Think!

On Monday, February 3 2014, the prosecution and the defense will make their closing arguments before a jury charged with determining the guilt of Trenton Mayor Tony Mack and his brother Ralphiel in the alleged scheme to accept cash bribes from a would be developer of a downtown parking garage.

This is the end result of an FBI sting investigation that fronted the fake development deal to see if the Macks and their friends JoJo Giorgianni and Charles Hall III would take the bait.  Giorgianni and Hall have already entered guilty pleas, leaving the Macks to stand alone.

Some still wonder if this “sting” was actually “entrapment” and/or if this was part of some greater vendetta against the woefully underperforming mayor and his clique of unruly and ill-mannered friends.

We personally think the prosecution has made its case that there was a conspiracy and that the Mack brothers were not only aware of it but participated in it.  The law does not require that either one of them be caught actually taking the bribes, although Ralphiel was found to be in possession of some of the currency that the FBI used in the investigation.

One can never know for sure how a jury will vote. It only takes one reasonable doubt for the whole case to crumble and the defendants set free.

It is significant that this trial will end, however it ends, just as the municipal election campaign season warms up. Just three months after the verdict is delivered Trentonians will go to the polls to select a mayor and city council for the next four years.

Candidates and voters alike need to take some time to reflect on the past three and one half years of the hands down worst administration this city has seen in its over 300 year history.  We all need to review not only what was done but how it was done.

Before casting one vote in the May 13^th municipal election, the public needs to thoroughly and thoughtfully review their choices.  The candidates cannot be judged solely on the cut of their suit or the church they attend.

We need to examine who they associate with; where their campaign money is coming from and how they have conducted themselves in their public and, yes, private lives up to this point.

Engaged citizens must review the information that is available to them via New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission reports.  Does the candidate file complete and accurate reports on time? Are they reporting proper expenditures?

Trentonians must also ask direct questions of those seeking office and not accept the typical, non-committal political double-speak designed to win voter approval but containing no substance.

Mayoral candidates must present measurable, realistic goals and define a plan that they will follow to achieve them.

City council candidates must demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the governing body’s role in city government; its authority and power.

Pay attention to not only what candidates are saying but how they communicate.

We all say we want the best for Trenton, let’s not lower our standards just because we have a personal affinity for an individual who is running for office. 

If we want elected leaders who can think critically, than we must be critical in how we choose them.

The 2010-2014 term has been a waste for the city of Trenton. Corruption scandal aside, we have seen more waste and ineffective, often non-existent, government. It is well documented and openly recognized that the city’s woes did not start at noon on July 1, 2010.  What has transpired since has dragged Trenton down to the lowest point in our memory.

Despite what may be said during the campaign, whoever takes the oath of office on July 1, 2014 will not be able to flip a switch and immediately make everything “OK” again.

So choose wisely, Trenton. Or be prepared for an even rockier next four years.

Now what?

Is the defense team for Tony and Ralphiel Mack trying to stifle coverage of their trial on corruption charges?

{edited at 9 pm, 1/10/14 to include notes about and from the Times article on the matter}

On the same day that jurors and the public heard a recording of JoJo Giorgianni complain about Trentonian columnist LA Parker constantly writing stories picking on Trenton Mayor Tony Mack, the defense team appears to have subpoenaed another Trenton reporter.

On Friday evening, the Times of Trenton published a story online noting that Thursday morning, January 9, Times of Trenton reporter Alex Zdan was served with a subpoeana asking for "all notes pertaining to coverage of the Mack et al matter."

According to the article by Jenna Pizzi,
“Attorneys for The Times have notified the judge and the defense attorney of our intent to fight the subpoena," said Matt Dowling, editor of The Times. "Courts have long-recognized a privilege deeply rooted in the First Amendment that protects reporters from being compelled to provide evidence in judicial proceedings.”

Just after Judge Michael Shipp called a one hour recess for lunch on Thursday, Times reporter Alex Zdan was approached by Robert Haney, attorney for Ralphiel Mack.

Haney, accompanied by private investigator Buddy Wright, walked over to where Zdan was speaking with colleague Jenna Pizzi.

Haney and Wright stood slightly apart for a moment and were largely ignored by the reporters. After politely waiting for a pause in the conversation, Haney asked Zdan if he had been “served.”

There was a very tense pause while Zdan just stared at Haney. Finally, Zdan told Haney that he would not and probably should not speak with him, at least not without a lawyer present. The reporter’s tone was calm and measured but there was unmistakable tension in the words.

Haney nodded and stated that was why he had approached Zdan. He asked that any legal representative of the reporter’s please contact him.

This happened the same day that a lengthy article based upon an interview Zdan did with Giorgianni appeared in the Times. Whether that article was the catalyst for the legal action against Zdan is not known.

Zdan’s reporting on the entire investigation from the time of the FBI raids of the homes of the Mack brothers and Giorgianni has been intensive. He has uncovered the reasons why search warrants were issued for certain individuals.

We hope the defense is not unfairly trying to silence the press or discourage further investigative reporting as part of its trial strategy.

And we hope the defense team is a zealous in pursuing  and preventing possible witnesses from sitting in the courtroom during proceedings, such as Rodney Washington did on Thursday.

Must be something in the water

By this time, it is no secret that Trenton’s indicted mayor is no fiscal wizard. His personal financial problems have been discussed and dissected ad nauseum over the past few years.  His mismanagement of the city’s funds has incited outrage from the city council (at times) and the public (repeatedly).

In recent weeks we have been treated to reports about the hundreds of thousands of dollars owed contractors for work done for the city. 

The now out of business Jonico firm is suing for $600,000 for work done on South Broad Street, interest and attorney fees.

Diamond Contractors is owed $122,000 for the installation of handicap access ramps in sidewalks around town.

Kevin Moriarty addressed this in a recent blog post.  

Another contractor, Marshall Technologies, tried for years to collect a $19,000 bill for work done at the city’s main library. The city administration claimed it should be paid by the library out of the annual stipend received from the city. The library board felt differently and wouldn’t pay. While the two entities argued, the vendor didn’t get paid. After going through mediation, the $19,000 bill nearly doubled to $31,000.  The inflated amount could have been avoided if the administration had just paid the bill when due and worked it out with the library board.

Speaking of the Trenton Free Public Library, we noted this item in the correspondence section of the January 2, 2014 city council docket:
1n Letter for Katz & Dougherty, LLC copy of letter to Mayor Tony Mack, dated December 13, 2013, re: Todd Geter, R.A., Unpaid Invoices for Learning Center Improvements.

Mr. Geter was, ironically, a listed member of themayor’s committee that determined it would be best to reopen the four former branch libraries and keep them under city (as opposed to TFPL) control. Mr. Geter, as a licensed architect, apparently provided the necessary plans, drawings, etc. required to get the permits to allow vendors to do the work required to get the buildings up to code and reopened. But he hasn’t been paid.

