Merging New Jersey Towns

In his book “New Jersey’s Municipal Madness”, Alan Karcher looks at how and why the boundaries of New Jersey’s 566 municipalities were drawn. Sometimes there were economic considerations. Some times political. Sometimes personal agendas

Railroad lines, need for new alcohol licenses, new roads, new school districts sometimes compelled one town to split off from a larger township.

So, we are left with 566 local governments, with much duplication of services. Home rule is and can be very expensive.

So, there is a solution: Merge communities.

And the communities do already try to engage in “shared services”. Some nearby each other have tried to merge. Some quite far apart have shared responsibilities and resources---Regional Contribution Agreements with regard to COAH requirements, for example.

So, maybe some of the towns far apart may attempt mergers. And merging would require new names for the entities.

For example, if Wayne in Passaic County and Newton in Sussex County merged, the town could be called Wayne-Newton. The residents will certainly chant "Danke Shoen" for that plan!

If Nutley merged with Roxbury and Asbury Park, the new municipality could be called Nuts & Berries. Or if Alexandria Township in Hunterdon came together with Great Meadows Township in Warren County, the new town might be called Alexander the Great.

Or merge Great Gorge in Sussex, with any of the many Washington Townships in New Jersey, and with Bridgewater you’d get the town of Gorge Washington Bridge.

Or perhaps Atlantic City with Ocean City, and you get Atlantic-Ocean.

If East Amwell, West New York, North Plainfield, and South Bound Brook could get together, their residents would live in East-West-North-South, NJ. Whew! That’s quite a trip!

The merger of Hillsdale, Mt. Airy, and Clinton might rankle their resident Republicans just a tad ---they could merge in to Hil-Airy-Clinton. That might help her campaign even more!

Hamburg in Sussex County, could merge with Egg Harbor City and Little Egg Harbor Township to form the great breakfast community of Ham & Eggs. Yum!

If they care to, Cherry Hill in Camden County can get together with Pittstown in Hunterdon, to form Cherry-Pitts. Not the most attractive name, but it might save them some money.

If Alpha Township in Warren, and Bates Mill in Camden can come together, they could call the new town Alpha-Bates. Good spellers could move there.

Some towns might merge with some, and then reform with others. For example, Applegarth in Middlesex County, could merge with both West Orange and East Orange, and Bound Brook----and form the dual communities of Apples & Oranges, AND Garth-Brooks. Unless that would be out of ‘bounds’.

For those New Jersey resident who like to be everywhere at the same time----Middletown Township in Monmouth could merge with Lower Township and Upper Township [both in Cape May County] to form Upper-Middle-Lower Township.

For a town with a real European flavor, Frenchtown could merge with Englishtown, and form...well, you know.

If you like the the Beatles, Paulsboro in Gloucester, could merge with Ringoes in Hunterdon, Great Gorge, and Johnstown from Pennsylvania to form John-Paul-Gorge & Ringo. But that would require going across a state line.

And if Ho-Ho-Kus and Hoboken merged----it would make Santa's job that much easier, when he visits the new town of Ho-Ho-Ho.

I am sure there are other possibilities.

Central Jersey, by the numbers.

As I watched the national returns late yesterday, I could not help ask the question, “So, nu? How is this good for the 7th Congressional District and Linda Stender?

First of all, let’s look at my home town of Flemington. Republicans out number Democrats right now by about 2.7-1.


However, here is the vote break down from the primary for the major candidates:

McCain 185
Romney 82
Huckabee 47

Total Republican votes: 314

Clinton 185
Obama 158

Total Democratic votes: 345

So, the major Democratic candidates got more votes than the major Republican candidates. In a town where Republican registration is higher, that is significant. People want change. The Rush Limbaughs, Sean Hannitys, Anne Coulters, Mark Levins are falling all over themselves to be the biggest McCain basher. And that may have had an effect locally on Republican turnout.

Now, to the 7th.

There are four counties [or parts thereof] in the 7th Congressional District: Hunterdon County, Middlesex County, Somerset County, and Union County. Of those counties, Barack Obama won Hunterdon, Somerset, and Union. Mrs. Clinton won in the very traditional Democratic county of Middlesex.

What does this mean for Linda Stender?

