Pallone Urges NCAA & Youth Football Leagues to Prevent & Mitigate Repetitive Brain Trauma

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 4, 2016


WASHINGTON, DC – Today, at the Marlboro Township Recreation Community Center, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, announced he and several of his Democratic colleagues on the Committee sent letters to collegiate and youth football leaders asking how they plan to prevent and mitigate the risks of degenerative brain disorders for student-athletes. The request comes after the National Football League acknowledged for the first time at a Committee roundtable in March that there is a link between football and degenerative brain disorders.

Pallone made the announcement at the Marlboro Recreation Center with student athletes who have suffered from concussions, officials involved in youth sports and experts in the field of concussions. The New Jersey Congressman and his colleagues wrote that they are seeking to understand what rule or policy changes each of the organizations is considering to address the risks posed by both concussive and subconcussive hits.

“Football organizations across all levels, as appropriate, should consider rules changes and educational outreach to ensure the safety of all athletes and their developing brains,” said Pallone. “Additionally, we need to ensure that parents have accurate, up-to-date information necessary to make informed decisions about their children’s participation in football and other contact sports.”



The letters were sent by Pallone, Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Gene Green (D-TX), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO) and Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade Ranking Member Jan Schakowsky (D-IL.) to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) President Mark Emmert, National Federation of State High School Associations Executive Director Bob Gardner, USA Football Executive Director Scott Hallenbeck and Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. Executive Director Jon Butler.

The lawmakers asked the athletic leaders to answer four questions by May 25, including how they are addressing the risks of subconcussive hits to players and if current rules sufficiently protect players against the long-term effects of subconcussive hits.

Recent research suggests that athletes can sustain significant brain damage caused solely by repeated head impacts, or subconcussive events, even if those collisions do not result in concussions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the problem is of special concern in youth sports because children and teens may be more vulnerable to brain injuries than adults, and take longer to recover.

Youth sports organizations have begun to consider changes to the rules governing contact, given declining participation and the publicity around the negative effects of concussions and repetitive head trauma. For example, Pop Warner, which operates youth football programs, instituted a change to their rules in 2012 regarding head-on blocking and tackling during practices. The change limited the amount of practice time devoted to physical contact and set a maximum distance of three yards from which players could be apart during full-speed tackling drills.

The individual letters can be found below:

Letter to the NCAA

Letter to the National Federation of State High School Associations

Letter to USA Football

Letter to Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc.

What Is Happening With The Bond For The Middletown Turf Fields?

On tonight's agenda for the Middeltown Township Committee Workshop meeting there will be a discussion about capital improvement projects and existing bonds and what to do about them. It will be interesting to see what they decide to do with the bonds the town is sitting on, namely the bond that was issued to fund the artificial turf projects for Croydon Hall and Trezza Field.

If we can all remember back to this past January when residents of Lincroft teamed up with members of the Pop Warner Chargers football organization when they found out that the long promised field restoration for Trezza Field (the home of the Chargers) was not going to happen, instead the funds for the turf project at Trezza Field was going to be diverted to West Front Street Park,caused so much trouble for Gerry Scharfenberger and Pam Brightbill earlier this year that they decided to cancel the turf projects all together in April.

The sudden decision to cancel the turf projects left everyone stunned at the time and questioning what was going to happen with the $2.6 million bond that was issued to fund the projects. The bond's language as written was very specific, the funds couldn't be used for anything else other than field restoration.

The following audio clip contains comments made by Middletown Attorney Brian Nelson, Middletown Township Town Administrator Tony Mercantante and mayor Gerry Scharfenberger during Workshop meetings on February 1st and March 1st,and seems to confirm that. The audio documents what the three men had been saying about the bonded money that was to be used for the construction of turf fields prior to the sudden announcement that the field project was going to be cancelled and the bonded funds returned.




Fast forward now to the last Township Committee meeting held on July 19th.

Lincroft resident and founding member of the citizens group SONIC (which opposed the turf project at West Front Street Park), Mary Mahoney, addressed the Township Committee about the unused Turf Bond that was to be used for artificial turf fields at Trezza Field, West Front Street Park and Croydon Hall. She wanted to know what was happening with the bonded money,

was there any plans to use it for anything else, how much of it had been spent and why wasn't it retired as of yet to save the township interest payments on it.

She seemed to have taken the the Township Committee and those that make the decisions on such things by surprise. Listen to it below:



About 1:10 into her comments CFO Nick Trasente is heard saying that the bond funds could be used for other facilities, used to pay down debt or retired, which is contrary to earlier remarks made by Township Attorney Brian Nelson and Scharfenberger, who had stated at earlier meetings and can be heard above in the 1st audio clip, that the bond had to be retired if not used for turf fields and couldn't be used for anything else.

So, what are Gerry and the boys planning on doing with the funds from this bond? It seems that they are trying to figure out a way to apply it to the budget in order to decrease 14% tax rate increase in this years municipal budget that has not been adopted yet.

If this is a concern to anyone then you should attend tonights meeting at Town Hall, it starts at 8pm. Get there early for a good seat.

Questions Remain About the Sudden About Face On The Middletown Sports Field Issue

There are still many questions that remain and need to be answered when it comes to the sudden announcement that Gerry Scharfenberger made during Tuesday night's Neighborhood Meeting at Croydon Hall.

It has become apparent based on an email I received that some are starting to ask those questions and want answers:

I'm sure many of you have heard the news, about the fate of the turf fields, that was announced at last night's Neighborhood Meeting. There are many questions still unanswered about this decision:

1. The Neighborhood Meetings were billed as an event that "no formal action will take place". The Mayor decided to take formal action by announcing this decision. I have announcements, below, that explain the purpose of the Neighborhood Meetings.These were taken from the Township website and the alert system that the Township has in place.


Neighborhood Meeting - Senior Center
3/23/2010 - 7:00:00 PM
The Township Committee will hold a Neighborhood Meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 23 At the Middletown Senior Center, 900 Leonardville Road, to give residents an opportunity to speak informally with township officials and staff about life in Middletown. Township Committee members, and representatives from the departments of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs; Planning; Police and Public Works are scheduled to attend. No formal action will be taken.

