Letters

Since the summer of 2003, there have been meetings, discussions and hearings about Brownstone Commons, aka Marlboro Grande. Con-cerned citizens, primarily those residents most directly affected, attended these frequently heated debates. Arguments ensued, concessions were made and the final plan that emerged was one that was mutually satisfactory to those who had remained committed to their respective causes and beliefs.

The Marlboro zoning board had listened to these residents and had voiced their own concerns and hesitations.

The applicant, Meiterman Holdings, also listened to the residents and the zoning board. Meiterman adjusted the original application to accommodate the concerns expressed and to address the various issues that had been raised, not the least of which was reducing the density of the original application.

The approval for the residential use variance that was granted back in December 2004 was not given lightly.

I find it disturbing that Mayor Robert Kleinberg and the Township Council has now, more than 10 months after the variance was granted and one month prior to Election Day, filed a lawsuit against the zoning board and the applicant.

The zoning board, which included three of the mayor’s own appointees, saw the merits of the project and unanimously granted the applicant preliminary and final site plan approval.

Where were Mayor Kleinberg and the council while the hearings were going on? Did they even ever hear what the residents who were there had to say? They also would have had equal opportunity to voice their opinions. They opted not to.

Instead they waited until all was said and done. For two years we attended meetings, waited for public sessions, and took turns speaking at the podium. For two years we followed the rules of our municipality. The use variance was granted over 10 months ago.

The legally allowed time period to challenge a decision by the zoning board is 45 days. Why aren’t the mayor and Township Council subject to the same laws as the people they claim to represent? In addition, taxpayer dollars will be used to pay for legal representation for both sides.

Marlboro Grande is a proposed age-restricted development consisting of 90 rental units. There will be no additional burden to our school system. Due to the nature of the project, traffic experts have testified that there will be significantly less traffic incurred than if the property were developed for commercial use. A significant amount of additional funds would be generated for the township by this project. Where is the harm to our community in any of this?

Mayor Kleinberg has said that he is the mayor of 40,000 people and that he has to do what’s best for the whole town. Given the timing of this action by the mayor and the council, I question whose interests are really being served.

Allan Solomon

Marlboro

Le Vine is a good choice to serve on council

I applaud Marc Le Vine’s appointment to the Borough Council and look forward to his level-headedness and educated spirit to help bring about what is best for this town.

It is sad that there are others who do not share this same enthusiasm, as reported in last week’s issue. Not only do they not give Mr. Le Vine a chance to show what he has to offer, but they discount any and all good that he did with his previous council experience.

Since these people say the borough is over 50 percent Latino and African American, surely there is a plethora of qualified candidates among them who will come forward and get involved in community service.

Phyllis DeFonzo

Freehold Borough

Freehold officials missed chance to make a bold appointment

Recently, Freehold Borough Mayor Michael Wilson choose to fill the vacant Borough Council seat with Marc Le Vine. This is a clear indication that the mayor and council will continue to be a nonprogressive body that still operates with an “Old Freehold” mindset. The mayor and council often wax poetically about what a gem of a town Freehold is because of our town’s diversity. I agree with this; our diversity is an asset. This diversity has fueled the renaissance of the downtown area. This diversity creates a dynamic setting to live and work in. However, to look at the administration and public offices in Freehold, you would never think that this diversity exists.

The mayor and entire council, the borough administrator, the borough attorney, and nearly all the employees of the administration, including code enforcement, are white, while the white population of the borough stands at just over 50 percent. The police force we have is nearly 90 percent white, while again the population they are charged to protect is nearly half minorities.

The appointed human relations committee does better reflect the makeup of Freehold, but they are a relatively powerless committee.

The mayor had a chance to take a long overdue step in the direction of correcting this disproportion, and he did not. He could have taken a bold step and appointed someone with new ideas or a new perspective but instead he chose someone “who will be on the same page.”

I do not suggest that he should have used his selection simply for the sake of appointing a minority, but are there not many well qualified people that could have filled this open seat and added another needed viewpoint? Anyone who he appointed will have to face re-election in one year. The mayor simply chose to ignore this opportunity to address a long overdue problem in the borough.

He chose Marc Le Vine in a move to appease the “old town” residents who do not welcome change or the changing aspect and appearance of Freehold. They will see Mr. Le Vine as a “return to normalcy,” a move to make things like they used to be; well, the face of Freehold has already changed; our entire country is changing.

The mayor and Mr. Le Vine may not like to admit that. Mr. Le Vine sees things as black and white with very little gray. He will be yet another voice against undocumented workers on the council, a group that has no shortage of this mindset.

