POTPOURRI IT IS

How old I am!  In ancient days when I was a kid; and even when my children were going to school the school year began on the Wednesday after Labor Day, and lasted to the next or last week in June.

 “No more school days” were the months of July and August and vacations could be so planned. Summer camps started the week after the 4^th and lasted for two 4 week sessions which for the lucky ones were consecutive. Of course those were the days of the dial phone and radio or in my kids’ times black and white TV.

I recently learned that my great-grandson Casey and his sister  in Thornville OH-Redneck country- are starting classes in two weeks; Aug. 19^th. I suppose school is over before Memorial Day.

I do remember that in my day some rural districts did start school in mid to late August; but that was so that there could be a break to get the crops in. That is not the case today; child labor on the farm is a no no. Also Thornville's area is a commuting suburb of Columbus within 40 miles.

For Casey this is another rite of passage; he is beginning Middle School; 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grades. To ease the transition there the 6^th graders are in a separate part of the school so that those bad 7^th graders don’t teach the novices bad habits or bully them.

Yes even in that antiquity; college began after Labor Day; now the trend is mid-August with a long New Years break. The good part is that it is only 4 weeks before the first college football games.

Even more seasonally confusing; Pro-football  is already with us playing games yesterday. True they were only "pre-season" but that means that the hockey season is just around the corner..

MEDIATATION

August 3^rd, truly a Rocking Chair Day.

Oh for the days when houses had (front) porches where you could sit and rock while reading the paper or a book and/or just  watching the world go by. For some a glass of ice cold lemonade (fresh squeezed not ersatz powder); for others a frosted beer were required adjunct props.

Times however have changed. A porch today is an anachronism as is the morning newspaper with a cup of coffee at breakfast.  Today’s props are cell phones, texting, twittering, and Facebook nonsense.

Our news sources are primarily TV 30 minute segments that feature murders, shootings and sex scandals with a smattering of reports about civil unrest in the rest of the world. Pictures of locals hamming it up for the camera are important time fillers.

Saturday Bernice bemoaned further reductions in the staffing of the New Jersey Gannet papers’ staffing. Local papers are trying to survive not on reporting worldwide or nationwide news but on local minutia; often presenting pseudo-advertising articles as important news.

How bad has the printed media world become? Just this week the New York Times Corporation sold its ownership in the once prestigious Boston Globe including among other assets in the deal the Worchester Telegram & Gazette for $70 million.

Twenty years ago the Times Corp bought the Globe for$1.1 billion; this represents a loss of 1 Billion,30 million dollars in value in 2 decades Other losses in Newspaper s as represented by sale prices include the Philadelphia papers which had been sold for $515 mil in 2006 ; and in 2012 were sold for $55 mil.! These are only a few examples of how the little the value of the news media in society has become.

For better or worse the social environment, values and priorities of our world has changed. We will never go back to that Rocking Chair; but let us hope that we can regain the cohesive community life in represented.

MUHLENBERG- DAY OF INFAMY 8/10/13

The Fifth Annual Commemoration

of the closure of

Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center

will take place on

Saturday, August 10, 2013 at 3 pm

Park Avenue at Randolph Road

sponsored by the People’s Organization for Progress

and the Restore Muhlenberg Coalition

Bring your friends, family, and neighbors!

For more information, contact

Dottie Gutenkauf (dottiegutenkauf@gmail.com) or

                                    Steven Hatcher (steven.109@verizon.net)

NO COWARDLY LION HE

I want to make it clear that I like Dan Damon and consider him a friend; but not an intimate. I also appreciate the service he does to the Community through his “CLIPS” blog.

Never the less I cannot resist taking not umbrage; but the advantage to fleer his most recent blog, alluding to Christie as the Cowardly Lion. Dan,  like a good party card holding  Democrat belittles  Christie because Christie chose to hold a special election in October to fill the vacant Senate seat; rather to have the Special election in November concurrent with the General Election.

Some in their complaints about the cost and stating that Christie was afraid of the probable increase in Democrat turnout that would put Christie in danger they include the costs of the Primary Election which would have had to be held under any circumstances. The bigger the numbers the worse it sounds.

It is under our electoral freedom laws that the Democrat Candidate for Governor was selected; and she has openly not received the support of many of the power brokers in the Party.

It is obvious that it is unlikely that Christie will be defeated in November; Even the selection of the Vice President of the teacher’s” Service Employees International Union” will not help.

I am not sure that if any election where either my man Booker or Holt or Pallone who has powerful backers; is running against a non-entity Republican could result in a big enough coat tails threat to Christie.

