"20
Questions" with North Arlington Council President
Steve Tanelli.
Third
Street homeowner gives his take on EnCap, property taxes,
eminent domain, low income housing and the future of
North Arlington!
We're
speaking with Council President Steve Tanelli, one of
the borough's most ardent opponents of ,
eminent domain seizure and low income housing. Elected
to an unexpired term in 2004 and elected to a three-year
term in 2005, Mr. Tanelli is now seeking a second three-year
term with former Councilman Mark Yampaglia come the
fall. Mr. Tanelli authored one of the county's strictest
private property seizure ordinances which was passed
with over 80% of the vote in 2006.
This
year Tanelli moved the governing body to endorse a "zero
tax" increase, the first in three years.
Both
Republicans joined Democrats in passing this bipartisan
spending package.
A husband, Third Street homeowner &
parent to three sons, Tanelli is a parishioner at
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Lyndhurst and is
employed as a Senior Art Director for the MOVADO
Watch Company.
A
former Recreation Commissioner, Tanelli also served
as Recreation Director for North Arlington.
A longtime ally of Mayor Pete Massa, we decided
to sit and speak with the councilman on issues important
to North Arlington.
1. Councilman, the NJMC
has terminated EnCap's relationship with the state of
New Jersey. How does this decision help the borough's
case to void the contract with a company now mired in
bankruptcy?
Not only did the NJMC terminate the deal with ENCAP,
a deal that was based on using all public money, but
we also have the governor saying on more than
one occasion that he will not approve the financial
scheme (PILOT's) for phase one. What help North
Arlington is that phase 2 has the same financing scheme.
The governor in a meeting with Mayor Massa and myself
stated quite clearly if there is no phase one then there
will not be a phase 2 based on the financing.
2. Do you feel North Arlington
will win the case with EnCap and why?
I dont see how we can loss the case.
It
is a fact that ENCAP/Cherokee does not and never did
have the financing or the experience to do what they
claimed. Our case is based on the ability to perform.
And they cant and never could. Shame on the state and
shame on the NJMC for not better representing the taxpayer.
They could have avoided this whole mess had they checked
out whether ENCAP had the ability to do what they claimed.
Had the NJMC not waived the bidding process, this never
would have happened.
3. What do you make of Donald
Trump's insistence in moving forward with Arlington
Valley? Can you broker a new deal with The Trump Organization?
Mr.
Trump has no choice but to say these things. He is paid
a consulting fee of $6 million dollars a year for 3
years to stamp his name on this disaster.
But
we will not deal with Mr. Trump as a developer until
the agreement is voided and the $2 million in escrow
is turned over to the borough.
North
Arlington no longer has a "for sale" sign
on it's lawn.
4. Last year property taxes increased
some 33%. This year you engineered a "zero"
increase in the rate. What happened between this year
and last?
North Arlington suffers from years of mismanagement.
It
was very easy to run the town while the money was infinite
and never ending. It was good times management without
a worry about tomorrow!
My
only question is while all that money was coming in
how did we end up with 27 million in debt?
Last
year was a culmination of the overall town debt, decrease
in host community fees, and the disaster called ENCAP after
years of "phony" budgets.
We
knew it was going to be hard on the homeowners of our
community but we also knew it had to be done in order
to get our town back on the road to fiscal independence.
This year's budget reflects the tough decisions that
this administration has made, holding the line on spending,
not giving the store away in contract negotiations.
And most important, not relying on state aid. The Governor
made it perfectly clear to all of us there was not going
to be Extraordinary Aid available like in years past.
So we needed to construct a budget that didnt rely on
the state.
5. Under the Republicans, North
Arlington's debt was roughly $28 million dollars. Under
Democrats, municipal debt has decreased to $17 million.
Why was this important to do for homeowners?
This is the most important accomplishment of the
Massa Administration.
