November 5, 2014 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 17 Letters to the Editor (continued from page 16) system and community. I am writing in support of Ellen, as well as a new candidate to the board, John Batt. John and his family have lived in Ho- Ho-Kus for over 10 years. During this time, I’ve been able to spend time with him during community and school events, as well as coaching sports programs with our kids. I’ve witnessed firsthand John’s commitment to service through his work as a member of the executive leadership committee for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. This is an organization that has tremendous meaning to both our families and John has worked tirelessly to advance their cause. John Batt feels strongly that the quality of our children’s education is a direct result of the current board of education, the fac- ulty, and the administration, and is excited about the opportunity to become more involved in the community and build upon this legacy. There will be many important issues facing our board in the coming years and John’s fresh perspective and business expertise combined with Ellen’s working knowledge of issues that are important to our school community are why they both have my vote. I urge you to vote for Ellen Walsh and John Batt for the Ho-Ho-Kus Board of Education. Paul Zimny Ho-Ho-Kus DeBerardine & DiMartino have experience Dear Editor: I have worked closely with all four can- didates running for Upper Saddle River Council. I served on the board of the USR Baseball Association with Perry Bonomo, Frank Barker, and Steve DiMartino. As a councilman, I have worked with Roger DeBerardine and Steve DiMartino. I feel that I can give a valuable opinion based on my experience with all of the candidates. Frank and Perry are hardworking family guys. After getting to know Frank as a coach, I recommended him for the baseball board. Perry and Frank are well-liked indi- viduals who are excellent with kids. They are volunteers for our community and should be commended for the job they have done on the baseball board as well as want- ing to serve on the council. My concern is that they are not ready for this. This is a crucial time for Upper Saddle River. We have major issues that we have been successfully working on. Councilman DiMartino is the chair- man of the Finance Committee for Upper Saddle River and has continually imple- mented changes that have improved our fiscal situation, helping to keeping munici- pal taxes stable. Steve is a Certified Public Accountant, and chief financial officer of an investment firm. He has also served as the treasurer of both the USR Baseball Association and the USR Educational Foundation. We look to Steve for his finan- cial acumen, knowing that his intelligence and experience are keys to our success. Councilman DeBerardine is our coun- cil president. He has been a member of the planning/zoning board for eight years, and is liaison to the board of education, the Shade Tree Commission, and the police department. He worked on the last two police negotiations. Roger is an experi- enced attorney, who was instrumental in the win against Rockland Sewer, negotiat- ing approximately a $1,000,000 settlement, and recently winning the Bergen County Volunteer of the Year award for his efforts. We look continually to Roger as the voice of reason helping us with difficult matters. Councilmen DiMartino and DeBerar- dine have been consistently fighting devel- opment in and near USR. Their intelligence, experience, and proven track record on var- ious organizations are essential. Frank and Perry, on the other hand, have wavered on their opinion about develop- ment. Perry was quoted as agreeing with the Mack Cali proposal and then months later, seemed to retract this statement. This inexperience and inconsistency can put our town at risk. In addition, both candidates haven’t served on any organizations other than the baseball board. They don’t have the knowledge, experience, or proven track record. Please make sure to cast your vote for DeBerardine and DiMartino, proven lead- ers, which will keep Upper Saddle River great. Jon Ditkoff, Councilman Upper Saddle River Supporting Amy Langevin Dear Editor: Last year, I had the opportunity to work together with Amy Langevin to success- fully reinstitute the Before Care program at the Ho-Ho Kus Public School. Throughout my experience, I got to know Amy as a tire- less advocate for our children and our Ho- Ho-Kus families. She is a regular, and often times, only public attendee at the board of education meetings raising questions and new busi- ness to help better our community. She not only listens, but understands the issues and takes action on key issues. Her civic aware- ness extends beyond our school and she actively advocates for community issues among the town council such as the preser- vation of the Memorial Day Parade. Amy has my vote because she is some- one who has represented our community and she would continue to represent our community in its entirety as an active member of the board. I encourage you to vote for Amy Langevin, Column 1, for Ho- Ho-Kus School Board on Nov. 4. Sarah