Yes that could be a realistic possibility; but perhaps there are enough disenchanted Democrats who are finally objecting to electing such stalwart outstanding governors as Florio, McGreevey, and of course that outstanding financial genius Corzine. All these”peoples advocates” hold the responsibility for NJ’s fiscal problems and high taxes.  Unlikely but they could by protest votes result in the unthinkable; election of a Republican Senator.

Dan, give Christie credit; instead of being Jerry’s alter ego and consider the Republicans the source of all evil; in your political bent there can be an exception to include the wrong Democrats in Plainfield.

Let us not ignore the fact that on November 5th there are already two elections with two distinct ballots scheduled. There would be gross confusion among the electorate if in addition to the School Board elections which many municipalities have oped for, if a third separate ballot for a special election was added. I am not excluding the possibility of referendums on the ballot; we have not yet received the Charter Commissions report.

I am not sure that the voting machines could  handle that. I do not know how they are going to handle the two ballots already on the docket. The General election and the BOE elections are separate entities and I doubt if they can legally appear together.  Will we have to revert to paper ballots? I am sure you have the answer.

You know New Jersey’s has two versions on how to fill a Senate Vacancy in the same section of the law. Thank goodness each State has its own right; not dictated by those politicians in Washington.  

I have combined the two by reprinting the two problem clauses in sequence but in different color.

“If a vacancy shall happen in the representation of this State in the United States senate, it shall be filled at the general election next succeeding the happening thereof, unless such vacancy shall happen within 70 days next preceding such election, next preceding the primary election prior to the general election, in which case it shall be filled by election at the second succeeding general election, unless the governor of this State shall deem it advisable to call a special election therefor, which he is authorized hereby to do.

The red wording gave him the legal right to appoint a Republican who would have been entrenched for over a year. Think about that; The Democrat's hold on the Senate is tenuous as is, and incumbents do have an advantage. Also don't forget that if Christie had chosen to postpone the election until 2014 there would have been the savings of the cost of the special primary.

Don’t you think that he may have hurt his standing with the right leaning Republicans?

(7am additions)

PAT BALLARD FOX'S COMMENT

Late Tuesday night for Wednesday blog I a blog “T0 Czar or not to Czar” as a commentary to a Courier article on the Mayoral Candidates concerning Plainfield’s economic redevelopment.

In that blog I compared what had occurred during the McWilliams’ years and in the past. I alluded to Pat. Ballard Fox’s positive role without naming specifics. I also noted that the one project completed during this Administration was the highly (?) successful “Monarch” building.

There never was any question that for reasons unstated Ms Ballard Fox was very unpopular with a segment of the Community and there was an active antagonism that may have penetrated the Council.

In comments received to that blog there were some that attacked Ms. Ballard Fox. None were unprintable but were personal and since she was not the subject of the Blog I did not post.

Since at least one wanted to know what she had accomplished I was fortunate to receive a commentary from her which was posted. However I think it merits repeating b because old post comments are rarely read.

SO HERE IT IS   

Pat Ballard Fox said...

During my tenure we completed :
• Tepper’s Redevelopment Area – Mixed Use Redevelopment
• Park Madison Redevelopment Area – Union County West office Building, Parking Garage & Retail Strip (not all aspects finished per UCIA – i.e. several redevelopment agreement & Planning Board stipulations)
• Scattered Site new Housing Construction –through the 197 City-Owned Property Redevelopment Plan (about 25-30 new homes built). Some sites for Faith, Bricks & Mortar and Habitat for Humanity. Other sites identified for open spaces etc)
• Applied for and received more than $13,000,000 in competitive grants for --- Tepper’s redevelopment (HUD grant w/ Lautenberg support;) Roads & sewers (North Ave Industrial Corridor- USEDA), Streetscapes - South Ave –( extra funding & completed project that languished)& Downtown Streetscape), planning (various Redevelopment Plans (North Ave, Macy’s block, Marino’s, Downtown Station South, Industrial Corridor Plan); Redevelopment legal advice & drafting of agreements, Brownfield’s site analysis and remediation (S. Second Street site – proposed new Middle & startup of the EPA Pilot Project for various properties )
• Built two phases of underground conduit (through streetscapes) to carry dark fiber to service data needs to attract businesses. Third phase & final links not completed under current administration.
• Set up Special Improvement District (Downtown & South Ave)
• Initiated Kean University Small Business Development Center Satellite
• Developed new ED marketing materials – Multi-Section City Brochure developed by Plainfield business; Home Arts Brochure, Restaurant Brochure
• Hired Marketing & Events Planning consultant to do above work
• Initiated several rounds of Sign & Façade grant programs for UEZ certified retail businesses

Several major projects we had developed but Council rejected were:
 

• Execution of redevelopment agreement with award-winning developer for the downtown block of North Ave to restore historic properties and build new compatible structures on lots not in historic district
 

• Execution of redevelopment agreement with developer for supermarket-anchored shopping center at Marino’s redevelopment site (This developer did the high end condo/retail project on North Ave in Garwood)
 

o These two proposals were rejected by one very vocal councilman who said – “There will be no more redevelopment in this town unless it’s done by minorities, particularly black minorities”. The others didn’t object. To this day these sites are still marginally used and the historic theatre on North Ave had to be razed.
 

