Serving the community since 1959
OUR 55th YEAR – ISSUE NO. 44-2014
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Thursday, October 30, 2014
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U.S. Senate, House, Sheriff, CF,
GW Races On Ballot Tuesday
By PAUL J. PEYTON
Specially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
REGION – Voters will go to the polls
on Tuesday to make their choices for
United States Senate, Congress, Union
County Sheriff and Board of Chosen
Freeholders as well as a mayor’s race in
Garwood and town council races in
Cranford, Garwood and Scotch Plains.
There are no competitive elections in
Fanwood and Mountainside and there
is not any municipal election in
Westfield this year.
In Garwood, Republican Sal
Piarulli, a self-employed marketing
consultant who defeated first-term
Mayor Pat Quattrocchi in the June
Primary, will face former 21-year
Democratic Councilman Charles
Lombardo, who is employed by the
County of Union, in the mayor’s race.
In the race for three seats on the
borough council, incumbent Democrats Sara Todisco and Lou Petruzzelli
face a challenge from Republicans
Tina Simitz, vice-president of a marketing agency in Morristown, and
Carol Kearney, owner of a local travel
agency who ran for council in 2011.
Democrats hold a four to two edge on
the council. Delays in the completion
of the Athletic Field Complex and
borough taxes are among the issues
in the campaign.
Six candidates are battling for three
seats on the Scotch Plains Township
Council where Republicans hold a 3to-2 edge. A potential merger of the
Fred Rossi for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
FRUITS OF THEIR EFFORT…Residents choose from a copious selection at the
Scotch Plains Farmers’ Market on Saturday.
SPF Bd. of Edu. Presents
2013-14 Assessment Results
By KIMBERLY A. BROADWELL
Specially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
SCOTCH PLAINS – District test results were at the forefront of last Thursday evening’s Scotch Plains-Fanwood
Board of Education meeting agenda as
Joan Mast, assistant superintendent of
curriculum, instruction and technology,
gave a breakdown of results.
According to the report, the New
Jersey Assessment of Skills and
Knowledge (NJASK) scores of students within the district were then
compared with the 102 other districts
within the same District Factor Group,
which is DFG1, and then the state test
results. The district factor group consists of similar districts with comparable socio economic traits including
occupational status, median income
levels and percent of adults in a household with some college-level education. Towns within the district’s DFG
in Union County include Westfield,
New Providence, Berkeley Heights,
Cranford, Mountainside and Summit.
Results for the third grade include
an 86.5 percentage of proficient students for the 400 Scotch Plains-Fanwood students and 84 percent proficient for the DFG1. The state ranked
65.5 for proficiency.
For fourth grade the district ranked
at a 76.3 percent proficient out of the
total 444 students while the DFG1
came in at a 79.9 percent and the state
came in at 59.8 percent.
At the fifth grade level SP-F came
in at an 81 percent for the 432 students enrolled in the district while the
DFG1 came in at 81.9 percent and the
state scored a 62.3 percent.
Sixth grade placed with 82.6 percent proficient for 432 students enrolled while the DFG1 ranked 85.1
and the state trailed at 66.9 percent.
Seventh grade came in at 85.4 percent for the district out of 444 students enrolled while the DFG1 ranked
83.7 percent and the state scored a 64
percent proficiency.
Eighth grade Language Arts results ranked a 93.1 percent proficiency for the 459 district students, a
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
Scotch Plains and Fanwood police
departments and battles over the capital budget, which failed to get the
necessary four votes for passage on
two occasions, are among the issues
in the race. Incumbent Republicans
William Vastine, Michael Marcus,
who switched parties after running as
a Democrat four years ago, and
Llewellyn Jones, who was elected to
an unexpired council term last year,
are being challenged by Democrats
John Del Sordi, Jr. an official with a
carpenters’ union; Rose Checchio,
co-owner of several day care centers,
and Luisa Bianco, who is a department manager with AT&T.
In neighboring Fanwood, incumbent Democratic Councilmen Russell
Huegel and Kevin Boris are unopposed in their reelection bids. Democrats hold all six seats on the borough
council and the mayor’s office.
