METUCHEN – The Metuchen Borough Council has a new member on the dais.
Daniel Hirsch was sworn in at a council meeting on Jan. 14 in front of his family. He replaces Councilman Reed Liebfried, who notified Mayor Jonathan Busch through correspondence on Jan. 6 of his decision to resign from the council in order to focus on his health and his family.
The council received and accepted Liebfried’s resignation on Jan. 14. Busch had thanked Leibfried for his service and wished he and his family the best.
Busch said as required by state law, the seat has to be filled by nominations of the party, who previously held office. Liebfried’s term ends Dec. 31, 2020.
The Metuchen Democratic Organization submitted three candidate names – Hirsch, James Griffin and Beatrice Moskowitz.
Council President Linda Koskoski nominated Hirsch and Councilwoman Sheri-Rose Rubin seconded the nomination. The council unanimously approved Hirsch’s nomination.
Busch said he has known Hirsch for a number of years and described him as dedicated, focused and sincere. Councilwoman Dorothy Rasmussen added Hirsch is dependable.
“Dan is a worker bee,” Busch said. “You give him a job, he does it.”
The mayor said Hirsch has been involved in the borough for a long time including four years on the Planning Board, a member of the Technical Review Committee, a member on the Environmental Commission and more recently a member of the Metuchen Parking Authority for the past six months. Hirsch also served as president of the Neve Shalom Synagogue in Metuchen overseeing 1,000 members.
Hirsch thanked the council for putting their trust in him and said he was looking forward to working with everyone.
Koskoski welcomed Hirsch and thanked the other two nomination candidates for putting their names on the list.