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BOROUGH OF WOODLAND PARK
NEWS
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5 Brophy Lane | Woodland Park, NJ 07424 | 973.345.8100
January 22, 2025
The following is the transcript of Mayor Kallert's "State of The Borough" address given at the January 22, 2025 Borough Council meeting:
Good evening,
Tonight I am proud to share with you our 2025 Woodland Park State of The Borough.
First and foremost, I would like to congratulate Sgt. Richard DiZenzo and Sgt. Justin Castro on their well-earned promotions. It has been my privilege to work alongside them and watch them develop into the kind of police officers any town would be proud to have in their employ.
In 2024, we said goodbye to our Police Chief, John Uzzalino. It is always bittersweet as we lose an officer whose dedication and leadership had had a profound impact on the Borough and its residents, especially through the challenging and difficult times of the last few years.
As we wished Chief Uzzalino all the best in his retirement we welcomed in our new Chief of Police, Chief Louis DeLuca, and our Deputy Police Chief, Mike Brady. These two officers have consistently demonstrated their professionalism and expertise during their careers and we have the utmost confidence they are the ideal leaders to keep our community secure and our families safe.
With the addition of these two new sergeants, we will decrease significant overtime costs that have been a burden and a source of concern of late. At their recommendation, we have also expanded the hours of our traffic division so that speeding, illegal parking, and other traffic concerns can be monitored and addressed during the day and the overnight shift. This year we will be rolling out a new safety campaign: Drive 25 in 2025. Every road in the Borough has a 25 miles per hour speed limit. These speed limits will be strictly enforced by our officers as well as our court system. Make no mistake if you are not adhering to the 25 miles per hour speed limit, you will be ticketed.
In addition to motor vehicle concerns, our Police Department regularly responds to numerous types of calls for service on a daily basis, including medical/ambulance calls along with the first aid squad, welfare checks, missing person calls, active burglary calls, burglar alarms, and fire alarm calls, dispute calls, harassment calls, assault calls, domestic violence calls, calls from parents that have problems with their children they are dedicated to keeping our Borough free from narcotics/drug-related activity.
Not only do they respond to these calls but they continue to follow up making sure no detail goes unchecked or recorded. Safety checks throughout the Borough are a regular part of police patrol duties.
Our Police Department offers a vacant home check program at no charge for residents and businesses that may be away on vacation or just away for larger amounts of time, or for businesses that are closed for holidays.
We have a new full-time traffic officer who will have the responsibility of traffic enforcement, responding to motor vehicle accident calls, assisting with relieving traffic at busy times, assisting with school traffic, and any road-related issues that need addressing. Due to complaints of erratic/careless driving, speeding, and other types of moving violations, our traffic officers, as well as patrol, have heavily stepped up enforcement to help make a positive impact in the uptick of violations and complaints.
Summonses have increased for moving violations and also for parking complaints. If left unchecked, these can lead to quality of life issues in affected areas. Due to our increase in enforcement, our Police Department has seen a positive, beneficial impact and a reduction of observed violations, as well as complaints.
Our volunteer Fire Department, under the leadership of Chief Paul Salomone, continues to surpass our expectations of a volunteer service. In 2024, they delivered aid reporting to 13 structure fires, four car fires, 13 brush fires, 14 vehicle extrications, seven motor vehicle accidents, six elevator entrapments, and assisted our police department and first aid squad on 26 calls.
It is worth noting that 229 of 2024 fire calls were during workday hours, requiring these men and women to leave their places of work to respond to our community. This level of service and commitment is almost impossible to find in a strictly volunteer department. We are so fortunate to have these exceptional firefighters in our Borough.
In 2024, we look forward to taking delivery of a new fire engine. In the last five years, we have replaced three aging vehicles in the fleet, a rescue truck and two engines. We are committed to making sure our first responders have the necessary equipment they need.
Our First Aid Squad, under the leadership of Capt. Andy Dillon, is facing some of the same financial challenges as the Borough. Skyrocketing costs in supplies and salaries have caused us some concern of late. While Capt. Dillon and his staff are committed to delivering the finest emergency care to all residents regardless of their insurance or ability to pay, uninsured and underinsured calls for service have severely impacted their operating budget.
