How does this look to you?

The late Art Holland, when he was the mayor of Trenton, used to say that it wasn’t enough for a public official to be honest; they also need to appear honest.

This was just an inside out way of saying that appearances can be deceiving and even if your intentions are pure, things might not look that way.

Appearance and intent seem to be the crux of the current Federal case against the current mayor of Trenton, Tony Mack. The mayor, his brother Ralphiel and supporter JoJo Giorgianni have been arrested and indicted on charges they conspired to use the Tony’s office to profit from a proposed (and, we now know, bogus) development scheme. Did they really intend to personally profit from the mayor’s position as head of city government? Or were they sincerely trying to get a “deal done” that would benefit the city?

Last week, it was revealed that the FBI has another investigation going in Trenton. According to Alex Zdan of the Times, the Feds have subpoenaed documents pertaining to five housing developments started under the prior administration of long-time mayor Doug Palmer. Zdan broke the story on Saturday, December 29 and had a follow up piece on Monday, December 31.

Coming back around to an investigation that apparently started two or three years ago, the federal subpoena requests the city of Trenton turn over accounting and payment records for the Pennington, Southwest Village I and Southwest Village II, Canal Plaza Homeownership and Catherine S. Graham Square redevelopment projects. All were being “shepherded” by Robert Kahan. 

Kahan has been doing redevelopment work in Trenton since at least 1997 when he formed the Warren Street Urban Renewal Limited Partnership.  Over the years, Kahan and/or his Tara ConstructionManagement/Tara Developers/Tara Developers II have worked on several projects around Trenton.

Tara worked on the Bellevue Court project with Isles a decade ago.

Then something happened. Tara and/or Kahan were suddenly all over the place.

Between April 2005 and April 2006, Kahan formed five LLC’s to work on five separate projects within the city of Trenton. He also formed Tara Developers LLC in April of 2006.

• Spring Street Housing, LLC (Southwest Village I) formed 4-26-05
• Titus Housing, LLC (Pennington) formed 4-27-05
• Broad Street Commons, LLC (Canal Plaza) formed 4-27-05
• Monmouth Management at Trenton, LLC (Catherine S. Graham Square) formed 11-15-05
• Tara Developers, LLC formed 4-5-06
• Passaic Street Housing, LLC formed 4-27-06

Forming LLC’s for redevelopment projects is apparently a fairly standard way of operating. It is at least an attempt to isolate the individual from any liabilities the corporate entity might encounter…especially those caused by other parties (contractors and such).

At the time they were created, the state of NJ, public records show that the registered address and agent for all except the Monmouth Management at Trenton, LLC was 1512 East Wheat Road in Vineland. Robert Kahan is listed as the registered agent and managing member.

Monmouth Management at Trenton, LLC was created between Tara and 319 Elton LLC, a company owned by Dov Gluck of Lakewood, NJ. In the initial incorporation, Monmouth Management at Trenton listed its registered address 1245 Airport Road, Lakewood and Gluck was the registered agent.

So far, nothing appears to be amiss.

In July 2005, Tara Construction Management, LLC (one of Kahan’s companies) contributed $1000 to then Mayor Doug Palmer’s re-election campaign. Tara had also given the Palmer campaign $1000 in June of 2003.

(NOTE: the pages from all the campaign reports referenced can be found here)

Although done all the time, contributions from LLC’s and LP’s are actually prohibited in New Jersey. While the corporate entity can issue the check, the contribution is credited to the member or partner who signs the check unless there is an accompanying letter explaining how the contribution should be distributed amongst all partners/members. Remember this for later and read on. {Edited for clarity.}

Tara Construction Management also contributed $700 to the re-election campaign of then East Ward Councilman Gino Melone in that same time span. Plus, Tara had contributed $250 to Melone’s campaign in January of 2005.

On June 1, 2005, a mortgage was issued between the City of Trenton and Spring Street Housing, LLC (one of Kahan’s companies). This was the start of the Southwest Village I project and came a little over a month before that July contribution to Palmer.

How do things appear now?

As the calendar turned over to 2006, things started to get interesting. In May of that year, Palmer would be up for re-election to his fifth term as Mayor. Campaign contributions really picked up.

There must have been a big fundraiser on March 15, 2006 because the ELEC reports are filled with contributions with that date. Lots of contractors and vendors and developers who were doing or wanted to do business with the city show up in the reports, but one in particular stands out: NDK General Contractors, LLC of Vineland.

NDK was formed by three sisters, Nicole, Davina and Kathleen Kemenash. The registered address for the business was 1512 East Wheat Road, Vineland. If that sounds familiar, it should. Kahan registered several of his development LLC’s to that same address.

NDK gave Palmer $1000 on March 15. So did each of the three sisters. Remember the law about contributions from LLC’s? That’s $4000 in contributions to be apportioned amongst the three of them. If divided equally, they are each just a little more than halfway to the $2600 individual limit for political contributions. Oh, and back on July 20, 2005, NDK gave Palmer $1000.

Back to March 15, 2006, five employees of NDK General Contracting also gave $1000 each to Palmer’s campaign. While it is entirely possible that these people gave freely of their own money, how probable is it?

How likely that an office manager, two secretaries, an estimator and a consultant from a construction firm in Vineland, NJ really care who gets elected in Trenton?  The office manager, by the way, had given a previous donation to Palmer. Although not listed as being affiliated with NDK in the reports for that contribution, Lisa Bancia gave a $1000 contribution to the Palmer campaign on July 20, 2005. That is the third contribution of $1000 to Palmer on that particular date. One from Tara, one from NDK and one from Ms. Bancia.

On one day, $9000 in contributions to Doug Palmer’s re-election campaign came from one company, its owners and employees. It’s not what it appears like. Right?

Office manager Lisa Bancia gave another $1000 to Palmer on May 6, 2006. This put her over the limit and Palmer’s campaign reportedly refunded her the $400 in excess contributions. This was part of another wave of contributions to Palmer’s campaign that appear to have come from/through NDK. Besides Bancia, the three sisters who formed the company each gave $1000 again, as did NDK General Contractors itself. That’s $8000 in contributions which puts the three ladies over the limit if apportioned equally. The estimator gave another $1000. That’s $6000 more that definitely came through NDK.

There were also three woman who each gave $1000 and who all list addresses in Vineland. The report does not show their occupation or employer information (as required by law). Hmmm. That doesn’t appear quite right.

Election Day was May 9 that year. On May 10, Palmer’s campaign report shows that one of the secretaries at NDK gave another $1000.

Tara wasn’t keeping its checkbook closed either. In November of 2005, Gino Melone received another $200 from the construction management firm. Melone also received $250 from Tara on April 17, 2006.  Well within the contribution limits, but again a violation of the LLC's can't contribute rule.

