The League of Women Voters of the Princeton Area is a nonpartisan, non-profit volunteer organization which works to promote active, informed participation of all citizens in their government. The League provide nonpartisan information on public issues, and takes action on issues after member study and consensus. In publishing this material, the League neither endorses nor rejects the views of any candidate quoted.
All candidate information in this guide was compiled from candidates' responses to questionnaires. Replies are printed in the candidates' own words, without editing or verification. Due to space limitation, the candidates were given a word limit for replies. Incumbents are indicated by and asterisk (*).
Reprinting of this guide in part or in whole is not permissible without written permission of the League of Women Voters of the Princeton Area.
Copyright 2000 by the League of Women Voters of the Princeton Area
The League of Women Voters of the Princeton Area submitted the following four questions to all candidates for South Brunswick Mayor and Township Committee:
1. South Brunswick Township has acquired 276 acres in the last three years, yet neighboring communities like Monroe have acquired 1082 acres, Plainsboro 530, and West Windsor 588. What are your recommendations for our township to increase the acquisition rate and how would you propose to utilize more money from the county and Green Acres funding?
2. How would you respond to senior citizens on a fixed incomes who vote down every school budget not because they don't want better schools or education for township children, but fear the possibility of being forced to move from their longtime home because they cannot afford any additional property taxes?
3. South Brunswick is currently revising its Master Plan. What specific recommendations would you propose for smart growth planning and reducing sprawl?
4. What are your ideas for traffic relief and/or mass transportation?
| Vote for Three | Term: 4 Years |
Carol Barrett*, Democratic Party
Charles Carley, Democratic Party
Joe Del Guercio, Republican Party
Edmund Luciano*, Democratic Party
Dawn Smith, Republican Party
Ted Van Hessen*, Republican Party
CAROL BARRETT*
Democratic Party
Address:1513 Mahogany Court, Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852
Education:New Brunswick H.S., 1959
Occupation:Middlesex County, Records and Archives Department
Significant Community Activities:Councilwoman; President- AFSCME Local #3440; Middlesex County Workforce Investment Board; American Cancer Society Jail & Bail Committee
Responses:
1. South Brunswick has 349 open space acres (Beech Woods, Friendship
Park, the Old Road piece, Harvest Woods, the Heathcote extension,
the Ireland Brook Park, and the Broadway/Friendship Road piece)
and we're continuing. We're engaged in negotiations for 336 additional
area:for more land along Broadway and for the Davidson Mill Park,
and for the Bashaw piece. Meanwhile, this administration's put
2,750 acres of our town's southern tier into a designated farmland
preservation area. I'm proud to be part of the team that's working
hard to preserve open space.
2. I've worked a lot with seniors and I recognize that property taxes are a concern. Like everywhere in New Jersey, most property taxes go to the schools. Our school district does a good job educating our kids, with the average per-student cost well below the regional average. But there's the risk of taxes becoming so cumbersome that seniors are forced to move. To fight this, we've put the brakes on high-density residential development. This will slow the growth rate in our school district. We've been successful and you see that with the total tax rate having been stabilized these past couple of years.
3. The Master Plan should incorporate the work of our citizen groups and should provide for the preservation and beautification of the village and hamlet areas throughout town. We must consider future growth in the town and determine the facilities that the schools, the library, our emergency services, and recreation groups will require to provide top-notch services.
4. South Brunswick must weigh the pros and cons of a train station. Because of the impact of that decision, it mustn't be politicized. It's clear that mass-transit should be upgraded. We've worked with Middlesex County to provide bus service from the Route 130 Park-and-Ride along Georges Rd. to the New Brunswick train stations. We've also worked successfully to get traffic signalization at problem intersections throughout town.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick Township Council
CHARLES CARLEY
Democratic Party
Address:1301 Juniper Court, Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852
Education:Middlesex County College - A.A.S.; Rutgers University - B.A.; New Jersey Institute of Technology - B.S.
Occupation:Civil Engineer
Significant Community Activities:Planning & Zoning Boards
- Member; South Brunswick Family YMCA - Board of Managers; Stony
Brook Regional Sewerage Authority - Commissioner
Responses:
1. With the town's fund and county government, we'll have about
700 acres in the open space inventory by year's end. Also, 2,700
acres have been designated for agricultural preservation. That's
a good record, but we can't rest on it. We've got to preserve
as much open space as we can so our children inherit South Brunswick's
natural and agricultural heritage.
