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Dave Ross
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 35
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 9, 2002 - 9:56 pm: |     |
Fred Profeta and Ian Grodman chose to split the responses evenly. The author for each response is bolded at the beginning of the response
Q1: What role would you play as a Township Committee member in influencing the quality of education, and its cost, in the SO/M School District?
Ian Grodman responds for the Profeta/Grodman team
Members of the Township Committee can currently influence the quality and cost of education in Maplewood and South Orange by serving on the Board of School Estimate. That board is made up of three members of the Maplewood Township Committee, three members of the South Orange Board of Trustees, and two members of the School Board of Maplewood and South Orange. The Board of School Estimate typically meets twice each year with the specific objective of addressing the budget for the school district. There are no other formal meetings between the Township government and school board during the course of the year.
This is unacceptable, and inadequate. Fred and I have proposed that the Board of School Estimate (or another new committee made up of Township Committee members, school board members and South Orange trustees) meet on a monthly basis. We have already met with several school board members to address funding and after school programs. The committee must meet regularly so that the Township can be advised formally as to issues involving school programs and school safety, but more importantly so that both towns are involved in financial issues and funding throughout the year.
Over fifty six percent of our local property tax dollars go to the funding of our schools. This is part of the reason for our current tax burden in Maplewood. What we have not done effectively is to seek alternative sources of funding for our educational system, both from state and federal sources. Other towns in New Jersey have demonstrated effective efforts to coordinate the resources of local government officials and school boards when lobbying in Trenton for additional funding from the state for their districts. In our situation, we must coordinate not only with the school board, but with government officials from South Orange in the fight to bring additional state dollars to the schools of Maplewood and South Orange. There are currently CEIFA working groups working in Trenton to reanalyze the statutory formula for school funding which has not been as beneficial to our towns as others. Our elected officials must, and should be involved in such a process.
While the Maplewood and South Orange school district are not an “Abbott” district, we have many students in our schools who began their education in such districts, and so we have many of the same special needs that Abbott districts experience, although on a smaller scale. At this time, the only source of funds to address those needs are generated from local property taxes, as opposed to the Abbott districts, which receive large sums of money directly from the state. Fred and I have met with Assemblyman John McKeon, who has co-sponsored a bill in the state legislature which addresses the problems of “Abbott rim” school districts such as Maplewood and South Orange. The proposed bill would provide our school district with approximately four million dollars to address the needs of our children coming from Abbott districts. Township Committee members, along with school board members and South Orange Board of Trustees must be actively participating in lobbying efforts in Trenton to ensure that the bill passes. Residents of both towns should also write to the following to support the proposed legislation:
Assemblyman John F. McKeon
4 Sloan Street, Suite D&E
South Orange, NJ 07079
Assemblyman Mims Hackett
15 Village Plaza, Suite 1B
South Orange, NJ 07079
Senator Richard J. Codey
449 Mt. Pleasant Avenue
West Orange, NJ 07052
Governor James McGreevey
State House
125 W. State Street
P.O. Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625-0001
There are other issues affecting our children and educational system which the Township committee can influence. We need to strengthen and increase our after school programs, which at this point only affect elementary and middle school aged children. An effective program must be implemented for our older children, particularly those who are at risk for dropping out of school or engaging in violent or anti-social behavior. We have a tremendous resource available in the Columbia High School Alumni Association in developing mentoring programs for these young people as well.
If we are to ensure that no child gets left behind, the Township Committee must take an active role with the school board and the South Orange Board of Trustees to be sure that the resources necessary to do so are available to our educators. This answer demonstrates how Fred and I intend to start doing that.
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Dave Ross
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 36
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 9, 2002 - 10:11 pm: | |
Q2. What are your specific plans for easing the burden of residential property taxes, explaining how you would implement those plans?
Fred Profeta responds for the Profeta/Grodman team
The task of easing the tax burden is a high priority. All Maplewoodians know that. Ian and I have some specific plans for tackling taxes, but we know there is always more to learn. If elected, the process of governing will provide us with additional information. And we hope to hear from citizens with ideas and suggestions.
