A Rant

We all need to chill. The election that happens a week from tomorrow is an election for a town council seat. Honestly, it's not life or death.

If you support one candidate or the other, that's great. We should all be involved in what effects our daily lives.

To make things personal is another matter altogether.

As I've said, I've met only one person in the political scene in Marlton. She went door-to-door and I discussed a few issues with her.

I don't know her and if she saw me, probably wouldn't know me.

I've read things over the last day, about her, that are plain wrong. Things that have made this election personal.

Politics is politics and I understand that. But taking cheap shots at someone or their family is despicable. None of us have any right to post the garbage I've seen in the last day.

These people have kids and families. Their kids and families see what you are writing and the target of your posts have to deal with that.

If someone chooses politics and runs for election, that is their perogative. Keep their families out of it. Innuendo is for cowards and anonymous slams are less than cowardly.

If you don't like a candidate or incumbent, that's fine, you vote them out of office or write a letter to the editor as I did. Going to a second-rate forum and writing about a person's family while hiding under the guise of a pseudonym is disgusting at best, abhorrent at worst.

I feel better now.

Questions for the Candidates

The deadline for sending questions is tonight. A reminder, you may contact me via e-mail or in the comments.

Happy Halloween and watch out for the kids running around.

Site Traffic

Not a bad week for traffic.

More About This Site

I've had a few inquiries asking what my politics are. I tend to think I'm in the mainstream on most issues, but here goes:

I am a fiscal conservative and believe that most, if not all government is too big. I believe that lower taxes spur economic growth for everyone and higher taxes become a drag on the economy.

I believe that George W. Bush was true to his word in the first two years of his presidency with his tax cuts, the results of which are being shown with the high numbers released this past week. The downside of his presidency was the signing of the Medicaid bill. Whether or not it was politically motivated is an argument for another time, but it is one of the largest entitlement programs signed in decades. I still support the president because of his support for the war on terror.

Bush has squandered the goodwill of fiscal (and social) conservatives and the blowback was evident with the response to Hariett Miers the past few weeks.

Fiscal conservatives are wondering how a president with a house and Senate amenable to his plans could falter so poorly in getting a Social Security plan passed or in other tax reduction measures.

On the social front, I'm moderate. Without getting into issues that don't effect a local election, I basically am a moderate.

I've voted Republican in every election since I could vote with the exception of 1992 when I voted for Ross Perot because the first Bush broke his word and raised taxes.

My political views were shaped during the Reagan years and I tend to think of myself as a Reagan Republican.

In the Evesham election, I have two criteria that will shape how I vote:

• Who will assist us with land and funds to build fields. I spend a large amount of time coaching and see the poor conditions.
• Which candidate will rein in wasteful spending and reduce property taxes.

That's as simple as it can be. Others in town, I imagine, feel the same.

I really don't think that anyone in town--with the exception of the hardcore political junkies--gives a damn about where the money comes from for this election or what party paid for what. The simple, sad fact is that politicians are somewhere between newspaper reporters and career criminals on the credibility scale.

People in town are going to vote based on what impacts their daily lives; issues like traffic, standing in the mud at their kids football or hockey games, the increasing amount they are paying in taxes and the amount of time it takes the township to pick up the bundles of branches in front of their houses.

People vote what they know. If they are happy with the way the town is managed, they will vote for an incumbent or those supported by incumbents. If they are unhappy, they will vote against the candidate they see as an "insider".

Update: For the record, I have vowed to run this site as non-partisan and believe I have done just that. You will find no sign in front of my house.

Next Candidate Forum

The next candidate forum will be posted this week. It will work this way; I will send questions to Bonnie Olt and post her responses. I will then allow Mike Lynch to respond to those answers.

Next I will send additional questions to Mr. Lynch, post them and allow Ms. Olt to rebut, just like a debate. Each candidate will have a set amount of time to respond and that will go for answering all questions.

Both candidates have expressed their interest.

Please e-mail me any viable questions you want asked. Put them in a professional format.

