City Council

The Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Hackensack was conducted as an Electronic Public Meeting in lieu of its in-person regular Public Meeting previously advertised for 8:00 P.M. at the Council Chambers at Hackensack City Hall. This Electronic Public Meeting is being held in lieu of an in- person public meeting due to the state of emergency arising from the current situation involving the COVID-19 Virus and to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the public. The meeting was held on Tuesday, May 19, 2020 at 7:12 P.M. Members of the public were able to participate in the meeting by using the “Zoom” online meeting platform. The on-line meeting was accessed using the following Internet link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82528018711? pwd=T1gwbVpLK3p3MmlMWEdYMEs5T214Zz09 The meeting was also able to be accessed by entering Zoom meeting ID number 825 2801 8711, password 023864 or by telephone by dialing 1-646-558-8656 and entering the meeting ID. Mayor Labrosse called the meeting to order and the City Clerk Deborah Karlsson announced that the meeting was being held in accordance with the Sunshine Law, notice having been published according to law, with a copy on file in the City Clerk’s office, and a copy posted on the bulletin board in City Hall. Attendance Ms. Karlsson called the roll: Mayor Labrosse, Deputy Mayor Canestrino, Deputy Mayor Sims, Councilman Battaglia and Councilwoman Von Rudenborg were present. City Manager Ted Ehrenburg was present. City Attorney Steven Kleinman was present. Deputy City Clerk Allison Saabye was present. CFO Jim Mangin was present. Flag Salute Proclamations and Presentations Approval of Minutes City Manager’s Report I would like to thank the Bergen County Administrator Tedesco and Bergen County OEM for their joint effort on the Bergen County testing site which took place this past week at our M&M Building. Many residents were able to be tested. We look forward to future testing site dates. The City’s annual Memorial Day service at Memorial Park will be pre-recorded and shared on our website in honor of our military personnel who have died while serving in the armed forces. The normal public event will be suspended under the current circumstance. Our 4 th of July celebration and fireworks has been cancelled. The summer concerts have been postponed until 2021. Also, many HACPAC events have been cancelled including the Friday night concerts, movies in the park, yoga, and Shakespeare. Please refer to the website for up to date information. The city splash parks will remain closed for the summer. Our second quarter tax payment grace period has been extended to June 1. Effective June 2, interest will revert to the statutory due date of May 1. City Hall is closed to the public. Please utilize the drop box in tunnel area of the parking lot for tax payments. Online payments are also accepted, check or money order only. Police Week is a time when the country comes together to honor the brave men and women in law enforcement who have lost their lives serving their community. We also recognize the tremendous sacrifice that law enforcement officers make for us every day. Thank you to the police department for its continued efforts in keeping the city safe and secure. The City of Hackensack is asking residents to have a say in the future of our parks and outdoor community space. Please visit the website and share feedback via the open space recreation plan survey. Now I would like to introduce Patrice Foresman from the Main Street Business Alliance to introduce their budget for 2020. 05/19/2020 1 Main Street Alliance 2020 Budget – Patrice Foresman – On behalf of the trustees of the MSBA, thank you for the opportunity to present our budget for 2020. Through the efforts of the MSBA and the partnership with the City of Hackensack, Main Street’s future is brighter. The MSBA has nurtured the revitalization of Hackensack’s historic retail district since 2004 and we will continue to work diligently especially in the present to minimize the devastating effects of COVID-19 through this year and 2021. The MSBA is steadfast in its mission to bring our downtown to its full potential. Our proposed budget for 2020 demonstrates clearly and firmly that the MSBA wants each and every property owner and merchant on Main Street to recover from the pandemic with the strength and fiscal health they need to succeed. Every line item on this budget reflects that we are here to stand with our members and assist them in every possible way. Thank you for your support and stewardship these past years. Together we will ensure Main Street’s recovery and redevelopment as we welcome new residents and ever- expanding business community. Budget Amendment Hearing - CFO Jim Mangin CFO Jim Mangin – Tonight we will have the hearing on budget amendment which was passed at the last meeting. The amendment had to do with the amount of debt service that we had allocated for interest payment in parking utility which was the only thing of substance in the amendment. Later tonight, in the business portion, the Mayor and Council will vote to either adopt the budget or amend it. A motion to open the meeting to the public was offered by Deputy Mayor Canestrino and seconded by Deputy Mayor Sims. No one wished to speak. A motion to close the meeting to the public was offered by Deputy Mayor Canestrino and seconded by Deputy Mayor Sims. Resolutions Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 194-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ADOPTION OF 2020 MUNICIPAL BUDGET BE IT RESOLVED, by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack, County of Bergen that the budget hereinbefore set forth is hereby adopted and shall constitute an appropriation for the purposes stated of the sums therein set forth as appropriations and authorizations of the amount of: $85,391,072.94 (Item 2 below) for municipal purposes, and $277,204.62 (Budget Sheet 43) for Open Space Trust Fund Levy, and $1,983,715.060 (Item 5 below) Minimum Library Tax SUMMARY OF REVENUES 1. General Revenues 05/19/2020 2  Surplus Anticipated $ 4,000,000.00 Miscellaneous Revenue Anticipated $17,139,449.24 Receipts from Delinquent Taxes $ 0.00 2. Amount to be Raised by Taxation for Municipal Purposes (Item 6(a), Sheet 11) $85,391,072.94 5. Amount to be Raised by Taxation – Minimum Library Levy $ 1,983,715.06 Total Revenues: $108,514,237.24 SUMMARY OF APPROPRIATIONS GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS Within “CAPS” (a&b) Operations including Contingent $76,913,303.00 (e) Deferred Charges and Statutory $ 10,718,056.00 Excluded From “CAPS” (a) Operations – excluded from “CAPS” $ 9,204,905.24 (c) Capital Improvements $ 400,000.00 (d) Municipal Debt Service $ 9,539,573.00 (e) Deferred Charges – Municipal $ 238,400.00 (m) Reserve for Uncollected Taxes $ 1,500,000.00 Total Appropriations: $108,514,237.24 It is hereby certified that the within budget is a true copy of the budget finally adopted by resolution of the Governing Body on the 19th day of May 2020. It is further certified that each item of revenue and appropriation is set forth in the same amount and by the same title as appeared in the 2020 approved budget and all amendments thereto, if any, which have been previously approved by the Director of Local Government Services. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 195-20 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF HACKENSACK TAX COLLECTOR TO PREPARE AND MAIL ESTIMATED TAX BILLS IN ACCORDANCE WITH P.L. 1994 C.72 WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack has adopted its calendar year 2020 budget, and the Bergen County Board of Taxation is unable to certify the City's tax rate at this time, and the City of Hackensack Tax Collector may be unable to mail the City's 2020 3rd and 4th quarter tax bills on a timely basis; and 05/19/2020 3 WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack Tax Collector in consultation with the Chief Financial Officer has computed an estimated tax levy in accordance with N.J.S.A. 54:4-66.3, and they have signed a certification showing the tax levies for the previous year, the tax rates and the range of permitted estimated tax levies; and WHEREAS, in accordance with Chapter 72, P.L. 1994, the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack requests the Director of the Division of Local Government Services to approve the estimated tax levy not exceeding the 105% listed below. Approval will enable the City to meet its financial obligations, maintain the tax collection rate, provide uniformity for tax payments and save the unnecessary cost of interest on borrowing, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack, in the County of Bergen, State of New Jersey on this 19 TH day of May, 2020, as follows: 1. The City of Hackensack's Tax Collector is hereby authorized and directed to prepare and issue estimated tax bills for the City for the third installment of 2020 taxes. The Tax Collector shall proceed upon approval from the Director and take such actions as are permitted and required by P.L. 1993, c.72 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-66.2 and 54:4-66.3). 2. The entire estimated tax levy for 2020 is hereby set at $186,986,616.43. 3. In accordance with law, the third installment of 2020 taxes shall not be subject to interest until the later of August 10 or the twenty-fifth day after the date the estimated tax bills were mailed. The estimated tax bills shall contain a notice specifying the date on which interest may begin to accrue. Council Secon Abstai Absen Member Intro d Yes No n t Recused Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 196-20 MAIN STREET BUSINESS ALLIANCE, INC. 2020 BUDGET WHEREAS, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:56-84, the District Management Corporation known as the “Main Street Business Alliance, Inc.” has submitted its proposed budget for 2020 to the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack in the amount of $463,291.00 for the purposes of introduction; and WHEREAS, municipal approval of said budget may be conferred only upon compliance with the requested statutory notices and procedures, and not prior to a public hearing on said budget to be held not less than twenty-eight (28) days from the date of introduction; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and City Council of the City of Hackensack as follows: 1. The appropriate City Officials are hereby directed to undertake all necessary procedures set forth in N.J.S.A. 40:56-84 prior to the Public Hearing on the proposed budget; and 05/19/2020 4  2. June 23, 2020 at 7:00 P.M., is hereby established as the date of the public hearing on the proposed budget. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 197-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF RESERVE FOR PRELIMINARY EXPENSES FOR LSRP SERVICES FOR VARIOUS PARKS WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack hereby acknowledges the requirement of preliminary costs for a Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) to perform an assessment of parks located in the City of Hackensack which have received grant funding through the NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program as a necessary condition of that grant funding; and WHEREAS, the purpose of these preliminary costs is for the specific LSRP services and related studies to establish the scope and cost of needed remediation if determined at Staib Park and Columbus Park in the City of Hackensack. The amount to be charged is for a purpose for which bonds may be issued under Chapter 2 of Title 40A; and NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the amount appropriated for preliminary costs shall not exceed $75,000 and the Chief Financial Officer is authorized to set up a “Reserve for Preliminary Expenses – LSRP Services for Parks Project” from funds appropriated in the Capital Improvement Fund of the General Capital Fund. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 198-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR LSRP ENGINEERING SERVICES TO SUBURBAN CONSULTING ENGINEERING FOR STAIB PARK AND COLUMBUS PARK 05/19/2020 5  WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack requires the engineering services of a Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) to perform the soil survey assessment required of the NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection as a condition of receiving funding through the Green Acres Program; and WHEREAS, the City solicited Requests for Proposals regarding LSRP engineering services for the Staib Park and Columbus Park Green Acres Projects; and WHEREAS, it was determined that the proposal received from Suburban Consulting Engineers is the most advantageous to the City based on cost, expertise in this field and vast experience and specific prior knowledge of this particular project. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack, County of Bergen, as follows: 1. Suburban Consulting Engineers of 96 U.S. Highway 206, Flanders, NJ 07836 is hereby awarded a contract in an amount not to exceed $21,000 for LSRP services related to the Staib Park and Columbus Park Green Acres Projects, in accordance with the proposal attached thereof. 2. A Certification of Funds has been prepared and authorized by the Chief Financial Officer for the said contract assuring that there is a sufficient appropriation to fund the purchases authorized in this resolution as an express and mandatory condition of the award of this contract. 