Regionalization – Council-Member Plea

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February 1, 2023

For all those who don’t want to read my view on what happened during the four hours taxpayers, borough officials and Highlands police waited in the hallway last night while the three boards of education discussed a resolution no one learned who proposed, here’s Highlands Council-member Jo-Ann Olszewski’s plea to the board that she read during her allotted three minute time span. While she and Mayor Carolyn Broullon and Councilman Donald Melnyk each spoke during the two hour public hearing, none of the Atlantic Highlands council members present at the meeting said anything.

The councilwoman, a retired educator herself, begged the three boards simply to delay acting on their resolution to eliminate Sea Bright at least until they have “all the fact needed to support their vote whether yea or nay.” And she even gave them an alternate idea, which they also ignored.

The school board has a dual role: YOUR MISSION is To represent the concerns of the citizens, taxpayers and parents to the school administrators, and to represent the needs of the students and school district to the citizens, taxpayers and parents of the community.

YOUR FUNCTION: the school board sets the policies, goals and objectives for the district – and it holds the superintendent responsible for implementing the policies and achieving the goals.

It appears, tonight, on the last day of January, with the newest Board of Ed member sworn in last week, Dr. Beams and our School Boards, have decided not to include Sea Bright nor the Town Councils of AH and H as participants in a new Regionalization proposal with a new funding formula for Highlands and Atlantic Highlands to support.

Let me begin by asking that you table your “Vote” which clearly rejects forming a new regionalized district that includes Sea Bright. A proposal that disregards all previous collaborative research and study including two Leap Grants that strongly endorsed Regionalization with Sea Bright paid for with taxpayer dollars. A proposal to be submitted solely by the School Districts that is set to be voted on tonight by you without being seen by your municipalities.

Six months ago, everything was in place except a funding formula…That needed work and perhaps a mediator. Then, We were all informed – not directly – that Dr. Beams, speaking on behalf of the School Boards wanted time …that was late August….

We are quite sure that all members do not have all the facts needed. Especially the newest members. Anyone on the Boards who has a question must pass their questions to the School Board Presidents rather than go straight to Dr. Beams. I would guess that works for mundane issues as dealing with 25 board members questions might be a burden for Dr. Beams or anyone. However, for an issue this big, that all Board members will need to support and defend for a long period of time —-Funding formulas stay in effect for 10 years. It is vital to ensure everyone has all the facts needed to support their vote whether yea or nay

The future of our schools is in your hands.

I quote the former president of the HHR School Board from the August 24, 2022, Regular Board Meeting:

If we are to continue to successfully work through this process, we must do so while operating under facts. Everyone can help do their part by correcting any misinformation that they may see or hear. Regionalization is within our grasp, but it is only achievable if we work together.

So, here are just a few facts it appears you do not know.

The Commissioner of Education has rejected nothing, denied us nothing and awaits an agreed upon funding formula to accompany the proposal sent in June. There are no lawsuits pending – there is an appeal from Oceanport and Shore Regional that can’t be heard until the Commissioner has digested and ruled on our proposal.

Sea Bright does not have to wait until November to hold a vote on Regionalization.

All 3 municipalities want the best for our kids and financial well-being. The town councils are in accord to work out an agreeable funding formula to submit to the Commissioner of Education. She already has our joint proposal which includes all three school districts, as well as all three municipalities Highlands, Atlantic Highlands and Sea Bright. Let’s submit and wait out her decision. Evener if it is months…We have been waiting to hear from Dr. Beams on your behalf since August. 5 plus months….Nothing fell apart in that time frame, and going forward nothing should impede the necessary work on improving instruction and delivery to bring our students out of the Covid consequences and back to where they should be. Confident students who believe in themselves, reaching for the stars.

I propose a sort of open meeting or workshop for all Board Members to hear from more than one source…Get all the facts in order…. talk it out, ask questions as needed and then call a vote.

I ask you with all my heart, keep all of us in mind! Those you know and those you don’t in your municipalities…all income levels, all ages, all individuals and levels of families in each household. Make the right decision that works for our kids and our wallets.

Regionalization – Common Courtesy

By

Muriel J. Smith

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February 1, 2023

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Common Courtesy

One would think that when an elected board hires professional personnel they would at least have courtesy and be polite to the people who pay them.

But then, one would think that the elected personnel to whom they answer would at the very least correct them for their rudeness or at a minimum apologize to the public and suggest a change of action.

None of that happened at Tuesday night’s meeting of the boards of education of the three schools in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands.

The meeting started on time, as noticed, and also, as noticed, the boards almost immediately went into executive session.

Out You Go

But it was not the board members, the elected officials, who left the room to speak privately with their attorney. It was the people who put them in office who had to get up and leave the room.

Nor were the displaced taxpayers given any courtesy. Standing in the hall was the only location for most; some wandered outside, others were at the basketball game, some went into another room. For those in the other room, it did not last too long. They were directed to move out of that room and back into the hall or anywhere else.