A
10 million reduction is no small feat. Debt
service payments of nearly 2.5 million dollars a year is
a major strain on the budget year in and year out. Reducing
that number down to a manageable figure was
important to the financial health of the Borough.
It gives us an opportunity to think long term. Work
on Project that can propel the Borough into the future.
The ability to borrow money for needed repairs and upgrades
with a much better return, due to a healthy credit
rating is very important.
It
all adds up to being a thriving community that is financially
healthy. The days of running up the credit card are
over.
6. There seems to be a great deal
of activity in terms of new development in North Arlington.
Last year you unveiled the opening of Commerce Bank
and earlier this year it was announced Ace Hardware
is locating to the Ridge Lumber site and Spring Air
Mattress will be converted to a Public Storage facility.
What other sites are under consideration and how does
this kind of smart planning effect homeowners?
We're
doing all we can to keep North Arlington small, safe
and suburban. We don't want housing. We want smart development
that creates jobs and revenue for the community. We
want to create an economic engine that revitalizes Ridge
Road, not over-populate North Arlington that creates
more traffic and more costs to taxpayers.
7. You've been a long-time supporter
of the recreation community. Tell me some of things
you've done and some of the things you would like to
do to enhance the recreation programs of the community?
One very important addition to the recreation community
is our new background check system that was implemented
this year. All of our volunteer coaches must clear
a background check before working with kids. The
most important thing is keeping our children safe. We
secured a grant from the Megan Kanka Foundation to help
offset the cost of the background checks this year.
Our facilities need a facelift, so Councilman
Al Granell and I began a plan to renovating our
facilities. This year we got the ball rolling with Allan
Park. This facility is utilized by both our recreation
girls softball league and also our North Arlington High
School softball team.
The
infield was torn out and reconstructed, new fencing
in the outfield, the concession stand was painted and
cleaned up, and a batting cage that is shared between
the high School and recreation was installed on the
courts that were not being used. We're looking
forward to upgrading other facilities and
we're in the process of organizing a rededication of
Skyline Park come the fall in memory of the late James
Zadroga of the NYPD and hometown hero for his efforts
during the days and weeks after 9/11.
8. Let's get back to low
income housing. Is there a scenario in which you would
personally support low income housing in North Arlington?
I do not believe the state has the right to force
a town to build low income housing in their community.
So
I do not see a scenario that I would support low income
housing. Another option is 55-plus housing alternatives
that would have a great appeal to most active adults
and seniors who may want to sell, but remain in North
Arlington!
9. What kind of development makes
sense for North Arlington? What would you support?
The only development that makes sense for this community
is development that will increase revenue with
no impacts on essential services.
Mixed
use or light industrial is the kind of development people
can support.
The argument
that adding housing increases the town's revenue stream
is telling people only half the story.
Yes,
revenue increases but so does all of the town's expenditures
and costs! You need to provide services to these new
residents. The numbers always prove out that the cost
vs revenue from a residential development ultimately
cost taxpayers more due to the increase in operating
costs. The Massa Administration has been focused
on controlling spending to stabilize taxes. We would
not be able to do that having to make all these additional
changes to the infastructure. Commercial &
light industrial creates revenue with little to no impact
on the community.
10. The local Republicans ran
against last year's tax hike. What influence if any
did they have on the budget process?
They had
no influence on the budget process.
Our
job as elected officials is to work towards the
best budget we can construct in a bipartisan discussion.
The
tax increase last year was not the Massa Administrations
tax increase. It was an increase that was building
up from years of prior GOP mismanagement. The old
saying the roosters came home to roost. We could have
easily played the shell game and keep pushing it off,
but the longer we waited the worst if would have been.
We need to be financially sound so that when people
come into town and want to develop we need to be a position
of strength, not weakness.
It was the Massa Administration's zero
tax increase budget! And most, if not all the credit
should go to Councilman Al Granell for his hard
work and business savvy as Chairman of the Finance Committee.
11.
I see planters were installed along Ridge Road. Whose
idea was that and what's being done to clean-up Ridge
Road?
