Residents urge restoration of Veterans Peace Memorial and raise lead, speeding and voter-records concerns

Several Wayne residents used the Feb. 17 public-comment period to press the council on local safety, public-health and memorial concerns.

Miss Panek urged the council to include funding in the 2026 budget to reconstruct and rededicate the Veterans Peace Memorial in Gaudi Park by Veterans Day 2026. She said she has contacted state Rep. Peter Hertzberg for financial support and emphasized urgency because many Vietnam veterans are elderly. "Let's get this done," she said, and asked the council to reconvene the veterans-memorial group to plan restoration and a rededication service.

A resident who identified himself and provided documentation told council his pre-replacement lead water test read 140.9 (the action level he cited at the time was 15). After follow-up sampling coordinated by DPW, a more recent result was 20.8; the resident said the current action level was 12. He thanked DPW and Dave Schmidt for follow-up and said he is working with water staff to reduce lead in his galvanized plumbing.

Miss Scribe raised traffic-safety concerns tied to a proposed preschool on South Wayne Road, asking the council to lower the speed limit between Van Born Road and Glenwood (she suggested 35 mph) and to consider installing speed-hump devices and reminder signage. She also asked whether federal agents could demand voter ID records from the city clerk’s office, citing an out-of-state incident, and reported a malfunctioning streetlight at Stellwagen and Newberry.

Council members responded in part by asking to meet with the Veterans Peace Memorial group, thanking residents for bringing issues forward and noting staff follow-up is underway for the reported lead test and streetlight concerns. The public-comment period did not produce formal council action during the meeting; items raised were referred to staff for follow-up.