Take a Seat … NOT

Nor could the displaced taxpayers sit anyplace in that hallway. For those who did not want to walk any distance, they chose to take chairs from the meeting room on their way out, and sit several feet from the closed door. So they sat directly in front of the windows looking into the huge gym, now empty of taxpayers and with board members and their professionals sitting at their tables at the far end of the room. It was only minutes, however, before the shades were drawn on those windows .

Even that wasn’t good enough. Those residents had to get up once again and move away from the shaded windows and proximity to the door. Highlands police officers, paid by the borough of Highlands to be in attendance at the meeting for whatever reason, assisted people in moving chairs. Doesn’t Highlands ever bill Henry Hudson for all the additional police work it entails?

Working Hard

So it went for another hour. That was when the attorney came out, apologized, said the board members were making progress and working hard. But they would be behind closed doors for perhaps another 45 minutes or so. It was then he asked if anyone needed any chairs. They did. And the Highlands police officers were once again the ones who carried out chairs to make it at least a bit more comfortable for the waiting public.

And so it went, while the taxpayers sat, stood, walked, talked, and waited uncomfortably out in halls while the future of their children’s education and their tax dollars were being discussed in private.

After approximately two hours, the board members apparently had said or heard all they needed to say or hear before taking a vote on the future for three boroughs and their schools.

Answer the Questions

Of course their minds were made up long before that two hour executive session. When they discussed it prior to then, will probably never be known. Nor would anyone on the board, the superintendent nor the attorney even explain it when asked, not once, not twice but three times during that public session. A former board member asked “Whose idea was this?’ Several times. She never got an answer. “What happened since July when you unanimously passed a different resolution?” she persisted. Still she got no answer. A Highlands councilman asked for any guarantees that this resolution, directly in opposition to the resolution unanimously adopted during the summer, would not be changed anytime again? What’s the sense, he asked, without any assurance of stability. Still no answer.

No One Can Hear

Then the public got up to question and opine. Even overlooking the poor audio system in a school that excels in presenting outstanding theater in the very same room at other times, and the number of times both board members and the public said they could not hear, the meeting went on. Residents were almost always confined to their three minutes of addressing the silent board and its verbose attorney. But the attorney was prolific in his broad but difficult to hear responses to not only questions, but statements as well.

How About Walking and Chewing Gum?

The attorney. And the Superintendent. Were they really listening to the public?

Can they really talk and listen at the same time?

Too many times during the period when the public was supposed to be heard, the superintendent was sending written messages to the attorney, talking to him, and him to her, all while taxpayers were trying to have their say at a podium with a mike that finally got changed for one somewhat more workable.

When finally challenged on those actions, the attorney responded they had to share information so he could keep the public informed. He did not explain, however, why the duo could not wait until a person had stopped speaking before conferring on whatever they were going to answer.

Did he apologize when chastised for the rude behavior? Indeed he did, saying they had no intention of being rude or discourteous.

But did they stop that rude and discourteous talking while a member of the public was talking? Indeed they did not. It continued in front of taxpayers after taxpayer for the rest of the public portion of the meeting.

Insult to Sea Bright

Not only did the attorney insult the public present at the meeting, but in a single word, he insulted the entire borough of Sea Bright and all the residents of that borough who are trying to bring $15 million to Highlands and Atlantic Highlands.

That borough’s residents have been quietly and calming supporting hearings, testimonies and actions that would have them bring what they feel is a better education for their own children, while eventually, but not immediately, saving themselves some money, and almost immediately bringing more money to offset what Highlands and Atlantic Highlands taxpayers spend on education. It’s been a lot of work, over a lot of years and a lot of studies information gathering, and meetings for input and explanations. It’s been intelligent people working hard to do better for themselves and others.

But how did the attorney describe it? Simply as “the rigamarole over Sea Bright.” Really? Rigamarole? Confused or meaningless talk? That isn’t nice.

Only at one point during the meeting did it get a bit contentious and result in a shouting match between the attorney who wanted to be heard and the resident who was not finished saying and asking what he wanted. The resident lost.

Public Be Dammed

The very set-up of board meetings at Henry Hudson is not conducive to the public. There is so much distance between the audience and the board that only the residents with really great eyesight can even see the names of the officials or professionals at the table. The audio system leaves too much to be desired to be explained in a paragraph. While complaints are heard often, nothing has been done to make any improvements. That’s for those with normal hearing, those with impaired hearing are at a distinct disadvantage at meetings at Henry Hudson. There is no introduction of board members, or any courtesies at a meeting specifically called to hear from the public other than the routine roll call.

There was no explanation for absent members at a meeting as important as this one was.

None of that is necessary, directed, or in the rules. It’s simply common courtesy. And a desire to be certain the public gets the respect it deserves.