A side point, Marshall Technologies did a lot of the work on the mechanical systems in the four buildings. They were paid on time…even though the city council questioned where the money was coming from to pay those bills.

These are just a few examples of the city’s (not just the mayor’s) fiscal failings.

Also on the docket for January 2 is this:

1g Tort Claim Notice filed against the City of Trenton for Damages by Frey Engineering, LLC, 1117 State Route 31, Suite 4, Lebanon, NJ 08833

According to prior newspaper reports, Frey did work for the city that was authorized by Charles Hall, III. Hall never got the proper city council approval for the contract with Frey. Frey did the work and expects to be paid over $43,000.  The city council has not approved the payment because they did not authorize the contract. Further, since the authorization came from Hall and he is a cooperating witness in the federal case against Mayor Mack, some members of council are reluctant to touch the matter.

The list goes on. Former recreation department “contract” employee Lisa Whittaker was essentially paid off in 2012. She performed work and submitted bills that had never been approved by the governing body, but the decision was made to pay her rather than go to court.

Michael Morris, the former lead park ranger, was laid off to make way for Mack confidant Chico Mendez. After a long, drawn out (and costly) fight through the civil service commission, Morris was reinstated, Mendez “removed” and back pay ordered.

And yet the city seems to have no problem paying expenses such as:
1) Former mayoral aide, Billie Hayes, received $250 for his work providing secretarial assistance to Councilwoman Kathy McBride
(Note: All council members are granted a stipend to pay for a clerical assistant. We just find it curious that Ms. McBride has retained the services of one of the mayor's former aides).
2) Flashing Blinky Lights.com was paid $524.39 for what we presume to have been table decorations and favors for the "City of Trenton Senior Gala" held on December 9.
Who, one might rightfully ask, is minding the store? Who in the administration is it that continually makes these bad, too often expensive, decisions and why?

 

Objection!

In a recent article by Times reporter Alex Zdan, readers were treated to tidbits from the transcripts of the Grand Jury proceedings that resulted in the indictment of Stanley “Muscles” Davis and others.

Davis, you will recall, pleaded guilty in a scheme where the Trenton Water Works employee would do private plumbing work while on the city clock, using city equipment and materials.

The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office conducted an investigation and sting operation that resulted in an undercover officer paying Davis for doing work on a Home Avenue residence.  Davis and two others were arrested in December of 2010. The Grand Jury heard testimony later that month and into January 2011.

Zdan reports that the transcripts of the Grand Jury proceedings reveal the jurors asking questions about the possibility of indicting Mayor Tony Mack, Davis’s half-brother, as part of the case.

Shortly after taking office in July of 2010, Mack made changes to the overtime rules at the water utility that would allow Davis to work more hours and raise his income. This change also provided Davis with the opportunity to access more of these potential installations done on city time with city resources while receiving direct payment from the homeowners.

While rumors of this scheme began circulating in the summer of 2010, the Mayor chose to do nothing about it.

At one point, Councilman George Muschal recounted in testimony before the Grand Jury that he approached the Mayor about the allegations against Davis. The Mayor’s reported response was,

“George, my brother is a career criminal. If he gets caught, it’s on him. It’s not on me. You got to remember, I’m the mayor of Trenton. I’m Teflon. I can’t be touched.”

With all of this, Assistant Prosecutor Jim Scott warned the jury off of indicting the Mayor.

Zdan’s article includes the following quotes from Scott:

“If there are two plausible explanations that could exist, you should give the target of your investigation the benefit of the doubt and not return an indictment” Scott said, according to the transcript from the Jan. 14, 2011 hearing.

“But I would submit to you at this point that there is insufficient evidence to prosecute the mayor at this point,” Scott told the grand jurors.

Scott told the jurors that Mack’s lack of action on those complaints was “the closest call” that could lead to an indictment, but that inaction could be attributed to the “amount of issues that were facing the mayor” shortly after he took office.

“In this particular case, I would submit to you that Mayor Mack has a tremendous amount on his plate,” Scott said, according to the transcript. “He inherited an administration where there was complete turnover. And the budget issues that the city of Trenton faces are enormous.”

INHERITED AN ADMINISTRATION WHERE THERE WAS COMPLETE TURNOVER?!?!?

Objection!

Upon taking office on July 1, 2010, Mayor Tony F. Mack knowingly and deliberately dismissed key personnel who had experience in running the city. Even IF, and it is a huge IF, the Mayor was intent on remaking the administration, common sense would call for a gradual transition in order to guarantee the continued smooth operation of city functions.

The mayor did not INHERIT a vacant administration. He caused it.

Further, the mayor had at his side a seasoned and knowledgeable acting Business Administrator in the person of William Guhl. Guhl, who was volunteering to help get the Mack administration off on the right foot, left one month into the term. Why? Because the mayor would not heed the sage advice being given to him.

For Assistant Prosecutor Scott to suggest that the problem of turnover in the city administration was “inherited” is just plain wrong.

 

Check, please

Two items from the June 18, 2013 City Council Docket:

13-379 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING APPLICATION FOR AND ACCEPTANCE OF A GRANT FROM THE NEW JERSEY STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOR THE FY 2014 SUMMER FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM FOR CHILDREN FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION NATURAL RESOURCES AND CULTURE IN THE AMOUNT OF $433,208.25

13-382 RESOLUTION AWARDING A CONTRACT TO KARSON FOOD SERVICES, INC., 3409 ROSE AVENUE, OCEAN, NEW JERSEY 07721 TO PROVIDE PREPACKAGED MEALS PER STATE REQUIREMENTS TO CHILDREN PARTICIPATING IN THE CITY OF TRENTON SUMMER FOOD PROGRAM FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF RECREATION, NATURAL RESOURCES AND CULTURE FOR THE PERIOD BEGINNING JUNE 24, 2013 THROUGH AUGUST 20, 2013 AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED: $220,000.00 – CC2013-02

To explain:

Every year for a very long time, the city of Trenton has applied for and received a grantfrom the NJ Department of Agriculture to provide free meals to children in the city. The grant covers both the cost of the food contract and money for temporary summer help to run the feeding program locations in city parks.

Reading from the two resolutions reveals the total grant is for $433,208.25 and the catering contract with Karson Food Services is not to exceed $220,000.

There must be some attendance/participation issues with the program this year. We frequently find ourselves passing by the Clay Street Park/Ike Williams Center during the noon hour on weekdays. There has been no evidence of children getting meals or participating in activities there.

A Mill Hill resident found this flier “shoved into {his} mailbox” on July 29. Leaving aside the fact

that it is technically illegal to stuff anything but mail in a mailbox, this “invitation” suggests participation in the program is somewhat below what was expected. The lack of activity in the park seems to support that fact.