Location:
Middletown Senior Center
Croydon Hall
900 Leonardville Road

Leonardo, NJ 07737

Source:

http://www.middletownnj.org/html/EventDetails.asp?EventID=2f8b8140-7923-480e-9c2d-e1b80643d843&EventDate=2010-03-23

Neighborhood Meeting 3-22-2010
posted Monday, March 22, 2010 4:08 PM
Dear Resident:The next Middletown Neighborhood Meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 23rd at the Middletown Senior Center, 900 Leonardville Road. Neighborhood meetings are held annually to give residents an opportunity to speak informally with township officials and staff about life in Middletown. Township Committee members, and representatives from the departments of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs; Planning; Police and Public Works are scheduled to attend. No formal action will be taken. The last Neighborhood Meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 30th at the Tonya Keller Bayshore Community Center, 50 Bray Ave.

Source:

https://my.c3alert.us/middletownnj/home/welcome

2. At what public meeting did the Committee decide to return the bond? This is not a decision that can be made by the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, or any other Committee person. It must be decided in a public meeting with a vote by ALL Committee members. I believe that a bond ordinance must be have approval of at least 4/5 of the Committee to become effective. The question is, Can the Mayor legally announce this since no formal action was taken on his decision?

3. According to the by-laws of the Township, the Mayor is a member of the Committee and is appointed by the other members of the Committee. His sole functions are to lead Committee meetings and sign legislation that is passed by the Committee. I don't believe that he has any other authority than that, besides what the other Committee members have. Any announcements, coming from the Township, should be with the approval of the whole Committee, not just one member of the Committee.

These questions need to be asked as well as:

- How much interest have WE paid over the past 4 years on this bond?
- How much has OUR bond counsel (Middletown GOP Chairman) charged US to sell the bonds and now buy them back?
- What other legal expenses are associated with the whole bond. beginning with the sale to retirement?
- Why isn't the plan presented, by Mr. Vrabel, acceptable? Who determined this?

The sudden announcement of the cancellation of the turf projects at a neighborhood meeting that wasn't suppose to be an official meeting where actions would be taken on any subject specific subject is troubling.

What really changed the collective mind of the Township to drop plans for the fields and when and with whom were theses plans discussed with? As the email stated, the Mayor doesn't have the authority to act alone when making decisions regardless if the Town Administrator or others thought that the plan should be cancelled. This is a decision that would have had to be have been made during a formal meeting with every committee member present and from what I know that did not happen.

Middletown's "shadow government" has once again crept in from the darkness and reared its ugly head.

It's Your Town Newsletter Volumn 2, Issue 6 For 3/15/20

This edition of It's Your Town Newsletter covers the Middletown Township Committee meeting of March 15, 2010.

This was the meeting in which the members of the Pop Warner Chargers organization introduced their plan to the Mayor and those on the Committee, for the upgrade and expansion of Trezza Field.

It includes all of the ordinances and resolutions that were voted on or discussed by the Township Committee and the 20 page bill list to show Middletown residents how their tax dollars are being spent.

You can download your copy of the newsletter >>> Here

Lincroft Sports Complex Is Dead; Plans For Artificial Turf Fields For Croydon Hall and Lincroft Are Dropped.

At last night's Middletown Neighborhood Meeting at the Middletown Senior Center at Croydon Hall a very interesting turn of events was announced by Gerry Scharfenberger, the plans for the installation of artificial turf fields in Lincroft and at Croydon Hall are being dropped.

There will be no sports complex built or field upgrades at West Front Street Park that met so much opposition from the residents group SONIC (Save Our Neighborhood's Integrity and Character) and the Pop Warner Lincroft Chargers organization, and no upgrade for the field at Croydon Hall which is used by the Middletown Eagles Pop Warner team.

According to the Asbury Park Press article posted online late last night, Scharfenberger use the current economic conditions affecting the Township as the reason for why the turf field projects were being dropped. Scharfenberger is quoted as saying:

"…In a difficult budget year in which the township's state aid has been cut by $1.3 million, 14 retiring employees will receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in parting costs, and snow removal expenses were at least $500,000 above normal, it makes no sense to also take on a fields project…I see no way to go forward with this… In terms of what had to go, this became something of a no-brainer."

The article went on to state that Township Administrator Tony Mercantante said the $2.4 million bond that was originally issued for the project in 2006 will be returned to the lender.

So why the sudden change, why did the Scharfenberger and Mercantante drop the plans for the turf installations? You can't tell me it was because of the sudden realization that the Township is facing a budget deficit of over $5 million and this was a prudent decision on the part of the Township Committee. The Township has known for weeks that it would not be receiving the same level of state aid as in years past and Scharfenberger, Mercantante and crew said that the $2.4 million that was bonded for the turf projects was already in the bank, waiting to be used and would have absolutely no effect on the current budget process.

I feel that the real reason why they decided to cancel plans for the turf fields was the embarrassment that they felt when confronted at last week's March 15th Township Committee meeting by members of the Chargers organization and SONIC when they present a plan to the Township that clearly showed that a multi-sport field could indeed be placed at Trezza Field, the home of the Chargers for over 40 years as originally called for in bond ordinance, with no impact to wetlands that the Township based its decision on as a reason for not going ahead with the field upgrade.

If Tony Mercantante accepted the Chargers' plan, he would have had to admit that the advice from the town's engineers and other professionals was wrong. He would have had to essentially throw them under the bus, which would have lead to questions of competence and may have raised doubts about other projects around town that residents question.

I know that this announcement will upset some people, particularly the Middletown Soccer League and the Pop Warner Eagles; Middletown Soccer aligned themselves with the Township in pushing for the field upgrades at West Front Street and the Eagles who became the victims of the collateral damage inflicted on members of the Township Committee by SONIC and the Chargers in the fight against the sports complex at West Front Street.

It was never in dispute, the playing field of the Pop Warner Eagles at Croydon Hall was going to be upgraded as a multi-sports playing field as part of the Township's turf project but Parks and Recreations Director Greg Silva made it clear during at meeting with the Chargers, that if they succeeded in their efforts to derail the West Front Street field upgrade then the upgrade at Croydon Hall would also be canceled as a result. So I guess he wasn't lying.

While this is a clear victory for SONIC and those who questioned whether or not it was prudent for the Township to move forward with this turf project because of current economic conditions, the victory for the Chargers is somewhat less and not much of a victory at all.

