Pine Barrens Tribune February 20, 2021-February 26, 2021

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February 20, 2021 – February 26, 2021

Medford Considers Proposal to Change Trash Pickup Zones

NOT SOLD

Longstanding Collection Days Could Consequently be Altered for Some Landowners in Town

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

Photo By Andy Milone

Many Residents Express Their Disapproval of Approval Given to Dollar General to Build Store in Southampton Some Officials Had Expected the News to Be Well-Received, But, Instead, Dozens of Locals Admonished the Plan Online, Though a Few Were Happy and Hoped for Larger Retailers

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

SOUTHAMPTON—The Southampton Township Planning Board’s 7-0 approval of a new Dollar General in town was expected by at least some local officials to be well received news, and in fact, thought of as groundbreaking news given that the town has no such chain store of its kind, and that many here, particularly in

the LeisureTowne retirement community, have had to travel to the next town over for most everyday household essentials.

When the Dollar General application was before the board, there was no significant discussion, and no public comment.

Following the approval, Deputy Mayor Ronald Heston (also a member of the Southampton Township Planning Board) told this newspaper, “a com mercial

establishment of this magnitude is very advantageous not only for Southampton residents, but also for those who travel through Southampton.”

Also voting in the affirmative to approve the application was Plan ning Board Member and Committeeman Bill Raftery, Planning Board Chairman Philip Magazzo, See SOLD/ Page 9

MEDFORD—Republic Services, the new trash collection service provider in Medford Township, is requesting that the township make changes to its longtime trash collection zones, which means that the corresponding collection day assigned to some properties here “will possibly be changed for some,” according to Township Manager Kathy Burger, and that “it is going to be a big change” for those affected.

“I have lived in my house for over 30 years and trash collection has been on Friday,” said Mayor Charles “Chuck” Watson during a Feb. 9 Medford Township Council meeting. “And all of a sudden it is a change – right now, you know when it is, and you go out and put your trash out on a Thursday night.”

Bu rger contended that Republic representatives have requested the change to “better service Medford Township” and “make it (collection) more efficient.” The firm, she said, is proposing to have two trucks in town “each day of collection” and assign “the same two drivers” to work in Medford.

“That way they know the streets, know the routes and even get to know how some people put their trash out,” Burger said.

Currently, according to the township’s website, the day of trash collection assigned to properties in the municipality varies by zone.

Burger contended that if a property is switched from being included in Zone 1 to Zone 2, that latter zone could have a different pickup date than what is assigned for Zone 1.

See TRASH/ Page 11

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Capital Health Expands Its Footprint in the Pinelands Area to Provide Residents Hassle-free Access to Top Quality Care

Saturday, February 20, 2021

County Superintendent Suggests Pinelands Board Re-Vote for Its President Following Deadlock Vote Now That It Has Odd Number of Voting Members Board Solicitor, However, Fears Legal Ramifications Causing Body to Seek Further Guidance from NJDOE

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

Photo Provided

The Capital Health OB/GYN – Browns Mills office physician team.

By Judy Cohen Minches Staff Writer

BROW NS MILLS— Once a newcomer to the Pine Bar rens, Capital Health has recently expanded in the greater Burlington/ Ocean County area, including to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.

On July 1, 2019, Capital Health had filled the vacancy left behind by Lourdes Medical Center on June 30, 2019, when it partnered with Deborah Hear t & Lung Center in Browns Mills to assume the operations of a satellite emergency department (SED), now called Capital Health at Deborah – Emergency Services.

Since joining Deborah, Capital Health Medical Group has opened comprehensive women’s health and primary care offices on the Deborah campus at 6 Earlin Avenue.

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nearly 500 providers located throughout Ne w Je r s e y a n d Pe n n s ylv a n i a . It i s comprised of two hospitals, the Regional Medical Center in Trenton and Capital Health Medical Center in Hopewell, along with an outpatient facility in Hamilton, and primary and specialty care practices.

The decision for Capital Health to build a bigger presence in Browns Mills took shape when they realized they could make a difference for residents.

“We star ted noticing patients coming to the ER who needed access to services – following their visits –that are close to home,” said Arlene Walsh, Senior VP and Chief Administrative Officer of the Capital Health Medical Group.

Walsh said she sees the necessit y to travel a distance as a potential obstacle to

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See CARE/ Page 12

LITTLE EGG HARBOR—The Pinelands Regional Board of Education is still without a president for 2021 after it chose Feb. 9 not to immediately take up the purported “suggest ion” of t he execut ive cou nt y superintendent to hold another nomination and vote now that nine members are seated, but rather went with the advice of Board Solicitor William Donio, who contended that he believes state statute is clear that the decision now rests in the hands of the top county school official.

“The suggestion of doing a re-vote is foreign to my experience,” Donio contended. “And I believe foreign to any school district solicitor.”

Donio, and Superintendent Dr. Melissa McCooley, both told the board that given state law stipulates that the executive county superintendent “shall” make the selection of a board president for any school board that cannot select one during an annual reorganization meeting, they were concerned about the possibility of future legal ramifications and challenges should it not be followed.

Donio noted that a board’s bylaw also reaffirms that process “verbatim,” and that there is a “longstanding” past decision of the commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) that had also upheld that process.

The executive county superintendent, however, is an employee of the NJDOE.

“We are in unprecedented times, and I don’t know if we are setting any precedent, but I am also very concerned that the board’s actions will be subject to some type of legal challenge because it did not adhere to both its statutory requirement, and its bylaw,” Donio maintained.

Donio pointed out that district officials had requested “a legal opinion” in writing, “con fir med by a state deput y attor ney general,” that provides the board with the “legal authority” to vote again, but rather received a communication from the executive county superintendent stating “that since the board did not have a full complement of members at the time, and one member had not been sworn in at the time, and now that it has a full nine members, it is suggested the board engage in another vote.”

T h e b o a r d a t t o r n e y s a i d of t h a t communication that it “did not cite statute, rules, regulations or a commissioner decision” giving the board the legal authority to re-vote.

“My concern is if it goes in a certain direction that certain board members don’t like, I worry about the legal ramifications, and then once again we are at odds with one another,” McCooley said. “That is why we want to make sure it is done legally, correctly and according to statute – and our by our bylaw.”

Donio added that he would not only be See VOTE/ Page 12

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Pinelands Student Who Died from Injuries Sustained in LEHT Collision is Remembered in Candlelight Vigil as a Gifted Girl Who ‘Will be Missed by Everybody’ Community Comes Together to Celebrate Life of Gianna Palmieri; Second Crash Victim, Kaitlyn Edwards, Reported Out of Hospital

Photo Provided

Gianna Nicole Palmieri, whose death was mourned and life was celebrated at a candlelight ceremony at Pinelands Regional High School.

By Bill Bonvie Staff Writer

LITTLE EGG HARBOR—The death of Gianna Nicole Palmieri, a popular and multitalented Pinelands Regional High School junior, from injuries sustained in a collision that occurred just two weeks short of her 17th birthday, has brought members of the Pinelands community, along with others who knew her, together in an outpouring of grief, affection and remembrance.

Palmieri, of Little Egg Harbor Township,

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Bass River Township Clerk to Retire After a Quarter Century

By Andy Milone Staff Writer

BASS RIVER—After more than 25 years of service to Bass River Township, longtime Municipal Clerk Amanda “Mandy” Somes will be retiring as of March 1, becoming the fourth Burlington County township clerk to do so since December.

“Mandy has really made our jobs easier, and has held the position through four different administrations,” said Mayor Deborah BuzbyCope, who has worked with Somes since first joining the Bass River Township Board of Commissioners in 2000. “She has been the backbone. When you ask her a question, she’ll often have the answer, and if she doesn’t, then she’ll find the answer.”

