Letters
New Jersey must protect, not kill, its wildlife

For all those urban folk that moved from an overdeveloped area to escape congestion and the effects thereof on their quality of life, the expectation that all other previous inhabitants should move out to make room for them is self-serving, shortsighted and unrealistic.

Bears inhabited New Jersey long before the relocation of those fleeing urban sprawl. What will be the next species that encroaches on residential dwellings and deemed by fish and wildlife to be a nuisance? Perhaps the blue jay will be considered too noisy for the peace and solace of suburbia. The Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife would reap overwhelming revenues for issuing voluminous permits to hunt blue jays.

One cannot expect an agency subsidized by fees for hunting permits and fishing licenses to be objective when establishing best management policies/practices for those that are hunted and fished.

For human habitation in New Jersey to remain desirable, a balance must be struck to preserve, conserve and protect our vanishing natural resources. Wildlife is a byproduct of and are vital inhabitants for our natural resources.

The conservation/preservation of and bonding for open space are popular and promoted by elected officials and those that seek public office. Not all open space must and/or should be destined for soccer fields, golf courses, associated recreational pursuits and commercial use. Areas kept in their natural state are the best bang for the taxpayers’ buck to keep our air and water safe and sound and our taxes down. Wildlife is key to keeping nature’s balance in a natural area.

Ursula Goetz

executive director

Monmouth County SPCA

Eatontown

Two committeemen are acting in the best interest of Manalapan

After reading Richard Cohen’s published attack on the proposed Manal-apan moratorium, I could no longer refrain from responding to put to bed Mr. Cohen’s tiresome and partisan attack on two dedicated public servants in Manal-apan.

I was at the meeting when Deputy Mayor Joe Locricchio suggested to the Township Commit-tee that its township attorney look into the legalities of a moratorium on residential building.

The Township Committee unanimously agreed, including Mr. Cohen’s political allies. I’m amazed at Mr. Cohen’s attack on Deputy Mayor Locricchio for making the effort Mr. Cohen’s allies never did, to avoid the uncontrolled, harmful development for which Mr. Cohen’s allies have been known.

In his letter, Mr. Cohen also suggested that the previous administration, his allies, changed zoning in Manalapan. That part, at least, is true.

That change led to the vast majority of remaining farmers selling their property to developers, causing record-breaking residential development that every resident of Manalapan knows is now straining our highways and schools.

Even worse, the massive overdevelopment led to the need for increased school taxes and increased municipal taxes each year Mr. Cohen’s allies were in control. It was only through the hard work of Deputy Mayor Locricchio and Committeeman Andrew Lucas that the annual tax increases were reversed this year.

Perhaps Mr. Cohen, a political appointee to the Planning Board, would be better off spending his time at the board to avoid the wholesale selling of Manalapan for which his allies are known, or even carefully researching the issue of moratoriums before pro-fessing to offer a “legal” opinion.

I applaud Mr. Locricchio’s and Mr. Lucas’ efforts to control overdevelopment in Manalapan, and thank them for lowering the taxes that the previous adminis-tration raised to the highest level in history. Personally, I’m grateful that we finally have two public servants replacing the endless string of politicians Mr. Cohen supports.

Francine Cedeno

Manalapan

Citizens’ rights should not take a back seat to business

The hallowed ground rumbled on Aug. 23 in Freehold Township as the Township Committee tabled an effort to seize property from township residents Ed and Kathleen Wall. This property is a little slice of their American dream.

Unfortunately, a nationwide builder felt that the rights of a corporation overrode the rights of a citizen and asked the township to seize the property after negotiations to sell the property fell through.

Bowing to the pressure of corporate profits and dismissing the 200-year-old cries of the volunteers that marched through this area to defend the right to be free of an oppressive government, the township used the right of eminent domain to take the property from the Walls.

At the meeting, the Walls made point after point of why Centex Homes should not be given the property regardless of an offer to buy the property.

The township argued that the proposed road would not conform to “optimal” engineering standards without the property, but failed to offer what would be unsafe about the road without the seizure. Either it is safe or it is not. Laws are supposed to be clear and concise. Engineering standards are not subjective.

Committeewoman Dorothy Avallone countered that the road would be “safer.” When I asked her what exactly did that mean, she had no answer.

Mrs. Avallone surprised me when she eagerly stated three times that this was not the first time the committee has used eminent domain, as if they were proud of that fact. I would imagine then that someone like her simply finds reasoning in the history books, right or wrong.

But the real issue here is the right of the township to use eminent domain. I am dismayed that this committee sitting in a room surrounded by the history of the Revolution could fathom such a blatant abuse of the Fifth and Fourteenth amendments to the Constitution.

Many Americans and especially the judges in this country fail to respect that the amendments are based upon what the government cannot do instead of giving the government more power.

The Fifth Amendment specifically forbids the government to seize land unless it is for public use and the owners were fairly compensated. In the Wall case, there is no public use and it would be detrimental if Freehold Township allowed further housing development, according to Mayor David Salkin.

Mayor Salkin has previously argued this fact, citing statistics that developments actually cost Freehold Township more money than property taxes collected on those homes. So therefore, the argument can be made that this new development has no public use and in fact hurts Freehold Township.

The argument that the road will be unsafe and therefore the Walls’ private property should be seized is a lawyer’s nirvana.

This interpretation of the Constitution should be stopped in its tracks. Every builder and their legal teams will march across this township looking for a slight defect or “optimal engineering standard” problem. Every day in this country we see a diminishing of rights from well-meaning elected officials and not-so-well-meaning officials.

I cast no judgment on how or why the committee acted in this way, I only know that it is wrong and must be corrected. Freehold Township, with its historic place in America, the blood of patriots still in her soil, should never again see such an abuse of governmental powers. The room at the meeting should have been packed with township residents wanting to protect those rights.