3. The budget account to be charged is C-04-20-001-000-100. 4. The Mayor and City Clerk are hereby authorized to sign the contract documents necessary to effectuate the award of this contract. The City Attorney shall review any and all contractual documents prepared in furtherance of this award. Counc il Abse Memb Intr Secon Abstai nt Recuse er o d Yes No n d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 199-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING TAX REFUNDS FOR STATE BOARD JUDGMENTS AND DUPLICATE PAYMENTS BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the City of Hackensack that the proper officers be and are hereby authorized to make the following refunds for the reasons stated: AMOUNT BLOCK LOT NAME YEAR REASON PROP LOC $21,968.21 28.01 23 Howard Goldberg 2019 State Board Judgment Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates 340 Hudson St 835 Lamington Rd Bedminster, NJ 07921 $122.94 59 8 Howard Goldberg 2017 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 140 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 05/19/2020 6 $122.87 59 8 Howard Goldberg 2018 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 140 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 $1,057.46 59 8 Howard Goldberg 2019 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 140 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 $8,551.16 59 9 Howard Goldberg 2017 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 132 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 $8,546.15 59 9 Howard Goldberg 2018 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 132 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 $33,335.01 59 9 Howard Goldberg 2019 State Board Judgement Attorney for Albarelli Hackensack Associates LLC 132 Hudson St Bedminster, NJ 07921 $3,436.89 322 1 Jennifer R Jacobus 2018 State Board Judgment Trustee for Conifer Lake Properties LLC 147 Central Ave 201 Littleton Rd 1st Floor Morris Plains, NJ 07950 $4,317.45 409 14.01 Bertone Piccini LLP 2018 State Board Judgment Trust Account For Anderson Holdings LLC 5 Anderson St 777 Terrace Ave Ste 201 Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604 $4,246.61 409 14.01 Bertone Piccini LLP 2019 State Board Judgment Trust Account For Anderson Holdings LLC 5 Anderson St 777 Terrace Ave Ste 201 Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604 $1,882.00 422 11 C005C Saad, Safwat 2020 Duplicate Payment 290 Anderson St #5C 290 Anderson St 5C Hackensack, NJ 07601 $1,064.00 353 63 C0061 Hudson Home Management 2020 Duplicate Payment For US Bank Trust 346 Esplanade 500 E Broward Blvd Ste 1130 Ft Lauderdale, FL 33394 $1,548.00 540 8 C00F5 Hudson Home Management 2020 Duplicate Payment For US Bank Trust 20 Jefferson St 500 E Broward Blvd Ste 1130 Ft Lauderdale, FL 33394 Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X 05/19/2020 7  Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 200-20 RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF HACKENSACK AND HACKENSACK DPW/SANITATION EMPLOYEES UNITED PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYEES UNION (“UPSEU”) FOR THE PERIOD JANUARY 1, 2018 – DECEMBER 31, 2021 WHEREAS, the Agreement between the City of Hackensack (“Hackensack”) and Hackensack DPW/Sanitation Employees United Public Service Employees Union (the “Union”) expired on December 31, 2017; and WHEREAS, Hackensack and the Union have engaged in ongoing negotiations to discuss and agree upon the terms and provisions of a successor Agreement; and WHEREAS, Hackensack and the Union have agreed upon the terms of a successor Agreement for the term January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2021; WHEREAS, Hackensack wishes to memorialize its approval of the terms and conditions of the successor Agreement. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Hackensack that the Agreement as between the City of Hackensack and Hackensack DPW/Sanitation Employees United Public Service Employees Union for the period of January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2021, the terms of which are incorporated by reference herein, be and hereby is APPROVED; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Manager, the City Attorney, and the City Labor Counsel are authorized to take all appropriate actions so as to implement this Resolution. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X X Battaglia X Mayor CITY Labrosse X OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 201-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING PAYMENT OF BILLS BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Hackensack that the bills in the following accounts be and are hereby ordered paid: Current Fund $ 540,704.57 Grants 250.00 Payroll 1,682,056.00 Public Parking System 291.12 Capital 291,449.40 Escrow 70,860.60 Trust Account 33,471.23 Total Expenditures 2,619,082.92 05/19/2020 8  Interfunds/Transfers $ 7,330,531.34 Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 202-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE JOHNSON PUBLIC LIBRARY TO APPLY FOR THE NEW JERSEY LIBRARY CONSTRUCTION BOND ACT IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,733,929 The City of Hackensack and the Johnson Public Library hereby certify that permission has been granted to apply for the project entitled the New Jersey Library Construction Bond Act, in the amount of: $1,733,929 The filing of this application was authorized at the official meeting of the Governing Body of the Library held on May 12, 2020 and the Governing Body of the City of Hackensack held on May 19, 2020. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 203-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR ENGINEERING SERVICES TO SUBURBAN CONSULTING ENGINEERS FOR MAIN STREET STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS – ATLANTIC STREET TO PASSAIC STREET WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack requires engineering services to perform the bid preparation and construction management for the Main Street Streetscape Project from Atlantic St. to Passaic St.; and WHEREAS, the City solicited Requests for Proposals regarding engineering services for said project; and 05/19/2020 9  WHEREAS, it was determined that the proposal received from Suburban Consulting Engineers is the most advantageous to the City based on cost, expertise in this field and vast experience and specific prior knowledge of this particular project, including the necessary sewer separation components. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack, County of Bergen, as follows: 1. Suburban Consulting Engineers of 96 U.S. Highway 206, Flanders, NJ 07836 is hereby awarded a contract in an amount not to exceed $334,423 for the bid preparation and construction management of this project, in accordance with the proposal attached thereof. 2. A Certification of Funds has been prepared and authorized by the Chief Financial Officer for the said contract assuring that there is a sufficient appropriation to fund the purchases authorized in this resolution as an express and mandatory condition of the award of this contract. 3. The budget account to be charged is C-04-19-028-000-100. 4. The Mayor and City Clerk are hereby authorized to sign the contract documents necessary to effectuate the award of this contract. The City Attorney shall review any and all contractual documents prepared in furtherance of this award. Council Intr Secon Abstai Absen Recuse Member o d Yes No n t d Von Rudenborg X X Deputy Mayor Canestrino X X Deputy Mayor Sims X Battaglia X Mayor Labrosse X CITY OF HACKENSACK RESOLUTION NO. 204-20 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AWARD OF CONTRACT FOR ENGINEERING SERVICES TO NEGLIA ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES FOR WEST LOOKOUT AVENUE DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT WHEREAS, the City of Hackensack requires engineering services for surveying, design and construction administration related to the West lookout Avenue Drainage Improvement Project; and WHEREAS, the City solicited Requests for Proposals regarding engineering services for said project; and WHEREAS, it was determined that the proposal received from Neglia Engineering is the most advantageous to the City based on cost, expertise in this field and vast experience and specific prior knowledge of this particular project. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hackensack, County of Bergen, as follows: 1. Neglia Engineering Associates of 34 Park Ave., Lyndhurst, NJ 07071 is hereby awarded a contract in an amount not to exceed $33,830 for the 05/19/2020 10  engineering services related to the West Lookout Ave. Drainage Improvement Project, in accordance with the proposal attached thereof. 2. A Certification of Funds has been prepared and authorized by the Chief Financial Officer for the said contract assuring that there is a sufficient appropriation to fund the purchases authorized in this resolution as an express and mandatory condition of the award of this contract. 3. The budget account to be charged is 0-01-26-311-311-204. 4. The Mayor and City Clerk are hereby authorized to sign the contract documents necessary to effectuate the award of this contract. The City Attorney shall review any and all contractual documents prepared in furtherance of this award. Public Comment A motion to open the meeting to the public was offered by Deputy Mayor Canestrino and seconded by Deputy Mayor Sims. Deputy Mayor Canestrino – Mr. Geddis, I was not present at the meeting last time and you accused me of things when I was not there to defend myself. In my opinion, this is the definition of a coward. Not only was I not there to defend myself, I was not there due to the death of my husband which was made obvious during that meeting. For you to do that is unconscionable, in my opinion. It is not representative of the people who live in this city. It is disgraceful. To set the record straight and to answer the way I would have answered had I been there, I know Mr. Oates because he is a member of the fire department. The other two people running on that ticket, to this day, I have never met or spoke with them. These accusations that you made are unfounded. Your behavior, to me, is unconscionable. Thank you. Victor – Concerned Citizen of Hackensack – Member of the Work Group – First of all, I am no coward. Before you make that statement, you should find out more about me. I was to thank the Council for allowing the three dads to run. I was told by Mr. Powell when he was vetting me to be on that slate, that he had to check with you to see if it was okay first. Mr. Sims was running around Hackensack looking for people to be on that slate as long as they had nothing to do with the Work Group. Either Mr. Powell is lying or you are lying. I want to know the truth. What was your involvement with the slate? Deputy Mayor Canestrino – As I said very clearly, I know Mr. Oates because he a member of the Fire Department. The other two individuals on that slate, to this day, I have never met or spoken to them. I had no involvement with the selection of the candidates for that ticket. I also spoke with Mr. Powell and he explained to me was that Mr. Glover asked Mr. Powell if you could run on the slate that Mr. Powell was forming. Mr. Powell’s answer was his slate was already complete and selected. That is what Mr. Powell told me when I asked him about this. I had no involvement in this election whatsoever or the selection of candidates whatsoever. If you have been listening to what I have been saying, my husband has not been well for a number of months. I have been performing my duties to the best of my ability to support this city and it has been difficult and challenging. I certainly did not have time to be involved in the selection of candidates and other than voting and reading information myself to vote as an educated consumer, that is the only participation I have had as far as this election goes. Lance Powell – Hackensack – Good Evening. I met with Mr. Geddis and Randy Glover requested by Mr. Glover about your interest of running on the board. I met with you both as a courtesy because I know Mr. Glover. You shared that you wanted to run but however, we already had three people running. Anyone can run for the school board. Anyone can make a slate, it doesn’t matter. No one stopped 05/19/2020 11 you from running. When I spoke to you in the presence of Mr. Glover, I told you explicitly that you are new, try to get your feet wet. You told me in person that don’t mind staying on the outside and being active and try to get things done that way. You were very good about it, there was no disagreement and no one said you shouldn’t run. I was surprised that you came out publicly at a City Council meeting and said that Kathy said you should not run. For the record, I never organized a meeting with you. I kept all the records in my cell phone where Mr. Glover was the one who asked for the meeting and Randy Glover was the one who set up the meeting. He forwarded me your number and I never called you, he asked me to meet with you, which I did. You are not the only person I met with. I met with many candidates who were interested, however we selected three candidates. The elections are over. No one stopped you from running, no one