Across the state, many volunteer EMS agencies have closed their doors leaving communities vulnerable when it comes to their EMS care. Volunteerism is dwindling due to the fact that many people are working longer hours or multiple jobs to provide for their
families. We are in the process of working closely with the squad to help them address these growing concerns and find a way for them to continue offering the exceptional care Woodland Park residents have come to expect.
In 2024, Woodland Park saw an influx of new businesses to our town, demonstrating our commitment to making this a town that encourages and appreciates our partners in the business community. Please support and patronize these businesses whenever possible as these partnerships are vital to the growth, progress, and stability of our community.
Our capital improvement projects in 2024 included long overdue investments in our infrastructure. For years we proudly restored and renovated our parks, but waited to invest in making sure our Department of Public Works and other agencies had the proper tools and resources to safely and efficiently maintain and preserve our investments in our beautiful parks and open spaces.
In 2024, we had a change in leadership at our Department of Public Works. We bid farewell to John Pietrowski, who served the Borough with professionalism and efficiency. This new opportunity gave us the ability to hand the reigns over to Matt Mulroony, a lifelong resident with more than 25 years of not only expertise and competency but a wealth of institutional knowledge, that, coupled with a deep respect and dedication to his community is invaluable.
The Department of Public Works budget included repairs and upgrades to the Four Seasons at Great Notch water pumping station. They finally had the roof replaced on their building after 27 years which had too many leaks to count at one point. They received a new street sweeper to replace their 2006 sweeper. New snow plows were purchased replacing some from 1986. In addition, they installed two new boat ramps for our first responders to launch life-saving equipment into the river during an emergency.
The Department of Public Works touches the lives of every resident, from providing clean drinking water, to enjoyable visits to our pristine parks that are litter-free, to ensuring our plumbing works correctly, and our roads are free of snow and potholes and are safe to drive on. All of the new projects happening in 2025, big or small will include work done by our staff. They truly are unsung heroes.
In 2024, both the Police Department and Department of Public Works contracts were up for negotiation. In an effort to relieve the Borough of the burden of negotiating two collective bargaining agreements in the same year, we negotiated a five-year contract with the Police Department and a four-year contract with our Department of Public Works. This will aid the Borough in the upcoming budget cycles while enabling us to negotiate fair and equitable contracts going forward and limit the financial exposure in a single given year. I want to thank both of these Departments for understanding the financial challenges the borough continues to work through and negotiating contracts that lessened the financial impact for the next two to three years. These negotiations were professional and respectful throughout the process and I am grateful to be a part of this wonderful team.
In 2025, we will continue our commitment to fighting back against the building and zoning requirements being forced upon small towns like Woodland Park in order to meet unrealistic and unattainable affordable housing obligations. While we acknowledge the need for affordable housing and the responsibilities we collectively share, we also must acknowledge our right to live and raise our families in a community that embraces that small-town feel and small-town values.
As I have stated previously, in July of 2023, Woodland Park entered a spending freeze to address the challenges we faced with the 2023 budget. In 2025, we will continue to reduce costs and monitor all spending and salaries as we prepare for another challenging budget cycle.
The 2024 fiscal year is closed out, and we are awaiting the auditors to complete the financial statements. There were no significant revenue deficits, however, we also did not see any substantial excesses over anticipated revenue line items.
The good news is that the Borough was awarded over $1,185,559 in grant funds this year. These monies will be used to fund the renovations and new playground equipment and surfaces at Diane Grimes Park. They will purchase new rescue equipment for our fire department and make repairs to our streets in need of resurfacing and paving.
We have made additional applications for grants totaling $4,181,854 and anxiously await their favorable response so we may continue to keep Woodland Park safe, affordable, and beautiful, a community that we are proud to call home and raise our families.
Some of our 2025 budget considerations are as follows. The combined police, fire, and public employee’s pension fund contributions have significantly increased as well as liability and workmen’s compensation obligations. Group insurance premiums have increased by over 14 percent. This doesn’t just impact the Borough, but the employees as well, as they are required to contribute to a portion of their health care benefits.
After vacating the property, the Bank of New York has leveled its existing building off Rifle Camp Road, leaving just the land to be assessed for its 2025 tax year obligation. This will leave a deficit in their previous tax value of approximately $9 million. We have been working carefully with our auditor and tax department to determine the impact that this will have on the Borough’s 2025 budget.
