Bloomfield Leaders Duck Accountability as Residents Demand Answers

by Satenik Margaryan

Photo by Ryunosuke Kikuno on Unsplash

This post has been edited on 9/17 at 10:50 am to include links and captions for some photos.

I returned to the council meetings after my summer hiatus. I encourage you to watch the video of the meeting, since the agenda was packed and this recap can only scratch the surface.

The atmosphere was tense before the meeting even began. Two incidents set the tone: the sighting of masked ICE agents on Washington Street at the Glen Ridge border, as ICE enforcement and detention in Maplewood and in South Orange on September 8th, and the lowering of Bloomfield’s flags—seemingly in line with Donald Trump’s directive to honor Charlie Kirk.

On September 8, a neighbor sent me photos of a masked ICE agent appearing to target lawn workers in Glen Ridge; those photos were later posted on Bloomfield Pulse. Residents were shaken. The last ICE sighting in Bloomfield had been at La Santa restaurant on July 29, 2025. In both cases, the mayor stayed silent—unlike her counterparts in South Orange, Maplewood, and Glen Ridge, who issued timely statements.

As for the flags, I first assumed they had been lowered for 9/11 commemorations. But after reading about Trump’s controversial order, Bergen County’s defiance of it, and other NJ towns’ responses, I began to suspect Bloomfield had quietly followed Trump’s decree.

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With these events unfolding, the public showed up to the town council meeting. As usual, there were proclamations to commemorate the 125th Anniversary of Union Baptist Church and the start of the Hispanic Heritage month with the requisite photo opportunities.

Next came the presentation of Bloomfield’s Affordable Housing Plan. Considering Bloomfield’s chronic failures on affordable housing, the town’s so-called “discussion” of its affordable housing plan was a disgrace. No visual aids, no written explanations, absolutely nothing to help residents understand what was on the table. We were told the plan had been “published in a newspaper” and that the public should have come prepared to discuss changes to the Housing Choice Voucher Administrative Plan. The actual resolutions, authorizing revisions to local preferences for the Section 8 program and reopening the Section 8 waiting list, were only available for review at the Housing Agency office, not presented or explained at the meeting. The mayor, the administration, and the council all treated this process with clear disinterest, refusing to educate the public about real affordable housing options. Then Councilwoman Cruz chimed in with a bizarre statement about being “so excited” about affordable housing. She claimed she had long pushed for this rehabilitation program, congratulated the council for “getting to this point,” and said she was “really happy” Bloomfield would finally offer what other towns already had. She praised the timeline, repeated that the township “wants to help residents stay in place,” and even framed basic repairs like roofs or driveways as a victory—despite years of inaction. This rang hollow given her track record of skipping Rent Leveling Board meetings and failing to report anything about that board’s work. If she doesn’t even recognize that rent-controlled apartments are part of Bloomfield’s affordable housing stock, then her “excitement” is meaningless.

For the public comments, several residents signed up to speak before the mayor and council. The first, Doug Grant, exposed the dysfunction and negligence surrounding the Rent Leveling Board in Bloomfield. The mayor tried to shut it down, claiming she couldn’t comment because the township was “in litigation.” That was a flat-out lie. There is no current litigation precisely because the board hopes to resolve these problems without litigation. The mayor wasn’t protecting the township she was dodging accountability and misleading the public. The next resident spoke about empathy, sympathy, and the importance of dialogue over political violence without directly referencing the recent murder of Charlie Kirk. Representatives from Moms Demand Action then addressed the council, highlighting their Be SMART campaign, launched in 2015 to promote responsible gun ownership. They presented horrifying statistics on child gun deaths and preventable accidents, emphasizing how the absence of secure gun storage continues to cost lives.

The next group of speakers, part of the newly created Bloomfield Immigrant Justice Network, spoke about the ICE incidents (mentioned above) from various points of view. One resident demanded answers about police protocols and town responsibilities after witnessing masked men making an arrest outside La Santa on July 19, with no official report two months later—and another unexplained incident soon after on Washington Street. She stressed that the silence from town officials fuels fear, leaving immigrant families, nearly a quarter of Bloomfield’s population, afraid to step outside, take the bus, or simply live their daily lives. She urged the council to stop waiting for the situation to worsen and to act now to protect residents, especially the Hispanic community targeted by federal raids.

