Oceanport Police have arrested Jeffrey L. Bork, 65, of Eatontown and charged him with Criminal Sexual Contact. A betting teller at Monmouth Park, Bork is alleged to have groped the breasts of several female patrons of the racetrack after putting their betting vouchers down the front of their shirts, according to a statement released by Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramicconi.
The incidents reportedly occurred between 1PM and 4PM on Saturday July 13.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Oceanport Police Detective Jonathan Tucci at 732-222-6301 ext. 107.
Bork is being held at Golden’s Palace. His bail is $15,000 as set by Oceanport Municipal Judge Richard B. Thompson.
Chairman Ramos, and members of the Assembly Regulatory Oversight and Gaming Committee, thank you for inviting me to speak before you today on this
important topic. I am Oceanport Councilman Joseph Irace.
When the State of New Jersey voted to allow casino gambling in Atlantic City in 1976, it marked the dawn of an era wherein, for close to a decade and a half, New Jersey had a de facto monopoly on casino gambling on the East Coast. That era ended in 1992 with the advent of Foxwoods Resort Casino. In the years since then, we have seen a steady encroachment upon Atlantic City’s position as the premier East Coast destination for casino type gambling. New York, Connecticut, Delaware, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland now offer substantial gaming options to the general public. Indeed, as of April of 2012, Pennsylvania’s gaming industry was second only to that of Las Vegas. Quite clearly, the landscape has changed immeasurably since 1976 and New Jersey’s stranglehold on the East Coast gaming industry is no more. This isn’t an Atlantic City gaming industry problem, it is a New Jersey business development and retention problem.
Similarly, three decades ago, the State of New Jersey was a pre-eminent player in the horseracing industry. The Meadowlands, Freehold Raceway, Monmouth Park, Atlantic City Race Course and Garden State Park — the latter three called the “Golden Triangle” of New Jersey racing — all offered top notch, stakes level horse racing at quality venues. As we are all aware, the New Jersey horseracing industry has suffered setbacks over the past few decades and the root of these setbacks can be traced to the same source as that which has negatively impacted on Atlantic City. New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia have all committed to the Racino business model and this has placed the State of New Jersey’s horseracing industry at a decided disadvantage. Again, this isn’t a horseracing industry problem, it is a New Jersey business development and retention problem.
For far too long now, New Jersey’s gaming industry and New Jersey’s horse racing industry circled each other warily as opponents. It is high time that they stop viewing each other as competitors and start viewing themselves as comrades at arms with a singular purpose: melding both industries in such a fashion that New Jersey once again becomes the East Coast’s premier gaming AND horse racing destination. Based on the revenues generated by Racinos in the surrounding states and across the nation, the question of whether or not these two industries can co-exist, and indeed THRIVE, is no longer arguable. Quite simply, if New Jersey’s gaming and horse-racing industries fail to embrace this new business model, both will perish and the State of New Jersey will be lesser for it.
Our elected officials and both industries need to stop thinking parochially and start thinking globally. The infrastructure, manpower and talent are already in place. We just need the desire and commitment to get this done, and get it done sooner rather than later. The State of New Jersey has waited long enough to get its act together. The states that have already embraced the Racino business model have demonstrated that what is good for the horseracing industry is good for the gaming industry and vice versa. More importantly, what’s good for those industries is also good for all of New Jersey.
I implore our legislators to make every effort to convince these two parties that it is imperative that they stop competing with each other and start complementing each other in order to re-capture the hearts, minds and loyalty of their consumers. If the gaming and horse racing industries fail to adapt to the new paradigm, neither will survive. And that won’t be a gaming or horse racing problem — that will be a tragedy for the State of New Jersey.
Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace sat down with William Richards, Director of New Media at The Hall Institute for Public Policy as part of the institute’s Hometown Solutions series.
William and Joe discuss Monmouth Park racetrack, Fort Monmouth, the challenges Oceanport has faced in recent years with uncertainty for both institutions, and what looks like a promising comeback for Monmouth Park.
Calls on taxpayers from Oceanport and neighboring communites to join the fight
“Atlantic City is now a FAILED business model”
Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace’s remarks at the borough’s reorganization meeting today:
2011 marked a year of challenges and changes to our Borough. Oceanport’s future well-being hinges upon two very important issues, the continued viability of Monmouth Park and the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth, neither of which is really within our control. If these two matters aren’t addressed properly, the consequences for Oceanport and our neighboring communities will be devastating..