• Execution of an agreement with Clearview Cinema’s to develop a four-plex in the Strand Theatre and assist them with some UEZ funds. Rejected because there was a developer in the wings who wanted to build town houses in the public parking lot next to the theatre. A movie theatre or a department store is the best anchor tenant you can have in a downtown as they draw people. Still no townhouses and still no theatre.
•
We did lots more things with very few staff people including running the UEZ program, getting its territory expanded, using UEZ funds for a variety of projects."

Compare that with the major change in Plainfield in the past 8 years was the closing of Muhlenberg Hospital. For almost 7 years the streets were neglected. “Downtown” has become a district that no outsider will visit, and has little attraction for a majority of Plainfielders.

ABOUT 2014 ADMINISTRATION

No matter who will be the incoming Mayor, and it would be a major disaster to the big Green Machine if it is not Mapp; there could be five new faces in City Hall come January 2014.

That is because the Directors of the three Departments, the City Administrator, and the Corporation Counsel terms are tied into the Mayor’s term in office.

One problem with municipal operations lies in the three (3) Department configuration mandated under our charter; Administration and Finance which includes Health and Social Services as well as the Municipal Court, Public Affairs & Safety, and Public Works and Urban Development.  It is hoped that the Charter Study Commission will recommend reconfiguration in the number and responsibilities of Departments who’s Directors are accountable to the City Administrator.

One of the great weaknesses of the present Administration has been with the exception of Public Affairs and Safety; the revolving door policy regarding Departments and Administrator. This lack of consistency has been compounded by frequent prolonged vacancies.

There are several recent appointees in the past year and half that could merit consideration of retention by the new administration.

Certainly Eric Jackson has demonstrated a degree of expertise in Public Works that was completely missing from the get go until his arrival on the scene. His impact has been most visible throughout the City.  There has been very little in the way of Urban Development activity in the past two years to make a judgment. However he has frequently pinch hit positively for Administrator Berry at the Council meetings.  Mapp should not lose him.

In fact if there is a change in the City Administrators post; Jackson would be an excellent appointee for that post.  He is an asset who should be held on to until he becomes Mayor of Trenton.

Eric Berry; the City Administrator is harder to evaluate since he is working for a Mayor who acts as if she were the “Czar”.  Given that experiences of other recent City Administrators his freedom of action may well be restricted. His biggest demerit is that he has missed too many Council sessions where he and the Corporation Counsel act as a resource.

Minchello’s term as corporation Counsel has been refreshing since he does not act as the alter-ego or messenger boy of the Mayor. He is not a Williamson and is not dependent on a full time position as Corporation Counsel. I believe that at the Charter Commission he stated that he represents both Administration and Counsel.

Whether he is reappointed will be depended upon the New Mayor. It seems to me that a review of that office’s structure could be in order. I would hope that if there is a change it would not be done in a spirit of “the spoils of war”.

There will be without question new directors of the remaining two Departments.

Administration and Finance has been one of the revolving doors often vacant. The present Director, Restaino, was appointed after a long period of vacancy in that office. He has been a long time Director of the Division of Community Development in the Department of Public Works and Urban Development and still holds that post.

It is an weird situation where Restaino as a Director is Jackson’s equal yet at the same time Jackson’s subordinate. Only in OZ do we weave tangled webs!

Public Affairs and Safety Director Hellwig has been in office from early in the Mayor’s first administration.  The Divisions in this department include Police, Fire, and Emergency Management.  

The Fire Division seems to be autonomous under its Chief. Not so with the Police where he has also acted as Civilian Director after what appeared to be a costly political elimination of the office of Police Chief.

There is one other position that has been conveniently vacant or filled by very part time individuals, that is the CFO. This is a priority if we are going to be fiscally responsible.

Who the incoming administration selects to fill these important jobs will impact on the City’s revival.

There is one given; Dec. 31, 2013 will mark the end of personal cult (mis)management of Plainfield’s Government. I anticipate that Mapp’s Administration will be noteworthy with a well structured organization. Hopefully there will be redemption of political debts.

What is to be hoped is that the Council will work as a unit to better the city rather than be involved in its petty factional voting.

There can and should be disagreements but they have to have reasoning and to be  productive. That will be the Council's charge in 2014..