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Record of Proceedings

Vineland City Council Meeting - July 28, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, July 28, 2026
BodyVineland, New Jersey
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, July 28, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 33:33

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

2026

Unassigned speaker

0:01

be

Speaker 1

0:01

approved as submitted.

0:02

So move.

0:03

Second.

0:04

Discussion.

0:05

Seeing none.

Speaker 2

0:06

Dr.

0:06

Arthur.

0:07

Yes.

0:07

Councilmember English?

0:08

Yes.

0:08

Councilmember Vargas?

0:10

Yes.

0:10

President Spinelli.

Speaker 1

0:11

Yes.

Speaker 2

0:12

Mr.

0:12

President, I present resolution 2026-392, resolution recognizing the members of the Vinyl Fire Department Station 5 for exemplary service during a land search and rescue operation.

Speaker 1

0:23

Chair entertained a motion to adopt resolution number 2026-392 according to the wall.

Speaker 2

0:30

So move.

Speaker 1

0:30

Thank you.

0:31

Discussion by council.

0:33

Seeing none.

Speaker 2

0:34

Dr.

0:34

Arthur?

0:35

Yes.

0:36

Councilmember English?

0:37

Yes.

0:37

Councilmember Vargas?

0:39

Yes.

0:39

President Spinelli.

Speaker 1

0:40

Yes.

0:41

This time we'll ask the fire uh fire director Franchetta and Chief of Police Shefalaleo Chief of Fire Shipalalio.

0:52

Puerto Rican Festival, you know.

0:56

We'll bring fire uh members of the fire station number five forward for special presentation.

Speaker 3

1:03

I

Speaker 2

1:03

just want to say uh thank you all for coming and congratulations.

1:07

Uh, we have some stuff here.

1:08

We have the county here as well.

1:10

I want to thank each and every one of you for attending that call and uh for your exemplary service, and you'll see that tonight by the unit citation that we're going to get out in those awards.

1:18

Please wear them proudly.

1:19

We're all very proud of you.

1:20

Thank

Unassigned speaker

1:21

you.

Speaker 4

1:29

There we go.

1:29

Thank you, Director.

1:30

Um, Chief, can you guys come up?

1:32

I just want to say a few words first before I read the citation.

1:36

Um it needs to understand that this training that this crew has taken is well above and beyond the basic firefighter training.

1:46

They took it upon themselves to take both the initial Lan SAR training and continue.

1:50

Can you move over a little bit?

1:51

They must see the chief too.

Unassigned speaker

1:55

And

Speaker 1

1:55

Marquis is tall as you can.

1:56

That's

Speaker 4

1:56

Lukey.

1:57

I always do that with Luke.

1:58

Um not only initial training, but continuing educational training, constant, constant training for this Lancet team.

2:06

They are a part of the local regional county team, which I want to extend a thanks to Chief John Schaefer, who organized the team for Cumberland County and brought us here together tonight.

2:18

Uh Chief Schaefer spearheaded it for now.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Public Safety██████████████22%
Personnel Matters█████8%
Disability Rights█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Vineland City Council Regular Meeting – July 28, 2026

The City of Vineland City Council held its regular meeting on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at 5:30 PM, presided over by Council President Paul F. Spinelli. Present were Councilmembers Dr. Elizabeth Arthur, Scott English, and Albert Vargas; Council Vice President Cruz Gomez was absent. The meeting included special recognitions, public comment, adoption of ordinances, first readings, and approval of numerous resolutions. All votes were 4-0 unless otherwise noted.

Call to Order & Approvals

  • The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and public notice verification.
  • Minutes of the Pre-Meeting Conference and Regular Meeting of July 14, 2026, and the Work Session of July 21, 2026, were approved unanimously.

Special Presentations & Recognitions

  • Fire Station 5 Land Search and Rescue Recognition (Resolution 2026-392): The Council recognized members of the Vineland Fire Department Station 5 for their exemplary service during a land search and rescue operation on June 7, 2026, in the area of 546 Lincoln Avenue, Piles Grove, New Jersey. The team successfully located and rescued a female victim. Recognized members included District Chief Jeff Krause, Deputy Chief Donald Fiocchi, Captain Charles Smith, Firefighter Jennifer Hoxworth, Firefighter Harry Mills, and Firefighter Luke Tilotti. Each received a unit citation and lapel pin. Cumberland County Commissioner Sorrow presented a county proclamation and certificates. Speakers, including the Fire Chief and Commissioner, expressed pride and gratitude for the crew's exceptional training and performance.
  • Retiree Recognitions (Resolutions 2026-365 and 2026-366): Lisa Levari, Senior Account Clerk in the Department of Finance, was recognized upon her retirement effective August 1, 2026. She began her career on January 4, 2016. Ryan Watson was also recognized for retirement effective August 1, 2026; he was not present. Council members congratulated both retirees.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Vineland resident Bert Brewster requested that the city issue a statement regarding its history with the state school and regarding the Department of Justice's recent push for reinstitutionalization of disabled people. He claimed it is not a community's responsibility to care for them and asked for a statement about Vineland's history and its involvement with the institutionalization of the disabled.

Ordinances – Public Hearings & Final Adoption

All ordinances were opened for public hearing; no one from the audience spoke, and each was adopted unanimously (4-0). The following ordinances received final reading and adoption:

  • Ordinance 2026-47: Amends Ordinance 2025-78, Chapter 630, Article IV, to set forth requirements for public events on private property.
  • Ordinance 2026-48: Amends the classification and compensation plans for various titles.
  • Ordinance 2026-49: Amends classification/compensation for Supervising Motor Broom Driver.
  • Ordinance 2026-50: Amends classification/compensation for Water Superintendent.
  • Ordinance 2026-51: Amends classification/compensation for Policemen's Benevolent Association, Local 266.
  • Ordinance 2026-52: Amends classification/compensation for Chief Pump Station Operator.
  • Ordinance 2026-53: Establishes no passing zones along a portion of Spring Road between Lincoln Avenue and Maple Avenue.
  • Ordinance 2026-54: Amends Ordinance 91-76, Chapter 639, Article I, regarding public pools.
  • Ordinance 2026-55: Amends Ordinance 2025-41, Chapter 537, Section 537-2, regarding property maintenance standards.