The more immediate of the two issues is Monmouth Park. 2011 was a year in which uncertainty was the only certainty when it came to Monmouth Park. Was the State going to remain in control, lease or sell the park to private ownership? The decision was made to lease. Then came numerous changes, negotiations, finger-pointing, name calling and, ultimately, a muddled picture as to who is actually in charge. Just last week, the State decided to continue racing in 2012 under the control of the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority and rebid the lease in 2012 for the 2013 racing season. For 2012, the current agreement, as we understand it from reading about it in the newspapers, calls for 141 racing days at an average purse of $150,000 per day. To put that number in perspective, we were racing at $1,000,000 a day in 2010 and $400,000 a day in 2011. The projected daily purse of $150,000 is the lowest for any major track in the United States. In fact, at $150,000 a day in purse money, Monmouth Park, the most beautiful and historic racetrack this side of Saratoga, can no longer be considered a major track. 2012 also calls for no stakes races and, more notably, no Haskell. The long term ramifications of this are obvious. Is Trenton determined to undermine and eliminate racing in New Jersey? It sure seems that way.
Trenton’s stated position is that the State of New Jersey can no longer “subsidize” horse racing in New Jersey. And, you know what? I ABSOLUTELY agree with Trenton on that issue. Because the fact of the matter is that the horseracing industry doesn’t have to be subsidized. It just has to be allowed to compete on equal footing with horse racing in New York, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland. But the big thinkers in Trenton have blinders on when it comes to the realities of horse racing and gambling in today’s world. With the stroke of a pen, our elected officials in Trenton could permit “racinos” in New Jersey, but instead of allowing our state’s horse racing industry to compete with the gaming, racing and casinos that have popped up in New York, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland, our Trenton brain trust has chosen to invest $250,000,000 of taxpayer money in a stalled Atlantic City casino development.
The Atlantic City business model is outdated. New Jersey no longer has the monopoly on gambling that it had in the 1970s. Indeed, by any reasonable financial analysis, Atlantic City is now a FAILED business model. But our elected officials in Trenton refuse to acknowledge this fact and, instead, have chosen to pour $250,000,000 of taxpayer money into a venture — that private firms won’t touch — in return for a 20% interest in the business. What is 20% of nothing? We need our elected State officials to stop investing in THEIR past and start investing in OUR future.
Monmouth Park is the Borough of Oceanport’s largest tax ratable and one of the jewels of the Jersey Shore. Monmouth Park’s continued viability should be this governing body’s NUMBER ONE priority in the year 2012. Oceanport’s citizens and the citizens of ALL of the Jersey Shore communities should make their voices heard on this issue. We aren’t asking for a handout from the State! We just want New Jersey to be able to compete on equal footing with New York, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland. We’ve got the infrastructure, we’ve got the people, we’ve got the horses. We just need the tools. The State of New Jersey needs to adopt the Racino business model NOW!
As far as the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth is concerned, this issue will present huge challenges as we head into 2012 and well beyond. Decisions made today will have an impact – one way or another — on Oceanport for the next 25 years and beyond. When we unsuccessfully battled for local control of the 419 acres that are located in Oceanport, we were concerned over what the State would do to our small, family oriented, residential community. Today, rumors abound that our 2nd largest employer, CommVault, which ranks only behind only the embattled Monmouth Park as a source of employment, has been lured to the Tinton Falls section of the Fort Monmouth site. It is believed that this move is premised upon large tax breaks and tax credits being given to CommVault by the people who are charged with the duty of redeveloping the fort while creating jobs. This isn’t job creation, however, it is job poaching. And the Borough of Oceanport loses a business to Tinton Falls under the guise of “job development” at the fort. How can this be a good idea?
I am cynical, at best, about the State of New Jersey’s ability to create jobs at the fort, especially in view of the State’s past record in this area. That is to say, the State of New Jersey doesn’t have a history of creating jobs— other than government jobs. Stated simply, government does not have the ability to create private sector jobs and the historic and profound lack of accountability at the State level is all the more reason why the Oceanport Municipal Council fought long and hard for local control over the fort’s redevelopment. Sadly, we lost that battle. Now it is this governing body’s duty — and the duty of all members who follow us —- to make sure that we don’t lose the war. We must remain vigilant and continue to demand that we have a voice in the redevelopment process, not just a seat at the table. We cannot stand idly by as the bureaucrats and politicians try to fit square pegs into round holes in the name of “job creation” The only thing worse than doing nothing about the redevelopment of the fort is doing something badly, and that’s where I am afraid we are heading. And this isn’t just an Oceanport issue any more. A bungled fort redevelopment will have a devastating financial and social impact on Monmouth Beach, Long Branch, Little Silver, Fair Haven, Rumson and Sea Bright, too. The citizens of those towns should be just as concerned as we are that the fort gets redeveloped properly and organically. If we expect to be heard, then we all have to involve ourselves in the process.