The mayor described Somes as “one of a kind” and said she “will truly be missed.”

“Every town wants to have a ‘Mandy’ as its clerk,” Buzby-Cope added.

The board of commissioners, during its Feb. 1 meeting, which was the final one for Somes as an appointed local official, unanimously appointed Elizabeth “Liz” Godfrey, the township’s tax clerk and Planning/Zoning Board secretary, to serve as acting municipal clerk and registrar of vital statistics at a salary of $49,000 for a one-year term, from March 1 through Feb. 28, 2022. She will take over the role, which is regarded as the link between the citizens and their local government.

According to Buzby-Cope, Godfrey has been an employee of the township for more than two decades, for about the same amount of time as Somes, and along with her other township positions, has filled in for Somes as clerk whenever absent.

Somes, a Washington township resident, was first appointed in 1992 as part-time clerk of that township, then of Bass River Township in 1995, and of Woodland Township in 1996. She

Photo Provided

Bass River Township Clerk Amanda “Mandy” Somes.

served in all three roles, until 2000, when she was given the opportunity to be Bass River’s full-time municipal clerk.

In a proclamation presented (virtually due to the ongoing COVID pandemic) to Somes for her “professional and personal dedication to Bass River” at the meeting Feb. 1, she was described as an “invaluable asset,” who “has discharged her duty with great care, professionalism and passion.” “ He r r ich b a ck g r ou n d , h i s t o r y of accomplishment and unfettered dedication to her profession and the township itself has made her an invaluable resource and advisor to members of the township’s elected officials, its professionals and all township boards,” the proclamation states.

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Solar Facility Project Is Still Under Discussion in Tabernacle with Deadline Fast Approaching

By Andy Milone Staff Writer

TABERNACLE—In order for Tabernacle Township’s defunct landfill, which sits north of County Route 532, between Old Indian Mills and Oakshade roads, to be transformed into the “most valuable” grid-scale solar facility possible, the Tabernacle Township Committee was informed last week that it must work quickly.

D u r i ng a v i r t u al Feb. 8 com m it tee meeting, the second one at which the proposal was discussed at length, Steven Gouin, an attorney representing CEP Renewables, the firm proposing the project, told the town’s gover ning body that he would like the 26-acre former landfill site to be declared “an area in need of rehabilitation” and his client to be officially named the designated “redeveloper” of the site by March 30 at the latest, but preferably two weeks before that.

CEP had first indicated last month that it would like to purchase the site in order to be able to clean it up and turn it into a property capable of generating both green energy and tax revenue.

Receiving the necessary declarations by March 30 would give CEP’s team enough t i me to subm it a n appl icat ion to t he Pennsylvania, Jersey, Maryland (PJM) Power Pool Interconnection regional transmission organization, Gouin said, so that a study on the project’s feasibility and impact could be conducted.

Ultimately, according to Gouin, the study is needed in order for his client to enter into a wholesale market participation agreement with PJM so that the solar facility can interface with the regional grid, and the solar power it produces can be sold at a wholesale rate.

The other reason for CEP wanting to work quickly, according to Gouin, relates to his client’s desire to register for the current state subsidy incentive program, offering Tra nsit ion Renewable Energ y Cred it s (TREC). Entering the current program, as opposed to a “successor program” that could be implemented in the near future, would

make the solar project more “lucrative,” Mark Bellin, another attorney representing CEP, maintained.

“To the extent that we can get the property designated, and we can get designated as the redeveloper, and we can make application to both of those (PJM and TREC) programs, that increases the value to us, which in turn, increases the value to the township,” Bellin said.

Mayor Kimberly Brown told the CEP representatives in attendance that it is expected the committee will be back in touch with them and will be welcoming them back to a future meeting.

The committee subsequently entered into an executive session to discuss what had been offered in terms of potential redevelopment of the municipal landfill proper ty—but emerged and immediately adjourned without any action being taken.

The township owns the landfill, which stopped operating in 1986, and it has never been properly closed to comply with state regulations, according to Rodger Ferguson, CEP’s licensed site remediation professional (LSRP).

Some 24 of the 26 acres has been said to be available for redevelopment into a solar farm, capable of producing a maximum of 10 megawatts, CEP’s representatives maintained during the latest discussions.

The other benefit to the township would be the potential savings of a few million dollars on what it could cost to close the landfill on its own, they noted.

“It’s going to be at no cost to the town,” Gouin said. “CEP will bear 100 percent of the costs of obtaining all the entitlements that are necessary, preparing the landfill closure plan, getting that plan approved by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), and then of course, installing the cap and solar facility,” Gouin said. “We do think that it is a win-win from CEP’s perspective, and from the township’s perspective.”

The committee has its next regular virtual meeting scheduled for Feb. 22 at 7:30 p.m.

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Saturday, February 20, 2021

Pemberton Schools Anticipate Increase in Taxes Due to Expected Aid Decrease of $5 to 7 Million Officials Are Preparing for ‘Worse-Case Scenario’ Should State Further Reduce Aid Due to Pandemic

By Andy Milone Staff Writer

PEMBERTON—Officials in the Pemberton Township School District are warning that a potentially significant tax increase is on the horizon for taxpayers in the Pemberton Township School District, and that “reductions” are being considered for the upcoming school year.

This is in response to a projection, using preliminary data provided by the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), that the district may lose somewhere between $5 and $7 million in state aid for the 2021-22 school year, on top of a $6.8 million loss in aid over the last three years, the result of state legislation signed into law by Democratic Governor Phil Murphy, which mandates aid adjustments to districts – and for districts the state considers “overfunded,” those adjustments are usually in the form of aid cuts.

District officials, during a recent preliminary budget review with the Pemberton Township Board of Education, stated that they expected to receive an actual state aid figure for the 2021-22 school year from the NJDOE on Feb. 25, and that a preliminary budget is currently due to the state by March 19.

According to Superintendent Jeff Havers and Business Administrator Dan Smith, the state believes district taxpayers should be contributing their “fair share” to the budget, or an additional some $10 million compared to what they have been contributing toward it prior to the 2018-19 school year, or before the legislation was enacted.

“If we were to reach our Local Fair Share (LFS) in the 2021-22 budget, we would have to increase taxes by 37.5 percent!” said Havers to this newspaper. “This is just not feasible in any community.”

Instead, should the actual aid adjustment for the 2021-22 school year be in the range of the current projection, Smith said during the preliminary budget review that the district would ask for a $1.5 million increase in the tax levy in its 2021-22 budget, or what is equivalent to a 9 percent hike.

That would mean that, for example, if the district were to lose $6.9 million in aid (one of the current projection figures), and raise $1.5 million in taxes, there would be at least a $5.4 million budget deficit that would have to be addressed, Smith said.

“And to that number (the deficit), we add salary and benefit increases and other operating expenses that are increasing, such as insurance and fuel and things like that,” he noted, adding that in order to make up the deficit without further raising taxes, reductions would be

needed.

The district, according to Smith, already intends to use its capital reserve to fund summer projects, such as a roof repair to Pemberton Township High School. It is also considering a possible window replacement project using monies from the reserve at Samuel Busansky Elementary School, along with HVAC and other upgrades/repairs. Impact reserve monies, he added, will be used for Chromebook leasing.

If a $1.5 million increase in the tax levy is realized through the 2021-22 budget, Smith estimated that the owner of a Pemberton Township home assessed at the average of $164,000 would pay an additional $157 in taxes, while the owner of a Pemberton Borough home assessed at the average of $184,000 would pay an additional $193 in taxes.