Mayor Wilson showed us once again that he is not a progressive leader. He took the easy route and selected someone who will not rock his boat. He took us all a step backward by selecting an “until appointed” Republican white male. He did not show the leadership that would be necessary to choose a council member who will reflect what Freehold really looks like and may offer new ideas to this “diverse gem of a town” we live in.

Steve Richter

Freehold Borough

Forum will discuss issue of serving alcohol to minors

Alcohol is the No. 1 drug of choice among teenagers and college students. Even though its effects are well known, alcohol has been used as an outlet for stress, failure and even depression. On average, 1.5 million 12- to 17-year-olds need treatment for an alcohol problem in a given year. Of those 12- to 17-year-old drinkers, 31 percent had extreme levels of psychological distress, and 39 percent exhibited serious behavioral problems.

Obtaining the alcohol, however, is not a difficult deed by far, especially if teenagers have friends who are over the age of 21 or their parents are willing to provide the alcohol for them. In fact, research has shown that a child’s first drink is easiest to find right next to the milk container in the refrigerator.

Underage drinking is not only illegal, but dangerous as well. Most teenagers explain their drinking habits as their own prerogative, that they are allowed to do whatever they wish to their own bodies and it does not affect anyone else, so why should anyone care?

Well, when those teenagers have a drink with their friends and decide to drive home that night, it no longer becomes a personal issue, but a safety issue for his/her friends, families and community.

Driving under the influence impairs an individual’s vision, mind and overall state; no matter how much alcohol is in his/her system. Alcohol-impaired driving is the No. 1 killer of young people today and accounts for one death on the U.S. highway every half-hour.

When someone 21 years old or older buys liquor for a high school friend, or when a parent provides alcohol for their son/daughter and their friends to drink, they are risking not only the health and well-being of those teenagers, but also consequences from the legal system that could leave them in a pool of trouble for a long time.

The Manalapan-Englishtown Com-munity Alliance for the Prevention of Drug and Alcohol Abuse is presenting “What You Can Lose Because of Booze” — a free forum for students and parents discussing the consequences of serving alcohol to minors and others at their home. It will be held Nov. 2 at 6 p.m. at the Monmouth County Library Head-quarters in Manalapan.

Lisa Harmon

Director

Manalapan-Englishtown

Alliance for the Prevention

of Alcohol and Drug Abuse

Manalapan

Officials made good choice with council appointment

As a resident of Freehold Borough for 50-plus years, I would like to express my full support for Mayor Michael Wilson’s selection of Marc Le Vine as councilman. Marc is truly concerned about the “community.” Marc is already out on the street talking to borough residents, exploring and reporting on problem areas.

Some Freehold Borough residents may not be concerned with increasing taxes, overcrowding, and increased health-care costs. However, many of us are concerned. Our town can accommodate 11,000; however, we know there are more than 13,000 people living in the borough. So where are they and who are they?

Illegal immigrants are living in overcrowded housing and are overcrowding our schools. Who do the illegal immigrants think are paying for their children’s education? I don’t believe they have any idea as to how much it costs to educate a child in the United States today.

The illegal immigrants are obtaining health care at CentraState with no method to pay for the services provided. Doctors are caring for the illegal immigrants with no compensation.

Our gripe is not that the illegal immigrants are Latinos or otherwise. We could care less what their color and/or nationalities are. What we do care about is that the illegal immigrants are taking advantage of our very generous system, with no payback. Marc Le Vine is a caring human being who is seeking fairness and execution of the law in support of the taxpaying citizens. Marc is the right person to serve as a councilman in Freehold Borough, and he is already proving it.

Marie N. Chapman

Freehold Borough

Work continues in an effort to provide playing fields

I would like to comment, on behalf of the Manalapan Baseball Association, about the recent political advertisements regarding the race for Manalapan Township Committee.

Ads that have included the fact that no new fields have been added to the inventory in Manalapan under the previous administration are completely misleading.

To set the record straight, the past few administrations of the Manalapan Town-ship Committee, with both Democrat and Republican members, have worked long and hard in obtaining and designing a new complex of fields which will benefit all the residents of the township.

Those who have worked within this process, town officials as well as the officials of the various town sports associations, know how much work has been already expended in building a first-class recreation facility in Manalapan.

Those who claim that there are no new fields in town, while technically correct, lack the understanding of what has transpired over the last six years.

The Township Committee in Manal-apan, Republicans and Democrats alike, have put too much time and effort into making these new fields a possibility to have their good work besmirched in a political campaign.

George Rothweiler

president

Manalapan Baseball Association

Manalapan