The Edison Township Council held its regular meeting on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, starting at 7:02 PM and adjourning at 8:56 PM. The meeting included resolutions of recognition, public hearings on multiple bond ordinances, a redevelopment agreement, and public comments. Council members present: Brussel, Coyle, Harris, Patel, Batil, Pointer, Schmuel.
Good evening. Tonight is the regular meeting of Wednesday, September 10th, 2025. And the time is seven, just about 7.02 p.m. Could you please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance? I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God. Indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Madam Clerk, roll call, please. Councilmember Brussel. Here. Councilmember Coyle. Here. Councilmember Harris. Here. Councilmember Patel. Here. Councilmember Batil. Here. Councilmember Pointer. Councilmember Schmuel. Here. Madam Clerk, adequate notice, please. Adequate notice of this meeting as required by the Open Public Meeting Act of 1975 has been provided by the annual notice sent to the Home News Tribune. Thank you very much. Council President's remarks. I've got a few things that are on a better on a better note, but I need to start tonight with my sense of devastation and anger about the murder of the conservative columnist, uh conservative activist Charlie Kirk today. I don't know how many of you knew about this. Charlie Kirk was 31 years old, left behind a wife and two kids. He was speaking at an event at a Utah college, and not Brigham Young, but a different college, and 20 minutes into his speech, he was shot in the neck and he passed away a little while later. I am so upset about this. Now understand that as a liberal to moderate myself, there's probably nothing I agreed with Charlie Kirk Cook about Charlie, I'm sorry, uh uh Charlie Kirk about. But this man is a human being, and the acceleration of these kinds of assassinations going on in the name of politics, whether it was Charlie Kirk today, whether it was the Minnesota legislators on in uh back a few months ago. Uh I consider this to be a form of domestic terrorism. And I'm afraid that all that's going to happen from this is that we are going to see more, and we're going to see more of this more often. Um I've had some of my uh liberal friends who have kind of given me the you reap what you sow, look what he said about guns. He that that um uh that uh he said that well maybe we need to accept a few deaths in order to preserve the second amendment amendment. I'm not this is not about guns right now. This is about this is about humanity, and I condemn what happened to him just like what I I condemn what happened to the Minnesota legislators a few months ago, and so on and so on and so forth. And I want to just read a piece that caught my eye. Um this is from uh a man, this is a man who Dr. Robert Pape, a political science profession uh professor at the University of Chicago. He said what he said this a few months ago. What I fear is an increasing sense of mobilization between two opposed blocks, one that drives both protesters and government forces to become more militant as each seeks to impose its will on the other. Many Democratic and Republican leaders have condemned political violence. That is good, but they have almost always done so in separate statements. My research suggests that to de-escalate the political environment and reduce the risk of violence. America's political leaders need to cross their political divides and make joint statements and ideally joint appearances that denounce all political violence, welcome all peaceful protest, and call for respecting the rules, process and results of free and fair elections in the country. And so I I I guess I'm I guess I'm venting a bit here, but I guess I'm also asking everyone who is watching or everyone who is here to do whatever you can to tone down the rhetoric and to cross the divide, cross the aisles, and be able to uh to speak uh speak truth to power in this in this sense.