FAIR HAVEN — Has global warming reached the borough? Mayor Michael Halfacre jokingly referred to the warming trend when the Borough Council at its meeting on Jan. 25 decided to allow dining spots in town to serve food outside from April 1 to Dec. 1, rather than the present regulation that ends alfresco dining Nov. 1.

The mayor suggested that the change be referred to the Planning Board for its input before the council took final action on the matter, although Borough Attorney Salvatore Alfieri said that since the regulation was in the licensing section of the borough’s laws, it would not be necessary.

A borough official said Friday that there are three businesses in the town that will be affected by the new regulation: Gourmet Picnic, Tavolo Pronto, and Kassies Fair Haven Grill. All three are located on River Road.

The council also discussed a suggestion offered by Councilman Bob Marchese, who was elected on the November ballot.

Before his election, Marchese had said he would prefer not to raise taxes but instead have the town give discounts to taxpayers who prepay their property taxes, and then invest the funds raised from the prepayments.

Council members said the idea had to be looked into to see if the borough would gain from the idea. The discounts would only be for the municipal portion of the taxes, not for the school or county parts, Halfacre said.

The council will consider the suggestion at its Feb. 8 meeting.

Halfacre said the council’s finance committee had its second meeting, and the borough’s finances looked “pretty good” as compared to the general economy. But he said the town would have to see what the state would be giving in aid to the borough. Halfacre said that should be known by March 15, and the budget would probably be introduced on March 22.

During the public portion of the meeting, the mayor spoke sharply to a borough resident when she said that the town’s purchasing process for the land for a riverfront park would have been completed more quickly in another town.

“I suggest you move there,” Halfacre said.

Prior to that, he told the same resident, when she said some of the lights in the town that were the borough’s responsibility were not working, that “we have a lot bigger items” to deal with than the lights. He later apologized to her and said he had had “a long day.”