Nine percent tax levy hikes are currently expected in each of the next four budget cycles from school year 2021-22 until 2024-25, as the district looks to close the LFS gap by school year 2025-26. The district already implemented a nine percent rise in the local school-tax levy during the previous two years in response to the loss in state aid during since the 2018-19 school year.

A final adjustment figure will be dependent upon a number of factors, including whether the state decides to reduce state aid across the board due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, and if the district may qualify again for a form of relief known as “municipal overburden,” determined from its tax rate being greater than the state average.

The district ultimately received some $75 million in total state aid to support its $100,597,190 million general fund budget for the current school year.

Factoring in the aforementioned cuts, Pember ton Schools, accordi ng to t he preliminary NJDOE data, could receive somewhere between some $68-70 million in total state aid for the upcoming school year to support its general fund budget. Havers told this newspaper that the size of the 2021-22 school year general fund budget will ultimately be determined by factors, such as the size of any cut in state aid.

For the current school year, the district was able to hold onto $2.2 million in state aid, compared to what it was initially expected to lose, the result of meeting municipal overburden (after having discovered an error in NJDOE calculations that revealed it had indeed qualified for such relief). But even if the district qualifies for the municipal overburden relief again for the upcoming school year, Havers told See TAXES/ Page 8

Saturday, February 20, 2021

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Saturday, February 20, 2021

Route 70 in Pemberton, Woodland to be Repaved

By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer

P E M B E R T O N —T h e N e w J e r s e y Department of Transportation (NJDOT) plans to resurface Route 70 in Pemberton and Woodland townships, with milling and paving work beginning this summer.

The roadway’s westbound lane, in particular, between the main Route 70 access roads for Presidential Lakes and Country Lakes developments, has deteriorated significantly over the last year, this newspaper has observed.

In preparation for the paving and milling of the state highway, there will be periodic shoulder closures to allow for the installation of advance warning signs, silt fencing, and inlet filters in advance of the resurfacing work.

“Milling and paving operations will begin in summer and continue until the fall,” said Judith L. Drucker, a public information officer for the NJDOT. NJDOT’s contractor for the project is Earle Asphalt.

In addition, the project will include concrete work for curbs and sidewalks, as well as ADA-compliant ramps, which Drucker noted will begin around late spring and continue throughout the project scope.

The improvement work to Route 70 in Pemberton and Woodland townships is part of an overall $12.9 million project to improve

more than 14 miles of deteriorated pavement on Route 70 in three counties (Burlington, Ocean and Monmouth). Other towns impacted by the improvement work include Brick, Brielle, Manchester, Lakehurst, Lakewood and Toms River.

The project will be divided into four different sections, with work to upgrade traffic signals at six different intersections (outside of the Pemberton and Woodland area) to begin first, according to Drucker. It hasn’t been determined yet which intersection will be worked on first, she added.

In the spring, drainage work is scheduled to begin in the areas of Route 70 and Massachusetts Avenue, and Route 70 at Route 9, in Toms River.

The entire project is expected to be completed by the fall of 2022, weather permitting.

“All the work is weather dependent and is subject to change,” Drucker noted. “New Jersey has had a lot of snow and ice this winter and that pattern is continuing including more expected this week.”

The NJDOT just finished up within the last several weeks Route 70 improvement work in the Whiting section of Manchester Township, as part of another project. This new project will result in improvements to the part of Route 70 in Manchester that is primarily east of Lakehurst.

Political Rivalry Heats Up Between Stanfield, Addiego with Each Taking the Other to Task Over Responses to Controversy Involving Abuse of Women Prisoners

By Bill Bonvie Staff Writer

MOUNT HOLLY—The political rivalry between two 8th District legislators, Republican state Assemblywoman Jean Stanfield and Democratic state Senator Dawn Addiego, whose seat Stanfield has announced her intention of running for in the next election, has heated up in recent days amid a series of mutual recriminations over an uproar involving the alleged physical abuse of inmates at a state women’s prison in North Jersey.

A probe into allegations of prisoners being violently assaulted by employees of the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton was originally requested of the state Corrections Department last August by four women legislators after a U.S. Department of Justice report, released last April, found a “culture of acceptance” of sexual abuse at the prison.

But when charges were brought against three corrections officers for allegedly having battered inmates there last month while attempting to extract them from their cells, leaving one with a concussion and another with a fractured facial bone, and then having attempted to cover up the incident, cries went up demanding the impeachment of State Correction Commissioner Marcus Hicks, with Stanfield, a former longtime Burlington County sheriff, joined by three Democratic colleagues in the Assembly, in the forefront of the outcry.

Stanfield was the first legislator to move to begin the constitutional process of removing Hicks from his state office, contending that Hicks failed to show up for legislative hearings over the DOJ report, and was refusing “to address unspeakable abuse of female inmates under his care at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility.”

“Commissioner Hicks had a full year to act following the scathing Department of Justice report, but instead, he turned his back and allowed guards to terrorize the women of Edna Mahan,” added Stanfield in an initial statement calling for Hick’s impeachment. “These women have been sexually assaulted, physically beaten and stripped of their civil rights by the very

people who are paid to protect them.”

Meanwhile, Addiego was one of 25 Democratic senators who signed a letter to Democratic Governor Phil Murphy calling on Hicks to resign and recommending that the federal government take over the prison.

Murphy, however, has indicated that he wants to await the results of an investigation being done “on an expedited basis” before any action is taken, although he praised those calling for Hicks’ ouster as “folks who have been on the right side of history at so many moments.”

A war of words between Stanfield and Addiego erupted after a fundraising letter was sent out on Feb. 10, apparently from the Stanfield campaign, describing the episode (although it did not directly mention the prison), noting that it happened on Hicks’ watch, “despite the Department of Justice sounding the alarm,” and asking why Murphy was “protecting” Hicks.

The letter, signed by Stanfield, also mentioned her plan to file impeachment papers against Hicks and “hold him accountable for the violence these women suffered.” It then went on to say that Murphy was not “happy with me holding his feet to the fire,” that “he and his allies will spend millions to defeat me,” and to ask for the help of donors “to fight back.”

In a press release sent out the following day, Addiego, a former Republican who switched party affiliations two years ago, condemned her potential Senate rival “for callously attempting to profit off the shocking and violent abuse against women inmates by prison employees.

Noting that “this is one of the most disgusting acts imaginable,” and that the women at the facility “have been systematically assaulted both physically and sexually,” Addiego went on to contend that “there is no more craven action than attempting to profit off this crisis.”

“I am shocked someone would look at abuse toward women and see dollar signs,” Addiego maintained. “Shame on Jean Stanfield’s lack of humanity. She has shown herself to be morally bankrupt and her previously expressed concerns over this issue have been outed as fraudulent. As Legislators, we hold a sacred See ABUSE/ Page 8

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Towns Look to Adopt New State-Mandated Amendments for Existing Local Stormwater Management Ordinances NJDEP Calls Changes, Which Require Implementation of Green-Infrastructure Technologies, ‘Groundbreaking’

By Douglas D. Melegari

be more than a “matter of months” before the changes are approved by the commission.

And in Medford, where parts of that town fall outside of the designated Pinelands area, the Medford Township Council on Feb. 9 introduced an ordinance implementing the amendments for the non-Pinelands designated areas.

The state’s stormwater management rules, Dixon said, were last revised in 2004.

“It is a substantial difference,” Dixon said. “There is an emphasis on what is being termed ‘green infrastructure,’ and that is a modification to the approach of stormwater management, that is increasingly getting away from larger concentrated basins and going towards smaller, more diffuse and spreadout areas of stormwater management that are better for infiltration, groundwater and other means of reducing pollutants at the source.”

