Township Council — April 14, 2026

What was decided

Deputy Mayor Kharazi called the meeting to order and presided. The roll call lists six members present (Anbarasan, Francois, Kharazi, Onyejiaka, Uddin and Vassanella) and Mayor Kramer and Mr. Wright absent; Mr. Singh is not named in it but moves, seconds and votes. Every vote was 7-0: ayes Anbarasan, Francois, Kharazi, Onyejiaka, Singh, Uddin and Vassanella; no nays; absent Kramer and Wright.

• Ord. 4501-26 adopted (mover Francois, second Anbarasan): releasing, extinguishing and vacating the public’s rights to a portion of Executive Drive. See the hearing below and warehouses.
• Ord. 4503-26 introduced (mover Anbarasan, second Singh): accepting a conservation easement and permanent access easement from 31 Voorhees, LLC (Block 113, Lot 1.01; Block 119, Lot 26.01; Block 132, Lot 9.01); hearing set for April 28.
• Res. #26-178, voted on separately (mover Anbarasan, second Uddin), adopted a temporary budget and authorized an emergency appropriation for capital purposes. Its schedule shows current fund appropriations of $41,601,840.38, water utility appropriations of $16,747,010.40 and open space appropriations of $5,297,897.48. Its preamble gives the CY2026 emergency temporary resolutions, including this one, as totalling $41,577,440.38 for the current fund, with the same water utility and open space figures. See the 2026 budget.
• Consent agenda (Res. #26-154 to #26-177; mover Vassanella, second Uddin). It included:
  • #26-160, Axon Enterprise, “(2) AIR DFR DOCK PLAN”, year 1 of 5, not to exceed $100,000.00;
  • #26-171 to #26-174, the 2026 tax rates for Fire Districts 1 to 4;
  • #26-161, fencing under state contract, EB Fence, not to exceed $69,309.60;
  • #26-168 to #26-170, #26-176 and #26-177, stormwater facility maintenance agreements, including 31 Voorhees, LLC’s four underground detention basins for 37 townhomes;
  • #26-175, excusing Mr. Wright from meetings from March 24 to May 26, 2026.
• Approved warrants of $10,435,905.55.

The Executive Drive hearing

Alex Straus of Hazlitt Way, asked about the purpose of Ord. 4501-26 and the traffic light on Executive Drive, suggesting it would benefit warehouse developers without requiring them to pay for maintenance. The minutes record the Township Manager’s answer: a developer originally built Executive Drive, dedicated it to the Township and paid for the signal; vacating it returns the land to the adjacent owners; with the Zoning Board’s approval of a warehouse to replace the office buildings, the street will become a private driveway for that business; keeping it public would cost taxpayers significantly, especially with the expected truck traffic; and the signal will continue to serve the private driveway.

Public Discussion

• Eleanor Oaken of Republic Road, supported the astronomy club and its public telescopes and seminars.
• Shanique Davis of Blake Avenue, objected to the new leaf disposal fee at the convenience center, citing inadequate notice, the payment process and limited hours. She asked for a grace period, easier payment, proper notice, longer hours and reconsideration of the fee, noting that comparable towns offer free disposal.
• John, Arlington Avenue, asked about a traffic light at JFK Boulevard and Winston Drive, suggested rumble strips on Amwell Road, questioned the number of marijuana dispensaries (18) and a possible link to accidents, and raised towing companies on residential Arlington Avenue and truck weight limits.
• Kevin Camman, a crossing guard, 357 Girard Avenue, pointed to faded crosswalks in the Franklin Boulevard area and a crumbling tactile warning surface, and asked for repairs.

Answers. The minutes record that Manager Vornlocker said:

• crosswalk and tactile-surface problems should go through the Traffic Safety Bureau to Sergeant Raics;
• Amwell Road is a county road, so rumble-strip requests go to the County, and the issue would go to the Public Safety Committee;
• the towing businesses are approved uses and Arlington Avenue has no specific weight limit;
• a full traffic warrant analysis for JFK Boulevard and Winston Drive is underway, and if a light is warranted, funding would be budgeted in 2027;
• brush was historically accepted free, but storage capacity and NJDEP compliance now require paid removal; the fees followed public debate and are lower than first proposed; street-side leaf pickup in the fall stays free and there is no charge for leaf drop-off; longer hours should be discussed at the next Public Works Committee meeting; and credit-card and online permit payment is planned in the upcoming budget.

See roads and traffic.

Reports

• Mr. Vassanella said more funds than expected might be available for road paving.
• Mr. Singh gave an update on Ward 1 paving and said work continues with residents and NJDOT on a traffic light and pedestrian crossing between Highland Boulevard and Route 27.
• Ms. Uddin reported a scam and fraud seminar for seniors at Canal Walk with over 75 attendees.
• Deputy Mayor Kharazi reminded residents to report streetlight outages and announced a medication take-back on April 25.

Records

• Minutes (approved May 26, 2026) · Agenda · Packet
• Video on Granicus (1:56). Granicus publishes no captions for Franklin meetings; this page follows the Clerk’s minutes.