The Ides of March Are Upon Us, Should Middletown’s Mayor Be Worried?

Caesar:

Who is it in the press that calls on me?

I hear a tongue shriller than all the music

Cry "Caesar!" Speak, Caesar is turn'd to hear.

Soothsayer:

Beware the ides of March.

Caesar:

What man is that?

Brutus:

A soothsayer bids you beware the ides of March.

Julius Caesar Act 1, scene 2

The Ides of March are upon us and I ask the question, should Mayor Scharfenberger or anyone else on the Middletown Township Committee be the slightest bit worried? Well that depends on who turns out for tonight’s Township Committee meeting at Town Hall and whether or not things get ugly, as that just might be the case.

As part of on tonight’s agenda it is expected that the Township Committee will vote on resolution 10-121, which directs CMX Engineering to finalize engineered plans, seek permits and bids for the construction of synthetic turf fields as directed by the Township Committee.

Expected at tonight’s meeting are members of the citizens group SONIC (Save Our Neighborhood's Integrity & Character), representatives from Pop Warner Football and representatives from Middletown Soccer, all of whom are expected to bring numerous members of their groups to Town Hall in order to voice their opposition or support for the planned Lincroft Sports Complex at West Front Street Park and this resolution.

Representatives from both Sonic and the Pop Warner Chargers are extremely angered by the fact that they have been lied to over the past few months by Mayor Scharfenberger and other GOP members of the Township Committee. In Sonic’s case they had been told that the plans for the field project at West Front Street Park was to be placed on hold until their differences could be properly reviewed by the Committee, while the Chargers had been told for close to 4 years now that their home field, Trezza Field, would be resurfaced with artificial turf only to find out within the past year that this is no longer the case due to wetlands and parking concerns and now they would have to move from their home field of over 40 years, to play games at a field that would not meet their needs.

Both have pledged not to back down from their fight and have vowed to join forces if their concerns are not taken seriously by the Township Committee. Both groups have plans to protest by waving signs and placards that would state amongst other things “We will remember in November”

The Middletown Soccer people it seems, just wants to have a nice field to play on and are aligning themselves with the Mayor to push through the sports complex at West Front Street.
So does the Mayor or any of his fellow members who are pushing through the sports complex over the objections of others have anything to worry about? Time will tell, for the day has not ended.

CAESAR:

The ides of March are come.

SOOTHSAYER:

Ay, Caesar, but not gone.

Julius Caesar Act 3, scene 1

For those that are interested in attending tonight's meeting it starts at 8pm