Caleb Stratton the New Boss in Town

There are a few things that stand out about Caleb Stratton, the new Borough Administrator in Atlantic Highlands.

Putting aside the advantages of his formal education and years of experience in municipal government at several levels, it’s fair to say some of his greatest attributes are his since desire to listen to everyone, meet everyone, and take on any challenge in the job with integrity, hard work and the confidence he knows he can do the job.

Stratton was named business administrator this year when Robert Ferragina, who had held the post for four years, resigned and accepted a position with Monmouth County government.

Since taking on the position, Stratton has been in the office every day, attending meetings of municipal boards and committees evenings, and getting to know and introduce himself to anyone in the community.

A native of the Victorian Village of Round Lake, in upstate New York, the new administrator holds undergraduate degree in urban planning from the University of Albany, and a masters of architecture in sustainability from Bernard and Anne Spitzer school of architecture at CCNY.  His official title tells the story of many of his other achievements in the letters that follow his name: AICP – American Institute of Certified Planners  is a National Accreditation from the American Planning Association; PP – Professional Planner licensed New Jersey; and CFM – Certified Floodplain Manager, a national accreditation issued by the Association of State Floodplain Managers.  

In addition to that, he comes to Atlantic Highlands from Hoboken where had been employed 13 years, in a number of different government positions, most recently as the city’s business administrator. Before Hoboken, Stratton worked in Malta, New York for four years as an urban planner, and also taught a graduate lecture and capstone courses several years at the Spitzer School of Architecture.

Married and the father of two young daughters, Stratton said he and his wife were drawn to Monmouth County after several of their friends moved here from Hoboken. After spending a lot of time visiting, the couple knew they enjoyed everything about it so much they wanted to move to enjoy the parks, beaches, and both rivers and ocean all the time. The family settled in Highlands where they currently live.

The administrator noted that managing community and elected official expectations against finite resources were his biggest challenges as administrator in Hoboken, and he sees the same challenge in the borough as well. “I don’t think there are major differences, just different scales, “ he said.

Rather than identify any internal or personal goals, ,Stratton makes it clear the goals he works towards will be what the people want. “Goals for the community should be set by the community.,” he explained.

Towards that end, he knows he wants to “invest in the staff members, listen to the community, and support elected officials.”

His plans for meeting those goals? “It’s still too new to tell,” he said. “but I am spending a lot of time listening right now.”

How does he come into a different town and pick up the programs and priorities that are in the works? With an aim of simply doing an excellent job for the community, Stratton said “There are many different work streams, in fact, all work streams flow through or to the Business administrator’s office.  I’m jumping into everything.”

And yes, of course he has ideas he might also want to introduce, based on his past experience and his increasing knowledge of the borough and its residents.

But he isn’t about to share them yet, he makes clear. That’s because he is sharing those ideas with the governing body before going public with anything.

He has already learned though, he was quick to point out, “ I think there are many opportunities to build upon an incredible foundation.”

He will make it clear, however, that the things he would like to eliminate, whenever he finds them , are “fraud, waste or abuse. In taking on the administrative job in Atlantic Highlands, Stratton said he feels confident he knew enough the borough and the obligations of the position to know he would be well suited for the position and “the character of the community was something I was very interested in. “

Looking at the future, Stratton was honest and forthright in saying “ I recognize this is a tremendous responsibility, which I take seriously. “ But, he’s quick to add, “I do not however take myself too seriously, and if anyone sees me out and about please say hi and introduce yourself. “

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