John Redkoles resigns – the News picks up story

The News finally reports on the story we broke earlier in the week.

One of the six Cumberland County department heads targeted by Republican freeholders earlier this month for replacement has resigned, stating he feels his job security has been pinned to the whims of the political process.

John Redkoles, 911 Emergency Division head, will officially step down on March 1, after serving eight months on the job, according to James Matlock, county director of public safety and the 911 Communications and Training Center.

“For the record, John did a phenomenal job as division head,” said Matlock on Wednesday, speaking from the 911 Center, on Bridgeton Avenue.

Of course, it is politically expedient for Matlock to blame the evil Republicans that are attempting to repair three decades of damage due to severe fiscal mismanagement by the CCDO, the party that has repeatedly put emphasis on being a friend, political crony or family member ahead of qualifications when hiring and appointing for the high paying patronage jobs.

The morale at the 911 call center has never been lower, according to the many reports I get from a variety of inside sources.  These sources have proved themselves reliable over the course of the past year, as my breaking of the story verifies. The 911 Call Center has had scheduling problems, and operated under a culture of fear and paranoia.

Hopefully, if the position is deemed necessary to fill, the candidate will have experience as an effective manager, and will also be from Cumberland County this time.

Pension Reform

The News of Cumberland County ran an editorial on the subject of pension reform, especially where it has to do with double-dipping.

News reporter Lauren Taniguchi has written stories the last two Sundays about public employees retiring, collecting pensions and then getting new public jobs. Labeled “double-dipping” by critics, the practice amounts to two hefty public paychecks for many of these individuals.

It’s a practice our state cannot afford and one that should be ended.

It was just last year that Christie and the Legislature tackled pension reforms that included increasing employee contributions, restricting cost-of-living adjustments and delaying retirement eligibility for future public pensioners. These reforms put the pension system on a more stable financial footing and ensured retirees will actually receive their pensions for many years to come. Without these reforms, the system faced collapse in the not-too-distant future.

A watchdog group brought attention to this new double-dipping issue by specifically focussing (sic) on retired state and municipal police employees who find new jobs with county prosecutor’s offices.

Where do we begin with fixing this issue?

It’s unrealistic — and unfair — to suggest retroactively penalizing those currently receiving these deals. Let’s remember, all of this is perfectly legal. No public employees are breaking the law.

The state Legislature can, however, put an end to future employees receiving similar deals.

Some sort of mechanism is needed that would halt pension payments if a retiree secures a new, full-time public position. Once the employee actually retires, pension payments would resume. If that doesn’t work, then reduce the new salary to take into account that this employee is already receiving a public pension.

There are many issues at stake. A person can be in the pension system for their entire life as apart-time employee, then work three years full-time to collect an enhanced pension. A pension should be based solely on the amount paid in, not on the last three years employment.

Contractors that are not even public employees retire on public pensions – and that, in my opinion, is outright theft. I am ashamed that Chris Christie refused to sign a bill that would have corrected this egregious policy.

But the truth of the matter is that most public employees do not enjoy the inflated pension numbers that you have seen in our reports. According to Politifact New Jersey:

…the average annual pension for “new retirees” — people who had retired within the previous year — was $30,199 for state workers and $20,075 for local workers.

The problem with New Jersey’s pension system isn’t retirees taking a second job per se. Somebody taking home a $20K a year pension might need to take a job at WalMart simply to pay New Jersey’s outrageous property taxes. The problem is political cronyism – politicians appointing hacks into jobs for three years so that they can sit pretty during retirement, at the public’s expense. The inflated $60K and $70K are for political appointees, people that worked and massaged the system.

The editors of the News are correct in that it would be improper to go after existing pensions and pensioners retroactively, they are doing nothing illegal. However, changes have to be made, and the first area of attack should be to eliminate ALL political patronage from the system.

Cumberland County in the eyes of Trenton

This article is a little different from the typical story run on MWatch. It is not about the Freeholders or county government, per se – it is about a bigger picture.  I have said many times that Cumberland County tops all of the wrong lists. And I have stated my opinion that our county is nothing more than a dumping ground for the rest of New Jersey. Cumberland County is the Rodney Dangerfield of the state – we get no respect.

Any doubts that I may have had about our lowly status in the state were laid to rest this week when I received a copy of New Jersey’s A-Z Guide, where to go and what to do, compliments of New Jersey Monthly.

Last month I subscribed to New Jersey Monthly. They had a deal on the subscription, $12 for a year plus freebies, of which the A-Z Guide was one. So imagine my dismay to leaf through the guide and discover that Cumberland County basically does not exist!

The guide has twenty-six categories – you guessed it, from A to Z. under Antiques and Flea Markets, the furthest south is one entry for The Old Mill Antique center in Mullica Hill, Gloucester County. Well, of course Gloucester County will be mentioned because Stephen Sweeney is the Senate president. Under Beaches and Boardwalks, at least the guide acknowledges that life exists below the Pine Barrens. Ocean City and Wildwood make the list. In fact, according to this guide, apparently Cape May County is the only civilized area below Mercer County!