On May 6, a gentleman by the name of Keith Karmitian (hard to make out the handwriting on the report) gave $1000 to Palmer’s campaign. This was interesting because the address given is in Philadelphia. In fact, it is the same address listed for a $1000 contribution to then Councilman At Large Paul Pintella’s re-election campaign that came from Scott Kahan who listed his occupation as “Developer”. It appears that Scott is the son ofRobert Kahan and that Scott works with his father. (If you go to the Tara Developers website, contact us page, there are links to contact Robert, Scott and a “Keith” as well as a couple of other individuals.)

The Scott Kahan contribution to Pintella’s campaign is dated May 24, 2006. There was a runoff for the at-large council seats that year so the campaigning (and fundraising) continued for another month.

Robert Kahan, a “Developer”, also gave Pintella’s campaign $1000 on May 24, 2006.

Funny thing, NDK General Contractors and President/Owner Nicole Kemenash also contributed $1000 each to Pintella on that same date, May 24, 2006.

Pintella and the rest of the Palmer slate (Manny Segura, Cordelia Staton) went on to win the runoff election in June of 2006. You can view a timeline of all this here.

In July of 2006, the Pennington Housing project (Titus Housing, LLC, a Kahan company) got underway. The Canal Plaza project started in earnest in June of 2007. The Southwest Village II (Passaic Street) and Catherine Graham Square (Monmouth Management at Trenton) projects got underway in April and July of 2008.

NDK General Contractor was involved in the Pennington Housing project according to construction liens filed by suppliers waiting to get paid. Some of the liens were satisfied but one wasn’t. The contractor letits state license lapse at the end of 2006. It has not kept up with its annual corporate filings to the state either and is currently suspended pending reinstatement.

Kahan formed Tara Developers II, LLC in 2010 and maintains an office on West State Street in Trenton. Kahan had, in the meantime, changed all of his registered addresses for the various project related LLC’s from Vineland to the Trenton address.

We don’t know what the FBI will find through their investigation. We know what the situation appears to be. In an effort to secure at least five redevelopment deals, Mr. Kahan and friends made at least $30,000 in campaign contributions to Doug Palmer, Paul Pintella and Gino Melone between May 2002 and May 2006.

In Alex Zdan’s article published on December 31, Doug Palmer is quoted as saying, “It doesn’t involve me or my administration.”

He may be right. But that isn’t the way it appears.

The blame game

"It's not my fault. I didn't cause it." --- the late George Carlin, comedian

Trenton’s lame duck city council took a double-barreled blast in the Trentonian yesterday.

In his Thursday column, Trentonian scribe L.A. Parker claimed that the five members of council who voted against the city budget demonstrated a lack of “accountability.” Parker did give the South Ward Councilman, George Muschal, a pass for only having come on board after November’s special election. He chided the other four “No” votes (Bethea, Lartigue, Melone and Segura) for passing the responsibility determining the city’s tax increase to the state Division of Local Services. Parker claims the four did not own up to their part in helping “put Trenton in this position” of begging the State for money.

It comes as no surprise that Parker did not mention at all the irresponsible and spendthrift ways of the Doug Palmer administration that for the past two years has waited until the fiscal year was more than half over before submitting a budget to city council.

Instead, Parker wrote a companion piece in which Palmer “blasts” city council’s alleged irresponsibility in the matter.

“I introduced a budget to City Council and then it was up to them to schedule meetings or hold budget workshops. The ball was in their court. I don’t want to hear anything about my Plan B,” Palmer said earlier today.

“But now we have five city council members who are attempting to point the finger at me. I made my decisions. People elected me to be a leader and that’s what I have done. Being a leader is not for the weak of heart.”

Palmer praised President Paul Pintella and at large Councilwoman Cordelia Staton for “having the guts to take responsibility for the budget.

Both Parker and Palmer seem to ignore the fact that Council cannot act on the budget until it is submitted by the administration. And Palmer should have submitted a “worst case” budget months ago and not relied upon the Supreme Court to bail him out by allowing the TWW water sale to go through without the chance of a referendum, which it didn't do.

It is just too bad Parker doesn’t decry Palmer for not accepting his share of accountability in the matter.

Fear and Yawning Campaign 2010

(Apologies to the late Dr. Hunter S. Thompson)

With just under one month until Trenton’s municipal elections, things have been relatively quiet on most fronts.


Last Friday, the Times ran an article about some verbal sparring between former Palmer slate-mates turned Mayoral competitors Paul Pintella and Manny Segura.

More than the rhetorical jabbing from the candidates, we liked the subliminal message sent by whoever at the Times was responsible for choosing the photos. A second look at the pictured labeled “Paul Pintella” reveals that it is actually an older photo of Doug Palmer.

Is that what had people walking around singing softly to themselves, “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss”?















And speaking of the reign of King Douglas, did you catch this little love note in this morning’s Trentonian?

In case the image isn’t clear enough, the text of the Letter to the Editor reads as follows:

Four more years
To the editor:Dear Mayor Palmer:
     You are doing a beautiful job with our city. You put up a lot of new homes and buildings, and you’re doing a great job fighting crime
     You did a great job helping senior citizens.
     I went to the peace rally, and you did a beautiful job with that.
     We need you on our team so Trenton can win.
     There are a lot of residents in the city who would like you to reconsider and run for mayor again.
     Please stay the mayor until Obama is out of office, and then you can be the next president.
     God bless you and your family, and keep up the good work.
                                                 Sharon Wilson
                                                                          Trenton

Um, thank you, Ms. Wilson.  You may stop by city hall and pick up your Target gift card at any time now.

The latest Mayoral candidates’ forum was Sunday at the James Kerney Campus of Mercer County Community College and was covered by PolitickerNJ.com. The biggest revelations that occurred seemed to be the absence of Tony Mack who was honoring his previous commitment to coach a baseball game.

Some of the folks over on the Trenton Speaks forum discussed the pros and cons of giving Mr. Mack an excused absence for the event.

We’d like to talk a little about the At-Large Council race but there has been little to report on. The candidates seem to be keeping to themselves.

The one standout to date has been Algernon Ward, Jr. who was one of the petitioners fighting to have a public referendum on the proposed split and sale of the Trenton Water Works. Ward had an op-ed in today’s Times regarding the recent Supreme Court decision upholding the right to have a referendum on the matter.

The other candidates have been largely quiet. We have seen Juan Martinez signs around town…but they are mixed in with ones leftover from last fall’s failed attempt to win the South Ward council seat.

Typical Juan…doesn’t know which office he is seeking or let alone what he stands for.

And the various ward races are just about as quiet. There’s little coming out from most of the candidates. South Ward Councilman George Muschal is continuing the hands on street work that got him the win in November’s special election.

The North Ward campaign has been quiet with the exception of annoying notifications about fundraisers from Marge Caldwell-Wilson. Nothing of substance on policy or positions from any of the contenders to date.