This has us pondering what kind of monitoring goes on for this program. Is the participation at each site and citywide documented? Are we tracking the number of meals purchased versus the number of children served? Does the state ever audit the program to see if it is being run effectively and efficiently?

These musing were brought back to the fore again today when we discovered this.

 

We spied this box with a couple of apparently untouched “lunches” sitting atop a trash can at the corner of S. Warren Street and Assunpink Drive in downtown Trenton. Low on the side of the box was the imprint Karson Food Service Inc. Higher up on the same side was the word “Trenton” scratched through with a dark marker of some sort.

 

How and why did this carton and these uneaten meals end up here…blocks from the nearest lunch site?

 

Is this typical of how this program is being run?

In light of the state comptroller's recent report on the statewide abuse (including Trenton) of the school lunch program, can someone check. Please.

 

Sounds familiar

"My heart aches today knowing that my beloved home town of Detroit now has the notoriety of being the largest American city to officially file for bankruptcy. But the filing was really just a formality. Detroit has really been broke, broken and in decay now for decades — a shell of a city, with a small downtown and some scattered neighborhoods dissected by miles of abandoned storefronts and vacant lots ."

"Detroit's demise was decades in the making" is the title of a piece published on July 19 in the Washington Post  and written by Detroit native, Keith B. Richburg. The above is the opening paragraph of that article.

Richburg lays out, honestly, openly and sadly what has happened to his hometown over the last 50+ years. He rightly deduces that the city did not reach the point of having to file for bankruptcy overnight. It is a sobering read for anyone interested in urban studies.

There are some very strong parallels to Trenton's own history in the same period. The similarities are so strong, that Richburg could easily have been writing about our capital city rather than the motor city.

Take the last sentence in that opening paragraph and change one word: Detroit Trenton  has really been broke, broken and in decay now for decades —a shell of a city, with a small downtown and some scattered neighborhoods dissected by miles of abandoned storefronts and vacant lots.

OK. That was easy and a no-brainer. Read the article in full while mentally swapping Trenton in for Detroit. Substitue other local references where appropriate and see what you get.

For example:

The Detroit Trenton I remember ceased to exist a long time ago. But it was kept alive by a pride, a nostalgia for its former glory, and an illusion that revival was just around the next corner. We who love Detroit Trenton — even people like me who abandoned it long ago — were all complicit.

This paragraph stands on its own, unchanged from Richrburg's original and readily applicable to Trenton:

"Most of the old-time residents say they never plan to move, even though city services are virtually nonexistent in the old neighborhoods and most of the neighbors are gone. It’s a pride, a stubbornness and an attitude of “I bought this home 40 years ago, and no crack addicts or gangbangers are going to drive me out of it!” "

In a paragraph discussing Detroits past mayors, Richburg closes with a statement about convicted and imprisoned Kwame Kilpatrcik and how people still defend him. Change just a couple of words and it suddenly is Trenton that we are talking about:

But Detroiters Trentonians are prideful and protective of their own; even when Kilpatrick Mack and his associates were shown to be corrupt, many Detroiters Trentonians came out to support him, blaming the prosecutors for unfairly targeting a black elected official.

Perhaps the most telling passage comes near the end, under the subtitle "Racial politics."

The white population’s abandonment of the city left Detroit Trenton with a shrinking tax base and deteriorating, segregated public schools — a system locked in place by a Supreme Court order that halted busing across school district lines. But blacks still in Detroit Trenton had one thing left — political power. And they would guard it jealously against any encroachment, real or imagined.

Thus, the city’s black political class sees conspiracy theories everywhere. The investigation of the last mayor by the Detroit Free Press local press, and his indictment by a prosecutor, are seen as a white conspiracy to undermine black “home rule” of Detroit Trenton. The governor’s appointment of an emergency financial manager, once it became clear that Detroit Trenton cannot manage its own fiscal affairs, is again seen as a hostile, racist takeover by the state over the city’s elected black leadership.

Racial politics, and that racial prism, long ago ruined Detroit Trenton , and now they hamper any chance the city has at a modest recovery. As a longtime friend, one who has stayed in Detroit and worked to help the city, once put it to me succinctly: "Some people would rather be the king of nothing than a part of something.”

And what have we learned?

The Skelton "Learning Center" on S. Broad Street.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

 Rear fence pushed in. Why? For access to...

 

 

 

 

...the yard to scavenge copper from the two A/C units.

 

Can't empty the mailbox....

 

...but we can tape up a poster for Heritage Days (I think they called it "marketing the festival.")

Way to go, Mayor Mack! Way to manage the city's resources.

PS: As of this posting, the A/C at Ellarslie mansion is still not fixed and most likely won't be this week.

Whatever happened to the arts and culture mayor?

This week, we received the following message on our office phone...a phone, by the way, that was NEVER registered with the city of Trenton but receives their robocalls. Anyway, here is the message (as relayed via the internet service provider that logged the message for our VoIP phone):

"This is Gordon James. Good evening, the first day of summer was last Friday and Heritage Days is finally here. Two days of music food and fun for the entire family with live music performances from Grace Little and the amazing Grace, Gordon James, Swing Sabroso, SWAG and many more."

"This year we've expanded our children's Village to include triple the inflatable's we've had in the previous year. There will be face painting, pony rides and all types of ethnic food and drinks. Join us at Mill Hill Park."

This is Mayor's Mack defiant way of asserting his authority. He promised the city council he would NOT stage the costly, poorly organized and sparsely attended event this year but then, "changed his mind." Raiding other budget lines, he has come up with some $40,000 of taxpayer dollars that he will use to throw a self-aggrandizing, wasteful party.

In the meantime, we also received the following email:

The Trenton Film Society regretfully announces that the screenings of Landfall: The Eyes of Sandy and the finalists in 2013 Not Quite Legal Film Festival on Saturday, June 29th, have been cancelled.

The City of Trenton just announced that Heritage Days will be taking place in Mill Hill Park, with some events planned for the Mill Hill Playhouse. The Trenton Film Society will work with the staff of the Mill Hill Playhouse to reschedule the screenings of Landfall and the finalists in this year's NQL Film Festival in late-July or early-August.

Apparently, what happened was the organizers of the Heritage Days faux-festival took it upon themselves to pledge access to the Mill Hill Playhouse to a solo filmmaker. They did not bother to check with anyone else about possible conflicts.

Now, it should be noted that the Mill Hill Playhouse is a city owned facility. The primary tenant of the Mill Hill Playhouse is the independent and non-profit Passage Theatre. The last we knew under the terms of the MOU between the theater company and the city, Passage had first dibs on use of the facility and was responsible for the scheduling of other uses.