Dixon maintained that when stormwater gets collected to a point, it can become a source of pollution that is collected, and the goal is to keep stormwater spread-out on developed sites and when “real-thick roads” are involved.

When the state amendments were adopted last year, the NJDEP issued a corresponding press release, in which its then-commissioner, C a t h e r i n e R . Mc C a b e , c a l l e d t h e m “groundbreaking,” contending that they will “better protect water quality by reducing polluted runoff through implementation of green infrastructure technologies, which also helps to make New Jersey more resilient to

Staff Writer

WASHINGTON—Area municipalities are either in the process of adopting, or will be introducing shortly, new local ordinances regulating stormwater management and control – the result of having to include new amendments issued by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP).

According to local officials in both Medford and Washington townships, the NJDEP is requiring municipal stormwater management and control ordinances to conform with “the amended Stormwater Management rules at N.J.A.C. 7:8.”

For area municipalities that have land that falls within the officially designated “New Jersey Pinelands Area,” the Pinelands Com m ission is cu r rently work i ng on “updating its rules to coincide with the new rules put out by the NJDEP,” according to Washington Township Engineer Kevin Dixon, as the commission is the state agency “that adopts rules for the Pinelands.”

According to a 47-page document on the NJ DEP’s website, the amendments “become operative” on March 2, or a year from when they were adopted. Readers can find the document, which is quite technical, at https://www.nj.gov/dep/stormwater/pdf/ N.J.A.C._7_8_Final_4.8.2020.pdf .

Dixon, in alerting the Washington Township Committee on Feb. 2 to the amendments, anticipated a “lag” in the Pinelands area given that the commission still has to give its approval, but said he doesn’t think it will

See ADOPT/ Page 15

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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES

RETIRE

(Continued from Page 3) During her quarter century of service, it adds that Somes has “worked tirelessly to elevate the professionalism and performance of the Municipal Clerk’s Office, and in turn, the township” while acting as the “guiding force in the administration of the township in order to ensure and promote the continued beauty and livability of the township we all love.”

Some s is f u r t he r de sc r ibe d i n t he proclamation as a “warm and caring person” with a smile, who has brought energy and a happy outlook to the role leading “so often to buoying the spirits of everyone with whom she has come into contact.”

She maintained that her favorite experience in the job has involved the various park improvements, “especially the one on North Maple Avenue and seeing all the children (and adults) enjoying the playground and tennis.”

“The walking trails have been a great success as well,” she added. “The floating dock (at the

TAXES

(Continued from Page 4) this newspaper the administration would still not recommend a smaller property tax increase because the district would still have to close the LFS gap.

Should the state ultimately decide to further adjust aid to the district due to the pandemic (and the NJDOE has, according to Smith, cautioned districts to prepare for potential decreases in state aid due to the pandemic), the business administrator warned, “We’re already slated to lose possibly $7 million, and a loss

ABUSE

(Continued from Page 6) public trust to protect vulnerable citizens and provide needed oversight to abuses of power. Jean has violated that trust in the most baseless and despicable way possible.”

The state senator continued that having served in the Legislature with Stanfield, she was “not surprised to see her true colors,” calling the assemblywoman an “opportunist” and “hypocrite.”

“She only uses her voice to advance her own self-serving politics— that much is now indisputable,” Addiego added.

The state senator contended that Stanfield “should apologize, return the blood money she has raised, and seek counseling to better understand the abhorrent impact she had on abused women.”

A day later, St an field responded by charging that Addiego's willingness to call for NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to be fired back in 2014 over his “mishandling of violence against women issues in the NFL,” but failure to sign on to bipartisan impeachment articles against Hicks “exposes her as a hypocrite who puts partisan politics and cheap press hits over what is best for women.”

“If Goodell should have been removed from his job for failing to protect women from violence by NFL players, why shouldn’t Commissioner Hicks be removed from his for failing to protect the women at Edna Mahan from violence at the hands of the corrections officers who were supposed to be protecting them?” Stanfield asked Addiego.

The assemblywoman maintained that Addiego’s “hypocrisy on this issue” has “defined her career in politics perfectly,” alleging that for three decades her former colleague “has been great at jumping up and down and making a lot of noise to get a cheap headline for herself, but when the

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM end of Amasa Landing Road East) has also been a great project. I can’t wait to see it complete.”

Somes said she now plans to spend more time with her grandchildren and vacationing in Fort Myers, Florida, Emerald Isle, North Carolina, and Aruba.

According to Kim-Marie White, Eastampton Township’s municipal clerk, who also is the president of the Burlington County Clerks’ Association, Somes will become the fourth clerk in the county to have retired since December, after a hiatus of three-and-a-half years without one retiring.

The four retirees, who were among the longest serving clerks across the county’s 40 municipalities, include La Shawn Barber from Tabernacle Township (profiled in a recent Pine Barrens Tribune cover story), Anthony “Tony” Carnivale from Burlington Township, Sarah Wooding from Willingboro Township, and now Somes.

“They put in more than their fair share of time, and that shows how much they enjoy being a part of local government,” said White in a telephone interview. “Their wealth of knowledge and professionalism will be missed, but they deserve this time to enjoy themselves.” above that would be extremely detrimental to the district.”

Smith added district officials “have to prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

The district preliminarily anticipates having to raise $95 million in revenue for the upcoming school year, about $5 million less than the current school year.

Fut u re budget discussions ahead of March, Smith noted, will focus on possible “reductions,” with Havers noting that the district is “forced to make additional cuts that impact our students.”

“This is one of the reasons we are asking the state to fully fund education and to make adjustments to S-2,” the superintendent added. time comes to actually do something that matters for somebody other than herself, she disappears.”

Stanfield then called on Addiego “to explain why she refuses to join other female legislators on both sides of the aisle” in supporting articles of impeachment against Hicks.

“Does Dawn not believe Hicks’ actions merit impeachment?” Stanfield asked. “Has she been told by the governor and Senate president to stand down? Or is she refusing to join this fight because I was the one who first pushed the issue? No matter her reason, her refusal to join this bipartisan effort is disgraceful. She owes the public an answer.”

Addiego fired back on Feb. 16 in yet another statement, this one (which did not refer to Stanfield by name) under the letterhead of the New Jersey Senate Democrats, which was forwarded to this newspaper by her chief of staff, Rick England.

Noting that just over two weeks ago she and her Senate colleagues had called on Murphy to demand Hicks’ resignation, the senator contended that “this problem requires immediate action,” and that, she was therefore again calling for the governor to either request the commissioner resignation or remove him from his post.

Addiego also called on Murphy to make it k now n “ when his ow n i ndependent investigation will conclude,” and asked the governor to commit “to take meaningful action” once it does.

Then, in an apparent reply to Stanfield’s criticism of her, Addiego contended that “while some lawmakers in the General Assembly have pressed for impeachment proceedings, which I support if no other actions are taken, impeachment can only begin in the Assembly and is a lengthy process that could take weeks or months to conclude.”

The state senator added that is why she See ABUSE/ Page 13

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SOLD

(Continued from Page 1) along with planning board members David Coyle, Patrick Kavanagh, Edward Keebler and John Schwarz (board vice-chairman).

A nd Dol la r Ge ne r al doe s mai nt ai n stores in other Pinelands communities, including Pemberton Borough, Little Egg Harbor Township, Tucker ton Borough, Wr ightstow n Borough and W hiting in Manchester Township (with several of the stores established during the last five years), with little to no fanfare.