With the bad blood and hurt feeling inflicted on the Township Committee by the Chargers, Trezza Field may never get the field upgrades that are so badly needed for the continued and future success of their program.

The Independent has a related story that should also be read.

Cody Vs. Brightbill; What Did Pam Have to Say About Trezza Field While Defending Herself ?

Here is the last audio clip that I have from March 15th Township Committee meeting that deals with the Pop Warner Chargers, Sonic and Trezza Field.

In this audio Clip you can hear Lincroft resident and Chargers supporter Jim Cody confront Committeewoman Pam Brightbill about what she had told those in attendance of a Pop Warner fundraiser in 2008 about upgrades that would be made to Trezza Field, the home of the Chargers.

Committeewoman Brightbill in trying to defend herself against accusations of improprieties and false statements becomes frustrated, at one point she threatens to have someone removed from the courtroom while her voice raises to a shrill.

The exchange between Cody and Brightbill was an act of classic showmanship on Cody's part. It showed that when the heat is on, most of those on the Committee can't take it.

What Did Tony Fiore Have To Say About Trezza Field?

Middletown Deputy Mayor Tony Fiore, was not able to attend the March 15,2010 Township Meeting but was able to participate via phone call from Orlando Florida while attending work related business.

His comments were made after the business portion of the meeting was finished, during the Committee comments portion of the meeting just before the floor was opened up to the public.

He agreed with much of what Committeeman Sean Byrnes had to say about COAH and the rezoning of the Avaya property in Lincroft then went on to address the concerns over Trezza Field.

At approximately 2:35 into the audio Fiore starts to address Resolution 10-121 (Resolution 10-121 was going to authorize CMX Engineering to finish design plans for the West Front Street sports complex and develop specs so that the project could go out for bid) and the reason why the Committee pulled if from of the agenda and did not vote on it.

At approximately 5:05 into the audio Fiore talks about how, if differences with the BOE can't be worked out and if there was a possibility that some improvements could be done at Trezza Field then it could be done from the "...design from "OUR" engineers or the perspective of "OUR" professionals come through, we may have to go down that road..."

With that type of thinking in mind prior to Alan Vrable's presentation and the many other people that spoke in opposition to the project, one would diffinately get the idea that no matter what plans or ideas residents came up with, Fiore and crew were not, could not or will not throw their professionals under the bus by stopping the work that would be going on at West Front Street.

But the question remains, what will the Township do about Trezza Field? Will they or wont they take the Chargers/Sonic design plan for Trezza Field seriously enough to stop sports complex from going forward at West Front Street and be redirected where it was orginally intended to be, at Trezza Field?

We should hear something soon.

Comments Made By Sean Byrnes During The March 15th Township Committee Meeting: The Budget, COAH And Trezza Field

When it came time for Committee comments after the business part of the March 15th Middletown Township Committee Meeting, Committeeman Sean Byrnes had a lot to say.

Sean Byrnes address his support of the efforts that Governor Christie was making towards potentially solving the State's budget crisis and how he hoped that Middletown would be able to address it's own budget problems. Byrnes went on the discuss the potential changes to the COAH laws and hoped that once COAH was redefined Middeltown would be able to zone back recent rezoned properties around town to their prior pre- COAH zoning, most noticably the Avaya property in Lincroft.

Byrnes then went on to address the issue of turf fields in town and his potential support to relook at the fesiblity of expanding Trezza Field, the current home of the Pop Warner Chargers, instead of supporting the planned sports complex at West Front Street that has been loudly opposed by the Chargers and the citizens group SONIC.

As you can imaging, Byrnes gained a rousing and vocal show of support for his comments by the members of the Chargers and SONIC that were in attendance.

His comments about Trezza Field start about 4 minutes into the audio clip below for those that are interested in hearing what Sean Byrnes had to say.

Audio: Vrable Solves Middletown's Problem During Township Committee Meeting

By now everyone that is interested in or effected by the proposed sports complex in Lincroft that the township wants to build is familiar with the events that transpired during the Middletown Township Committee meeting on March 15, 2010.

You know that the meeting was loud, raucous and at times on the verge of being out of control if you were lucky enough to be there. If not, I have a series of audio clips from the night that I will be sharing over the next couple of day that will let everyone know exactly what they missed.

The audio clip that I have posted is of Lincroft resident Alan Vrable, who was speaking on the behalf of both the River Plaza/ Lincroft Chargers Pop Warner Football team and SONIC (Save Our Neighborhood's Integrity & Character).

Vrable presented a detailed, engineered plan to the Township Committee that show beyond a reasonable doubt that Trezza Field ( the home of the Chargers) could in fact be resurfaced and expanded into a multi-purpose sports facility with little impact on the wetlands, that Township engineers have given as a reason why Trezza Field could not be upgraded in favor of West Front Street Park.





This is the first of 6 audio clips that I will be posting between now and the weekend from Monday nights meeting.

The other clips include comments from Sean Byrnes, Tony Fiore and Jim Cody questioning Pam Brightbill, which isn't to be missed. It was classic!!

APP Monday Night Follow-Up: Middletown Examining Residents' Plan For Ballfields

I was happy to see that Kevin Penton and the Asbury Park Press wrote a follow-up article that appeared in print today about the events that transpired during Monday night's Middeltown Township Committee meeting.

Today's article gave a better depiction of the events that went down Monday night then the first article that was published yesterday.

In this article Penton has quotes from Township Administrator Tony Mercantante, who many feel is the real person behind the West Front Street field proposal.

In the article Mercantante is quoted as saying "If it fits, it fits, but that is yet to be determined.", which was in reference to the multipurpose field, two baseball fields and 221 parking spaces depicted on the plan which was presented by Alan Vrable on behalf of the River Plaza/Lincroft Chargers Pop Warner Football team that plays it games at Trezza Field, to the Township Committee.

Vrable told Mercantante and the Township Committee that the plan for Trezza Field was based on the 2007 T&M Engineering wetlands study, the same study that the township used to determine that Trezza field was not a viable location for the field upgrade and which made the Township decide to build the sports complex at West Front Street instead.