It is always possible things have changed and we certainly wouldn't know since the city has yet to comply with the year old ordinance that states an inventory of city owned properties, who uses them and under what terms and agreements be provided to the city council (and thus made public).

The key thing here is that it just makes sense that a professional theater company that is the primary user of a facility should keep the schedule for ALL usage. Unfortunately, the Tony Mack administration has proven repeatedly that it cannot and generally will not adhere to any agreements, pledges or promises if it does not suit the whim of the mayor.

We understand that the solo filmmaker was very gracious and willing to work with the Trenton Film Society folks to accommodate their event. He reportedly offered to screen his film on Sunday only, leaving Saturday for the already scheduled event.

That would have been a wonderful compromise except for one thing. The general noise level from the performances outside at the festival will be loud enough to be heard inside of the playhouse. External sound carries very well into the space and in all likelihood will make hearing the soundtrack of any film hard to hear.

Therefore, the Trenton Film Festival folks are opting to try to find another weekend later in the summer for their event.

The poor filmmaker who now has total clearance to use the playhouse may still face the problem of no audience.

The city in its "exhaustive" (NOT) marketing campaign for the Heritage Days event has made no mention that we have seen or heard of the screening. Not only is it unreasonable to expect a reasonable turnout for this waste of money event, the lack of promotion will also likely leave this poor filmmaker sitting alone in the Mill Hill Playhouse listening to the throbbing music seeping through the walls from the main stage a block away.

The Tony Mack has effectively killed off two events for the sake of holding onto his desire to "throw a party" for the city.

Meanwhile, across town, we have another example of the inability of this administration to manage the simplest things.

The Trenton City Museum is housed in the 19th century Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park. The building and the park are the property and responsibility of the city. The collection housed in the museum and all the programming there are the work of the Trenton Museum Society. The TMS is an independent non-profit organization.

Under the decades old MOU between the city and the TMS, the city was supposed to provide (as in hire and pay for) a full-time museum director. This individual was not only the liaison between the city and the TMS, they were the on-site eyes and ears that oversaw and managed the routine maintenance of the facility.

In the great "layoff of 2011", the museum director was let go. This forced the TMS to cancel exhibits and programs while they figured out what to do. In the interim, there was no one onsite who really understood, cared about, or demonstrated the will or knowledge to keep things running.

The TMS finally bit the bullet and, using its own funds, hired a part-time director of its own to help get things back on track. The problem with this arrangement is that the director is NOT a city employee and not part of the bureaucracy of city government. Getting things done in an efficient and timely manner is always a struggle.

This week, as the weather turned decidedly summer-ish with temperatures in the 90’s, the aging HVAC system for the building went down. (NOTE: the HVAC system would have been replaced with a newer one if the city had been able to win an National Endownment for the Humanities grant a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, that grant application was written by one of Mayor Mack’s inexperienced hires. Her grant application was denied and the city has had to struggle on with the antiquated system. This is not only a matter of comfort for the patrons, it puts the collection at risk from the effects of unstable environmental conditions).

The A/C goes out in the middle of a heat wave and the replacement part comes in by Friday but cannot be installed until the following Wednesday. This necessitates the relocation from Ellarslie to the Trent House of a lecture scheduled for Sunday because the museum is just too warm without the A/C.

The lecture is about a current exhibit at the museum and will be given by the curator of that exhibit. Unfortunately for the audience, the lecture will be given in a completely different facility than the one two and half miles away that houses the exhibit.

And all because this incompetent mayor cannot manage to keep his word and support the city’s cultural institutions.

Party on, Mayor Mack. Party on.

Watching the money

While much is being reported and discussed about Birdsall Engineering, the firm found guilty of campaign contribution violations, another costly and equally distasteful situation has been brought to light.

The NJ State Comptroller has just issued a report summing up its investigation into the millions of dollars paid in legal fees by local governments and school districts.

The escalating amount of legal work being done by outside law firms on behalf of the city of Trenton has not gone unnoticed.

We can all remember how the large and politically connected law firm of Cooper Levinson "withdrew" from their contract to provide outside legal counsel to the city of Trenton. The withdrawal came after it was revealed that the firm received work with the city after contributing to Political Action Committee that in turn made a matching contribution to Mayor Tony Mack's campaign.

There was also Andrew Weber, formerly of Cooper Levenson and recently with the Mt. Holly law firm of Riley and Riley, one of the many Acting Business Administrators appointed by Mayor Mack. Weber held the seat until it became known that the Riley and Riley firm was seeking a contract with the city.

It is not just these close ties between elected officials and campaign contributors/supporters that is worrisome. Just who is keeping tabs on the billings and payments to all these law firms for all the work they are doing on behalf of the city? How do we know we aren't being overcharged?

The report from the State Comptroller shows quite plainly, how easily local government units lose control or track of their legal expenses.

The report offers some "best practices" ideas that we encourage Trenton's city government to adopt.

1. Developing policies and procedures regarding the procurement, use and management of legal counsel
2. Conducting a competitive procurement for legal counsel
3. Drafting formal, written contracts with legal counsel
4. Managing those contracts.

Let’s hope the administration gets good legal counsel on this matter. And can keep itself out of trouble enough to reduce the excessive need for legal representation!

This stinks

And its not just the uncollected trash.

We have all read, heard about and/orexperienced delays in trash collection due to the chronic shortages of workersin the public words department.

It is a situation that has been frustrating for residents and the city administration alike.

West Ward Councilman Zac Chester suggested on Monday that the city utilize the Blackboard Connect robo-call system to notify residents if and when trash collection was going to be late.

It seems like a common sense request to use a system the city pays $50,000 or more a year to use.  -----

Original Message-----
From: Zachary A. Chester [mailto:zac.chester@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, June 10, 2013 9:55 PM
To: John Seigle
Cc: Zachary Chester
Subject: Trash pick up

Hi John,

Mr. Hutchinson asked that I email him this request.

I would like the city to use the call system to inform residents about the delay in trash pick up when we are unable to pick up due to low staffing. I asked the director and Mr. Harris to do this so the residents know what is going on.

Thank you,

It went from Mr. Hutchinson’s office (via John Seigle…Mr. Hutchinson seems adverse to answering or sending his own emails) to public works director Mollinedo, with copies to mayoral aide Anthony Roberts and Trenton Water Works stock clerk Paul Harris.

(You can read the complete email chain here, starting at the bottom of the document.)

The response that came back from Anthony Roberts was this:

-----Original Message-----

From: Anthony Roberts

Sent: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 1:39 PM

To: John Seigle

Subject: RE: Trash pick up

John: The Mayor said No! to this request!

Anthony C. Roberts, Aide to the Mayor

City of Trenton

Department of Administration

319 E. State Street

Trenton, New Jersey 08608

609-989-3807 - 609-989-4250 FAX

  Note the emphasis indicated by the application of the exclamation mark following the mayor’s one word response.