But the reaction to the news of the Southampton approval, first reported by this newspaper (with apparently a number of area residents not keeping abreast of the planning board’s activities amid the Coronavir us pandemic), was not what one might have expected.

A rea social media g roups, and th is newspaper’s own Facebook page, were lit up with comments, mostly in opposition to the new store.

And some area residents were downright incensed that the township gave the OK for Dollar General, and its developer, Birmingham, Ala.-based firm Capital Growth Buchalter (CGB), to build at 1823 Route 206, or near the Vincentown Post Office and Southampton Auto Center.

“The town should be ashamed for not doing better,” wrote Jeff Yingling on the Pine Barrens Tribune’s Facebook page. Another person called it “sad.”

Within the “All Things Southampton, Tabernacle & Shamong” Facebook group alone, as of press time, more than a whopping 270 comments were posted underneath a link to this newspaper’s story that had been shared.

“The beginning of the end,” wrote one

man, while another person wrote, “I can’t think of any store I want less.”

Both comments seemed to best summarize the spectrum of the opposition.

The basis of the initial remark is that, as many residents expressed, they moved to or live in Southampton, a mostly rural farming community with portions of it forested, to get or stay away from development, the chain stores and “big box stores” that usually come along with it, in favor of trees, open space, greenery and mom-and-pop businesses.

“I moved here in 1996 because it is rural,” wrote one man. “If I wanted closer stores, I would have chosen another community.”

Another man replied “amen” to such thoughts, contending that “if you want convenience shopping, move to the other 80 percent of the state that’s dedicated to that.”

One woman wrote more bluntly, “People, you need to stop trying to make this township i nto someth i ng that it’s not,” addi ng, “Everyone I know continues to live here because it’s rural.”

As to why some residents expressed that they would take anything else over a dollar store, (Dollar General, despite its name is actually a general merchandising discount store with many products for more than $1, though a lot of its selection is under $10), they pointed to (and shared) a 2019 article published by CNN, in which the national news outlet reported that such establishments are facing growing scrutiny from opponents who argue that discount chains stifle local competition and limit poor communities’ access to healthy food.

CNN reported that a wave of cities and towns have even passed laws curbing the expansion of Dollar General and Dollar Tree, which bought Family Dollar in 2015.

The reason such stores are facing growing opposition, according to CNN, is that the dollar store chains “intentionally cluster multiple stores i n low-i ncome areas,”

discouraging supermarkets from opening and threatening existing mom-and-pop grocers.

Additionally, dollar store rivals contended in the CNN piece that such stores mostly sell snacks, d r in ks, can ned foods and vegetables, household supplies and personal care products, rather than the healthy food selection found at grocery stores.

And given the CNN piece (along with other national news reports) mentioning that such stores target “low-income areas,” some area residents indicated that they were concerned that the mere presence of a Dollar General will speak in a poor way about the town.

“Dollar stores are a sign of the economic decline of a neighborhood,” wrote Glenn Davies, on the Pine Barrens Tribune’s Facebook page. “I am surprised Southampton wants to send that signal. The low prices are due to the poor quality of their inventory.

It is what people can afford in the places you usually find them. This is not good for property values.”

Others wrote on this newspaper’s Facebook page critical questions of local officials, such as, “Do they not realize how much nearby residents property values will go down?,” “Will they be reassessing everyone’s property taxes?” and, “How does the saying go? .....

‘There goes the neighborhood!’”

“Sad to see this encroachment of Chinese ma nufact u red ga rbage reach t he Pi ne Barrrens ... a sad day indeed,” wrote area resident Pauline Taylor. “May I add that nothing of nutritional value or freshness is ever sold at these types of stores, so those claiming convenience for groceries are incorrect.”

One person even shared a piece from a news website, ProPublica, with the headline, “How Dollar Stores Became Magnets for Crime and Killing,” discussing three homicides in six months in the St. Louis area that involved such stores.

Of the many local comments that were

♦ Page 9

made in reaction to the revelation that Southampton is soon-to-be the site of a Dollar General, some asked the question, “Will this hurt Pete?”

“Pete,” of course, or Pete Chokshi, is wellknown to locals in the tight-knit community, and some Route 206 commuters, as the owner of Country Farm in Red Lion Plaza, less than a quarter-mile from the proposed Dollar General. His convenience store, which has been around for 25 years, sells snacks and beverages, coffee, New Jersey lottery and much more.

Chokshi told this newspaper in a Feb. 15 interview, in response to that question, “I don’t know.”

He added, however, that his customers typically come into his store if they need to get something right away, or are in an emergency. He noted that the new Dollar General could have a n i mpact on h is establishment if there are similar products offered at similar or better prices.

“It could change the town’s scenery – less trees and maybe more shopping centers,” Chokshi said. “Some seem to want it, while others seem like they don’t want it.”

Chokshi contended that he was not aware of the plans for a Dollar General, until he read about it in the Pine Barrens Tribune.

Also in the Red Lion Plaza is Hometown Pharmacy, a community pharmacy owned by resident Timothy Murphy. Murphy is also the vice-chair of the Southampton Township Zoning Board, which spends most of its time hearing cases from applicants seeking some form of variance or relief from the requirements set forth for a particular zone (but does not formally review ordinance provisions as that falls under the authority of the Planning Board).

T he phar macist told this newspaper that he prefers Southampton stay a rural See SOLD/ Page 10

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GAMES

SOLD

(Continued from Page 9) community, “but Dollar General has every right to be there because of the zoning.”

Murphy added that he does not think the building of a Dollar General “will have much of an impact at all on my business.”

“We’re two different stores,” he contended, adding most of his business is generated from the selling of prescription drugs.

No t e ve r y l o c a l r e s i d e n t s a w t h e development as a negative, as some did reply online – albeit they were outnumbered – that the news was “good to hear” and “a dream come true,” due to the convenience it would provide, with one person remarking, “I can’t believe all the negative.”

In fact, there were several individuals who expressed their hopes for a “Super Walmart, Wegmans, Target, Trader Joes, Lowes or Home Depot – and even Starbucks and Pancheros Mexican Grill – to be built in the Southampton area in the near future – not only for the convenience, but to help the town build ratables.

“Southampton has been insulated against growth for a long time ... we’ve lived here 35 years … even we recognize that bills go up and we need the income to support our township,” wrote one individual. “Think ...we have volunteer fire and EMS, if it were paid our taxes would go up $$$$, we need the ratables.”

The latter point is one that has been e m p h a s i z e d r e p e a t e d l y b y R a f t e r y, who recently told this newspaper that, “Southampton has gotten a reputation of not being business-friendly, and one of my goals has been to change that.” Increasing township ratables remains a top priority for him so that, as he previously put, “we can make money” and “generate revenue” to pay

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM for needed expenses.

“One of the things we have going for us is that we have major highways splitting our area,” Raftery previously told this newspaper when running for elected office. “I would love to encourage commercial development to increase ratables.”

Dollar General, becoming a potential r a t a bl e fo r S o u t h a m p t o n , g e n e r a t e d passionate disagreements amid the online blowback.

“Businesses pay the highest taxes and will use zero township services,” said one man, calling the mostly negative reaction to the Dollar General “a sea of madness,” because at the end-of-the-day, he added, when schools can no longer afford programs a nd employees, t he sa me i nd iv idu als launching the outcry will be the ones upset over school cuts. “Every single dollar paid by a commercial property is one less dollar a residential property doesn’t have to pay.”

Another woman wrote, “We definitely need something as our taxes are out of control.”