The article also went on to state:

"Middletown's analysis of the residents' plan will include a cost estimate for earth disturbance so parking spaces can be added to Trezza Field, Mercantante said. The residents' plan eliminates a playground and a basketball court that are currently at the site, he said." ...

And concludes with words from Mayor Scharfenberger about how the Committee would take a serious look at the plan and determine if the plan was a viable alternative or not.

On the surface you may want to take what Mercantante and Scharfenberger had to say at face value and give the the benefit of the doubt, but after thinking about the quotes I was left to think that this just may be lip service.

Mercantante didn't seem convinced that the plan would work and seemed to question the fact that the plan as presented by Alan Vrable eliminated a playground and a basketball court in favor of parking.

Would eliminating a playground and a basketball court be considered a viable alturnative by Mayor Scharfenberger? I don't know.

Also I would like to point out that in both of Kevin Penton's articles on the meeting he quoted Deputy Mayor Tony Fiore who was not there but was on the phone from Orlando Florida attending a work related continuing education class, about how the closing down of CMX Engineering was just a little speed bump in the road and that it wouldn't hold up the process of deciding about the installation of the fields.

But what stood out to me during Fiore's comments wasn't what he had to say about CMX but what he said about the field installations in general, which was that the Committee would listen to "OUR" engineers and "OUR" professionals when determining what would be the best location for the installation of turf fields.

With this all being considered, I wonder if Mercantante, Scharfenberger and Fiore meant what they said, because if they do except the plans that were presented on the behalf of the Chargers than they would be admitting that their engineering firm gave them bad advice or is incompetant and they would be throwing them under the proverbial bus if they don't proceed with the exsisting plan for building the sports complex at West Front Street.

RedBankGreen: MIDDLETOWN FIELD DEBATE HEATS TO A BOIL

Reporter Dustin Racioppi from RedBankGreen.com also attended last nights Middletown Township Committee meeting, I think his article did a better job at capturing the overall atmosphere and feelings that were present in the room, more so than what was published in the Asbury Park Press. He also has a few good pictures worth checking out.

Below is his take on how things went last night:

Podium pounding. Yelling. Fingerpointing. The only things missing from Monday night’s Township Committee meeting were pitchforks and torches.

To say the least, the residents are getting restless.

About 200 of them turned out to hear how the town intended to go forward with contentious plans to upgrade two athletic areas to artificial turf and add more fields to them in order to accommodate more sports. Many came to voice their concerns, some to give the committee a stern talking to and others just to grandstand.

It wasn’t for naught.

Because of a potential sale of the project’s engineer, CMX Engineering, the committee decided not to move forward just yet in finalizing plans to upgrade fields at Croydon Hall and West Front Street Park.

The governing body also nixed its plans to add lighting, a public announcement system and concession stand at West Front, which have long been a bone of contention among neighbors.

Still, a certain level of outrage remained concerning West Front.

A number of residents in the Lincroft section of town — at least 400, if you go by signed petitions gathered by resident Mary Mahoney — are against the town’s plan in one way or another. Some believe that although the committee resolved not to add the amenities now, it may try to do so in the future.

A seemingly larger number are still angered because they’d rather see Trezza Field, the longtime home of Pop Warner’s Chargers, get the improvements.

Originally the committee wanted that, too. But plans drawn up by T&M Associates to add baseball fields, multi-use fields and parking to Trezza Field proved to be an unwise choice for the town, primarily because of limited space and surrounding wetlands, said Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger. As a result, the focus shifted to the fields at West Front Street.

Since then, residents have decried the plan, saying it will increase traffic and otherwise alter the area’s quality of life. And at the meeting, Allen Vrabel tried to prove that T&M was wrong, when he took his five minutes of the public comment portion to break out a schematic drawing from an unnamed engineer and pass out copies of it to the crowd showing that the fields will fit at Trezza with sufficient parking and without impinging on wetlands.

The crowd erupted with hoots and applause.

“What you’re proposing is like putting a square peg in a round hole on West Front Street,” Vrabel said. “These can go out to bid tomorrow.”

Vrabel’s comments opened up the gates for the public to skewer the committee, which took it with aplomb — particularly Scharfenberger, who got an earful from Barbara Thorpe.

Thorpe, who scolded Scharfenberger for not paying close enough attention to her, argued that now isn’t the time to spend the estimated $2.5 million on these upgrades.

“Your priorities are all screwed up,” she said to Sharfenberger. “I don’t know what planet you come from or live on, but you are oblivious.”

The $2.5 million to support the field upgrades comes from money set aside in a 2006 bonding package, and is specifically approved for the fields, Committeewoman Pamela Brightbill said.

More pressing at the moment, though, is the fate of CMX. Scharfenberger said he’s not sure of the specifics or how a sale could potentially affect the timeline of the field work, but said the town is looking into it.

“There’s lots of variables. We’re sort of in limbo right now,” he said.

Scharfenberger said the committee is going to also look into the feasibility of Vrabel’s proposal.

“We’re going to look at this very seriously. We wanted to put (more fields) at Trezza, but conditions, as we explained, precluded that,” Scharfenberger said. “We’re going to consider everything that is viable.”

Middletown's Committee Meeting Was Loud, Raucous and Uncomfortable At Times: Have Plans For Turf Fields Now Changed?N

I've been to plenty of Middletown Township Committee meeting over the past six years, most are sparely attended with little to no dissension among those in attendance or between those that sit on the Dias, last night was different. I haven't seen it like that since the Township was rocked by the arrest of former Mayor Ray O'Grady, who was caught up in Operation Bid-Rig a number of years ago.

The courtroom was packed and people flowed out into the lobby, to say people were upset would be an understatement.

I am still getting my thoughts together on what transpired last night and will have more to say about it later. I saw this morning that the Asbury Park Press has an account of what happened last night online today. The article was written by reporter Kevin Penton and is somewhat accurate.

I say somewhat because you really had to be there to witness what happened yourself, it was loud, raucous and at times uncomfortable to watch.

I am posting Penton's article below with a few pictures that I took placed in between:


MIDDLETOWN — Mayor Gerard P. Scharfenberger said Middletown needs to further question the firm, CMX Inc. of Manalapan, which told the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development on Friday that it intends to layoff all of its 196 employees by May 11.

Before the postponement, the committee was expected to vote on finalizing the engineering plans, and seeking permits and bids for the planned installations at Croydon Hall and West Front Street Park.