In the West Ward, signs are starting to pop up on lawns along with the crabgrass and dandelions. Early entry Zach Chester has been playing the role of the quiet candidate, as has former school board member Joyce Kersey. Kevin Moriarty has been working the streets as well as the internet with regular blog postings. There are two West Ward candidate forums coming up that should prove to be enlightening for the voters. The first is tonight at the Lighthouse Community Center on Bellevue Ave and next Monday at Covenant Presbyterian Church, Parkside and Parkway.

The East Ward has been equally quiet. We don’t really know anything about the candidates other than Dion Clark has attended a lot of council meetings and spoken frequently about the need for cleaning up the trash (human and other) found along Walnut Avenue and such.

Chambersburg resident Joe Harrison can claim a similar attendance record at city council meetings and has been one of the few candidates in any of the races to utilize video on the internet to make his case to the voters.

If it seems like it has been an underwhelming campaign season...it has been. Whether due to the majority of uninspiring candidates, lack of real press coverage or both, who can say.

Regardless, it will be up to the voter to exercise some real critical thinking when they step into the voting booth on May 11.

Waiting

In a less than an hour, Doug Palmer will kick off his special meeting to deal with the city of Trenton’s budget crisis.


He’s no doubt spent the past day or two seriously preparing for this meeting.

Kent Ashworth, Palmer’s Public Relations flack, will have shaped a presentation out of familiar themes:

• The state has not paid its fair share; the city needs to redevelop the parking lots around the state buildings
• The people trying to stop the sale of the suburban part of the Trenton Water Works have helped bring us to the brink of fiscal ruin.
• Along the way Palmer will no doubt pause to give praise to his departing (but not soon enough) acting Business Administrator, Dennis Gonzalez.

 After running through this litany of cause and effect (none of which will reflect badly on his administration’s obvious failures over the past two decades), Palmer will point the verbal finger towards the State House and demand that Governor Christie give back all the funds he’s said he will cut and more.

Doug Palmer will do his best to level criticism and attach blame to anyone and everyone else but himself. He will not admit that he has driven the city’s fiscal ship up onto the rocks and that the sea of red ink is flooding us beyond repair.

 

He hopes that by doing this, he can stir up the emotions of city residents enough to lead them on a march from East to West State Street in a display of public outrage over the Governor’s heavy handed budget cuts.

 

But what good is there such a protest? Walking five blocks west on State Street will not restore the state’s charity funding for our foundering city.

 

 

 

***

While the clock ticks down on the Palmer “Reign of Error,” the wannabe successors have been largely quiet about their plans to deal with the city’s impending bankruptcy. Considering that three of the Mayoral candidates (Lartigue, Pintella, and Segura) have sat on city council for at least the past eight years, their respective silence is not surprising. They can and must take partial blame for the city’s current financial crisis because they consistently yielded their power and responsibility for the budget matters to Palmer and his staff.

 

Similarly, Public Works Director Eric Jackson has been a part of the current administration’s fiscal fumbling. Whether by design or directive, it doesn’t matter. He’s been a part of the Palmer team and must shoulder some of the responsibility for our broken budget.

 

Alex Brown, a member of the seriously flawed and mayor-appointed school board, has not proven his worth as a steward of the school system. Why would we trust him with running the city?

 

Of the other Mayoral candidates, none have yet come forward with solid plans for dealing with the looming deficits even though members of the voting public have strongly suggested they do so.

 

We’d expect Frank Weeden or John Harmon to demonstrate their business background and offer some concrete ideas for dealing with the city’s finances. So far, nothing has come forward from their respective camps.

 

Emmanuel Shahid Watson ben Avraham has demonstrated a knack for scamming the state for money, but it is not likely he can revamp the con game he ran on the state department of corrections into a program that will get funding for the city of Trenton.

 

Tony Mack has some business administration credentials of his own, but he’s not yet put out a definitive plan for dealing with the city’s finances going forward.

 

Keith Hamilton has proven to be the “quiet man” amongst the candidates, saying little other than pointing to holding the line on taxes in Mercer County during his tenure as a Freeholder. And this point, valid or not, he must share with Mack who sat on the Freeholder board for much of the same time frame as Hamilton.

 

We’ll see how many of these candidates stand up to be counted at today’s session in City Hall.

 

Trenton’s electoral pickle

Bound to leave a sour taste
The abnormally large number of candidates running for Trenton’s elected offices (the mayor and seven city council seats) has raised the specter of a messy campaign season.

Mix in the totally incompetent way the current council went about replacing Acting City Clerk Juanita Joyner with a temporary, non-resident, Deputy Clerk and you have a recipe for complete electoral meltdown.

Even hiring in former city clerk Anthony Conti as a consultant to help the clerk’s office get through the May 11 election appears to be too little, too late.

In an interview with the Trentonian, Conti allows that even with an all out push, the clerk’s office may not be able to certify all candidates by the March 18 deadline.

It’s a mess. A complete and utter mess. A true case of “too many cooks spoiling the broth.”

Appointed Acting Municipal Clerk after Conti retired in 2007; Ms. Joyner has apparently completed all the required course work for the position but has yet to take the certification exam. Suddenly, this past fall, there was a big push to replace Joyner.

On the surface there appeared to be some questions about her competency, but there was also the coincidence of Councilwoman Cordelia Staton expressing interest in the position. (After serving two terms on council, Staton is not running for re-election this year).

This raised some eyebrows because the City Clerk oversees the election process on behalf of the city (the County Clerk and the County Board of Elections also have a role in the process, but the City Clerk is the primary authority). If Staton had been named clerk, her council seat would most likely have remained vacant until after the election. In the meantime she would be called upon to “referee” a Mayoral race featuring three of her council colleagues as candidates.

Many people were uneasy with the idea of Ms. Staton…who twice ran, and won, on the Palmer ticket with Paul Pintella and Manny Segura. Both are running for Mayor, but Segura has positioned himself as far from his former slate mates as possible.

There was reportedly considerable infighting amongst council regarding the suggested removal of Joyner just to replace her with Staton. After a couple of false starts to the process Staton withdrew her name from consideration.

Still, council suddenly and abruptly decided to not extend Joyner’s appointment. At the same time it was wisely and correctly pointed out that the incoming council should be the ones to appoint the next City Clerk.

One reasonable solution might have been to extend Joyner’s appointment through Labor Day at the latest. A certified, experienced individual…such as Mr. Conti, could then have been hired as a consultant through the elections to ensure a fair, transparent process.

Instead, council voted to end Joyner’ tenure as Acting Municipal Clerk effective Feb. 28 and retained the services of an Acting Deputy Municipal Clerk starting March 1...a mere three working weeks before the candidate certification deadline.

The person hired, Leona Baylor, is certified and has worked in the clerks office in Hightstown Borough. Baylor is not a city resident and that has raised some questions about the legality of her contract appointment.