Another resident condemned the growing presence of masked ICE agents in Bloomfield, pointing out their refusal to properly identify themselves. He urged the council to adopt real transparency measures—such as restrictions on masking and clear identification requirements—and to go beyond the token gesture of posting “Know Your Rights” links online. He called on the mayor and council to act swiftly to protect residents and respond to the escalating threat, warning that continued inaction leaves the community vulnerable. The mayor offered a curious reply, perhaps because it was this resident’s first time speaking at a council meeting. She claimed there was a bill in the state assembly addressing masking and identification and said the township could consider supporting it while in conversation with assembly representatives. Yet, despite her insistence, no such bill could be found.

Stefanie Santiago turned to the issue of lowered flags (mentioned above), see her full speech here. She denounced Bloomfield’s decision to leave municipal flags at half-staff beyond the period required by law, which appeared to align with Donald Trump’s directive honoring Charlie Kirk—a figure tied to Christian nationalism and white supremacy. While the mayor later claimed it was merely an oversight by municipal staff, the resident stressed that other towns proactively defied Trump’s order to avoid such misinterpretation. She demanded an apology for the harmful message this inaction sent to communities targeted by Kirk’s rhetoric. The resident also rejected the mayor’s accusation that raising the issue was driven by “political agendas” (see the screenshot of the Facebook post below), calling it a lie and pointing out the township’s failure to make any timely statement. Finally, she pressed for transparency on how many ICE raids Bloomfield has faced since being placed on a Department of Homeland Security list.

Post which appeared on Monday morning ( 10:50 am on 9/15) on Mundell’s Mayor Page

Mayor Mundell shared her mayoral post on her personal Facebook page and mentioned “political agendas” for calling out the town for lowering the flags.

I made my public comments as which you can read in full here as an immigrant and member of the Bloomfield Immigrant Justice Network. I warned the council that masked ICE raids are already happening in Bloomfield and nearby towns, not just in the news. Drawing on lived experience under the Soviet Union, I cautioned against repeating history, and quoted Timothy Snyder’s warning: “Do not obey in advance.” I condemned the silence and passivity of local leaders and demanded action: uphold the immigrant trust directive, protect residents’ rights, and stop treating raids as someone else’s problem. My direct request was clear: hold a public town hall, not a Facebook post or website notice, but an open forum where affected community members can be heard and given real information. I ended with a challenge to the council: stop being bystanders, and start acting like leaders who defend the dignity and safety of Bloomfield’s immigrant community.

Tracy Toler-Phillips (who is running for the Council at Large on the democratic ballot) demanded to know what concrete services the township is providing to families devastated by ICE raids, beyond hollow Facebook posts. She pressed the mayor and council on what outreach has been done to support families who’ve lost breadwinners or children to detention, and what proactive plans exist to educate residents about their rights when confronted by ICE. Her questions exposed a glaring void: the township has offered no clear answers or real support.

Jonathan Mejia (Independent Candidate for the Council at Large) echoed these concerns, warning that ICE activity in and around Bloomfield is escalating—from Home Depot to La Santa Bar and Grill to Washington Street—yet the town remains unprepared. He reminded the mayor that while Bloomfield claims to be a “fair and welcoming” community under the Immigrant Trust Directive, the Supreme Court has now greenlit racial and language-based profiling, a threat already being tested in other cities. Mejia pleaded for proactive protections, not just empty assurances, noting even U.S. citizens like himself live in fear of being swept up simply for being visibly Hispanic. As a parent, he raised the most urgent question of all: what will Bloomfield do if ICE agents show up at schools like Berkeley Elementary, where the vast majority of students are children of immigrants?

