Also, council voted unanimously to amend rules of conduct during public participation at meetings
Joe Perry took the place of Nick Fazzio as council president, and Sean Longfellow was appointed as council vice president at Washington Township’s 2018 reorganization meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 3. Also, decorum for public participation was amended to allow council to respond to residents after their allotted five-minutes during public comment.
Perry was nominated by Fazzio for the president seat in the second year of his term, having served beside Fazzio as vice president in 2017. Perry was sworn into the new position by Township Clerk Leo Selb.
“I’m looking forward to getting more involved with the township,” Perry said. “We’re going to be moving the township forward and looking for bigger and better things for us in 2018. A lot of things happened that were positive in 2017, I just want to keep it going.”
Councilwoman Angela Donato nominated Longfellow for vice president, and with a unanimous vote Longfellow was sworn into the position by Gloucester County Freeholder Dan Christy, with Donato holding the Bible.
“I’m looking forward to another year,” Longfellow said. “I think over the last two years, we’ve seen a lot of positive changes, so I look forward to continuing the momentum we’ve built with the Shop Washington Township program, roads programs and it’s time to start working on the budget, so that is our next big step.”
Following the appointments, Mayor Joann Gattinelli acknowledged the 19 businesses that will be participating in the Shop Washington Township program, which was scheduled to go live on Monday, Jan. 8. A number of business owners and representatives were present at the meeting, and were recognized with a certificate from Gattinelli.
“From the beginning it has been my goal to make Washington Township a more business friendly township, and I believe launching this program allows us to go in the right direction to support the businesses that have made it a point to conduct business in Washington Township,” Gattinelli said.
Residents should anticipate receiving their Shop Washington Township cards in the mail with the 2018 Clean Communities Calendars, which will explain how to register and begin earning property tax rewards for the third quarter tax period. Each household will receive one card, however, Gattinelli said, additional cards will be available in the Clerk’s Office and Parks and Recreation Office. An official launch event is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 3, at 10 a.m., at Republic Bank, located at 401 Ganttown Road, Sewell. For more details, visit www.townshipnj.com.
Council also voted to update the rules of conduct and decorum for public participation at council meetings, which previously prohibited council members to respond to residents during the public portion of meetings until the close of the comment period.
Fazzio requested council to vote no on this resolution, and to allow discussion with the public when the floor is open to residents.
“It makes the meetings a lot more fun, gets the public more involved and makes them feel appreciated,” Fazzio said.
While the council unanimously agreed it is important to continue the five-minute limitation for residents who wish to speak during public comment, they also agreed it would be more productive and less confusing to allow council members to answer questions and comments after a member of the community speaks.
“I think it’s very confusing if we have five or 10 people come up to speak and then we have to answer them at the end of it,” Donato said. “I think the debate of going back and forth had gotten out of hand this past year, but I wouldn’t be opposed to answering them and having a conversation with them right after their five-minutes was up, that way we’re not interrupting their five minutes.”
Longfellow suggested amending the specific section of the resolution that required the council to respond upon the closing of the public comment period to instead read, “the mayor, members of council and township employees reserve the right to answer questions and respond to comments,” therefore allowing council to respond before the closing of the session.
“These council meetings are here to do work for the township business, not to have a circus, and that’s what it got to last year,” Perry said. “We weren’t getting a lot of things done and I want to hear from the residents but…we have to have a decorum.”
Fazzio made the motion to amend the resolution, Longfellow seconded, and the council voted unanimously to make the change.
Pasqualone also suggested to the council to allow residents to speak in the beginning of the meetings, specifically on agenda items, which could then be answered throughout the meeting when resolutions are discussed. However, the council tabled the idea until it could be considered further.