The West Front Street Park installation would not include lights or a concession stand, Scharfenberger told a standing-room-only crowd of more than 200 residents.

Many of the Lincroft residents — who have attended the public meetings at which the fields were discussed for several weeks — have said they believe those amenities would add traffic, parking congestion and noise to their neighborhood.

Committeeman Anthony P. Fiore, who participated in the meeting via a telephone connection from Orlando, Fla., said CMX's departure only represents a "little speed bump in the road."

"We weren't completely blindsided," Fiore said, referring to CMX's notification last week.

Middletown officials had asked the company about its situation, he said.

"We were told things were status quo," Fiore said.


A somewhat dramatic moment came when resident Allen Vrabel, standing at the podium during the public comments portion of the meeting, waved his hand towards the back of the jammed meeting room.

Before long, two people walked towards the front of the room and placed two large sets of plans on easels. Simultaneously, others handed out copies of the same plans to people sitting in the audience.

The plans show 221 parking spaces, a 200-foot-by-360-foot, multi-purpose field; a baseball field with 90-foot base paths and 225-foot foul lines; and a baseball field with 60-foot base paths and 200-foot foul lines at the current site of Trezza Field, where the Pop Warner Chargers currently play.


Township Administrator Anthony Mercantante has repeatedly said that Trezza field could not be part of the turf fields project because of wetlands concerns.

But Vrabel said that engineers hired by Lincroft residents and members of the Chargers organization, using a 2007 wetlands study by T&M Associates, were able to make the plan work at Trezza Field.

"These plans didn't cost me $194,000, I can tell you that," said Vrabel, who declined to say the firm that prepared the plans.

Township officials said they would study the plan.

"We are going to look at this very seriously," Scharfenberger said. "We are going to see if this is viable."

As I said, I'll have more to say about what happened last night later, it was a lot to take in. But I think the Mayor and his fellow suporter may have had a change of heart last night after have their heads beaten in by Vrabel and others.

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

CMX Engineering: Firm That Is Doing Work On Lincroft Sports Complex Tackled For a Loss; Shutting Down Operations As Of May 11th

Very courious development in the issue over the Lincroft Sports Complex, CMX Engineering, the firm that Middeltown hired to do the engineeering work and develope bidding specs for the turf field projects at West Front Street Park in Lincroft and Croydon Hall in Belford is going out of business as of May 11th this year and it has left many that oppose the field project scratching their heads.

Could the reason why the Township is so hell bent on ramming through the fields over residents concerns and comments to the contrary, be because they have a timeline with CMX to finish the intial work so that the sports complex can be placed out for bidding?

If so, why would the Township even hire a company that they new was going out of business to do this type of work in the first place ? After all Monmouth County knew back in January that CMX wasn't going to be around long enough to finish work for them so they didn't give them a contract to design intersection improvements at Memorial Drive and Evergreen Avenue in Neptune City and Bradley Beach.

There are many questions that need to be answered at Monday night's Township Committee meeting and I know that people will be out in force that night looking for answers so the Mayor better have answers because it may turn out to be a "lynching"

Here is an excerpt from today's Asbury Park Press on the closing of CMX Engineering:

"...In years past, the company was dogged by controversy.

In 1990, Stephen DePalma and the company were indicted on bribery charges. The state charged that DePalma and then-Woodbridge Mayor Joseph DeMarino paid $5,750 to a Carteret councilman in exchange for an engineering contract. Both DePalma and DeMarino were acquitted.

In 2005, the company announced that it would no longer make corporate political donations after it gave more than $875,000 to state- and county-level campaigns between 2000 and 2004.

In February 2009, founder Howard Schoor was sentenced to two years' probation, 250 hours of community service, and a $7,500 fine after he admitted paying off an Ocean Township official.

Company officials have said Schoor has not been associated with the company on a daily basis since 1996. He retired from the firm in 2005.

Still, CMX has had a presence at the Jersey Shore for years and has contracts or provides engineering services in roughly a dozen municipalities in Monmouth and Ocean counties.

CMX and its predecessor formerly had extensive contracts with the Monmouth County government, but business was reduced to a trickle in recent years.

In January, the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders approved an $88,844 engineering contract with CMX to design intersection improvements at Memorial Drive and Evergreen Avenue in Neptune City and Bradley Beach.

The contract was never executed, a county spokesman said.

"We have been notified this was coming," spokesman William K. Heine said. "There are some open purchase orders currently, and we are working with county counsel to determine what if any deliverables are due to the county to be paid for...."

Read the full article >>>Here

What's The Latest News On The Lincroft Sports Complex?

So what's the latest news swirling around the proposed Lincroft Sports Complex? In each of this weeks editions of the Independent and the Two River Times are articles dedicated to the happens at the most recent Middletown Workshop Meeting that took place on March 1st. Both articles are well written and represents what took place pretty well.

The Independent focus was on the on going negotiations between the Board of Education and the Township over a shared service agreement that would allow the Pop Warner Football League to play games at Middletown High School South before getting into the meat and potatoes of the nights events, while the Two River Times jumped right into it.

Here are excerpts from each article:

The Independent - Talks between the Middletown Township Committee and the Board of Education will reopen to discuss allowing local sports associations to use fields at Middletown High School South.

A preliminary design plan for West Front Street Park was placed on the Middletown Township website for the public to review. The existing soccer fields would be replaced with a synthetic turf field.

Mayor Gerard P. Scharfenberger and Deputy Mayor Anthony Fiore announced at the March 1 Township Committee meeting that they would be meeting with members of the board to discuss field usage on public school property.

“We sent a letter to the Board of Ed. today officially asking to allow the Pop Warner leagues to use High School South for their games,” Scharfenberger said. “I think that would go a long way to solve a lot of the problems and would be the best solution for all the parties involved.”

He added, “I think it’s a step in the right direction.”

The township has proposed a plan for West Front Street Park, off Crawfords Corner/ Everett Road, to replace the existing soccer fields with a synthetic turf field designed for football, soccer, field hockey and lacrosse to be used by the public and local sports associations.

The proposal also calls for the Croydon Hall Complex, located on Leonardville Road, to have its football field replaced with an artificial turf field. A total of $2.5 million in unspent recreation funds would be used for the two projects.

