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Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Seven pianists will play on two Sundays
"A Celebration of Pianists" will feature seven pianists performing on two consecutive Sundays at 3 p.m. Both concerts will be conducted in historic Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, 716 Watchung Ave., Plainfield.
The suggested donation is $15 for each event.
This Sunday's concert will showcase local and international artists, including Christopher Johnson, permanent artist in residence of the Plainfield Symphony since 1999; Victoria Griswold, a soloist and chamber pianist and owner of the Plainfield Music Store; Sandor Szabo, one of the leading organists in the state and music director of the Oratorio Society of New Jersey; Brenda Day, minister of music and organist at the First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen; Edwin Lopez, director of music at St. John the Evangelist Church in Dunellen and Ronald Thayer, organist and minister of music at Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church and director of Crescent Concerts.
The musicians will perform solos, duets and duos, as well as some unusual two-piano ensembles for eight hands and 12 hands.
The program will include Schubert's "B-flat Sonata" for piano duet, Liszt's "Tarantella," Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue," Chopin's "Fantasie Impromptu," two lesser known works: the Price "Sonata in B-flat" and Bond's "Fantasie on 'Wade in the Water.'"
Debussy, Handel and some others also will be included. One musical highlight will be the rarely heard two-pianos/eight-hands arrangements (four pianists at two pianos) of Carl Maria von Weber's "Invitation to the Dance" and Franz Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2."
On June 11, internationally acclaimed British pianist Clive Swansbourne performs Chopin's "Barcarolle in F-sharp, Op. 60," Haydn's "Variation in F Minor, HOB XVII: 6," Ravel's "Prelude and Forlane (Le Tombeau de Couperin)," Brahms' "Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Handel, Op. 24" and Rachmaninoff's "Prelude in C, Op. 32," Prelude in D, Op. 23, No. 3" and "Etude-tableau in D, Op. 39, No. 9."
Swansbourne, born and educated in England, studied at London's Royal College of Music, then earned his doctorate from Yale University's School of Music, where he studied with Ward Davenny and Claude Frank. Swansbourne had performed to critical acclaim throughout the United States and is a frequent performer in Great Britain, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Canada.
The two concerts present a rare opportunity to hear so many superb artists under one roof and support Crescent Avenue's ongoing effort to bring the finest music to the community as well. The church's acoustically superb sanctuary is home to Crescent Concerts, the Plainfield Symphony, as well as the new Gilbert Adams organ of 5,124 pipes. The venue is handicapped-accessible. For further information, call (908) 756-2468 or 756-3157.
-- Submitted by Crescent Concerts
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060531/NEWS01/605310312/1006
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Relief - Courier - Indonesia Relief Contacts
*
Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, May 31, 2006
WHAT YOU CAN DO
A host of organizations in Central Jersey are collecting donations for victims of Saturday's massive earthquake, which killed 5,700 and left roughly 200,000 homeless in Indonesia.
They include:
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, May 31, 2006
WHAT YOU CAN DO
A host of organizations in Central Jersey are collecting donations for victims of Saturday's massive earthquake, which killed 5,700 and left roughly 200,000 homeless in Indonesia.
They include:
- Catholic Relief Services, an international relief and development program, online at www.crs.org. The Newark Archdiocese also will take a special collection in the next two weekends in local parishes to assist relief services. Donations can be sent to the Archdiocese of Newark -- Indonesia Earthquake Relief Fund, c/o Office of Finance, P.O. Box 9500, Newark, NJ 07104.
- Jewish Federation of Central Jersey, Wilf Jewish Community Campus, is accepting donations through its Web site, www.jewishjerseycentral.org. Checks also can be sent to the group at 1391 Martine Ave., Scotch Plains, NJ 07076. To ensure the entire donation goes to earthquake relief, donors should write "Indonesian Earthquake" in their check's memo area.
- Checks can be sent to The Jewish Federation of Somerset, Hunterdon and Warren Counties at 775 Talamini Road, Bridgewater, NJ 08807; write "Java Earthquake Relief" in the memo area. To learn more about aiding the relief effort, call Executive Director Diane Naar at (908) 725-6994, Ext. 202.
- Episcopal Relief and Development, the international relief and development agency of the Episcopal Church of the United States, is taking donations through the "Ways to Give" section of its Web site, www.er-d.org. Donors also can call (800) 334-7626, Ext. 5129, or mail checks to Episcopal Relief and Development, designated for the "Emergency Relief Fund," P.O. Box 12043, Newark, NJ 07101.
- The Muslim Center of Somerset County, based in Somerville, is accepting donations. Checks should be sent to the group at P.O. Box 852, Somerville, NJ 08876-0852.
- Church World Service is also seeking contributions. Checks should be made payable to the group and sent to CWS, Indonesia Earthquake, P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515. Credit card contributions can be made by calling (800) 297-1516 or at www.churchworldservice.org. The group also is appealing for donations of "Gift of the Heart" health, school and baby kits; for more information, visit www.churchworldservice. org/kits.
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Military draft - Courier - Military draft boards ready to roll
*
Published in the Courier News, Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Military draft boards ready to roll
A little-known job, draft boards still operate and prep for national crisis
By CHAD HEMENWAY
Staff Writer
Like their counterparts across the country, members of military draft boards in Central Jersey are volunteers for a task that is not very taxing right now.
With no draft since 1973, they are a largely invisible force of nearly 11,000 people, training for a crisis that may never come.
"Really, we just meet once a year and go through the members' handbook," said Peter Slaton, a member of the Hunterson County board. "We go through some case stuff and do role playing with representatives from the Selective Service."
"It guarantees that at least one day a year we'll get free coffee and donuts," said Dennis Rabineau, a member of the Somerset County draft board. "We're just here to make sure the system is in place in case something happens."
That would be something such as a national crisis -- one serious enough for the government to order a return to the draft. Officials say they don't expect to restart conscription -- public sentiment is heavily against it -- but should they ever do so, draft boards could face their biggest work load in history as they help decide who gets drafted and who doesn't.
Until then, a draft board member's main chore is training.
At half-day annual sessions, the all-volunteer boards keep up on rules for granting postponements, deferments, exemptions and conscientious objector status. They also learn how to hold meetings, judge evidence and elicit testimony.
Then, as boards have done since the system was created in 1980, they wait, out of sight and out of mind.
"We just remain in the background, quietly working," said Rabineau, who has a much higher profile as pastor of Evangel Church in Bridgewater.
So quietly do they work that when Slaton, who works with the Department of Labor and Welfare Development, tells friends about it, "They are surprised because they have no idea the draft boards were still around."
"It's a ghost of a job," said James Stephen Brophy of Burke, Va.
A little-known job
Many local boards enjoyed -- or suffered -- high visibility in the years leading up to the end of the draft in 1973. Their offices were often targets of demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Draft-age men seeking deferments or filing for conscientious objector status made it their business to know the names of the board members who would be considering their cases. Today, most people don't know the boards exist.
"I didn't know they existed, either," said Slaton, 52.
He saw an article in the newspaper asking for volunteers, and he put in an application. Nothing happened for a year. Volunteers can remain on the draft boards for 20 years.. Slaton had to wait for an opening.
Rabineu, 54, began serving five years ago and even provides the board with its meeting place: his church.
"It's just another way to help out a little bit," he said of his service.
Slaton, who has been serving for three years, said the Hunterdon County draft board meets at various locations, including Fort Dix and local schools.
While there is no draft, Selective Service keeps an updated registry of males aged 18-25 -- now some 16 million individuals -- from which to supply untrained draftees that would supplement the professional all-volunteer armed forces if the draft were revived.
It also oversees the 10,300 local board members across the country and the several hundred appeals boards above the local boards. There are long lists of volunteers for the unpaid board positions, which are filled through nomination by each state's governor. Board members are trained mostly by military reserve officers, said Mary Neely, state programs managers for Selective Service for Region 1, which includes New Jersey.
Draft boards
Draft board members range in age, race, income and profession -- some are dentists, secretaries, maintenance workers and real estate agents. Officials say diversity on the boards would make any new draft the most equitable ever. And draft boards could have more work than ever.
More people could apply for exemptions because more men have custody of children now. And more might be supporting parents because of the increasingly graying society and looming Social Security problems, Brophy said.
Training has taught board members to expect a range of claims -- "students who want to finish college ... ministers ... people that don't believe in fighting," said board member Helen Obernagel, 45, of New Athens, Ill., a massage therapist and hospital secretary.
"Conscientious Objectors" would be put in Alternative Service Program, Neely said, doing the equivalent amount of work in hospitals or child care, for example.
"If it (the draft) is ever reinstated, we're going to hear a wide spectrum of appeals," Rabineau said. "We have to stay objective and keep politics out of it."
When conscientious objector status is sought, Slayton said, "They teach us we can't depend on our gut in making decisions. You have to rely on the information we're given and the rules."
All draft board members have to pledge to be objective, Neely said. "It is very important that we accept volunteers who will follow the procedure of the law. We don't accept anyone who can't," she said. "It is also very important that we have volunteers handling judgmental calls who are representatives of the communities."
If the draft were ever reinstated, Selective Service would have 193 days to deliver the first soldier to military, said Pat Schuback, a spokesperson for Selective Service. The system's staff would be expanded from about 160 to many thousands and its budget increased from $25 million to "many, many times that."
The process would unfold this way:
"You don't have to worry about that," he said. "The boards are there as an insurance policy. There is no plan to reinstate the draft. The administration has been clear about that many, many times. We will remain a volunteer military."
Draft talk
Indeed, public opinion polls have consistently shown that about seven in 10 Americans oppose reinstatement of the draft. Yet with President Bush saying U.S. troops will remain in Iraq for years and with the Pentagon now calling the war on terrorism the "Long War," many Americans -- and some draft board members -- find it hard to believe repeated government assurances that there are no plans to revive conscription.
"When you see a war like we're in now, you don't know what will happen," said Obernagel, a board member since 1992. "We're always ready to be called up, in case they need us."
Said Slaton, "I don't make a conscious effort to keep up with the rumors or stories on any reinstatement. I figure when it happens, we'll be told to initially meet somewhere and I'll be there. We'll be ready."
Rabineau said he doesn't hear any of the rumors.
"It never comes up at any of the board meetings," Rabineau said. "I think it's because we're all too old to be drafted."
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060530/NEWS/605300310
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Courier News, Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Military draft boards ready to roll
A little-known job, draft boards still operate and prep for national crisis
By CHAD HEMENWAY
Staff Writer
Like their counterparts across the country, members of military draft boards in Central Jersey are volunteers for a task that is not very taxing right now.
With no draft since 1973, they are a largely invisible force of nearly 11,000 people, training for a crisis that may never come.
"Really, we just meet once a year and go through the members' handbook," said Peter Slaton, a member of the Hunterson County board. "We go through some case stuff and do role playing with representatives from the Selective Service."
"It guarantees that at least one day a year we'll get free coffee and donuts," said Dennis Rabineau, a member of the Somerset County draft board. "We're just here to make sure the system is in place in case something happens."
That would be something such as a national crisis -- one serious enough for the government to order a return to the draft. Officials say they don't expect to restart conscription -- public sentiment is heavily against it -- but should they ever do so, draft boards could face their biggest work load in history as they help decide who gets drafted and who doesn't.
Until then, a draft board member's main chore is training.
At half-day annual sessions, the all-volunteer boards keep up on rules for granting postponements, deferments, exemptions and conscientious objector status. They also learn how to hold meetings, judge evidence and elicit testimony.
Then, as boards have done since the system was created in 1980, they wait, out of sight and out of mind.
"We just remain in the background, quietly working," said Rabineau, who has a much higher profile as pastor of Evangel Church in Bridgewater.
So quietly do they work that when Slaton, who works with the Department of Labor and Welfare Development, tells friends about it, "They are surprised because they have no idea the draft boards were still around."