Regionalization – Behind Closed Doors

By

Muriel J. Smith

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February 1, 2023

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With so much to report on last night’s meeting of the Boards of Education on the subject of regionalization, look for several more stories within the next few days. VeniVidiScripto will have a statement from Highlands Mayor Carolyn Broullon, who was present at the meeting and spoke on the need to move forward with a three-borough regionalization; a story on the rudeness accorded residents of both boroughs while they were on the podium, another on the additional cost Highlands taxpayers had to underwrite for the meeting and the courtesy and professionalism of the Highlands police officers on the scene throughout the night, another on Highlands Councilwoman Jo-Ann Olszewski’s statements during the public portion and another on a suggestion concerning those 34 teachers or so who have retired or resigned in the past two years

It’s great to see local residents involved in the business of running their schools, the education of their children, and how where and how much of their taxes are spent.

3 Boards 2 Resolutions

When it was all said and done, the three boards of education in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands actually have two opposing resolutions approved by the voters to go to the Commissioner of Education on the question of regionalization.

Last night, following a nearly two hour long closed executive session, the three boards unanimously approved a pages long resolution asking the Commissioner of Education to approve the boards’ request to put on a special election ballot in September the question of regionalizing the three boards in the tri-district school without the inclusion of Sea Bright.

However, it was last July when those same three boards of education again unanimously, sent a resolution to the Commissioner asking her to consider a regionalization that would also include Sea Bright. The commissioner has yet to respond to that resolution.

Sea Bright?

Nor did the boards act on a second resolution they advertised would be up for action at last night’s meeting that would remove Sea Bright from the regionalization question on the ballot.

Apparently, the boards are leaving it up to the Commissioner to make the decision on whether the taxpayers of Highlands and Atlantic Highlands should take advantage of the added tax dollars the inclusion of Sea Bright would bring into the district, since there were no resolutions adopted requesting her to ignore their July resolution.

Meeting Behind Closed Doors

With the Highlands Mayor and the majority of both Highlands and Atlantic Highlands council members present, the tri boards, as they advertised, opened the meeting and immediately went into executive session to discuss regionalization with their attorney. After an hour long session, attorney Jonathon Busch, who is representing the boards on the question of regionalization, came out to apologize for the length of the executive session and offer chairs for the approximate 100 persons in attendance.

Coming back from executive session 45 minutes later, Busch read the several pages of the resolution, while each board member read copies of the resolution, though no one from the public had a copy, nor had it been advertised.

No Answer to the Melnyk’s

Nor did Busch or any board member respond to questions from Highlands Councilman Donald Melnyk nor former board member Gina Melnyk on whose idea it was to present a new resolution so different from the one the boards adopted in July. Ms Melnyk asked several times “whose idea was it” but never received a response. The councilman asked the benefit of the new resolution, inasmuch it appears to overturn the original resolution. He asked, but received no response to his query as to the purpose of the latest resolution without assurance that it, too, would be overruled some time in the future.

The Sea Bright $$

Charles Rooney, the former Sea Bright councilman who has been a strong advocate representing his borough in promoting Sea Bright’s inclusion, pointed out how the tri-borough regionalization would save millions of dollars for all three towns over the next ten years and would offer increased education funding at a reduced cost for the other two towns.

Cost per Student

Atlantic Highlands resident Mark Fisher cited statistics that showed the total costs for educating students in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands in 2022 was $28.1 thousand dollars a year per student. With the inclusion of Sea Bright and their approximate 50 students, and additional money, the total cost for student would be $23.8 thousand per student. He also pointed out more immediate savings could be achieved since action would delay the reduction of state aid to the district.

Speaking from Experience

Ellen O’Dwyer of Atlantic Highlands outlined the experience of taxpayers in four towns when they chose regionalization many years ago, including Colts Neck where she lived. “Our students thrived in a full high school experience where the class sizes were small enough; students benefited from a low teacher-studio ration and received recognition for their accomplishments.” She called on the boards to wait for the proposed mediation between the two boroughs and asked, with no response, what is the harm in waiting.

Busch, who responded to most of the speakers after discussions with Dr. Tara Beams, the school superintendent, stressed regionalizing without Sea Bright now is the first step, will avoid unnecessary delay, and the new district would welcome Sea Bright once the issue filed by Oceanport and Shore Regional districts against Sea Bright is resolved.

Light at the End of a Tunnel

Highlands resident Nancy Burton said “bringing Sea Bright in is like the light at the end of the tunnel responding to the need for quality education and maintaining costs taxpayers can afford. Bringing Sea Bright in now would be the fastest way, she said, delay is a problem.

Following the approximate two hour hearing, in which Busch fielded most of the questions followed by board members giving their opinions in favor of the resolution later, but none answering any of the questions from the public, the boards voted on the resolution to submit to the Commissioner a request to consider the regionalization of the three schools in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands into a K-12 Henry Hudson Tri-District.

All Highlands board members and Henry Hudson board members were present and voted; Ryan Palamara and Debra Appello from the Atlantic Highlands Board were absent, and board president Molly Murphy, though present to continue to be kept informed on board activity, is recusing herself on regionalization; her husband, James, is an Atlantic Highlands councilman.