Tax strategies generally divide into two categories - those which can be implemented internally and those which require external effort. Internally, an initial focus should be upon each budget expenditure. Is the expenditure justified? Can the municipal service in question be accomplished for less money? And in order to accomplish this review with maximum efficiency and use of available talent, Ian and I both agree that the original role of the Citizens' Budget Advisory Committee should be restored. The CBAC should commence the process of budget development, collecting and analyzing the financial requests of each Department, interviewing personnel, comparing line items to those of similar towns, and ultimately providing a comprehensive report to the Township Committee. Only after receiving that report would the Township Committee begin its own analysis. In this way, the citizens who have to pay the freight would make the initial call as to what that freight should be.
Another important internal effort should focus upon the possibilities of privatization. When private resources can do the job for less money, without compromising services, the interest of the taxpayers is served. At the moment, the Township Committee is in the process of out-sourcing work on Maplewood's shade trees, which has fallen behind. This seems to be a clear example of work that can be accomplished privately without a decline in quality. And retaining an independent contractor to do this work on a one-shot basis should prove to be less costly than the hiring of additional municipal workers. The same sort of results might be achieved with respect to code enforcement, where our current staff of two full-time employees cannot keep up with the number of code violations. Parsippany brought in an outside firm, for a limited period of time, in order to bring the town up-to-date in its enforcement work. Maplewood should explore this option.
Regionalization is another initiative that should be investigated. Here, of course, it is most important never to compromise services or safety. However, for example, pooled purchasing with other municipalities can bring about savings without such compromises. And we have learned from the Police Department that neighboring towns are exploring regionalization of radio transmission sites, which can save money and improve efficiency. There is certainly more in this category that needs to be explored.
However, the most significant internal effort with the potential to impact taxes is economic development. By increasing the number of thriving commercial enterprises we can decrease the proportionate share of taxes which must be borne by residents. Economic development, especially on Springfield Avenue, has other ancillary benefits. For example, bustling and well-lit commercial areas tend to decrease crime (and save money on law enforcement). In addition, successful commercial areas increase the value of adjoining residential areas.
Most of Maplewood was built in the 1920's and 1930's under a plan which emphasized beautiful homes, good schools, and little in the way of commercial activity. Our zoning laws still reflect that original plan. But times change. Our "founding fathers" could not foresee the enormous financial demands of a modern educational system or the 21st Century cost of "simply doing business" as a New Jersey municipality. We are at a crossroads. We need to make decisions as to the expansion of commercial enterprise, or continue to live with an increasing tax burden.
Ian and I believe that economic development on Springfield Avenue must be considered as a whole, not property by property. Looking at the entire Avenue, we need to strategically plan the types of businesses which we want, assess traffic and pedestrian flow, calculate parking, and consider the impact on adjacent residential needs and values. This requires a good deal of expertise and time. Many New Jersey towns employ economic planners for this purpose. West Orange and Engelwood are examples. In 2002, the Township Committee voted 3-2 not to create the position of economic planner. If elected, Ian and I would seek to change that result. Such an expert will cost money, but we believe that sometimes you must invest money to make money. Englewood, for example, has always made money on its planned projects.
In addition to a planner, it is important to engage a developer at the beginning of the process rather than at the end. Both planners and developers know, far better than lay citizens, how to identify and commit appropriate enterprises to Springfield Avenue. The developer then builds to suit. The public should be pulled into this effort at an early juncture, information should be distributed and hearings should be held, all to assure that the new Springfield Avenue comports with the expectations of Maplewood citizens.