Now we are the first to admit we feel the Blackboard Connect system has been abused and overused. Certainly, no one wants to be bothered by phone calls touting the opening or re-opening of the failed “Learning Centers”.  We don’t want to be further annoyed by calls touting the waste of tax dollars known as the “Heritage Days Festival.”

This, however, seems like a fairly reasonable use of the system.  A simple phone call informing folks that trash collections will be delayed. A message with instructions on when the trash will be picked up, whether or not to leave it on the curb and for how long seems like something worth communicating to the residents.

Not according to the terse response given to Councilman Chester’s request.

It does make one wonder. Surely the mayor, Mr. Roberts or Mr. Harris are not the only city employees who know how to access and activate the phone system. Per the MOU with the state upon which our transitional aid funding is given, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Mollinedo and other directors can not be summarily dismissed by the Mayor. Not without the approvals of DCA and the governing body.

Maybe it is time for one of these parties to stand up to the petty tyrant and do what is right for the city.

The mayor changed his mind.

Mayoral Aide Anthony Roberts faced off agains five members of City Council last night (Alex Bethea and Kathy McBride were absent) over the proposed Recreation budget for the coming fiscal year.

According to David Foster's reporting in the Trentonian, when the topic of Heritage Days came up, Roberts defended the Mayor's last minute decision to break a previous agreement to cancel the event this year.

"He changed his mind," Roberts said laughing.

 

That is supposed to be a good enough reason to spend $40,000 on a poorly planned, poorly executed and (if the last two years are an example) poorly attended festival?

Any experienced event planner will tell you that is not the way to produce a meaningful, rewarding festival.

If you measure success by the fact that you actually manage to mount an event, then this kind of half-assed approach is probably good enough.

Even though Anthony Roberts has stated otherwise, there doesn’t seem to be any real marketing of the event going unless you want to count the two images posted to the front page of the city of Trenton website. Where’s the information on the lineup of performers? Where is the information about how interested groups or vendors might get involved?

We can’t help wonder though, would this be good enough if the $40,000 was coming directly out of the Mayor, or Mr. Roberts’ personal funds? 

Why is it “OK” then, to proceed haphazardly and irresponsibly with the public’s money?

Because the mayor changed his mind.

 

Not good enough.

The city should be focusing its activities and money on providing the basic services of public safety and a functional infrastructure. If we can’t afford enough staff to make regular garbage collections or mow and maintain our parks, how can we possibly be considering funding festivals and parades?

If the governing body has to fret about the cost of accepting a grant that would help rehire a dozen police officers because it would mean raising taxes, how can we even consider having “end of year” parties or summer concerts?

It is not the purpose of the city to entertain the citizens. It is not for the city to provide activities. 

Yes, fund the pools. Give some money to the various sports leagues, but not their complete operating budget and only under closely monitored agreements.

The rest is just bread and circuses.

It is long past time for the city of Trenton to cut out the frivolous expenses and focus its meager and dwindling financial resources on what really matters.

Something is happening here but you don't know what it is...

...Do you, Mr. Mack.

The saga of the Tony Mack administration gets sadder.

While he awaits his day in Federal court on charges of conspiring to accept bribes in a make believe development deal, the indicted and embattled mayor continues to lose whatever shreds of credibility he may have had left.

In April, the Civil Service Commission ruled that the administration had wrongfully laid off former lead park ranger Michael Morris in favor of Mack croney, Robert "Chico" Mendez. The CSC gave the city a month to rehire Morris and dismiss Mendez. The city has done neither.

In fact, the administration is claiming that it wants to appeal the decision in the case. Strange, since the record shows that they did not even bother to respond to the matter when it was crawling through the CSC process.

Asking the city council to approve funding for an appeal that would seem to have no real standing but instead is based purely on the mayor's personal vendetta against a former employee is not going to be an easy sell. The governing body is increasingly wary of these kinds of wasteful and ultimately fruitless expenditures.

And, lest anyone think the council does not have a say in the matter, let us refer you to this little item from the city code:

 

 

§ 2-25 Special counsel.

 

Whenever (s)he deems the interests of the City so require the City Attorney may, with the approval of the Mayor and Council and within the limits of available appropriations, appoint special counsel to assist him/her in the preparation, trial or argument of such legal matters or proceedings as (s)he may determine. If the City Attorney should be disqualified with respect to any matter, the Mayor shall appoint special counsel, with the approval of the City Council, to represent the City for and with respect to such matter.

 

 Clearly, the governing body has the approval. Period.

 

This might be a mere annoyance to a mayor who has repeatedly ignored the laws if they didn't agree with his personal agenda, but it is only the beginning.

“We received notification from DCA earlier today that they will not even consider any funding in support of the hotel until they receive a copy of a plan from the city with respect to available options for funding and profits — a more comprehensive plan,” business administrator Sam Hutchinson said.

After an hour long presentation meant to coax the city council into approving a $200,000 expenditure to help cover the costs of transitioning the hotel from Marriot to Wyndham and changing management companies, members of the governing body engaged in a little question and answer session about the hotel.

 

All of the responses from LYCDC president Joyce Kersey, the LYCDC attorney and representatiaves from the management companies circled around having more money appropriated to effect the changes and better position the property in the market place. Very little was said about efforts to sell the hotel beyond vague references to giving consideration to any "serious offer".

In response to a question from council president Phyllis Holly-Ward, city business administrator Sam Hutchinson announced that he had just that morning received communication from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs informing him that they could not proceed without a concrete plan in place.

Seizing the moment to solidify the obvious (and reported) inclination of a majority of the body to cut off further spending on the hotel, Councilman Zac Chester immediately asked if the administration would pull the item from the docket.  Strangely, Hutchinson declined to defer to the mayor's higher authority and declined to withdraw the funding resolution from the docket.

It really didn't matter as the council has the authority to set its agenda and can add or remove items as it sees fit.

This didn't stop Councilwoman McBride from launching into an angy attack on the DCA, proclaiming that Director Neff was, in effect, the "mayor of Trenton" and that Mayor Mack had been reduced to nothing more than a mere figurehead.

The councilwoman was more correct than she knows.

The latest MOU signed with the state continued a three year trend of putting more control over city matters in the DCA's hands and creating less leeway for the mayor and his few remaining cronies to wreck their own particular brand of municipal mayhem.

The edict to not proceed with any further funding for the hotel without a concrete plan represents a very significant flexing of the state's muscles. It appears that the state "is not playing" anymore.

Something IS happening here.

 

It's really not that hard

The phrase “you can’t make this stuff up” has, along with its more scatological sibling, been uttered a lot these past 33 months or so. A whole lot. Daily, even.

So none of us should really be surprised to learn of new feats of absurdity accomplished by what is sometimes referred to as the municipal government of the city of Trenton.

