Mayor Dave Fleisher plans to improve public safety, open spaces and community pride this year.
For Mayor Dave Fleisher, 2024 was a successful and productive inaugural year in office. In a recent interview with The Sun, he reflected on Cherry Hill’s biggest accomplishments over the past 12 months, as well as his primary goals for 2025.
When asked about the township’s greatest achievement of last year, Fleisher didn’t hesitate to name the return of Independence Day fireworks on July 3.
“(It) was important because we needed to reinvigorate a sense of pride in the community,” he recalled. “It’s been over a decade since we had it, and the residents exceeded my expectations with their interest. There were over 6,000 people. It’s rare, if I’m out and about in the community, that I’m not stopped and people express gratitude and excitement for next year’s (fireworks).
“The entire township team, police, recreation, public works – we started working on that my first day in office,” Fleisher added. “Everyone delivered professionally.”
Now, with the new year well underway, Fleisher has a number of initiatives planned. A primary focus will be the newly launched mayor’s wellness campaign, which kicked off Jan. 29 with a 1-mile indoor walk at Cherry Hill Mall led by Fleisher and his wife, Jen.
More than 100 residents of all ages participated in the kickoff and took the mayor’s wellness campaign pledge, promising to exercise at least three times a week for 30 minutes; increase consumption of fruits and vegetables; drink more water and limit junk foods; and consult with a doctor to understand their weight, BMI, cholesterol and blood pressure.
“This really is an opportunity to bring residents together to promote healthier lifestyles,” Fleisher noted.
The walks will be held monthly, with Jefferson Health serving as the primary sponsor of the wellness campaign.
Another major area of focus for Fleisher is public safety, which he’s working on with the township’s new Police Chief, John Ostermueller.
“He has really hit the ground running, everything from addressing speeding in the neighborhoods through our Slow Down in Our Town initiative to assessments and increased investments in technology,” Fleisher said of Ostermueller. “Under his new leadership, I expect us to really move public safety forward in 2025.”
The Slow Down in Our Town initiative, launched last June, focuses on the three Es – enforcement, education and engineering – to holistically address the issue of speeding in the township. Since it began, there have been 7,124 motor vehicle stops; of those, 4,963 traffic citations were issued. The stops are opportunities for officers to educate drivers on the dangers of driving too fast.
The initiative has also included various traffic calming measures, such as painting crosswalks to improve pedestrian safety, especially near neighborhood schools. More than 40 “slow 25” markers were painted on high-traffic streets to serve as a visible reminder for motorists to watch their speeds, with more locations coming soon. And Slow Down in Our Town mobilized temporary digital speed signs on neighborhood roads as further warnings for drivers.
Throughout 2025, Fleisher shared, 75 of the township’s 300 miles of municipal roads will be paved. ADA improvements are also on the schedule to increase access.
Regarding open space, all 50 township parks will continue to receive regular maintenance. The final stages of planning are also underway for three major parks in the neighborhoods of Kingston, Surrey Place East and Brookfield. Residents in those areas got the chance to give feedback on the respective designs. As part of the commitment to “keeping Cherry Hill green,” a number of trees will be planted across the township.
Also this year, Fleisher is bringing back Student Government Day, which hasn’t taken place since before 2020. Students from the two high schools will learn about local government and, at the end of the day, participate in a mock council meeting.
“It’s often very enlightening because many times, there’s both issues and solutions that come out of that Student Government Day that we are able to implement in real life,” Fleisher reported.
So far, 2025 is shaping up to be a good one for Cherry Hill. Fleisher is excited about what’s to come, and he hopes that the residents are, too.
“Cherry Hill is on the move,” he emphasized. “We continue to have strong neighborhoods, outstanding community groups, everything from our houses of worship, our swim clubs, our youth rec programs. And Cherry Hill remains a place where people want to do business.
“It’s a matter of balancing all three to ensure that Cherry Hill remains a great place to live, work and raise a family,” Fleisher added. “That is my and council’s top priority every morning when we wake up.”