Not to oversimplify, but if she is an appointee, she needs to be a resident; if she is truly a contract employee, she might be exempt. It all depends upon how you define the Acting Deputy Municipal Clerk position? And that definition may ultimately have to come from the courts…and cost the city more of our tax dollars to defend the case, not to mention possibly delaying the election process.

Candidates…many of which are running for office for the first time, are wondering where this all leaves them.

If the clerk’s office staff can’t adequately and accurately complete the certification process by the March 18th deadline, what will happen?

Legal sources have suggested that the courts can and probably would extend the certification deadline.

But even that may not be enough for some of the candidates. Especially in the city wide races where 385 certified signatures are required for a candidate’s name to appear on the ballot. Trenton voters can only sign one petition for Mayoral candidates and there are 10 running. That’s 3,850 separate individuals required to sign if all candidates are to get on the ballot. Not likely under any circumstances..

In the At Large Council race, voters can sign petitions for up to three individuals…one for each of the seats. With 11 people running for the three seats, odds are a little better that the candidates can get the number of required signatures. It will still be a daunting task.

What this really means is that, under the best of situations there would have been some attrition in the number of candidates come certification deadline day.

The screw-ups, fumbles and delays by council in filling of the City Clerk position almost guarantees a far from fair and even-handed election process.

The candidates will lose out. But more importantly, the city will lose out, yet again.

The early line

Interesting twists and turns on the road to the May 11 Trenton elections.

Wednesday marked the formal announcements of Freeholder Keith Hamilton for Mayor and South Ward resident Christine Donahue for Council At Large.

Hamilton, who apparently moved back into Trenton specifically to run for Mayor, has had a relatively undistinguished tenure as a County Freeholder.

Donahue is little known outside of the South Ward where she worked to help get George Muschal elected in November’s special election to fill the vacancy left by Jim Coston. She was also involved in some of the work to halt the sell off of part of the Trenton Water Works to NJ American Water.

At the same time as Hamilton is officially adding his name to the list of Mayoral wannabes, Wiley Fuller has dropped out of that race and opted to run for one of the three Council At large seats. Fuller ran for Mayor in 2006 and had a rather poor showing.

These moves bring the total of candidates to ten for Mayor and eight for the three Council At Large seats.

Doug Palmer has not signed up to endorse any candidate yet. He's no doubt waiting so he can play the role of "king maker."

The Trentonian reported yesterday that there is a move afoot to reduce the number of black candidates in the mayoral race. We here at the stoop are wondering why only the black candidates for mayor are being scrutinized when they all need serious vetting.

Some early handicapping

Let’s face it; this year’s cohort of candidates is pretty weak in the qualification department.

We have two current council people (Pintella and Segura), both of whom were elected largely due to outgoing Mayor Doug Palmer’s long coat tails and fat checkbook.

To be fair, Segura did have some strong financial support from North Jersey businessmen and his Dominican ancestry garnered political help from Democratic Party bosses who are salivating at the specter of getting a Hispanic mayor elected in Trenton. (Anyone remember the roll call of Dem biggies from then Senator Bob Torricelli, Representative Rush Holt, and on down through State Senator Shirley Turner, Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman, Assemblyman Reed Gusciora and various elected county officials present at Segura’s 2002 headquarters opening?)

Pintella has always been Doug’s water carrier on council and Segura has played along for all but the last 18 – 24 months of his two terms. Why would we want either of them to serve as Mayor? They should both drop out, now.

Outgoing West Ward Councilwoman Annette Lartigue has long had her eye on the mayor’s office. Now she’s making her move. As a member of council for the past 12 years, she shares some accountability for the many blunders of the current administration (not to mention a few of her own…anyone remember “Stand down officer!”?). She has no business thinking she’s qualified to run this city and should herself, stand down. But she won’t. So the people will decide for her.

Local businessman Frank Weeden is running again. It’s a shame. Frank would probably make an ok councilman. He’s been an outspoken critic of the waste and excesses of the current administration. But that doesn’t mean he’s up to the Mayor thing. This run could cost him his business, ANA Design candles, and that would be a shame for all concerned. Ego is an expensive mistress, Frank.

Right there, we’ve eliminated four of the contenders, one woman, one Hispanic, one white and two blacks. And we have only just begun.

John Harmon, the charismatic former head of the Metropolitan Trenton African American Chamber of Commerce (MTAACC) is running again. His professional demeanor and business credentials had a lot of people pulling for him four years ago. Harmon’s campaign seemed to be overcome with inertia; he never moved it past his opening position, came in a distant third in 2006 and has hardly been heard from since.

Emmanuel Shahid Watson ben Avraham has changed names and persona more times than Brett Farve has come out of retirement. He was also revealed to be at the center of a questionable state contract that paid his company millions of dollars with little oversight or measured effect. We can cut him from the list for his perpetual posing and hazy ethics.

Two more off the list. Now we’re down to four: Tony Mack, Eric Jackson, Keith Hamilton, and Alexander Brown.

Hamilton, as noted above, is virtually undistinguished in his political career. And his perception as a carpetbagger who moved back into Trenton specifically to run for Mayor isn’t giving him any positive points. Hamilton’s done nothing neither egregiously wrong nor wonderfully outstanding as an elected county official. He’s a non-starter.

Alexander Brown has been on and off and on the school board a few times. He’s headed up the schools’ Facilities Advisory Board which, along with the Schools Development Authority (SDA) and its predecessor the School’s Construction Corporation (SCC), has fumbled the entire high school financing deal. Further, as an appointee of the current administration he shares in culpability for the mismanagement of our failing school system.

Considering Alexander Brown as a viable candidate for Mayor is like saying Shirley Turner should be made a member of the board of directors of Garden State Equality.

This leaves Mack and Jackson, who (along with Segura) are most likely among the top three vote getters.* But placing first, second or third in the race doesn’t mean they are what the city needs.

Jackson is gentlemanly and soft-spoken. He’s overseen the massive Public Works Department and took the reins of the Library Board of Trustees after Mrs. Hayling resigned. Is he Mayoral material? Depends upon whether or not you believe the failings of his department were his fault or predicated by the actions and demands of the vengeful administration troika of Palmer, Gonzalez and Haynes.

Tony Mack is a scrappy fighter who came within a few hundred votes of getting in a runoff with Palmer in 2006. Tony has held responsible positions in city government, union leadership and was a multi-term freeholder (until he fell from favor with the County Dem machine---itself a mismanaged and ineffective organization). Mack’s reticence to readily accept the outcome of the last election and the issue of some bad checks are haunting him about now.

None of the candidates except Mack have yet to put forth any real concrete platform pieces. It is also early in the campaign and most likely the candidates will wait for the policy arguments to be framed by public opinion before going out on a limb and expressing themselves in detail on any topic.

The newspapers are right…there are too many people running for office. And too few real candidates.

*At this time. As with all contests, the betting line will most likely change overtime as the campaign progresses. Stay tuned for updates.

Heat shimmer.