Just as with the candidates, all e-mails are confidential.

MRC Meeting

Just a reminder; the next MRC meeting will be on Thursday, November 3 at 8:30. Please come and strengthen our position at the MRC. The politicians have taken us for granted, shoveling the same old rhetoric about caring about new fields.

Enough is enough. Let's put them on notice that we will vote as a bloc and fields are a major issue to us.

Some Questions

Can anybody tell me the following:

Are contracts for township work union or non-union?

What are the contractor requirements for insurance and so forth?

Who oversees the work?

What are the the requirements for an engineering firm?

Taking it Like a Man

I was ready to come on this site and whoop it up if my alma mater beat Cherokee tonight. Alas, it wasn't to be. The Chiefs beat the formerly undefeated Renegades tonight.

Have at it Cherokee fans, it was a huge win. See you all in the playoffs.

State to Schools: Go to Hell

The state AG has a response to a school district petition:

The state Attorney General's Office has called for a dismissal of a petition by nine Burlington County school districts and municipalities alleging state school funding is inadequate.

A hearing on the issue before an administrative law judge has not been scheduled. Officials said they expect a date to be set next week.

Following the hearing, the commissioner of education could accept, deny or modify the judge's recommendation.

The petitioners -- Medford School District, Medford Township, Lenape Regional High School District, Northern Burlington Regional School District, Evesham Township, Evesham School District, Hainesport School District, Woodland Township and Woodland School District -- say the freeze in state aid over the past decade has passed a tax burden onto residents.

...Evesham resident Diane Dzwill said she hopes someone will solve the problem of high property taxes for all residents in the state.

"We shouldn't have a tax burden. There has got to be creative solution. There are a lot of approaches to do this," she said, referring to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jon Corzine's plan to increase tax rebates by 40 percent over four years and Republican Doug Forrester's plan to cut taxes by 30 percent, up to a maximum of $5,000, over three years.

I was a home owner in Rancho San Diego, CA--an unincorporated section of the county--for six years before we moved back to south Jersey. My property taxes when I left were $1,600 per year on a house that was worth $250,00K when I sold it.

The reason the property taxes were so low was because the school monies came from the state through sales tax and other means. At that time, the California state sales tax including San Diego County add ons was 7.5%.

Even though I am a fiscal conservative, I would not be averse to replacing high property taxes with an increased sales tax. In the end, the revenue would be higher and come from more sources than do property taxes, thus lowering the burden on home owners.

California ended up in fiscal calamity, but that was more because of the exhorbitant costs that plague the west like illegal immigration and earthquake preparedness, plus the horrible leadership of Grey Davis.

Where Do New Fields Rate?

How much weight does the idea of new and improved fields carry with our Town Council? Well, during election time it carries great weight. But what about after the election is over and the Council begins its next session.

We have only one way to find out, by scouring through the minutes from Council meetings.

I've searched all the Council meetings from May of this year through August of this year. Utilizing the Adobe Acrobat search function, I entered the words; fields, recreation, sports, and sport.

I got the following results:

The only significant discussion of new fields was on August 16th in which Jim Conner fought the good the fight for new fields (thanks, Jim). A new task force was assigned to look into it. September meeting minutes have not yet been posted.

Some ancillary talk occurred in several other meetings, but nothing major.

The Acrobat search function is not fool proof and I may have missed some other discussion because of that.

I wish I actually had the time to read each meetings minutes, but alas, I have some work to catch up on.

That said, it doesn't seem to be a priority of Council to fix or build any new fields.

I did not attend the September meetings. If anything significant was discussed during them, I will update this post and insert it at the top of this site detailing what was discussed.

I would imagine that there will be a bit more discussed in the November minutes.

Staying Above the Fray

I have vowed to stay above the vitriol, but some things just beg a response.

Over at the NJ.com site, some coward going by the peudonym ArnldPalmer decided to slam me:

Hey Scott...
How come I can't find you as a real estate taxpayer in Evesham? Do you rent in town?

