Mayor Peter Calamari and the Township of Washington Council convened for their Jan. 5, 2026 reorganization meeting, where multiple officials were sworn in and the mayor outlined service priorities for the year.

The meeting opened with statutory notice and an invocation from Father Tom Norton of Our Lady of Good Counsel. Several council members and officials took oaths of office administered by a retired judge; members were then confirmed in newly elected leadership roles for 2026.

"I am humbled to be starting my third term as your mayor," Calamari said, and he thanked Judge Carroll and Father Tom for participating in the ceremony. Calamari announced the swearing-in of AJ Pacour as the new police chief and said the township had sworn in most fire board officers, including Chief Frank Aiello. He also said the township is starting a process to offer pet licensing online "in addition to the current in-person visits."

The mayor read a slate of appointments to key municipal positions with terms through 2029, including Mark DiCarlo as business administrator/director of administration and John Corcoran as director of finance. Several professional-service contracts and board appointments were later confirmed by council motion and roll-call vote.

Calamari also said the township will review the recent leaf-collection program after hearing resident feedback and previewed recreational and library programming planned for January and beyond. He reported municipal-court revenues for November and summarized preliminary reassessment figures for the town, noting changes in average assessed value.

The council recessed into the reorganization portion of the meeting to complete oaths, accept the mayoral slate of appointments, and process routine resolutions. The meeting closed with reminders about the next regular council meeting on Jan. 19, 2026.

The reorganization record includes a mix of ceremonial items, personnel announcements and procedural votes; several more substantive resolutions and contract awards appear elsewhere on the agenda and were acted on during the same session.