In Cranford, Republican Township
Committee incumbents Andis
Kalnins, who is serving as mayor this
year, and Lisa M. Adubato, who is
deputy mayor, face a challenge from
Democrats Brian McCarthy, a information technology specialist, and
Robert V. Salvatore, who works for a
major retail chain.
Taxes, flood mitigation, the Union
County College field project and the
position of township engineer are
among the issues in the race. Republicans currently hold a 4-to-1 majority on the committee after sweeping
in the 2013 election to pick up two
seats.
At the county level, the key race
this year is for county sheriff. Joe
Cryan of Union, who is serving as
acting sheriff since the death of Sheriff Ralph Froehlich in July, has served
the past 11 years as undersheriff and
prior to that worked for ITT and for
his family’s business, Cryan’s Restaurants. He will face retired FBI
agent and former Clark police officer
Michael Ince of Garwood. Sheriff
Froehlich had held the position since
the late 1970s.
In the race for county freeholder,
Democratic incumbents Chris Hudak
of Linden, Angel Estrada of Elizabeth and Vernell Wright of Union are
seeking reelection. P. Mark Martini
of Westfield, who ran for the board
last year, is the lone Republican candidate this year. Democrats, who have
held the majority since 1997, hold all
nine seats on the board.
Union County Surrogate Jim
LaCorte, a Democrat, is running unopposed in his quest for a fourth fiveyear term.
At the Congressional level, threeterm Rep. Leonard Lance (R) faces a
challenge from Clinton Mayor Janice
Kovach, a Democrat, in the 7th Congressional District, while DemoCONTINUED ON PAGE 12
By PAUL J. PEYTON
REGION – Voters will decide competitive school-board races in
Westfield, Cranford and Garwood this
Tuesday.
In Westfield, incumbent Mark
Friedman is seeking a second term.
Also running are David Sexton,
Michael Bielen, Margaret Oster and
Christopher Langhart.
In Cranford, incumbents Michael
C. Caulfield, JoAnn Boyle and Trevor
Publisher’s Note
Paul Lachenauer for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
SP-F Board of Education
Candidates Share Views at Forum
By KIMBERLY A. BROADWELL
Specially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
SCOTCH PLAINS – Four candidates vying for three seats on the
Scotch Plains-Fanwood Board of
Education outlined their platforms
and ideas at the Candidates Night
held Monday evening at Scotch
Plains-Fanwood High School
(SPFHS). Many parents, students,
teachers, administrators and area
residents filled the seats as the candidates held discussions regarding
the district’s educational system.
The evening was moderated by Past
PTA Council President Marcie
Bowman.
Three Scotch Plains residents are
running for two seats in the township
while incumbent Jeanne Cleary is
running un-opposed in the Borough
of Fanwood.
Ms. Cleary’s résumé includes a
long list of volunteer positions within
the district. She has served a threeyear term as the McGinn PTA president and also has served as Scotch
Plains-Fanwood PTA Council president. Her board of education committees include the Strategic Planning Committee as well as the Curriculum and Superintendent’s Evaluation Committee.
Longtime Scotch Plains resident
and incumbent candidate Warren
McFall revealed that he has served on
various committees on the board of
education such as the Policy, Finance
and Negotiating Committees. It also
Voters to Decide School
Board Races In WF, CF, SP
Specially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
READY FOR ACTION…. Sunday’s Halloween Parade, sponsored by the
Optimist Club of Westfield, and costume contest, sponsored by the Downtown
Westfield Corp., was a hit with youngsters and adults alike.
Paul Lachenauer for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
TALENTED PERFORMERS…Theater To All, a student theater group founded and directed by Lina Zikas, a senior at
St. Bart’s in Scotch Plains, performs a number from their upcoming production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance
in front of Fanwood Bagels in downtown Fanwood on Saturday morning . Performances are scheduled at St. Bart’s,
Thursday through Sunday, December 11 to 14.
This is our special Election edition. Please vote on November 4th
and good luck to all the candidates.
For those who are not subscribers, please take advantage of our
free trial subscription. Go to
w w w. g o l e a d e r . c o m / f o r m /
sub_trial.htm
Shaw are seeking reelection. Also
seeking board seats are Lisa A.
