Eatontown Candidates Debate the Issues

The Woodmere Civic Association brought together Eatontown's four candidates running for two open seats on the borough council in the upcoming election for a lively evening of discussing some of the larger issues facing the borough on Oct. 27.

Moderated by resident Bob English at , the Candidates' Night gave the audience of about 20 people the opportunity to hear where each prospective council person stands on topics like the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth and the acquisition of Malette Hall.

The Democratic Candidates are Al Baginsky and Janice Kroposky who are running against Republican incumbants Dennis Connelly and Mark Regan.

For those reluctant to brave last Thursday's rainy weather to hear the candidates speak, Patch battled the elements and brings you highlights of candidates' answers to the questions posed by English (in bold):

What have you done or what can you or will you do to aid in a smooth rapid transition of Fort Monmouth from use as a military base to the implementation of the reuse and redevelopment plan?  What do you see the role of a council person as in that process?

Dennis Connelly: The problem is, there's no good communication coming from Mayor Gerald Tarantolo regarding movement of redeveloping the property by the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA), which the mayor is a member of, says Connelly. The councilman says that some of the original plans for the fort, like a hotel and conference center, "just can't exist." Connelly says, "It's a Disney World plan."

Al Baginsky: The mayor is not at liberty to share much of the FMERA information due to legal matters, Baginsky says. Baginsky says that FMERA is doing things "behind the scenes," including an alleged transfer of a fort building reported by the Asbury Park Press last week to Brookdale Community College for $1.

Janice Kroposky: After knocking on "hundreds of doors" in the course of the campaign, Kroposky says that residents told her the redevelopment of the fort is "at the top of their list." Her role as a council member would be to "find out what people want and pass it along," and Kroposky says that the Brookdale acquisition of Armstrong Hall "sets an important precedent."

The mayor has proposed seeking to have the Army give Eatontown a gift of a 50,000-square-foot building on the fort property called Mallette Hall.  The mayor has stated that the reason for seeking it as a gift would be as a sort of payback to the borough for educating thousands of military students over the years at a much greater cost that the aid the was provided by the army.   The council voted along party lines for a feasibility study to determine whether Mallatte Hall could be a replacement for the borough's current municipal complex.  There is also an amphitheater and auditorium included with Mallette Hall.  I will give everyone minutes to tell the audience why seeking MH as a gift and than moving some or all of functions current done at the Municipal Complex is a  is a good idea or bad idea or something in between.

Janice Kroposky: When she was 17, Kropsoky's grandmother wanted to give her an old Chevette to drive for free but her parents insisted she take the vehicle to a mechanic first to determine if it was worth keeping. Kroposky compares that lesson, in which she ended up not keeping the car, with the borough's need to explore the feasilbility of using Mallette Hall for municipal purposes through research and study of data.

Mark Regan: Points out that if the borough were to abandon its current municipal building, "that would be another empty building on Broad Street." Regan says, "That's supposed to be our Main Street." Regan says that regardless of the pending study of Mallette Hall, he will vote "no" on the issue.

Al Baginsky: Notes that Tinton Falls, Rumson and West Long Branch all had municipal space issues, which they solved through the bonding of "millions" to build new facilities.

Dennis Connelly: Rejects the belief that there is a space issue. Connelly says that some municipal departments are cramped while others are not and thinks that the borough is not utilitzing the space that is has to its advantage. Connelly reiterates the request he made to the mayor earlier this year that another FMERA member, other than Tarantolo, come to a council meeting to verify that Eatontown will receive Mallette Hall for $1, as the mayor has said publicly. Connelly does not believe that sharing municipal court services, as has been suggested, is feasible as Tinton Falls and Shrewsbury have recently built their own new facilities. "It's not a solution," says Connelly of Mallette Hall. "It's too much money."

Old Orchard: Approximately two years ago a proposal was made before borough council that would have necessitated a change in the zoning on the Old Orchard property.  The current zoning allows for small scale development such as for recreation and single family homes.  What was proposed and ultimately rejected by council included 535,000 square feet of retail space and 704 residential units.  In the future, what would you consider to be a reasonable developmental proposal for the Old Orchard property that you could support?

Mark Regan: Is not willing to change the zoning in the future. Says that the property's neighbors does not want the increased traffic.

Al Baginsky: Supports bringing ratables to the borough and would encourage a "green belt" used to surround the area and create a buffer with surrounding neighborhoods.

Dennis Connelly: "The people who surround the golf course only want a golf course," says Connelly of his support for their fight against the larger development. He says in a recent meeting, the mayor told potential developers that they would have to "spoon feed the people" plans for new development.

Janice Kroposky: Is concerned about development at the end of her dead end street that backs up to the fort and understands how Old Orchard's neighbors must feel.

Of interest to residents of Woodmere is that fact that in 2005 after years of litigation (at a cost to the borough of over $500,000) a settlement agreement was reached with the owners of the former Mr. Bees driving range property which stated firm parameters as to how the property could be developed in the future.  The judge overseeing the settlement did contact representatives of the WCA to make sure that residents were okay with the settlement.  Of special interest to the residents of Woodmere was a clause in the agreement which stated that the developer would not seek to have left turn access from the property onto Weston Place and that it would only seek a right turn egress from the property, which is what is in place now.   There was also very specific language in the agreement regarding storm water management.   Both issues where very important to the residents of Woodmere.  The Question for the candidates is are you fully committed to supporting these and the other parts of the settlement agreement that protect the residents of the Woodmere neighborhood?

Al Baginsky: Is not up to date with all of the details regarding the issue as he was not involved in the original matter.

Janice Kroposky: Also not fluent in all of the details but did think that it "comes down to a quality of life issue."

Dennis Connelly: Thinks the council needs to stick to the terms of the original agreement and says the mayor was willing to back down and allow left hand turns to allow vehicles to cut through the neighborhood.

Kroposky: Notes that "the mayor is not running, Al and I are."

Current Borough ordinance does not allow overnight parking on any borough street between the hours of 2 a.m. and 6 a.m.  Under special circumstances, such as driveway repair or an overnight guest, residents can contact the police and advise that there will be cars parked in front of their home overnight. That does not mean you can call every night for the same car though.  Are you in favor in changing the ordinance in anyway or keeping as is?

All four candidates agreed the ordinance should not be modified and English asked jokingly if the event should hug with a "group hug."