thank you, everybody.
[49:24] » Any other uh council members?
>> Uh mayor, if I can make a comment, too.
[49:28] » Sure.
>> Um I just wanted to make a comment about
[49:30] the illumination of town hall for the
month of June.
[49:34] And I wanted to extend my gratitude to
the Boonton LGBTQ+ community and our
[49:39] Boonton allies. I realize the
illumination of town hall was not the
[49:42] desired result of proposed ordinance
11-26,
[49:46] and for that I'm disappointed, but
perhaps we agree that this is a small
[49:50] progressive step towards acceptance,
unity, inclusion, as well as visibility.
[49:55] Symbols do have strength and a rainbow
symbol is no exception. In closing, I've
[50:00] been reminded that we evolve
as understanding humans through
[50:05] conversation and not by opinion.
So, if anyone wants to start a
[50:10] conversation outside of this room and
off of this dais, I would be happy to
[50:15] participate. Just ask. Because this is
an opinion up here that I speak right
[50:20] now and I really want to be able to have
conversation with community if that's
[50:24] what it would take to be to gain some
more understanding.
[50:27] Uh thank you to Boonton for your
support. I am proud to represent this
[50:31] wonderful community and thank you again.
[50:35] » Thank you. Any other comments?
>> Yeah, just a couple quick ones for me.
[50:39] First, you know, thank you. It's really
been a pleasure working with you.
[50:42] » It's been great working for you, guys.
>> And um I should have noted this probably
[50:45] in the consent agenda vote, but um I do
want to congratulate Pat Laverty on um
[50:51] being appointed as town administrator.
It was a very It was a competitive
[50:53] search. Um the uh the Finance Personnel
Committee we
[50:57] first
Finance Personnel Administration
[51:00] Committee, that one. We spent a lot of
time going through this. I'm really
[51:03] excited um for for the work that you're
going to be doing. You're building on on
[51:07] everything we've been doing. So, thank
you and congratulations to you.
[51:10] Um
couple things that uh as well. Coming up
[51:14] on June 16th, which is this weekend,
tomorrow. It's also known as tomorrow.
[51:19] Um
I don't know how that's tomorrow, but I
[51:22] guess it is. Um there's another Narcan
training. Um Hope One, Lauren LoMotion
[51:27] Live at Lauren's Theater in Parsippany.
Uh I've done it at the Boonton Elks.
[51:32] It's a really a phenomenal phenomenal
training. Uh there's more information on
[51:36] uh if you go to LoMotion Live uh social
media, there's a lot more information
[51:39] there. But, if you haven't done it, I
highly highly recommend it. And thank
[51:43] you to Lauren, thank you to Hope One,
and I know Sheriff Gannon, this has been
[51:45] a big a big um push that he's been
doing. It's really terrific. Um
[51:51] Now I'm afraid to say how many days ago
it was. Two days ago I think it was,
[51:54] maybe it was yesterday
at the Boonton Elks Lodge was a
[51:58] fundraiser
for a young girl called Ellie Strong.
[52:02] It's really remarkable event. Cosmar
Cascone and I were both there along with
[52:05] Assemblywoman Marissa Sweeney and Ora
Dunn.
[52:08] It's really this is a family trying to
raise a significant amount of money for
[52:11] a critical medical van.
I encourage everybody to please go
[52:16] online just look up Ellie Strong on
social media and if you can to support
[52:20] this Boonton family and and what they're
trying to do. It's they need to do. It's
[52:24] it's it's huge. I think it was a
beautiful really a beautiful event.
[52:28] And the last thing is just a thank you
as well to the Elks and very Elks heavy
[52:33] I guess today. The Northwest District
Elks. I was the honor of representing
[52:37] the Boonton Elks
over the yesterday.
[52:40] Yep, yep that was I know that cuz it's
Flag Day yesterday
[52:44] up in
Sussex County at the annual Flag Day
[52:47] ceremony and flag retirement ceremony.
It's really beautiful. It's something
[52:51] I've loved doing. It's a beautiful
ceremony. We go through the whole
[52:54] history of the flag, all the different
flags
[52:57] that have represented this country. It's
extraordinary. And we the Boonton Elks
[53:02] Lodge we brought up well over 150 flags
that were retired. And I want to thank
[53:07] my fellow Elk Lisa Ruberto and I she's
you know the two of us spent a great
[53:11] deal of time folding flags
so that you have them properly folded
[53:15] for their retirement.
Just remind everybody that at the Elks
[53:18] we do have a flag drop box. If you have
a flag in need of retirement, please
[53:22] drop it in there. And that's those are
my comments.
[53:25] » Thank you.
>> Thank you.
[53:26] » Anyone else? John.
>> Thank you. Um
[53:30] I would like to congratulate all the
residents that are graduating middle
[53:34] school and high school, whether it's
Boonton,
[53:36] John Hill, Lumen Academy,
um
[53:40] Morris Catholic and so on. It's a big
day. Hope all the families enjoy that. I
[53:44] should be very proud having raised four
kids that graduate through the Boonton
[53:48] school system. It's a big day. So,
congratulations to all those graduates.
[53:52] And Neil, thanks to you.
This I've never been involved in
[53:56] politics before. You have an You had an
open door. I appreciate it. I learned a
[54:00] lot.
You're going to be missed. And Pat, you
[54:04] got some big shoes to fill.
So, thank you.
[54:09] » I have a comment.
>> Sure.
[54:11] » Uh yeah,
to piggyback off of what Councilwoman
[54:15] Meen said, congratulations to all the
graduates this year. My son is one of
[54:19] them. He's graduating eighth grade.
Straight A student four marking periods
[54:23] in a row.
So, very proud of him.
[54:26] And
that's only because I offered him a
[54:28] bonus at the end of the year.