"It's a ghost of a job," said James Stephen Brophy of Burke, Va.
A little-known job
Many local boards enjoyed -- or suffered -- high visibility in the years leading up to the end of the draft in 1973. Their offices were often targets of demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Draft-age men seeking deferments or filing for conscientious objector status made it their business to know the names of the board members who would be considering their cases. Today, most people don't know the boards exist.
"I didn't know they existed, either," said Slaton, 52.
He saw an article in the newspaper asking for volunteers, and he put in an application. Nothing happened for a year. Volunteers can remain on the draft boards for 20 years.. Slaton had to wait for an opening.
Rabineu, 54, began serving five years ago and even provides the board with its meeting place: his church.
"It's just another way to help out a little bit," he said of his service.
Slaton, who has been serving for three years, said the Hunterdon County draft board meets at various locations, including Fort Dix and local schools.
While there is no draft, Selective Service keeps an updated registry of males aged 18-25 -- now some 16 million individuals -- from which to supply untrained draftees that would supplement the professional all-volunteer armed forces if the draft were revived.
It also oversees the 10,300 local board members across the country and the several hundred appeals boards above the local boards. There are long lists of volunteers for the unpaid board positions, which are filled through nomination by each state's governor. Board members are trained mostly by military reserve officers, said Mary Neely, state programs managers for Selective Service for Region 1, which includes New Jersey.
Draft boards
Draft board members range in age, race, income and profession -- some are dentists, secretaries, maintenance workers and real estate agents. Officials say diversity on the boards would make any new draft the most equitable ever. And draft boards could have more work than ever.
More people could apply for exemptions because more men have custody of children now. And more might be supporting parents because of the increasingly graying society and looming Social Security problems, Brophy said.
Training has taught board members to expect a range of claims -- "students who want to finish college ... ministers ... people that don't believe in fighting," said board member Helen Obernagel, 45, of New Athens, Ill., a massage therapist and hospital secretary.
"Conscientious Objectors" would be put in Alternative Service Program, Neely said, doing the equivalent amount of work in hospitals or child care, for example.
"If it (the draft) is ever reinstated, we're going to hear a wide spectrum of appeals," Rabineau said. "We have to stay objective and keep politics out of it."
When conscientious objector status is sought, Slayton said, "They teach us we can't depend on our gut in making decisions. You have to rely on the information we're given and the rules."
All draft board members have to pledge to be objective, Neely said. "It is very important that we accept volunteers who will follow the procedure of the law. We don't accept anyone who can't," she said. "It is also very important that we have volunteers handling judgmental calls who are representatives of the communities."
If the draft were ever reinstated, Selective Service would have 193 days to deliver the first soldier to military, said Pat Schuback, a spokesperson for Selective Service. The system's staff would be expanded from about 160 to many thousands and its budget increased from $25 million to "many, many times that."
The process would unfold this way:
- A lottery would choose the order of callups from those millions registered;
- Draftees would report for physical, mental and moral evaluations;
- Once evaluation results were in, they would have 10 days to appeal their status.
"You don't have to worry about that," he said. "The boards are there as an insurance policy. There is no plan to reinstate the draft. The administration has been clear about that many, many times. We will remain a volunteer military."
Draft talk
Indeed, public opinion polls have consistently shown that about seven in 10 Americans oppose reinstatement of the draft. Yet with President Bush saying U.S. troops will remain in Iraq for years and with the Pentagon now calling the war on terrorism the "Long War," many Americans -- and some draft board members -- find it hard to believe repeated government assurances that there are no plans to revive conscription.
"When you see a war like we're in now, you don't know what will happen," said Obernagel, a board member since 1992. "We're always ready to be called up, in case they need us."
Said Slaton, "I don't make a conscious effort to keep up with the rumors or stories on any reinstatement. I figure when it happens, we'll be told to initially meet somewhere and I'll be there. We'll be ready."
Rabineau said he doesn't hear any of the rumors.
"It never comes up at any of the board meetings," Rabineau said. "I think it's because we're all too old to be drafted."
At a glanceChad Hemenway can be reached at 908-707-3148 or chemenwa@c-n.com
Statistics from the Selective Service System on its registration program and draft boards -- maintained at the ready in case a U.S. draft is ever reinstated.
- All men living in the United States must register with the Selective Service System within 30 days of their 18th birthday and could be drafted through age 25.
- Roughly 23 million register a year.
- Nearly 16 million men aged 18-25 are registered.
- To serve on a draft board, a person must be at least 18, have no criminal background and can't be career or retired military or law enforcement. The maximum appointment lasts 20 years.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060530/NEWS/605300310
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Memorial Day - Athens [GA] Banner-Herald - Moina Michael adopted poppy to memorialize soldiers
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Published in the Athens [GA] Banner-Herald on Sunday, October 28, 2001
Athens woman adopted poppy to memorialize, generate support for soldiers
By Nancy Bunker Bowen
The tireless efforts of Moina Belle Michael of Athens created one of the lasting symbols of the "Great War" - a red poppy first worn to memorialize American soldiers killed in World War I and later to raise millions of dollars to support and employ disabled American veterans of all wars.The daughter of John and Alice Wise Michael, Moina was born in Walton County on Aug. 15, 1869. A teacher by profession, she taught in a number of area schools in the years before World War I before assuming duties in 1913 as social and religious director at the State Normal School in Athens and general secretary of its YMCA.
In Sept. 1918, she took a leave of absence from her position at the Normal School to serve at the training headquarters for overseas YMCA war workers at Columbia University in New York. Two days before the armistice was signed in November 1918 she read Canadian military doctor Colonel John McRae's poem "We Shall Not Sleep" which begins "In Flanders fields the poppies grow/between the crosses, row on row" and ends with the line "If ye break faith with us who die/We shall not sleep."
Reading the poem was a spiritual experience for Moina Michael and inspired her to write her own response verse "We Shall Keep the Faith." At that moment Moina Michael made a personal pledge to "keep the faith" and vowed always to wear a red poppy as a sign of remembrance. Later that day, she purchased a number of red silk poppies from a local department store and wore one in her lapel in memory of the war dead immortalized in McCrae's poem. Others soon followed her example, and a tradition began to grow.
During the winter of 1918 Michael continued working for the staff of the Overseas YMCA Secretaries and also visited wounded and sick men from Georgia who were in debarkation hospitals in and around New York City to find what more could be done for them. She returned to Athens in 1919 and taught a class of disabled servicemen at The University of Georgia. Learning about their needs firsthand gave her the impetus to widen the scope of the poppy as a memorial flower, developing its use to help all servicemen who needed help for themselves and their families, physically, spiritually or financially.
In 1920 the Georgia State American Legion Convention adopted the red poppy as its official memorial flower and succeeded in obtaining the endorsement of the National Convention of the American Legion in the fall of that year. The next year delegates at the Auxiliary to the American Legion Convention agreed that disabled American war veterans could make the poppies sold in the United States, thus generating much needed income for veterans who had no disability pensions or other income. Since that time, the red poppy has been sold too raise money for disabled veterans of all wars.
Moina Michael was honored by the state of Georgia as one of its most famous women. In 1931 the title "Distinguished Citizen of Georgia" was conferred on her for her work in creating a new enterprise in the United States, to the benefit of Georgia and nation. A marble bust of Moina Michael in the rotunda of the Georgia State Capitol was unveiled in 1937 by the Georgia Department of the American Legion and its Auxiliary.
Moina Michael's creation of the Poppy Memorial Days made millions of dollars for the rehabilitation and employment of disabled servicemen. By the time of her death on May 10, 1944, approximately $200 million had been raised for the cause.
Just months after her death, the U. S. government christened a "liberty ship" The Moina Michael and launched it at Savannah. Moina Michael was one of only two Athenians honored by the issuance of a United States postage stamp. The 3-cent stamp, which recognized her role in originating the idea of the World War I memorial poppy, was first issued in Athens on Nov. 9, 1948.
Nancy Bunker Bowen, chairman of the Athens-Clarke County Bicentennial History Panel, has lived in Athens since 1966. Active in many community organizations, she is former assistant editor of the Georgia Historical Quarterly and was co-chairman of "Athens Treasures: A Bicentennial Celebration by the Athens Historical Society."
Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Sunday, October 28, 2001.
Click here to return to story:
http://onlineathens.com/stories/103001/ath_moina.shtml
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Menendez - NY Times - The Menendez Story, With All the Chapters
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Published in the New York Times, Sunday, December 25, 2005 - NJ Section, page 2
NEW JERSEY WEEKLY DESK
POLITICS
The Menendez Story, With All the Chapters
By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN (NYT) 971 words
Published: December 25, 2005
In anthropology, it's called the ''charter myth,'' a fantastical beginning that societies invent for themselves to explain their existence or dominance.
And in the case of Representative Robert Menendez, the Hudson County Democrat who was tapped to fill the remainder of Governor-elect Jon S. Corzine's term in the United States Senate a few weeks ago, there is a bit of this mythmaking going on.
If you listen to his supporters, you might think that Mr. Menendez had been a Latino freedom fighter and political reformer since the age of 3.
No doubt, the wonkish congressman with the instincts of a barracuda has a very compelling personal story -- the son of a carpenter and a seamstress who worked his way from a cramped apartment in the barrio of Union City to one of the most rarefied of worlds, the United States Senate.
He did not go to flashy schools, he did not make millions of dollars in private industry, and when he says he has walked in the shoes of average New Jerseyans, he isn't kidding, which in the probable matchup against Thomas H. Kean Jr., heir to fortunes real and political, will mostly likely become the top Menendez selling point.
But there are other points that need clarification.
For example, when Mr. Menendez was crowned senator at his recent coronation in Jersey City and lovingly introduced by Acting Gov. Richard J. Codey and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, it appeared that the state's top Democrats had been firmly united behind him. Not so.
Despite his insistence that he would rather coach youth basketball than hobnob with Ted Kennedy, Mr. Codey wanted that job. Or at least he wanted to be begged to take that job. But Mr. Corzine, according to people close to the acting governor, never approached him to be senator because he was still sore at Mr. Codey for grumbling about being steamrolled out of the gubernatorial primary.
After Mr. Codey spoke, Mr. Lautenberg gave a stirring speech about how Mr. Menendez will be a ''terrific, terrific fighter.'' But several top Democrats said Mr. Lautenberg had been dreading this moment. Fresh still are the nightmares of trying to work with former Senator Robert G. Torricelli -- whose tongue and elbows are every bit as sharp as Mr. Menendez's -- and the last thing the 81-year-old Mr. Lautenberg wanted was another youngish whippersnapper who would hog the limelight and deny him the deference that a senior senator is due. Mr. Corzine then launched into his version of the immigrant's tale, saying that Mr. Menendez's parents ''came from political exile,'' conjuring up images of fleeing Fidel Castro.
Wrong again. Mario and Evangelina Menendez left Cuba in 1953, before Mr. Castro even hit the mountains. And though they may have been saying farewell to a nasty dictatorship under Fulgencio Batista, Mr. Menendez's parents were not political exiles. They were poor and came mostly for work.
Mr. Menendez's fans like to cast him as a born reformer, standing up for the little guy ever since he was a little guy.
But truth be told, he got his start in politics as an unabashed child of the machine. When he first ran for the school board at age 19, he had the unswerving support of the city's political boss, Mayor William V. Musto. Thanks to Mr. Musto's muscle, he won that race and the mayor's trust and was set up with a number of political jobs.
One of those jobs, school board secretary, landed the young Mr. Menendez in hot water. Union City wasn't called ''10 Percent City'' for nothing, and federal investigators had been sniffing around for years, looking into a number of corrupt deals, some involving skimmed school funds, some involving Mr. Musto.