Today’s example is another great idea gone wrong at the hands of an administration clearly not up to the task of guiding, let alone governing, this city.

A recap: our current mayor is under Federal indictment and awaiting trial on corruption charges. The trial is expected to be held this coming summer. If found guilty, at sentencing he loses his seat as the mayor, creating a vacancy in the office.

Ever since the mayor was arrested last September, and maybe even after the FBI raided his home and city hall on successive days in July of 2012, people have inquired about what happens “if and when?”

To the credit of Council President Phyllis Holly-Ward and the rest of the governing body, they determined it would be a good idea to hold a special council meeting to review, in public, the process of filling a vacancy in any of the elected offices in Trenton's city government. That meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 30 at 5:30 pm in Council Chambers at City Hall. This morning, Erin Duffy had an article in the Times about this meeting. A careful read of the piece indicates a problem. And not a small one.

Down towards the end of the piece, Duffy writes:

“Holly-Ward said the interpretation given to her by the city’s law department was that if the mayor stepped down permanently, the business administrator would serve as mayor for up to 60 days and then council would choose a new interim mayor.”

The text we underlined is key here. If this is truly what Holly-Ward was told, someone is mistaken.

If you look at the city code, you will find that Chapter 2-4 refers to the Mayor. Under that chapter, in articles E. and F. there are provisions for what happens when the mayor is not able to attend to the duties and responsibilities of the office on a temporary basis (E.) and when the position is deemed vacant (F.).

From the City of Trenton Code

2-4 Mayor.
E. Acting Mayor. As provided by the Charter (Section 3-12, N.J.S.A. 40:69A-42), the Mayor shall designate the Chief of Staff, the Business Administrator, any other department head or the City Clerk to act as Mayor whenever the Mayor shall be prevented, by absence from the City, disability or other cause, from attending to the duties of the office. During such time, the person so designated by the Mayor shall possess all the rights, powers and duties of Mayor. Whenever the Mayor shall have been unable to attend to the duties of the office for a period of 60 consecutive days for any of the above-stated reasons, an acting Mayor shall be appointed by the Council who shall succeed to all the rights, powers and duties of the Mayor or the then Acting Mayor.

F. Vacancy. A vacancy in the office of Mayor shall be filled by election for the remainder of the unexpired term at the next regular municipal election occurring not less than 60 days after the occurrence of the vacancy. Council shall fill vacancies temporarily by appointment to serve until the qualification of a person so elected.

In the first instance, the mayor is able to designate an acting mayor to serve for up to 60 days in place of the elected official. This could be the Business Administrator, a Chief of Staff (if we had one), the City Clerk or any Department Director.

Situations where this might occur would be, for example, if the mayor were traveling out of state (as was the case last summer when Mayor Mack went on vacation and designated Business Administrator Sam Hutchinson as Acting Mayor. It could apply in times of illness or other medical leave, etc.

The point being, the absence is temporary.

The second section deals with the circumstances of the office being vacated by death, resignation, or some other reason that the official can not serve out the remainder of the term. This would be, in a phrase, a “permanent absence” as would be the case should the current Mayor be removed from office as a result of the pending legal case.

You will note that in section F. there is no mention of the BA stepping in for any length of time. This raises the question: “Then who becomes Mayor?”

For the answer, we must turn to state law. There are two unlinked provisions of law that deal with the matter and they are pretty clear. One is found in N.J.S.A. 40A:9 which is a string of sections of law dealing with the organization of local government. The other is in N.J.S.A. 40A:16 which focuses on the succession of office in a uniform way.

The general law:

§ 40A:9-131. Acting mayor (applicable to all communities)

In every municipality, unless otherwise provided by law, if a vacancy occurs in the office of mayor, by reason of death, resignation or otherwise, the presiding officer of the governing body shall become the acting mayor until a successor is elected and qualified.

The municipal vacancy law:

§ 40A:16-12 (Applicable to Trenton’s Non-Partisan form of Government)

Appointment to fill vacancy where incumbent was not nominee of a political party; time to fill vacancy

If the incumbent whose office has become vacant was not elected to office as the nominee of a political party, the governing body may, within 30 days of the occurrence of the vacancy, appoint a successor to fill the vacancy without regard to party.

Again, there is no mention of the ascension of the BA or anyone other than the presiding officer of the governing body to be acting mayor until a successor is named.

Further, there is a court case which determined that both of those laws are not only compatible but should be read and applied together.

DeSoto v. Smith, 383 N.J. Super. 384, 891 A.2d 1241, 2006 N.J. Super. LEXIS 54 (App. Div. 2006)

As the result of applying Section 40A:9-131, a municipal attorney was terminated by the Council President who became acting mayor and council president temporarily pursuant to N.J. Stat. Ann. § 40A:9-131. In an effort to defeat the acting mayor’s dismissal, it was argued that section 131, which allowed the council president to serve as both acting mayor and council president, violated the “separation of powers” doctrine. However the Court ruled that the doctrine of separation of powers was not generally applicable to a Faulkner Act mayor-council government, because the design of the Faulkner Act provided for checks and balances which would enable the Council by a 2/3 majority vote to nullify the acting mayor’s dismissal under N.J. Stat. Ann. § 40:69A-43(c).

The bottom line is that the succession in office law (40A:16-12) provides 30 days within which the council is to select an acting mayor pending the holding of an election (or for the unexpired balance of the term of the former mayor, depending on the time of the vacancy). Pending that, the Council President becomes acting Mayor as well as Council President.

This contradicts the interpretation that Council President Holly-Ward says she was given by the city law department.
Want further evidence?

We need only look a few miles east of Trenton’s City Hall to the Municipal Building for Hamilton Township. When then Mayor John Bencivengo resigned in the wake of the guilty verdict last November, who immediately became Acting Mayor?

Kevin Meara was the presiding officer of the governing body (township council) and thus became the Acting Mayor until the selection of Kelly Yaede to hold the title until the special election in November 2013.

Why Trenton’s law department has come up with this idea that the BA becomes the temporary Mayor is beyond us.

Hopefully, the state of NJ through the Department of Community Affairs, Division of Local Government Services will complete their "review" of the matter and advise all parties as to what is the correct information. Otherwise, we will end up with another empty but well-intended gesture of trying to do the right thing.

Civil Service Commission orders Mendez gone!

In an order issued on Wednesday, April 3, 2013, the NJ Civil Service Commission determined that the layoff of former head of the Trenton Park Rangers, Michael Morris, was faulty and ordered him reinstated.

Robert "Chico" Mendez who had been hired as a "seasonal" employee when Mayor Mack took office was ordered to be removed from his position.

Mendez, a long-time supporter of the mayor, had been put in charge of the Park Ranger staff even before the September, 2011 layoff that initially removed Morris from the city payroll.