did. Anyone can run. You can form any slate you want. I want to clarify that I met with you because you asked me to. Mr. Glover was the one who set up the meeting. It is all here in my cell phone for the record. There were no conversations with you, all the conversations came from Mr. Glover. I appreciate you wanting to run and I hope you run in the future but I want to clarify that no one stopped you from running. Bridgette – Hackensack – This question is for the City Manager. On April 10, the Governor did Executive Order 122 ordering everything non-essential shut. On April 17, at 9:55 in the morning, construction was still going on in the City. The Order did not end until May 18 at 6AM. Can you explain to me, why did the City of Hackensack defy the Governor’s Executive Order for non-essential construction? City Manager responded – Bridgette, for the record I need your name and address since you are calling in. You reside in Hackensack; I need a street. City Attorney responded – We are in this new world of ZOOM, it is appropriate given the circumstances that anyone who wishes to speak at a Council meeting give their full name and their municipality of residence. A street address is not necessary. It is necessary for the record that someone introduce themselves by at least their full name and to know whether they are a resident of the municipality or not. I would ask that of all people speaking. Bridgette responded – Is that in by-laws somewhere? Is that something you are making up? When I have stood before you, inside the chambers, I have said my name is Bridgette and I am a resident of Hackensack. I have said that on numerous occasions. Do I have to go back into the minutes? City Attorney responded – We have to keep a record. We have to keep minutes. We can’t see you. That is the difference. We are trying to keep an accurate record so when the City Clerk has to do minutes, so that you are properly recorded when you are making your comments that the record is clear as to who it is making comments. Weather we recognize your voice or not, if that were the standard it would be very difficult when we have a lot of people speaking, I am not going to guess at voices. We do have the right to know if a person is a resident or not. I am not asking you beyond that but there should be no reason why someone speaking before the governing body, especially given that we cannot see your face, there is no video, to know you full name. I don’t know you full name. Other people who are part of the City may, but I respectfully do not. City Manager responded – We cannot see your face. When you asked me for that document in reference to minority hiring, I had to go through all these records to find out where you lived. I am just trying to make this seamless. To answer your question, under the Executive Order of the Governor, there is a clause in there that these buildings need to be weather tight so if the windows are missing and roof is not on, you need to make it enclosed and protected otherwise the people lose the value of their property. We asked the contractors and developers to put in a written request to continue construction. It is in the clause to allow for this and that is the reason why this was still going on. 05/19/2020 12 Bridgette responded – I read the Executive Order from top to bottom when they did the cease on April 10. That is not the case here. When you say to secure the building, we had actual construction going on where they were framing the building. I have pictures. I can show you the pictures. They were framing, that is not securing anything in the building. Randy Glover – Hackensack – I want to make something clear. I did ask Lance to meet with Victor. Lance is a friend of mine. I know he is the President of the Board, so he did do me a favor and meet with Victor. Kathy’s name did come up in the conversation. I will leave it at that. It may be a further conversation to be had with the parties involved so there can be further clarification. My issue is we have over a billion dollars’ worth of construction going on. We have over 3,000 apartments being developed. Are there any black developers, contractors, subcontractors, workers? Are any of these properties of zones, HUB zones or enterprise zones or any zones getting federal money? How are black developers supposed to get the information from the City? We have a City Councilperson who is African American who you would think would give that type of information to the community, especially when this town is comprised of 60 percent black and brown people, yet we are not adequately represented on the Council and on the Business District Alliance. I have nothing against the Business District but it is about having a fair shot and that information is not being disseminated. Mayor Labrosse responded – I will start at the bottom first. The downtown is a rehabilitation zone which is a state-run program. As far as black developers, Hackensack is one of the busiest up-ticking towns in New Jersey and in the northeast. There are developers from all over. I think Waypoint is out of California. You keep asking why they aren’t the developers black; I have to ask the black developers why they aren’t coming to Hackensack? We don’t call the developers, they come to us. We are more than happy to meet with anyone of any race, creed, color, etc. They are more than willing to come here. If you know any black developers, have them call and speak to Albert. The black workers, subcontractors, I can’t answer that. I went and asked developers the percentage of minorities and everyone gave different numbers. They didn’t specify what minority; I would have to specifically ask them if they are black workers. I can’t answer why there are no black developers. We have no turned anyone away. I can’t think of any situation where we have reached out to a developer, they all come to us and that has always been the case. As far as some of the programs, they say minorities but not specifically what kind. I will get some numbers for you though. Every developer is asked to consider hiring from within the city limits because we certainly want to see people from the city working but we cannot force them to do that. Carolyn Davis – Hackensack – As the Work Group, we offer our sympathies to Kathy and I personally offer my sympathy to Kathy for her husband. My question is regarding covid testing for seniors and if any progress has been made in that area? How are we going to get to the seniors? Mayor Labrosse responded – We have worked very hard on this. We can’t bus the seniors. In order for the mobile unit to go to the building, they need a certain amount of square footage in the parking lot. We are trying to get a mobile unit back here