Even though we’ve had a relatively wet and cool summer so far this year, it is mid-July and Trenton is beginning to suffer from heat stroke. Or at the very least, the distorted vision caused by heat radiating up off of State Street is causing creating near hallucinatory conditions for some of our politicos.

In a move only subtly referred to in an online forum and Jim Coston’s blog, the infinitely imbecilic city council re-appointed a citizen to the Zoning Board of Adjustment after that same citizen quit in a snit several months earlier. This is the one board that city council appoints in its entirety and they can’t even get this right. Citizen X was given a chance to serve and voluntarily quit. Why would this person even be considered for reappointment? Especially given the fact that this appointment gives the city’s West Ward a majority of representation on the body when in the past council has gone to great lengths to ensure balanced representation from around the city.

It seems as though the idiot prince, Council President Paul Pintella, nominated the quitter to rejoin the zoning board. Most likely this was done at the behest of Mr. Palmer in order to needlessly flex his “I can do what I want to” muscle. And in the usual game of “Palmer sez,” Pintella and the majority of council followed his lead.

The trippy antics of Palmer, Pintella et al haven’t gone unnoticed on a state level.

In an email blast titled "Bringing Back Our Cities" and sent out by GOP Gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie’s campaign, Trenton’s failures were well documented:

...Trenton: High Crime, Failing Schools, and Skyrocketing Unemployment

On Education:

• In 2007, the New Jersey Department of Education failed Trenton's Public Schools in all five categories of evaluation. They scored just 11% in Instruction and Program. (NJ Department of Education, "Commissioner's Evaluation of the Trenton School District," 07/23/07)

• 48% of Trenton Central High School seniors didn't pass the state's standardized graduation exam. (NJ Department of Education, 2008 Report Card)

On Employment:
• In May 2009, 18% of Trenton's residents were unemployed. (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, accessed 07/14/09)


On the Economy:
• 20% of Trenton's residents live below the poverty level. (US Census Bureau 2005-2007 American Community Survey)

On Crime:
• In 2007, Trenton suffered with over 31 Murders and 1,176 Violent Crimes. (NJ State Police Uniform Crime Report 09/08)

Of course, Christie's campaign tried to place the blame for all this on the current Governor. While the numbers may not lie, the suggestion that it is Corzine’s fault is a bit of a stretch. By Christie's faulty reasoning, the Governor should be given credit for the safe municipalities with great schools, low unemployment and a high standard of living. But we know that is not going to happen.

Shouldn’t the city's continued failings really be laid in the lap of the local government of none other than…all together now…Douglas H. (for Hunterdon?) Palmer?

Is it any wonder Palmer didn’t get the Lt. Governor nod from Corzine in favor of a reality TV show winner and Rhodes Scholar who is so far untainted by Jersey politics?

And now that DHP has been passed over so many times, maybe he should consider converting to Judaism

I'd never belong to a club that would have me as a member.

Or a Civic Association of one person.

The recent revelation that Council President Paul Pintella has produced a website for the Paul M. Pintella Civic Association demonstrates that Trenton once again seems to be in the advance guard when it comes to community engagement and activism. We see, too, that the Paul M. Pintella Civic Association is sponsoring some sort of Obama Inaugural event next week. (What happened Paul, didn’t get your ticket to the bash at the Marriot?)

The notion that a person can be a civic association of and unto him or herself is pretty forward thinking.

First, let’s take the term Civic Association. Association by definition has a collective sense about it. Mr. Webster defines an association as “an organization of persons having a common interest.” The key here is the word “persons.” It is plural and that usually denotes more than one.

Other observers have commented on this phenomenon. TrentonKat has an entry about it. Greg Forester has discussed it. And there was some chat about it on the Trenton Speaks forum.

Interestingly, while he may be the first to name a civic association after himself, Paul’s is not the first ‘phantom’ organization to be created in Trenton in recent memory.

Juan Martinez has for years touted himself as the head of the organization “People for the Revitalization Of South Trenton” (PROS). He even launched an unsuccessful bid for the South Ward Council Seat in 2002 from that platform and has trotted out the banner whenever he needed the appearance of a collective in support of his espoused views.

Trouble is, no one that we know of has ever seen a copy of PROS bylaws. No one knows when PROS meets, who the officers of the organization are or who makes up the membership. Rumor has it that at one time membership dues were actually collected from those willing to give them…but no accounting was made of the funds raised or how they were dispersed.

Maybe it occurred at one of the unknown meetings and was reported to the anonymous body by one of the mysterious officers as proscribed in the mythical bylaws.

We fear the Paul M. Pintella Civic Association may operate on the same model.

Trenton rightfully boasts of several active and effective civic associations, not to mention a council of those civic associations, all working for the betterment of their respective neighborhoods and the city as a whole. While they may vary in the formality of their structure and the way they run their meetings, these groups have been successful at stabilizing neighborhoods and keeping city officials accountable…most of the time.

The usurping of the name and/or concept of a “civic association” strictly to further ones personal ambitions is an insult to the people of this city who actually work for positive change. Naming the false association after oneself is the height of conceit and self-aggrandizement. But what else would we expect from the likes of Mr. Pintella.

The members of the Front Stoop Community In Action Coalition for Civic Improvement unanimously vote to repudiate the Paul M. Pintella Civic Association.

He said what?!?!

In yet another example of classic empty rhetoric, the inscrutable Doug Palmer complained about New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine's budget cuts. Decrying the reductions in aid to cities and public school monies, Palmer was quoted in a Trentonian article as saying:

"A lot of what is being done now is just an application of a Band-aid for a serious condition. We need serious spending reform."

Funny words from the man who's faced with laying off people, privatizing the inspections department, reducing library hours and at the same time not reining in spending on things like the take home cars, raises for the city administration and such. And as far as band-aid solutions go...what should we consider the sell off of the city's suburban water distribution infrastructure but a one shot infusion of capital to temporarily ease the pain caused by the profligate ways of Palmer and his cronies?

How about enacting some spending reform of your own, Doug.

Palmer also feels any Federal monies should go right to the cities rather than be passed through the State's hands. Could that be because he knows he can't expect to feed from the hand he has just bitten?

Predictably, Trenton's idiot prince (and presumed candidate for Mayor if/when Palmer leaves), Council President Paul Pintella got his licks in as well. Speaking through the Trentonian's L.A. Parker in the same article, Pintella said:

"Financial problems have forced us to reinvent the way that government operates, but the cuts must be responsible. We must protect the welfare of our residents."

Interesting coming from a man who was criticized for trying to expense a business trip with City Council funds and who has never fully answered the question of the missing Urban League money. Responsible and protective of the residents? Right.

These comments just demonstrate the inability of Palmer or Pintella to grasp the very real situation that the policies of the Palmer administration have put is in. The city is broke, not because of the country's economic situation, but because they have managed to rape and plunder the city to the verge of bankruptcy for 18 years. Now that the federal and state funds are drying up, these two "P's" in a pod are in the pridicament of having to find ways to push the blame onto others.

