It has come to my attention that Middletown Library Board of Trustees President Randall Gabrielan has sent a letter to Middletown mayor Tony Fiore and the Township Committee, stating his intentions of resigning his postion on theMiddletown Library Board of Trustees as a result of inappropriately signing off on purchase vouchers for a number of local history books written by him and that were directly sold through him, to the library.
In the letter sent to mayor Fiore, Gabrielan states, "... after the reading of a far-reaching interpretation in a decision of the Office of Administrative Law in a Local Finance Board case, I understand that signing vouchers for my minor sales constitutes a violation as the small amounts involved do not matter. Accordingly, I here by resign as president and trustee of the Middletown Township Public Library effective this date."
More on this news later....
41 comments:
Hey Mike-
I just saw on the township web site that all committee members have been given iPads to read documents, and that this is saving us 5k per year.
I'm wondering two things. First, who is paying for the connection fees for these iPads, or are they WiFi only? The connection fees for 5 iPads is not insignificant.
Second, with all these documents already scanned in, shouldn't they all be available to the public via the town website? Once the docs are in electronic form, there is virtually no additional cost for making them available on the website.
Maybe you could look into this in your spare time? (haha)
And something else. I sent in my payment for my dog license in early January. I'm being told that it will be the end of February before I get my license. Six weeks to process a dog license? Really? What is up with that?
only scumbags turn libraries into political witchhunts......
its a shame middletown residents only choose one party
I'm very sorry to read this. He was a credit to our Library Board. DAMN the politics in this town!!
I hope residents will turn out for the next board meeting to see how this new board behaves and to make sure they don't ruin our wonderful library if it already isn't too late. These SOBs are out for every stinking dollar even if they have no right to it as in the library foundation money which is not tax payers' money but donations. where the hell will they go for money once they've decimated the library's coffers? Any money saved by the library was due to proper management, the likes of which the crooked TC has never put forth on their own. let's get these jerks out of office! Mike, isn't there a way we can have the TC's actions with regard to the library, pool club, reassessment nonsense, TOMSA shady dealings, Parks and Rec stuff with Silva, etc. investigated? Who can we contact to get this done and would a petition help?
Anon,
You can attempt many things but getting the support that you would need is the key, it wouldn't be easy to do.
What people need to do is remember all that has happened and then vote in November.
The only thing that will shake things up is to vote against the Republican incumbents in November.
Anon 6:37
I saw the same press release posted on the Township website Friday evening and chuckled to myself.
I chuckled because I posted last month about how I went to the workshop meeting and watched how during the whole meeting Kevin Settembrino and Scharfy did not pick their heads up from these iPad at all throughout the 30 minute meeting.
Settembrino was so absorbed with his new toy that he had no comments to offer those in attendance that evening and was out the door as soon as the meeting was over.
And I am somewhat sure that the township will not be saving that much money on paper each year.
Maybe with their annual savings they can speed up the process of handing out those dog licenses
I take it that these Ipads cannot be "taken home" and must only be used on township property. If they take them home, then essentially this is a ruse to get the boys new toys on the public dime. And even the cheapest Ipad cost a hell of alot more than what they accused Gabrielan of wasting. Or does wasting our money only "stink" when it's done by others?
Anon 7:30,
"Any money saved by the library was due to proper management"
So the $500k overnight windfall in library revenue due to real estate reevaluation was due to proper management, RIGHT???
Anon 6:45,
"only scumbags turn libraries into political witchhunts......"
What names do you reserve for the ethics lawbreaking library president? Let me guess... upstanding, loyal, caring old man?
You people amaze me...Stand up for the unethical, demonize the whistleblower! They made corporate laws against people like you.
If the shoe was on the other foot, you would be chanting in the streets and pleading for front page press. Get over yourselves.
The broken record plays on, it's sound track of sore losers...
Just who is Doofus Anon. 10:16? Makes up stuff and thinks we're stupid enough to believe it.
This Dem Party better get serious and far more professional to fight back and win over the smart people in Middletown who have had enough of the disdain the current elected officials have for the public.
BTW- those ipads cost at the very least $600 each. Were they purchased on State Contract? Was there competitive pricing sought?
Be smart and follow this trail.
Anon 10:36,
Way to resort to childish name calling when you have nothing else to offer...
"smart people in Middletown" vote republican...and have for years!
Anon 10:16- did we taxpayers buy you an Ipad too under the justification of "going green".? I'm guessing yes since you have alot of access to spew the party line whenever and wherever your homeboys are criticized.
I can just imagine the elaborate justifications you
had to write up - did someone's paid Twitterer help you write it?
I guess your idea would be to raise taxes so EVERYONE can have an Ipad? HAHA
The Ipad's also save time and postage. The clerk doesn't have to spend as much time copying and mailing/delivering the packets to the committee members. Also in the event a document needs to be located one would assume that it would be easier to find and retrieve!
Reminiscent of Nazi Germany...that's government in Middletown.