But it wasn't Mr. Menendez's initiative that brought down the Musto Machine, as some supporters, and detractors, tend to say. He did not go to the feds. The feds came to him.
''He got identified, he got subpoenaed, and he was put in the uncomfortable position of having to testify,'' remembered James Plaisted, a prosecutor on the case. Mr. Menendez ended up testifying about missing checks, which Mr. Plaisted called a ''very gutsy move.''
As a result of that trial, which drove a cleaver right through Union City, Mr. Musto went down and Mr. Menendez went up. He became mayor a few years later and was soon champion of New Jersey's growing Latino community.
The problem was, he still had a lot to learn, especially among Latinos.
A former confidant, Jose Manuel Alvarez, remembered that Mr. Menendez once showed up for a speech on José Martà Day wearing a red-and-black tie.
''I said, 'Bob, you can't do that, people will see that and think of the Cuban flag and think you're pro-Castro,' '' Mr. Alvarez said. ''I had to tell him not to mention the Kennedys and things like that.''
(Mr. Alvarez died last month. Needless to say, Mr. Menendez, who had a nasty public split with Mr. Alvarez a few years ago, was not at the funeral.)
This all said, there are plenty of facts even Mr. Menendez's worst enemies have to concede, like he works incredibly hard and has an impressive grasp of politics and policy.
And although you won't hear it from Mr. Corzine or Mr. Lautenberg (or Douglas Forrester or Michael Bloomberg), at a time when Democrats and Republicans alike are reaching out to wealthy guys to run for office, Mr. Menendez did not buy his power. He built it the old-fashioned way, step by step, and the crucial question now is: will anybody be able to take it from him?
http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F40F10F63F540C768EDDAB0994DD404482
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the New York Times, Sunday, December 25, 2005 - NJ Section, page 2
NEW JERSEY WEEKLY DESK
POLITICS
The Menendez Story, With All the Chapters
By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN (NYT) 971 words
Published: December 25, 2005
In anthropology, it's called the ''charter myth,'' a fantastical beginning that societies invent for themselves to explain their existence or dominance.
And in the case of Representative Robert Menendez, the Hudson County Democrat who was tapped to fill the remainder of Governor-elect Jon S. Corzine's term in the United States Senate a few weeks ago, there is a bit of this mythmaking going on.
If you listen to his supporters, you might think that Mr. Menendez had been a Latino freedom fighter and political reformer since the age of 3.
No doubt, the wonkish congressman with the instincts of a barracuda has a very compelling personal story -- the son of a carpenter and a seamstress who worked his way from a cramped apartment in the barrio of Union City to one of the most rarefied of worlds, the United States Senate.
He did not go to flashy schools, he did not make millions of dollars in private industry, and when he says he has walked in the shoes of average New Jerseyans, he isn't kidding, which in the probable matchup against Thomas H. Kean Jr., heir to fortunes real and political, will mostly likely become the top Menendez selling point.
But there are other points that need clarification.
For example, when Mr. Menendez was crowned senator at his recent coronation in Jersey City and lovingly introduced by Acting Gov. Richard J. Codey and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, it appeared that the state's top Democrats had been firmly united behind him. Not so.
Despite his insistence that he would rather coach youth basketball than hobnob with Ted Kennedy, Mr. Codey wanted that job. Or at least he wanted to be begged to take that job. But Mr. Corzine, according to people close to the acting governor, never approached him to be senator because he was still sore at Mr. Codey for grumbling about being steamrolled out of the gubernatorial primary.
After Mr. Codey spoke, Mr. Lautenberg gave a stirring speech about how Mr. Menendez will be a ''terrific, terrific fighter.'' But several top Democrats said Mr. Lautenberg had been dreading this moment. Fresh still are the nightmares of trying to work with former Senator Robert G. Torricelli -- whose tongue and elbows are every bit as sharp as Mr. Menendez's -- and the last thing the 81-year-old Mr. Lautenberg wanted was another youngish whippersnapper who would hog the limelight and deny him the deference that a senior senator is due. Mr. Corzine then launched into his version of the immigrant's tale, saying that Mr. Menendez's parents ''came from political exile,'' conjuring up images of fleeing Fidel Castro.
Wrong again. Mario and Evangelina Menendez left Cuba in 1953, before Mr. Castro even hit the mountains. And though they may have been saying farewell to a nasty dictatorship under Fulgencio Batista, Mr. Menendez's parents were not political exiles. They were poor and came mostly for work.
Mr. Menendez's fans like to cast him as a born reformer, standing up for the little guy ever since he was a little guy.
But truth be told, he got his start in politics as an unabashed child of the machine. When he first ran for the school board at age 19, he had the unswerving support of the city's political boss, Mayor William V. Musto. Thanks to Mr. Musto's muscle, he won that race and the mayor's trust and was set up with a number of political jobs.
One of those jobs, school board secretary, landed the young Mr. Menendez in hot water. Union City wasn't called ''10 Percent City'' for nothing, and federal investigators had been sniffing around for years, looking into a number of corrupt deals, some involving skimmed school funds, some involving Mr. Musto.
But it wasn't Mr. Menendez's initiative that brought down the Musto Machine, as some supporters, and detractors, tend to say. He did not go to the feds. The feds came to him.
''He got identified, he got subpoenaed, and he was put in the uncomfortable position of having to testify,'' remembered James Plaisted, a prosecutor on the case. Mr. Menendez ended up testifying about missing checks, which Mr. Plaisted called a ''very gutsy move.''
As a result of that trial, which drove a cleaver right through Union City, Mr. Musto went down and Mr. Menendez went up. He became mayor a few years later and was soon champion of New Jersey's growing Latino community.
The problem was, he still had a lot to learn, especially among Latinos.
A former confidant, Jose Manuel Alvarez, remembered that Mr. Menendez once showed up for a speech on José Martà Day wearing a red-and-black tie.
''I said, 'Bob, you can't do that, people will see that and think of the Cuban flag and think you're pro-Castro,' '' Mr. Alvarez said. ''I had to tell him not to mention the Kennedys and things like that.''
(Mr. Alvarez died last month. Needless to say, Mr. Menendez, who had a nasty public split with Mr. Alvarez a few years ago, was not at the funeral.)
This all said, there are plenty of facts even Mr. Menendez's worst enemies have to concede, like he works incredibly hard and has an impressive grasp of politics and policy.
And although you won't hear it from Mr. Corzine or Mr. Lautenberg (or Douglas Forrester or Michael Bloomberg), at a time when Democrats and Republicans alike are reaching out to wealthy guys to run for office, Mr. Menendez did not buy his power. He built it the old-fashioned way, step by step, and the crucial question now is: will anybody be able to take it from him?
http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F40F10F63F540C768EDDAB0994DD404482
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Friday, May 26, 2006
Prospect Avenue - 1332 - Plainfield - MLS #2281925
Residential Client Full Report
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| EXTER: See Remarks,Stucco,Wood | FP: 5 / Bathroom,Family Room,Living Room | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| EXTFT: Curbs,Enclosed Porch(es),Privacy Fence,Wood Fence,Open Porch(es),Patio,Sidewalk,Underground Lawn Sprinkler,Storm Door(s),Storm Window(s) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DIR: WOODLAND AVE. TO #1332 PROSPECT AVE (BETWEEN WOODLAND AND HILLSIDE) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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ADD REM:
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| MSTBR: Full Bath,Fireplace,Sitting Room | MODIFIED HANDICAP: No | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MSTBH: Stall Shower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLOOR: Carpeting,Ceramic Tile,Marble,Wood | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| INTER: Fire Alarm Sys,Bar-Wet,Cedar Closets,High Ceilings,Security System,Smoke Detector,Track Lighting,Walk-In Closet | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| APPL: Carbon Monoxide Detector,Dishwasher,Disposal,Dryer,Kitchen Exhaust Fan,Self Cleaning Oven,Wall Oven(s),Range-Tabletop,See Remarks,Washer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AMNT: Jogging/Biking Path,Pool-Outdoor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| EXCLU: 1st fl. Washer & Dryer, Designer Window Treatments, Refrig Negotiable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LEVLB: Utility Room | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| LEVL1: Dining Room,Family Room,Foyer,Kitchen,Laundry Room,Living Room,Office,Pantry,Porch,Powder Room | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LEVL2: 4 Or More Bedrooms,Bath Main,Bath(s) Other,Office | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LEVL3: 4 Or More Bedrooms,Bath Main,Kitchen | OTHLEV: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| HEAT: 1 Unit,Radiant - Hot Water,Radiators - Hot Water | WATER: Public Water | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COOL: 1 Unit,Attic Fan,Central Air,Window A/C(s) | WTRHT: Gas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SEWER: Public Sewer | FUEL: Oil | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SERVC: Cable TV Available,Garbage Extra Charge | UTIL: Electric,Gas-Natural | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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West End - Ledger - West End gets $100K to plan its resurgence
*
Published in the Star-Ledger
West End gets $100K to plan its resurgence
Friday, May 26, 2006
BY MIKE KARSNAK
Star-Ledger Staff
Mary Barnett, a resident of the West End of Plainfield for the past 40 years, longs for her old community.
"We need the neighborhood to be cleaner and safer, so we can sit out on our porches like we used to," Barnett said.
Barnett, 86, has seen Plainfield's West End decline over the decades, stricken by crime, poverty and dilapidated housing. Attempts to jump-start the community in the past have been unsuccessful, including the failed plan by the broke School Construction Corporation to build a middle school. Now all that sits in the area on Plainfield Avenue is an empty lot.
Where government has failed, the residents of the West End hope to succeed.
Barnett was one of several residents to attend the opening ceremony yesterday for a new community group called POWER, or the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization.
Working with a $100,000 planning grant from Wachovia Bank and help from Homefirst and a division of Rutgers University, they -- collectively known as the POWER Partnership -- hope to begin rebuilding the 4th Ward of the Queen City.
"I think that this part of Plainfield has largely been ignored by the people of the West End," said Curtis Conway, vice president of POWER and a West End resident since 1978. "For it to work, it can't be a political movement, it has to be a people movement."
Along with residents, there were plenty of politicians and corporate representatives on hand at the ceremony yesterday at the Hannah Atkins Community Center. Among those in attendance were Assemblyman Jerry Green (D-Union), Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs and 4th Ward Councilman Elliot Simmons.
"The 4th Ward shall be one of the highlights in the City of Plainfield," Robinson-Briggs said. "I'm looking forward to all the wonderful things that are to be done."
"We can no longer talk about issues unless we have solutions," Green said.
The solutions are still in their early stages, however.
After speeches were made and pictures were taken with the large cardboard check, residents were able to sign up for one of six task forces. Each task force focuses on a different area of development: youth services, adult services, neighborhood building, affordable housing, arts programs and economic development.
"The residents have identified six areas that are in need of redevelopment," said Parv Shalov, finance and housing associate for Homefirst, a nonprofit that focuses on providing housing to those in need.
The money from the grant will be used for meeting space, publicity, salaries and other gatherings such as neighborhood barbecues, Shalov said, although she acknowledges that turning planning into action will not be easy.
"You can't just put a Band-Aid on it, it takes a concerted effort," she said.
Part of that effort is Rutgers University's National Center for Neighborhood and Brownfields Redevelopment. The organization will help survey lands in need of redevelopment.
Part of that planning may be a new police station in the area, a medical center and residential and commercial buildings. No plans have been finalized.
"This is something that is going to take five or 10 years," said Henry Moyer, executive director of the Rutgers organization. "But the difference is you now have a community that is interested in making a difference."
The jury is still out on whether this planning grant will turn into actual planning and then to action, but residents and politicians alike are optimistic.
Said longtime West End resident Barnett: "They spoke about exactly what needs to be done."