Just another reason why Palmer must leave now or at the end of his term and Pintella must never be elected to any public office again.

State of the City

Palmer heads to Chicago to meet with Team Obama while Trenton slides deeper into depression.

Picking up with last week's denied rumors of an early departure, the Trentonian's L.A. Parker reports Doug Palmer is winging to Chicago to talk urban policy with the President-elect's transition team.

Palmer is quoted in the article as saying, "This is not a job interview."

At the same time, West Ward Councilwoman Annette Lartigue is rumored to be ready to announce her intention to run for the Mayor's seat. Council President Paul Pintella is also allegedly eyeing a run for Mayor. Which makes it hard to believe Palmer's consistent denials that he's job hunting and hoping for an early out from his fifth term as Trenton's mayor.

But such denials are not out of character for the sultan of spin. For years, we've been treated to rosy portraits of Trenton's rebirth in Palmer's annual state of the city addresses which always include promises of great development projects and (last year) more cops on the street.

However, this year's fiscal mess; the layoffs and demotions of city employees (none from the Mayor's office!); and the loss of the Santiago residency case seem to have made Palmer fore go the pomp and irrelevance of the big State of City show and reception afterwards.

Instead, the Palmer machine has tried to place the blame for the city's shortcomings elsewhere while dressing up the Mayoral resume.

We said it last week and we say it again and will continue to say it. While Palmer cannot take sole blame for each and everyone of Trenton's woes, his failed policies and increasing arrogance have contributed significantly to the city's problems. He is not capable of serving in a higher capacity in any elected or appointed position and he certainly is not welcome to continue on here in Trenton.

That, friends, is the true state of the city.

And there you have it

Shrugging off the post-Thanksgiving stupor, Trentonian columnist and Palmer administration confidant L.A. Parker posted a story this morning about Paul Pintella's decision to run for Mayor in 2010.

Those following the local political scene have been supposing and predicting who will run for what in the 2010 municipal elections. Many have long counted Doug Palmer as long gone from Trenton by then. Others have conceded that Palmer wants to be gone, but is hedging his bets and would run again in Trenton assuming nothing "bigger and better" comes along.

Presumably, as Parker points out, Pintella would not decide to run against his mentor. If, as suggested, the current Council President has decided to run it might be an indication that Palmer is not running again no matter what comes (or doesn't come) his way in the way of a "promotion" to a state or national position. (And the consensus around the stoop is that he will not be handed anything his ego would consider worthy---but that is another story).

Most likely, Parker's story is another "trial balloon" being sent up to gauge reaction from gadflies and the public at large. Otherwise why include so many obvious potential contenders and ignore others?

Brace yourselves dear Trentonians. If you thought the recently concluded presidential campaign was a marathon you haven't seen anything. Trenton municipal elections, formerly a sprint of just four and one half months is about to turn into long distance race.

Great lines

Note: entry edited on 9/24/08 to substitute "resign" for "retire."--OMH

The reporting of the departure of Joe Santiago from the already vacated position of police director for the city of Trenton provided ample opportunity for some interesting word choices and turns of phrase.

Let me replay for you now, just a few of the better ones we've read.

At the top of the list is the announcement of Santiago's "resignation" itself. As several of the more astute members of the community have pointed out, you can't really resign from a job you don't have. Lest we forget or overlook the fine point of this, four judges in two separate hearings of the matter determined that the position of police director in the city of Trenton was vacant due to the simple fact that Mr. Santiago was not a city resident. Judge Feinberg gave her decision in March with a 30 day grace period for orderly transition that was stayed until the three judges of the Appellate Court upheld her ruling but extended the transition period to 75 days. No matter how you look at it, Joe Santiago was out of a job. I don't think you can resign from a grace period. He might as well have said, "You can't fire me. I quit."

Another great quote came from Council President and Palmer lackey, Paul Pintella. The idiot prince was quoted as saying Santiago was "one of the finest police directors ever to work in Trenton." Nice.

Here's a test for you Paulie. How many police directors has Trenton had?

Let me help you out. There have been two: Jim Golden and Joe Santiago. (George Clisby and Abe Hemsey were never fully appointed to the position).

Now if we accept your statement that Santiago was "one of the finest police directors" to work here that would indicate that he was a) not the finest and b) Santiago was, by elimination, the worst police director to work in Trenton.

If there were only two, and Joe was not the finest but "one of the finest" than he is second. Second in a field of two is last. Last in this case equals worst.

So you managed to insult Santiago and give a backhanded compliment to his predecessor at the same time. You could have won the prize for best statement, but...

Unexpected vacancy

The topper may be one of the wry comments from Trentonian columnist and Palmer plugger, L.A. Parker.

First, L.A. writes about the appointment of Captain Fred Reister as acting director "until further notice as Palmer attempts to fill an unexpected vacancy."

Something that has been on the books for six months, is "unexpected?"

About 11 paragraphs into his page three article about Santiago's departure, Parker cleverly wrote the following:

"Mayor Palmer bid farewell to his partner in crime, calling Santiago one of the city's top assets and a major crime fighter."

I'm not sure but there may be some double, if not triple irony to that statement.
First, without a doubt Palmer and Santiago are partners in crime. The waste of taxpayer dollars fighting the illegal waiver of the residency requirement was nothing short of criminal (and we still think they should have to repay the city for the legal fees and court costs). Referring to Santiago as one of the "city's top assets" might have read more accurately if the final t was swapped for an s. A similar rewrite might be applied to the declaration that Santiago was "a major crime fighter." His regular displays of favoritism, cronyism and the reported poor attendance record he had while on the city payroll add up to make Santiago more of a major criminal than a crime fighter.

And just when you think you've read the best comes old Smug Doug himself. The Missing Mayor made a prophetic statement in the Times.

"I'm disappointed," Palmer said. "However, I have to move on. I have a city to run and I have to run it."

At last, a statement we can agree with. Palmer has to move on.

Out of the mouths of puppets

Council Prez urges residency amendment

Paul Pintella, Trenton City Council President and recognized puppet of the Palmer administration, last night asked his colleagues to adopt an ordinance that would allow the Mayor to grant residency waivers for city employees.

This is nothing more than an attempt to legitimize the long-time Palmer policy of looking the other way regarding the residency of favored sons and daughters while prosecuting those who have somehow fallen from grace with his majesty, the emperor and his consorts.

Hopefully this request to do the Mayor's bidding thinly veiled as a suggestion from the idiot prince Pintella will fall on the deaf ears of a council that has started to find its own voice in such matters.

Listen up!

Some notes for Council President Paul Pintella and the administration:

Point number one (from the City Ordinances):

§ A316-2. Rules.
The following rules shall govern the Council and its meetings:
RULE I
Governing Rules
Except as may be provided in the Charter, questions of order, the organization and the conduct of business of the Council shall be governed by Robert's Rules of Order in all cases to which they are applicable, and in which they are not inconsistent with these rules.