Bergeron Ho-Ho-Kus Waldwick cannot take on cost of White’s Pond Dear Editor: While I agree that White’s Pond is an asset to the community, the town has been woefully neglect in the past years in seek- ing grant monies from the government to maintain it properly. Past administrations cannot be blamed since the administrator has been the common thread for decades. He is ultimately the “go to” person for all issues. I believe the residents of Waldwick are overtaxed now without adding an addi- tional tax that would only benefit a select few who would enjoy a resort-like setting in their private yards. Kathleen Scorzelli Waldwick Endorses John Batt Dear Editor: John Batt is a strong candidate for the Ho-Ho-Kus Board of Education, and it is with pride that we endorse him. For 10 years, John and his family have lived in Ho- Ho-Kus, and throughout that time, he has volunteered his time endlessly. Whether volunteering for baseball, basketball, soft- ball, or giving his time as a member of the executive leadership committee for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, John has shown time and again his dedication to those efforts in which he believes. The education the children of Ho-Ho- Kus receive is one such effort. John believes the dedication of the current board of edu- cation, the faculty, and the administration is directly responsible for the phenomenal quality of education at the Ho-Ho-Kus School. He looks forward to the opportunity of becoming more involved in the school, while lending his strong business skills to the current board. Having graduated from Amherst College and NYU’s School of Business, coupled with his position as a regional business development leader for Grant Thornton, LLP, John is more than qualified to serve as a productive board member. It would be an honor to have him on the Ho-Ho-Kus Board of Education. Kate Armstrong Pieter van der Heide Ho-Ho-Kus Choices have consequences Dear Editor: New Jersey’s planning and zoning laws and procedures were established for many reasons. One reason is that zoning changes are serious issues with permanent conse- quences. They affect schools, infrastruc- ture, wastewater management, sanitation, police and fire needs, traffic, and the beauty and quality of life of residents for years to come. Developers have their interests, seek their changes, make their profits, and then they are gone. The town is forever left with the consequences, whether good or bad. We know a resident cannot build a swim- ming pool too close to his or her property line because this may affect a neighbor. There may be water runoff, noise issues, or the plan may be visually intrusive. The resident seeking the change cannot simply strike a deal behind closed doors with the mayor or planning board. Engineering stud- ies are done, notices to affected residents sent, and open meetings held. This open and deliberate process gives those poten- tially affected the right and opportunity be heard after all necessary information is gathered. This process prevents corruption and affords due process to all involved. At the Oct. 22 town hall meeting, our mayor introduced several professionals who outlined the rules and procedures involved in seeking a zoning change in New Jersey. It was made clear that none have been followed by Mack Cali in seek- ing the rezoning of One Lake Street. Instead, Mack Cali has attempted to gain public favor by floating an artistic render- ing of the project in the media and through public relations campaigns. At the meeting, an engineer noted that the Mack Cali ren- dering was deceptive as the buildings were drawn out of scale and a large building was completely omitted from the drawing. The engineer expressed serious concern about the infrastructure impacts of the project, particularly with wastewater management, and stressed the importance of the detailed investigation involved in the zoning appli- cation process. Mack Cali has chosen to ignore this pro- cess and has simply filed a law suit. Anyone who pays a $200 filing fee can file a lawsuit in New Jersey, whether they have legitimate claim or not. I will not debate the merits of this case, as I believe the town planner and attorneys have laid out very clearly that the claims made in the law suit by Mack Cali are without merit. Lawsuits without merit should, and can, be successfully defended. Ask yourselves why Mack Cali has chosen not to follow the process. Is it just simply that it knows that full disclosure and open meetings would expose the detrimen- tal realities of such a project? There is more to this election than a non- binding referendum. There are two impor- tant council seats up for election and two more next year. There are only six mem- bers of the borough council. These are the people who will be voting on and deciding this issue. The Independent candidates suggest that we make deals with the developers, agree to development without due diligence, avoid law suits regardless of their merits, give the developers what they want because high density housing is inevitable, and maybe we can get a nice field out of the deal. I sug- gest that this is the wrong approach. (continued on page 18)