A photo of Mayor Gary Catrambone and members of council with a veteran honored at a previous council meeting. Catrambone (third from left) and Council President Tyler Burrell (second from left) served in their last council meeting in December.
The December meeting of Delran Township Council was bittersweet: It was the last for President Tyler Burrell and Mayor Gary Catrambone.
Burrell will begin his new role as a Burlington County commissioner this month. Catrambone – while he didn’t win reelection in November – told residents he’s “always available to help in anyway.”
Burrell and Catrambone cited municipal employees as well as volunteer organizations who worked tirelessly and helped the mayor and council realize accomplishments over the years.
“We are fortunate that we have so many smart and talented people working with us, and they all work behind the scenes every day to make this town run smoothly,” Catrambone said.
Burrell was elected to council when he was just 19 and spent eight years on the dais.
“I want to thank Delran for trusting me for eight years,” Burrell told meeting participants. “You voted for me when I was 19 years old with a promise to bring a fresh perspective, and reelected me again in 2020. I want you to know that I haven’t taken that opportunity for granted … I recognized immense responsibility for serving the community, responsibility nothing short of true honor.
“After all I was born here in Delran,” he added. “I played on these sports fields we often talk about. I played manhunt in creeks and woods we often talk about and I’ve biked these streets. “… Serving the community helped shape me, it has been the greatest privilege of my life.”
Burrell touched on what he’s learned serving on council.
“The last eight years will forever hold a special place in my heart,” he explained. “In reflection, the township has given me more than I expected when I first showed up. … I grew up in these hallways in a weird way for eight years. I’ve learned how to build consensus. I’ve met challenges and complicated issues. I’ve made long-lasting friendships.
“We learned to understand all sides and issues, tested our moral compass and convictions and ultimately I’ve learned who I am as a person and as a leader.”
Burrell said in preparing for the meeting, he couldn’t help but think about the things council has done in his eight years there.
“We leave with a sense of achievement of what we’ve accomplished,” he noted. “First, we kept taxes stable; we haven’t raised taxes in five years. It’s going to be our message forever, in a state with the highest taxes, it’s definitely something to celebrate.”
Other accomplishments include the township’s double A bond rating status, tree city designation and investments in community events.
“Once elected, I pushed to retool and reimagine our events to draw bigger crowds, with the first ever winter festival in 2017 and Delran Night Out in 2018,” Burrell pointed out of his time on council’s Recreation Advisory Committee. “We rewrote the script and showed what happened when we worked together.”
Burrell said the friendships and experiences he found with council has made him a better person.
“It’s bittersweet to leave,” he acknowledged. “It’s hard to let go of something you care so deeply about, but I trust that Tom Morrow – who is taking my seat – will (perform) the same way I have, with service and sacrifice. I am grateful to serve as a county commissioner. I will continue to advocate for Delran and the entire county the best I can.
“Thank you again for this honor: This hometown boy is forever grateful.”
Before turning the floor to Catrambone, Burrell thanked the mayor for his service.
“We are really here on the backs of Gary when he started showing up to these meetings,” Burrell said. “He was here fighting the good fight and ran and ran and ran and got us all involved.”
Catrambone has served the Delran community for 16 years. He was on council from 2008 to 2020 and spent 10 years as council president, first from 2008 to 2010 and then from 2012 to 2020. He became mayor in 2021 and served on the planning board for 16 years.
“… We accomplished so many of our goals,” he observed, “and the goals of the residents, and we truly made Delran one of the most desirable places to live. There’s so many things that have happened, looking back (from) livestreaming all of our meetings, making (them) … available to everyone.”
Catrambone, who thanked his family for letting him serve for all those years, highlighted council’s work to stabilize taxes and sewer rates while maintaining an incredible standard of services, allowing for a “great credit rating”; the opening of a Jake’s Place, an all-inclusive playground in Delran Community Park and the first in the county; the creation of a mayor’s award to honor a police officer each year; expanded veteran outreach; performing weddings again after COVID; and the support of Hometown Hero Carli Lloyd on her retirement from professional soccer.
“Together, we blazed the trail for Delran and all members of council over years,” he emphasized. “We are one of the first towns to accept cannabis. We have two successful dispensaries in town and two more in the works.”
Other accomplishments include more paved roads, grants to create miles of sidewalks and bike paths, inclusivity in the police department through the hiring of multi-cultural and multi-lingual officers, an annual senior expo and the expansion of community events.
Toward the end of the meeting, Deputy County Commissioner Daniel O’Connell, who lives in Delran and did not seek another term as commissioner, wished Burrell the best and said he reminds O’Connell of a younger version of himself. O’Connell also read a proclamation recognizing Catrambone’s “unwavering” service to Delran.
“During time in elected office,” O’Connell read from the proclamation, “Catrambone spent a period overseeing tremendous economic growth. The mayor helped organize and was a founding member of the Delran Historical Society and launched Delran’s first community-oriented website featuring local news and information.
“The mayor has resided in Delran for more than 50 years and is frequently expressing his pride (for his) hometown community in Burlington County.”
The proclamation also recognized Catrambone’s long history of volunteer service, including 20 years as a committee member withthea March of Dimes and more than a decade of charitable work with the Knights of Columbus and St. Charles Borromeo Parish.
As the new mayor Harry “Barnes” Hutchins now takes the lead as council reorganizes. With Lynn Jeney, who won reelection, and former councilman Tom Morrow, who will take Burrell’s seat, Catrambone said he has “every confidence our council will continue to build on these accomplishments and continue to move Delran forward.”