Medal of Honor – Fred Stewart Hay

By

Muriel J. Smith

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January 30, 2023

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Medal of Honor

At any time, you want to take a step back in history and see first hand reasons for appreciating our military men and women, it might be a nice idea to take a stroll through Bay View Cemetery in Middletown, New Jersey. There are more than 300 souls buried there who joined whatever forces were helping defend the United States at that time in their lives. We should always take time to honor each of them. But one name in particular should be recognized…Hay. Fred Stewart Hay

Fred Stewart Hay, aka, as his tombstone says, Frederick H. Schwabe. That is his small, plain white stone just beneath the American flag as you enter the cemetery. By either name, Fred Hay or Frederick Schwabe is a hero.

To those in the Bayshore towns of Monmouth County, he is “OUR HERO.”

This Medal of Honor recipient, one of 3534 Medals presented, is one of the 426 who earned the honor during the Indian Wars, that series of conflicts that lasted from King Phillips’ War at the start of the 19th century for almost the next 100 years.

Action

Hay served with Company I of the 5^th US Infantry and rose to the rank of Sergeant while serving. According to Medal of Honor records, Fred was born in 1850 in Stirlingshire, Scotland, and entered the US Army at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. At some point after his enlistment, Fred was in a small cavalry unit escorting a supply train to Battle Creek where they were to meet up with General Nelson Mile’s forces camped there.

Miles, who himself also received a Medal of Honor for earlier action in the Civil War, was in desperate need of supplies and anxiously awaiting the train at Battle Creek. On Sept. 9, 1874, as the train came out of a canyon on the Upper Wachita River in what was then Texas, now Oklahoma, it was attacked by a large war party of Kiowa and Comanche warriors.

Heavily outnumbered, according to reports, the American soldiers fought valiantly for an entire day and the train successfully moved towards its destination. Hay, as a sergeant, was one of six soldiers cited for their gallantry that day, the commendation simply stating “for gallantry,” absent of all detail.

The battle continued for another two days, and in addition to Hay and the other five who earned honors on the first day, another seven soldiers were also cited for their continuing efforts before the train finally reached the 650-man force and General Miles.

Highlands

Sgt. Hay lived through the Civil War and for many years after, dying Jan. 14, 1914 at age 64 in Highlands, NJ. When he came to Monmouth County, where he lived here, or why his family chose this serene, locally significant cemetery for his final resting place, still remain mysteries. Medal of Honor records show the Medal was issued for his action at Upper Wichita River, Texas Sept. 9, 1874. The citation reads simply “GALLANTRY IN ACTION.” His Medal of Honor is at the Tropic Lightning Museum at Wheeler Army Airfield, Schofield Barracks, Hi. It was presented to him on April 23, 1875.

In fact, within the confines of Bay View Cemetery, it is still unknown the site of his actual remains. Because of that, the Cemetery Association, wanting to be certain his memory is honored, thought it important every visitor to Bay View knew about the Medal of Honor recipient. So, they placed his stone at the entrance. The tall American flag that waves behind it is tended by the Atlantic Highlands American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts.

Previous Medal of honor stories

Thorne

Regionalization Meeting

By

Muriel J. Smith

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January 29, 2023

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Highlands Atlantic highlands Regionalization

Meeting

Taxpayers and all parents of Highlands and Atlantic Highlands! I think you owe it to yourselves, your bank accounts, the boroughs, and most importantly the children of these two towns to attend Tuesday evening’s meeting at Henry Hudson Regional School regarding regionalization.

The meeting starts at 6:30, it’s in the gym, and it’s all three boards of education. Be prepared to struggle to hear well and try to identify each of the board members since it’s difficult to see their name cards or in some cases, their faces.

Cost

Before you go to the meeting, think about this. Taxpayers in Highlands and Atlantic Highlands now pay about TEN million dollars a year to educate kids in both towns at Henry Hudson Regional School. Then they pay another roughly $5,000,000 a year in each elementary to educate the kids in the two towns. schools. That’s over ELEVEN million dollars spent on education, split almost equally between two towns.

Common Sense

For the past four years, study after study have shown that not only could education be increased and I proved at all levels in each of these schools, but the costs could be less than it is now. How could that happen? Simply by bringing Sea Bright into the mix. Our neighboring town only has a handful of students, but they have another million dollars to throw in. So let me ask you, if education can be improved and expanded, and three towns can split the bill rather than two towns, and that third town is bringing in money of its own, doesn’t that make it better for the student and the taxpayer?

Legal Advice

The Tuesday night meeting is a special meeting identified in the legal advertisement as a time when the Atlantic Highlands, Henry Hudson Regional and Highlands Boards of education will meet simultaneously in a jointly conducted special Tri-District Board of Education meeting.

They said it before, and reiterated it in the legal, that the meeting will go into closed session right after the Pledge to the flag. Purpose of that closed session is so the board members, in private, can “receive legal advice from Counsel.” No counsel is named, so we don’t know exactly which lawyer is giving them advise the public can’t hear. Each of the boards has its own attorney.