Bureaucrats and politicians have come to expect — and, indeed, thrive on — an apathetic electorate and they have no incentive to do the will of the taxpayer if they have no fear of the taxpayer’s wrath. We, as a governing body, have a duty to educate the people who elected us about what is actually happening at the fort and involve them in the process as much as possible. Those who elected us, however, have to be willing to stand up and be counted by attending and, more importantly, PARTICIPATING in meetings of the Fort Monmouth Economic Redevelopment Authority and the Oceanport Borough Council so that we can fight the good fight for our community.
In closing, we have a lot of work cut out for us. We must continue our fight to protect the Oceanport that we all know and love. All of us who live here and raise our families here know that we have a lot to lose, and we have only ourselves to blame if we let others dictate our destiny. You’ve got a governing body that has proven that it is willing to fight for our right to control our own destiny. None of us have any political aspirations beyond that of serving the people of Oceanport. Help us take the fight to the powers that be. Stand up for yourselves. Get vocal. Stay vocal. Get involved. Stay involved. We need you. We need each other. Let’s work together for a better Oceanport in 2012
State officials and representitives of the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association came to terms on an agreement that will keep Monmouth Park operating through 2012.
The Borough of Oceanport, home of Monmouth Park, 1/3 of Fort Monmouth and 6,000 residents has offered to serve as a temporary landlord and transitional vehicle of the racetrack, according to NJ.com.
In a letter to Governor Chris Christie , Mayor Michael J. Mahon offered the borough’s resources and commitment to resolve the current differences and provide a new model for sustainability for the park.
The deal to transfer Monmouth Park from state control, under the auspices of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, to a private management by developer and casino investor Morris Bailey fell apart earlier this monthover a dispute between the state and the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association over racing date licenses. On Monday, Christie said the horsemen had a week to come up with an acceptable proposal or risk the park’s closure.
The State of New Jersey is setting it self up to to replace the the $780 million that the horse racing industry contributes to the economy, including $115 million in tax revenue, by drawing tourists to the state for quickie weddings.
During his press conference in Trenton yesterday Governor Chris Christie said that Monmouth Park Racetrack would close unless the “completely untrustworthy,” “millionaire” thoroughbred horsemen offer the state acceptable terms to keep the track open within the next week.
The deal to transfer Monmouth Park from state control to the management of developer and casino investor Morris Bailey apparently fell apart over the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association’s demand that they have the rights to a small number of racing days or receive $5 million for not getting those rights for which they had previously negotitated but the state later didn’t want to give them.
Christie said, ““I am no longer going to permit millionaire horsemen to take money from waiters and waitresses and police officers and teachers or the taxpayers of this state to fund their industry,” according to The Asbury Park Press.
Those waiters and waitresses can serve food and drink to lovestruck tourists rushing to New Jersey for a quickie weddings. Down the hall from Christie’s press conference, the Assembly Judiciary Committee was unanimously passing a bill that, if passed by the full Assembly, the Senate and signed by the Governor, will eliminate the 72-hour waiting period for marriage licenses.
The police can take domestic dispute calls involving those tourists who come back to New Jersey within 30 days for the no questions asked annulments that the bill allows. The teachers can educate the offspring of those marriages, annulled or not, that stay in New Jersey and are not aborted.
The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Norcross, is designed to give New Jersey a competitive edge over neighboring states in attracting couples who want to get married immediately.
A bill to allow Atlantic City casinos to accept bets on the success or failure of new marriages has not been introduced yet.
Monmouth Park is in jeopardy of closing due to a dispute over the licensing of thoroughbred races at the Meadowlands, according to a report in The Star Ledger.
The New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Associated successfully negotiated for the rights to the Meadowlands races on June 21. Now the investor slated to take over the Meadowlands track, Jeffrey Gural, wants the rights back because he didn’t realize he was giving up proceeds of off-track wagering on the races. Evidently, the Christie administration is siding with Gural and is refusing to issue the license to the horsemen.
The Meadowlands license impacts Monmouth Park because races licensed for the Meadowlands are frequently transferred to Monmouth.
As a result of the dispute, Morris Baily, the investor slated to take over Monmouth Park from the state, says he wants out of the deal, according to the Ledger.