It is just a matter of accountability.
Those
planters existed on Ridge Road but they where not maintained.
That has changed!
Our
Streetscape Program has started and I expect Ridge
Road to be the place to be in North Arlington. It should
drastically change the south end of Ridge road and create
some interest for new business.
12. You voted to go to binding
arbitration with the NAPD. What is your expectation
as it relates to that issue?
Yes the vote was 6-0 to go to arbitration. Both
Democrats & Republicans vote the same way.
A
small town like ours can not afford to proceed with business
as usual. Our Police Department is an important public
service, but when does it become unaffordable? When
do we hit the ceiling? I hope the arbitrator follows
the trend across the state with public employees contributing
to their benefits. I also hope this contract gives the
taxpayers some relief with a modest increase for
the life of the contract. Based on the presentation
made by the Borough Attorney, the numbers play out that
our PD is paid on the "top scale" compared
to the surrounding towns and it would be great to let
the other towns catch up.
13. Last year the borough hired
Terence Wall to replace Timothy Roberts as administrator.
How is Mr. Wall working out?
Mr. Wall has made a big impact in a short period
of time.
Mr.
Wall is a very hands-on administrator and he works very
well under the leadership of Mayor Massa.
He
likes to get out on the street and address issues first
hand. He is a strong representative for the governing
body.
He
has also rolled up his sleeves and uncovered a few financial
issues where the borough was not properly paid or compensated
and stepped in to assure the Borough get what we
deserve. One example is that Comcast Cable was not paying
the Borough the correct franchise fee for close to 10
years! After it was identified by Mr. Wall we
began negotiations and secured an additional $75,000
dollars from Comcast!
Those
new dollars will pay for things like Fireworks and other
community events that can be funded without raising
property taxes.
14.
Some people say the borough is understaffed and needs
more employees to get the job done. How do you feel
about that?
This gets back to accountability.
I
find it difficult when people talk about raises and
being overworked, or the need for more people to do
the day-to- day tasks. There are no performance
evaluations done on behalf of most employees and
that is now changing. There are no day-to-day schedules
that show what is being done and what can be done in
a day work. Again, we're working with Administrator
Wall to put in place the kind of accountability that
we see in the private sector each and everyday.
I
work for a public corporation. I'm required to
do a "self" evaluation as well as getting
reviewed by my department head each year.
I also have to set specific goals for the upcoming
year. How I can help move the company forward?
This
is the kind of mentality we need instilled in local
government.
I believe
that the Borough has a communication issue between departments
and with the public. I think our new phone system will
be a big step in solving a lot of those issues. We need
to provide excellent customer service to taxpayers and
homeowners. They are the customers of North Arlington!
15. Councilman Al Granell
is a big proponent of going green with the acquisition
of "Gem" cars. Tell us what you're doing to
make the borough a green municipality?
Back
in January I called for Mr. Wall to work with the Building &
Grounds Supervisor and identify areas in our facilities
where we can save energy. When a light bulb gets replaced,
we use "energy saving" bulbs, put timers
on bathroom lights, check weather stripping on doors
and windows, and not have air conditioners running around
the clock.
Also, I've been working on adding new trees
for the Borough. I've been working with Administrator
Wall and we secured a grant to put together a plan
for greening North Arlington with the proper trees that grow
too large and destroy sidewalks or underground
plumbing. We have too many street with no trees!. Shade will
help cool off some of the areas in the borough which
in return helps save energy while creating a more
suburban setting for the community.
Quality-of-life
is important to me.
16. Back to taxes. What is North
Arlington doing to keep the baler operations open and
can we use future landfill operations to underwrite
new development in the Meadowlands?
Last month we passed a resolution asking the NJMC
to keep the baler open beyond 2008.
The
baler facility has a direct impact on our bottom
line. Not only do we get close to $2 million in revenue,
but we also get to dump our household waste for free.