Do They Listen to What the Public Wants???

When they come out, of course they’re going to listen to the public. They did that in Atlantic Highlands, remember? It was about three years ago when the public proclaimed loud and clear they wanted Mother Theresa School to be senior citizen housing. Council listened. Then even while in the midst of negotiating with the Church, they opted to change the idea, tear down the school and thrift shop, and put in possibly 13 houses. They listened, they just didn’t do what the public indicated it wanted.

So, the school boards, I am certain, will also listen.

Two Votes

But after they hear all the talks from whoever wants to express an opinion at the meeting, they’re going to take two votes; the first vote is to decide whether to withdraw from the joint petition already in front of the state Commissioner of Education requesting regionalization including Sea Bright.

Once that question is out of the way, they’re going to act on a second resolution. This one is to submit a new petition to the Commission asking for approval to create a regional district without Sea Bright. That means they want to take the three schools that already do stuff together, and split the cost two ways, and make it official that instead of coming under three different boards they’re all come under one Board of education split between the two towns.

Next?

Whoa, wait a minute. What happens next? IF they vote yes on both of these resolutions, is there yet another expensive regionalization study that has to be done to see if their second idea..which has been considered and studied for four years now and NOT recommended before… makes sense and gets approval?

Does this mean starting from scratch in spite of all the time and money that’s been spent so far? I wonder if this mean that more than four years of study, talk, meetings, money just goes down the tubes and we all start from scratch again like nothing ever happened?

Could it mean that the people will never get the chance to have the question on a ballot so they, the parents and taxpayers, could have a say?

Last Action Item on the Agenda

That’s the end of the action for Tuesday’s meeting. It doesn’t say anything about the other possibility that’s been floated. That is, maybe, if Sea Bright doesn’t face any lawsuits from anyplace, the Tri-District might consider them again some time in the future? If that’s so, that means yet another round of talks, meetings, attorneys, and expenses? Does that mean another few years of paying attorneys and professionals to decide whether splitting a sum of money three ways instead of two is easier on the taxpayer?

Regionalization Denied?

Then there’s always the question what happens if the Commissioner rejects the idea of the three schools in the two towns that already do a bunch of stuff together, being denied the right to regionalize by the Commissioner. What’s the next plan of action? Or supposing the Commissioner says yes, the two towns could save some money, but 3,4 or 5 years down the road they should think about spreading out and getting a little larger, like say, including Sea Bright to split the cost three ways. Are the taxpayers going to have to fund those new studies, etc.? One more time? All the studies so far came up with the same results, namely, it’s a good move to include Sea Bright now and split educational costs three ways instead of two.

Why aren’t the Councils Taking Control???

Consider me a slow learner, but I still haven’t had anybody explain to me why if this is all about who is paying all the bills, why aren’t the councils taking control? They’re the ones who collect the taxes, write the checks to the schools, pay all the salaries. Why don’t they get a say into how many towns are going to kick in to this education? And then, why don’t the governing bodies leave it up to the public to decide with a ballot.

Do the Math!

Nobody is even talking about the million dollars or so Sea Bright would bring into the two towns if they became part of the district right from the start. That’s what the new law supported by the entire Legislature and the Governor was designed to do. Let me try again to make this simple.

Right now, Highlands and Atlantic Highlands each kick in about five million dollars every year to support the education of the approximate 200 kids who go to school there. IF Sea Bright joins the district, even if they weren’t bringing their million dollars or so with them a handful of students, what works better for the taxpayer….paying ten million dollars split between two, or paying ten million dollars split among three?

Does anybody do the math? This is an educational system. The idea is to promote more opportunities for more education, and by the way, it also helps that the better way also saves taxpayers money. Doesn’t that sound like a reasonable idea?

Past stories on regionalization

Walks Like A Duck

Conflicts of Interest

Questions

Zip It

Wasting Time

Highlands Borough Hall- Sitting Down on the Job

By

Muriel J. Smith

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January 28, 2023

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It is neither fair nor accurate to say Highlands borough employees and municipal leaders will be sitting down on the job in the new Highlands borough hall. But if the present furniture proposal is approved, there will 145 opportunities to do so, and in style!

145

145 … that is the number of chairs included in a furniture proposal submitted by Soyka-Smith Design, a company that advertises it “thoughtfully manufactures seating and tables,” that ‘support engaging conversations in offices…”

The Mayor hasn’t got a clue

Mayor Carolyn Broullon, who can certainly be relied on to know what’s going on in the borough, seemed unaware of a $563,016.24 furniture proposal when first asked after Veni VidiScripto secured information about it through an OPRA. I might add, that I received this information after multiple attempts.