Mike Karsnak covers Union County. He may be reached at mkarsnak@starledger.com or (908) 302-1503.
http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-1/1148622998283100.xml&coll=1
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Star-Ledger
West End gets $100K to plan its resurgence
Friday, May 26, 2006
BY MIKE KARSNAK
Star-Ledger Staff
Mary Barnett, a resident of the West End of Plainfield for the past 40 years, longs for her old community.
"We need the neighborhood to be cleaner and safer, so we can sit out on our porches like we used to," Barnett said.
Barnett, 86, has seen Plainfield's West End decline over the decades, stricken by crime, poverty and dilapidated housing. Attempts to jump-start the community in the past have been unsuccessful, including the failed plan by the broke School Construction Corporation to build a middle school. Now all that sits in the area on Plainfield Avenue is an empty lot.
Where government has failed, the residents of the West End hope to succeed.
Barnett was one of several residents to attend the opening ceremony yesterday for a new community group called POWER, or the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization.
Working with a $100,000 planning grant from Wachovia Bank and help from Homefirst and a division of Rutgers University, they -- collectively known as the POWER Partnership -- hope to begin rebuilding the 4th Ward of the Queen City.
"I think that this part of Plainfield has largely been ignored by the people of the West End," said Curtis Conway, vice president of POWER and a West End resident since 1978. "For it to work, it can't be a political movement, it has to be a people movement."
Along with residents, there were plenty of politicians and corporate representatives on hand at the ceremony yesterday at the Hannah Atkins Community Center. Among those in attendance were Assemblyman Jerry Green (D-Union), Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs and 4th Ward Councilman Elliot Simmons.
"The 4th Ward shall be one of the highlights in the City of Plainfield," Robinson-Briggs said. "I'm looking forward to all the wonderful things that are to be done."
"We can no longer talk about issues unless we have solutions," Green said.
The solutions are still in their early stages, however.
After speeches were made and pictures were taken with the large cardboard check, residents were able to sign up for one of six task forces. Each task force focuses on a different area of development: youth services, adult services, neighborhood building, affordable housing, arts programs and economic development.
"The residents have identified six areas that are in need of redevelopment," said Parv Shalov, finance and housing associate for Homefirst, a nonprofit that focuses on providing housing to those in need.
The money from the grant will be used for meeting space, publicity, salaries and other gatherings such as neighborhood barbecues, Shalov said, although she acknowledges that turning planning into action will not be easy.
"You can't just put a Band-Aid on it, it takes a concerted effort," she said.
Part of that effort is Rutgers University's National Center for Neighborhood and Brownfields Redevelopment. The organization will help survey lands in need of redevelopment.
Part of that planning may be a new police station in the area, a medical center and residential and commercial buildings. No plans have been finalized.
"This is something that is going to take five or 10 years," said Henry Moyer, executive director of the Rutgers organization. "But the difference is you now have a community that is interested in making a difference."
The jury is still out on whether this planning grant will turn into actual planning and then to action, but residents and politicians alike are optimistic.
Said longtime West End resident Barnett: "They spoke about exactly what needs to be done."
Mike Karsnak covers Union County. He may be reached at mkarsnak@starledger.com or (908) 302-1503.
http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-1/1148622998283100.xml&coll=1
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
West End - Courier - $100K grant brings hope to Plainfield's West End
*
Published in the Courier News, Friday, May 26, 2006
$100K grant brings hope to Plainfield's West End
By BERNICE PAGLIA
Correspondent
PLAINFIELD -- There was a sense of fate about a West End gathering Thursday.
A wide range of residents, officials and community activists met Thursday to witness the delivery of a $100,000 planning grant from the Wachovia Regional Foundation to move the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization into high gear. The expected fruits of the grant will be new, affordable homes; safe streets and neighborhoods; economic revitalization and parity for the West End's 4th Ward with the city's other three political wards.
Because the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization is teamed with Homefirst -- formerly Interfaith Council for the Homeless -- and Rutgers University's National Center for Neighborhoods and Brownfields Development, many present felt success in the air.
"The stars are aligned," Homefirst Executive Director Barbara Aaronoff said.
Curtis Conway, vice president of the West End group and a self-described farm boy before coming to live in the West End, said, "We are planting in the right season."
Assemblyman Jerry Green, D-Plainfield, and Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs both said a new political climate of unity favors the project.
"The city's theme is 'Growth by unity' -- this is a prime example," Robinson-Briggs said.
Fate has not been kind to the West End for many decades, said the West End group's president and former City Councilman Albert Hendricks. Outside Hannah Atkins Park where the ceremony took place, Hendricks recalled seeing the 1967 riots start right across the street. Part of the civil disturbances that rocked and forever changed many cities, the riots sent the West End on a downward spiral toward crime and decay.
But many West Enders remained loyal to their neighborhoods. Now, their reward will be the opportunity to guide the revitalization. The Rev. Michael Jones, community director of the group, said six task forces made up of residents have just been formed to carry out the planning.
Board member Robert Nelson said residents will not lose out as others have in neighborhood gentrification. The plan's goal is "for the city of Plainfield and the people of the West End to remain in control," he said.
Denise McGregor Armbrister, executive director of the Wachovia Regional Foundation, told the residents, "With this money comes responsibility," and urged them to join focus groups or fill out surveys if asked.
The $100,000 grant was the only one awarded this year in New Jersey. Since its formation in 1998, the foundation has awarded more than $25 million to 65 nonprofit groups in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
An earlier plan for the 44-block West End revitalization project hinged on construction of a new middle school. But when the New Jersey Schools Construction Corp. failed, so did the middle school. Green said it is uncertain whether money can be found for a new school or whether the city-owned lot will be used for redevelopment.
Meanwhile, the partnership has mapped all properties in the project site and is looking into the environmental reclamation of abandoned commercial sites in the West End.
After the presentation and speeches, 23-year West End resident Betty Shorter said she felt good. She especially liked the idea of improving safety.
"The children can go out and play and you could go out and walk at night." Right now, she said, "It's dangerous at night."
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060526/NEWS/605260303
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Courier News, Friday, May 26, 2006
$100K grant brings hope to Plainfield's West End
By BERNICE PAGLIA
Correspondent
PLAINFIELD -- There was a sense of fate about a West End gathering Thursday.
A wide range of residents, officials and community activists met Thursday to witness the delivery of a $100,000 planning grant from the Wachovia Regional Foundation to move the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization into high gear. The expected fruits of the grant will be new, affordable homes; safe streets and neighborhoods; economic revitalization and parity for the West End's 4th Ward with the city's other three political wards.
Because the Plainfield Organization for West End Revitalization is teamed with Homefirst -- formerly Interfaith Council for the Homeless -- and Rutgers University's National Center for Neighborhoods and Brownfields Development, many present felt success in the air.
"The stars are aligned," Homefirst Executive Director Barbara Aaronoff said.
Curtis Conway, vice president of the West End group and a self-described farm boy before coming to live in the West End, said, "We are planting in the right season."
Assemblyman Jerry Green, D-Plainfield, and Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs both said a new political climate of unity favors the project.
"The city's theme is 'Growth by unity' -- this is a prime example," Robinson-Briggs said.
Fate has not been kind to the West End for many decades, said the West End group's president and former City Councilman Albert Hendricks. Outside Hannah Atkins Park where the ceremony took place, Hendricks recalled seeing the 1967 riots start right across the street. Part of the civil disturbances that rocked and forever changed many cities, the riots sent the West End on a downward spiral toward crime and decay.
But many West Enders remained loyal to their neighborhoods. Now, their reward will be the opportunity to guide the revitalization. The Rev. Michael Jones, community director of the group, said six task forces made up of residents have just been formed to carry out the planning.
Board member Robert Nelson said residents will not lose out as others have in neighborhood gentrification. The plan's goal is "for the city of Plainfield and the people of the West End to remain in control," he said.
Denise McGregor Armbrister, executive director of the Wachovia Regional Foundation, told the residents, "With this money comes responsibility," and urged them to join focus groups or fill out surveys if asked.
The $100,000 grant was the only one awarded this year in New Jersey. Since its formation in 1998, the foundation has awarded more than $25 million to 65 nonprofit groups in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
An earlier plan for the 44-block West End revitalization project hinged on construction of a new middle school. But when the New Jersey Schools Construction Corp. failed, so did the middle school. Green said it is uncertain whether money can be found for a new school or whether the city-owned lot will be used for redevelopment.
Meanwhile, the partnership has mapped all properties in the project site and is looking into the environmental reclamation of abandoned commercial sites in the West End.
After the presentation and speeches, 23-year West End resident Betty Shorter said she felt good. She especially liked the idea of improving safety.
"The children can go out and play and you could go out and walk at night." Right now, she said, "It's dangerous at night."
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060526/NEWS/605260303
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Skilled Labor - NY Times - Herbert: Laid Off and Left Out
*
Published in the New York Times
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Op-Ed Columnist
Laid Off and Left Out
By BOB HERBERT
You don't hear much from the American worker anymore. Like battered soldiers at the end of a lost war, ordinary workers seem resigned to their diminished status.
The grim terms imposed on them include wage stagnation, the widespread confiscation of benefits (including pensions they once believed were guaranteed), and a permanent state of employment insecurity.
For an unnecessarily large number of Americans, the workplace has become a hub of anxiety and fear, an essential but capricious environment in which you might be shown the door at any moment.
In his new book, "The Disposable American: Layoffs and Their Consequences," Louis Uchitelle tells us that since 1984, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics started monitoring "worker displacement," at least 30 million full-time workers have been "permanently separated from their jobs and their paychecks against their wishes."
Mr. Uchitelle writes on economic issues for The Times. In his book, he traces the evolution of that increasingly endangered species, the secure job, and the effect that the current culture of corporate layoffs is having on ordinary men and women.
He said he was surprised, as he did the reporting for the book, by the extensive emotional fallout that accompanies layoffs. "There's a lot of mental health damage," he said. "The act of being laid off is such a blow to the self-esteem. Layoffs are a national phenomenon, a societal problem — but the laid-off workers blame themselves."
In addition to being financially strapped, laid-off workers and their families are often emotionally strapped as well. Common problems include depression, domestic strife and divorce.
Mr. Uchitelle's thesis is that corporate layoffs have been carried much too far, that they have gone beyond a legitimate and necessary response to a changing economy.
"What started as a necessary response to the intrusion of foreign manufacturers into the American marketplace got out of hand," he writes. "By the late 1990's, getting rid of workers had become normal practice, ingrained behavior, just as job security had been 25 years earlier."
In many cases, a thousand workers were fired when 500 might have been sufficient, or 10,000 were let go when 5,000 would have been enough. We pay a price for these excesses. The losses that accrue to companies and communities when many years of improving skills and valuable experience are casually and unnecessarily tossed on a scrap heap are incalculable.
"The majority of the people who are laid off," said Mr. Uchitelle, "end up in jobs that pay significantly less than they earned before, or they drop out altogether."
At the heart of the layoff phenomenon is the myth, endlessly repeated by corporate leaders and politicians of both parties, that workers who are thrown out of their jobs can save themselves, can latch onto spiffy new jobs by becoming better educated and acquiring new skills.
"Education and training create the jobs, according to this way of thinking," writes Mr. Uchitelle. "Or, put another way, a job materializes for every trained or educated worker, a job commensurate with his or her skills, for which he or she is appropriately paid."
That is just not so, and the corporate and political elite need to stop feeding that bogus line to the public.
There is no doubt that the better-educated and better-trained get better jobs. But the reality is that there are not enough good jobs currently available to meet the demand of college-educated and well-trained workers in the United States, which is why so many are working in jobs for which they are overqualified.
A chapter in "The Disposable American" details the plight of exquisitely trained airline mechanics who found themselves laid off from jobs that had paid up to $31 an hour. Mr. Uchitelle writes: "Not enough jobs exist at $31 an hour — or at $16 an hour, for that matter — to meet the demand for them. Jobs just don't materialize at cost-conscious companies to absorb all the qualified people who want them."
