Upper Saddle River October 31, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 5 On Nov. 6, Upper Saddle River voters will have the opportunity to reaffirm their support for the borough’s Open Space Trust Fund and endorse Vincent Durante and Dr. Joanne Florio, the Republican incumbents who are running unopposed for borough council. Public support for the Open Space Trust Fund must be renewed every five years. Mayor Joanne Minichetti previously noted that the borough has had an Open Space Trust Fund that was overwhelmingly approved by voters two previous times. In November of 2011, the item was on the ballot, but was voted down. Minichetti said the item may have been defeated because voters did not know the purpose of the fund. The fund covers both the purchase of properties for open space and recreation maintenance and improvements. Open space funding is used for maintenance and improvement of the borough’s recreational facilities. The question that will be posed to voters asks: “Shall the Borough of Upper Saddle River establish a dedicated tax program and impose an annual tax levy at the rate of $0.01 per $100.00 of assessed value for a period of five (5) years for any or all of the following purposes, or any combination thereof, as determined by the governing body; acquisition, development and maintenance of lands for recreation and conservation purposes, acquisition and preservation of farmland and historic properties; and debt service for any of these purposes?” The accompanying interpretive statement reads: “This proposition would authorize the Borough of Upper Saddle River to establish a Municipal Trust Fund for the acquisition, development, maintenance, and preservation of lands for recreation and conservation purposes as well as acquisition of farmland and historic properties for preservation purposes and for the payment of debt service for any of these purposes. Real property owners in the borough would be taxed annually at the rate of $0.01 per $100 of assessed value to fund this program, which is equal to $75.50 for an average property assessed at $755,000.” Durante, a borough resident since 1996, has over 25 years of professional and managerial experience in pharmaceutical and health and beauty products. He is employed by Interchem Corp/World Gen in Paramus as senior vice president/secretary-treasurer. He is also a member of the board of directors of Steri-Pharma, LLC in Syracuse, New York. He was appointed to the USR Council in May 2009 and elected to office in November of that year. He is the council’s recreation liaison and public safety liaison. Durante is past chairman and current member of the Finance Committee. He is a past president of the Upper Saddle River Republican Club and has served as vice president of the Upper Saddle River Board of Health. He has also served as a commissioner for the Northwest Bergen Regional Health Commission. Durante has coached basketball for the Upper Saddle Voters to decide on open space, representatives River Recreation Commission. He is also a former member and past chief of the Carlstadt Fire Department. He and his wife Kathleen have three children: Christian, 31; Danielle, 27; and Joseph, 16. Dr. Florio, a lifetime borough resident, has been a practicing chiropractor and nutritionist since 1988. Dr. Florio has served as a member of the local board of health and as president of Saddle River Valley Junior Woman’s Club. She earned her Doctor of Chiropractic degree at New York Chiropractic College and holds a master’s degree in biology and clinical nutrition from the University of Bridgeport and a bachelor’s degree from Ramapo College of New Jersey. She is a Diplomate of the American Clinical Board on Nutrition and of the Chiropractic Board of Clinical Nutrition. Dr. Florio said she is dedicated to making local govern- ment more efficient, maintaining the character of Upper Saddle River, and representing residents of all ages through responsible leadership. She has served on the council since January 2010, and is currently the council’s liaison to the Upper Saddle River Library Board. She is also the mayor’s representative to the Upper Saddle River Youth Guidance Council. In addition to serving as president of the USR Republican Club, Dr. Florio is vice chairman of the Alumni Advisory Board for the School of Theoretical and Applied Sciences at Ramapo College. Dr. Florio is involved in the Newcomers’ Club and the North Jersey Depression Glass Club. She is a volunteer at the Church of the Presentation, and has been featured as a guest nutritionist on Fox News, MSNBC, and Channel 5 News.