>> [laughter]
[54:33] » So,
so congratulations
[54:36] to the graduates. And also, thank you
Neil for all the work you've done for
[54:40] this town. I know we've only worked a
short amount of time, but you have made
[54:44] my transition to Council member fairly
easy and and like very less
[54:49] intimidating. So, thank you. You will be
missed.
[54:51] » Thank you.
>> Um that's it for me.
[54:54] » Okay. Mr. Mayor, one one more for Neil.
>> [laughter]
[54:57] » Neil, you know, having having been up
here longer than almost anyone except
[55:02] perhaps Sy. Definitely Sy.
Um
[55:06] I just I want to thank you for your your
guidance at the beginning, your your
[55:11] fortitude in the middle, and and I will
miss working with you.
[55:15] » Thank you, Murray.
>> I would also like to
[55:19] send my thanks, Neil. I appreciate
Louisa said your open door policy, your
[55:24] willing to take phone calls and crazy
questions
[55:28] to you know, to help both in this new
endeavor in
[55:33] our lives. So, it is greatly greatly
appreciated.
[55:36] » Thank you, Daniel. I'm glad it helped.
>> Ditto, Neil. What everybody else said,
[55:42] ditto.
>> [laughter]
[55:45] » Sid, do you have something you want to
say?
[55:56] Thank you, Sid.
[56:01] All right. I think I said my piece.
All right. Uh moving on.
[56:06] Uh meeting open to the public. Any
members of the public wishing to raise
[56:10] uh any topic they like, please step
forward, introduce yourself. The
[56:13] microphone's yours for 3 minutes.
[56:24] He's pulled off.
[56:29] » Hi, my name is Teresa Keyser. By this
time, you know me. I'm
[56:33] living at 219 Mechanic Street.
I'm here to congratulate Patrick
[56:39] on his recent appointment as our town
administrator.
[56:43] I also want to personally
thank him for his responsiveness and
[56:49] professional courtesy that he has
extended to
[56:53] the Keyser family.
Patrick, uh
[56:57] you have a new job, and we wish you
success.
[57:03] But the person who follows you is going
to have to have another pair of shoes.
[57:09] I also want to ask Patrick
where we're going to celebrate tonight
[57:14] because he's responsible.
[57:20] You have to push it.
Uh Patrick's already stepping up.
[57:32] Anyone
[57:37] » Good evening, Rob Murray, 697 Booton
Avenue. I just wanted to thank
[57:40] Administrator Henry. I congratulate you
on your impending retirement. I wish you
[57:44] nothing but the best. During our brief
time together, I can echo the thoughts
[57:48] of the other other board members how
professional and accommodating you were.
[57:52] And good luck. Patrick, good luck. You
got big shoes to fill.
[57:57] » Thank you for your comments.
[58:10] » I'm Cliff Keyser. I live down on
Mechanic Street.
[58:13] I can't pass up this opportunity to
thank the town administrator.
[58:18] Who has been a very uh
close friend to me.
[58:24] Terrific follow-through.
And he'll be missed. So, thank you.
[58:29] » Thank you for your comments.
[58:35] » Ryan Vent, 217 Crown Road. Neil,
good luck.
[58:41] You made this this town a better place.
You made my family a better place.
[58:45] And for that, we you definitely going to
be missed. Hopefully, we see you in the
[58:48] Acme parking lot and could say hi. And
on behalf, and I thought this was
[58:51] actually pretty freaking This is funny.
My family and myself
[58:56] got you a bonsai tree.
>> [snorts]
[59:11] » Thank you.
[59:15] » Anyone else?
[59:19] » You were the letter man.
>> Seeing none, we'll close the public
[59:22] comment and ask our um
clerk to read a um I believe it may
[59:26] email
>> Yeah.
[59:28] » comment.
>> Okay. Um
[59:30] » from Susanna Pittman. Dear Town Council,
thank you for illuminating Town Hall in
[59:34] rainbow colors in recognition of Pride
Month. It is my understanding that this
[59:38] effort was a result of a collaborative
process that involved many
[59:42] conversations.
I appreciate everyone who took the time
[59:45] to engage in those discussions.
Conversations around complex and deeply
[59:50] felt issues are not always easy to
navigate, but they are often where the
[59:54] most meaningful progress is made.
Public comment and council member
[59:58] remarks during Town Hall meetings
provide important opportunities for
[1:00:02] expressing opinions, which is essential
to the democratic process. However,
[1:00:06] these forums are not always well suited
for the kind of dialogue that requires
[1:00:11] openness, vulnerability, curiosity, and
active learning.
[1:00:15] Over the years, I have invited council
members to have those conversations
[1:00:19] outside of public meetings, and several
council members from across the
[1:00:22] political spectrum have accepted that
invitation. In most cases, those
[1:00:27] discussions led to a greater sense of
understanding, appreciation, and unity.
[1:00:33] With that in mind, if you choose to
reach out to community members whose
[1:00:36] perspectives differ from your own, I
encourage you to first ask whether they
[1:00:41] are open to having that conversation.
As we have seen during public comment,
[1:00:45] these issues can be deeply personal and
emotionally charged, and for some
[1:00:50] individuals, those emotions may be
connected to past experiences or trauma.
[1:00:56] Approaching these conversations with
consent, empathy, and caring can help
[1:01:01] create the conditions for genuine
dialogue and mutual respect. Thank you
[1:01:05] again for this gesture of recognition,
and as always, thank you for your
[1:01:09] service to our town. Warm regards, Dr.
Susanna Pittman.
[1:01:14] » Thank you.
[1:01:17] Seeing no other comments, I'll call for
a motion to adjourn.
[1:01:22] » Second. You have a nice day.
>> All in favor?
[1:01:24] » Aye.