Hey Arnie, or should I just call you Detective Briscoe. Scott is my middle name. Of course it would have required somebody with an iota of gray matter to figure it out. I'm guessing you are either A) A Politician (in which case saying you lack gray matter would be redundant) or B) You just never got picked in sports and talk of fields sends you into a screaming rage or leads you to look up my tax records (by the way, I've paid entirely too much these last five years, especially compared to the taxes I paid in San Diego County).

Either way, I am not afraid of my name being out there and I'm not afraid to voice my opinion under my own name. Now you on the other hand, take cheap shots at me from under cover.

Whatever, I, and others in this town are doing everything we can to get new fields for the kids of this town. Cheap shot hacks like you won't deter me.

BTW, whoever had my back, thanks.

Open Space Money

If we could use even 20% of the money available for open space and with some state matching funds, that would be enough to get us off and running.

I know that between me and the other business owners, we could stretch that a hell of a lot farther than Council.

If we had the money to buy a decent piece of land, we could get low rates for heavy equipment to grade and shape the fields.

I personally know landscapers who would help get an infield and outfield growing quickly, and a loacal fence guy could install the fence for cost.

We all pay into the open space fund, perhaps we should all get to benefits from the funds expended.

Those of us who want new fields really aren't asking for much, jsut some start-up money so that we can at least start to build fields this town can be proud of.

Does It Matter Who "Owns" What?

An interesting thread running through this campaign is the disconnect between the Board of Ed, the township and the MRC with regard to sports fields.

Aren't our tax dollars supporting each? Perhaps instead of a great pissing contest, these entities can get together and come up with a way we can at least improve what we already have while working to develop new fields at other locations.

When I coach at a field, I don't think to myself "this is a BOE field" or "this is an MRC field". To be honest, I don't give damn. I generally think of them all as Marlton fields that my tax dollars are paying for.

Well, that and "we sure can do better than this".

Blogs and Politics

Over at my other site, I have a post showing that politicians are finally realizing the free-flowing outlet that blogs provide. And the aid they can be in getting out the daily points they wish to make.

Update: At the very bottom of this site, you'll see a a button entitled Site Meter. Anyone can click on that button and see the stats of this site.

It works like this:

Visits-Actual unique visits from an IP address

Page Views-Total times the page has been viewed. For instance, if you refresh, it will register as a page view but not a visit.

The site has some cool options, I recommend clicking on the World Map link and clicking 100 and you can see where people are visiting from.

Poke around and see who is reading this site.

The Next Interview

I will contact both Mr. Lynch and Ms. Olt and request they answer more questions. Please insert what questions you want answered in the comments. I will choose the best questions and ask both to answer and then offer them a chance to rebut each other.

Sorry for the late posting but I was freezing out on the practice field.

Second Candidate Interview With Bonnie Olt

Our second interview will be posted exactly as our first. I will cut and paste the answers verbatim, typo's (if applicable) and all.

I thank Ms. Olt for responding in a timely matter. Just for the record, she responded in the same amount of time as Mr. Lynch.

Ms. Olt is married and has two children ages 4 and 6. She and her husband Adam are active in the MRC.

Marlton Needs Sports Fields: Explain why you think you are a good candidate for council and what do you see as the biggest challenges facing Evesham?

BONNIE OLT:
I am the best candidate for council because I bring something to the table. I am a homegrown product of Evesham. My family has been residents since1932. My husband, Adam, and I grew up on the same road and have since built a home and are raising our two children on the same road. I have been a member of the Board of Education for 9 years, and President of the Board for the last 3 years. I have met people with diverse interests throughout the town through my experiences on the Board of Education and as a member of the Recreation Advisory Committee.

I have an understanding of state processes and procedures, especially mandates that the state does not fund. I have been involved in personnel issues, budgetary issues, negotiations and contracts. I comprehend costs, financial repercussions of actions and the need to get quality work for quality cost.