The most provocative question raised by Mr. Uchitelle is whether the private sector is capable of generating enough good jobs at good pay to meet the demand of everyone who is qualified and wants to work.
If it cannot (and so far it has not), then what? If education and training are not the building blocks to solid employment, what is? These are public policy questions of the highest importance, and so far they are being ignored.
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the New York Times
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Op-Ed Columnist
Laid Off and Left Out
By BOB HERBERT
You don't hear much from the American worker anymore. Like battered soldiers at the end of a lost war, ordinary workers seem resigned to their diminished status.
The grim terms imposed on them include wage stagnation, the widespread confiscation of benefits (including pensions they once believed were guaranteed), and a permanent state of employment insecurity.
For an unnecessarily large number of Americans, the workplace has become a hub of anxiety and fear, an essential but capricious environment in which you might be shown the door at any moment.
In his new book, "The Disposable American: Layoffs and Their Consequences," Louis Uchitelle tells us that since 1984, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics started monitoring "worker displacement," at least 30 million full-time workers have been "permanently separated from their jobs and their paychecks against their wishes."
Mr. Uchitelle writes on economic issues for The Times. In his book, he traces the evolution of that increasingly endangered species, the secure job, and the effect that the current culture of corporate layoffs is having on ordinary men and women.
He said he was surprised, as he did the reporting for the book, by the extensive emotional fallout that accompanies layoffs. "There's a lot of mental health damage," he said. "The act of being laid off is such a blow to the self-esteem. Layoffs are a national phenomenon, a societal problem — but the laid-off workers blame themselves."
In addition to being financially strapped, laid-off workers and their families are often emotionally strapped as well. Common problems include depression, domestic strife and divorce.
Mr. Uchitelle's thesis is that corporate layoffs have been carried much too far, that they have gone beyond a legitimate and necessary response to a changing economy.
"What started as a necessary response to the intrusion of foreign manufacturers into the American marketplace got out of hand," he writes. "By the late 1990's, getting rid of workers had become normal practice, ingrained behavior, just as job security had been 25 years earlier."
In many cases, a thousand workers were fired when 500 might have been sufficient, or 10,000 were let go when 5,000 would have been enough. We pay a price for these excesses. The losses that accrue to companies and communities when many years of improving skills and valuable experience are casually and unnecessarily tossed on a scrap heap are incalculable.
"The majority of the people who are laid off," said Mr. Uchitelle, "end up in jobs that pay significantly less than they earned before, or they drop out altogether."
At the heart of the layoff phenomenon is the myth, endlessly repeated by corporate leaders and politicians of both parties, that workers who are thrown out of their jobs can save themselves, can latch onto spiffy new jobs by becoming better educated and acquiring new skills.
"Education and training create the jobs, according to this way of thinking," writes Mr. Uchitelle. "Or, put another way, a job materializes for every trained or educated worker, a job commensurate with his or her skills, for which he or she is appropriately paid."
That is just not so, and the corporate and political elite need to stop feeding that bogus line to the public.
There is no doubt that the better-educated and better-trained get better jobs. But the reality is that there are not enough good jobs currently available to meet the demand of college-educated and well-trained workers in the United States, which is why so many are working in jobs for which they are overqualified.
A chapter in "The Disposable American" details the plight of exquisitely trained airline mechanics who found themselves laid off from jobs that had paid up to $31 an hour. Mr. Uchitelle writes: "Not enough jobs exist at $31 an hour — or at $16 an hour, for that matter — to meet the demand for them. Jobs just don't materialize at cost-conscious companies to absorb all the qualified people who want them."
The most provocative question raised by Mr. Uchitelle is whether the private sector is capable of generating enough good jobs at good pay to meet the demand of everyone who is qualified and wants to work.
If it cannot (and so far it has not), then what? If education and training are not the building blocks to solid employment, what is? These are public policy questions of the highest importance, and so far they are being ignored.
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Photos - Courier - Rail sites prized in Plainfield exhibit
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Published in the Courier News, Sunday, May 21, 2006
Rail sites prized in Plainfield exhibit
Central train station to adorn city postcard
By BERNICE PAGLIA
Correspondent
PLAINFIELD -- Train stations were the ticket for winning top prizes in a contest to gather contemporary images of the city.
William Monroe's photo of NJ Transit's Netherwood station in a Christmas blizzard took first place, while Paul LeGrand's view of North Avenue from the main station in center city was chosen to become a postcard in the Plainfield Public Library's "Plainfield in Focus" contest.
All 69 entries were displayed Saturday at the opening of a library exhibit that will run through mid-summer.
Monroe's photo from Dec. 25, 2002, shows the station bathed in a golden glow as the storm is in progress.
A resident of Plainfield, he said he greatly enjoyed the exhibit.
"There are so many beautiful places in Plainfield that need to be recorded before they aren't here any more," Monroe said.
LeGrand, who also is a local resident, received a third-place ribbon before finding out that his image would become the new Plainfield postcard.
The contest came about while LeGrand, a self-professed "avid photo hobbyist," was working on a project to recreate images from old postcards of city sites.
"I've been doing it for about a year," he said. "The contest just kind of meshed with it."
LeGrand also expressed concern for capturing images of the city in transition.
Some weeks ago he took photos of the nurses' residence at Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center before it was torn down to make way for a new nursing school. He remembered his grandmother working at the hospital.
"Some of the changes have been painful to witness," LeGrand said.
He and Monroe also won honorable mentions for other photos.
Amateur photographers were invited to submit contemporary images to augment the library's extensive historic photo collection. The new postcard will join another special collection. Digitized images from both the photo and postcard collections may be seen at the library's web site -- www.plainfieldlibrary.info/ -- and the new ones will be added online later this year.
About 40 people viewed the entries mounted in the Anne Louise Davis Room. As the winners were announced, murmurs of appreciation mingled with applause for the public's favorites.Connie Pinkowski, a Fanwood resident who is studying digital photography and silk screening at the duCret School of the Arts in Plainfield, dazzled the viewers with her image of a blooming cherry tree in an April snowstorm.
Pinkowski said she was working on a silk-screen project when someone said it was snowing outside.
"I went running out with my camera and never came back to class," she said.
Pinkowski won an honorable mention for the shot and also picked up the third-place ribbon for a photo of the War Memorial near City Hall.
Local History librarian Jessica Myers said any single one of the entries could have won an award for some aspect of the submission, making what she called "an impossible situation" for judges Mark Edwards, Nancy Piwowar and Jean Mattson. After much consideration, the top winners emerged. The Friends of The Plainfield Public Library donated prize money, giving $200 for first place, $150 for second place and $50 for third place.
Other entrants included Angela R. Bayak, Carlos Cardozo, Richard Carlin, Jose Manuel Cruz, Claudia Delgado, Angela Flores, Ashley Flores, Dawn Lyerly-Cruz, Louise Patillo, Jasmine Seymour and E.I. Stevenson.
Also, Pat Ballard Fox, former director of economic development in Plainfield; Dan Damon, the city's former public information officer; and Allison McWilliams, a daughter of former Plainfield Mayor Albert T. McWilliams.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060521/NEWS01/605210351/1006
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Courier News, Sunday, May 21, 2006
Rail sites prized in Plainfield exhibit
Central train station to adorn city postcard
By BERNICE PAGLIA
Correspondent
PLAINFIELD -- Train stations were the ticket for winning top prizes in a contest to gather contemporary images of the city.
William Monroe's photo of NJ Transit's Netherwood station in a Christmas blizzard took first place, while Paul LeGrand's view of North Avenue from the main station in center city was chosen to become a postcard in the Plainfield Public Library's "Plainfield in Focus" contest.
All 69 entries were displayed Saturday at the opening of a library exhibit that will run through mid-summer.
Monroe's photo from Dec. 25, 2002, shows the station bathed in a golden glow as the storm is in progress.
A resident of Plainfield, he said he greatly enjoyed the exhibit.
"There are so many beautiful places in Plainfield that need to be recorded before they aren't here any more," Monroe said.
LeGrand, who also is a local resident, received a third-place ribbon before finding out that his image would become the new Plainfield postcard.
The contest came about while LeGrand, a self-professed "avid photo hobbyist," was working on a project to recreate images from old postcards of city sites.
"I've been doing it for about a year," he said. "The contest just kind of meshed with it."
LeGrand also expressed concern for capturing images of the city in transition.
Some weeks ago he took photos of the nurses' residence at Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center before it was torn down to make way for a new nursing school. He remembered his grandmother working at the hospital.
"Some of the changes have been painful to witness," LeGrand said.
He and Monroe also won honorable mentions for other photos.
Amateur photographers were invited to submit contemporary images to augment the library's extensive historic photo collection. The new postcard will join another special collection. Digitized images from both the photo and postcard collections may be seen at the library's web site -- www.plainfieldlibrary.info/ -- and the new ones will be added online later this year.
About 40 people viewed the entries mounted in the Anne Louise Davis Room. As the winners were announced, murmurs of appreciation mingled with applause for the public's favorites.Connie Pinkowski, a Fanwood resident who is studying digital photography and silk screening at the duCret School of the Arts in Plainfield, dazzled the viewers with her image of a blooming cherry tree in an April snowstorm.
Pinkowski said she was working on a silk-screen project when someone said it was snowing outside.
"I went running out with my camera and never came back to class," she said.
Pinkowski won an honorable mention for the shot and also picked up the third-place ribbon for a photo of the War Memorial near City Hall.
Local History librarian Jessica Myers said any single one of the entries could have won an award for some aspect of the submission, making what she called "an impossible situation" for judges Mark Edwards, Nancy Piwowar and Jean Mattson. After much consideration, the top winners emerged. The Friends of The Plainfield Public Library donated prize money, giving $200 for first place, $150 for second place and $50 for third place.
Other entrants included Angela R. Bayak, Carlos Cardozo, Richard Carlin, Jose Manuel Cruz, Claudia Delgado, Angela Flores, Ashley Flores, Dawn Lyerly-Cruz, Louise Patillo, Jasmine Seymour and E.I. Stevenson.
Also, Pat Ballard Fox, former director of economic development in Plainfield; Dan Damon, the city's former public information officer; and Allison McWilliams, a daughter of former Plainfield Mayor Albert T. McWilliams.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060521/NEWS01/605210351/1006
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Murder - Courier - Shaun 'Wafi' Long arrested in murder of Antwine McAllister
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Inmate charged in fatal Plainfield shooting
23-year-old Antwine McAllister was the city's first homicide victim this year
By CHAD WEIHRAUCH
Staff Writer
PLAINFIELD -- Police have charged a city resident already in jail with the killing of another Plainfield man earlier this year.
Shaun "Wafi" Long, 26, of 149 Carlisle Terrace was being held Friday at Somerset County Jail in Somerville on unrelated drug offenses when he was served with papers charging him with murder, unlawful possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Long is accused of shooting to death 23-year-old Antwine McAllister, who was gunned down about 9:30 a.m. Feb. 16 on East Sixth Street, about two blocks from Plainfield City Hall.
McAllister was a father of twin sons and had worked at the Super Stop & Shop in the Watchung Square Mall.
Family members said he also had planned to begin classes at Union County College in the fall before he became the first homicide victim in Plainfield this year.
In addition to the murder charge, Long was charged with the Dec. 24 attempted murder of another Plainfield resident, Kyle Brooks. Long fired a handgun at Brooks that day near the corner of Berckman and East Second streets, police said.
An officer at Somerset County Jail said Long was being held on $15,000 bail for the original charges against him, conspiracy and possession of a controlled dangerous substance. But court papers from Union County ordered him held without bail on the additional counts.
