Republicans Robinson, Gonzalez Looking To Claim Seats on Eatontown Council

By Christopher Sheldon

Republicans Kevin Gonzalez and Richard "Duke" Robinson are vying for two spots on the Eatontown Council.

They will be challenged by Democratic incumbents Jennifer Piazza and Meir Araman.

Gonzalez served on the council as early as last year and Robinson is a member of other borough groups such as the Eatontown Economic Development Advisory Committee and the Eatontown Recreation Advisory Committee.

We asked the Republican candidates three questions about issues facing the borough and have printed their answers verbatim below.

Robinson:

1) What is your stance on the redevelopment effort of the fort?

I believe that the Borough Council and the residents of Eatontown should have a greater voice in the development of the Fort Property.  Our town’s landmass will grow by 12% once the Fort’s property within our borders is sold to developers or transferred to Eatontown.  This is a tremendous amount of real estate being added to our inventory and we need to have more influence with the marketers of the property, the State-appointed FMERA board.  As it stands, we have minimal input into how the property is being developed - and that needs to change.  We’ve recently learned that the original development plan adopted by FMERA’s predecessor, FMERPA, is probably going to change due to market forces.  Given this turn of events, the process of marketing the Fort’s transition must also change.  My running mate (Kevin Gonzalez) and I have excellent relationships with our three 11th Legislative District representatives (Senator Beck & Assemblywomen Angelini and Casagrande) and our Monmouth County Freeholders.  With these relationships, we can be an important link to the decision makers who hold the fate of the Fort’s redevelopment in their hands.  

Another concern of mine is the extent of the known and unknown environmental contamination on the Fort’s property.  We must hold the responsible parties accountable for the cleanup of the properties.  I have asked the FMERA Director and staff to look into the feasibility of a “mitigation bank” at the Fort and was told by a staff member that they would do so.  In short, a mitigation bank is a way in which land developers, with projects in different parts of NJ that may encroach on or near wetlands, can perform restoration or remediation to lands in another part of the state to compensate for their own development.  The Fort’s contaminated lands along the creeks and river may be a perfect spot for mitigation by others.

2) What steps would you take to attempt to lower the budget in Eatontown?

I would thoroughly review the budget with our administration and our professionals.  If elected, I will take a pro-active role in the budgeting process.  I’ve been involved in project and long term budgeting throughout my career.  I am actively involved in insurance, labor and financial negotiations as a part of my job.  This professional experience would allow me to have relevant and constructive input to those elements of the municipal budgeting process.  Given the manner in which Trenton & Freehold exercise their powers of taxation, municipalities have limited authority over the use of the taxes paid by its community members.  In this fiscal climate, I would again call upon my strong relationships with our three District 11 State Legislators as well as our County Freeholders and will liaise with them and our Borough Administration when it may need assistance or advice at the State and County level.         

Another avenue of cost containment I would pursue is employee benefit costs.  One of the most volatile elements of any budget in the public or private sector is health care.  If elected, I would pursue cost savings measures for our Borough employees’ health care.  Specifically, I would recommend and help research the use of a so-called “healthcare consumerism service”.  A number of these services act as patient/employer advocates who can help Borough our employees make their healthcare choices while working with the employer to contain costs.  A qualified healthcare consumerism service would assure that the standard of care in their health care plan is as good or better for our employees while proactively seeking the best value for the Borough and its taxpayers.  Healthcare consumerism is not new, but it has only become more widely accepted as our healthcare costs have skyrocketed and its delivery system have changed in the past decade.  This is one area of our budget that I feel needs to be scrutinized continually.

 3) What do you believe is the main issue facing Eatontown?

The main issues facing Eatontown are really two intertwined topics: the budget and development.  Having touched on the budget issue previously, I’ll offer my view of the ongoing efforts to develop major property in the Borough.  I that I fully understand the need to balance the quality of life aspects our residents deserve with the importance of a strong and vibrant business community.  As the crossroads of Monmouth County, Eatontown has an enviable location for commercial development.  However, we need to pursue a dual approach to promote our town.  We should underpin our existing business community with a program to market our merchants and commercial properties while touting the desirability of living in Eatontown.  Our opponents speak of “…ratables, ratables, ratables…”, without explaining how to balance community and commercial interests.  Through my service on the Eatontown Economic Development Advisory Committee, I’ve listened to our business owners and understand that they need a streamlined municipal code and reasonable latitude to enhance the desirability of their existing properties.  If we can give our business communities those tools and then get out of their way, I think we will see our vacated commercial real estate start to boom again.  However, if we blindly pursue “ratables” for the sake of ratables, I believe we will dilute the existing commercial spaces and impose undue hardship on our hardworking and existing commercial taxpayers.  Such a headlong rush into developing the few remaining areas of raw land in the Borough without a concerted effort to improve the business environment for our existing businesses is a wasted opportunity. Most importantly, we need to give our residents a feeling that the Borough Council will keep their interests at the forefront before we enact new ordinances or approve new development.

Gonzalez:

1) What is your stance on the redevelopment of The Fort?

We have to be pro-active when dealing with FMERA to make sure that Eatontown is included in every phase of the development discussions. We have already had instances where FMERA has changed their Master Plan to the detriment of Eatontown’s Taxpayers. This cannot happen again. FMERA’s job is to redevelop The Fort with ultimate goal of getting the best return on investment for the Federal Government. The job of the Borough Council is to keep Eatontown a great place to raise a family. Fort Monmouth can be redeveloped in a way that brings wanted rateables into town to lower property taxes, but at the same time, does not impact our quality of life. For almost 3 years, the current leadership on Council has demonstrated an inability to work with FMERA. For the sake of ALL taxpayers in Eatontown, this has to change.

2) What steps would you take to attempt to lower the budget in Eatontown?

My first step would be to (once again) analyze every paid professional who is contracted with the Borough. During the Re-Organization meeting of the Borough Council in January, 2012, I voted against ALL professionals who raised their fees from 2011 through 2012. I would obviously do this again. Next, I would look at every expenditure and weigh it against the “Needs and Wants” of the Borough. I was a vocal AGAINST the acquisition of Mallette Hall and fought hard to save the taxpayers over $15 million for this unnecessary expenditure. In contrast, our opposition is still advocating for its’ acquisition as evidenced on their website.

In short, the only way to lower the budget, is to lower the SPENDING. I was successful with this when I served on Council from 2010 through 2012. This practice is not new to me, as I had to make tough spending choices when Fort Monmouth’s closure affected my business as well.

3) What do you believe is the main issue facing Eatontown?

Quite frankly, there are 2 main issues facing the town that are intertwined in many respects: Redevelopment and Property Taxes. I want to make sure that Fort Monmouth is developed in a way that brings wanted rateables to town to lower property taxes. I am also against any zoning changes to The Old Orchard Property. We need development that DOES NOT impact the quality of life for our residents and their families. There is no need to create new areas of development to compete with the already vacant properties in town. Eatontown has always had a “small town feel” and I will work tirelessly to make sure it stays that way.

I will bring a “business minded philosophy” to the Council. We have seniors on fixed incomes and residents who are raising families and are faced with the challenges of unemployment and underemployment. Residents have enough on their minds and shouldn’t have to worry about their property taxes going up. I pledge that I will watch every penny and make sure Eatontown spends your tax dollars with a “residents’  checkbook” mindset. This is your money, not The Council’s.

You can view the Democrats' responses to the same questions by clicking here.