It was a busy winter in Garwood, as we began the year swearing two new councilmembers – Councilman Sean Keagan Foley and Councilwoman Karina Boto. Both have hit the ground running as Police Commissioner and DPW Commissioner, respectively, as have our other council members on their respective committees. Our council meetings have been full, with presentations from the RVSA as well as Union County Connects, and as we move deeper into budget season, we’ll be reviewing all of the departments’ operating costs as well as needed capital items. Mark your calendars for the special budget meeting to be held on Tuesday, April 9 at 7 p.m., as the Finance Committee will take us through the various aspects of Garwood’s finances for 2024.
A special congratulations to Samuel Rocco who was officially promoted to Captain of the Garwood Police Department. He has over 24 years with the Department and I know he will continue to serve the residents with the same professionalism and enthusiasm in his new role. Alongside newly sworn-in officer Eric Melendez, the Police Department has been working diligently on addressing safety throughout the Borough with additional vertical mid-street speed signs, increased lighting and is in discussion with the council about possible temporary bumps outs at busy pedestrian intersections.
Our other departments in Garwood have also been busy, with the DPW helping Garwood weather the winter storms and once again doing an amazing job of keeping our roads clear during the snow and ice events. Our thanks go to them as well as to the Fire Department who have had numerous service calls over the past few months, including a recent dangerous kitchen fire that they were able to contain. In April, Garwood will be celebrating Local Government Week with a series of videos to give residents a deeper look inside all of our departments and the people who run them, including our very busy administrative offices inside Borough Hall. Keep an eye on Garwood’s social media for those fun introductions to the dedicated people who make up our Garwood family!
In addition to Local Government Week, this April Garwood will begin rolling out the new paid parking in the downtown area using the mobile app ParkMobile. The program will be initially deployed on Center Street, South Avenue and West Street along the south side business district and will eventually be put into place on North Avenue and JFK Plaza in the north side business district. The app will provide easy to use instructions upon parking, and those in need of assistance will be able to call the ParkMobile company to pay over the phone or Police Dispatch who will help the residents as we navigate this new program. The paid parking initiative will greatly help our local businesses by ensuring turnover for customers and also allow residents and customers to customize their parking stay so as to avoid parking tickets. Garwood is quickly turning into a major dining and shopping location, and this is just one tool we are using to keep that momentum moving forward.
There’s a lot to look forward to in our little Borough, including the Recreation Committee’s Easter Egg hunt on March 23rd and Easter Bunny Ride Around on March 30th. Look out also for poetry readings from our Arts and Culture committee coming up on April 20th and 21st. Lastly, sign up has begun for spring soccer and summer camp, too! Spring is in the air, and I hope to see you at one of our many upcoming community events.
Mayor Jen Blumenstock Borough of Garwood