By the numbers, Democratic voters came out to vote more than their Republican counterparts. Those are the voters who came out in large numbers to support BOTH Clinton and Obama. Largely, those voters are those who are opposed to the war, and wish for a strong change in leadership. Linda Stender stands solidly for those same values. While all the announced Republican candidates simply do not.

As I have asserted before, all the Republican 7th congressional candidates would vote with the rest of the Republican Party in Congress to sustain the war in Iraq and to oppose providing affordable healthcare for the working families of the 7th.

Senator Obama: The Six Pointed Star

Senator Obama: The Six Pointed Star

The New Jersey Primary is a mere 72 hours away. And the percentage points that now separate Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama is a single digit Six. Count'em---6.

The wide road that separated them was 32% in December, and then slipped down to 17% sometime at the tail end of January. Ground Hog Day is today, and now it’s down to a miniscule Six Points, “according toa private poll commissioned by one of the state’s most powerful Democratic leaders, George Norcross. The poll, conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner on January 30-31, was distributed to some Norcross allies earlier this morning and obtained by PolitickerNJ.com.” Hmmm.

I hear tell that if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, we will have eight more months of campaigning after Tsunami Tuesday.

Presidential contenders are dropping like flies.

This week, Rudy 911uliani dropped out, and endorsed Senator John “100 years in Iraq” McCain. John “Two Americas” Edwards is gone, too---but has yet to endorse. Also gone is Rep. Dennis “I’m having a primary this year in my district in Ohio” Kucinich. Apparently, no one may want his endorsement.

Still in the race is Alan Keyes, the last Republican candidate Senator Obama defeated. Only problem for Keyes is, that no one knows he’s running for president.

Republicans Out Number Democrats 6-1

In the Great Race for Congress in the 7th, right now the Republicans lead by a ratio of at least 6-1.

They have somewhere between six and eight candidates: To start with there’s Kelly Hatfield, Leonard Lance, Martin Marks, Victor Sordillo, Chris Venis and Kate Whitman. And the Democrats just have one, Assw. Linda Stender.

And just when you thought there more than enough candidates in the race for the 7th Congressional District race, there come two more with very interesting backgrounds.

New on the Republican block, there is Tom Roughneen. He is an Iraq War veteran, and I thank him for his service. He experience also includes being an Army defense lawyer and a former assistant prosecutor with Union and Essex counties. He will actually be running from town to town in the district to help his name recognition. Clad in his www.rockthecongress.com sweatshirt, he may soon be seen running through your town. Be careful driving if you see him on the road at night.

If you go to his website, there is a streaming video where he has some typical sophomoric quips about Senators Obama and Clinton. From his experience in Iraq, he brings a unique perspective to the ongoing Iraqi War debate. If any Republican should be able to make the tough argument of why we should still be in Iraq, he should. However, at from his speech at his announcement, he brings nothing new to the debate.

Next throwing his hat in to the ring, is Bridgewater Township Councilman Michael Hsing. Hsing is a personal friend from our days in the Leadership New Jersey Class of 1998. He is a two term Councilman in Bridgewater. He has served as President to the Bridgewater Town Council, and as the President of the Somerset County Governing Officials Association.

So, now there are eight. Should be an interesting primary, to say the least.

Entrenched politicians from long standing Republican families. Neo-con Republicans.

But not one amongst them who has had the courage to declare that he/she would vote to bring the troops home Iraq, -----leaving us all still behind the eight ball.

Rudy: He's gone. You feel stupid.

Jerry Seinfeld on magicians: "What is the point of the magician? He comes on, he fools you, you feel stupid, show's over ... It's like, 'Here's a quarter. Now it's gone. You're a jerk."

Same thing with Rudy 911liani’s run for President. What was the point of his run for president? He comes on stage, squawking over and over about 911. He fools you, he ignored Iowa, New Hampshire, he tanks in Florida, and now the show’s over. And it is like, “I’m America’s Mayor, and I’m gonna be the president. 911! 911!” Now he’s gone. If you supported him you’re a….well, you get the idea.

And here in central Jersey, back in the late spring, I had the opportunity of running in to the Chairman of the Hunterdon County Republican Committee, Henry Kuhl. Now, Henry must be a smart fellow, with more than just a scintilla of political smarts, since he has been the chairman in Hunterdon for more years than I can remember.

When I inquired of his choice on his side of the ailse, Henry told me “the next president and vice president of the United States will be Rudy Giuliani and Fred Thompson”.