This decision follows a similar one last September that called for the removal of Mack hires, Dave Briegle, Charles Hall and Henry Page from their posts as "Water Meter Readers" with the Trenton Water Works.

Hall, who worked in the city Recreation, Natural Resources and Culture department while being paid as a TWW employee has since plead guilty to charges in both the Tony Mack corruption case and the Jo Jo Giorgianni drug distribution case.

Manure

Trenton Mayor Tony Mack gave his "state of the city" address before city council Monday evening.

The text of the speech can be found on the city website, here.

Don't go there if you are looking for any revelations, significant accomplishments or measurable goals for the coming year.

Mayor Mack started off, as is his "tradition" reminding the audience that his administration managed to balance the budget even with the $55 million deficit his first year in office, $34 million last year and $26 million this year. He then criticized those who point out that balancing the budget is the law and his administration should claim no extra credit for merely doing its job.

In his view, there will always be a higher demand for services than the city's revenues will pay for. We suppose that means he still feels it is necessary to run sports leagues and put on festivals and parades even when there is no money for such unnecessary activities.

The next item was a brag about how much money in grants and aid has been awarded the city during his tenure. This is another indication of just how out of touch with reality he is.

Taking pride in surviving off of handouts is just wrong. A real leader (heed this all of you mayoral wannabes) would be seeking ways to raise revenues and LESSEN the dependence on grants and government largesse.

A responsible mayor would be working very hard to move the city towards a firmer fiscal footing with a long term goal of become something close to self-sustainable. (Another fault of too many of those desiring to hold public office, they don't look past the next election cycle).

Keeping to the grants theme, the mayor gave props to those individuals in the city who write the grant applications that successfully bring in the money.  Of course, he has no problem wasting money not using grant software the city subscribes to. How much more in grants might we bring in if we used this? We are paying for it regardless.

The mayor wraps up his fiscal responsibility pitch by claiming that the reason we have received so much financial assistance is because he has righted the budgetary ship. He then launches into the oft repeated sources of revenue he is ready to tap into...delinquent tax liens, unpaid municipal court fines and costs, and squeezing the last drops of money leftover from completed projects in the hope of applying them elsewhere.

This notion, again, demonstrates Mack's total lack of a grasp of the situation. Even if, and it is a big IF, the city were 100% successful in collecting the unpaid tax liens and the court revenues, it is a one shot deal. These are not revenue streams. They are little caches of money we may be able to tap into. Once. It is just another stop gap measure; one of those "one-shot gimmicks" that the mayor later decries.

Predictably, he touted the deal with Thomas Edison State College for the Glen Cairn Arms site. He conveniently forgot to mention that in last year's speech he listed, on page 13, under "accomplishments" that "the old Glen Cairn Arms site will finally be demolished, and a developer will be sought to create a more marketable and valuable site." {our emphasis}

First, if it is an "accomplishment" it has, by definition been done. So if it "will finally be demolished" (future tense) in could not have been accomplished (past tense). And, indeed, it wasn't accomplished. And it still isn't.

The city council approved the sale of the property and the city has signed a disposition agreement about what "will" happen. The fact remains, one year later, the site is exactly the same as it was when he gave last year's speech.

This year's speech is full of those kinds of statements inconsistent with his prior state of the city addresses. No reference to last year's "Comprehensive Crime Initiative" (that never was comprehensive or even an initiative). No commentary about the cops walking the beat.

He did state that the Trenton Police Department reopened the East and West district stations to "increase response time" and that is the way the script reads. Obviously he is as careless as he is delusional.

We could go through each paragraph of this less than 30 minute speech and point out all the things that are wrong. You don't deserve that pain.

We don't deserve this mayor.

The state of the city is quite simply worse than it was last year or the year before. Tony F. Mack's tenure as mayor has been nothing short of a disaster.

Let us hope his failures are noticed by those who seek to replace him and they do everything they can to not repeat them.

OOPS! They did it again!

The indicted mayor of Trenton takes great pride in the creation of his "Mayor's Learning Centers." So much pride, he outfitted each of the former library branch buildings with 50", flat screen TV's.

Why the so-called "Learning Centers" require large screen TV's is beyond us. They are barely open. When they are open, they are staffed by untrained, possibly un-vetted, volunteers.

We can only figure it is another example of the IO's penchant for appearance over substance. The bells and whistles are what counts, not their appropriateness, functionality or suitability.

During Hurricane Sandy, someone broke into the East Trenton Learning Center at 701 N. Clinton Ave. and liberated the two large screen TV's that had been installed there. There was no alarm...presumably due to the wide spread power outages caused by the storm.

Of course, no serial numbers were on file for the stolen items so further investigation would go nowhere, even IF we had the manpower on our severely depleted police force to conduct one.

In most instances, crime victims will try to gain some insight from the unpleasant experience and take steps to make themselves less likely to become targets again. They may increase security around their premises. They may do a better job of keeping records of their possessions.

Apparently, that is not the way things work here in Trenton.

The Mayor's Learning Center on Greenwood Avenue recently had its large, flat screen TV stolen.

According to the police report, a Ms. Tanisha Dyton was "doing a walk through at 1115 Greenwood Ave" on Thursday, January 10, when she noticed the TV was missing. The police report mentions that there was no sign of forced entry.

Granted, the report was taken over the phone by a police aide so no onsite investigation was carried out by a trained officer but forced entry would be fairly obvious to anyone discovering the crime.

The report also notes that the TV serial number is unknown.

The report does not state is whether or not the building is alarmed and, if so, did the alarm go off.

We have to wonder why, after the theft of the TV's from the East Trenton Learning Center, building alarms were not checked to make sure they were operable. We also wonder why the serial numbers of the remaining TV's were not recorded and kept somewhere, just in case of another theft. Moreover, after the previous incident, were the remaining TV’s secured with cable locks or other devices to help prevent their easy removal?

Apparently, the Mayor's Learning Centers are not teaching us anything useful.

Take a longer view

On January 11, the city administration announced it was ready to make a deal with Thomas Edison State College for the Glen Cairn Arms site.

That announcement took many by surprise.

The swiftness with which the proposal was dropped on the public and the city council, which must approve the deal, raised eyebrows. Specifically, the proposed one time fee of $300,000 in lieu of any property taxes going forward has generated some pretty stiff resistance.

There has been lots of discussion, most of it online, over the merits of this proposal. Some of it has been enlightening; some has been sarcastic and/or snarky.

Some of us feel that the TESC proposal may not be the highest and best use of the parcel at 301 West State Street. It would be more palatable if there were some sort of structured annual payment in lieu of property taxes built into the package. This just seems to be common sense in a city that is drowning in a sea of tax-exempt properties.

Those who favor the proposal as is, say we should not let the minimal, one-time payment stand in the way of what will be a highly visible project.