and trying to get us on the top of the list for the second go around. There are some other local things available if people can get a ride. Rite Aid is doing testing but they do need an appointment and insurance. Bergen Community College is still testing as well for both covid and for antibodies. We are trying to get transportation through the Housing Authority or County for seniors. The County didn’t think it was a good idea to put the seniors together on a bus with the possibility of exposing each other. Ms. Davis responded - If it is free, why do the seniors have to show insurance? Also, by Beech Street, couldn’t they use the High School parking lot? 05/19/2020 13 Mayor Labrosse responded – They could use a section of the High School lot; I think some of the traveling nurses are using the High School for parking. We have lots. The M&M Building is close to one of the senior buildings. The senior center on First Street, we can work something out, maybe the High School lot, maybe the hospital lot on Newman Street. It will all have to be discussed with the second go around. What I have noticed is that it is free if you have insurance. I know with the County, if you don’t have insurance, there is still no cost but they still want to bill insurance if they can to recoup the funding which is understandable. Richard Salkin – Hackensack – I wasn’t going to speak tonight but I noticed a lot of changing on the fly here and I do not get it. A gentleman gets up to speak and Deputy Mayor Canestrino already had prepared remarks. I don’t know how that came to being without you knowing it was coming. It was a bit of a set up. Deputy Mayor Canestrino has my sincere condolences but I don’t think name calling puts anyone in a good light. Secondly, I don’t know Bridgette’s full name but I know Bridgette always identifies herself that way many times in the past and it has never been challenged before. There was a woman in Teaneck who used to get up at their meetings and one day they found her dead in her home and after that they stopped having people give their addresses. The other change on the fly that I saw was when I reviewed the last meeting, it became appropriate to cut off a topic and the City Attorney knows it is not a reason to cut off a topic. Mr. Mayor you jumped right down that route. It was a valid inquiry as to your support of a candidate. I don’t care who you support as John Labrosse but when you use the term Mayor, you have no right to do that and should refrain from doing that because you are dragging the city, the Municipal Corporation of Hackensack, into politics. I think it is wrong. Mayor Labrosse responded – I am trying to think back to exactly what was said. I have never hidden who I supported. City Attorney responded – The concern that I have and I think Mr. Salkin would agree is that Council meetings should not be turned into a political debate over an election, not a municipal election. I don’t think it is appropriate is for this to turn into a political debate over who to vote for in another election. It is not city business in any way. We don’t want councilmembers giving political endorsement speeches. We don’t want people showing up to meetings and turning it into political endorsement speeches. It has to relate to city business and partisan politics should not be going on in a Council meeting in that manner. To the extent that the issue was raised, that was the concern that I perceived which is why I gave the advice I gave and why I believe it was the correct advice. Mr. Salkin responded – That is incorrect advice. You know there are no limitations. The definition of what is of concern is in the possession of the public, not you and not the Mayor. City Attorney responded – The objective reality is that the City Council Chambers is not to be used for political campaigning. Randy Glover – Hackensack – If you need a location for virus testing, the church where my 501c3 is at, is one block away from the MLK Center and I am pretty sure I would be able to avail the building for testing. Blanche Stuart – Hackensack Housing Authority Commissioner – Member of the Work Group – 40 Kansas Street, 175 West Railroad, 164 Beech Street, 65 Third Street are all senior complexes and they have sufficient space. The seniors are more susceptible to dying from covid and it is difficult for them to travel and for them to stand. I went to the M&M Building and I stood for a long time and there were elderly people there who could barely stand there for that amount of time. It would be easier to have the testing at the senior buildings so they don’t have to stand out the whole time. Can you do it for the people who live in those complexes? They can’t all come out at the same time because you don’t want them to pass the virus. It would be nice to have testing in the public housing; 05/19/2020 14 many other towns are doing it because that is where the virus can be transmitted more easily. The high school parking lot would also be sufficient. Mayor Labrosse responded – The problem is that even though it is in Hackensack, it is open to all of Bergen County. I can’t change the amount of square footage required for them to come. That is why I need some measurements. I wonder what kind of numbers are coming out of the public housing. The Health Department can’t release that information. Caseen Gaines – Hackensack – I want clarification on something Mr. Kleinman said. He said the Council Chambers is not a place for partisan politics or political posturing but I thought back to 2016 when the media outlets were invited with the Deputy Mayor and Mayor to municipal locations like the outside of the HACPAC and actually inside the Council Chambers for a public change of party registration and denouncing of then candidate Donald Trump. I want clarification from Mr. Kleinman on if that was inappropriate activity. City Attorney responded - I was not part of the city in 2016 so it is hard for me to speak on something that I am not familiar with. What I was saying is that I do not believe it is proper during a Council meeting for the Council to be endorsing candidates from the dais or for people to be endorsing people. It should be used for the actual operations of municipal government. The Council Chamber in terms of a public meeting is meant to be for public purposes and partisan political endorsements do not represent that. With respect to the circumstances back in 2016, as I said I cannot speak to it but I am comfortable in saying that I would not recommend Council members be endorsing candidates from where you stand and I do not believe it is appropriate for there to be political back and forth with respect to partisan campaigning. That is sperate from criticizing actual