Others, however, contended that it was “non-sense” that a business contributes to the ratables in New Jersey, calling the notion “laughable,” with some pointing out that many stores are given tax deferments during their initial years of business (though no Payment in Lieu of Taxes agreement has been announced for the Dollar General development).

“Much rather pay higher taxes and enjoy the serenity,” wrote one man.

Raftery, when reached for comment by this newspaper on Feb. 15 about the initial reaction of the community, said, “It blows my mind that people don’t want it.”

“This was vacant industrial land that was zoned to be built on,” said Raftery, also a member of the planning board.

R a f t e r y m a i nt a i n e d t h a t t he l a r ge national corporation’s new store planned for Southampton met all the requirements of the

town, and that the company conducted its own preliminary research before deciding to apply to build here. There will be many people who benefit for the reasons published in this newspaper’s previous story, he added.

“It is a good thing for the township,” Raftery said. “It is more ratables and more revenue. There is no reason not to want it.”

Heston, who also previously expressed to this newspaper that the new Dollar General will be “an asset to the community,” maintained during the early afternoon of Feb. 16 that “the decision was made in the best interest of Southampton” and that “I stand by my previous comment,” noting that it was the decision of the entire planning board to give the OK. Heston, also referred this newspaper to Philip Magazzo for additional comment, as Magazzo is the chairman of the planning boa rd. Maga z zo, i n a n e mai l t o t h is newspaper, pointed out that the location of the Dollar General “is in an already welldeveloped commercial area.”

“The best place to voice objections is by attending township committee meetings and planning board meetings,” he said. “I encourage everyone who has concerns about any applications to attend the meetings and provide their input for consideration by the board.”

Magazzo also defended the transparency of the application and planning board activities surrounding it, maintaining that the “meeting (in which the Dollar General application was heard) was properly advertised.”

“We offer limited personal attendance and unlimited attendance via Zoom,” he said.

“No one from the public was in attendance to voice their objections.”

Raftery, who told this newspaper that the opinions expressed on Facebook would not change his mind (though he respected them) and that he has never heard a bad thi ng about Dollar General, has t r ied

Saturday, February 20, 2021 twice now to change the nitrate-dilution requirements put into place by a previous governing body here, which ultimately has inhibited many commercial fir ms from building in Southampton, unable to afford a more expensive septic system that would be required geared toward nitrate removal.

The Southampton committee was to decide after this newspaper’s deadline time whether it would indeed change the nitrate-dilution requirements. Over the last few months, this newspaper has covered several actions by the governing body to either study or change zoning and land use standards in Southampton to entice commercial development.

L ong op p ose d t o s uch c om me rcia l development, however, including to many of the recent actions that would foster such development, is James F. Young Sr., a 27-year committeeman, who served as mayor of the town for a quarter-century until 2020.

Young has called Southampton one of New Jersey’s best kept secrets, and has repeatedly said the townspeople don’t want this (changes that foster commercial development), and asked Raftery point-blank during an initial introduction of a measure pertaining to the nitrate-dilution requirement, “What do you want to overpopulate it for?”

“There are different places where you can put commercial buildings in our township,” said Young previously. “But the idea is our township is beautiful the way it is. I think if you asked anybody, they would agree.”

Young, when reached for comment during the early afternoon of Feb. 16, told this newspaper of the Dollar General application, that he hasn’t been involved and seen the plans.

“I don’t know what kind of impact it is going to have,” he said.

As one person contended on li ne of the new Dollar General (which is in the See SOLD/ Page 13

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TRASH

(Continued from Page 1) Watson said of the proposal that “he would like to see the changes,” to which Burger replied, “Oh definitely,” but the mayor maintained that it would “100 percent” have to be carried out with heavy advertising, and that Republic would have to foot the bill for it and “do a good job of advertising over a period of time before the change happens.”

Councilman Frank Czekay, however, said that “this is needs to be looked at,” pointing out that “a lot of the zones are dictated by developments,” which Burger confirmed was correct.

“We ought to stick to that plan to the extent that we can,” said Czekay, to which the mayor replied, “That is why I would like to see the plan.”

Burger noted that Republic has “proposed using main roads as the borders for the zones.”

The mayor, however, maintained that you don’t want to see a plan that calls “for one half of Lake Pine being picked up one day, and another half another day, as Taunton Boulevard (a main road) goes right down the middle (of the neighborhood).”

The township manager told council that she would “express what you are saying” to Republic, or that the current zones are built around entire neighborhoods. She added that she “would not do anything until I discuss it again with you (council),” and present the public body with provider’s zoning plan, and advertising plan.

Council’s next regular meeting is scheduled for March 2, with budget meetings scheduled for March 9 and 13 (a Saturday). The municipal budget will tentatively be introduced during council’s regular March 16 meeting, according to Burger.

Council, as previously reported by this

newspaper, cut ties on Jan. 5 with Gold Medal Environmental of NJ, Inc., its previous solid waste collector and disposal service provider of nine years. The decision to go instead with Republic, was made as the township’s threeyear contract with Gold Medal was set to expire on Jan. 28. Republic, which Burger contended “was the lowest responsible bidder” for a contract, began providing its services to the town on Jan. 29.

According to a copy of a December 2020 bid placed by Gold Medal to the township, obtained by this newspaper through an Open Public Records Act (OPRA) request, the firm wanted to be compensated $1,105,799 in year one, $1,218,249 in year two, and $1,241,147 in the final year, for a total of $3,655,195.

Republic, according to a consent agenda resolution authorizing its new agreement with Medford, will charge the municipality $810,781.20 during its initial year of providing services, $840,124.80 in the second year and $870,477 in the final year, for a total of $2,521,383.

Gold Medal, according to past council meeting minutes, in 2015, acquired Casworth Enterprises, Inc., a firm that the township had been using for solid waste collection and disposal services since the governing body decided in November 2012 to outsource municipal trash collection beginning in 2013 in a bid to reportedly save money. During the first year Casworth hauled trash for the municipality, the firm was paid $499,800 for its collection and disposal services. Gold Medal charged the township $643,658 for its collection and disposal services during the final year of its most recent contract with the township.

“So, they (the residents) are not going to like it (new collection dates) for two weeks, then they will get used to it,” said Councilman Bradley Denn during the Feb. 9 council meeting of the potential change to collection zones and days forthcoming.

STUDENT

♦ Page 11

Action, as well as supporting and serving as manager of the school wrestling team. She also loved to travel, her obituary noted, and was “a true animal lover” who cared for all of them.

“Most of all, she was a daddy’s girl who just loved spending time with her brother, Gerard,” the obituary stated, characterizing her as “kind and compassionate, always putting others before herself” and as someone who “saw the beauty in everything and everybody.”

“Her gentle soul will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing her,” it added—an affirmation borne out in the tributes offered by classmates who spoke during the candlelight memorial, recalling how much they had been uplifted by her companionship.

One of them, Heather Duym, who said she had been friends with Palmieri since they were both four years old, described her as being “just such a likable person and so outgoing,” having “the most contagious giggle and a smile brighter than the sun,” and who “would do everything in her power to do anything to help absolutely anyone and would drop everything to do something for someone.”

“She was someone you could count on, and everybody knew that,” Duym added.

In a phone interview the day after the service, Duym maintained that she thought that “all the outpouring of love” and the coming together of the Pinelands community that was in evidence at the candlelight ceremony “showed how everyone cared about her,” adding, “I think she’ll be remembered forever.”

Another of Palmieri’s classmates, Liana Trebour, characterized her as “the type of person who would talk to anybody, no matter who they were,” and encouraged others to befriend people as well.

“She just liked to make people happy,” Trebour remembered.

