Newly-elected Committeeman Nicholas Williams (L) poses with re-elected incumbent Committeeman Dr. Michael Brantley. (source: Candidates web site) Williams lives in Neptune, but he is a member of the Ocean Grove Citizens Patrol, so he knows how to spot trouble. We have high hopes for him. Perhaps Dr. Brantley will pay more attention to OG issues in 2016. Internet photo.
In a recent Blogfinger poll, 88% of respondents said that they did not trust the Neptune Township Committee to do what is fair and just for Ocean Grove. 310 respondents voted. 85% said No; 9% said Yes; the rest were unsure.
In January there will be a new Neptune Township Committee. Returning are Dr. Michael Brantley (newly re-elected), Kevin McMillan (incumbent and new Mayor) and Randy Bishop (incumbent.) Taking the place of Mary Beth Jahn is Nicholas Williams (newly elected.) We don’t know yet who will take the place of Eric Houghtaling.
Mary Beth Jahn was not nominated to run again by the Monmouth County Democrats despite the protests of Randy Bishop. Eric Houghtaling will vacate his seat on January 12, as he will move up to the Assembly in Trenton.
Randy Bishop may soon be vacating his seat voluntarily, but there is no official word about that.
In 2016, the Committee will remain all Democratic. Neptune used to be solidly Republican. Now it is the most Democratic town in Monmouth County. Some say that party politics are not important in local elections, but don’t believe it. If you look at the Facebook page of Brantley and Williams, after winning, they said, “Democratic residents of Neptune. This was a victory for you.”
Hopefully it will be a victory for all of us.
At Blogfinger our New Year wish is that the newly reshuffled Committee, headed by a new Mayor, will take a fresh look at the way Ocean Grove citizens have been treated with regards to our historic designations, fair and equal zoning applications, out-of-control property taxes, parking standards, and protection against being overrun by condo-building developers.
We have been especially worried about how the North End Redevelopment is being handled. How about zoning all of OG for single family. And how about cancelling the redevelopment zone at the North End.
Also, many of us believe that the current application for an RISS exemption in Trenton will jeopardize our town’s future. Why not trash that application to the SIAB and start enforcing the State parking law in the Grove.
We want our Committee to represent us in a fair and transparent manner. Hopefully that poll, when repeated in 2016, will show a better relationship between the Committee and Ocean Grove.
We also want to remind the Committee that the OGHOA does not represent most Grovers, so the Committee needs to do more outreach in the Grove to judge what our citizens prefer. Don’t wait for the citizens to come to you. Let’s reach out of the box.
–Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger
THE SHIRELLES:
When Mr. Williams takes office he will be taking an oath to uphold the laws of the state. So far each of these committee persons have refused to uphold that oath.
I doubt that Mr. Williams will be any different.
As a service to the people of Ocean Grove it would be nice to have that oath printed on your site to remind each of the Committee people that their duty is to uphold the laws of the State and to enforce those laws, and that includes zoning laws—–for the protection of all the people in Neptune equally.