On the external front, Maplewood must work with others, similarly situated, to change the impact of taxes which are imposed by other levels of government. In response to question no. 1, Ian has already discussed the proper role of the Township Committee in influencing the quality and cost of the education provided by our schools. School funding accounts for approximately 60% of our tax dollar. Another 18% of that dollar goes to Essex County. We must join with county officials to assure that no part of county expenditures are redundant or more appropriately assumed by different governmental agencies. For example, the cost of prosecuting crime in Essex County is $35,000,000 per year. Although there are 21 counties in New Jersey, Essex County accounts for one-third of all such costs in the State. The State pays the salaries of all New Jersey judges, but leaves the cost of prosecution to the counties themselves. This is unfair. The prosecutors are enforcing State laws, not county laws. And the viability of Newark, which accounts for a large proportion of Essex County's prosecution costs, is important to the entire State. Maplewood's interest in a safe Newark is no less than that of Union or Springfield. Recognizing this reality, Senator Codey has introduced a bill which will require New Jersey to assume financial responsibility for all 21 county prosecutors' offices over a period of time. We should support that initiative.
Finally in this respect, we need to get behind the effort to change New Jersey's over-dependence on local property taxes as the means of funding government. We should support the efforts to convene a constitutional convention for this purpose, being careful that such a convention does not put the whole constitution "up for grabs", potentially weakening some important rights and duties. Alternative sources of tax money might include a mix of lottery and gambling taxes, luxury taxes, income taxes, and inheritance taxes. The Bush Administration has effectively eliminated Federal Estate taxes for the overwhelming majority of Americans. This provides a void which might allow for significant increases in the New Jersey inheritance tax. Increases could produce considerable revenues with much less negative impact than before the Federal changes.
As the length of this response should indicate, there are quite a number of things which we can explore and implement in order to ease the burden of residential property taxes. These taxes are considerable, and merit a considerable effort to make changes. Ian and I stand ready to make this effort a primary focus of our work on the Township Committee
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 39
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, October 10, 2002 - 8:47 am: | |
Q3. What kind of economic development would you like to bring to Springfield Avenue, and what are your specific plans for achieving that?
Fred Profeta responds for Profeta/Grodman team
Springfield Avenue would profit enormously from a grocery store, a movie theater, facilities devoted to the arts, sports venues, and family restaurants. The Post Office (now on an expiring lease in Maplewood Village) should be encouraged to move its back-office operations to the Avenue. Postal employees would be customers for Avenue stores. So would patrons. Senior citizen housing would also be a grand addition. Seniors bring no more children into our schools, but they do consume goods and services in their neighborhoods. This kind of economic development would have a multiplier effect wherever instituted. Business spawns more business - look at the effect that the expanded Maplewood Theater had on bustle and business in the Village during evening hours.
Ian and I would like to see Springfield Avenue as the center of a burgeoning arts community. During my four year tenure as Chairman of the Community Coalition on Race, we spearheaded an initiative to designate the Hilton neighborhood as the "artists' district." The Coalition's energetic marketing program brought a significant number of artists to Hilton as residents. Now that initiative must extend to the commercial zone. This is the business of the Township Committee, where a new economic planner hopefully will work closely with the Community Coalition and the Springfield Avenue Partnership.
We see sports venues in the same category as artistic enterprises, because academic studies show that arts and sports are "integration friendly." That is, these activities, by their very nature, tend to attract people of different backgrounds. This would have been true, for example, with respect to the soccer dome project which did not go through. We must pursue more such opportunities for the Hilton neighborhood.
Our "specific plans for achieving" the kind of economic development described here were detailed in my response to question no. 2. The priorities are strategic planning and the use of economic experts and developers to recruit appropriate activities and build to suit.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 40
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, October 10, 2002 - 8:50 am: | |
Q4. What is your position regarding Maplewood taking over the ownership of Springfield Avenue from the State of New Jersey, and what is your opinion of the work that has been done on the Avenue to date?
Fred Profeta responds for Profeta/Grodman team
Maplewood has to be the master of its own destiny. The take-over of Springfield Avenue was the right decision. Design changes are necessary. Traffic must be calmed in order to make the Avenue more pedestrian-friendly. Curb bump-outs and re-timed traffic lights will have this effect. The bump-outs will make it easier for pedestrians to cross the Avenue, and these will be located in "pedestrian nodes" where walk-in retail will be encouraged. Other inducements in these nodes will include street furniture, increased foliage, and brick paver sidewalks.