The letter reads, “Specifically, the Township would like to request that the River Plaza/Lincroft Pop Warner Football program be permitted to utilize the football field and associated facilities at High School South for their five to six annual home games that take place on Sundays. Practices and other activities would still be able to take place at their current field while the West Front Street filed is resurfaced with turf for use by other leagues, but the need to utilize lighting, a public address system and concessions is lessened.”

Laura Agin, Middletown Board of Education president, said negotiations are under way.

“We’ve worked with the Township Committee and with shared services,” Agin said on March 4. “We’ve had concessions with them about the fields, and I think we will continue to work with them.”

However, a group in the Jersey Shore Football League weighed in on the controversy at the March 1 meeting....

The Two River Times - Controversy continues to swirl around a proposed plan by the Middletown Township Committee to construct a multi-purpose athletic field at the intersection of West Front Street and Everett Road in Lincroft.

Residents from the potentially affected area once again came out en masse to voice their opposition to the proposal as it currently stands and urged the committee to reconsider constructing the field at a different location.

However, this round of rhetoric included supporters of the proposal primarily from active Pop Warner families, athletes, coaches, and members of the Middletown Athletic Club.

The most telling message sent to the committee might have come from Kevin O'Reilly, Vice President of the River Plaza Chargers, whose future home has been an ongoing topic of conversation among the committee members, the board of education, and area residents but has not, until Monday night, included the River Plaza Chargers organization.

Middletown Mayor Gerard Scharfenberger opened the meeting by allowing those in attendance to speak to this issue but not before he addressed the crowd with an update from the committee's perspective.

"We sent a letter to the Board of Education today officially asking them to allow the Pop Warner league to use High School South for their games. I think that will go a long way to solving a lot of the problems and be the best solution for all parties involved," Scharfenberger said.

Deputy Mayor Anthony Fiore also offered an updated position on the issue.

"My position (at the previous meeting) was to find a way for River Plaza Pop Warner to play five or six games at High School South. From what I understand it's not feasible to redo the facility at Trezza Field (the Chargers current home field). It's my viewpoint, if we are able to work with the Board of Education and potentially make improvements to their field we would not have to have lights or a P.A. system at West Front Street," Fiore said.

Fiore added that the idea would be that the Pop Warner teams practice at Trezza and play their games at High School South. Fiore also noted that the existing soccer fields at West Front Street would still be resurfaced and improved but without lighting and a public address system.

"I think that pretty much satisfies everything I've heard over the last month," Fiore said.

Not according to O'Reilly.

The River Plaza Pop Warner league sent a letter to the Township Committee outlining eight needs of the league to continue operating regardless of its location. One of those needs was a fully functioning snack bar. Additionally as important were adequate restroom facilities.

According to O'Reilly, the Pop Warner league exists solely on the revenues generated by the operation of the snack bar of which High School South does not provide.

"I wish you people would speak to us because Middletown South doesn't work," O'Reilly said. "We play on Saturday, we play on Sunday, we play on Monday, and we also sometimes play on Wednesday and all of our revenue is from the snack bar."

The money generated by the snack bar, which can range between four and seven thousand dollars each game day goes toward operational costs to run the league according to O'Reilly.

"To redo the helmets is thousands and thousands of dollars," O'Reilly said....

So what have I heard over the past few days? As I said, it has been quite but here are a few things:

The meeting between the Mayor and Deputy-Mayor with the Board of Education on Thursday March 4th didn't go as well as the Independent may have made it out to have mainly because the Pop Warner Chargers have made it loud and clear that playing football at High School South would not benefit their organization at all.

Contrary to what Mayor Scharfenberger and others who represent the Township say a wetlands study of Trezza Field, the home of the Pop Warner Chargers, was conducted back in June of 2007 by the Township's engineering firm T&M and it seems to confirm everything that the football people have been saying all along, that Trezza Field can be expanded and resurfaced as originally planned. The Chargers, with help from their own engineer, came up with a new site proposal for Trezza Field and shared it with Mayor Scharfenberger earlier in the week. The site proposal will be introduced to the Committee Monday night at the next scheduled Committee Meeting.

And members of SONIC are still gathering petitions signatures against the sports complex to be presented at Monday night's Township Committee meeting. SONIC members will be out in force that night to once again voice their concerns.

Middletown It's The Biggest Newsletter Yet !

The latest issue of "It's Your Town" Newsletter is now available and believe it or not, it's the largest yet at 22 pages! This issue details the happenings at the March 1st Middletown Township Workshop Meeting.

Due the size of the crowd in attendance the Mayor moved the meeting to the courtroom to accommodate the large number of people that showed up to express their mostly displeasure with the plans to build a multi-field sports complex at the corner of West Front Street and Crawfords Corner Rd in Lincroft.

Some of the highlights included in the newsletter are:

• A letter written by Jeff Blumengold, a member of SONIC, that read for inclusion into the record.
• Pop Warner Chargers Vice President Kevin O'Reilly stated 8 things that would be needed to make the sports complex work.
• Committee Comments that express feelings behind the sports complex
• And numerous Ordinances and Resolutions that were introduce for discussion

Your can read all about it Here to see what you missed.

The John Curley/Lincroft Sports Complex Conspiracy Theory

I never put much thought into the validity of various conspiracy theories; for the most part these theories are generally not based on facts or have only a loose affiliation with them.

One such theory has recently developed around the controversial Lincroft Sports Complex issue thanks to members of the River Plaza/Lincroft Chargers Pop Warner football organization.

The theory revolves around the fact that Trezza Field, the home of the Chargers for over sixty years is located next to Shadow Lake Village, an age restricted community for those over the age of fifty-five and the fact that Monmouth County Freeholder John Curley moved into the community in 2008 just before his first attempt at running for Freeholder.

It is believed that many of the seniors that live at Shadow Lake are unhappy with the field being located so close to the complex and that the lights and noise from PA system are a nuisance that can no longer be tolerated.

It is believed that Curley used his political influence in some way to pressure the Middletown Committee to give up its plan to refurbish Trezza Field by threaten that the all important senior vote from Shadow Lake would not be there for them come November if the Chargers were not moved from Trezza Field.