2. Our team's done a great job at stabilizing property taxes.
Any long-term tax stabilization plan must include putting the
brakes on high-density residential development. These past two
years I've been on the Planning and Zoning Boards and, in that
time, only a few new houses have been approved. Compare that to
the previous decade, when Republican-led boards approved an average
of 600+ new houses each and every year. Consequently, our school
board has been wrestling with an explosive growth rate. By slowing
such development, school population growth will level. That'll
provide long-term stability to property taxes.
3. The Master Plan should eliminate high-density residential zones.
By fighting sprawl, we provide stability for our schools, we can
manage traffic more effectively, and we'll preserve the natural
environment in our town.
4. I think mass transit services in South Brunswick have got to
be upgraded. New jitney routes are already being established,
and we've got to upgrade park-and-ride facilities, too. We need
to keep pursuing intersection improvements like the just-completed
signalization of Beekman Road and Route 27. We also need to look
at providing a train station on the Northeast Corridor line, but
we can't politicize it. The Republicans, by issuing an ill-conceived
press release designed to create an election-time issue, led NJ
Transit to believe that our town would swallow the M-O-M line
through Dayton and Monmouth Junction because NJ Transit might
not build a train station if we don't. We just can't have these
antics with such an important issue.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick
Township Council
JOE DEL GUERCIO
Republican Party
Address:1 Lackawanna Ct. Dayton, NJ 08810
Education:BS in Finance 1990 Seton Hall University; CLU 1996 The American College; ChFC 1998 The American College
Occupation:Financial Planner
Community Activities:Vice President South Brunswick Chamber
of Commerce; Treasurer Dayton Village Citizens' Coalition, Board
of Managers South Brunswick Y.M.C.A.; Co-chair South Brunswick
Police Quality Assessment 2000 Team; Coach and Sponsor South Brunswick
Athletic Association and South Brunswick Soccer Club.
Responses:
1. South Brunswick can increase acquisition of open space by better
utilizing our Open Space Trust. $5 million recently spent for
property on Route 1 would purchase many more acres in a more suitable
location. Passing a local historical preservation act would encourage
private organizations to preserve property in partnership with
the state. In 1999 Governor Whitman signed the Garden State Preservation
Trust Act preserving 1 million acres over the next 10 years. We
should take advantage of this along with grants and low interest
loans from the Green Acres Program to preserve farms, forests
and watersheds from development. Such land should be linked together
providing a corridor for recreation and wildlife.
2. I care deeply about all taxpayers, especially seniors. While
recently doing financial planning for a senior citizen, I discovered
she applied for the NJ S.A.V.E.R. and Homestead Rebates, but never
heard of the NJ Property Tax Reimbursement Program that freezes
property taxes at 1997 rates for eligible Seniors. Seniors should
call the hotline at 800-882-6597 to verify eligibility. It may
help you keep your house.
3. I'd downzone the 126-acre tract on Northumberland between Major
and 522. That property received bonus density permitting construction
of 6 homes per acre because 15% are low/moderate income. Remedies
exist to rezone it for only 1-2 homes per acre. Doing this will
prevent construction of 5-600 homes and related sprawl.
4. South Brunswick needs a commuter train station off Route 1
on the Northeast Corridor line to serve our growing population.
Many of our citizens work in cities along that line such as NY
and Philadelphia. Past studies show that the station will reduce
traffic in South Brunswick, improve quality of life and enhance
property values. Fighting against the M.O.M. line and Rt. 92 is
crucial to prevent congestion.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick Township Council
EDMUND LUCIANO*
Democratic Party
No response received.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick
Township Council
Address:1 Ellis Court, Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852
Education: B.A., Douglass College (Rutgers University), 1977
Occupation:Assistant Director of Housing, Rutgers University, where I have worked in various capacities for 23 years
Significant Community Activities:Member, Friends of the South
Brunswick Library; Vice-President, South Brunswick Republican
Club, 1998-present; Corresponding Secretary, SB Upper Elementary
School, 1999-2000; Chair of the SBUES Yearbook Committee, 1998-99,
1999-2000; PTA member, Monmouth Junction School, 1994-1998; Designed
and staffed the Monmouth Junction School float for the Bicentennial
Parade; New Brunswick Republican Organization, member, 1990; Chair
of the New Brunswick Republican Organization, 1991-92;
Secretary of the New Brunswick Republican Organization, 1990-91;
City Council Candidate, New Brunswick, 1992; Member, Republicans
for Environmental Protection;
Active in youth sports, have a coaching certificate
Responses:
1. Quality is more important than quantity. Property purchased
on Route 1 is overpriced and unsuitable for use. Let's create
recreational space around residential areas as a legacy to our
children. Let's aggressively look for money to purchase space
now, before it's gone. Funds could come from the budget as a line
item, and through actively seeking grant and other monies.