VeniVidiScripto has yet to learn who requested the proposal … The Mayor didn’t know, and the Administrator hasn’t responded to my query yet. However, it clearly says it belongs to Soyka Smith Design Studios, was done for the Highlands Borough Hall. But the OPRA did not include information on the resolution, person, or action that prompted Soyka-Smith to submit the proposal. The company made it clear it was prepared “at great expense and represents considerable time, effort and expertise.”

Borough Administrator?

Borough Administrator Michael Muscillo, who, like borough clerk Nancy Tran, is attentive and swift in responding to questions for information or OPRA requests, has not yet responded as to who or what initiated the Soyka-Smith Design Studios proposal. The document obtained through OPRA does not include any dates, signatures, or approvals but is a part of official records.

Yet it clearly says, “Such access to this material is confidential and no information herein can be used except as consented by SSDS and photocopying, duplicating, or disposing of the information in an …..” that sentence is not finished. Rather sloppy in a more than half million dollar furniture proposal.

Is Soyka-Smith saying the public does not have the right to know what’s in this proposal?

$563,016.24 in Furniture??

If it weren’t such a serious matter, and if the latest furniture estimates turn out higher than the $563,016.24 documented in this proposal which is dated Dec. 22, 2022, it would be downright entertaining to read the entire nine pages of furniture in the proposal. This cost is separate and apart from the construction cost

Buy Canadian?

Soyka Smith apparently solicits prices from other companies…in this case, nine pages of furnishings from nine different companies…. than packs it all together for the borough, or whomever their requester was. The vast majority of chairs in this proposal comes from All Seating, a 40 year old Canadian company ….can’t we buy American ?

At least Thirty-seven chairs the Borough of Highlands is considering to purchase from this out of country company for a few hundred thousand dollars..

Chairs that can drop from a tall building

Emeco is a proud American company, privately held and located in Hanover, Pa. They’re well known for their Navy Chair, an un-upholstered chair that they have been producing since the 1940s. The chair itself is kind of interesting. The company apparently designed it during World War II when the Navy needed a chair for the deck of battleships that could survive sea air and a torpedo blast to the side of the ship. They had eye bolts under the seat, so they could be attached to a ship-deck using cables.

When competing for that war contract, the company in demonstrating it, allegedly tossed the chair out of an eighth floor window of a Chicago hotel to prove its durability. It bounced back, but did not bend or break. Great story anyway.

There’s another story that it also proved it could withstand the depths of submarines with no problem. That’s probably a good thing, because so can our Sailors and Marines for that matter.

Two of them are on the list for Highlands purchases….Soyka-Smith says they cost $738.43 each. The company website does not show a CH 7 model as listed for Borough Hall. But they do show the Navy chair, brushed aluminum, for around the same price. The chairs on the Highlands list also include an additional $80 for freight.

The list goes on

The list goes on, there are another 41 chairs from Fluid Concepts, five from Arcades, and two from Hale.

But my favorite, so long as I’m not paying the taxes, is the Keilhauer Company, another Canadian company that is family run. It also has representatives all over the place. There are two in New Jersey, some in at least 18 foreign countries from Kuwait and the United Arab Emirate to the United Kingdom, and of course headquarters in Ontario, Canada.

The $4,826.21 Chair

The Highlands Borough Hall list includes the famous, I suppose, “Danforth High Back Executive chair black with Upholstered arms wood sleeves and Base, Carpet Casters Wood Finish, its fabric to be determined The list has two of them, listed separately so it appears they will be going in two different offices in Borough Hall. The cost. Just one of these comfy chairs for doing borough business is a mere $4,826.21. And the list has two, for a total of $9,652.42. Two chairs for the price of Nine Thousand Six hundred Fifty-Two Dollars and forty-Two cents … all to do the work of borough business.

Clearly, Mayor Broullon did not know about that. Nor does she want it for herself, so it certainly doesn’t seem like she put in any requests. The mayor said she can sit on any kind of seat, her interest is just in getting borough business done.

It’s my guess she’s checking out all this new information as you read.

NEXT: More on the furnishings story,

Sorry … Not Quite Ready

By

Muriel J. Smith

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January 28, 2023

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For those who have been so patiently waiting for The Girls’ Café to reopen after the January holiday, sorry, the bad news is you have to have a little more patience! They’re not quite ready!

Please tell everyone we love them and we miss them, was the message from both Cathy and Vera Hartsgrove as they confirmed their planned reopening of the Café at Bay and Washington avenues. Is delayed for a while.

Although declining to go into specific details, The Girls said they’re not quite ready for a Feb. 1 opening, something that disappoints them as well as their faithful followers.

But they were more concerned about how sorry they feel for everyone who has been waiting for their favorite breakfast, lunch or takeout and are now disappointed. “We just aren’t quite ready “ they said .

Without giving a specific date, The Girls said they are working as quickly as they can, and promise “we’ll open definitely as soon as we can,” with the possibility that could be within a couple of weeks.

“As soon as we know a specific date we can be ready and open, we will let you all know,” the energetic and hardworking sisters said.

