BYRAM - Thomas Maiello Sr. says moving to Byram Township from Garfield was “one of the best decisions I ever made.” Byram Township obviously agrees. Maiello didn’t waste much time after moving here in 1967. He got involved in his community right away, only recently stepping down after 36 years on the Board of Health. That was a bigger job than it might seem, especially during the years he served as its chairman. “We had a lot of problems with the private water companies in Forest Lakes and Cranberry Lake, and other areas of the township,” explained Maiello, referring to water providers originally put in place to service the area’s summer communities, but which soon became inadequate to accommodate the growing number of conversions from summer bungalows to year-round residences. Byram, as well as a host of other communities founded as summer “colonies,” including Hopatcong Borough, Jefferson Township, and portions of Roxbury Township, found itself attempting to solve many problems of water quality and quantity, especially in the years of severe drought during the 1960s. “I got a lot of calls at home,” Maiello recalled in a recent interview. “And went to a lot of meetings at night after working all day.” Maiello also served on the planning board for five years and served as a Byram Township Committeeman from 1977 to1980, when the water woes that confronted the Board of Health came home to roost. Hand-in-glove with private water companies struggling to meet a growing public demand for greater water consumption were the small septic systems present on the lots of those converted summer cottages. “It was very lively when we were trying to get the sewers in,” Maiello recalled with a chuckle. “My name was in the paper every week.” Maiello remained a member of Byram’s township committee long enough to get the sewers through, then scaled back his community involvement to serving on the township’s board of health. Sewers weren’t the only issue of the time. “West Brookwood drainage was a problem we had to confront,” he noted. “We argued a lot,” he said of the committee in those days, “but everyone did a good job.” Despite the often controversial meetings and long hours, Maiello enjoyed his public service on behalf of the Byram community and knows that moving there was the right decision for him and his family. “The children grew up in a great area,” said Maiello. “The schools improved every year.” The decision to retire from the health board didn’t come easily, but Maiello decided it was time to give up those nightly meetings, especially since, although semi-retired, he still commutes to Bloomingdale a few days a week, where he continues to work in the air conditioning business. Council President Lou Esposito presented Maiello with a commemorative plaque, expressing the municipality’s appreciation. Maiello graciously accepted the honor, but added the plaque should go to his wife for putting up with all of those nights out of the house.