C is for Culture, and we don’t got any! The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra is mentioned, but not the Bay Atlantic Symphony Orchestra.  The Rutgers-Camden Center for the arts is included, but not the Frank Guaracini Center for the Arts.

Delicatessens and Diners, apparently only North Jersey establishments get free advertising in this rag! Ecology – nada.  Farms and Orchards?  The farthest south they go is Ocean County. Historic Spots – I would think that The Millville Army Airfield Museum merits mention – after all, it was “America’s First Defense Airport”.  It doesn’t even get listed under Museums. Nor under  Jersey Landmarks. But, Cumberland County does get its first mention – East Point Lighthouse is listed under Lighthouses.

Under Lakes and Rivers – we have the Wild and Scenic Maurice River which was passed over.  Of course the Delaware river is mentioned, so I suppose we are included by virtue of bordering it.

Under Museums, at least the Noyes in Atlantic County is mentioned. The A.J. Meerwald is listed under Nautical Adventures. That is Cumberland County’s second mention.

Old Homes and Historic Villages passes over the Baracha Dunn house in Millville. The Southern Pacific’s C.P. Huntington is listed as being located at Wheaton Village. You would think they could at least get the name correct; it hasn’t been Wheaton Village for several years. This is Cumberland’s third and final entry. Bridgeton Zoo is missed under Zoos. Swansea Wineries are bypassed in the Wineries category.

Cumberland County has so much to offer. Unfortunately, tourism to the county took a dive after Lou Magazzu so short-sightedly removed all funding for marketing. In fact, the Cumberland County website page, More to Offer, is inexcusably blank!

Cumberland County has so much to offer. We are home to the New Jersey Motorsports Park, the Wild and Scenic Maurice River, the Glasstown Arts District, the Millville Army Airfield Museum, Swansea Winery, Gallery 50 in Bridgeton, the Bridgeton Zoo, the Bay Atlantic Symphony, the Bayshore Discovery Project, and there are many more which I am sure I missed! If we don’t blow our own horn, it is certain that the rest of the state will continue to ignore us. We ignore funding of tourism at our own peril. Every dollar invested in arts and tourism yields a return of over $80. The bulk of that money comes from outside the state and outside any particular county. It is reckless  and irresponsible to be penny wise and pound foolish.

Cost on Prosecutor Building 11% over initial bid

I have to blame this travesty on Lou Magazzu – even after he is long gone the damage he did to this county continues to cost taxpayers. Backroom politics and ensuring that George Norcross got his due continue to attack taxpayer wallets. On Tuesday, the Freeholders approved another $142,000 for the contractor on this project.

The cost overrun on Cumberland County’s $2.49 million project to stabilize the former Vine Street School is nearing 11 percent because of hidden water damage to the building.

The county Board of Freeholders on Tuesday approved a request from the contractor for another $142,417. It is the fourth contract change order that the board has received.

My complaint is that this project was awarded in response to bids placed by competing companies. It is only proper that the taxpayers would expect these bids to be an accurate reflection of the actual price to complete the project as bid on. In my teens I worked with several local contractors, we did wallpaper, painting and roofing jobs. We bid on those jobs, and since I was the wallpaper expert I would work up the prices for those jobs. The price included labor, materials, travel and also a padding to cover the unexpected. That means that we purchased 10% wallpaper than needed to cover that erroneous cut. We padded the price to cover for the rotted timbers that we might discover when tearing down a roof. And if we made a mistake and found more damage than we expected, we ate the difference.

This is simply bad policy on the part of the Freeholders to give this contractor, or any contractor carte blanche to simply tack more charges onto the price of a contractual agreement. If this is commonplace, then why even go through the charade of having contractors bid on projects? At the very least, Cumberland County would be wise to black list this particular contractor. I will stop short of implying that they are guilty of fraud – but they did gamble that the project would be less involved than it turned out, and Cumberland County taxpayers lost.

Manor employees’ jobs are safe

The Freeholders did the right thing in accepting the lower winning bid (this is one case where the highest bid is generally better)in order to preserve Cumberland County jobs.

The Cumberland County freeholders on Tuesday approved the sale of Cumberland Manor to LTC Management for $14 million dollars, ending a process than began years ago as officials began looking toward selling the public nursing home as a way save money.

The vote to approve sale — 6-0, with Freeholder Tony Surace abstaining — came hours after a public auction in which the Old Bridge company beat two other bidders with an offer of $14 million to purchase the nursing home and retain the existing collective bargaining agreement with its approximately 200 full-time employees.

LTC Management also offered $14.1 million to buy the Manor without retaining the workers’ contracts.

However, that bid was rejected by the freeholders — again 6-0, with Surace abstaining — in favor of keeping the employees in place.

We at MWatch have been following this drama very closely. Nobody likes change, but hopefully the new owners will run the institution in a professional manner while at the same time ensuring continued and uninterrupted employment of local residents.

MWatch will continue to pursue the answers to questions we have asked, such as what will happen to the PEER funds and how will that deficit be replaced; how much will it cost for the temporary move of the prosecutor’s office currently housed at that location; and, how much will it cost to relocate the maintenance personnel currently located there?

