Bluth, Thibault Join Hightstown Borough Council

State Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Mercer) swore in Hightstown Borough council members Susan Bluth and Robert Thibault at Monday’s reorganization meeting, and Larry Quattrone was re-elected as council president.

Both Bluth and Thibault said they wanted to tackle transparency and shared services in 2012.

“Any services that can be shared, that’s what has to be done,” Bluth said.

The two new members said they will hold monthly meetings at the Hightstown library open to anyone to come and talk to them. Bluth said the first meeting is scheduled for Jan. 21 from 10 a.m. to noon.

Thibault also said he plans to introduce resolutions that will help improve accessibility and transparency, starting with moving public meeting times later in the evening.

“I want to make sure all public meetings take place at a time when the majority of borough residents can attend those meetings,” Thibault said, noting some meetings take place in the afternoon.

Another resolution Thibault said he plans to propose will make executive council session minutes available online after they’re reviewed, instead of needing to submit an open public records request for them.

“Those are some quick things that we can do to improve access to information, improve transparency, improve accessibility, that will help I think get more people involved and eliminate some of the idea that they’re doing things behind closed doors,” Thibault said.

Thibault said he is giving the resolutions to the borough attorney this week with hopes of them making the next council meeting agenda.

During the meeting, Mayor Steven Kirson also presented proclamations honoring Skye Gilmartin, Isabel McGinty, Dimitri Musing and Michael Vanderbeck.

Members of the public and council applauded the number of elected officials who attended the reorganization meeting, which included Rep. Rush Holt (D-Mercer), Assemblymen Wayne DeAngelo (D-Hamilton) and Dan Benson (D-Hamilton), Sheriff John Kemler, Mercer County Freeholders Ann Cannon, Andrew Koontz and Lucylle Walter, East Windsor Mayor Janice Mironov and East Windsor Township Council members Hector Duke and Peter Yeager.