Things seemed right again for the Linden City Council Tuesday as Mayor Pat Vice made his way back into city hall to oversee his first council meeting in some time. Vice, who has been no stranger to the seat through the years, was in good spirits and told the council he was glad to be back among his fellow council members and citizens. Vice also reviewed some of the accomplishments of the previous administration and hopes for the future.

“I am glad to be back,” Vice said. “There were a few priorities that we started with four years ago. The first was anti-littering. That is the first law we passed was littering. The second was noise and after that was loitering and then after that was air brakes. We have set our priorities for this administration here and I would like to see them continue for the next three years.”

Vice said they had one area in particular he was glad to see them focus on.

“Above all we have put recreation as our number one priority,” Vice said. “I would like to see us keep going.”

While things were back to normal with Vice in place the lighting was anything but usual. A transformer blew near the Methodist church causing the council to conduct their meeting in the dark. However, the council proceeded forward through their business.

City Administrator Cheryl Hall spoke on behalf of Linden Police Chief Jeff Laduron, who was out with an illness, about an opportunity to purchase bulletproof vests for the department.

Hall said the police department would soon be receiving a grant that would allow them to equip each officer with bulletproof vests. The vests, which cost $600 apiece would be a huge asset to the department. Most of the pieces are in place for the grant and the vests. They are now just waiting on fittings for the officers.

The Linden Police Department also announced they would no longer be unlocking car doors. The decision was made because a local business is now providing the service and having the police provide the service for free would hurt their business. However, the department will continue to unlock doors in a state of emergency such as a child locked inside the car.

The council will next meet on Tuesday April 19.