SPOTSWOOD — Borough Council meetings are expected to soon begin a halfhour earlier, in light of the fact they tend to run later than in the past.
Officials said the meetings have been running a bit late in recent months, so the council will start them at 7:30 p.m. instead of 8, as has been the standard for years.
Councilwoman Marge Drozd supports the change. She said it is great for people to get together for a healthy discussion of the issues, but that some meetings have been running too late. The earlier they are started, she said, the less tired people will be as they work through the meeting.
Also, Drozd noted, most of the members have day jobs, so late nights are not desirable.
Council President Curtis Stollen said he wanted to keep the time at 8 p.m., but was willing to compromise with colleagues who wanted the shift. He said he likes the later times because it gives him more of a chance to see any last-minute changes to the agenda.
“If the meeting begins at 8 p.m., it is advantageous to get there at 7:45 p.m. and read new material on the dais,” he said.
Stollen said the borough clerk usually distributes the council members’ packets by Friday night for a Monday night meeting, and council members look at them over on the weekend. Officials call the business administrator on Monday if they have any questions.
Stollen said he feels that moving the meetings up to 7:30 p.m. is reasonable, but any earlier would be a burden. The council members have jobs and some have longer commutes, plus they need time to have dinner.
“[The] 8 p.m. [start] gives us some time to do all that, and gets us there early to read anything,” Stollen said. “It’s just that most of work in the day, and it’s nice to have enough time to eat without rushing.”
For similar reasons, it may be harder for the general public to get to 7 p.m. council meetings, he said.
The council made the decision to change the start time several months ago, but has to vote on a formal change to the meetings ordinance.
The meetings will still be combined agenda and action meetings. Combining the two meeting types saves the borough money by not having to pay its professionals for additional hours. The town has held a combined meeting for about 20 years, Stollen said.D
espite the earlier meeting time, the council will continue to hold public sessions during both the agenda and action meetings. At one point, the borough did not allow public portions during the agenda sessions, which meant residents weren’t able to comment on action items before they were voted upon. The state then changed the law to require that any meeting with a quorum include a public forum.

