Christie Shuts Down Road Construction

Arnone in talks to keep Monmouth County projects going uninterupted

Governor Chris Christie issued an Executive Order last night shutting down all projects funded by the state’s Transportation Trust Fund.  The fund’s authorization expired at midnight though published reports indicated that there is enough money in the fund to continue work through mid-August.

Christie’s dramatics came as a result of the Legislature failing to reauthorize the fund.  The Senate was considering a bi-partisan plan to reauthorize the fund with a $.23 per gallon gas tax increase while also phasing out the estate tax and income tax on retirement income.  The Assembly passed legislation negotiated by Christie and Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto in the wee hours of Tuesday morning that would increase the gas tax $.23 and phase in a reduction in the state sales tax from 7% to 6%.  Christie said the last minute sales tax reduction was his idea.

The Christie/Prieto plan was widely panned from both the left an right and had little support in the Senate.

No plan under consideration addressed New Jersey’s highest in the nation cost of road construction: an estimated $2 million per mile on average.

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The Arnone Report: Shark River Dredging To Resume, Freeholders Support Mayors’ and Assemblywoman Handlin’s Efforts With JCP&L

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

It’s finally here …summer has returned! I hope you are all enjoying the beautiful weather we have been having lately, and enjoying all that our beautiful Monmouth County has to offer – beaches, parks, lakes, rivers, boardwalks, lighthouses, museums, theaters, historical sites, restaurants and much more. Our tourist season is in full swing, and according to early estimates, we are paced to match or exceed last year’s numbers, providing economic stability here in our region.

Speaking of tourist season, I am happy to report that the dredging of the Shark River is set to restart in the next few weeks, getting us closer to increasing the recreational side of the Shark River corridor as well as restoring the channels for our commercial fishing industry. As you may know, the dredging had started late last fall and was halted on January 1, 2016, due to state regulations in place to protect spawning and the early life stages of winter flounder and anadromous fish. The dredging project is moving along nicely due to a coalition of State, County and local leaders that effectively advocated for the project, including Senator Jen Beck, Committeeman Randy Bishop, County of Monmouth, Board of Chosen Freeholders, New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJ DOT) Office of Maritime Resources, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP), and the governing bodies of the participating municipalities including Neptune City, Neptune, Belmar, and Wall.

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The Arnone Report: Memorial Day Weekend Was a Great Summer Kickoff

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Freeholders Tom Arnone and Serena DiMaso with County Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon and Sheriff Shaun Golden at the Farmingdale Memorial Day Parade

What an incredible Memorial Day weekend! It was the perfect setting to remember and honor those that have served our country, and those that continue to protect us today.  We recognize those individuals who sacrificed to provide us with the freedoms we enjoy every day – we are the land of the free, because of the brave.

I would have loved to have attended all of the parades throughout the county, but unfortunately I could not do so as several of them are at the same time, so I attended as many as I could.  I had the honor of walking in the Bradley Beach and Union Beach parades on Saturday, as well as the Matawan parade on Sunday. Monday was a very busy day, as I attended the memorial ceremonies for the Freehold, Oceanport, and Ocean Township; and then walked in the jammed packed Farmingdale parade. The attendance and welcome received this weekend at all the events was overwhelming.

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The Arnone Report: Tree Planting, Pledge of Allegiance and Summer is Coming!

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

This week we are finally experiencing some warmer temperatures and the sun has returned to us! Let’s hope the weather continues to improve as we head towards our “unofficial” start to summer, Memorial Day Weekend.

We’ve been pretty busy at the County the past several weeks. I am extremely pleased to say that despite all the rain we have had, the paving portion of the Ocean Avenue project is finished, with striping and some handicap accessible ramps yet to be completed. We are well paced to finish this project before the start of the Memorial Day weekend. Great job by our Public Works and Engineering staff in overseeing the logistics of the project, as well as the contractor, Stavola Contracting Company based in Tinton Falls.

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The Arnone Report: Made in Monmouth Success! Ocean Ave Resurfacing

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

You would not believe some of the items that are made right here in Monmouth County.  From coffee to wine, from dry aged beef snacks to handcrafted wooden pens, from homemade natural soaps to cosmetics…and much more! A record number of vendors and visitors participated in Monmouth County’s fifth ‘Made in Monmouth’ (MIM) expo on Saturday, April 9 in the MAC at Monmouth University. Approximately 240 county-based companies displayed their goods or services with more than 5,000 people sampling and purchasing.