[He did not spell Rudy Giuliani for President with "911", by the way.]

“Hmm”, I said. “Do you really think that Giuliani will be able to survive the southern conservative Republicans? Will they really vote for someone who is pro-choice, pro-gay rights, twice divorced, and an Italian Catholic New Yorker?”

Without hesitation, he declared an emphatic “Yes, because they want a winner.”

So, the Southern conservative Republican right-wing Christian fundamentalists will be willing to compromise their core values to support a “winner”. Good trick, I thought.

As it turns out, those folks won’t even get a chance to have their core values tested.

And in NJ, the Repubs must all feel stupid, being fooled that way Rudy ran his campaign and dropped out.

On the Democratic side, Rudy’s magic tricks did not fool anyone. So it goes.

The President’s Final Days

Last night, I was at the Courier News watching the President's final State of the Union Address. I was part of their panel watching the president, along with several other Central Jersey residents. Amongst them were one or two supporters of the Iraq War, still spewing the tired rhetoric of “we have to fight them there, so we don’t have to fight them here” and how it does not matter whether there were weapons of mass destruction of not, and “my nephew volunteered to be over there”, and we have to stay there for him.

Well, America has lots of nephews, nieces, sons, daughters, uncles and aunts in Iraq. And America overwhelming wants them home.

Random thoughts on the State of the Union:

By the way, the Secretary of the Interior was not at the State of the Union. He's was home watching the whole thing on TV, "carrying the football" in case of a national emergency. Nothing happened, by the way. We’re all OK.

All members of the Cabinet appeared to wearing the same ties. Maybe they get a bulk discount, when they buy at the White House gift shop. Cheney: Red tie. Bush: Blue tie. Guess they figured that all out inn advance. President gets first pick of colors. Bush began to speak at 9:11pm. Wander if that was choreographed?

He did have a funny line about the IRS taking checks and money orders. He smirked. The Democrats did not laugh, though.

He promised a balanced budget: "Families must balance budgets, so do governments." Of course, this is from a man who has OK'd spending 2 billion a month on a war that has put the nation in deep debt. How ironic. Big smirk on Cheney's face at this point.

Rhetoric from a lame duck with low approval ratings. He leaves a legacy of failure, lack of accomplishments, and Republicans running from him around the country. And he still cannot say “nuclear” correctly.

This was certainly one of the most shallow, cliché-filled State of the Union messages I have ever heard. Well, this was certainly not the same Bush who said [using the Cowboy attitude] "Bring'em On". He looks tied, beleaguered, and worn. He should have been impeached. Our bad.

He is almost no longer the President. Just a few more months to 1.20.09.

It was fun watching with other folks from central Jersey. Almost like the way democracy should be.

Two Sides To Every Issue...many candidates, too

Last night, while the Republican congressional for the 7th hopefuls were in the very Democratic county of Union, the Democratic candidate for Congress, Linda Stender was in the very Republican county of Hunterdon. And she was on her game.

Assemblywoman Linda Stender wowed’em at the monthly meeting of the Tewksbury Township Democratic Club ---where about 50 people came out to hear her speak. Stender was in good humor, looking great after a full day’s activities that started with Assembly committee meetings in Trenton. Ms. Stender fielded questions on the Iraq War, the economy, local truck traffic, the school funding formula, state debt, and immigration. She was firm, focused and friendly. Unlike her campaign in 2006, which got off to a much later start, she is ready to roll already.

On the Republican side, the five out of the six 7th congressional hopefuls jockeyed for position at a meeting last night in Clark, Union County. Senator Leonard Lance, former NJ First Daughter Kate Whitman, Scotch Plains Mayor Martin Marks, former Summit Council President Kelly and former Deputy Mayor of Hillsborough Chris Venis all tried their level headed best to become the conservative’s conservative. Whitman declared that she is more conservative then her mom. Mark’s declared that he is solidly pro-life. Hatfield was the real McCoy when she said that she did not like the government interfering in people’s personal lives.

The Republicans all seemed to agree on the war, and backed their party’s wrong-headed commitment to an endless war plan, with no exit strategy.

On a quick note: with a name like Venis, I bet the former Hillsborough Deputy Mayor is glad his opponent isn’t Ferguson. Certainly not after the way the current Congressman’s campaign played around with the name Stender in the 2006 campaign.