Plainfield police Chief Edward Santiago credited Detective John Furda and a Union County Prosecutor's Office investigator, Jorge Jimenez, for uncovering evidence that led to the charges against Long.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060520/NEWS/605200306
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Inmate charged in fatal Plainfield shooting
23-year-old Antwine McAllister was the city's first homicide victim this year
By CHAD WEIHRAUCH
Staff Writer
PLAINFIELD -- Police have charged a city resident already in jail with the killing of another Plainfield man earlier this year.
Shaun "Wafi" Long, 26, of 149 Carlisle Terrace was being held Friday at Somerset County Jail in Somerville on unrelated drug offenses when he was served with papers charging him with murder, unlawful possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Long is accused of shooting to death 23-year-old Antwine McAllister, who was gunned down about 9:30 a.m. Feb. 16 on East Sixth Street, about two blocks from Plainfield City Hall.
McAllister was a father of twin sons and had worked at the Super Stop & Shop in the Watchung Square Mall.
Family members said he also had planned to begin classes at Union County College in the fall before he became the first homicide victim in Plainfield this year.
In addition to the murder charge, Long was charged with the Dec. 24 attempted murder of another Plainfield resident, Kyle Brooks. Long fired a handgun at Brooks that day near the corner of Berckman and East Second streets, police said.
An officer at Somerset County Jail said Long was being held on $15,000 bail for the original charges against him, conspiracy and possession of a controlled dangerous substance. But court papers from Union County ordered him held without bail on the additional counts.
Plainfield police Chief Edward Santiago credited Detective John Furda and a Union County Prosecutor's Office investigator, Jorge Jimenez, for uncovering evidence that led to the charges against Long.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060520/NEWS/605200306
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Friday, May 19, 2006
Eminent Domain - Ledger - Tighter eminent-domain controls urged
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Tighter eminent-domain controls urged
Public advocate asks legislators to make seizures of private property for public use harder, more transparent
Friday, May 19, 2006
BY STEVE CHAMBERS
Star-Ledger Staff
In a biting critique of the state's redevelopment law, Public Advo cate Ronald Chen yesterday asked lawmakers to rein in what has become a widespread practice of seiz ing private homes and businesses to further private development projects.
Chen's suggestions on the use of eminent domain by local governments would make the process more transparent and difficult to manipulate by campaign contributors. But they would first have to find their way into law.
More than a dozen bills have been introduced to crack down on the practice, but Democratic lawmakers are poised to introduce a new reform bill that they say could be approved next month. It would alter but not eliminate what some supporters argue is an important tool for revitalizing urban areas.
As others have testified in re cent months, however, Chen said constitutional protections for property owners have eroded to the point that property is being seized almost without notice, for little compensation and to enrich developers using campaign contributions to win support.
In what may be his most stringent suggestion, Chen zeroed in on the loose definition for deeming a property "in need of redevelopment," thus making it eligible to be seized.
A 1992 change by the Legislature allowed local officials to seize property that is "underutilized." Chen noted that another change in 2003 made his own suburban home in Berkeley Heights subject to condemnation, because it is located in a state-declared growth area.
"We must restrict the use of eminent domain for private redevelopment to truly blighted areas," Chen told members of the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee. "And we must ensure that the rights of New Jersey families are protected."
Chen did not go so far as to ask for a moratorium, noting that the state's 1947 constitution clearly gave government the right to condemn blighted property for redevelopment.
Michael Cerra, a spokesman for the state League of Municipalities, which supports the practice, said the group agrees that issues of public notice, transparency and compensation need to be addressed.
But he said that removing whole portions of the 1992 definition would require careful study.
"That is a concern of ours," Cerra said.
In recent years, towns increasingly have used condemnation to further development plans. Between July 2003 and August 2005, 64 municipalities declared areas in need of redevelopment, clearing the way for the possible use of eminent domain.
Although Chen's office is independent, Gov. Jon Corzine has allowed him to take the lead on the issue and so far has sat out the legislative debate. During the campaign, he made similarly strong calls for reform, arguing that the use of eminent domain was being abused.
Yesterday, he said he had not yet read Chen's recommendations but added that the advocate did not appear to have "overstepped his bounds."
"I actually probably had a more aggressive position ... in my campaign," Corzine said.
Lawmakers who have been studying the practice -- and get ting an earful from angry property owners -- praised Chen's thorough work. But it was decidedly unclear how much of it will find its way into the reform bill.
Sen. Ronald L. Rice (D-Essex), who unveiled a bill yesterday to reform but not eliminate the prac tice, declined to work with Chen during his fact-finding mission.
Assemblyman John J. Burzi chelli (D-Gloucester), chairman of the commerce committee, said he believed that much of what Chen offered could be absorbed in the upcoming bill, saying he was particularly attuned to his call to protect homeowners. Still, he noted, Chen acknowledged the role that eminent domain can play in redevelopment.
"There is nothing we have heard or seen, even from those most critical, that eminent domain should not remain as a redevelopment tool," he said. "It's all about how it gets triggered, issues of compensation and due process."
Not every lawmaker agrees that that will be enough.
Other Democrats have introduced legislation that would ban the taking of houses for private development.
Assemblyman Mike Panter (D- Monmouth) said Chen did not go far enough, noting that responsible business owners or homeowners could lose their property if neighbors allow theirs to become "blighted."
"It's just fundamentally wrong," Panter said. "People should not be punished for their neighbors' negligence."
Assemblyman Guy Gregg (R- Morris), who praised Chen's work, said voters should be heard on whether to discontinue the prac tice.
"Citizens have no idea that their house can be taken to build a Wal- Mart, but that is what is happening," he said. "I don't have to take a poll to know how that vote would turn out."
Steve Chambers covers land use issues. He may be reached at scham bers@starledger.com or (973) 392-1674.
http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-3/114802035496900.xml&coll=1
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Tighter eminent-domain controls urged
Public advocate asks legislators to make seizures of private property for public use harder, more transparent
Friday, May 19, 2006
BY STEVE CHAMBERS
Star-Ledger Staff
In a biting critique of the state's redevelopment law, Public Advo cate Ronald Chen yesterday asked lawmakers to rein in what has become a widespread practice of seiz ing private homes and businesses to further private development projects.
Chen's suggestions on the use of eminent domain by local governments would make the process more transparent and difficult to manipulate by campaign contributors. But they would first have to find their way into law.
More than a dozen bills have been introduced to crack down on the practice, but Democratic lawmakers are poised to introduce a new reform bill that they say could be approved next month. It would alter but not eliminate what some supporters argue is an important tool for revitalizing urban areas.
As others have testified in re cent months, however, Chen said constitutional protections for property owners have eroded to the point that property is being seized almost without notice, for little compensation and to enrich developers using campaign contributions to win support.
In what may be his most stringent suggestion, Chen zeroed in on the loose definition for deeming a property "in need of redevelopment," thus making it eligible to be seized.
A 1992 change by the Legislature allowed local officials to seize property that is "underutilized." Chen noted that another change in 2003 made his own suburban home in Berkeley Heights subject to condemnation, because it is located in a state-declared growth area.
"We must restrict the use of eminent domain for private redevelopment to truly blighted areas," Chen told members of the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee. "And we must ensure that the rights of New Jersey families are protected."
Chen did not go so far as to ask for a moratorium, noting that the state's 1947 constitution clearly gave government the right to condemn blighted property for redevelopment.
Michael Cerra, a spokesman for the state League of Municipalities, which supports the practice, said the group agrees that issues of public notice, transparency and compensation need to be addressed.
But he said that removing whole portions of the 1992 definition would require careful study.
"That is a concern of ours," Cerra said.
In recent years, towns increasingly have used condemnation to further development plans. Between July 2003 and August 2005, 64 municipalities declared areas in need of redevelopment, clearing the way for the possible use of eminent domain.
Although Chen's office is independent, Gov. Jon Corzine has allowed him to take the lead on the issue and so far has sat out the legislative debate. During the campaign, he made similarly strong calls for reform, arguing that the use of eminent domain was being abused.
Yesterday, he said he had not yet read Chen's recommendations but added that the advocate did not appear to have "overstepped his bounds."
"I actually probably had a more aggressive position ... in my campaign," Corzine said.
Lawmakers who have been studying the practice -- and get ting an earful from angry property owners -- praised Chen's thorough work. But it was decidedly unclear how much of it will find its way into the reform bill.
Sen. Ronald L. Rice (D-Essex), who unveiled a bill yesterday to reform but not eliminate the prac tice, declined to work with Chen during his fact-finding mission.
Assemblyman John J. Burzi chelli (D-Gloucester), chairman of the commerce committee, said he believed that much of what Chen offered could be absorbed in the upcoming bill, saying he was particularly attuned to his call to protect homeowners. Still, he noted, Chen acknowledged the role that eminent domain can play in redevelopment.
"There is nothing we have heard or seen, even from those most critical, that eminent domain should not remain as a redevelopment tool," he said. "It's all about how it gets triggered, issues of compensation and due process."
Not every lawmaker agrees that that will be enough.
Other Democrats have introduced legislation that would ban the taking of houses for private development.
Assemblyman Mike Panter (D- Monmouth) said Chen did not go far enough, noting that responsible business owners or homeowners could lose their property if neighbors allow theirs to become "blighted."
"It's just fundamentally wrong," Panter said. "People should not be punished for their neighbors' negligence."
Assemblyman Guy Gregg (R- Morris), who praised Chen's work, said voters should be heard on whether to discontinue the prac tice.
"Citizens have no idea that their house can be taken to build a Wal- Mart, but that is what is happening," he said. "I don't have to take a poll to know how that vote would turn out."
Steve Chambers covers land use issues. He may be reached at scham bers@starledger.com or (973) 392-1674.
http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-3/114802035496900.xml&coll=1
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Eminent Domain - NY Times - Public Advocate Says Municipalities Have Too Much Leeway to Seize Land
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Published in the New York Times, Friday, May 19, 2006
May 19, 2006
New Jersey Public Advocate Says Municipalities Have Too Much Leeway to Seize Land
By DAVID W. CHEN
TRENTON, May 18 — New Jersey's laws allowing local governments to use eminent domain for private redevelopment are so broad that they are prone to misuse and often fail to protect the people and businesses that are displaced, according to a study released on Thursday by the state's public advocate.
Wading into one of the most contentious issues in the country, the public advocate, Ronald K. Chen, said that the use of municipal condemnation power has "expanded to the point where it provides virtually no limitation on taking private property for redevelopment, in apparent violation of the constitutional intent to limit this power." The law has become so permissive that no other state gives local government more leeway to interpret what constitutes a "blighted area," the legal basis upon which property can be taken, the report found.
Under New Jersey's eminent domain laws, even Drumthwacket, the governor's residence in Princeton, could be subject to eminent domain, the report said.
Eminent domain has unnerved residents across America ever since a ruling by the United States Supreme Court last June upholding the authority of New London, Conn., to condemn older homes near the Thames River to make way for a private development. (So far, no people have been forced from their homes.)
But almost immediately, an unlikely collection of liberal urban groups and conservative property-rights organizations attacked the ruling. And since then, lawmakers in several states have passed laws or proposed ballot initiatives, aiming to curb the power of eminent domain.
For instance, new laws in six states — Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Wisconsin — tighten the definition of blight. And bills in Indiana, Kansas and Michigan would require more compensation for those displaced by eminent domain, said Larry Morandi, director of state policy research for the National Conference of State Legislatures.
New Jersey has always attracted an inordinate amount of attention because it is, according to Dana Berliner, a lawyer with the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit law firm in Washington, one of the worst "abusers" of eminent domain. But Thursday's report was particularly valuable and unusual, Ms. Berliner and other experts said, because it came from a state's executive branch and not a legislative body.
