Mayor & Council

MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE BOROUGH OF MADISON March 2, 2020 - 7 p.m. CALL TO ORDER The Budget Meeting of the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Madison was held on the 2ND day of March, 2020. Mayor Conley called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chamber of the Hartley Dodge Memorial, Kings Road, in the Borough of Madison. STATEMENT IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE OPEN PUBLIC MEETINGS ACT The Borough Clerk read the statement pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act: “In compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act, adequate notice of this meeting of the Council was provided by transmitting a copy of the meeting notice to the Madison Eagle and Daily Record, posting a copy on the bulletin board at main entrance of the Hartley Dodge Memorial, and filing a copy in the office of the Clerk, all on February 19, 2020. This Notice was made available to members of the general public.” ROLL CALL The Borough Clerk called the roll and the following acknowledged their presence: Mayor Robert H. Conley Council Members: Carmela Vitale Astri J. Baillie Debra J. Coen Rachel F. Ehrlich Absent: Maureen Byrne, John F. Hoover, excused Also Present: Raymond M. Codey, Borough Administrator James E. Burnet, Assistant Borough Administrator Elizabeth Osborne, Borough Clerk AGENDA REVIEW There was approval of the Special Meeting Agenda. ITEMS OF BUSINESS 1. 2020 Municipal Budget 2. Taxes on new ratables 3. Municipal Surplus 4. Draft Budget 5. Strategic Planning Guidelines 6. Alternate Budget Format presented 7. Authorization for the CFO to prepare the State budget document for Introduction at the March 30th Council meeting Budget Meeting Minutes – March 2, 2020 Mr. Burnet provided information regarding each municipal budget, utility budgets, strategic planning and review of the municipal surplus. Mr. Burnet focused on capital projects, electric dividend and municipal surplus. 7. Authorization for the CFO to prepare the State budget document for Introduction at the March 30th Council meeting Following Council discussion, Mrs. Vitale moved to accept the proposed budget, with $200,000 additional capital projects, as presented and instructed the CFO to prepare the budget for introduction on March 30th. Ms. Baillie seconded the motion. There was no further Council discussion, and the motion passed with the following roll call vote recorded: Yeas: Mrs. Vitale, Ms. Baillie, Ms. Coen, Ms. Ehrlich Nays: None Absent: Ms. Byrne, Mr. Hoover Invitation for Public Comment Pat Rowe; Pine Avenue, thanked Mr. Burnet for his work on the budget and asked that he prepare a document without capital, utility and surplus accounts. Mr. Rowe will send his additional comments directly to Mr. Burnet. Dennis Schreiber; Amelia Court, agreed with Mr. Rowe’s comments, noting the town is very expensive for younger families to live here, suggesting Council look at the Police and other departments staffing. Tom Haralampoudis; Pomeroy Road, inquired about mandatory recycling for commercial tenants, an additional turf field at Madison High School and suggested a one year break on Open Space Tax. Tom Abruzzo; Maple Avenue, thanked Mr. Burnet for the transparency of the municipal budget, and suggested that a 2% increase in municipal tax cannot be justified. Since no other member of the public wished to be heard, the invitation for discussion was closed. ADJOURN There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Elizabeth Osborne Borough Clerk Approved May 27, 2020 (EO) PAGE 2 OF 3 Budget Meeting Minutes – March 2, 2020 PAGE 3 OF 3