I am proactive; I break down issues and work on solving them, as evident from the lawsuit that the School District filed against the Department of Education for failing to follow its own formula for funding education. Evesham was voted the Best School District in South Jersey this year. People move to Evesham for our schools; the exceptional quality of education that Evesham offers is the main mechanism driving property values.

I truly care about all members of this community, as is apparent from the time I have dedicated to community service.

I am proud to live in Evesham. This is my hometown; my roots are here and my future is here. I take the good and make it better, and I want to continue to make Evesham a wonderful place to live.The issues that are facing this town are property taxes, recreation issues, and communication. The communication issue is two-fold. The first part is getting information, such as council minutes, including work session items, out to the residents. The second part is increasing communication among the major entities in town, such as Rec Council, EMUA, Board of Education, etc. People need to be more informed. One of the ways I propose to do this is to initiate an electronic newsletter that is sent monthly or bimonthly, depending on the need.

MNSF: With regard to Marlton Recreation and our quest for new fields, what ideas do you have for funding the construction of new fields and where would you like to see them built?

OLT:
First, I would like to see a portion of the 3¢ dedicated tax for recreation and open space go into field maintenance and in the future construction of new fields. Maintenance is the priority. Council focused open space funds on purchasing land before developers could. Now we can focus a good portion of those dollars on developing, maintaining and upgrading the land and fields we have.

We have to be creative through grants and corporate partnerships to supplement our open space tax. The entities in town that share an interest in recreation need to come together and communicate to devise a maintenance plan that keeps fields in better condition longer. Evesham is a township of toddlers to seniors, all with recreational needs of varying demands. We need to move toward satisfying everyone we can within our budget.

MNSF: A major issue facing the township is the annual drain on our budget by theIndian Springs Golf Course and clubhouse. What would be the course of action you will take to lessen the financial burden?

OLT:
I do not know all of the information regarding the Golf Course, and don’t believe that all of the information has been returned based on privatizing the management and caterer. Most of what I know I have read in the local papers. In the past the Golf course and clubhouse was a drain on our budget, since the privatization of the management and caterer the golfcourse has been self-sustaining and is in fact is operating $300k in the black. From what I understand, the contracts with the management and caterer are set up to protect the township. This is one area that I think needs strict supervision.

That concludes the interview. I hope to conduct at least one more prior to election day. I thank Ms. Olt for taking the time to participate in this forum.

More Entertaining Than Medford

Quoted from the NJ.com Medford site:

You're right this site does really suck. How come nobody posts here like they do on that Marlton site. Those people are nuts.

Absentee Ballots

Absentee ballots are available. Due to recent changes in voting laws, you can get an absentee ballot for any reason:

In order to do it the easiest way, registered voters should fill out a request form available online and mail it to their county clerk's office immediately. The clerk's office must receive the request by Tuesday.

The absentee ballot then will be mailed out, and voters will have to fill it out and send it back quickly to ensure it is received by Election Day.
Registered voters also may apply for an absentee ballot in person at the county clerk's office until 3 p.m. the day before the election.

You can download the form by clicking here.

The Nature of This Site

In case you haven't noticed. This site deals with serious issues in a serious matter, but also injects humor where needed. If I crack a joke in the comments, it's because we all need to lighten up.

My other site is filled with humor; some get it, some don't.

Humor tends to get the point across in a better manner than venom.

Think about that.

Upgrades

I expect this site to be available via PDA by the end of the weekend.

A Good Start

We have had nearly 100 unique hits (over 200 page views) on this site today. To date we've a total of 244 hits and 730 page views.

Not bad.

Maybe we can make this a rational debate site.

Our First Issue

What should become of Indian Springs? My thoughts can be found here:

Perhaps the wisest idea would be to sell off Indian Springs and have it run by someone more capable. As has been shown throughout our nations history; government does not run anything efficiently. Allow Indian Springs to be purchased by a local company and it will either sink or swim, free market economics as it were. Either way, Evesham is free of the onerous burden we now carry by continuing ownership.

Have at it. What's your opinion?

Feel free to e-mail me any other topics you'd like to see posted.