Nursing Home Sold

The Manor has been sold. What this means to employees remains to be seen.

LTC Management submitted the winning bids to purchase the Cumberland Manor nursing home in a public auction Tuesday morning.

The Old Bridge-based company, whose owners last year bought the Salem County Nursing Home, now called Golden Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, bid $14 million to buy the Cumberland nursing home while keeping current employees and their collective bargaining agreement.

LTC later bid $14.1 million to buy the nursing home without the collective bargaining agreement, only guaranteeing an interview for the approximately 200 full-time employees.

The Cumberland County freeholders meet tonight, and will likely come to a decision on which bid, if any, they will approve.

John Redkoles resigns

I just heard through the grapevine that John Redkoles, head of the 911 Call Center and erstwhile subject of some rants herewith, has tendered his resigned for that position. Nothing in the newspapers yet, but my source has always been reliable.

Did Jim Matlock drive him out with his rumored legendary rude treatment of subordinates? Or did Redkoles simply see the writing on the wall as the Freeholders are targeting certain departments for consolidation?

Christie to visit Cumberland County

Governor Chris Christie has included Cumberland County on his Town Meeting tour.

Mayor Robert Romano got a heads-up Friday that Christie will hold a public meeting starting at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the National Guard Armory on South Delsea Drive. The mayor said he hopes he’ll be able to chat one-on-one with him about the future of the Vineland Developmental Center, which Christie has targeted for closure, but he’s not sure how much time the governor will have.

Kudos to Ann Roman, wife of Vineland mayor Bob Romano for staging this coup. Cumberland County needs to be recognized by politicians from up north as something more than just the dumping grounds of the state.

My former history teacher and long time family friend Ethan Aronoff chimed in today with an intelligent letter to the editor cautioning against action before thought.

To the Editor:

Libraries constitute one of the great manifestations of our democracy. Closing a library degrades our democracy by depriving the citizenry of a bastion of information and a vital center for lifelong learning.

The freeholders in mid-December wisely appointed a transition committee to study the County Library situation.

What that committee discovered is that there are a myriad of complexities that require more time and study.

Such complexities include: fiscal sustainability concerns; impact on the other city libraries already challenged by rising health insurance costs, utility hikes, maintenance expenses, keeping the print and electronic media current, already reduced hours, flat-funded budgets, and staff with no raises;  impact on the rural areas; and the retention of the CLUES catalog and check out system.

The committee has also found intricate legal issues that must be addressed.

Many of us are imploring the freeholders and staff to give the committee and the expertise the time and opportunity to make an honest review to bring solutions forward for consideration. The NJ Library Association and the NJ State Library Development Bureau have offered their specialized expertise at little or no cost; however it is my understanding that these offers have not been accepted.

Must Cumberland County take on the negative distinction of being the only county, the first county in N.J., to close a county library?

Does not our quality of life suffer?

Should not we be looking to create more opportunities for raising our literacy rate rather than slamming the door on one that has long existed?

Closing the county library without a proper discourse that takes advantage of available expertise would be a great disservice to county residents.

I urge you to keep the county library open while allowing the transition committee extended time and the use of outside expertise needed to sort out the complex issues involved in any decision regarding this most important institution’s future.

Ethan Aronoff
Chair,
Planning & Development Committee,
Millville Public Library Board

Library Woes

First, it is a sad commentary when a county has been so poorly managed for decades that it finds itself in a fiscal crisis so bad that the arts and culture are targeted for massive cuts and obliteration. Shuttering opportunities for education and culture are exactly opposite what needs to be done, if one ones to create an environment that is amenable for economic growth.  When these sorts of options are considered, it means that the leadership has given up hope on the community.

We have a county college crying the blues that attendance is down, and going through motions pretending that they are seeking a fix. However, it is apparent that they are not truly seeking a fix, as they are raising tuition at the height of a recession. And we have a county library chiming in with harmony, claiming they are underfunded.

The library, this year, under threat of closure is seeking to incorporate the CLUES system with an online system currently in use by Gloucester and Salem counties. Now the budget shortfall is nothing new. It was slashed last year, and even if the library remains open, the budget will suffer yet another shortfall. So my question is this: why wasn’t the possibility of merging the online systems with Gloucester and Salem counties as a major cost-cutting move explored previously? Did the people that operate the library believe that they could bully the freeholders year after year to save their jobs?

Don’t get me wrong – I believe that shuttering any cultural institution sends the wrong message, especially in a county were it is critical that we attract entrepreneurs and new business. If the freeholders do not believe in this county, then it will be difficult to persuade new business to buy in.  But, the people that make the decisions at the library need to get their heads out of their collective bureaucratic butts and start thinking like business-people. The money is just not there, and if it comes to choosing between raising taxes AGAIN, or cutting corners here and there, the majority of county taxpayers will say cut back on spending.  Nobody wants to see their pet project cut, but that is no excuse for careless accounting and profligate spending simply because you think your department is a sacred cow. No cow is that sacred in a time of recession, when the county boasts the highest unemployment rates and poverty levels to match.