"I think the public advocate — particularly on points about how redevelopment plans and blight are designated under New Jersey's laws — was spot on," Ms. Berliner said. "Unless you're already in that system, and benefit from that system, anyone outside would say, 'What on earth is going on in New Jersey?' "
The report is careful not to embrace the sentiment that eminent domain for any private development should be abandoned, as was the case with a recent law passed in South Dakota. Instead, it states that "redevelopment of truly blighted areas is a legitimate public purpose that serves the greater good by helping revitalize communities and create more opportunities for residents."
But in often blunt language throughout the report, Mr. Chen found that the state's eminent domain laws were so poorly worded that they gave insufficient notice to affected property owners and offered few chances for appeal or public input. The report also found that the laws often provided so little compensation to owners of condemned properties that they were priced out of their communities.
In particular, the report cited a 1992 law as being instrumental in making it easier to use eminent domain, by virtue of a few changes in the definition of "blight."
So among other recommendations, the report urged the Legislature to revise or update some of those definitions and strengthen ethics rules to ensure that government officials working on a redevelopment project, and those working for them, do not benefit personally. It also urged the Legislature to give property owners more time to appeal, and more money for being displaced.
When asked about the report, Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who criticized Supreme Court decision last year during his campaign for governor, said he had not read the full report. But he expressed confidence in Mr. Chen, whom he chose to lead the new office.
"At least on the early briefings that I had that were leading up to the publication of the report, it didn't seem like he was overstepping the line," he said. "But I haven't read this report and the specifics of how it gets translated into specific actions."
After the report's release, Mr. Chen discussed it before the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee. He got a warm reception even when he gave technical responses.
"I'm a professor, not a lawyer — I give you an A," said Assemblywoman Amy H. Handlin, a Republican from Monmouth County.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/19/nyregion/19domain.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the New York Times, Friday, May 19, 2006
May 19, 2006
New Jersey Public Advocate Says Municipalities Have Too Much Leeway to Seize Land
By DAVID W. CHEN
TRENTON, May 18 — New Jersey's laws allowing local governments to use eminent domain for private redevelopment are so broad that they are prone to misuse and often fail to protect the people and businesses that are displaced, according to a study released on Thursday by the state's public advocate.
Wading into one of the most contentious issues in the country, the public advocate, Ronald K. Chen, said that the use of municipal condemnation power has "expanded to the point where it provides virtually no limitation on taking private property for redevelopment, in apparent violation of the constitutional intent to limit this power." The law has become so permissive that no other state gives local government more leeway to interpret what constitutes a "blighted area," the legal basis upon which property can be taken, the report found.
Under New Jersey's eminent domain laws, even Drumthwacket, the governor's residence in Princeton, could be subject to eminent domain, the report said.
Eminent domain has unnerved residents across America ever since a ruling by the United States Supreme Court last June upholding the authority of New London, Conn., to condemn older homes near the Thames River to make way for a private development. (So far, no people have been forced from their homes.)
But almost immediately, an unlikely collection of liberal urban groups and conservative property-rights organizations attacked the ruling. And since then, lawmakers in several states have passed laws or proposed ballot initiatives, aiming to curb the power of eminent domain.
For instance, new laws in six states — Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Wisconsin — tighten the definition of blight. And bills in Indiana, Kansas and Michigan would require more compensation for those displaced by eminent domain, said Larry Morandi, director of state policy research for the National Conference of State Legislatures.
New Jersey has always attracted an inordinate amount of attention because it is, according to Dana Berliner, a lawyer with the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit law firm in Washington, one of the worst "abusers" of eminent domain. But Thursday's report was particularly valuable and unusual, Ms. Berliner and other experts said, because it came from a state's executive branch and not a legislative body.
"I think the public advocate — particularly on points about how redevelopment plans and blight are designated under New Jersey's laws — was spot on," Ms. Berliner said. "Unless you're already in that system, and benefit from that system, anyone outside would say, 'What on earth is going on in New Jersey?' "
The report is careful not to embrace the sentiment that eminent domain for any private development should be abandoned, as was the case with a recent law passed in South Dakota. Instead, it states that "redevelopment of truly blighted areas is a legitimate public purpose that serves the greater good by helping revitalize communities and create more opportunities for residents."
But in often blunt language throughout the report, Mr. Chen found that the state's eminent domain laws were so poorly worded that they gave insufficient notice to affected property owners and offered few chances for appeal or public input. The report also found that the laws often provided so little compensation to owners of condemned properties that they were priced out of their communities.
In particular, the report cited a 1992 law as being instrumental in making it easier to use eminent domain, by virtue of a few changes in the definition of "blight."
So among other recommendations, the report urged the Legislature to revise or update some of those definitions and strengthen ethics rules to ensure that government officials working on a redevelopment project, and those working for them, do not benefit personally. It also urged the Legislature to give property owners more time to appeal, and more money for being displaced.
When asked about the report, Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who criticized Supreme Court decision last year during his campaign for governor, said he had not read the full report. But he expressed confidence in Mr. Chen, whom he chose to lead the new office.
"At least on the early briefings that I had that were leading up to the publication of the report, it didn't seem like he was overstepping the line," he said. "But I haven't read this report and the specifics of how it gets translated into specific actions."
After the report's release, Mr. Chen discussed it before the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee. He got a warm reception even when he gave technical responses.
"I'm a professor, not a lawyer — I give you an A," said Assemblywoman Amy H. Handlin, a Republican from Monmouth County.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/19/nyregion/19domain.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Eminent Domain - Courier - Public advocate urges eminent domain reforms
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Published in the Courier News, Friday, May 19, 2006
Public advocate urges eminent domain reforms
By GREGORY J. VOLPE
Gannett State Bureau
TRENTON -- The state needs to make it tougher for government to use eminent domain for redevelopment and require fairer compensation for those whose land is taken, state Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen said in a report released Thursday.
The report -- Chen's first charge as the state's first public advocate in more than a decade -- says current eminent domain laws "do not adequately protect the rights of tenants and property owners."
The way the law reads now, Chen said, even his Berkeley Heights home could be subject to eminent domain if township officials decided they get could more taxable properties.
The report recommended several legislative changes, including:
-- More specific and objective definitions of the term "blighted";
-- Clearly written notice to residents who may lose their land;
-- An appeal process for residents whose land is deemed blighted;
Chen released his report online, then presented it before the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee, which has been holding hearings this session on whether to change redevelopment laws.
Assemblyman John Burzichelli, D-Paulsboro, the committee chairman, said he expected to introduce a bill as soon as next week.
"I think you'll see a theme of what he talked about reflected in the bill," Burzichelli said.
Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who was only briefed on the report, said he "probably had a more aggressive position" during the campaign than Chen advocates. He proposed limiting eminent domain to rare and exceptional circumstances.
Michelle Bobrow, a resident in Long Branch whose home has been threatened by eminent domain for a decade, was pleased with Chen and lawmakers.
"I think there is hope," Bobrow said. "I certainly am optimistic that the process is moving fast enough to save my home and my neighbors' homes."
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060519/NEWS03/605190310/1007
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Published in the Courier News, Friday, May 19, 2006
Public advocate urges eminent domain reforms
By GREGORY J. VOLPE
Gannett State Bureau
TRENTON -- The state needs to make it tougher for government to use eminent domain for redevelopment and require fairer compensation for those whose land is taken, state Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen said in a report released Thursday.
The report -- Chen's first charge as the state's first public advocate in more than a decade -- says current eminent domain laws "do not adequately protect the rights of tenants and property owners."
The way the law reads now, Chen said, even his Berkeley Heights home could be subject to eminent domain if township officials decided they get could more taxable properties.
The report recommended several legislative changes, including:
-- More specific and objective definitions of the term "blighted";
-- Clearly written notice to residents who may lose their land;
-- An appeal process for residents whose land is deemed blighted;
Chen released his report online, then presented it before the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee, which has been holding hearings this session on whether to change redevelopment laws.
Assemblyman John Burzichelli, D-Paulsboro, the committee chairman, said he expected to introduce a bill as soon as next week.
"I think you'll see a theme of what he talked about reflected in the bill," Burzichelli said.
Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who was only briefed on the report, said he "probably had a more aggressive position" during the campaign than Chen advocates. He proposed limiting eminent domain to rare and exceptional circumstances.
Michelle Bobrow, a resident in Long Branch whose home has been threatened by eminent domain for a decade, was pleased with Chen and lawmakers.
"I think there is hope," Bobrow said. "I certainly am optimistic that the process is moving fast enough to save my home and my neighbors' homes."
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060519/NEWS03/605190310/1007
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Eminent Domain - AP - State's eminent domain laws need reform, public advocate says
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State's eminent domain laws need reform, public advocate says
By BETH DeFALCO
Associated Press Writer
Thursday, May 18, 2006, 5:47 PM EDT
TRENTON, N.J. -- New Jersey's laws allowing government to take land for private redevelopment don't adequately protect the rights of tenants and property owners, the state's public advocate said Thursday.
"We must ensure the rights of New Jersey families are protected," Public Advocate Ronald Chen told the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee, adding that the state's system for using eminent domain for private redevelopment needs serious reform.
Earlier Thursday, Chen's office issued a report commissioned in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that gave wide latitude to local governments wanting to use eminent domain _ their power to seize private property _ to promote economic development.
Since the ruling, many states have tried to restrict such powers. South Dakota has outlawed the use of eminent domain for private redevelopment altogether, the report said.
While the report acknowledged the need for eminent domain to foster economic revitalization, it cautioned that the opportunities for misuse, abuse and injustice are greater "if the process is not transparent, used rarely and only in very specific circumstances."
"The use of eminent domain must be for redevelopment and must be limited to truly blighted areas," Chen said.
Some recommendations the advocate's office offered include:
_Narrowly tailoring qualifications to designate an area as blighted, which triggers the ability to use eminent domain.
_Placing on municipalities the burden of proving an area is blighted, opposed to residents having to prove the government's actions were wrong.
_Giving more notice to tenants and property owners affected by eminent domain. Currently, tenants are not entitled to any notice at all.
_Offering public participation when making the decision to seize a property.
_Allowing property owners more time to appeal.
_Allowing tenants, not just property owners, to participate in the redevelopment process.
_Paying homeowners who lose their property true market value or the replacement value of the home.
"Under current laws, a family can have its property taken but the compensation it receives may not be enough to allow that family to ever own a house in their community again," Chen said. "This is unconscionable."
Chen suggested that when low-income tenants are placed in an apartment that costs more than 30 percent of their gross income, the municipality or developer provide rental assistance for up to five years.
Timothy P. Duggan, a Princeton attorney who represents property and business owners in eminent domain disputes, commended the advocate's report but said more changes are needed, especially for business tenants. Currently, the government will pay to move them, but offers no additional assistance to make sure the business survives in its new location.
"In New Jersey, you don't get paid for the value of business, things like higher rent or the impact the move has had on your customer base," Duggan said.
Sen. Ronald Rice, chairman of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, said he was drafting legislation to establish "fair guidelines" for deciding eminent domain cases.
"Eminent domain is crucial for the redevelopment of an area, but we need to make changes to avoid abuse," said Rice, D-Essex.
Rice also said he plans to hold public hearings on eminent domain later this month and in June.
___P>
On the Net: Advocate's Report: www.state.nj.us/publicadvocate/issues
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
State's eminent domain laws need reform, public advocate says
By BETH DeFALCO
Associated Press Writer
Thursday, May 18, 2006, 5:47 PM EDT
TRENTON, N.J. -- New Jersey's laws allowing government to take land for private redevelopment don't adequately protect the rights of tenants and property owners, the state's public advocate said Thursday.
"We must ensure the rights of New Jersey families are protected," Public Advocate Ronald Chen told the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee, adding that the state's system for using eminent domain for private redevelopment needs serious reform.
Earlier Thursday, Chen's office issued a report commissioned in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that gave wide latitude to local governments wanting to use eminent domain _ their power to seize private property _ to promote economic development.