activities of the Mayor or Council or expressing support of their activities. What we are talking about here is actual politicking. With respect to what he seems to have referenced, it doesn’t sound like there was actual campaigning going on, but I was not there so I can’t speak to it beyond that. Mr. Gaines responded- I know you were not here in 2016, but I have been in the chambers multiple times where the Council has stated how they were going to vote on things such as the referendum. I want to ask if in 2020, as you are the City Attorney now, would you consider it to be inadvisable for a member of the Mayor and Council to invite news cameras into Chambers and declare their party registration and denounce a presidential candidate. Would you consider that right now to be inappropriate? City Attorney responded – It all comes down to context and circumstance. Mayor Labrosse responded – That was not during a Council meeting. I think when the Attorney said City Hall, he was talking about city business as a city council. City Attorney responded – I am not clear as to the context. I have zero issue or concern with criticizing the actions of a governmental official such as the President. I don’t see that being of any concern. I am not familiar with the partisan change thing so I don’t want to get into speaking on something I don’t fully know about. What I would impress upon the Council and anyone speaking, obviously Mr. Gaines you served in elected office yourself, when you are sitting at the Council Chambers in a Council meeting you are exercising your governmental authority at that meeting and the members of the public who are appointed three minutes to speak on matters that are relevant to the government at hand. You would have City Council meetings becoming political endorsement meetings and that is not the purpose of a City Council meeting. What you seem to be describing is a public official criticizing another public official, which you have every right to do that as a member of the public, but when you start saying lets discuss who you are going to vote for in an election for school board that is a concern to me. 05/19/2020 15 Peter Marchesani – Hackensack – I expressed my condolences regarding Emil. I also expressed at the last meeting how hard it must have been doing all your city work with all that going on with Emil. No one has anything to say about the budget so I guess it is a good budget. No one could ask for anything more. Thank you again for those numbers. The Manager mentioned there is an online survey about the open spaces and parks in Hackensack. I got the survey through Gary Terzano but question number 17 wouldn’t let you go any further. I don’t know if it has been fixed. I saw the resolution tonight so I guess Staib Park construction is ready to begin. The other thing is the environment at Staib Park. I know there were concerns in the Davis Avenue area, I know you have heard about it and a lot of it is hearsay, that there has been tree cutting going on and shrubbery cleaned out along the river that people claim was put there by the Riverkeeper. It is all hear- say. The City said they didn’t do it. I don’t know if the County did or if someone did it on their own. Finally, who is the Work Group? I am not a member but I hear that term come up all the time. Thank you. City Manager responded – The City has removed three trees that were dead. There is another tree that looks dead that looks to be close to the river. The City had the stump remover out there and removed stumps from Staib Park. We are not clearing, cleaning, or doing anything that would be the County or the Riverkeeper. The DEP requires it be done manually, not with a machine. I have spoken with Gary and I am clear on the requirements of the riparian corridor but the City has not been involved. We have only removed dead trees that have been safety concerns and there have been pictures taken. I don’t understand these rumors. Regina DiPasqua – Hackensack - Good evening. Tonight, I have comments, not questions, as my questions rarely get answered anyway. Last meeting, I asked about COVID-19 cases and my questions were ignored. I also asked about the City providing testing for residents and all that came of that was that Mr. Kleinman took exception to what I stated. But he did confirm that he was contacted about providing testing for residents and the Mayor later confirmed that cost is an issue, so I was not too far off. Also, at last meeting the City Attorney cut off a resident because he deemed her comments to be inappropriate. That is outright censorship and a violation of the Open Public Meeting Act as well as the rights of residents. At the public comment part of the hearing residents can bring up any issue that they choose, ask any question and make any comment that is within the standards of decorum and public decency. The City Attorney has no right, obligation or duty to censor residents. This is not the first time it has happened. The Mayor and Council, by their silence, seem to consent to such censorship and violation of the rights of the public at a public meeting. As has been proven with my prior questions, the Council does not have to answer or comment. However, you, as a public body, do not have the right to stop the public from commenting and asking questions. I ask that you address this immediately so as not to infringe upon the rights of any other residents. Thank you City Attorney responded – Ms. DiPasqua did OPRA that information and even though it was not a properly formatted OPRA request, it was responded to and they did provide her with the information she was seeking. Jeffery Bolano – Hackensack – What is the intent of the Council? I have noticed you have endorsed twice political candidates for the Board of Education. Is the Council going to work with the Board of Education to improve the school system? Mayor Labrosse responded – For years there was no relationship between the Board of Education and City Council and that has changed. There are politics involved on both sides. We did endorse candidates, and we have done in the past, and will continue to do so as it is common place all over to do so for people we think we can work with because we need to work together. We want to improve the schools and work hand in hand with where we are going with the city, the goals, what is best for the students, the increase in population and how to deal with it, all different things. The two groups should be sitting together to come up with a great plan to move the city forward. What we have done with the city in the 05/19/2020 16 past seven years, you can see the difference where the city is going and the schools need to move forward with us. We want the