In general, I have been in favor of design changes on Springfield Avenue since they were first presented to the Planning Board several years ago. By improving the "look" of the Avenue, we can create a more profitable environment for merchants, increase the number of people walking there, reduce crime, and increase adjoining residential values. This initiative is also of enormous value in demonstrating to potential developers that Maplewood is serious about accomplishing major change on Springfield Avenue. By making this commitment, Maplewood shows that it will not be lukewarm in its support of developments efforts. It also sends an internal message that Maplewood is one town, and that the future of Springfield Avenue impacts all of us.
While Ian and I are certainly in favor of the design changes, we would be careful about proceeding to completion before a planner and a developer have been consulted. It may turn out that commercial enterprises not yet thought of are appropriate candidates for Springfield Avenue. These enterprises may have particular size, traffic flow, and parking requirements which could conflict with proposed roadway changes. We want to avoid irreversible changes which might preclude us from considering certain development options.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 43
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, October 11, 2002 - 9:28 am: | |
Q5. What is your position regarding the Township Committee borrowing funds from the Maplewood Community Pool fund, and what is your opinion on whether the Township should continue this practice in the future?
Response by Ian Grodman for the Profeta/Grodman team
When the Township Committee made the decision two years ago to withdraw funds from the Maplewood Community Pool trust fund, it was both unwise and unfair. While taking such an action may have seemed appropriate at the time, withdrawing surplus funds from the trust fund and issuing a bond to pay for pool renovations was a mistake, as pointed out by Mayor DeLuca in a Hilton Neighborhood Association newsletter a year and a half ago.
In response to the question, this practice should not continue in the future. Any surplus in the Maplewood Community trust fund must be set aside for necessary pool repairs, as originally intended. In the highly unlikely event that any member of the Township Committee would even suggest doing this again in the future, Fred and I would strongly advocate against such action.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 44
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, October 11, 2002 - 9:32 am: | |
6. What would your position be on the unconfirmed reports of privatization of some of Maplewood’s present Township services, such as the Park and Shade Tree Department.
Ian Grodman responding for the Profeta/Grodman team
Since receiving this question from Misters Christiansen and Gardner, I have learned that the Department of Public Works, has, in fact, outsourced some pruning and trimming work of shade trees owned by the Township. This function of the Department of Public Works has suffered to some extent while the Department has attempted to prioritize needs with limited resources. By outsourcing this function on a limited basis, the Township has been able to address some of the backlog in maintaining the shade trees owned by the Township.
Privatization of non-policy oriented responsibilities of the township (i.e. pruning and trimming of shade trees, road maintenance, trash removal, etc.), can be of benefit to the town when outside vendors can perform the work in a more cost efficient manner without compromising quality than the Township is able to do so on its own. Fred and I support such efforts to do so, as laid out more fully in our response to question number two, above.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 45
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, October 11, 2002 - 9:34 am: | |
7. What unique qualification do you possess that sets you apart from the other three candidates?
Fred Profeta
Ian and I both have qualifications which, in my opinion, make us desirable candidates. Maplewood residents are generally aware of our past service to Maplewood and I am not going to repeat a list of accomplishments here. They are available on our website (www.profeta-grodman.com). However, I would like to discuss certain features of those accomplishments which, in my opinion, bear significantly upon qualification to serve on the Township Committee.
It is important for a municipal leader to have the ability to identify issues and problems, to organize and energize groups of talented persons around an effort to address these issues, and to lead these groups in analysis, planning of solutions, and implementation of those plans. I believe that I have reflected this sort of ability in Maplewood, principally in organizing and leading groups such as the Community Coalition on Race, the Maplewood Village Alliance, and the CHS Alumni Association. I also played a similar role in the Springfield Avenue Partnership. Earlier, I was a leader in the successful effort to reverse the Board of Education's decision to close and tear down what was then Maplewood Junior High School. Following that, I played a similar role on a BOE Task Force which demonstrated that expert projections of declining enrollments in our District's schools were erroneous. As a result, no schools were physically eliminated.