Since the ruling, many states have tried to restrict such powers. South Dakota has outlawed the use of eminent domain for private redevelopment altogether, the report said.
While the report acknowledged the need for eminent domain to foster economic revitalization, it cautioned that the opportunities for misuse, abuse and injustice are greater "if the process is not transparent, used rarely and only in very specific circumstances."
"The use of eminent domain must be for redevelopment and must be limited to truly blighted areas," Chen said.
Some recommendations the advocate's office offered include:
_Narrowly tailoring qualifications to designate an area as blighted, which triggers the ability to use eminent domain.
_Placing on municipalities the burden of proving an area is blighted, opposed to residents having to prove the government's actions were wrong.
_Giving more notice to tenants and property owners affected by eminent domain. Currently, tenants are not entitled to any notice at all.
_Offering public participation when making the decision to seize a property.
_Allowing property owners more time to appeal.
_Allowing tenants, not just property owners, to participate in the redevelopment process.
_Paying homeowners who lose their property true market value or the replacement value of the home.
"Under current laws, a family can have its property taken but the compensation it receives may not be enough to allow that family to ever own a house in their community again," Chen said. "This is unconscionable."
Chen suggested that when low-income tenants are placed in an apartment that costs more than 30 percent of their gross income, the municipality or developer provide rental assistance for up to five years.
Timothy P. Duggan, a Princeton attorney who represents property and business owners in eminent domain disputes, commended the advocate's report but said more changes are needed, especially for business tenants. Currently, the government will pay to move them, but offers no additional assistance to make sure the business survives in its new location.
"In New Jersey, you don't get paid for the value of business, things like higher rent or the impact the move has had on your customer base," Duggan said.
Sen. Ronald Rice, chairman of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, said he was drafting legislation to establish "fair guidelines" for deciding eminent domain cases.
"Eminent domain is crucial for the redevelopment of an area, but we need to make changes to avoid abuse," said Rice, D-Essex.
Rice also said he plans to hold public hearings on eminent domain later this month and in June.
___P>
On the Net: Advocate's Report: www.state.nj.us/publicadvocate/issues
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Thursday, May 18, 2006
UEZ - AP- Lawmakers Eye UEZ Funds in Budget Crunch
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[Third item]
Lawmakers Eye UEZ Funds in Budget Crunch
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) _ Assembly legislators scrambling to find money to avoid tax increases and program cuts on Thursday eyed $140 million in surplus money held by a program meant to help depressed neighborhoods.
Legislators indicated they might seek to use that money next fiscal year to help balance state spending. Gov. Jon S. Corzine's $31 billion budget plan calls for $2.5 billion in program cuts and $1.9 billion in tax increases to close a deficit that could be as much as $5 billion.
Lawmakers were interested to learn from state commerce officials that the state Urban Enterprise Zone Program has $140 million that hasn't been designated for any projects.
"There's $140 million sitting there," said Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, a Union City Democrat. "Don't spend any more until we look at it."
The state has 32 zones in which businesses are allowed to charge a 3 percent sales tax, rather than the full 6 percent. Under the 23-year-old program, meant to help revive economically distressed areas, money earned within the zones from sales taxes is returned to municipalities for redevelopment. "
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
[Third item]
Lawmakers Eye UEZ Funds in Budget Crunch
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) _ Assembly legislators scrambling to find money to avoid tax increases and program cuts on Thursday eyed $140 million in surplus money held by a program meant to help depressed neighborhoods.
Legislators indicated they might seek to use that money next fiscal year to help balance state spending. Gov. Jon S. Corzine's $31 billion budget plan calls for $2.5 billion in program cuts and $1.9 billion in tax increases to close a deficit that could be as much as $5 billion.
Lawmakers were interested to learn from state commerce officials that the state Urban Enterprise Zone Program has $140 million that hasn't been designated for any projects.
"There's $140 million sitting there," said Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, a Union City Democrat. "Don't spend any more until we look at it."
The state has 32 zones in which businesses are allowed to charge a 3 percent sales tax, rather than the full 6 percent. Under the 23-year-old program, meant to help revive economically distressed areas, money earned within the zones from sales taxes is returned to municipalities for redevelopment. "
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
2006 NJ Senate Race - Politics NJ - Menendez accuses Kean of flip-flop on immigration
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Thursday, May 18, 2006
Menendez accuses Kean of flip-flop on immigration
By BILL ALBERS
PoliticsNJ.com
MAY 18- A press conference for State Sen. Thomas H. Kean, Jr. held in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty in Jersey City yesterday morning sparked an intense debate on the issue of immigration between the Republican State Senator and his opponent, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez.
Kean set out a far more conservative course at this press conference than one held last week at the State House on May 8th. Following that initial event, The Record reported that, "Kean, Menendez think alike on immigration."
This time, however, there was no mistaking the difference between the candidates.
"Bob Menendez has said he's working to support a path to citizenship for those who have broken the law and are here illegally," said Kean during the press conference. "I think that's wrong."
When asked if he would support deportation for the estimated 11,000,000 illegal immigrants in the United States, Senator Kean stated that, "I think that should be included in the bill, yes."
Kean also reiterated support for 'smart fencing', an increase in the number of border agents, and an increase in the number of detention facilities.
Shortly after the press conference was over, the Kean and Menendez campaigns opened fire on each other, accusing each other of flip-flopping on the issue of immigration.
"Tom Kean, Jr. either doesn't believe anything on immigration, or else he's willing to say anything to get elected," said Brian Fallon, Menendez's campaign spokesman, in a statement released earlier today.
"He won't debate his primary opponent because he's too busy debating himself."
Fallon pointed back to Kean's previous statements on immigration, where the State Senator said "those who are here illegally, they will have an incentive to come out of the shadows." He also pointed out that Kean had opposed felony charges for illegal immigrants on May 8th, but today stated, "I think we need to go more towards the House position." Many have characterized the bill that passed the House as a "criminalization" of illegal immigration.
Kean's spokeswoman, Jill Hazelbaker, categorically denied that Senator Kean was 'flip flopping' on the issue.
"He said it last week and said it again today," claimed Hazelbaker. "Unlike Senator Menendez, Tom does not support a path to citizenship for those who are here illegally."
Hazelbaker fired back at the Menendez campaign for claiming to support immigration reform on the campaign trail, but voting against immigration reform in Congress.
"There's a Washington Bob and a New Jersey Bob; a Senator Bob and a candidate Bob," charged Hazelbaker. "Just today, he voted against increasing the amount of fencing and improving vehicle barriers installed along the southwest border of the United States."
"That kind of phony leadership is what New Jersey doesn't need," Hazelbaker charged.
Menendez spokesman Matt Miller dismissed the charge.
"One thing about Bob Menendez is that when he takes a position, you can count on him to stand by it and not change his position in a week," Miller fired back.
David Rebovich, Managing Director of the Rider Institute for New Jersey Politics, theorized that Kean changed his position because immigration could be a valuable wedge issue in both the November general election and the June primary.
"He seems to have adopted a position consistent with a good number of Americans, and especially Republican conservatives," said Rebovich. "Still, New Jersey is a gateway state, and I wonder if a really hard-line position would work against him."
John Ginty, Kean's conservative primary opponent, believes that immigration will be a big issue this year, especially with his fellow Republicans.
"This is the one subject that has got more Republicans upset with the Bush administration," says Ginty.
Ginty, who supports construction of a 700-mile fence across the U.S. border and opposes Kean's support of a guest worker provision, does applauds his fellow Republican for coming around on the issue of illegal immigration.
"I'm happy that (Kean), as a major candidate, has come around to a position that's against amnesty," Ginty said.
Still, the Bergen County data analyst is cautious not to pat his opponent on the back too much after criticizing him last week for supporting amnesty.
"Does Kean really believe what he's saying today?" inquired Ginty. "What other parts of his border security plan are subject to change?"
The Kean campaign has so far declined to debate Ginty on the issue, reiterating that his opponent in this race is Senator Menendez, not Ginty.
http://www.politicsnj.com/default0406.asp
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Menendez accuses Kean of flip-flop on immigration
By BILL ALBERS
PoliticsNJ.com
MAY 18- A press conference for State Sen. Thomas H. Kean, Jr. held in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty in Jersey City yesterday morning sparked an intense debate on the issue of immigration between the Republican State Senator and his opponent, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez.
Kean set out a far more conservative course at this press conference than one held last week at the State House on May 8th. Following that initial event, The Record reported that, "Kean, Menendez think alike on immigration."
This time, however, there was no mistaking the difference between the candidates.
"Bob Menendez has said he's working to support a path to citizenship for those who have broken the law and are here illegally," said Kean during the press conference. "I think that's wrong."
When asked if he would support deportation for the estimated 11,000,000 illegal immigrants in the United States, Senator Kean stated that, "I think that should be included in the bill, yes."
Kean also reiterated support for 'smart fencing', an increase in the number of border agents, and an increase in the number of detention facilities.
Shortly after the press conference was over, the Kean and Menendez campaigns opened fire on each other, accusing each other of flip-flopping on the issue of immigration.
"Tom Kean, Jr. either doesn't believe anything on immigration, or else he's willing to say anything to get elected," said Brian Fallon, Menendez's campaign spokesman, in a statement released earlier today.
"He won't debate his primary opponent because he's too busy debating himself."
Fallon pointed back to Kean's previous statements on immigration, where the State Senator said "those who are here illegally, they will have an incentive to come out of the shadows." He also pointed out that Kean had opposed felony charges for illegal immigrants on May 8th, but today stated, "I think we need to go more towards the House position." Many have characterized the bill that passed the House as a "criminalization" of illegal immigration.
Kean's spokeswoman, Jill Hazelbaker, categorically denied that Senator Kean was 'flip flopping' on the issue.
"He said it last week and said it again today," claimed Hazelbaker. "Unlike Senator Menendez, Tom does not support a path to citizenship for those who are here illegally."
Hazelbaker fired back at the Menendez campaign for claiming to support immigration reform on the campaign trail, but voting against immigration reform in Congress.
"There's a Washington Bob and a New Jersey Bob; a Senator Bob and a candidate Bob," charged Hazelbaker. "Just today, he voted against increasing the amount of fencing and improving vehicle barriers installed along the southwest border of the United States."
"That kind of phony leadership is what New Jersey doesn't need," Hazelbaker charged.
Menendez spokesman Matt Miller dismissed the charge.
"One thing about Bob Menendez is that when he takes a position, you can count on him to stand by it and not change his position in a week," Miller fired back.
David Rebovich, Managing Director of the Rider Institute for New Jersey Politics, theorized that Kean changed his position because immigration could be a valuable wedge issue in both the November general election and the June primary.
"He seems to have adopted a position consistent with a good number of Americans, and especially Republican conservatives," said Rebovich. "Still, New Jersey is a gateway state, and I wonder if a really hard-line position would work against him."
John Ginty, Kean's conservative primary opponent, believes that immigration will be a big issue this year, especially with his fellow Republicans.
"This is the one subject that has got more Republicans upset with the Bush administration," says Ginty.
Ginty, who supports construction of a 700-mile fence across the U.S. border and opposes Kean's support of a guest worker provision, does applauds his fellow Republican for coming around on the issue of illegal immigration.
"I'm happy that (Kean), as a major candidate, has come around to a position that's against amnesty," Ginty said.
Still, the Bergen County data analyst is cautious not to pat his opponent on the back too much after criticizing him last week for supporting amnesty.
"Does Kean really believe what he's saying today?" inquired Ginty. "What other parts of his border security plan are subject to change?"
The Kean campaign has so far declined to debate Ginty on the issue, reiterating that his opponent in this race is Senator Menendez, not Ginty.
http://www.politicsnj.com/default0406.asp
(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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