Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this July 4th weekend, July 1-4, 2016

By Greg Kelly

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Friday, July 1

• Struck by NJ Repertory Company (Long Branch) – MORE INFO
• Celtic Woman at Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank) – MORE INFO
• Wall Twp. Fair – MORE INFO
• Road Soda Concert (Belmar) – MORE INFO
• Touched by Grace (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO
• Summer Solstice Artisan Crafts Market (Belmar) – MORE INFO
• “Seeing Stars: Every Flag Tells A Story” Exhibit (Highlands) – MORE INFO

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Wall and Spring Lake Heights Mosquito Spray Postponed

Deputy Freeholder Director Serena DiMaso

Monmouth County’s Division of Mosquito control has postponed tonight’s  scheduled spray in Wall Township and Spring Lake Heights due to weather.  The operation has been rescheduled for tomorrow, June 29, between 9:30 p.m. and midnight, according the Deputy Freeholder Director Serena DiMaso, the freeholder who oversees the division.

The spraying is a response to evidence of the West Nile virus in the West Belmar section of Wall and northern Spring Lake Heights. Mosquito Control staff  will conduct a ground spray operation on residential streets south of Belmar Boulevard between Route 35 and Route 71 in Wall Township and on residential streets north of Allaire Road between Old Mill Road and Route 71 in Spring Lake Heights.

“The goal of the ground spray program is to reduce the public health risk from West Nile in the area,” said DiMaso. “It is also important to remember to always wear insect repellant when outdoors, even if it is only for a few minutes.”

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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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In early morning vote, N.J. lawmakers OK sales tax cut, gas tax hike to fix roads

TRENTON — The state Assembly hastily approved a plan after midnight Tuesday to cut the sales tax by a penny in exchange for raising the gas tax by 23 cents a gallon to rescue the near-broke… Read the rest of this entry »

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Monmouth County Launches Flooding Awareness Program

John Szeliga, Verizon; Middletown Mayor Gerald Scharfenberger; Monmouth County Freeholder Deputy Director Serena DiMaso; Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden; Capt. Jay Steingold of Naval Weapons Station Earle; FEMA Region II Administrator Michael Moriarty and Tony MacDonald Director of the Monmouth University Urban Coast Institute.

A countywide collaboration with Monmouth County’s government, FEMA, Monmouth University Urban Coast Institute, New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium, National Park Service, Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve at Rutgers University, Navy Weapons Station Earle, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and Verizon designed to raise the public’s awareness of flood risks and to encourage the mitigation of those risks was launched this morning in Middletown with the installation of a High Water Mark (HWM) sign at the Belford Ferry Terminal.

FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program’s High Water Mark awareness program gives participating municipalities Community Rating System (CRS) points which result in residents of the community getting a break on their flood insurance premiums.

Municipal participation is voluntary and there is no cost to the towns for participating.

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Suspended Asbury Park Police Officer, His Sister, Indicted In Insurance Fraud Scheme

photo via monmouthsocialcalendar

Alix Antoine, a 37 year old suspended Asbury Park Police Officer and his sister Patricia Louis, a/k/a Patricia Antoine, 43, of Clifton, were indicted by a Monmouth County Grand Jury today on charges related to their scheme that enabled the sister to receive medical benefits she was not entitled to through the Asbury Park Police Department, according to a statement by Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Between June 1, 2009 and April 1, 2013 the siblings knowingly made false statements and tampered with public records resulting in Patricia being enrolled in Alix’s Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance policy provided by the Asbury Park PD.

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Christie’s off to Wall with education fairness plan

photo via Governor’s office

By Art Gallagher

Governor Chris Christie is back on the Town Hall circuit…now he is calling them forums…as he meets New Jersey voters on Tuesday in Wall Township to promote the school funding formula that he announced last week.

The “Fairness Formula Forum” will take place in the Wall branch of the Monmouth County Library, 2700 Allaire Rd., Tuesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.  The doors open at 2:15 p.m and seating his first come first served.  RSVPs are encouraged for planning purposes to  [email protected].

Christie is saying that he wants a referendum in 2017 to amend the State Constitution so that State education funding is distributed equally to all school age children throughout the New Jersey.  He says that the State would contribute $6,500 per student.  Currently roughly 75% of State funding goes to 31 school districts, formerly referred to Abbott districts for the landmark Abbott vs Burke NJ Supreme Court decision that mandated that the State subsidize poor and urban districts.

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N.J. to businesses: You’ll have to wait longer for your reward for creating jobs

TRENTON — The state Senate will vote Monday to put off paying overdue awards to businesses that created jobs in New Jersey as part of the governor’s plan to balance the budget for the coming year. Tax collections missed their mark this spring, and Gov. Chris Christie’s administration announced it would delay the bulk of the… Read the rest of this entry »

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Former N.J. Gov. Kean to Trump: Don’t pick Christie as VP

TRENTON — Former Gov. Tom Kean has some political advice for Donald Trump: Don’t pick Gov. Chris Christie as your running mate if you hope to become president, and start surrounding yourself with better advisers. “If I were to advise him politically, it’s not the way to win the election,” said Kean of talk about a… Read the rest of this entry »

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Freeholders Give Combat Wounded Vets Special Parking Privileges

The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Gary Rich, Lillian Burry, Director Tom Arnone, Deputy Director Serena DiMaso and John Curly, commemorate the installation of a Wounded Warrior parking spot at the Hall of Records.

The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders has followed the lead of Deputy Freeholder Director Serena DiMaso in making the lives of combat wounded war veterans a little easier.

Under a new program announced yesterday, the Freeholders are designating special parking spaces at county facilities for use by Purple Heart Medal recipients.

“We all recognize the tremendous sacrifices our military personnel have made to secure the freedoms we enjoy every day,” said DiMaso. “Regretfully, many of these men and women have returned home with physical and emotional injuries that will follow them the rest of their lives. A designated parking space is a simple way to say thank you.”

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