schools, Board of Education, and City of Hackensack to work in harmony together. Mr. Bolano responded – You have spoken about infrastructure and the schools are party of that. I know you have been criticized about the PILOTS and money not going to education system but the system is part of the infrastructure of Hackensack. Keep that in mind and hopefully we are moving forward. Carolyn Davis – Hackensack – Someone asked a question about the Work Group; I am the founder of the Work Group. I am the President of it and it was formed to bring community information to our neighbors who don’t always come to Council meetings and seek what is best for them. Susan McVeigh – Hackensack Health Officer – I wanted to reiterate what you were saying. I spoke to State over the weekend about expanding testing capabilities in Hackensack. We are working diligently to make that happen. CVS will have the capabilities; Rite Aid is testing. The whole city is working with Bergen County and New Bridge for more mobile testing close and back to Hackensack in a quick manner and to get our seniors tested. I have been in contact with the County and the Housing Authority to make it happen. As far as the long-term care facilities, they will have everyone tested by the end of May. No one else wished to speak. A motion to close the meeting to the public was offered by Deputy Mayor Canestrino and seconded by Deputy Mayor Sims. Council Comments Councilwoman Von Rudenborg – We continue to thank everyone who has stepped up to help. Mr. Bolano, thank you for your question about the Board of Education. As stated last meeting, I don’t use meetings as a platform to endorse candidates but as a parent of three children in the school system, it is important to keep an open dialogue. I have faith in the teachers and that things will get better but I also share your concerns. The City and Board of Education need to work together for the good of the students. When I first started, we did not meet together and we do now. There are a lot of improvements going on, all those things we want for our city to improve, we want the same for our students. It is a concern that I always have. The open space survey is important so fill out the survey. As the City Manager stated, we had to make the decision to cancel many events this summer. We have to keep the health and safety of students and citizens a priority. Kids still need to be encouraged to go outside, walk, exercise, we don’t want them to be sedentary or be afraid to go outside. Thank you for coming. Deputy Mayor Canestrino – Thank you to Patrice for the MSBA Budget which is focused on helping the businesses recover from COVID-19. It will be a difficult year for everyone and seeing the focus shift to help people get back on track. Finally, I want to thank everyone for their support of me and the outpouring of love for my husband. He was born and lived here his entire life and Hackensack meant the world to him. It was wonderful to hear from so many people and show their care and concern for me and my family as well. It was heartwarming. It meant the world to me and my family. It is difficult to lose someone during the pandemic. It is difficult to get closure. It was appreciated by our family. Stay happy, safe, healthy, take care of each other. We will get through this. Deputy Mayor Sims – My prayers are with all the citizens and families who have lost anyone to COVID-19. We had the mobile unit at the M&M Building last week. Thank you to everyone involved. We had over 500 people and over 100 first responders tested. It is national public workers week so I want to thank everyone who helps to keep this city clean. Have a happy Memorial Day. 05/19/2020 17 Councilman Battaglia – I am going to miss my friend Emil for the rest of my life. COVID-19 has impacted all our residents and all of our life. We are going to have financial problems and do the best we can and try as many controls we can to prevent problems in our City. We have to thank people like Bobby from Cubby’s, Pablo from Choripan, Clemente’s, they are feeding our first responders, seniors, those in need. The lighting improvements and paving continue. We continue the sewer separation on Main Street. Eventually we will have the two way. Congratulations to the new members of the Board of Education. The residents have to participate in the census. If we are missing people, we will miss out on money. Stay home, wash your hands, be safe, eventually we will be okay. Thank you. Mayor Labrosse – Thank you to Jim on the budget. Hopefully it will be good with Trenton. Looking forward to seeing what the budget will be next year. Thank you to Patrice for being here tonight. The City appreciates all you have been doing during the crisis. The MSBA has been helping feed residents in need. Memorial Day is coming up. There will be a small ceremony tomorrow with the Council with no public. It will be for all to see on our website. The census needs to be filled out. It is important. The money we get depends on the census. We need all the funding we can get with the pandemic. Tell people not to be afraid. No one is going to track them down. We need to know what our population is. Please fill it out. A lot of paving has been done lately. Prospect from Passaic to Ross looks great. We are continuing to work on COVID testing and testing for seniors. We also want to use the testing that works the best. Staib Park construction will be starting soon. There will be no summer concerts, HACPAC, movies under the stars, Friday concerts, which is very sad. I would like to look into drive-in movies which are allowed. There would be a limited attendance but we could do a couple movies that way. I want to thank you to Cory and Kelly Carroll with all the work they are doing to feed residents of Hackensack. They have been on all the news channels. They are now working out of our Civic Center. Thank you to all of our public workers from top to bottom, especially our essential workers. I am looking forward to seeing their faces again in City Hall. Stay safe, practice social distancing, check on your friends and loved ones and have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. Thank you. There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 8:42 PM. Approved by Mayor and Council on June 9, 2020. _____________________________________ Mayor John P. Labrosse, Jr. __________________________________ Deputy Mayor Kathleen Canestrino _____________________________________ Deputy Mayor David Sims ___________________________________ Councilman Leonardo Battaglia ______________________________________ Councilwoman Stephanie Von Rudenborg ____________________________________ 05/19/2020 18 City Clerk Deborah Karlsson, R.M.C. 05/19/2020 19