Ordinances – First Reading

The following ordinances were passed for first reading, with public hearings scheduled for Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at 5:30 PM:

  • Ordinance 2026-56: Amends classification/compensation for various animal control titles.
  • Ordinance 2026-57: Amends Ordinance 2026-13, which approved the purchase of 4378 Juniper Street (Block 7304, Lot 19) for $70,000.00.
  • Ordinance 2026-58: Removes Chapter 81, Landis Theater Foundation Board of Directors.
  • Ordinance 2026-59: Amends Chapter 585, Article I, regarding cesspools to include septic tanks, holding tanks, and seepage pits.

Resolutions

All resolutions on the agenda were adopted. The transcript indicates that, following the special presentations, the remaining resolutions were approved en bloc as a consent agenda; however, the minutes reflect separate roll-call votes for each resolution. Both sources confirm all resolutions passed 4-0. Key resolutions included:

  • Retirement recognitions for Lisa Levari and Ryan Watson (2026-365, 2026-366).
  • Acceptance of the Vineland Public Library audit report for years ending December 31, 2025 and 2024 (2026-367).
  • Acceptance of NJ Department of Health PHIG 2027 grant funding (2026-368).
  • Grant applications for SJTPO CMAQ/CR traffic signal improvements at Park Avenue & The Boulevards and Park Avenue & Valley Avenue (2026-369, 2026-370).
  • Cumberland County agreement for Vineland Municipal Alliance grant administration (2026-371).
  • NJDOT agreement modification for Mill Road resurfacing (2026-372).
  • Budget insertion of $600,405.00 from NJDOT FY 2026 Municipal Aid Program (2026-373).
  • Change orders for Horizon AVL, Utiliquest, and South State Inc. (2026-374, 2026-375, 2026-376).
  • Professional services agreement with Pennoni Associates for Jake's Park All-Inclusive Playground design/inspection, not to exceed $480,000.00 (2026-377).
  • Pavement preservation contract with Asphalt Paving Systems, not to exceed $395,694.47 (2026-378).
  • Purchase of two fire trucks (pumper and ladder) from Fire & Safety Services, total not to exceed $3,272,404.68 (2026-379).
  • Brush grinding/hauling contract with Dunrite Sand & Gravel, $40,000.00 (2026-380).
  • Municipal Fiber-to-the-Home Pilot Project award to Millennium Communications Group, not to exceed $1,581,604.70 (2026-381).
  • Public Works Facility Buildings contract to Dutchman Contracting, not to exceed $1,374,841.00 (2026-382).
  • Property-related resolutions including partial mortgage discharge, UDAG loan compromise with Jasselta LLC, Project Beautify loan increase for Camellia Realty Associates LLC, imposition of property registration fee liens, land clearance liens, surety reductions (2026-383 through 2026-388).
  • Police Department fireworks display authorization on August 4, 2026, 9:00 PM–11:00 PM at Vineland High School Complex (2026-389).
  • Payment of bills and demands (2026-390).
  • Use of Vineland Revolving Loan Funds up to $175,000.00 plus closing costs for purchase of 819 N. Mill Road (2026-391).
  • Recognition of Fire Station 5 (2026-392).
  • Renewal of alcoholic beverage licenses for July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 (2026-393).

Additional Remarks

  • Councilmembers congratulated the retirees and honored the firefighters. Councilmember English noted the positive Puerto Rican Festival week, though a few individuals disrupted the nighttime event. Councilmembers expressed pride in all emergency service personnel.

Key Outcomes

  • All votes were unanimous (4-0) with Council Vice President Gomez absent.
  • The consent agenda (resolutions) was approved; separate votes in minutes confirm each resolution passed.
  • All ordinances adopted and first-read ordinances will proceed to public hearing on August 11, 2026.
  • Meeting adjourned at 6:05 PM.

Meeting Transcript

2026 be approved as submitted. So move. Second. Discussion. Seeing none. Dr. Arthur. Yes. Councilmember English? Yes. Councilmember Vargas? Yes. President Spinelli. Yes. Mr. President, I present resolution 2026-392, resolution recognizing the members of the Vinyl Fire Department Station 5 for exemplary service during a land search and rescue operation. Chair entertained a motion to adopt resolution number 2026-392 according to the wall. So move. Thank you. Discussion by council. Seeing none. Dr. Arthur? Yes. Councilmember English? Yes. Councilmember Vargas? Yes. President Spinelli. Yes. This time we'll ask the fire uh fire director Franchetta and Chief of Police Shefalaleo Chief of Fire Shipalalio. Puerto Rican Festival, you know. We'll bring fire uh members of the fire station number five forward for special presentation. I just want to say uh thank you all for coming and congratulations. Uh, we have some stuff here. We have the county here as well. I want to thank each and every one of you for attending that call and uh for your exemplary service, and you'll see that tonight by the unit citation that we're going to get out in those awards. Please wear them proudly. We're all very proud of you. Thank you. There we go. Thank you, Director. Um, Chief, can you guys come up? I just want to say a few words first before I read the citation. Um it needs to understand that this training that this crew has taken is well above and beyond the basic firefighter training. They took it upon themselves to take both the initial Lan SAR training and continue.

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