On Monday, February 26, 2024, Mayor Mark Hartman, Deputy Mayor Natalie Stone and Committeeman Sammy Moore voted to demolish Historic Town Hall. They asked no questions and didn’t address public comments. It was obvious that they had already made up their minds.

Here’s a copy of an email my husband and I sent to the township committee asking them to rescind the resolution to demolish at their next regularly scheduled meeting on March 11. In less than an hour, Township Clerk Maryalice Brown canceled the March 11, meeting. WOW! Time for a Change.

March 4, 2024

Dear Committee Members,

We write concerning your resolution to demolish Historic Town Hall. We recommend that you rescind that resolution at your next scheduled meeting, March 11, 2024, to thoroughly explore alternate actions, even if they are temporary and even if interim steps need to be taken to secure the building.

We respectfully ask that this matter be placed on the March 11, 2024 agenda as you’ve recently done with other citizen issues such as cannabis production and Seneca Woods.

We believe recission of that resolution is appropriate and necessary for the following reasons, among others.

The decision to demolish Historic Town Hall, one of the most significant buildings in the township, should be made by the voters of Tabernacle, not by just three people. Tabernacle residents should be given the opportunity to decide the fate of this building.

By way of reference, when the sale of Sequoia was offered to Tabernacle, the committee voted against holding a referendum. Without a doubt, the committee members who voted against it and believed they knew best were shortsighted and made the wrong decision. Their decision was catastrophic for the fabric of Tabernacle village and for Tabernacle taxpayers.

Don’t repeat this mistake. Historic Town Hall is irreplaceable.

2. Your vote to demolish Historic Town Hall neither answered nor addressed the questions and comments of the public. These included alternate methods of funding, prospects for future bonding and conformance with the Masterplan. 

In addition, the committee did not discuss contacting Burlington County regarding correction or redress from the increased runoff from its repaving of Medford Lakes-Tabernacle Road, Route 532. That runoff, Mr. Boyd said, is a significant cause for the damage to the foundation of Historic Town Hall.

3. The committee was placed under undue time pressure to act at the February 26, 2024 meeting. It was wholly unreasonable for the committee to be initially placed under a deadline at that meeting when the building was inspected monthly for the previous three years and no prior deadline was given or suggested.

We believe that the rush to a decision caused by this deadline resulted in the Committee’s failure to thoroughly consider all of the issues associated with the preservation of Historic Town Hall.

4. Rescinding the resolution at the March 11, 2024 meeting is within the time frame that Construction Official Tom Boyd later said was acceptable for committee action. Moreover, given that additional time will be required to secure permits, etc., there is time to reconsider that resolution.

Thank you for your attention to this. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Fran and Stuart Brooks