Though it wasn’t physically packed, emotionally, spiritually and heroically there was no standing room. Centex Homes has business rights, but nowhere in the Constitution has it been granted any of the freedoms established for the individual American, and we must make sure that our rights are never secondary to corporate profits.

Joseph Mercurio

Freehold Township

Residents need to speak out about housing projects

Our Marlboro Township Council must think we are really stupid. Especially, the ones that live in the Morganville section of town near Beacon Hill, Lloyd, Tennent and Texas roads.

We thought it was bad enough that Marlboro is trying to approve 294 homes on the corner of Beacon Hill Road and Route 79. But what we didn’t know, and what was conveniently kept in the dark from us by our mayor and council, is that two other developments, Chelsea Square (225 homes) and Northpointe (370 homes), are also going up between the half-mile span of Beacon Hill and Lloyd roads on Route 79.

Let’s do the math — 889 homes going up in this already congested rural area. Has anyone done any traffic studies or impact studies before they voted for this disaster? I bet not.

Residents, the council and mayor are conveniently dumping too many housing projects in this tiny corner of Marlboro called Morganville with little concern or thought of how this will impact the lives of residents of this area. (If they were concerned, they wouldn’t have planned these projects behind closed doors with no public input).

Let’s all march down to this Thurs-day’s (Sept. 8) council meeting and be heard. There has to be a better “planned” solution for our town.

John Turi

Marlboro

U.S. should make supply of food contingent on $40 oil

I think the time has come where we as a nation must finally put the needs of our citizens before the feel good policies of world charity. Who out there is willing to help us? What country is holding fund-raising events for us? The answer is clear — nobody!

Gas prices have nearly tripled in two years and now we face the possibility of heating fuel reaching $4 a gallon. Make no mistake, there are seniors who, through no fault of their own, will be cold, hungry and possibly dying this winter as a result.

I would urge a radical diversion from past policy and directly link grain exports with the price of crude. Send Secretary of State Rice abroad with a simple message; America wants to be fair. We will continue in the immediate future to ship grain to countries willing to sell oil for $40 a barrel and will abandon plans for major ethanol plants if it drops to $30.

We can easily develop the technology to convert all surplus food stocks to fuel. I have no idea what kind of soup the OPEC nations can cook up with their crude, and frankly I don’t care.

It would be difficult for our very moral country to look past the suffering of so many foreign nations, but not nearly as difficult as a body count of those elderly and impoverished in our country.

Paul Schlaflin

Marlboro

Local taxpayer’s frustration is reaching a boiling point

I’ve noticed over a period of a few weeks more “For Sale” signs in Freehold Borough than I’ve ever seen in my 11-plus years of living here. This I have no doubt is due not in small part to the recent tax reassessment that was carried out here.

Though we were all assured that taxes could either go up, down or remain the same, I’ve yet to speak to anyone who actually got a projected 2006 tax bill the same or lower than their current bill. (My projected tax burden for 2006 is double my 2005 bill!)

This coupled with the relentless demands for more and more tax dollars siphoned from property owners by the local and especially the high school district school board makes one want to throw up their hands and just try and find someplace to live that has a more equitable way of funding schools and municipalities.

Perhaps it’s time to continually vote out all incumbent politicians and school board members until we’ve actually voted in men and women who are beholding to the taxpayers and not the special interests.

David Giffler

Freehold Borough

Howell council should take action on anonymous letter

On Aug. 16, an anonymous letter was placed in the hallway adjacent to the Township Council chambers at the Howell municipal building. This letter is the latest in a long line of intimidation tactics against residents at Town Hall.

The letter, which was copied to the area newspapers, was libelous to several people in our community.

I call upon our elected officials to make a public statement denouncing such tactics and launch an investigation on who wrote this letter and how it was placed in the municipal building during a meeting without being seen by any of the 70 or so people that were present that night, the majority being United Republican Club members and supporters.

I also ask that better security be in place to protect the public, perhaps electronic surveillance in the hallway outside of the council chambers, where such hateful material is usually found.

Our elected officials quickly asked the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office to investigate when they were the targets of “hate” mail privately mailed to them.

I expect them to take an even stronger stance when members of the community are targeted in such a detestable and public manner.

Sharon Carpenter-Migliaccio

Howell

Representatives from both parties need to be changed

The major problem with Monmouth County politics is the self-serving hypocritical leaders from both parties. They want to stay in office forever.

The Republicans offer Freeholder Director Tom Powers. He claims to be a reformer, yet most of the corrupt county employees who were arrested by the FBI worked directly for his department.

During the recent Republican primary, he did not support any reform proposals. He also claims no knowledge of jail guards who are paid more money than the New Jersey governor and county employees who charge 4-pound lobster dinners to their expense accounts.

The Democrats offer state Sen. Ellen Karcher, who also claims to be a reformer yet voted against a major pay-to-play bill in Trenton.

Through their actions, both politicians have deceived Monmouth taxpayers and should be removed from office in the next election cycle.

Ben Steinberg

Marlboro

(Editor’s note: Monmouth County Freeholder Tom Powers is serving the final year of his current term and is not seeking re-election.)

Resident believes taxes will push people out of Freehold

The taxes in Freehold Borough are way out of line. I live on Main Street in a home that has been owned by my family since 1943. My dad had an automobile business here since the early 1900s.

My parents raised four children in this house and I raised two sons. I was recently presented with a plaque for the preservation of this lovely old 1830 home.

Now, because this is the only private residence in a district that is now zoned commercial and business, I am being penalized and have to pay high taxes the same as businesses around me. I am a widow, a retired teacher and on a fixed income. I am now being forced out of my hometown. You are pushing good old families out of the area. Shame on you!

Patricia Gike

Freehold Borough