Tween Police, Dogs, Groundhogs and Valentines Day Cards

By

Muriel J. Smith

-

January 28, 2023

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Tween Police, Dogs, Groundhogs and Valentines Day Cards

ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS –

Story time with a police officer and an opportunity to read to therapy dogs are both on the agenda in February for the tweens who meet after school at the Atlantic Highlands Library Thursday afternoons, according to children’s librarian Lauren Garcia.

The library, which is located in Borough Hall at 100 First Avenue, offers a series of programs Wednesday or Thursday afternoons for the after school group of tweens who like adventure, good stories, and unusual activities.

The special Police Officers feature will be Wednesday, Feb, 16 at 3:15 when the tweens will get a special guided tour of Borough Hall and the Police Station. A borough police officer will also be reading a timely story during the story hour.

A groundhog craft will be the first event held in February, when on Thursday, Feb.2 the activity will include a Create their own groundhog” craft. The following week, peacocks will be the featured event for the afternoon craft on Feb. 9.

Certified therapy dogs will be in the library Thursday, Feb.23 at 3:15 enabling the group to read to an attentive canine audience as well as have an opportunity to learn about the canine’s special abilities and training.

The Anti-Valentines event on Wednesday, Feb. 8 includes a Tweens Anti-Valentines Day Party when they will have the opportunity to enter the Anti-Valentine’s Day Card contest. A special feature will be the opportunity to celebrate Anti-Valentine’s Day with the smashing of inscribed Valentine Hearts.

All afternoon programs begin at 3:15 and are 45 minutes long. No registration or pre-signups are necessary for any of the programs and all are invited to attend.

The programs are geared for youngsters from age 8 and older.

Story time at the Library

By

Muriel J. Smith

-

January 28, 2023

0

ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS –

Four different story time hours in February at the local branch of the Monmouth County library offer parents and care givers the opportunity to spend half hour sessions with youngsters from ten months of age through five years of age.

February

In February, Baby Story time, geared especially for children up to two years of ages, gives caregivers time to socialize with other parents and cuddle their little ones while children’s librarian Lauren Garcia or special guests read stories, rhymes, and song alongs with fingerplays and other activities. These Story times are every Wednesday during February at 9:30 a.m. with no advance registration necessary.

Toddler Story times begin at 10:05 a.m., immediately following Baby Story time and are geared to two and three year olds; so some toddlers stay for both the Baby and Toddler activities which vary in each group.

After School

After school Story time is offered on Thursdays, Feb. 2,9,16 and 23 beginning at 3:15 p.m. when the library offers a variety of activities , often including special guests for programs geared to kindergarten age children and older.

A preschool program for ages three to five is also held every Thursday during February beginning at 4 p.m. and offering crafts, Story time and other activities for a half hour. Children and their caregivers are always encouraged to remain after the activities to select the books for take-home enjoyment.

Crafts

Take “N” Make crafts, craft kits that are primarily animal-oriented are also available each month, with two different crafts offered during the month. From Feb. 1 through Web. 14, the take home craft is Lovely Kitty Cat, and from Feb. 15 until the end of the month, Puppy Love is the special craft. Directions and themed reads for the program are available on the Kids page slideshow at www.monmouthcountylib.org.

Atlantic Highlands Council Makes You Wonder

By

Muriel J. Smith

-

January 27, 2023

3

There are so many things to wonder about after tonight’s Atlantic Highlands Council meeting, that it leaves me scratching my head. But it’s useless, since it doesn’t look like we’ll ever get answers and simply never know exactly what the governing body is doing. But it won’t stop several of us from trying all the time.

Once again, I warn taxpayers it’s getting downright scary that so much gets done without any input from or information to the residents from not only this borough but others in the Bayshore as well.

Kappa Construction

I could go down to the Yacht Harbor and look in that $1.5 million building to see if anyone is in there, I suppose. You remember the borough is suing Kappa Construction, the builder…..yep, same one who’s building the Highlands Borough Hall….

It is the subject of a lawsuit because a tenant has been trying to tell the Harbor and the borough council for the last two years that construction wasn’t to code. But nobody did anything about it, not even lowering his lease if he stayed in the building that wasn’t properly approved, let alone make the corrections. Only in the last couple of months did the borough get some of the corrections made, but then they turned around and sued the contractor. I do wonder, but don’t know yet, whether they plan on suing whichever borough employee it was who gave the CO in spite of the problems. Or the project manager who was supposed to oversee all the goings on. I bet everyone got paid though.

At last nights meeting, the question was pretty simple. Are the tenants still in the building and has it ever gotten a current certificate of occupancy?

Council couldn’t answer …

Know why? “because the matter is under litigation.”

New Borough Attorney

I do have to hand it to the new borough attorney, Peg Schaeffer. She jumps right in and doesn’t let council members talk, lest they say something the public doesn’t have the right to know. She’s sharp, attentive, and got up to par on what’s going on with town business pretty quickly.

That small incident is really the least of it.

