In his inaugural address upon becoming mayor of Middletown yesterday, Dr. Gerry Scharfenberger, PhD, announced that the Township will be rolling out a “Buy Middletown Property Tax Benefit Card” program that will enable resident to save a percentage of the amount they spend at participating businesses on their property taxes.”This is a win/win all around,” said Scharfenberger, “businesses benefit from increased sales volume and foot traffic, taxpayers benefit in that they have a simple, effective way to lower their property taxes, and the town benefits by stimulating the local economy. We also feel that this program will make Middletown more attractive to businesses looking to open in the area.”
The program will start after it passes legal review.
Upon taking the helm of Middletown, Scharfenberger lavished praise on outgoing Mayor Tony Fiore:
“No amount of hyperbole can capture the spectacular job done by Tony Fiore these past two years as mayor. Anyone who sits in this chair knows the enormous responsibility you take on. Mayor Fiore was strong-willed, outspoken and a tireless fighter on Middletown’s behalf, regardless of the issue. His leadership during Superstorm Sandy and its aftermath was phenomenal and made all the difference to Middletown coming through the disaster as well as it did.
Under his watch, the Middletown Township Committee was able to save the swim club at no cost to the taxpayers, bring a world class ice rink to town, institute single stream recycling, which doubled the number of pickups while saving hundreds of thousands of dollars, renew Middletown Day with 100% private donations, and secure significant increases in employee benefit contributions, saving hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars, just to name a few.
As I have said in the past, anyone who says this is a part time position is sadly mistaken, and Mayor Fiore is living proof of a person who devoted himself 24 hours a day, seven days a week to the job. As a fellow member of the committee feel fortunate to have him as a friend and colleague and grateful for what he has taught me about leadership and dedication to public service.”
Fiore remains a member of the Township Committee.
Scharfenberger’s prepared remarks can be downloaded here.
State Senator Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) wants former Acting Governor Dick Codey to stop Starship Christie from conquering the dark side of Trenton this November.
Codey for Governor? Christie’s style has vaulted his popularity, but Codey has style also. Christie’s feisty style has overshadowed his support for Romney and his policies that would cut taxes on the wealthy while putting added burdens on everyone else. Honk if you like Codey for Governor. Now that Corey Booker has chosen not to run, Codey is our Obi Wan Kenobi.
Codey, a senator representing parts of Morris and Essex Counties served as governor after Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.
Codey has yet to declare his candidacy for the Democratic nomination to challenge Christie. Recent media reports say that Codey is weighing his options and is 50-50 about running. State Senator Barbara Buono (Middlesex) is the only announced Democratic candidate so far.
In addition to Codey, Senate President Steve Sweeney(Gloucester) is considering a run. Our friends at SaveJersey.com report that an unknown organization is conducting a push poll for Sweeney in South Jersey.
Ramapo Supervisor & Oceanport Council President Express Outrage
Suffern, N.Y. – Town of Ramapo Supervisor Christopher P. St. Lawrence (Democrat) and Joseph Irace, Council President – Borough of Oceanport, N.J. (Republican), have issued a joint statement expressing their outrage at the House of Representatives’ failure to pass the $60.4 Billion Aid Package to provide immediate help for the victims of Hurricane Sandy.
“While House Speaker Boehner fiddles, thousands of New York and New Jersey residents’ anger burns, and their suffering continues as they feel abandoned by their elected officials said Supervisor St. Lawrence. The House of Representatives, the so-called people’s house, has turned its back on the American people” he added.
“As a Republican elected official in New Jersey, I cannot fathom the insensitivity of the House of Representatives by not taking action on the Sandy Aid Package. Disaster relief is not a political issue. We have residents still displaced from their homes and in need of help and yesterday’s actions by The House of Representatives are inexcusable and unconscionable. I, along with Ramapo Supervisor St. Lawrence, am asking the House to act on this desperately needed aid package immediately” stated Council President Irace.
In an anonymously sourced reported posted last evening, Roll Call says that Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ6) is “all but certain” to seek the U. S. Senate seat currently held by Frank Lautenberg in 2014 should the 88 year old senator retire.
Despite his over two decades in Congress, Pallone has an uphill battle against Newark Mayor Cory Booker and perhaps Senate President Steve “The Kitten” Sweeney for the Democratic nominationn for Senate. Booker announced before Christmas that he wouldn’t challenge Governor Christie in this years gubernatorial campaign and that he was exploring a run for Lautenberg’s seat.
In a column posted at InTheLobby Carl Golden, Governors Kean and Whitman’s spokesperson, said that Pallone “is destined to be a bridesmaid once again.”
Governor’s campaign not saying if they will accept taxpayer funding
Governor Christie’s reelection campaign announced today that they’ve raised $2.1 million since Christie announced he would seek a second term on November 26.
“Governor Christie’s campaign continues to gain momentum because New Jerseyans believe in his decisive leadership,” said campaign strategist Mike DuHaime. “This unprecedented financial support in such a short time demonstrates the overwhelming support from residents across the Garden State. Governor Christie has made tough choices to achieve real progress on meaningful reforms for all New Jerseyans. Whether it’s cutting taxes, improving education or pension and benefit reform, Governor Christie has fought for a middle-class reform agenda that protects taxpayers and reins in the cost of government.”