I'm Part of the Clique

Over at NJ.com I've already been called an idiot and told that no one likes me. Oh well. As I said; politics is a nasty game and I've been hardened by comments at my other site. You can read my response if you wish, I won't post it here. Especially when the poster doesn't have the guts to identify themself.

All I want is new fields for the kids, well, that and responsible government but we can't have it all, can we?

I hope to have a more reasoned debate at this site. Debate based on facts, not slams.

We shall see if that can be attained as I can't watch this site 24/7. As I said, I will not moderate but will erase anything that gets personal or goes beyond the limits.

Again, I have no dog in this fight except to build the kids of this town fields they are proud of. I know there are many who feel the same way.

This site will host only open and honest debate, if the debate degrades to the point of NJ.com, I will ban the offensive commenters from the comments section.

Simple enough? We have two weeks to debate the issues.

Update: They've removed the post by one Concernd Citz that I linked to. Too bad, I was feeling kind of proud of my first hit and run against me. Oh well, it probably won't be the last.

This Site and Free Speech

This site is part of the ever-growing new media. It is protected speech just as any newspaper or other media.

Elected officials in this town must realize that when the people vote them into office, they take on a great responsibility. That responsibility includes listening to their constituents concerns and to act in the best interests of the township.

This site never has, and never will take cheap shots at any candidate or elected official. I will, however, criticize decisions that I disagree with. Politics are an ugly game and criticism comes with the territory.

If any candidate or elected official disagrees with what I have written, they can contact me by e-mail or through the comments. If they are correct and I've written something that is in error, I will correct it immediately. Unlike the newspaper, my correction will not hidden on a back page where it's never seen.

The Second Candidate Forum

I was contacted by Ms. Olt and she will answer the same questions as Mike Lynch did previously. Look for the second candidate forum soon.

I thank both of the candidates for taking time to respond.

An Interactive Forum

Welcome to those from NJ.com. This site is meant to assist us with getting fields, but with the election looming, politics will be the focus.

Even though I am partisan, I will run this site as non-partisan as possible. I have another site that deals with international and national politics that has received 5,000 hits this month from as far away as Australia and Indonesia, so hosting a debate forum is nothing new.

This site has comments that are easier to use than at NJ.com. Feel free to leave comments as you wish and they tend to be a great debate forum. I will introduce a new topic as often as possible.

Comments are not moderated, however, breaches of normal decency will be deleted.

Have at it, the future direction of this town is to be decided come November.

You can read a cyber interview with Mike Lynch by clicking here.

Update: Ms. Sarcone has not declined to comment, she can't talk of works that are in progress as a sitting member of Council.

I have been unable to reach Bonnie Olt, but she is welcome to answer the same questions as Mike Lynch. Update: Ms. Olt has been sent the list of questions and they are expected to be posted soon.

I can be e-mailed at sswenviron@comcast.net

Green Acres Money Information

How can Green Acres money be spent? Here's an informative website. For instance:

How will open space be preserved for ecological, historical or recreational purposes?

New Jersey residents are fortunate to have many agencies and groups active in preserving ecological, historical, and recreational open space. The federal, state, and most local governments own and manage open spaces for a variety of purposes including wildlife refuges, wildlife management areas, parks, historic sites, golf courses, marinas, environmental education centers, campgrounds, community gardens, and playgrounds.

In addition, New Jersey has benefited from a growing number of land trusts and conservation organizations. These nonprofit organizations focus primarily on the natural resource characteristics of the land and raise private funds to purchase and manage open space. As an incentive, these private lands, when made available for public recreation and conservation purposes, are offered tax exemption through the Green Acres Program.

A quick scan of the document says nothing of having to use the land for "passive" use, yet that seems to be all Evesham uses it for.

How about we make a trade, allow some of the procured acreage for the construction of quality ball fields and we'll cede an equal amount of Savich Farm for "passive" use?

Update: I for one think that protecting land is a great idea. Curtailing development is a nice concept, especially in the areas where ecological diversity exists.