Here’s some history that lead to the theory:

The Chargers were promised a number years ago by the Middletown Township Committee that their home, Trezza Field, would be re-surfaced with artificial turf and in 2006 a bond was issued that stated as much, but somehow along the way plans changed.

Instead of re-surfacing Trezza field as promised the Township decided that it would build a multi-sports complex in Lincroft, off of Middletown-Lincroft Rd. The complex was to have light towers, bleachers, snack bar, PA system and ample parking to accommodate hundreds of cars, much like the currently proposed and controversial complex planned for West Front Street.

But the plan met with so much anger and resistance from the residents in the area, that it lead to the town dropping the plan and the election of Patrick Short, the first Democrat elected to a committee seat in Middletown in 20 years.

During the three years that followed the Chargers continued to press the Mayors of Middletown to have their field taken care of because it’s condition continued to worsen. Middletown in the mean time hired a consulting firm to develop a master plan for it Parks and Recreation Department.

When completed, the Master Plan had made a number of recommendations as to how to better utilize the use current parks and sport fields throughout the Township. The plan called for the creation of two multi-use artificial turf fields that could be used for football, soccer and la cross and suggested that the Township enter into mutual use agreements with the Board of Education to build at least one of these fields on BOE property and to share the use of the newly turfed fields at both township high schools. But yet again no real plan for Trezza Field.

Shortly after the plan was adopted Mayor Brightbill met with the Chargers and told them not to worry, that all of the concerns would be addressed and taken care of, the Chargers would have a new field to play on soon.

In May 2009, the Township hastily approach the Board of Ed with a plan to possible build two multi-sports fields on the grounds of Thompson and Thorne Middle Schools. After lengthy negotiations between the BOE and Township talks broke down in October. The BOE felt that the Township was not addressing their concerns over usage and maintenance while the Township felt that the BOE was not negotiating in good faith.

It was at this time that the Township Committee voted unanimously drop the idea of mutual usage of fields with the BOE and announce their intention to build a multi-use sports complex on the corner of West Front St. and Crawford Corner Rd. in Lincroft, on the grounds of West Front Street Park, which has lead to the current controversy.

And now instead of having Trezza Field re-surfaced, the Chargers are being told that they will have to move from their beloved field of over sixty years to the new complex at West Front Street Park due to lack of space and wetlands issues, even though the new complex will not have the amenities that they feel are vital for the continued expansion and success of their organization.

As conspiracy theories go this one is somewhat plausible but highly unlikely. It seems to have come from that fact that members of the Chargers organization are frustrated and angered over how the feel repeatedly lied to and betrayed by the majority that sit on the Township Committee, that have promised field upgrades years ago and have not delivered on those promises.

And when I asked my friends at Shadow Lake if they had heard of any rumors floating around the Lake about opposition to the Trezza Field upgrades they had this to say… “Nobody at the Democratic Club Steering Committee meeting had any issues with the sports field, and no one had heard any rumblings about disaffected residents. In fact, people seemed to agree that a bit of noise during some afternoons in the summer was just kids having a good time and something that came with the neighborhood. So there very well may be some folks who are grousing about the games, heck, somebody is *always* complaining about something around here. But it is surely not some kind of organized protest.”

So it seems that Freeholder John Curley and the residents over at Shadow Lake are not behind some master conspiracy theory to pressure the Middletown Township Committee into not renovating Trezza Field (much to my chagrin).

At this point it seems that the reason for not putting artificial turf over Trezza Field is based entirely on the recommendations of the Township’s Master Plan which recommended the installation of synthetic fields for multi-use complexes that could accommodate many, not just a football field that in the eyes of the Township could not be expanded.

SONIC Member Questions Why Promised Letter To Board of Ed Was Not Sent

The following letter was presented to the Mayor and the Township committee at Monday nights Workshop meeting. The letter was written by SONIC (Save Our Neighborhood's Integrity & Character) member Jeff Blumengold. It questions why a letter to the Middletown Board of Education was not written expressing a desire to reopen negotiations between the Township and the Board of Ed. concerning the use of turf fields by the Pop warner program.

The Mayor promissed Mr. Blumengold that he would receive a copy of the correspondence once it was to be sent, two weeks ago.

From what I understand that letter to the BOE was not sent until this past Monday afternoon at 5pm.

Mayor Scharfenberger and members of the Middletown Township Committee --

Unfortunately, I am unable to appear before you this evening. Nevertheless, as one of the founding members of "SONIC", I believe it is important to receive a definitive update on the actions that have been taken since the last meeting with respect to the West Front Street Field issue, especially since there have been on-going and repeated rumors and some public statements made that run counter to the direction set by the MTC as a matter of Public Record.

Specifically, there was a directive by Mayor Scharfenberger to Mr. Mercancante to immediately prepare, for review and release, a letter to the BOE, which was to request a reopening of the discussions concerning careful consideration of all available assets of the Community in seeking to address the quality of our fields issue, as well as alternative fields suitable for consideration for the Pop Warner league to utilize.

As the Mayor knows, I spoke with him since the meeting two weeks ago and as late as this past Thursday, and was assured on Thursday that the letter had been drafted and was being edited by the Mayor for immediate release -- and that I would receive both confirmation and a courtesy copy, once released.

As of this writing, I still have not received confirmation or a copy, which is troubling, to say the least. I am not sure, nor can understand why this letter could not be turned around in one or two days, at the most!

Let me now remind you and the other members of the MTC that SONIC had been assured in a meeting with the Mayor during his Saturday office hours, as well as the last MTC meeting on the record, that the project was now "On Hold", pending this joint effort with BOE to seek a solution to this dilemma.

What is clear and most troubling at this time is that there has been both statements made in other public forums by Township representatives, sp ecifically at a recent Pop Warner meeting by Greg Silva, that as I understand it, completely contradict this project status as being "On Hold". This, coupled with other actions and discussions that I have only heard about, also contradict the status you indicated to us.

Accordingly, and for the benefit of those in attendance and the community at large, I am requesting on behalf of the members of SONIC that you enlighten those in attendance as to the specific actions taken over the two weeks since the last MTC meeting, and also planned efforts contemplated or underway in the near term, as it relates to the WFS site.

This will be put to bed the speculation that continues to plague the outcome with respect to this issue.

Thank you.