Get a copy of the book and learn how to properly conduct a meeting.

Point number two (also from the city ordinances, note especially the italicized section):

§ 2-9. Removal.
A. Pursuant to the Charter, N.J.S.A. 40:69A-37 and 40:69A-43:
(1) The Mayor, in his/her discretion, may remove any department head after notice and an opportunity to be heard. Prior to removing a department head, the Mayor shall first file written notice of his/her intention with the Council, and such removal shall become effective on the 20th day after the filing of the notice, unless prior thereto the Council shall have adopted a resolution by a two-thirds vote of the whole number of the Council disapproving the removal.
(2) The Council may, for cause, remove any municipal officer other than the Mayor or a member of Council.
(3) The Council shall consider notices under Subsection A(1) above and motions under Subsection A(2) above only after notice and an opportunity to be heard are given to the affected officer. The Clerk shall forthwith cause a copy of the notice or motion, as the case may be, together with a statement of the charges involved and notice of the time and place fixed for hearing to be served personally, or by registered mail, upon the officer affected. The hearing shall be held not less than 10 days nor more than 15 days after the date of such service. The hearing shall be open to the public.

B. Pursuant to the Charter, Council may veto a removal under Subsection A(1) above, by a two-thirds vote of the Council and may adopt or defeat a motion under Subsection A(2) above, by a majority vote of the Council.

Take heed that you can and should consider the removal of any municipal officer who consistently ignores the reasonable requests for information made by you and/or your colleagues on behalf of the citizens of Trenton you were elected to serve.

(Are you paying attention Ms. Feigenbaum, Ms. Haynes, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Santiago?)

Now you’ve got one day to become familiar with Roberts Rules of Order and the Administration has one day to gather the information requested last month by Mr. Coston. Let’s see if you all can manage to come together on Tuesday and get the City’s business done in an intelligent and meaningful manner.

And they wonder why people are disgusted

Apparently Ringling Brothers isn't the only circus in town this week. The antics at Tuesday night's City Council conference session regarding the proposal to spend $200,000 for new police guns were truly equivalent to a three ring circus.

For the details according to the Times, check out Andrew Kitchenman's article.

The Trentonian's L.A. Parker wrote it up this way.

On his blog, Broad Street Bank Building resident Greg Forester gave his own account of the meeting.

The anger and frustration at what should be a very simple decision to not spend money that doesn't have to be spent is completely irrational and irresponsible.

The behavior of former Police Director Santiago and West Ward Councilwoman Lartigue is beyond embarrassing.

Santiago's emotional outburst was unprofessional to say the least. His "calling out" of Council was not only immature and full of false bravado, it is but another example of why the man is not fit to lead Trenton's or any other Police Department.

Strangely, no one on Council saw fit to have the former Director removed from the meeting. Unlike last week when Frank Weeden let loose the "F-Bomb" and Councilwoman Lartigue immediately demanded security remove him from the room, no one even thought to admonish Santiago for his ill-behavior let alone ask to have him removed from the room. Just another example of how the public is treated differently than the Mayor's inner circle!

For her part, Councilwoman Lartigue's assertion that the city would be sued for breech of contract for not accepting the Springfield bid seems somewhat off target.

Since Council has yet to vote on awarding the contract, how can it be in effect and therefore, how can it be breached by not voting to approve it.

Also, the comment that the "free offer" from Glock might be illegal seems as though it may be off base if not totally incorrect.

And where, during all of this, is the City Attorney and the well-paid, outside consultant "Special Counsel?" Why haven't they weighed in on the proceedings with expert opinions on the legalities involved?

"Anonymous" poster "SportyJoe" very nicely framed the problems and challenged the two local newspaper reporters to answer some good questions in this post on the Trenton Speaks forum. He makes some raises some good points that should be answered and reported on to the public at large as well as to the Council members and their "legal representation."

Interestingly, the former Police Director is quoted as challenging Council about heeding information provided through "anonymous" commentary on the Internet as opposed to what the administration was spoon feeding them.

This clearly demonstrates the prevailing attitude that council should just be quiet and do the administration's bidding; and that the public should just be quiet. Period.

Council's recent history shows that a close majority is more interested in thinking for themselves...and presumably for the good of Trenton residents...than following the Palmer line. This is a good thing.

But for those who insist on carrying Palmer's water (Pintella and Staton, to be sure), they need to understand that this "anonymous" Internet chatter is what is forcing Trenton's City Government to operate in a more open and responsible fashion.

They should embrace it or relinquish their positions as erstwhile "representatives" of the people.

Civil is as civil does

Fear and loathing at the conference table.

The grapevine and the Internet were alive with chatter over last night's City Council conference session where Frank Weeden hurled the "F-bomb" at Council President Paul Pintella. Click here to read L.A. Parker's telling of the tale.

Now Mr. Weeden's remark was uncalled for and rude, but he did immediately apologize to his target (Pintella) and remove himself from the proceedings. Weeden's quick recognition of his faux paux does count for something in our book.

But what of the "target" himself? What role did he have in this that prompted such an outburst from a citizen?

If you've never attended a City Council meeting you wouldn't know it from the reporting, but the Council President can be quite rude to the public and his colleagues alike. Last night was a particularly blatant example.

Mr. Pintella was argumentative towards and dismissive of everyone and anyone who voiced an opinion that differed from his. This is troubling.

No Councilperson...especially the presiding officer, should argue and debate a citizen during the public comment portion of a public meeting. Mr. Pintella does this regularly...berating and arrogantly challenging the very people he took an oath to serve. This happened repeatedly last night and has happened regularly over the course of Mr. Pintella's tenure on Council.

Pintella debated and dismissed comments about the proposed gun purchase for the Trenton Police; he argued against a citizen's concern for preserving two grand buildings in the Greenwood-Hamilton Historic District in the face of having them razed to build a 25 story office building; and he was sharp with and critical of other speakers when they had difficulty making clear their points/questions to the Council.

The Council President also debated West Ward Councilwoman Lartigue when she asked to pull the second reading of the ordinance that would essentially strip the landmarks protection from the Greenwood Avenue buildings. Responding to the concerns raised by a citizen, she wanted to slow the process until there could be further discussion that such a move was in the best interest of the city. Pintella wanted to bulldoze ahead (and we all know his history when it comes to preservation issues---"new bricks" being better than "old bricks," "the train of progress" etc.).

Discussion and the expressing of different points of view with an eye towards forming a consensus is the backbone of our democratic process. And even if a consensus isn't reached, if the parties can agree to disagree and move forward its OK. What is not OK is the arrogance and condescension exhibited in Mr. Pintella's remarks toward citizen and colleague alike.