In my opinion, second in importance only to organizational ability is an ability to personally understand and analyze issues. In this regard, my education and professional experience has served me well. And as a member of the Maplewood Planning Board since 1986, I have been continually confronted with building applications that implicate Maplewood's most central values and concerns. Critical to the Planning Board process is good analysis and decision-making which fairly balances competing interests. This experience has produced skills which, I feel, are important for Township Committee members.
I have lived in Maplewood since I was two years old. I am a product of the District's schools, was president of my CHS class, and continue to serve CHS as President of the Alumni Association and Trustee of the Scholarship Fund. Susan and I chose to raise and educate our children in Maplewood, and we are thoroughly committed to the town. That commitment extends to all of its neighborhoods and people, a fact which I believe is demonstrated by my efforts for the Community Coalition on Race, my work on the Springfield Avenue Partnership, and my membership in the Hilton Neighborhood Association. Election to the Township Committee will enable me to be more productive in implementing my commitment.
Ian Grodman
Throughout my life, I have been involved in my community, contributing in a way which makes the community a better place to live. As early as high school, I tutored elementary school aged children who were considered “at risk,” and visited “shut in” elderly people. My community service work has continued as an adult through my pro bono work on behalf of domestic violence victims and their families (I was once commended for this work during Crime Victims Awareness Week), and through my involvement and service in my home, Maplewood. As a past president of the College Hill Neighborhood Association, a part of the Community Coalition’s Neighborhood Association Network, a member of the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee, and as part of the Township’s Affordable Housing Committee, I have come to love and appreciate this town, and wish to continue to work to keep the town great, and hopefully make it even better.
I believe that I am the only candidate for Township Committee with a young child. It is my hope that Maplewood remains a vital community for him to grow and learn in, where he too may one day be lucky enough to raise a family. Being a member of the Township Committee can help me to make that happen.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 46
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, October 11, 2002 - 9:37 am: | |
8. Eighteen percent of our taxes go to the County. Are we getting our fair share of that money in services and if not, why must we keep paying that much? Isn't this really taxation without representation?
Fred Profeta responds for the Profeta/Grodman team
If a town's "fair share" of services is defined as equal to the money which it contributes to the county in taxes, then Maplewood does not receive it "fair share" back. Of course, neither does Millburn, Livingston, or North Caldwell. Most of Essex County's revenue is spent in the urban areas, which have greater needs. But this does not set Essex apart from many other counties. In Morris County, for example, one can be sure that Mendham contributes far more money than it receives back as compared to Morristown. These disparities will exist with respect to any taxing unit that includes both areas of wealth and poverty. They exist within many municipalities, states, and even the United States as a whole.
This is not "taxation without representation." Maplewood participates in the election of Essex County Freeholders and the County Executive. But it is certainly relevant to ask whether Maplewood is "paying too much", and, if so, whether our representatives are doing what they can in response to any inequities. In certain areas, Essex County clearly does not provide Maplewood with adequate services. For example, there is a legal requirement that persons arrested for serious crimes not be held in municipal jails for more than two days. Many other counties transfer such detainees to their own facilities very quickly. In Essex, suburban detainees are often not picked up for at least one week, and Maplewood has to shoulder additional detention costs. Likewise, although Essex county has an excellent criminal investigation unit, Maplewood rarely gets the benefit of that service, which, again, spends most of its time in the urban areas.
What can we do about this? Part of the answer is to convince the State, through our legislators, to absorb more of the County expenses which relate directly to the health of the entire State. As I noted in response to question no. 2, the cost of prosecuting crime in Essex county is some $35,000,000 per year, representing one-third of all such costs in the entire State. As with judges' salaries, the State should pay the costs of prosecution. Senator Codey has introduced a bill which points us in that direction, and Maplewood should get firmly behind this effort. There are undoubtedly other examples of high county expenditures which are appropriately spread around the entire State, thereby easing the tax burden on all suburbs located in counties which also contain large cities. We should partner with Essex County officials to identify such expenditures.