The parties would have a lot more money to fight over, while keeping the tracks open, if slots were permitted at the racetracks, as they are in a growing number of tracks throughout the region.
Assemblyman Ronald Dancer has introduced two pieces of legislation that would permit slots at racetracks.
A-4294 directs the Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE), in consultation with the New Jersey Racing Commission, to implement and oversee slot machine gambling operations at horse racing venues.
ACR-209 is a resolution proposing a constitutional amendment that gives the Legislature the authority to establish slot machine gambling at racetracks. If approved by voters, the specific restrictions and control of operations of slot machines, as well as the use of the State’s share of revenues derived from the machines, would be provided by law.
“Both proposals represent an incentive for the major stakeholders in this issue – the casino and horse racing industries – to come together and work out a fair and mutually beneficial agreement. Allowing slot machines at racetracks will generate revenues that will help both industries,” said Dancer. “One industry’s success does not have to be at the expense of the other. Permitting slot machines at racing venues will preserve and enhance both.
“One unique aspect of these bills is that the DGE will consult with the Racing Commission in overseeing the operation of slot machines, without the involvement of the New Jersey Lottery Commission which exists currently,” explained Dancer. “As a result, the proceeds from expanding slots at the racetracks would not be diluted to another commission, but distributed to the industries for which they are intended.
I am open to either approach in deciding this issue. We can allow the voters to determine if amending New Jersey’s Constitution is appropriate or work through the legislative process,” commented Dancer. “The casino and horse racing industries are important parts of our state’s economy. I am confident we can reach a reasonable solution as to how we can capitalize on the market potential slot machines at racetracks will produce.”
Dancer pointed out the benefits New Jersey’s horse racing industry provides to the state, including jobs, tax revenue and preserving open space. According to the Rutgers Equine Center, horse racing employs over 7,000 workers and contributes nearly $800 million to the state’s economy. Further, 34,000 acres of the state’s 176,000 farmland acres are attributable to the horse racing industry.
Unfortunately, Dancer’s legislation has little chance of becoming law, as Governor Chris Christie and Senate President Steve Sweeney are opposed to allowing slots in New Jersey anywhere outside of Atlantic City.
Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon will be our guest for the full hour today on the LaRossa and Gallagher: Real Jersey Guys On The Radio Show. The show, sponsored by Repatriot Radio, will air on WIFI AM 1460 and here on the Internet from 5PM-6PM.
O’Scanlon will be discussing JCP&L, their response to Hurricane Irene and how the government will be addressing that response now that the power has been turned on, after a long week, for the electric utility’s customers. He will also be addressing the recent dispute with Morris Bailey and the NJSEA that threatens the long term viability of Monmouth Park. The track was in O’Scanlon’s 12th legislative district and is now in his new 13th legislative district.
During the second half hour of the show we will open a conversation into the question: “What is an appropriate conservative response to social problems?” or “How do we contribute to those less fortunate than ourselves and reduce the size of government?”
O’Scanlon was instrumental in having charitable organizations donate food to many communities during the power outages that followed Hurricane Irene, without spending government money. In addition to his policy and political leadership, he is a quiet leader in many charitable endeavors.
O’Scanlon is reluctant to talk publicly about his charitable works. He has agreed to do so in the hopes increasing the awareness and action among conservatives.
“So many people just don’t get it,” said O’Scanlon of his fellow political leaders, “Otherwise brilliant people seem to have a ‘Let them eat cake’ way of thinking.”
You are welcome to participate in our conversation with O’Scanlon by calling into the show at 609-447-0236.
Morris Bailey has sent the NJ Sport and Exposition Authority a letter declaring his memorandum of understanding for a five year lease agreement of Monmouth Park null and void, according to the Star Ledger.
Bailey, a real estate developer and the owner of Resorts Casino in Atlantic City, has been running the track since June 24 under the memorandum of understanding while waiting to receive the formal lease.
At issue is a $4,000,000 loan from the NJ Thoroughbred Horseman’s Association to support the track’s purses at $400,000 per day. That money has already been used. Without at formal lease, Bailey is not accepting the loan.
The Ledger quoted a spokesperson for the NJSEA as saying they considered Bailey’s letter a negotiating ploy.
Purses could be drastically reduced this fall and the 2012 racing dates could be at risk, according to the Ledger.
Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace was caught off guard by this development. “This is not good news! We were told that the Monmouth Park deal was signed, sealed and delivered.” Monmouth Park is Oceanport’s largest taxpayer.