That is an additional savings of close to $1M dollars.
I would like to see additional money from the land fill
operation be set aside for any future development in
the Meadowlands once we litigate EnCap.
17. You were instrumental in getting
the lights fixed at the North Arlington Library. Anything
new to report with the Library?
The library lights where never the issue.
What
it really turned out to be was the previous Library
Director attempting to force the governing body to make
improvements based on a self inflicted emergent conditions.
Light
bulbs had blown out and were not being reported,
so on the surface it looked as if the fixtures where
malfunctioning. After a closer look, it turned out that
the fixtures were fine, but that the Director wanted
to upgrade the lighting in the library and thought that
deceiving everyone was the best way to get it done.
Rather then fix things one at a time. I made the
recommendation to have the entire building looked at,
and have a plan to renovate the building put developed.
The
new members of the Library board have been a pleasure
to work with. They agreed that the best way to move
forward was to examine the entire building and put a
plan together to renovate the library. I'm happy to report
that within the next few weeks the Library
will be getting a major face lift for the first
time since opening some 30 years ago.
Also
I was at the Librarys ribbon cutting for our new, personal computers.
Our new Library Director has put in long hour trying
to come up with new exciting ways to service our community.
We now have "Wi Fi" access in the library
so anyone with a laptop can sit and surf the internet
or research from their own seat.
18.
Your running for re-election with former Councilman
Mark Yampaglia. Some say Mr. Yampaglia is unfairly
criticized for supporting EnCap, but changed positions
to fight the project. Was Mark Yampaglia helpful in
stopping EnCap during his time on the council?
If
not for Mark Yampaglia and former Councilman Phil Spanola
opposing EnCap, North Arlington would be in financial
ruin! The Pitman Administration would have used eminent
domain to seize the Porete Avenue properties and hundreds
of people would have lost their jobs!
So
the answer is yes, Mark Yampaglia supported the
Encap project at first, but he listened to the
taxpayers when it mattered and stopped EnCap from
being constructed. It's a shame some people don't recognize
Mark's character and courage in switching his position
and protecting homeowners from EnCap!
Mark
Yampaglia is an unsong hero when it comes to this important
issue.
19.
Your running for re-election against two "Kaiser
clones," Jim Bocchino & James Herrmann. What
have they done to oppose EnCap? Do they support this
year's zero tax increase budget?
All good questions. Questions I would like
to pose to them in a public debate or forum.
They
do not oppose EnCap! In fact, they began the EnCap
wheel turning. I have reviewed specific municipal
documents that the Kaiser Administration which
included Bocchino and Herrmann endorsed the
development as well as the housing component!
20. Some have said you want
a series of public debates with the Republicans and
sources say they will never accept. How many debates
would you like scheduled and why are debates important
to this campaign?
I would hope they would accept this longstanding
challenge. Candidates for public office have an obligation
to come before the public.
This
years election is clear cut. The town can continue to
finally move in the right direction where the homeowner
comes first or we can go back to the days of tax and
spend! Under Democrats, debt is down, Ridge road
has started to get the facelift that was long over due.
Things are moving for the first time in a long time!
My
challengers need to stand up and explain to the tax
payers of North Arlington why they excepted some
$25,000 from Encap and the DeCotiis law firm
prior to the deal being signed!
They
passed a resolution to hire the DeCotiis law firm
as bond counsel (Encap's lawfirm) when Republicans
stacked the now defunct, NARA with political hacks and
insiders! Given the federal inquiry now underway at
the county level, Democrats were right about EnCap and
Republicans continue to support something nobody wants!
I'm Proud of my record as a North Arlington
Councilman and a member of the Mayor's Administration. I
have answered every phone call, every e-mail and
assisted every homeowner that contacts me with concerns
or issues facing North Arlington.
I will
always put the town first. I know the opposition
can't make the same claim.
I will debate them anytime, anywhere.
Thank
you for the opportunity to address some very important
topic facing North Arlington.