Similar sentiments were expressed by Grace Cranmer, of Stafford Township, a student at

(Continued from Page 3)

and swerved into the opposite lane.

Edwards, a senior at Pinelands who was airlifted to the hospital along with Palmieri, and at one time listed in critical condition, is no longer listed as a patient there, and was reported to have recovered enough to allow her to attend Palmieri’s funeral services, despite being in a wheelchair, on Feb. 16.

The driver of the Hyundai, identified as Michael Pillarella, 26, of Manahawkin, who was treated and released from an area hospital, has since been charged with aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide, as well as reckless driving, speeding and failure to maintain lane. He was lodged in the Ocean County Jail pending a hearing, according to the office of Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer, who referred to the accident as “an unspeakable tragedy.”

Palmieri’s life was celebrated during a candlelight vigil in front of the high school on the evening of Feb. 14, attended by a throng of classmates and others who knew her. A montage of memories of her was presented in a video projected on an outdoor screen at the event, and several friends offered reminiscences of the many fun-filled hours and experiences they shared with her.

In addition to being an honor student who was looking forward to her induction into the National Honor Society, she was both a dancer and a budding musician whose participation in a Spotlight Competition Team, according to her obituary, led to her dancing in school musicals. She also was described as having “played piano and sang along to every song on the radio, regardless of its genre.”

Additionally, Palmieri was said to have enjoyed participating in school clubs and activities, such as Interact and Wildcats in

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Born in Mount Holly, Hope grew up in Vincentown and lived in Tabernacle for most of her life. She was a longtime member of the Tabernacle United Methodist Church and was also a longtime Teacher’s A i d e i n t h e Ta b e r n a c l e Schools. She loved children and loved caring for the children at the school.

She was the wife of the late Joseph “Bucky” Pepper and the mother of the late William “Billy” Pepper and is survived by her beloved granddaughter Katie Pepper and sister, Diane Hall.

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Saturday, February 20, 2021

VOTE

(Continued from Page 2)

Photo Provided

The Capital Health Primary Care – Browns Mills office physician team, including Eddie Akrout, DO (right).

CARE

(Continued from Page 2) healthcare for individuals given the “definite gap in the area” and that Capital Health wants to “close that gap” by providing care in the community.

“The easier you make it for patients before they get into a crisis situation, the better,” she said, emphasizing that Capital Health’s “overall goal is to keep people as healthy as possible.”

In April 2020, the Capital Health OB/ GYN – Browns Mills office opened with five board-certified physicians in obstetrics and gynecology. They provide a range of services including, but not limited to, annual women’s health exams, menopause counseling, gynecology surgery and cancer screenings.

The team of Drs. Rober t Berk, Neil Bluebond, Amy Harvey O’Keeffe, Mark Kuhn and Anne Walker, all of whom are now practicing in Browns Mills, provided care to women in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, for almost 30 years before relocating.

Eight months later, board-certified family physician Dr. Eddie Akrout took the lead at the Capital Health Primary Care – Browns Mills office, providing services to individuals of all ages, from pediatrics to geriatrics.

Akrout focuses on maintaining his patients’ health and well-being with check-ups, preventive care, helping those with chronic diseases such as hypertension and other issues to avoid hospitalization, sick visits, and more, Walsh said.

Capital Health has also recently opened a three-story Behavioral Services Center in Bordentown with four full-time psychiatrists and 15-18 therapists on staff, including those who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of children, adolescents and young adults.

Telehealth visits have worked well for patients seeking care from therapists during the pandemic, and “they love it, too.”

“It’s convenient,” Walsh said. “Some have gotten really comfortable with it and would

actually prefer it.

“Why trek into an office each and every time they want to talk with someone? Maybe they can go in every other visit. Maybe they’ve had to use their lunch hour at work or have had to take a day off or a half day. Now they can call from wherever they are.”

Walsh added that virtual visits for those interested will continue after the pandemic.

Capital Health has created a robust lineup of Zoom and Facebook Live events, including classes, to reach as many individuals as possible during the pandemic, said Jason Stacchini, community and marketing manager for Capital Health. Most programming is free, other than when class materials need to be ordered.

During the upcoming weeks, Capital Health will offer classes on babysitting, yoga for cancer patients, a diabetes education program, breastfeeding and baby care basics, an information session on Medicare and more.

Check out the updated schedule on their website, listed below.

Physicians also facilitate discussions on different topics: an OB/GYN recently spoke about women's health screenings during COVID-19, and, in the spring, orthopedic surgeons will address arthritis in the knees, knee or hip replacements and much more.

Stacchini said that, over time, Capital Health will “continue to assess and identify ways to address the health needs of the Browns Mills community.”

Here are some important Capital Health website links and telephone numbers for your healthcare needs: Capital Health Emergency Services at Deborah: www.capitalhealth.org/deborahsed, 609-735-2950; Primary Care: www.capitalhealth.org/ brownsmills, 609-303-4560; OB/GYN: www.capitalhealthobgyn.org/ brownsmills, 609-537-7200; Behavioral Health: www.capitalhealth. o r g /o u r- l o c a t i o n s / b e h a v i o r a l - h e a l t h specialists, 609-689-5725; Classes and Events: www.capitalhealth. org/events.

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concerned with any board member possibly taking action, “but also with any person who would become displeased with any board action in the future, using that as some opportunity to mount a challenge (of a decision).”

The board is facing this dilemma, in part, because newly-elected Board Member Raymond W. Bartlett was not sworn in until the public body’s special Feb. 2 meeting.

Business Administrator Nick Brown had contended du r ing the board’s Januar y reorganization meeting that Bartlett needed to pass a criminal background check before he could be sworn in, and that there was a “processing backlog” due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

The board, with only eight members during its reorganization meeting, became deadlocked in choosing a president for the new year, with multiple nominees receiving 4-4 votes, including Betti Anne McVey, who served as board president in 2020.

Board Member Tom “Tommy” Williams, as previously reported by this newspaper, was revealed last fall to have been wanting to file a School Ethics Commission Complaint against McVey, giving credence to the concern of Donio and McCooley about potential legal ramifications should the board not follow a legal opinion or the law.

Williams was previously said to be pursuing the matter, in part, because he believed McVey was conflicted in voting on any matters pertaining to McCooley due to her having family members who fall under the superintendent’s administrative purview.

McVey, in response, has contended to this newspaper that they are not dependent family members.

Williams has expressed concerns with McCooley, who has requested a contract extension. But that request has yet to move forward, and seems to be at the center of the recent board strife.

McVey, after not getting elected board president following two separate nominations for her, announced that she would no longer be seeking the position.

Board Member Patricia Chambers, during the Feb. 9 meeting, said she “wanted to put on the record” that she asked district officials if the executive county superintendent was made aware of that update, and did not receive a response, and that she believed the top county school leader needed to be made aware of “that very important piece of information” as it “may affect the outcome” of any decision he makes.

August “Augie” Daleo, a staunch supporter of the superintendent, who was narrowly elected the board’s vice president for 2021 (also follow i ng mu lt iple nom i nat ion s and votes), has been leading the board

meetings in the absence of a president, and had launched a tirade in the fall against Williams, was quick to point out that what Chambers mentioned “was just discussed in executive session.”

During the board’s Feb. 2 meeting (one called to order to sort out differences between board members), Daleo and Board Member Christie Palladino had alleged confidential material discussed in recent executive sessions were being leaked to the public.

Nevertheless, during the Feb. 9 meeting of the board, after Chambers’ remarks “about a turn of events” that she felt the top county school leader needed to be notified about, McCooley offered that she “did not let (the executive county superintendent) know at our next regularly scheduled meeting (following reorganization) that one of our board members withdrew their nomination, nor did I let him know that it was deadlocked and who else was nominated, and that there were three other people (nominated).”