Carbone, Daniel DeMarco and
Jacqueline Carr.
Garwood incumbents Christine
Guerriero, Aaron Watkins and Linda
Koenig are unopposed in their quest
for reelection to full three-year terms,
as is Kimberly Ficarra, who is running for a two-year unexpired board
seat. Also seeking reelection is
Mountainside incumbent Dante
Gioia.
Scotch Plains-Fanwood Board of
Education incumbent Warren McFall
is seeking another term representing
Scotch Plains. Also seeking the two
open board seats from Scotch Plains
are Evan Murray and Michele
Polhamus. Jeanne Cleary of Fanwood is unopposed in her reelection
bid.
Polls are open this Tuesday, November 4, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
was noted that Mr. McFall has a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and was retired from Bell Laboratories. His wife, Patricia, has had a
long career in education, and all three
of his grown children have gone
through the district’s schools.
Candidate Evan Murray stated that
he has lived in Scotch Plains for the
past four years and noted that his
dedication to a position on the board
is proven by his determination to
run. Mr. Murray, who ran last year,
said he was passionate about helping the education system, which
prompted him to run a second time.
He noted that he is a lifelong resident of Union County and is married
to a teacher. He said that his mother
also is a teacher and that he has two
young children, one who is in the
third grade at Coles School and another who will be in Coles the following year. Mr. Murray currently is
a vice-president within the Fixed
Operations Department of Prudential, where he has been employed for
the last 18 years.
Candidate Michele Polhamus noted
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
Freeholder Dems Look
To Retain Seats on Board
By CHRISTINA M. HINKE
Specially Written for The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times
COUNTY — Union County
Democrats Chris Hudak, Vernell
Wright and Angel Estrada sat down
with The Westfield Leader Editor
Paul Peyton last Wednesday to discuss county issues as they seek reelection to the freeholder board this
Tuesday, November 4.
On closing the sale of Runnells
Specialized Hospital of Union
County, the freeholders said they
did not anticipate the closing of the
sale to drag on as it has. “In order to
protect the interest of the county,
we cannot close until every ‘I’ is
dotted and every ‘T’ is crossed,”
Mr. Estrada said.
Ms. Wright said the delay and
uncertainty of jobs has caused some
hospital staff members to leave for
employment elsewhere.
Mr. Hudak, who currently serves
as freeholder chairman, said the freeholder board supports the right to
employees to organize a union.
Bid proposals included a right of
first refusal to existing employees,
Mr. Hudak said.
As a result of the sale of the
hospital, the long-term financial
outlook would “remove what has
been an operating deficit,” Mr.
Hudak said.
When asked if there was any validity to the statement made by corrections officers of the Union
County jail at a recent freeholder
board meeting that the jail would
be closing, Mr. Hudak responded,
“We have not received, to my
knowledge…any proposal. What
has been asked of us by the county
manager is that he be allowed to
engage members of his team and
our county counsel in a negotiation
with Hudson County.”
Earlier this year, Union County
entered into an agreement with
Hudson County to place some of its
prisoners in the Hudson County jail
to save on overtime costs, Mr.
Hudak said. Mr. Estrada said the
driving force to house prisoners in
the Hudson County jail was due to
repairs being made to the Union
County jail.
“If there is an opportunity for us
to save a significant amount of funds
in offering any county service we
have an obligation and a fiduciary
responsibility to give it a full and
thorough vetting,” said Mr. Hudak,
who went on to say those dollars
saved could go towards funding
other county projects.
Union County spends over $50
million in prisoner care, Mr. Estrada
said.
“It is one area that could be studied and considered,” he said.
On the idea of merging the
sheriff’s department with the county
police department, Mr. Estrada said
there would not be a savings to
merging the two departments. Municipalities sharing services provided by the Union County Police
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
PAGE INDEX
Regional ........
Editorial ........
Police ............
Community ...
Obituary ........
2-3, 6-11
4-11
22
22-24
24
Education ......
Sports ............
Real Estate ....
Classifieds .....
A&E ..............
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