"Get something done," is their mantra, "and other development projects will follow."

The implication is that by treating the TESC project as a "loss leader" it will drive other developers to the city looking to do deals.  The supporters of the project also tout the secondary benefits of spin off jobs and revenues for existing local businesses.

It is an old argument. It has been tried. It has not been successful.

Getting into the game

We can readily point to the Baseball Park and Arena as examples of big-ticket projects that involved public money and have yet to generate any significant economic development.

Yes, people attend events at both venues. However, the self-contained nature of both facilities makes it unnecessary and unusual for patrons to visit other businesses before or after attending games and concerts. People may come into Trenton to participate in these events, but they do not, as a rule, spend money at other businesses in the city.

This is not just the reality here, studies from around the nation have shown little proof that these public facilities stimulate the local economy. Ken Belson wrote about this in an article published in the New York Times on September 7, 2010.

James Joyner wrote about the faux benefits of publicly financed private sports stadiums in his "Outside the Beltway" blog last May.

The Taxpayers League of Minnesota sums up the fallacy in eight points in this document.

There may be some jobs created that are filled by Trenton residents but most are part-time and or seasonal.

Similarly, those that provide supplies and services to either facility are not necessarily or predominately Trenton-based.

It is a pretty safe bet that no one moved to the city because of the ballpark or arena. Government funded sports venues simply do not spur economic development.

Checking in

The city owned Marriott Hotel on Lafayette Street is another example. We were "assured" by the Palmer administration that a top-notch hotel located just steps from the seat of state government would be just the thing to spark an explosion of economic opportunity downtown.

The hotel has yet to turn a profit. Not only is the city (read: taxpayers) on the hook for the bond debt used to finance the construction of the building, it is also required to make up any operational deficits.

Last year, we footed the bill for a $500,000 cash infusion to keep the doors open and lights on. This year, we may very likely be asked for another round of funding to cover operating expenses.

Many of us told then Mayor Palmer this would happen when he proposed it, but he did not want to hear it. He forced his way on the city and we are paying the price, litereally, for his arrogance.

One way out of this is to just sell the hotel outright. For whatever price. It would, at the very least, free up the taxpayers from having to fund anymore operating deficits and put the property on the tax rolls. Even with likely abatements, the city might actually see some revenue from the property at last.

If a private owner cannot make the hotel work, that would be sad, but at least the city will only be dealing with the "fixed" cost of the bond debt (principal and interest). The city (and state) put out the money to build this and there have been no real returns on that investment. It certainly has not generated any real development downtown or increased ratables in the city.

Around the corner and up the block

To go along with the construction and opening of the hotel, the city looked for ways to jump start development in the immediate vicinity. As early as 2000, with the planning for the hotel under way, the city looked around and decided they needed to purchase the long vacant "Caola property" at S. Warren and W. Front streets. The city paid $162,863.69 for the property and began to market it. (Bear in mind, at the same time the city had taken possession of the Glen Cairn Arms four years earlier but was by then embroiled in a dispute over the final value of the property).

In 2002, not quite a year after the city settled on the Caola property, they had a well known and respected developer, Enterprise Real Estate Services, interested in doing a project there. Enterprise, an arm of the highly successful Rouse Company, planned to spend $4,000,000 on the project. Despite the fact that Enterprise was not looking for any tax breaks for the project, the deal never went through.

At the time, there were murmurings that Enterprise requested the city kick in some money to help with the asbestos and lead paint situations on the site, as well as partial demolition. The city said "No." Enterprise walked.

Then along came former Senator Robert Torricelli and his Woodrose Properties. They made a proposal to the city and were designated the developer. Woodrose got the property for $1 and a tax abatement. The city did the demo work, removed the asbestos and stabilized the building. Trenton threw some Urban Enterprise Zone money at the project as well.

Was it worth it?

The "restaurant" that was envisioned for the site is a Subway sandwich shop (and not a new business...just one that relocated from around the corner on State Street).

One of the retail spaces just recently became a yoga studio. Another retail space appears to remain vacant.

Has it helped revitalize the downtown? Not really.

We will leave the discussion of how much favoritism might have been shown this particular developer, and why, for another time. (Read here and here for previous posts on this).

Enter the Matrix

Just a block from the Woodrose property is another development project that was hailed as a turning point for the city. That would be the office building at 32 East Front Street that currently houses the regional offices of Wells Fargo (nee, Wachovia) bank.

Originally undertaken by the Economic Development Corporation for Trenton, the project encompassed taking a former two level parking lot and building a parking garage and office building on the site. The garage would be turned over to the Trenton Parking Authority to operate as a replacement for the surface lot. The office building was to house the offices of the Hill Wallack law firm along with other commercial/retail space.

The EDCT was another initiative of the Palmer administration. For sizable contributions, local institutions received seats on the non-profit development corporation's board. In simple terms, the idea was the seed money would fund the development of the buildings. The monies realized from the successful completion of the initial project would be rolled back into the EDCT's fund so it could do other projects.

The short version of a long story is that the EDCT failed to complete the project. It was taken over by an experienced, professional developer and finished. The original anchor tenant, Hill Wallack, opted out of the deal. Finally, Wachovia (now Wells Fargo) moved their offices from Ewing to the building.

The building was never fully rented out. When the current lease is up sometime later this year, Wells Fargo will apparently be vacating the space downtown for quarters in West Windsor.

If the past is an indication

The point of all this is to give the proponents of TESC project some perspective.

Economic development in Trenton is not easy. It is complicated by the politics one has to play. Good deals (like the Enterprise Real Estate proposal for the Caola building) are shunted aside for less desirable ones (Woodrose's version) that end up costing the city more and have marginal effect (like the hotel).

In the end, we, the taxpayers, lose.

Development has been and continues to be more about the political connections and the well-being of the principals and government officials. Your run of the mill, tax paying resident is the ultimate pawn in these deals because, when the promised benefits fail to materialize, we pick up the slack. And the tab.

There has never been a long view of what was best for the city. Our leaders have never looked much past the current or next election cycle when it comes to making development deals.

Former Mayor Doug Palmer said it himself. In an article by Tom Hester, Jr. published in the Times, March 21, 2000, Palmer explains just how long his vision is.

''I don't look at the city today,'' Palmer said. ''I look three, four, five years down the road and what we are doing and what possibly can be.''

Our economic development plans need to look further down the road than the current administration or the next election. We need a policy and process in place that guides our decisions past what is best at the moment and toward that goal of sustainable revenue growth.

It is long past time for this city to move beyond the "loss leader" mentality and favored nations deals and work towards the creation of a comprehensive development strategy that is fair to all proposals. Moreover, fair to the taxpayers as well.

The TESC proposal, as it stands at this writing, simply does not help us towards a financially secure future.