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The News Leader of the Pines
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November 4 - November 10, 2023
Pemberton Council President Faces Backlash for Comments Following Video on Marijuana, But Says They’re Being Taken ‘Out of Context, Sensationalized’
BRINGING A ‘WELLNESS TOOL’ TO PEMBERTON? Pemberton Council, in Narrow Vote, Lends Support to Cannabis Enterprise Seeking to Bring Dispensary to Vacant Restaurant and Bar in Browns Mills, Which Would Be Second Such Firm in Town—But Not Without Lively Debate
After Video Describes ‘Racist Rhetoric’ Surrounding Drug, Gardner Tells Those Gathered to Give Input on Dispensary, ‘If You Don’t Want Marijuana, Cannabis,’ Then ‘This is What You Are Supporting’ By Douglas D. M elegari Staff Writer
The preliminary rendering for the Far & Dotter cannabis dispensary.
By Douglas D. M elegari Staff Writer
PEMBERTON—“Support” has been
given by Pemberton Township Council, in a 3-2 vote on Oct. 25, for the “location” and “operation” of a cannabis dispensary
PEMBERTON—Donovan Gardner, the Democratic council president of Pemberton Township, is facing fierce backlash for what one retired township law enforcement officer has told this newspaper were “absolutely disgusting” comments Gardner made during an Oct. 25 special council meeting, immediately following his playing of an approximately six-minute video that opened
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Mechanism to Retain Pemberton Twp.’s Urban Enterprise Zone Status, Which Provides for 3.3% Sales Tax Break, Draws Surprise Deliberation Some Pemberton Council Members Questioned Whether 27-Year Designation Is Really Having Desired Effect and Is of Interest to Township Business Owners
By Douglas D. M elegari Staff Writer
PEMBERTON—Whether Pemberton Township should continue to maintain its more than two-decade long Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ) status throughout m o s t o f t h e m u n i c i p a l i t y, w h i c h provides for a 3.3125 percent sales tax to participating businesses given the township is considered a “distressed urban community,” a break from the 6.63 percent sales tax applied to most other places in the state, as well as for other financial incentives and benefits, is something that unexpectedly drew governing body deliberation, as well as some opposition, during an Oct. 18 Pemberton Township Council meeting. Busi ne ss Ad m i n istrator Dan iel Ho r n i c ke l , du r i ng w h at b e c a m e a raucous session, seemingly threw his mercy at the governing body to at least approve a resolution titled, “Authorizes the submission of request to the Urban Enterprise Zone Authority to publish a Reque st for Proposals (RFPs) for Professional Services to Develop a 5-Year Zone Plan.” It ultimately narrowly scraped by, in a 3-2 vote. Hor n ickel m a i nt a i ne d t h at i f t he tow nsh ip m iss e d an up com i ng hard deadline to advertise RFPs for developing the new plan, the municipality would lose out on a $250,000 grant opportunity, and then would have to pay out-of-pocket if it wished to later develop one to retain its UEZ status. Rather, if council wishes to have a debate on the economic incentive, the business administrator maintained, let the concerns be addressed through the planning process and development of the new plan. “I a m c er t ai n ly op en to c ou nc i l’s suggestions about what should go in the plan, and you ultimately have to review and approve that plan,” Hornickel declared. “I am all ears. But just to table this and possibly risk the deadline to apply and get the funds, that means either give back $250,000 and say, ‘No, I don’t want to help local businesses,’ or pay the costs, out of own pockets, to hire professionals. You can’t do anything with the money unless you have a five-year plan.” The UEZ program, administered by New Jersey’s Urban Enter prise Zone Authority through the state Department of Community Affairs (DCA), “offers participating businesses benefits that encourage business growth and stimulate local economies.” Among them, as listed on the DCA website: • “Currently, the sales tax in a UEZ is 3.3125 percent, effective Jan. 1, 2018; • Participating businesses can get Tax Free purchases on certain items such as capital equipment, facility expansions, and upgrades; • UEZ businesses can benefit from financial assistance available from agencies such as NJEDA.” According to the DCA’s website, there are currently “32 active UEZ zones in 37 municipalities throughout New Jersey.” The state UEZ authority was enacted in 1983, the website notes, “to foster an economic climate that revitalizes designated urban communities and stimulates their growth by encouraging businesses to develop and create private sector jobs through public
and private investment.” Pemberton has long participated in the program given a poverty rate of just over 9 percent, as well as for having a median household income of only around $70,000. According to Hornickel, “the law states if you have a UEZ plan that is older than five years, you have to revise or rewrite it.” “But the good thing is here, the state is willing to give us funds to hire somebody to do that,” Hornickel said. The business administrator appeared to initially believe it would be a quick decision of council, one without second thought, to authorize the obtainment of bids for the new plan’s creation. “I have a couple issues with UEZs,” replied Republican Councilman Joshua Ward, appearing to take the business administrator by surprise. After recognizing that “our UEZ is pretty unique” as “probably the only one” that encompasses nearly the entire township, Ward said he had found a report from Rutgers University that “says there is really no difference or change” brought about by having such a designation. “I have a lot of questions for our Community Development officer,” Ward maintained. “I would like to table it (the resolution), please.” S i n c e Wa r d a l o n g w i t h f e l l o w Republican Dan Dewey were seated on council in January, numerous decisions by the governing body, with three Democrats and two Republicans, have not been unanimous, and while several have been along party lines on the five-member council, not all of them have been that way, with Democratic Councilwoman Elisabeth McCartney proving to be a pivotal swing vote, having at times sided with the GOP members. McCar tney, after Ward sugge ste d tabling the measure, proclaimed, “I agree!” It led to Hornickel reinforcing there is a “time issue.” Ward’s response was to ask Hornickel how long the tow nsh ip had b e en a UEZ prog ram par ticipant, w ith the business administrator confirming the municipality has been one for the past 27 years. “Throughout those 27 years, we funneled in $29 million,” said Ward in reading what he referred to as a township report card. “Of the 184 private-sector businesses, I would like to know how many of those are still in the township.” From what the councilman said he “came to understand” from reading the Rutgers piece, the UEZ program is designed to “bring help out to the workforce, for employment and hiring retention” as well as “takes care of employee training.” According to the DCA website, being designated a UEZ area allows businesses to access “special limitations/bonuses” for a “Business Retention and Relocation Assistance Grant” opportunity, available through the EDA, “for relocation and retention of at least 250 non-retail jobs where the grant is a material factor.” Ad d it ion a l ly, a s s i s t a n c e i s m a d e available to UEZ zones “from the New Jersey Department of Labor, through its One Stop Centers, for hiring, training, and retraining existing or new employees.” See STATUS/ Page 16