What a shame !
God help us.
TURN OUR LIBRARY OVER TO THE COUNTY. IT"S SAFER THERE then under the rotten crop of low life that the Middletown republicans are TODAY!
Maybe the American Civil Liberties Union could help the decent people of this town battle this nonsense !
Doofuss 10:16 is the witch from Majestic Ave in Lincroft. Who else ???
She never learns.
Anon 2/6, 10:12
Re the accusation that the library paid more for Mr. Gabrielan’s books than they should have, that has already been debunked. There was no overpayment. Non-mainstream books such as the ones in question often have surcharges through distributors, so the direct sale actually saved the library money.
Anon 8:15,
That is the most stupidous excuse for the wasting of tax payers money that I hear in a long time in order to justify the purchase of iPads for all those that are connected to the township committee.
How do the iPads save time and postage?? Couldn't the same results be achieved by emailing the information to indivduals? They all have computers and email at home don't they?
And why would you suspect that document retrieval would be easier with iPads as opposed to other electronic devices like PC's,laptops, netbooks or a smart phone like that we see CFO Trasente constantly playing with?
They iPads are for vanity useage only and are no more practicle than other options availible to the Township.
No decent citizen in Middletown will ever believe that Randall Gabrielan had malicious intent in any of this fiasco.
Every citizen with any intelligence will realize this is all about a money grab !
The vicious tongues can wag but can't make the people of this town swallow this happy horse manure !
Donations should cease to the Library until it becomes clear just where that money will go and who will administer donated funds.
The law should be clear (if it is obeyed) and "what's good for the goose should also apply to the gander".
Mike,
They are not any easier than any other electronic device, that is correct. But weren't the packets in paper form up until november?
By using either laptops or ipads, in this case, a huge stack of documents is now portable and can be viewed anywhere as long as the battery is charged. I would assume you would expect them to buy thier own ipads given the HUGE salary you get for being on the TC.(that was a joke)
The Ipads were like you said mike, ONE(1) option. I would definately not go as far to say that they are for vanity. That is just foolish.
Anon 10:49,
It is not foolish to say that it is fro vanity. You mean to tell me that members of the TC and administration do not have access to PC's or laptops or other devices in their homes that could be used? I think they all do and I think there was no need to purchase everyone iPads.
If these Ipads are not locked up overnight so that we can be sure they are only used for official government business, this is a scandal. If there is an emergency, I'm sure the fellows have phones.
If 3G service is being provided, this is also a scandalous waste of taxpayer dollars as there are numerous ways to save info on an Ipad for later usage without the necessity of connectivity of any type.
If the township is claiming $5000 in savings, we need to see the breakdown. If a clerk copies the material, and that position is not eiliminated, that argument does not pass muster. Essentially, we have provided a clerk with more time to sip coffee, unless we can see another time intensive task placed in their job description.
The only possible savings is paper and if we spent $5000 on paper, the people need to see the details. Sounds to me the township committee has been wasting our money for years and now use the correction of their own wasteful practices as a pretext to buy themselves shiny new ipads on our dime.
Let's also see the Ipad receipts. There is no need for anything but the lowest priced model Ipads as even those are capable of carrying so much information, no "part time" employee could possibly read it all, unless they were loading on their Itunes libraries.
Maybe we can demand their resignations for wasting taxpayer money !
"The only thing that will shake things up is to vote against the Republican incumbents in November."
But Mike, wouldn't there need to be a few slots open and Dem's to win each one, for this to even happen?
Anon 11:23,
DUHHH, of course it would mean that!
Seats on the Township Committee are voted on each and every year and Democrats have had candidates for Township Committe for as long as I can remember.
Township residents have very short memories and can't remember what happens 6 months prior to voting. They blindly vote Republican to the detriment of the township and there own best interests.
If these officials are sitting on a dais with an ipad in front of them, they are also staring straight into a VIDEO CAMERA if they just choose to turn it on.
What's the excuse now? Cmon guys. - we're giving you time to make up another excuse- we know you are reading.
Anon 8:15,
If you read the WSJ or the NYT you might have been exposed to articles that point out that the iPad and other Apple products are produced in 'sweat-shop' conditions, so purchasing these products just contributes to these conditions and keeps potential jobs for Americans at offshore manufacturing sites.
Maybe Linda Baum can come up with another "great" candidate to put on the ballot?
MIke,
Even if Fiore and Murray hadn't have won,
the library trustees appointed wouldn't be different; there'd still have been no shake up of power.
&
This year is only 1 slot open for our vote.
Anon 12:48,
That may or may not have turned out to be true. If Fiore and Murray had lost than I suspect that a motion to expand the Library Board would not have been proposed and if it were proposed Grenafege and Fowler would have spoke out against it and would not have voted for the appointments of the new trustees.
Democrats would have shed light on the obvious power grab and on the record officially condemned it.
Then this year the Democrats would have been in position to clean house if Massell could be defeated.