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The Arnone Report: Spring Has Sprung…And Products Made in Monmouth County Are A Buzzing!

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

It’s officially spring and here in Monmouth County the signs of the changing season are all around us. Flowers are blooming, the baseball, soccer and lacrosse fields are bustling with excitement, and the big yard clean ups have begun in all our neighborhoods.

Here in Monmouth County, our calendar is filled with activities for all ages. As we enter our spring tourism season, I hope our residents and visitors will take advantage of all the events our beautiful county has to offer. The winter is over and it is time for everyone to get outside and to enjoy the abundant events in the beautiful parks located here in our County, from the beautiful shores to the woodland trails in western most part of Monmouth. With the weather warming up, many events will begin to take place in the great outdoors.  At Historic Allaire Village, the Early Spring Flea Market at Historic Allaire Village takes place from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 9 and the Spring Festival is on April 16 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

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The Arnone Report: Spring into Monmouth County

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Freeholder Director Tom Arnone and Deputy Director Serena DiMaso at the Asbury Park St. Pat’s Parade

The past two weekends have been filled with fun festivities throughout the county and the list of activities throughout the rest of March includes parades, plays and performances. March is the month to celebrate the end of winter by getting outside and with two holidays happening this month, there are plenty of great events to choose from.

There’s nothing like a parade to usher in the month and the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Belmar on Sunday, March 6 was the perfect place to do it.  Those of you who were in attendance may have seen me, along with my colleagues, on our 2016 float – it was a great way to participate in the parade – we had the best view! I also had a great time at the Asbury Park St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Sunday, March 13 walking with Freeholder Serena DiMaso, along with Mayor Moor and members of the Council and look forward to keeping the festive spirit alive in the Highlands by walking in their parade on March 19.  March 20 marks the first day of spring, so take the kids outside (if weather permits) and join the Monmouth County Park System for a nature walk at 10 a.m. at the Manasquan Reservoir to look for signs of the new season.  Log onto www.visitmonmouth.com for a full list of activities throughout the County.

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The Arnone Report: Promises made, promises kept; a tax cut for Monmouth County

By Freeholder Director Arnone, Thomas[email protected].us

Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Mother Nature may be playing tricks on us with the weather again – she’s bringing in extremely low temperatures, then teasing us with spring like weather in the 60s this past weekend. But there is no trickery here at the County, I made a promise last month that I would provide our residents with a much needed tax break, and I am holding true to the that statement, along with my fellow freeholders by proposing an overall tax cut of $4.5 million. This is the first time, I believe, that freeholders have ever decreased taxes to the county residents.

We propose collecting $302.5 million from property taxes, down from $307 million just last year. At the end of 2015, Monmouth County completed the sale of its two care centers which eliminated the yearly operating losses that the facilities have incurred for several years. The public auction of the two facilities generated $32.4 million in revenue; approximately $18 million more than was projected.

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Monmouth Freeholders Cut Spending and Taxes

Monmouth County Freeholders Gary Rich, Lillian Burry, Director Tom Arnone, Deputy Director Serena DiMaso and John Curley

The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders introduced a budget on Thursday that reduces County spending by $18.2 million and reduces the property tax levy on County residents and businesses by $4.5 million.  The tax decrease is the first in 21 years and maybe ever, according to County Finance Director Craig Marshall.

The budget for the next fiscal year rolls County taxes back to 2008 levels and reduces spending to less than the 2007 budget. The tax cut reverses an increase, the only one since 2007, that the County imposed in the current year.

“This is a real cut,” said Freeholder Director Tom Arnone. “There is no fiscal gimmickry or raiding of trust funds or utility balances in this budget.”

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The Arnone Report: Jonas, Wreck Pond, Grown in Monmouth

Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

I think Mother Nature is surely playing tricks on us. Last week at this time we were still digging out from one of the biggest blizzards in years.  Some of our towns reported nearly two feet accumulation and more in certain areas with snowdrifts piling on several additional inches.  Fast forward to this week, and we are enjoying spring like temperatures.  Whatever weather Mother Nature brings us, Monmouth County is always prepared to handle it.  Our crews were out round the clock, preparing ahead of Jonas by pretreating and brining all of the county roads, and of course keeping up throughout the storm with plowing and snow removal. We even assisted several municipalities in keeping up with the accumulations as we are always partners in providing services when requested.

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