Another problem with the Council President's deportment is that we cannot think of a single time that he hasn't taken the Administration's side in one of these "discussions." Now he is entitled to his opinions on matters and they may just happen to coincide with that of the Mayor and his other minions. But it seems unlikely that a truly thinking individual would side 100% of the time with anyone on every issue. To us, this demonstrates a lack of cognitive ability on Pintella's part and/or an unwillingness to go against his "master," the Mayor.

That is a problem for the person who presides over the legislative body and therefor is supposed to provide the checks and balances to the administration. And it is but one more sign of the contempt has for the residents of Trenton.

Interesting that, even though his contempt and disdain for his colleagues is regularly on display, they were the ones who voted him into the position.

The final point we'd like to make about Mr.Pintella's pitiful performance as a presiding officer is that he breaks all of the rules governing the chair of a body.

It is our understanding that under proper and normal rules of procedure it is the presiding officer's duty to maintain order and move the agenda along. The chair is not supposed to express personal opinions on matters without first relinquishing the gavel. Certainly, they may clarify points, cite facts or ask/answer questions of a member of the board (in this case, Council) or body (the public).

Discussion and debate are to be moderated by the chair. The Council President's frequent blathering of personal opinions and beliefs on the matters before the group are inappropriate and out of line.

We're pretty certain Mr. Pintella has not studied or even familiarized himself with Robert's Rules of Order. If he had, he would know that his opinions are more properly kept to himself and expressed through his vote on the matter at the proper time.

It's a shame that neither the City Attorney or the highly compensated "Special Counsel" seem able or willing to correct and corral the Council President.

And it's a sad testament to the failed leadership of this city that a person "elected" to represent the city at large and then "chosen" by his colleagues to chair the council is such an incompetent.

Mr. Weeden apologized to the Councilman.

Councilman Pintella should apologize to the people of Trenton for failing to correctly uphold the duties of his office.

What part of "NO, THANK YOU" don't you understand?

Well it seems like our old friend E-Path is back on the agenda for City Council again.

According to Jim Coston's blog the CEO of this company that is desperate to build a city-wide WiFi mesh here in Trenton will visit Council and listen to their questions.

Questions, by the way, that the Palmer Administration has asked be submitted to them by Friday.

Ok, Mr. Pintella and Ms. Staton; Ms. Feigenbaum and Mr. Gonzalez; Douglas and Renee; in case you didn't get it the first few times we ran this by you:

Municipal WiFi models have yet to live up to their hype and promise.
E-Path has yet to deliver a system anywhere (read this or this -- including the comments or this).

Larger, more advanced and experienced corporations with deeper pockets have pulled out of the Municipal WiFi market.

These are facts, plain and simple.

Knowing and understanding all of the above, please tell us why the cash-strapped City of Trenton should commit to a contract with company that hasn't and probably won't build the system to deliver the services specified in the contract?

If you all are so damn sure that this will fly...let E-Path build the system and demonstrate it's total functionality and reliability. Then, and only then, should you have reason to come before Council and request approval of a contract for services.

Got it?

Caught! Again!

Seems as though long-time Palmer puppet Paul Michael Pintella has been caught in a prevarication yet again.
The multi-term Councilman At Large and two term Council President claimed in yesterday's press that South Ward Councilman Jim Coston had taken the sole initiative to invite dubious developer K. Hovnanian to present to council (and the public)on the status of the Champale site development next week. Claiming that Coston did not follow protocol in this matter, Pintella took it upon himself to cancel the appearance.

Now it comes to light that an actual resolution was presented to and passed by City Council as a body to have K. Hovnanian come in and present its case.

So Paul Michael, you've been caught lying. Again.

And you've been shown to be the servant of the will and whims of the Palmer Administration who has continually secured your seat on council rather than the people you pretend to represent. Again.

Are you proud of yourself, sir?

It figures

Newspaper reports indicate that the property swap, PILOT agreement and commitment of RCA funds to Maryland's Landex Corporation may just be approved. At the very least, the pending legislation will be on the docket for Thursday's Council meeting.

As we said before, it is another instance of a bad developer seeking help and money from the city to bail out their failed scheme.

Kudos to Councilmen Bethea and Coston for trying to inject common sense into the proceedings and questioning the notion of throwing good money after bad.

And Councilwoman Staton's concern about multiple exits from the properties is great...although current construction and occupation codes apparently don't require this.

Most telling though, are Council President Paul Pintella's comments. Lacking anything of substance to say on the matter, he is reported to have congratulated the developer on an "impressive PowerPoint presentation." The deep thinking Pintella concluded that he is inclined to support the proposal because "the current situation is unacceptable."

What else would we expect from him. Let's not forget how the City stepped in and bailed out the failed housing development initiated by the now defunct Urban League of Trenton. To Pintella, the City is apparently there to help struggling developers, no matter what their track record.

Let's take a pass on this deal and parcel out those properties to worthy developers who have proven their ability to provide decent home ownership possibilities. And let's work on getting Ms. Siegel and Landex to clean up their mess here in Trenton before they come asking for any further financial assistance or property swaps.

Just say no!

Tuesday’s City Council Conference session will include a presentation from Baltimore-based Landex Corporation. This is the group responsible for the Cityside apartments in various locations around town.

According to a report in the Times last week, Landex has proposed a property swap with the City of Trenton. Landex wants the City to turn over 14 buildings it owns in exchange for 22 Cityside buildings around Passaic and Spring Streets. The 22 Cityside properties currently each house 2 rental units, but under the proposed plan, the homes would be converted to single family, owner occupied units. Landex also wants a Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreement, as well as a commitment of some Regional Contribution Agreement (RCA) monies as part of the deal.

Speaking for Landex, Chairwoman Judy Siegle admitted that renting to Section 8 tenants here in Trenton has not worked out as planned for the company.

Council President Paul Pintella and Council Vice-President Cordelia Staton both commented on the lack of quality in the current Cityside buildings.
It appears that under the proposed deal, Landex will utilize the RCA money and PILOTs to fund the conversion of all the properties into owner occupied units.

In essence, this failed corporate landlord that has been sucking up government money in the form of Section 8 rental payments, now wants the city to underwrite its exit from the rental business and support its development of properties for sale.

Once again, we have a would be developer coming to the city with its hands out looking for a contribution/financial support from our depleted coffers.

If Landex’s business model didn’t work out in the first place, what makes us think this new enterprise will succeed?

And what of these Section 8 tenants, where will they live? If they need rental assistance, they surely aren’t going to be able to buy one of these new homes.

Even if they could somehow finagle a deal to purchase a home, if they were “bad tenants,” how are they going to fare as property owners?

Nope. This seems like another bad idea that needs to be shot down.

We keep hearing that things have changed in Trenton and how developers are seeking out opportunities here in the city. But it always seems that they are seeking opportunities to get public funding, at least in part, for their projects.

One bad idea after another is presented, and there always seems to be a member of the administration ready to go to bat for the developer.

When will we learn to just say no?