Sept. 25, 2013 Edition of The Observer

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September 25, 2013 • www.theobserver.com • Vol CXXVI, No. 18

COVERING: BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD

• EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY

A rift in the ranks

Iraq vet bravely soldiers on

Ron Leir Observer Correspondent LYNDHURST – Only four months after the Lyndhurst First ticket swept into office, at least two of its members and a key supporter are embroiled in a vitriolic feud that got a public airing at the Sept. 10 Township Commission meeting. Mayor Robert Giangeruso and former Mayor and current Township Attorney Richard DiLascio, once tight allies, are now bitter rivals. And, as proof of the pudding, the township has posted on its website a solicitation for Request For Proposal for “special legal services” to “provide research, advice and counsel on the appropriateness of statutory and other appointments under the Commission form of government (Walsh Act).” The successful applicant, the notice says, “shall demonstrate sufficient knowledge in New Jersey municipal law, public employment law, Shared Services Act, New Jersey Ethics law and statutory appointment law under NJSA 40 and NJSA 40A.” All RFPs must be received by 2 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 26, at the Township Clerk’s office, “at which time they will be opened and read aloud.” A brief historical reminder: see SCHISM page

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By Karen Zautyk Observer Correspondent

it keeps getting more so. We first learned of Brendan in 2010, through his aunt Pat KEARNY – Collins of Kearny, who asked if The Observer could provery once in awhile, mote a fund-raiser being held someone comes into for her nephew at the Scotsyour life, by accident, American Club. At the time, by fate, by the grace of God, Brendan had been in Walter perhaps. And they have the Reed Army Medical Center power to affect your life in in Washington for a year -ways deep and significant. and he would spend another They can help you begin to 12 months there. And then see the world, and yourself, with new eyes. And the irony return. There wil be another Scotsof it all is that this life-changer is someone you’ve never met, American event next month. More about that later, but first a complete stranger who has a soldier’s story: not the slightest idea of how On Easter Sunday, April deeply he is affecting others 12, 2009, Army Spc. Brendan -- just by being himself. Marrocco, Second Battalion, Such a person is Sgt. 27th Infantry, was on active Brendan Marrocco. duty in Iraq, returning to his If you know his story, you base 130 miles from know what I mean. If you don’t know it, it’s time you learned it. It is dramatic, and see BRENDAN page

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Photos courtesy Marrocco family

Benefit for Sgt. Brendan Marrocco, shown with his brother Michael, will be held at Scots Club on Oct. 19. Inset: Brendan on duty in Iraq.

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Funding for Owens Park seems assured NUTLEY – It was a close call for more than a year but the Nutley Township administration seems confident that the state will be releasing its allocation of state Green Acres money, after all, for improvements made at Monsignor Owens Park off Park Ave. Those improvements, which were undertaken in summer

2012 and completed by late September 2012 at a cost of nearly $1.3 million, featured the installation of a synthetic turf multipurpose playing surface accommodating two new softball fields, a football field, perimeter track and two short side soccer fields. Green Acres was to provide partial reimbursement funding through a combination of

a grant and a low interest loan totaling about $750,000. But on Aug. 9, 2012, Green Acres Project Manager Amy Sumoski wrote to Nutley Parks & Recreation Commissioner Mauro Tucci “regarding a composting facility that was discovered … at Monsignor Owens Park” – which, she said, was an inappropriate use of parkland and needed to be

201-991-1300 KEARNY OFFICE 213 Kearny Ave, Kearny, New Jersey

C21Semiaokearny@Century21.com

removed. On Oct. 3, 2012, Sumoski reminded Tucci that, “… the intentions of the Township are to remove the compost facility from parkland.” Then, on Jan. 11, 2013, Sumoski reported another potential disturbing finding to Tucci, “… that a [T-Mobile] cell phone tower exists … at Monsignor see PARK page

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