HITS: HEARD IN THE STREET...
'SHOCK' AND AWE OVER 'CANDIDATE' BEHAVIOR? -- A reader emailed PT that Thursday's post about two of the three 'candidates' for the open Council seat failing to show at the appointed time for their interviews generated a lot of babble on the Ledger forum. What's to babble about? 7:30 PM was the stated time. Only one showed at that time. Council president commented on fact. Interview proceeded. PT 'shocked.' And now awed?...
POLICY: KEEP LIGHT UNDER BUSHEL? -- When the City has a good story, why keep it from the public? Yet that seems to be the case with the story of Plainfield's FEMALE POLICE OFFICERS. When PT put together a partial table (Plainfield and its contiguous communities) from this past Sunday's Courier story about police staffing, we noticed that Plainfield absolutey SHINES in terms of the ratio of female to male officers. At more than 13%, Plainfield was nearly double runner-up Piscataway, where the rate was under 7%. The following had NO FEMALE COPS whatsoever: Dunellen, Fanwood, Green Brook, Watchung. Scotch Plains and South Plainfield each have 2, while North Plainfield has 1. So why is the Robinson-Briggs administration hiding this light under a bushel?...
CHOO-CHOO! -- Plainfielder Gordon Fuller's private railroad car excursions got a nice segment on NJN News last night (8/24/2006). Over the years, Gordon has devoted countless hours to the community's betterment as a member of the Planning Board. Nice to know he has a way to let off steam. Way to go, Gordon!
CUBICLE WARS CONTINUE -- The Administration's determination to continue the cubicle wars seems unabated. Word has it City Engineer Carl Turner is the latest victim -- and no, don't punish him for this, he didn't tell me about it! -- having been downsized yet again, the second time since the guillotines were installed in January. Meanwhile, others are complaining they suspect their computers have been tampered with. Creating a hostile workplace environment? Hmmmm........
SED QUIS CUSTODIET IPSOS CUSTODES? -- Which, as everyone knows, means "but who watches the watchmen?" (see Juvenal's interesting quatrain.) An apt question evidently. PT hears one of the newspapers is having trouble getting a straight answer from the Administration about two police officers who are supposedly assigned as Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs' personal guards. Or is it 'escorts'? Are they actually assigned? If so, by whom? When? If they are not, why is at least one ALWAYS in attendance upon Her Honor? The newspaper's editors, PT hears, would like to know...
COUNCIL GIVES UP HEALTH BENEFITS IN BUDGET CRUNCH -- Roseland's Council, that is, not Plainfield's. At least, not yet. (See Ledger story here.) Yes, the Roseland municipal governing body is giving up what for many is a nice perk indeed -- their health benefits plan. But Plainfield's Council CAN'T EVEN CONSIDER IT -- because the BUDGET, which would be the appropriate place to have such a discussion, hasn't even been introduced yet. Notwithstanding NJ law, the deadline for which is past...
HORNET'S NEST AVOIDED...FOR NOW -- What on earth possessed the Administration to bring to the table the notion of Plainfield letting other towns sell us their COAH obligations? (That's Council On Affordable Housing, the group charged with monitoring the implementation of the Mt. Laurel housing decision.) Been there, done that, as Nancy Piwowar pointed out to the Council. The very mention of other towns selling their obligations sends PT's blood pressure skyrocketing. In my humble opinion, this weaselly practice has done NOTHING to help New Jersey communities get in touch with their inner diversity by making sure that all sorts and conditions of people can buy and live in every community in the state. The last time a Council here looked at the idea they got an earful from the public. Has the lesson been forgotten?...
CORRALLING SEXUAL PREDATORS -- Councilors Burney and Davis have sponsored an ordinance to put specified parts of the community off-limits to certain registered sex offenders. PT looks forward to a speedy passage of the ordinance with the hope that everyone has done their homework and that it will be bulletproof and the taxpayers won't be hauled into expensive litigation over any oversights in its construction... By the way, one wag notes that the joint sponsorship has lent new meaning to the phrase "B&D"...
SAVING THE WORST FOR LAST DEPT. -- News on the REAL ESTATE front this past week has been absolutely chilling.** Which causes PT to wonder aloud, again, about what is going on with all these proposals for residential development with which we are being flooded? (Full disclosure: DD has been a licensed real estate professional for over twenty years.)
All through the sharpest sustained market increase in decades, Mayor McWilliams' efforts to get going on such projects as a supermarket for the Marino's site and mixed retail-professional-resdential development on North Avenue were stymied by Councils taking their cues from other officials -- elected and unelected.
So now that the stars of the REAL ESTATE HEAVENS are no longer aligned with us, these shadowy forces are ready to make things happen?! What kind of things now? $400K condos which become Section 8 rentals?... Hmmm...is THAT why the COAH idea was brought to the table? Aw, PT, you're WAY TOO CYNICAL.
But look at THE BRIGHT SIDE of a real estate downturn: You can look forward to the contractors and plumbers returning your phone calls...
**Some recent articles:
- "Krugman: Housing gets ugly"
- "Housing sales continue slide; even weaker than analysts had predicted"
- "Luxury home builder earnings decrease follows market direction"
- "Canceling and Relisting: Practice hides the real deal on homes for sale in Jersey"
- "Recession will be nasty and deep, economist says"
DISCLAIMER: In the interest of fairness, any person identified in a HITS post who believes he/she has been portrayed unfairly or that the information about him/her is untrue will have the opportunity to respond in this space.
-- Dan Damon
*
1 comment:
I absolutely agree with you regarding the building of $400,000 condos and who is going to buy them. When you ask people to spend that kind of money, they need to feel as though they are getting something for it. As PT has stated many times, where is the plan? If there were businesses around the area that could support the condos, that is one thing, but the DPW???
In my opinion, the builder should build half the units, and charge $500,000 per unit. Crazy you say? Well, my thought is if you give people more than they can get elsewhere, they will take advantage of the situation, and eventually spread the word about the wonderful city of Plainfield. Then perhaps, businesses will come and support the area. But again, doesn't that mean that there has to be a plan?
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