That said, can we at least spend some of the open space money on a few baseball fields? It will still be protected land but used for a purpose that promotes healthy exercise for our kids.

More Money Spent, Just Not For Fields

Congratulations neighbors, we are soon to be the proud owners of 914 acres of preserved land:

Evesham and its Municipal Utilities Authority have reached an agreement with the Pinelands Commission that preserves 722 acres of environmentally sensitive land in the southern part of the township.

There had been preliminary approval for 244 townhouses on the site, known as Kings Grant II.

The 192-acre Aerohaven Park, a former private airport where township officials once considered building ball fields, also will be preserved. There was the potential for 21 homes at Aerohaven.

Kings Grant II and Aerohaven, which are contiguous, are part of the Pine Barrens and under Pinelands Commission restrictions. The commission signed off on the deal this month.

Township officials, environmentalists and nearby residents supported the agreement, which restricts use of both tracts to passive recreation.

"No matter what, it's a home run," Mayor Gus Tamburro said. The acres will be added to the 3,000 the township already owns, he said.

Emphasis mine. Again, the land is procured for passive recreation. When will land be procured for fields? Any chance we can use 5% of that land to construct a field or four?

Note the sports metaphor.

Thank a Coach

For all those out there whose kids play sports, take a second now and then to thank their coach. These men and women take time out of their busy schedules to teach your kids what they know about sports.

Sometimes it's not the easiest job but the rewards are the greatest. Just remember, they are out there not just for their own kids but for your kids also.

To all the coaches who coach in any MRC sport--from cheerleading to street hockey--thanks.

Updated Comments Function

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this site. Please feel free to leave a comment if you wish. You can leave them anonymously or use your name.

As always, I can be e-mailed at sswenviron@comcast.net.

What Marlton Could Have

Here's the Mount Laurel Baseball complex at Laurel Acres Park. Why should Mt. Laurel have a facility like this and our kids play at Evans School?

In other news, the letter you can read here was printed in this week's Central Record. It is not on the Central Record website yet.

I've just returned from watching the Marlton Chiefs play Voorhees at Memorial. heavy use of the field has made it a mud pit. Couldn't we get another field somewhere so that half the field is not a swamp?

Money Spent in the Wrong Place

Sources say that the township will spend $200,000 to pave the parking lot at the Memorial Complex. Nice idea, but I for one would put up with some dust and bumps to have that $200K for some fields. How about you?

The Same Old Rhetoric

The Inquirer has a lengthy section on Eveham in todays paper. This article covers the need for sports fields. An excerpt:

Only about 35 of the tract's 176 acres could be developed for fields because of buffer requirements and other regulations designed to preserve the land.

There has been no action taken the last few years toward developing athletic fields on other township-owned tracts with similar restrictions, Haynes said.

"The money's just not there right now," he said.

In the meantime, people make do where they can, also playing soccer on another field on Tuckerton Road where Indian artifacts have been found dating to 600 B.C., Haynes said.

The field needs to be graded, and the grass is in bad shape. But an archaeological dig would have to be conducted before a sprinkler system could be installed or the surface could be leveled, he said.

Space is so tight that the recreation council has had to limit participants in some age groups, Connor said.

Mayor Gus Tamburro said the township must balance the needs of the seniors with the youths playing sports and those who prefer passive recreation such as nature watching or walking.

"We have a finite amount of money to use for recreation. We can't give it all to one group," he said. "We have to look out for recreation that is not provided in a sports setting."

Here's an idea. Why not develop fields and allow the numerous other spots that have been "saved" through open space to serve as recreation spots for those who wish to get back to nature. If true fields are constructed, then Savich can be utilized for passive recreation for eternity.

As for the seniors, I see many senior areas starting with Sagemore and Wiley as well senior housing out along Evesboro-Medford Rd.

Perhaps the wisest idea would be to sell off Indian Springs and have it run by someone more capable. As has been shown throughout our nations history; government does not run anything efficiently. Allow Indian Springs to be purchased by a local company and it will either sink or swim, free market economics as it were. Either way, Evesham is free of the onerous burden we now carry by continuing ownership.