Jeffrey Blumengold
Member of SONIC

Workshop Meeting Tonight in Middletown Is One That's Not To Be Missed

Middletown has a workshop meeting scheduled for tonight down at Town Hall and from all indications it's not to be missed!

Accusations of improprieties have been flying around the issue of the proposed Lincroft Sports Complex that is scheduled to start construction sometime in April.

Has there been or hasn't there been wetland studies that would prevent the upgrading of Trezza Field/Charger Field, the current home of the River Plaza/ Lincroft Chargers Pop Warner team? Has Freeholder John Curley, a resident at the Shadow Lake complex that borders Trezza Field/Charger Field, used his influence in someway to steer the sports complex away from his residence at Shadow Lake and over to the currently planned site of Lincroft's West Front Street Park? Did Park and Recreation's director Greg Silva tell members of the RP/L Chargers that he has a construction company all lined up that would have the new home of the Chargers ready to play on by August if the Chargers agreed to moved from their present location?

These questions and many more will be asked of members of the Township Committee tonight when members from the Pop Warner Chargers, Middletown Soccer Club and the citizens group SONIC flood the meeting room tonight.

The Workshop meeting starts at 8pm, but if you want a good seat I would suggest you get there early because prime seating locations fill up fast if the meeting is not moved to the court house.

If tonights meeting shapes up the way that I anticipate, it will beat anything that you could possible watch on T.V this evening!

Further Evidence of Collusion Between Mayor Scharfenberger and Middletown Soccer Club Against Opponents of Lincroft Sports Complex and The BOE

Here is further proof of the collusion that is taking place down at Middletown's Town Hall between Mayor Scharfenberger and the Middletown Soccer club/River Plaza Lincroft Chargers against opponents of the propsed Lincroft sports complex and the township's Board of Education.

The following email was again forwarded to me by someone who wishes to remain anonymous.

The email is to Mayor Scharfenberger from Mike Mascone. Mascone and another man represented the interests of the Middletown Soccer club at the Mayor's office this past Saturday after the Mayor meet with the members of the citizens group, SONIC, who have expressed their displeasure with the design and scale of the proposed sports complex.

The email is a recap of the meeting between the two men and the Mayor:


To: gscharfen@middletownnj.org

Subject: Middletown Soccer club

Mayor Scharfenberger,

On behalf of (name withheld) and myself we wanted to thank you for taking the time to see this morning. We appreciate the discussion and advice around the pursuit of the improvements in facilities for the people of Middletown as identifie din the Recreation Master Plan. We are aligned in disappointment with the support and flexibilty displayed by the Board of Education as a willing participant in sharing the taxpayers provided amenities. This disappointment is in two areas. Primarily in their seemingly disinterested approach to work with the public interest of Middletown. This has been manifested through a need to provide a better home for Pop Warner programs outside of the Board of Education tax payer financed facilities currently available. Secondly in their propensity to use schools to advance their positions, and agendas without regard to a desire to share services and better use the funding provided by the residents of the municipality they are entrusted to serve.

All that being said we recognize the position of the Town Council, you are charged with providing the best for the people with the capacities provided. The Recreation Master Plan calls for the improvements and we as a collection of families are willing to support that cause. I wanted recap your advice so I can pass the direction along correctly.

Middletown Municiple Government Action:
Support the Improvements via the $2mil bond to Croydon Hall and West Front Street Park:

1-At the Town Meeting on Tuesday Feb 16, show up in force of number, be respectful, vocal, and ardent in the support of the town to improve both parks to the fullest of the ability. The purpose is to place synthetic fields at both locations, lights, public address systems and concession stands where possible.

2-Continue this momentum by vocal support in the interests of the people in the club, working with the elected officials of the town and the school board on a regular basis. Invite representatives of the council and the school board at regular intervals to come speak to the club at our meetings as a means to engaging in a continious dialogue.

Middletown Board of Education Action:
Public interest and involvement in better shared service/use of tax payer owned faiclities provided to the Board of Education

Attend Schoolboard meetings which are regularly scheduled. Next Round are 2/17 which is a public workshop followed by 2/24 which is the general meeting.

All Workshop Meetings will be held on the third Wednesday of each month at the Middletown High School North Library, 63 Tindall Road, Middletown, NJ at 7:30 p.m. (unless otherwise indicated).

Regular Voting Meetings will be held on the fourth Wednesday of each month at the Middletown High School North Library, 63 Tindall Road, Middletown, NJ at 7:30 p.m. (unless otherwise indicated).

Main focus: be prepared to ask the questions of the school board and the board of education about the access to OUR facilities since .68 or every tax dollar in Middletown goes to their budget.

Emphasize the value of our voices: Annual School Election - April 20, 2010, Tuesday (TBA)

Sincerely,
Mike Mascone

What I feel is the most disturbing about the above email is the fact that the Mayor is openly disparaging the Board of Education and encouraging/electioneering against the members and positions of the BOE.

The mayor loves to tell people how Middletown was listed as 1 of the top 100 places to live in America by Forbes Magazine a few years back. He likes to take his share of credit for that but what he fails to see is that one of the main reasons Middletown was chosen was because of the quality of it's school system. Middletown Schools are ranked amongst the highest in the state for quality of education, yet he constantly pits the residents against the BOE to deflect attention away from the short comings of the republicans who have governed over Middletown for 25 years and who are responsible for raising the municipal tax rate by over 25% during the past 4 years.

The mayor seems to feel that because of the school system is responsible for the majority of the residents tax bill each year, they are to be blamed for the majority of the tax increases the past few years, which is total nonsense! The school tax rate has increased slower over the past several years than the municpal.

And to blame the Board of Education as the ones responsible for the placment of this sports complex in Lincroft is nothing short of dishonest. The BOE made every attempt to appease the township from May through September but the township would not answer honestly and faithfully their concerns over usage, maintance, liability.

You can read the BOE's statment>>> Here

All Mayor Scharfenberger is doing here is using Lincroft as a pawn in his wacked-out, head scratching battle against the school board and angering the residents of Lincroft in the process, in order to score a few brownie points with the special interests of the local sports leagues Pop Warner and Middletown Soccer, when the purpose of these artifical turf fields at Croyden Hall and West Front Street Park were never intended to be their private playground.