Mother Theresa

Then there’s the Mother Theresa property, which was up for discussion during an executive session after the meeting. The administrator had announced there will be a meeting either Feb. 13 or Feb. 16 to get the public informed about what’s going on with it. Pay attention, because the time, which date or specific place that meeting will be held will be announced some time soon.

Regionalization

Then on the regionalization question, the public learned that yes, the mayors, the administrators and attorneys from the towns will discuss it all before Tuesday night’s meeting of the three school boards in the Henry Hudson tri-district. So naturally they couldn’t talk anything about it tonight.

Only Councilwoman Lori Hohenleitner said she would also be at the school boards’ meeting Tuesday…but of course they couldn’t answer any of my comments. The attorney reminded me those public portions of the meetings are not really for the public to ask questions; they’re for the public to make comments. So I switched my question around and suggested council adopt a resolution before the end of this meeting to ask the school boards to delay whatever they’re going to do Tuesday night. Of course they didn’t really even acknowledge my suggestion, let alone have any discussion of it before the meeting ended.

Parking Committee

Probably the biggest insult of the evening, however, was reserved for Mark Fisher. There isn’t a resident or visitor who attends any municipal meeting in the borough who doesn’t know and respect Mark for the questions he asks, the research he does, the facts he brings to the attention of council and committee members and the calm demeanor and patience he exhibits after all his work

It took years of Mark suggesting, planning, organizing and promoting a parking committee…anybody else think there’s a big parking problem in town?….. before one actually got in place, members were named and Mark was chairman, and Jon Crowley was council rep.

So what happened this year?

Nothing.

The Mayor didn’t say a word to Mark, nor did anyone else even question it.. But committee members were not mentioned at the reorganization meeting. And only this week, the administrator sent Mark a note letting him know there isn’t going to be a parking committee any more.

No explanation.

No thanks.

No suggestion as to why.

Like all committees, it’s a mayoral appointment with the consent of council. The mayor was out ill, the administrator said, so he couldn’t answer why the committee was so abruptly and silently wiped out. But nobody on council , including council rep Crowley apparently even asked the mayor about it either before or after Mark got his letter. Surely no one explained it to him last night. And only Mr. Crowley actually expressed thanks to Mark for all the hard work he’s done on helping to resolve at least some of the parking problems over the past few years.

Common Courtesy … LOL

What happened to common courtesy?

What happened to showing appreciation to residents who do so much for the borough and take such pride in it?

What happened to taking into consideration good ideas, even admitting if you’ve made a mistake or overlooked something.

Fortunately for all of us, Mark Fisher isn’t the kind of guy who’s going to get offended, take all his knowledge and energy and walk away without offering his input any more. He has too much love for the town, devotion to helping others, and tireless energy to always keep trying to make things better, smarter, more economical, safer and simply better for the town and its taxpayers.

Voulunteer

There’s still more from tonight’s meeting, including the very well spoken woman who was so enthusiastic offering her help and asking how she goes about getting to serve the borough. A fairly newcomer, the lady wants to get involved and do things. But by the end of the meeting, after hearing all of this she spoke again to say now she’s not so sure she wants to get involved. She seemed a bit intimidated and shocked by the lack of gratitude exhibited to Mark and others.

To Susan, I would say…forget about the insult, rise to your own level. Welcome to a wonderful borough, a gorgeous community, smart people who also love the town and would certainly love for you to become involved and feel welcome. You can be the one who makes a difference. Don’t be discouraged, you’ll be a great asset!

For the rest..look for another I Wonder shortly…. And be sure to attend Tuesday night’s 6:30 meeting at Henry Hudson to find out whether the boards of education will just wipe out every possibility of getting a million dollars into the offers by letting the people who pay all the costs decide whether Sea Bright and it money and kids should be part of the regional district.

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Common Courtesy

Out You Go

Take a Seat … NOT

Working Hard

Answer the Questions

No One Can Hear

How About Walking and Chewing Gum?

Insult to Sea Bright

But how did the attorney describe it? Simply as “the rigamarole over Sea Bright.” Really? Rigamarole? Confused or meaningless talk? That isn’t nice.

Public Be Dammed

3 Boards 2 Resolutions

Sea Bright?

Meeting Behind Closed Doors

No Answer to the Melnyk’s

The Sea Bright $$

Cost per Student

Speaking from Experience

Light at the End of a Tunnel

Action

Highlands

Meeting

Cost

Common Sense

Legal Advice

Do They Listen to What the Public Wants???

Two Votes

Last Action Item on the Agenda

Regionalization Denied?

Why aren’t the Councils Taking Control???

Do the Math!

145

The Mayor hasn’t got a clue

Borough Administrator?

$563,016.24 in Furniture??

Buy Canadian?

Chairs that can drop from a tall building

The list goes on

The $4,826.21 Chair

February

After School

Crafts

Kappa Construction

Mother Theresa

Regionalization

Parking Committee

Common Courtesy … LOL

Voulunteer

Veni Vidi Scripto

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