The same excuses have been used for years. This argument lost its currency years ago.

Tonight's Meeting

Due to work circumstances I may not make the Council meeting. Could someone who does show up please send me an e-mail telling me what was discussed? You can also leave a brief synopsis in the comments below.

Town Council Meeting Tomorrow

The Town Council will be meeting tomorrow at 7:30. Information on the agenda can be found here. Come out and voice your opinion.

Update: Anyone who wishes to add a comment to this site may do so by hitting the comments tab below or by e-mailing me at sswenviron@comcast.net

I will credit any contributors or you may contribute anonymously.

Progress?

I was contacted by Debbie Sarcone, a member of Town Council. I may have been remiss in mentioning that nothing is being done. She related to me that several steps are being taken with regard to construction of more fields.

I must reiterate that I have one goal and one goal only: to get fields built that the coaches and players of this town can be proud of. This is not a personal issue with regard to Mayor Tamburro or any members of Town Council. I in fact voted for most of them, Mrs. Sarcone included. She has only been in office several months and has assured me that this is a top issue that she has been working on.

A side note; this site has not endorsed any candidate. I will make a recommendation after I've had the opportunity to contact all the parties and have had the time to see who has the best plans for the township as a whole and recreation fields in particular.

Please pass on this web site address to anyone in Marlton you think may be interested.

First Candidate Forum Q & A With Michael Lynch

Our first candidate forum is with Michael Lynch. Michael is running for the vacant Town Council seat in the upcoming election. Michael is married and has two children ages 11 and 7. He is an active coach in Marlton Rec. I conducted a cyber interview with Michael and he responded to the questions I've posed. I am reprinting his answers verbatim.

Marlton Needs Sports Fields: Explain why you think you are a good candidate for council and what do you see as the biggest challenges facing Evesham?

Michael Lynch:
There are many issues facing our community: high property taxes, wasteful spending, poor recreation facilities, etc. Addressing these issues is very important to sustaining the quality of life here in Evesham, however, as with any problem we must go to the root cause if we are to have real success. I believe the root cause is a lack of leadership in our local government. A great leader has two key attributes, competency and character. The incumbent politicians have shown by their actions or failure to take action that they lack both. The political agenda of the day is what drives their decisions, not the needs of the people. As a member of council I will embrace my role as a leader and provide a voice for my fellow residents. I will set priorities and have a vision that goes beyond the next election. I will fight to protect our community from the political corruption and waste that is taxing us out of our homes and eroding our quality of life. The biggest challenge facing Evesham right now is fiscal stability. Politicians have wasted our tax dollars and incurred credit card like debt. The examples are plentiful, the Taj Mahal country club, a $5 million bus garage, purchasing of already preserved open space, pay-to-play contracts and election year tax gimmicks like deferring $8 million in school taxes are just a few of the examples. The first step to solving this problem is to stop the bleeding!

MNSF:With regard to Marlton Recreation and our quest for new fields, what ideas do you have for funding the construction of new fields and where would you like to see them built?

ML:
First of all we must open the lines of communication between the township, school board, rec. council and the neighborhoods affected by field activities. All have a stake in the improvement and development of our recreation facilities. By communication I mean listening not just talking. We must take care in planning not just for today but for tomorrow. The source of funding improvements should include the Open Space Recreation Trust Fund as well as fundraising, grants etc. By putting a stop to wasteful spending such as pay-to-play contracts we should be able to include facility improvements in School and Township budgets without placing a significant burden on the taxpayers. We should look at ways to improve existing facilities as well as developing land that has been purchased through the trust fund. Although development of much of the land that council has purchased is limited by wet lands and pineland protection, we must maximize the use of these tracks so that the money we as taxpayers have approved for open space and recreation is not a total waste. Its all about setting priorities, with 8,000 kids in our recreation programs, safe and adequate facilities must be a top priority. We cannot fix the problem overnight but we must start now, as taxpayers, parents and coaches we deserve better!