In May 2024, we received a bond rating of AA Stable with a short-term rating of SP 1+. Increasing our bond rating will assist the Borough in negotiating more competitive interest rates thus assisting us as we look to restructure our debt for more favorable terms.
We must remain as conservative in crafting our 2025 budget as we were in 2024 to minimize taxpayer impacts.
In 2025 water rates will see an increase to accommodate a 6% rate hike the Borough received from Passaic Valley Water Commission. We are obligated to pass this increase on to our residents, however, only the increase the Borough receives from the Passaic Valley Water Commission is passed through. There are no additional fees or costs.
Our tax department continues to deliver the finest service to our residents while collecting 99% of all property taxes and 95% of water utilities. They are instrumental in providing our families and seniors with education and information relating to our senior tax freeze and the NJ Anchor program.
We are excited to offer in 2025 a new feature that will allow automated payments for tax and water. This was one of the most requested services and we are happy to be able to offer it this year.
2024 was an exciting year as we celebrated the groundbreaking of the expansion of our Library. It is so wonderful to see a community so invested in its Library and its devoted employees and trustees. We look forward to bringing updates throughout the year and, as always, our location on the Berkeley College campus remains open and available for so many amazing events and services.
We are committed to our partnership with our Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Michele Pillari, and our Board of Education to make sure our students and their families have everything they need to ensure their children are safe, happy, and thriving under the tremendous staff we have working in our school system. We are proud that Woodland Park now has an officer in each of our five schools to ensure everyone’s safety.
The Council and I are looking forward to spending more time visiting the schools and witnessing the vital improvements and initiatives going on. I’m excited to learn more about the Memorial School House System. Students and staff are broken up into four houses - Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water - and throughout the year they earn points by taking part in challenges as a team and competing in fun and educational events.
The School District is consistently introducing new programs like the Mustang Ambassadors and Charles Olbon Heroes. These programs are a vital part of teaching our children how to be a good friend, show compassion, and build lasting relationships.
We hope to be able to make use of our local television programming so we can showcase some of the amazing things going on in our schools like the House events, concerts, plays, and so much more, so stay tuned.
At each of our Borough Council meetings, we are joined by our Municipal Clerk, Sandra Olivola. The clerk’s official role as a partner to the Mayor and Council is vital to the operations of the Borough. They are the liaison between the residents and the government, fostering communication, addressing public concerns, and providing information on Borough laws, ordinances, regulations, and procedures. They are charged with maintaining meticulous records for enhanced transparency and accountability and overseeing our elections, ensuring a fair and accurate voting process for all residents.
This past year, we welcomed Jay Hersh as our Recreation Director. Under his leadership, 2024 was a great rebuilding year for Woodland Park. Not only are we excited about the short-term changes but also the long-term goals and outlook for Recreation as a whole within our community. This year, we significantly updated two of our largest programs supporting the community: our before and after care services and the WP Summer Camp.
Our events calendar was packed in 2024, offering more than 25 sports, activities, and enrichment courses. In 2025, we will be offering dynamic and diverse interests from fitness classes, to arts, sports, and special events. We will be upgrading our facilities and continuing to seek resident feedback so we can better serve the community.
Our special events were spectacular due to the hard work and meticulous planning of the entire Borough. Events like Woodland Park Day our holiday parade, Christmas tree lighting, home decorating contest, and trolley rides have become fan favorites and I have no doubt they will surpass our expectations in 2025.
As you can see, 2024 brought us new leadership in three of our largest departments - our Department of Public Works, Police Department, and Recreation Department - and I am so proud to report that these departments are not only surpassing our high expectations but they are raising the bar when it comes to delivering exceptional service to the Borough.
The Council and I are excited about the initiatives about to take place, the long-awaited and much-needed traffic light at McBride Avenue and Lackawanna Avenue. This light will feature a left-hand turn signal, making that area easier to navigate and safer. In addition, the Overmount Avenue road diet will improve the quality of life to the residents who live in that area and have had major safety concerns for some time.
In closing, I wish to thank the members of the Council, our residents, employees, and the Woodland Park community for allowing me the privilege of serving as your Mayor. It has not always been easy, but it has always been my great honor. May God bless you all and may God bless Woodland Park.