McCooley contended t hat af ter her initial discussion with the executive county superintendent following the reorganization meeting, he had not returned her calls, but rather communicated with Brown, and therefore, she “didn’t have the opportunity to talk with him” about the events following the reorganization meeting.

McVey, in response, said that she withdrew from wanting to be president “to make the executive county superintendent’s position a little bit easier to decide,” but that she could “rescind her withdrawal if there is going to be another board vote because now you are changing the rules and doing something different.”

She added she didn’t think the executive county superintendent needed to be informed that she withdrew her name “because there were three other people nominated (for board president) that night.”

McVey told her colleagues that she believed that Daleo had done “an excellent job” running the meetings so far this year, and that the board should consider elevating him to the position of president “in the absence of a president,” and then choose a new vice president.

Daleo replied, “No, I would like us to have a president of the board,” and that he would like district officials to “obtain a solid recommendation” of how to proceed. Prior to McVey’s remarks, he had also declined to “wear two hats at once,” or serve as acting president.

All of the Feb. 9 discussion about whether to hold off that night in a re-vote was somewhat moot, however, as Williams was absent from the meeting, meaning that only eight members – or an even number of members – were in attendance to vote, and given the current makeup of the board and on the record positions, another tie vote would have been likely if an election of president was held that night.

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during the Dollar General kerfuffle. “There has been so much overdevelopment in the area that it is hardly recognizable from my childhood hometown.

“Out- of-st aters, or large com mu nit y people looking for a taste of peace and land don’t like our way of living and should stay where their amenities are convenient and stop complaining about a drive, it is not like the neighboring towns are huge and its only really a 30 minute drive to get what you need. That sucks about your house, but you got to do what is best for your family and your dreams at the end of the day.”

One resident in favor of having the store, however, urged locals to “give it a chance.”

Staff Writer Andy Milone contributed to this story.

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(Continued from Page 8) is calling for “immediate action” that “will move us towards justice and accountability right now.”

When contacted by this newspaper to find

out if Stanfield wished to issue a reply to that last rebuttal from Addiego, Kasey Dearden, Stanfield’s campaign manager, said, “We choose not to comment further at the moment— Jean’s last statements speak for themselves.”

He also noted that Stanfield was planning on introducing articles of impeachment against Hicks in the Assembly on Thursday, Feb. 18 (past this newspaper’s deadline).

Page 14 ♦

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(Continued from Page 3) stor m and flood impacts f rom climate change.”

The amendments, according to the release, emphasize how “engineering with nature” and “focusing on green infrastructure strategies” can be “more effective” at managing polluted runoff and reducing flooding when compared to older stormwater collection systems and approaches.

A “cornerstone” of the new stormwater rules is the requirement for permit applicants to use green infrastructure, rather than more traditional engineered structures, to reduce stormwater runoff and achieve water quality goals, the NJDEP noted.

“Green infrastructure includes a broad range of tech nologies – which can be implemented by homeowners, businesses, municipalities and counties – including rain gardens, bioretention basins, vegetated swales and green roofs,” NJDEP officials said in the release. “In addition, green infrastructure technologies have become much more practical at managing runoff from paved surfaces and roofs.”

Green inf rast r uct u re more nat u rally ma nages stor mwat e r, al low i ng bet t e r infiltration of above-ground stormwater into the g rou nd water deeper beneath our feet, the NJDEP officials added. The infiltration process is simple, according to the environmental agency, as it uses vegetation

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and soil to naturally filter out pollutants.

Green infrastructure can also include ways to store some stormwater runoff for later beneficial reuse, such as ir rigation, the NJDEP officials maintained.

“In addition to protecting and better managing stormwater, these approaches beautify communities and help in the fight against climate change by creating carbonsequestering green space,” the NJ DEP officials claimed. “Creating these green spaces also mitigates the ‘heat-island effect’ caused by construction and paving, which can raise average temperatures in urban areas more than in less developed areas.”

The amendments, according to the release, also redefine the types of surfaces subject to the rules and changes to “better support water quality-protection efforts” in communities with combined sewer systems.

Monitoring and repor ting for cer tain st or mwat e r m a n age me nt syst e m s a re required of tow ns in the amendments, but Dixon, during the Feb. 2 Washington Township Committee meeting, said that he didn’t believe that town had that particular type of systems.

However, the new rules would “essentially affect new construction,” including, for example, if a roadway is widened in the Pinelands, according to Dixon.

“That requires stormwater management improvements, and those improvements then would fall under the new stormwater management guidelines, which are different f rom t he r u le s i n ef fe c t r ig ht now,” Dixon said.

STUDENT (Continued from Page 11)

Southern Regional High School who had been in the same dance group as Palmieri since childhood and had traveled to competitions with her.

“Gia n na was just such a beaut if ul, intelligent, talented person who just had the biggest heart,” said Cranmer, who read a poem she had written to her friend at the service, which includes the following verse: “Gianna was the glue that held us together/ We always knew we would be friends forever.”

“I think everyone should be thinking about her family at this time,” Cranmer added in a subsequent phone conversation with this reporter. “Just seeing them broke my heart.

They are such wonderful, kind people and they raised such an amazing daughter who will be truly missed by everybody.”

That many area residents have, in fact, been thinking of Palmieri’s family in the wake of the tragedy was evident from the results of a couple of Internet fundraising campaigns on their behalf, including a GoFundMe page coordinated by Philip Weber, manager of the Tuckerton Acme where she worked, that had raised more than $9,300 by Feb. 17 with Barbara Palmierei, Gianna’s mother,

named as the beneficiary, and a “Meal Train” page, organized by another of her friends, Dina Johnston, that had elicited over $25,000 in donations as of the same date.

In addition, a GoFundMe page for Edwards, called “Kaitlyn’s Road to Recovery,” organized by a friend, Kenley Pivola, to help her family pay for her medical bills, had come close to reaching its $15,000 goal.

In an email to this newspaper, Barbara Palmieri, a teacher at Southern Regional Middle School, issued a statement noting that, “We, the Palmieri family, would like to thank our family, friends, colleagues and our community. We are so thankful for every prayer, text, card, gift, flower, meal and donation. As you can imagine, we are griefstricken by the tragic loss of our Gianna. She was such a bright light in our lives, bringing us joy and love every day, and we now take comfort in knowing how many lives she touched.

“The candle vigil held in her honor left us speechless,” the statement continued.

“In our darkest hour, our community brought light into our lives with hundreds of candles.

The video tribute was beautiful, highlighting that our baby was undoubtedly an angel on this earth. We thank all of her friends, teachers and colleagues for the happiness they brought her in her short life. We truly believe she left her mark on this world.”

SOLUTIONS FOR PAGE 10

DENTAL Insurance from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company.

Call to get your FREE Information Kit

1-888-981-3280 dental50plus.com/pine

Includes the Participating (in GA: Designated) Providers and Preventive Benefits Rider. Product not available in all states. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO; call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer.

Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN); Rider kinds B438/B439 (GA: B439B).

6255

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Page 16 ♦

WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM

Welcome to Capital Health Welcome to the first facility in the region to offer a robotic-assisted Whipple procedure to treat pancreatic cancer.

Where a multi-disciplinary team of surgeons, radiologists, oncologists, and rehabilitation services collaborate to provide the best care and the care that’s best for him. And all under one roof.

Because you’d go to the ends of the earth to make sure he got care like that.

And so do we.

Find a doctor near you at CapitalHealth.org/cancer

Saturday, February 20, 2021