Maplewood should also work to persuade County leaders that additional monies and services should be brought back to our town. Joe DiVincenzo, President of the Board of Freeholders and Democratic candidate for County Executive, has been responsive to these arguments. For example, he is sympathetic to the proposal that a dog run, serving Maplewood and surrounding communities, be established in the South Mountain Reservation. President DiVincenzo's environmental record is superb, and he is a champion of parks and open spaces. If elected, he will be attentive to maintenance and improvements in the Reservation. On October 2, 2002, the Star-Ledger reported that President DiVincenzo, in conjunction with Senator Codey, is promoting legislation which will increase funding from the Garden State Preservation Trust for the acquisition of open space and the development and maintenance of existing parks. Maplewood would profit from this initiative.
President DiVincenzo is also extremely interested in the development plans for Springfield Avenue. Within the next week, Ian and I will be meeting with him and his staff to discuss the County's role in bringing money and expertise to the Springfield Avenue effort. We expect the meeting to be productive.
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Moderator
Board Administrator
Username: Admin
Post Number: 47
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, October 11, 2002 - 9:39 am: | |
9. What three votes cast by the Township Committee in the last year would you have cast differently and why?
Ian Grodman responds for the Profeta/Grodman team
1. The ordinance prohibiting places of public assembly in a retail and highway business zone.
Late last year the Seventh Day Adventist Church applied for a use variance to purchase the property of, and operate a church at the Apter Funeral Home site on Springfield Avenue. The Maplewood Zoning Board of Adjustment eventually denied the application for a use variance. A lawsuit was brought by the estate of the owners of the funeral home alleging that the Township’s ordinance supporting the rejection of the application for the use variance was in violation of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. In order to demonstrate fairness, the Township Committee responded to the lawsuit by passing an ordinance which, in effect, prohibits all places of public assembly in retail and highway business zones. We believe this was an incorrect response to the filing of the lawsuit.
The effect of this ordinance is that any facility which could be interpreted as a place of public assembly (i.e. a theater, a gym, or even a Township owned meeting facility, the Hilton Library or Maplecrest Park) will now be required to apply for a use variance with the Board of Adjustment. While it appears likely that the applications for use variances by most entities other than a religious organization would be granted, an extra level of bureaucracy and, more importantly, expense, has been created that could quite possibly discourage potential developers interested in bringing new business to Springfield Avenue. Indeed, the Township itself will now be required to go through the process of applying for a variance if it wishes to make changes or improvements to the Hilton branch of the library or to Maplecrest Park.
A simple solution would have been for the Township to file a motion for summary judgment, or dismissal, of the claims by the estate of the owner of the funeral home. The act relied upon by the estate was meant to protect religious institutions, and not commercial enterprises trying to sell property. The estate had no standing to bring such a suit, and, in fact, the Seventh Day Adventist Church has since purchased property in Irvington. The court would likely have dismissed the case upon the Township’s motion. Fred and I believe that such a motion would have been the correct response to the lawsuit.
2. The decision to pass the municipal budget with little or no input by the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee.
In the past, the Citizens’ Budget Advisory Committee was an organization involved from the very beginning of the municipal budgeting process. In recent years, however, and more particularly this year, the CBAC has received budget information which is not always complete, and at a point in the budget process where there is little, if any opportunity for input by members of the CBAC subcommittees. Many of the individuals who serve on the CBAC have expertise in areas which would be quite beneficial to the members of the Township Committee in the budgeting process, and provide a seasoned second set of eyes to review the details of any proposed budget.
This is a practice which must be changed as set forth in our answer to question number two above. The CBAC presents a real opportunity for citizen involvement in the budgeting process, and the members of the CBAC must be involved in the budgeting process from the very beginning each year.
3. The vote rejecting an economic planner in this year’s proposed budget.
The initial proposed budget to the township committee this year included a line item for an economic planner for the township. The township committee voted three to two against this line item. Fred and I feel strongly that the township committee was wrong on this issue.
For more details on our proposal regarding an economic planner, see our response to question number two, above.
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