MORRIS PLAINS – Sal Cortese will serve as president of the Borough Council for 2025, as voted by his council peers at the reorganization meeting held on Tuesday, Jan. 7.
The council also welcomed new members Bill Houston and Tyler Pontier to the dais. The governing body is now majority Democrat, including Mayor Jason Karr, Houston and Pontier who join Councilwomen Joan Goddard and Nancy Verga. The lone Republicans are Councilmen Sal Cortese and Art Bruhn.
Houston, after taking the oath of office, first thanked his family for their support during his campaign and giving him the motivation to pursue a seat on the council.
He said while on the campaign trail, he took the time to listen to the concerns and comments from everyone he encountered to be able to apply it to his work as a councilman.
“As we go through the year, there’s going to be a lot of questions, and I encourage everybody to come up here and as your questions,” he said. “I don’t know everything – the council doesn’t know everything, but we’re learning and the way we learn is by listening to your questions and trying to do better.
“This is your home. It’s my home. It’s everybody’s home,” he continued. “We want it to be a great place to live and continue making it a community of caring. The decisions we make aren’t easy, and some of them aren’t always favorable, but as I said during my campaign, I am committed to transparency, to asking the tough questions and to getting the answers and making sure your voices are heard.”
Pontier also began by thanking his family and characterized being officially sworn in as a councilman “one of the coolest and most proud days of my entire life.”
He said he and Houston worked hard during their campaign and are both proud to be able to serve the people of Morris Plains.
“My favorite part about last year was door knocking and getting to meet all the awesome people in Morris Plains that I hadn’t met yet, getting to listen to them, getting to learn from them and taking those voices and bringing them to the council,” he said.
He thanked all those who chose to vote for him and Houston, providing them the “honor and privilege” to serve as the newest members of the governing body.
“There’s tough decisions to make, and we may not always please everybody, but my promise to you is we will always do what’s right and we will do what’s best for every person in Morris Plains,” he said.
Infrastructure, Public Safety Accomplishments
As is tradition at the reorganization meeting, Mayor Karr took a few minutes to summarize the accomplishments of the past year in the borough.
He spoke about the infrastructure upgrades, including the replacement of the nearly 100-year-old water main service pipes along Glenbrook Road, Bangiola Court and Keenan Place.
A total of eight roads were repaved, he said, and the list for 2025 includes Glenbrook Road in its entirety from curb to curb, Beech Drive, Brook Drive North, Cleveland Avenue, Davenport Avenue, Forest Avenue, Forest Court, Sun Valley Way and Wyndwood Road.
The water main and service lines will be replaced on Stiles Avenue, Central Avenue, Carlyle Avenue, Homer Avenue, Hawthorne Avenue, the west side of Maple Avenue, Diana Road and Birch Drive, for which he said the work already began in December.
Other improvements last year included the completion of two new pickleball courts and the installation of perimeter fencing at Watnog Park on Graniss Avenue. Karr said the borough also received a grant for the purchase of new playground equipment for the park, which has been ordered.
Simon’s Park on Mountain Way was also upgraded, with new playground equipment, which he said “has made a phenomenal difference” to the experience children and their families have had since the park re-opened after installation was completed.
He said another grant was received for the purchase and installation of new playground equipment at Community Park on Jim Fear Drive, as well.
“One of the most important decisions the council made in 2024 was the purchasing of the property located at 1 Jim Fear Drive, which included a residential structure and nearly three acres of property,” he said.
“The purpose of this purchase was to preserve the natural beauty and wildlife of this great park area,” he explained.
Karr proceeded to give an update on the Idlewild Pool located on Sylvan Drive.
“After reports from our insurance carrier, our borough engineer and his assessment, along with others, the cost to bring the pool to municipal standards was just too costly to justify – nearly $3 million,” he said.
The council will be exploring other options for the site, but it will remain a recreation space, he reassured the audience.
The municipality received two trail grants last year – one for the construction of a sidewalk along Route 53 by Foxwood Drive and the second for walking trails around Community Park.
Some of the accomplishments included public safety measures, such as refurbishing one of the borough’s fire engines, the purchase of a new mini pumper, the decision to change the borough’s part-time fire prevention chief a full-time position and the conversion of a police department vehicle to be used by the fire chiefs.
Karr said one of the projects for this year is to replace the old fire department whistle, which was used to alert residents of major incidents in town and at 5 p.m. every day and damaged in a storm last February.
He said a committee was established to explore the possibility of expanding or renovating the police department headquarters and other parts of the municipal complex.
The police department also added another hybrid vehicle to its fleet, he said, with a total of three now in an effort to reduce the borough’s carbon footprint.
He said he believes the council should look into hiring another police officer this year “due to the demands and increase of traffic violations, volume and calls for service.”
The borough also bid farewell to Department of Public Works Assistant Superintendent Leo Mulligan, who retired after 33 years.
Karr then touched upon the 50th anniversary for the Morris Plains Rotary Club and the 150th anniversary of the Presbyterian Church of Morris Plains on Speedwell Avenue.
He also spoke about the success of the second annual Pumpkin Illumination event and the annual farmer’s market, which is currently ongoing, and the mental health symposium presented by the county that was held in September.
He said a recording of the symposium will be added to the borough’s website within the next few weeks.
He said the borough welcomed three news businesses last year, and the reopening of another, and there are several on the docket expected to open in 2025.
Planning for the borough’s centennial celebration in 2026 has begun, he said, with the formation of the committee focused on coming up with events and activities for the community to participate in throughout the year.
Regarding affordable housing, Karr said the council and borough professionals recognize density and the impact it will have on the borough’s infrastructure will be an issue as the fourth round Fair Share Housing obligation looms.
“Toward the end of the month, I will schedule a town hall meeting to give a further, much more in-depth update as to our obligation, our path and plan moving forward,” he said.
He thanked the many residents who volunteer their time on various boards, commissions, committees and more as well as the borough’s employees for their contributions in 2024 and every year.
While the borough is currently in good financial standing, he said there are several challenges it will have to face in the coming months, including a 17 percent increase in pensions and increases in tipping fees for the disposal of garbage and a 2 percent increase in the cost of recycling.
“These increases will be addressed in our upcoming budget, as our goal is to have as little impact as possible to the taxpayers, while continually preparing us for the future,” Karr said.
He said exploring shared services opportunities across all departments and positions in collaboration with various local, county and state agencies will be “pivotal” in maintaining Morris Plains’ fiscal responsibility.
“The council and I will continue to work hard this year, and in the years to come, to keep Morris Plains moving forward and remain the ‘Community of Caring’ that we all know, respect and love,” he said.
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