Yesterday, State Senator Barbara Buono, the only declared candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor, announced that she raised $250,000 since she declared he candidacy on December 11. Buono said she intends to raise enough money to qualifiy for taxpayer matching funds for her campaign.
DuHaime told MMM that with the $2.1 million raised, Christie’s campaign has almost maxed out on what they could raise and accept matching funds. He declined to say if the Governor would participate in the matching funds program. “Great question. No announcement today,” said DuHaime.
Christie did accept matching funds during his 2009 campaign against Governor Jon Corzine.
Good coffee, good food, reasonable prices and a clean comfortable friendly environment with free spontaneous comedic bantering returns to the Bayshore tomorrow when the Sand Witch Shop reopens in Highlands.
Skip and Donna Ross were wacked by Sandy. Their home and business were both underwater during the storm. They’ve been fighting back since. Tomorrow their busniness on the corner of Waterwitch Ave and Shore Drive in Highlands will reopen to feed breakfast and lunch to residents, contractors and ferry commuters.
Coffee is free to eat in diners. Delivery is free, south to Rumson, Sea Bright and Monmouth Beach and west as far as Belford. The menu is updated daily.
The Sand Witch Shop is open from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Satuday and from 8 a.m. till 3 p.m. on Sunday.
Assembly Republican Conference Leader Dave Rible (30th District, Monmouth) announced yesterday that he will propose legislation that would prohibit the public release of the names and addresses of gun permit holders.
The Journal News, the suburban New York affiliate of the Asbury Park Press, published a map of and the names and addresses of gun permit holders from Westchester and Rockland Counties on Sunday, December 23. The Gannett owned publication obtained the information from the county clerks of Westchester and Rockland via New York’s Freedom of Information Law. Since the December 23 publication, the Putnam County Clerk has declined the Journal News’ Freedom of Information request for that county’s gun permit holders’ information.
A Westchester based blog, Talk of the Sound, responded by publishing the names and addresses of Jounral News employees, including those of the reporter who wrote the original story and Gannett’s CEO. A group of hackers broke into the company’s subscriber database. They are distributing the names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and passwords of the 10,000 subscribers of the paper’s website to anyone who asks.
The Journal News hired arm guards to secure its Rockland County headquarters. JN didn’t report that they hired arm guards. That stroy was broken by their competitor, The Rockland County Times.
Rible’s proposed bill would prevent that kind of nonsense from happening in New Jersey.
Steven Goldstein, the Founder and Chairman of Garden State Equality, the gay rights advocacy group, announced this evening in a email to his membership that he is leaving his employment with the group to take a full time lobbying position for Rutgers-Newark.
One of the great joys of my career, along with founding Garden State Equality in 2004 and leading it since, has been teaching this semester at Rutgers Law School in Newark. I have always loved academia. As most of you know, I even returned to school in mid-career to study to be a rabbi, a lifelong aspiration from which I’ve been on leave to serve as Garden State Equality’s Chair and CEO. I’ll resume my rabbinic studies for certain. But now I have the chance work at a university full-time, as Rutgers-Newark has asked me to become Associate Chancellor for External Relations. I have accepted the offer. My last day as Chair and CEO of Garden State Equality will be Sunday, January 20th, our Inauguration Celebration Brunch.
Troy Stevenson will take over as Chairman and CEO effective January 12. Stevenson was GSE’s Managing Director and Goldstein’s deputy prior to becoming the field director of President Obama’s reelection campaign in Pennsylvania.
Posted: January 2nd, 2013 | Author:Art Gallagher | Filed under:Uncategorized | Comments Off on Goldstein leaving Garden State Equality post
Today was the first day of Marlboro’s Cops in Schools program, the community’s first in the nation response to the Newtown Connecticut School massacre that claimed the lives of 20 school children and 6 adult staff on December 14.
Marlboro Mayor Jon Hornik told MMM it was just another school day in Marlboro, with the exception of the media presence and attention. “It was a normal a day as the first day back from vacation can be,”said the Mayor, “the police were not a distraction, however there was a significant media presence.”
Hornik said the media attention is a result of the NRA’s call for Cops in Schools nationwide, which happened a day after he announced the township’s decision to protect their school children with armed police.
Sharon Witchel, Director of Community Relations for the Marlboro Board of Education, told Marlboro-Colts Neck Patch that the cost of the 90 day program would be approximately $100,000.
“During the 90-day period, the district will review current safety and security practices and determine future improvements, which will include fiscal considerations,” Witchel said.
Hornik said that township officials and the school board will review the yet to be released incident report from Newtown before making any long term decisions on school security.
Congressman Chris Smith told MMM that at a meeting held with Speaker John Boehner this afternoon the Speaker promised that action will be taken in January by the House of Representatives on the $60 billion Sandy Relief package that Boehner stopped the House from voting on last night causing a uproar within the Republican Party.
Smith said that Boehner promised that $9.7 billion to restore FEMA reserves will be up for a vote on this Friday, January 4th and that the rest of the $60 billion package will be on the House’s schedule, in two parts, $16.3 billion and $33 billion, on January 15th.
Smith spoke on the House floor late on Tuesday night to implore Boehner to schedule the vote.
State Senator Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) wants former Acting Governor Dick Codey to stop Starship Christie from conquering the dark side of Trenton this November.
Good coffee, good food, reasonable prices and a clean comfortable friendly environment with free spontaneous comedic bantering returns to the Bayshore tomorrow when the Sand Witch Shop reopens in Highlands.