Together, these testimonies underscored a damning truth: while residents are begging for safety, clarity, and leadership, Mayor Mundell offers nothing but silence, platitudes, and deflection, leaving the community to face federal raids alone.

Among other public comments I would like to highlight four more:

1. Concern about safety during sidewalk construction. The resident complained that without much notification, on her walk to the council meeting, she encountered a crosswalk which had large construction cones placed on both sides of the crosswalk making it very unsafe to cross the street, especially in the dark. It is important to note only on the morning after the council meeting, the Police department posted the following traffic alert (note there are no details which particular crosswalks are impacted):

   

2. Vito Havrilla, vice chair of the independent Lackawanna Coalition, spoke on behalf of the group, which advocates for better transit. He announced that the coalition had approved a resolution supporting the Glenwood Avenue bus shelter near the Bloomfield train station and would be sending it to the town council. Later, Councilwoman Cruz spoke about “reestablishing” the shelter on Glenwood. Funny how it suddenly comes up now. I raised this at the Ward Three community meeting months ago, while residents have been sitting on curbs for the past seven years. Clearly, neither the mayor nor the council are self-starters.

3. Ted Glick and Jane Califf pressed the council on Bloomfield’s long-stalled solar projects, warning that time is running out to take advantage of federal credits before they expire in 2026. Glick, representing the Bloomfield Citizen Solar Campaign, argued that delaying clean energy will only drive up electricity costs and property taxes, while Califf reminded the council that taxpayers already paid for a solar study that has gone nowhere. Both criticized the mayor and council for wasting money on feasibility studies if they have no intention of moving forward.

   Mayor Mundell responded by citing the $2.5 million price tag and uncertainty about federal credits, pointing instead to small symbolic projects like solar lighting and rain gardens. Her defensive remarks, dismissing solar vendors as just “telling us what they want to sell us,” underscored her lack of urgency. Califf countered that neighboring mayors have shown real leadership on pressing issues like ICE raids, while Bloomfield’s mayor has stayed silent. The exchange highlighted a familiar pattern: Mayor Mundell stalling on meaningful initiatives, hiding behind financial caution, and offering token gestures, while residents demand real action on both immigrant protection and clean energy.

4. Finally, a few words from Norm Sutaria about Bloomfield’s contract with Mercury Public Affairs. A resident blasted the council for approving a $60,000 contract with Mercury Public Affairs, reading aloud from the firm’s proposal that openly touted its ties to the Trump administration and its plan to inject pro-Trump messaging into White House communications. He questioned why Bloomfield was paying for relationships that would showcase “Trump wins” and even target the Homeland Security Committee, asking what return the town expected on such an investment.

   Mayor Mundell brushed off the criticism, insisting Mercury was hired simply to “navigate federal funding” and cutting off further dialogue. Her evasive response sidestepped the deeper concern: Bloomfield is spending taxpayer dollars on a firm whose own proposal ties the town’s future to Trump’s political agenda. You be the judge:

I have to wonder—has Bloomfield’s silence on ICE raids been the price of securing DHS funding?

Does Bloomfield really want to tie itself to Mercury: a firm tainted by Paul Manafort’s corrupt Ukraine dealings and notorious for shilling on behalf of Big Oil and Big Tobacco?

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Well, I am running out of steam…. The rest of the meeting alternated between the council members and the mayor voting for resolutions or having other affairs discussed. Truly, the most important portion of the meeting to me was the opportunity for the residents to Bloomfield to express thoughts and dissatisfaction about various issues. Unfortunately, no one got a satisfactory response (except for Moms Demand Action volunteers) and most of us left the meeting when the Council went into the closed session.

Please see the agenda and video for the rest of the town council meeting.

P.S. Last night’s town hall meeting was attended by a newly formed coalition going by the name of The Bloomfield Immigrant Justice Network. Those interested in joining can do so here:

https://forms.gle/euAWDQruKfDmRQJDA

P.P.S. Some residents who made public comments were not named here to protect their privacy. The named residents are either running for office (or have done so before), are affiliated with organizations, or have made numerous public addresses previously.