2. I sympathize with seniors affected by increased property taxes,
especially those on fixed incomes. This is also true of families
who can't afford to live in the very community they grew up in!
I implore seniors to take the same educational care of this generation's
children as they did with the last to make sure these children
have the best education possible. I challenge them to make their
voices heard by taking an active role creating school budgets
that are comprehensive, but realistic.
3. Cities are eroding as quickly as open space in rural and suburban
areas. Cities fill a vital role-we must preserve them. We should
offer as much of our Affordable Housing allocation as possible
to such urban areas. New Brunswick has done a remarkable job in
utilizing these funds for new housing stock. We should help their
efforts. This will help stop approvals for high-density housing
proposals here in South Brunswick, allowing opportunities for
down-zoning.
4. Clean, efficient convenient mass transportation is critical
to South Brunswick. People moved here understanding a train station
on the Northeast Corridor was coming. The M.O.M. line is not the
answer to these needs. However, a South Brunswick train station
for our commuters will reduce the amount of cars on our roads
at critical times. We need to widen Route 1 and complete Rt. 522
with clearer signage directing truck and other traffic to the
roads designed for it.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick
Township Council
TED VAN HESSEN*
Republican Party
Address:207 Fresh Ponds Road, South Brunswick, NJ
Education: University of Maryland, 1978-1981
Occupation:Executive
Significant Community Activities:Elected to three consecutive terms as member of local governing body, served as mayor in 1996, deputy mayor in 1995; Appointed to Board of Trustees, South Brunswick YMCA (1996- present); Co-chair, Anne Frank in the World:1929-1945 (1995-1996), the first municipal sponsorship of this exhibit in the United States; Chair, Mayor's Ball (1993-1994); Appointed to Board of Trustees and elected president, South Brunswick Education Foundation (1992-1993); Middlesex County Republican Committeeman, 1992-1994, 1998-present); Member of numerous boards and committees (1992 - present) including, Board of Health, Planning Board, Environmental Commission, CATV Commission, Transportation Advisory Committee, Recreation Advisory Committee, Shade Tree Commission, Affordable Housing Authority, Human Relations Commission, Open Space Advisory Committee, Citizens Budget Advisory Task Force, Rail Line Task Force and Municipal Alliance Task Force; Member, Friends of the South Brunswick Library and various ad hoc local groups
Responses:
1. The first step is to make more efficient use of the resources
we already have. The purchase of property on Route 1 at nearly
$58,000/acre wasted $5,000,000, or 15 years of our open space
funding, on a single, over-priced and ill-advised transaction.
Second, I will seek to increase our funding for open space by
including direct township funding of an additional $1,000,000
annually to supplement the two-cent open space tax. Finally, when
we acquire passive-use land, Green Acres funding is ideal and
must be sought aggressively.
2. State law dictates education funding through property taxes. Our community is a desirable place to live and for our children to be educated. This desirability, however, creates market demand. Fortunately, it is that very demand for outstanding education and programming which enhances and protects our property values. Individual communities place varying value on public education - in South Brunswick, quality education and outstanding extracurricular programming should remain a priority.
3. Smart growth planning and sprawl reduction begins with decreasing densities - reducing forever the number of homes anyone can build. I will do all I can to reverse the recent rezoning of lands which increased densities, and will continue to reject any future attempts. Finally, commercially zoned property must never be rezoned for residential construction.
4. Traffic relief and mass transportation are both critical to our community. Together with reducing residential densities, we must fight for a much needed Route 1 widening, critical improvements to Route 27, and completion of all sections of Route 522. While we must continue to vigorously oppose the M-O-M rail line, a fiasco, which provides no relief to South Brunswick, we must ensure a train station is built for local commuters on the main line.
Return to: Candidates for Sounth Brounswick
Township Council