Anon 10:16,
You break the law, you don't "break ethics" -- although, you might violate a code of ethics. Ethics has more to do with behavior that isn't codified, which is what the law is. It is legal to 'double dip' (I don't mean chips) in NJ and some other states and most people would call this unethical.
It is legal to retire in NJ and collect pension checks and be rehired by NJ agency and collect pay and pension checks at the same time; yet, most would call this unethical.
It is legal to lie at Middletown Township Committee meetings like Mayor Gerry Scharfenberger did about two years ago when questioned by a resident about his attendance at a meeting in Trenton involving Shadow Lake, when factually the meeting was at Senator Kyrillos' office in Middletown. Most people would call this misleading the public and unethical behavior, which is what the Asbury Park Press emphasized in an editorial regarding this matter. Brian Nelson our Township Attorney was sitting next to Scharfenberger when he was asked the question and wispered something into his ear just before Scharfenberger made his unethical and legal response to the question.
It is legal for Mayor Fiore and other members of the committee not to tell you that all library expenses are approved by the CFO, the Township Administrator and the Township Committee. So do they "break ethics" when they approved what the Library Board President had also approved, and should they all resign? Mayor Fiore and the rest of the Committee are ultimately responsible for all that happens with Middletown government, so I think they should treat themselves as they treated the Library Board President and resign -- ethically it is not the amount but it is the act that counts. If they don't they should reinstate him. After all this isn't political, is it?
The Library Board President should have been warned and policy on this clearly spelled out for all the parties responsbile for approving the purchase order. Just more mismangement on the part of the local Republican Party Majority that runs Middletown. This is the same group of people that has mismanaged the Pool Utility Swim Club, which started when they made the purchase in 1997.
I wonder if the Committee will use the same standard -- non-performing revenue draining burden on the tax payer -- when evaluating the Middletown Arts Center for this budget year?
Is it "breaking ethics" to use tax dollars to support an independent non-profit entity, or should a private buyer be found to run it?
Perhaps a concerned citizen should film the Library Board meetings and post it on the internet (Youtube) in the spirit of some kind of transparency of this perfidious, praetorian, unscrupulous, venal, unethical Town Council of Middletown....
Please tell the people of Middletown just what good Mr.Massell has done for anyone in this community.
Do I hear the relentless "no comment" !
What a waste of space.
Anon 2:07,
Great idea! A good citizen, with the support of other good citizens, started doing what you suggest at last evenings Township Committee meeting. Hopefully the product will be available for veiwing soon.
Is it coincidence that Massell joined the Swim Club last year and they are closing it this year? This way a member of the Township Committee can claim to suffer and feel the pain that long time members feel. During those rare occasions that he spoke, Massell promoted the Swim Club. Did he do this so the Committee can claim that they made an effort to save the club knowing that they had every intention of closing it this year? Fiore said that they almost closed it last year. Although the first time the public heard it was at the February 6 committee meeting. Short notice for the membership to put an effort together to purchase it.
Is coincidence that Sentemmbrino was appointed to the Library Trust Board last year and knowing his mission was to secure funds to cover municipal mismangement and to lay the groundwork for the Township Committee to usurp the Library Board this year?
Anon 3:24,
That sounds like a lot of "what if's"...
Anon 10:16,
Maybe that is why the library board was expanded - for better management and oversight???
Money for iPads but no money to televise meetings. That sums up the blatant disregard the TC has for the residents. Wasn't it dr. scharfy who promised transparency?
You can tell that Massell truly cares about this town and has no other motives but to help his home town. He was born, raised, and educated in Middletown. How many of those involved with Middletown can claim the same? And don't even say "Just because he's a Middletown native it doesn't mean he cares more about the town than someone who moved here 5 or 10years ago!". Yes, he does. You become bound to the town in which you grew up.
Mr. Massell just takes up space on that dais.......utterly noncommittal or productive....native or not.....lacks ability for the position or fears demonstrating any aptitude for it.
He may be a nice guy and that is all.
Just cause you don't make headlines doesn't mean your not doing a great job...
Mike, I hope that people will come out in droves at the next library board meeting which is this Wednesday, 2/15 at 7:30. There is a closed session from 7-7:30, probably to appoint the new board president-yes, appoint and not vote in, most likely. People should come and see the behavior of these new board members and the behavior of those TC members in the audience for themselves. The current VP, an accountant, made accusations about the library/Randy being like Madoff, if that tells you anything about these people they appointed. They're after another money grab, total control, closing neighborhood library branches, laying people off with no regard for those who use the library (I think only one of the new board actually has a library card), etc. So please encourage those who love the library to speak up before the damage is done. We need to get the press at the meeting so it is recorded as these TC folks love to put their "unique" spin on things much like the patch article on all the benefits of their new IPADS. Reminds of the cost-saving "lawyer" at every library board meeting resolution this new board voted for at their very first meetig in January. Great! As if my taxes couldn't get any higher! Thanks, Mike for bringing this to light!
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