MNSF: A major issue facing the township is the annual drain on our budget by the Indian Springs Golf Course and clubhouse. What would be the course of action you will take to lessen the financial burden?

ML:
Clearly the Indian Spring Country Club debacle has been a significant drain on our tax dollars. What is more disturbing is the fact that the politicians allowed the problem to continue for nearly five years. Not only did they raid our Open Space Recreation Trust Fund of $750 K, but they delayed taking steps toward fixing the problem. Political patronage was allowed to run ramped the entire time! Thanks to pressure applied by the tax payers, a private management company has been brought in to run the golf course. Despite what we are being told, the fiscal stability of the golf course is at best fragile; we must keep a watchful eye and take immediate action to ensure that history does not repeat itself. Under my leadership political agendas will not be allowed to get in the way of responsible fiscal decisions.

Part two of this interview will take place in the next few days. I will also contact Bonnie Olt, Mr. Lynch's opponent and offer her the opportunity to answer the questions I've posed to Michael Lynch. I f you have any questions you'd like to ask, please leve them in the comments section or e-mail to me at sswenviron@comcast.net.

First Candidate Forum

The first in our candidate forums will be posted tonight or tomorrow. Our first candidate interviewed will be Michael Lynch who is running for the vacant Town Council seat. I've submitted several questions to Mr. Lynch concerning not only field construction but other issues of importance in Marlton. Please check back for this cyber interview.

Welcome

An Open Letter To Mayor Tamburro

The Honorable Gus Tamburro
Mayor, Evesham Township, NJ

Dear Mr. Mayor,

I am writing to you solely on my behalf but believe I represent a large group of Marlton residents. I ask for your time and a response to an issue that is of great importance to many of your constituents.

Marlton is, and has been for some time, a laughing stock in the southern New Jersey area because of the poor quality of our athletic fields. This is a source of great irritation for the coaches and parents of children who play sports under the auspices of the Marlton Recreation Council.

I have coached in this town for five years and have watched as parents and other coaches have struggled while attempting to make a field safe and playable. This is an outrage.

Take a trip to Laurel Acres Park in Mount Laurel and see what they have to offer. The baseball fields there are among the best in the entire state. Drive a few more miles and observe the fields that are provided to the young athletes in Medford. Their soccer fields are second to none.

After that, take a drive to Voorhees and walk around the soccer, football and baseball facilities they have constructed. I could go on, but I believe that you get the point.

Now Mr. Mayor, take a few minutes out of your Saturday in the autumn and go to Savich Field. Take a look at the hundreds of children playing soccer there. Then look a little closer at the condition of those fields. Not one field is level and most would not pass as playable in any other surrounding town. These are the fields we play on. These are the fields we play out of town teams on and have to hang our heads in embarrassment because of there poor condition.

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I have traveled to tournaments where the town that is hosting welcomes teams from surrounding states and adds tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars to their coffers because they have the facilities to host such an event. These tournaments not only assist the local sports programs but also bring much needed revenue to the local small business owners who are the backbone of any towns’ economy. We can only dream of hosting such an event.

Are you aware Mr. Mayor, that in the last several years there have been teams that have won state championships in several different sports? If a team is going to work hard to reach that high of a level of ability, don’t they deserve at least to play on fields of which they can be proud?

All we ask of you is that you finally address the concerns of your constituents. We will need money of course. But that money does not only have to be from the local budget. There are numerous sources of funding that can be tapped if you choose to exert the effort. We would also need land. That land can be purchased utilizing open space money that is available. I know this to be the case because it has been done in numerous other towns.

In conclusion, there are many members of the community who would donate time and/or money to construct suitable playing fields. As a small business owner in this town, I will be among the first to pledge support. I know of many people who feel the same. What is needed now is the leadership of our elected officials. True leadership that will work with us to procure the needed funds and join with those of us who will organize this undertaking. Can we rely on you, Mr. Mayor?

Respectfully,

Scott Welsh
Marlton, NJ 08053