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Pemberton Council’s April 5 ‘Tabling’ of Resolution to Buy Two Trash Trucks, and Administrator’s Decision to ‘Pull’ Item April 19, Puts Town in Predicament
After Item Was Pulled, It Wasn’t Rescheduled for Vote, and Now, Official Announces Municipality Won’t Be Able to Collect Leaves Until April, Faces ‘Dramatic’ Trash Hike By Douglas D. M elegari Staff Writer
PEMBERTON—Hesitancy by Pemberton Township Council to give approval for the purchase of two new trash trucks, leading to the tabling of a measure, followed by a request reappearing again, but being pulled at the request of the business administrator, and then an apparent oversight to coordinate the rescheduling of a vote, has led to a predicament that, as of now, will at a minimum inconvenience residents, if not also possibly ending up costing them more money in the 2024 budget cycle, or cutbacks in services. The business administrator, Daniel Hornickel, apparently having forgotten he pulled the item and unaware of the rescheduling oversight, ripped into council during its raucous Oct. 18 meeting for its inaction earlier in the spring, only to apologize during a special Oct. 25 session, declaring, in part, “I have no problem admitting when I am wrong.” Twice in April, on April 5 and April 19, the administration sought to have council approve the purchase of two, new sixteen cubic-yard garbage trucks, which are 2023 Kenworth T380 models, for the Department of Public Works. On April 5, council tabled the item. Then, on April 19, the item was “pulled” from the agenda and “not considered late in the meeting.” “My request is to either vote it down or remove it from the agenda in its entirety, thank-you,” said Hornickel on April 19. Democratic Council President Donovan Gardner, at the time, replied, “We’re just going to remove it tonight.” The item apparently never appeared on a council agenda again. “I am sad to say this!” declared Hornickel during his business administrator report of Oct. 18, apparently exacerbated by several tense clashes and even being blindsided in at least one instance earlier in the night. “Leaf pickup this year will not take place until April! We are unable to rent garbage trucks because of the shortage of garbage trucks! Administration had tried to purchase garbage trucks in the spring, but council did not approve our purchase of the garbage trucks!” Hor n i ckel, who i s a l s o a law ye r, continued that “notwithstanding, residents may bring bagged leaves to the township Public Works yard.” “It is very inconvenient!” the business administrator sharply asserted. “But that is what we are faced with! The company we rented trucks from, for the last four years, was the only vendor where we could find trucks and they have no trucks available until the spring!” But Hornickel did not stop there. The township’s contract with its private trash hauler, Seaside Waste, also known as South Jersey Sanitation, is due to expire in March of next year. “I want council to hold onto your seats!” Hornickel declared. “The cost of disposing garbage is going to increase dramatically – dramatically!” He then further declared that the “mayor mentioned looking at other options, but since we can’t buy our own garbage trucks, bringing it (collection) in-house, which would save us money, is off the table!” “You are probably looking at rates going up 25 percent!” predicted Hornickel, with the revelation giving the governing body www.pinebarrenstribune.com
quite a jolt. The township considering bringing trash removal in-house is something that doesn’t appear to have ever been discussed by council at length, at least in public view. The last time the municipality’s trash contract came up was back on Aug. 16 when officials announced changes to the trash collection schedule in part of the township, billed as a “cost saving measure,” after the town was reportedly asked by its hauler to “cut Saturdays” for those in town that had pickup scheduled for that day, with pickup being rescheduled to a different day. At that time, Republican Mayor Jack Tompkins simply mentioned that “we are going to be negotiating next year for a garbage contract” and “we will be coming to council with different options.” “One of them may be (going to) one day a week (versus two), and we will have to look at the cost,” said Tompkins at the time. “And, right now, we have to look at providers. And right now, not a lot of them are doing it now (wanting to take on additional townships).” One of Republican Councilman Dan Dewey’s first questions at the time the proposal to buy two new trash trucks was brought to council on April 5 was whether they would be used to plow snow. Hornickel had replied “yes.” Dewey then asked if administration “had a plan” so that the “bodies do not rot out in five years” from the road salt used in plowing operations. The business administrator had pointed to a plan “in the works to install a wash bay at the township Sewer Treatment Plant.” Dewey asked if the trash truck would be used only “four months a year,” or what amounts to the typical duration for leaf pickup and snowplowing season, with the business administrator replying, “At a minimum.” T h e bu s i n e s s a d m i n i s t r at or a l s o confirmed, in response to another question posed by Dewey, that the plan had been for the township to bond for the new trash trucks, with a 20-year life expectancy placed on them. But the councilman maintained, “I don’t think if you can’t get a facility at the (now-defunct) MUA [Municipal Utilities Authority], you will get 20 years out of them!”, with Hornickel retorting, “I don’t know – we have dump trucks that are 25 years old, and we plow snow with them!” Dewey and fellow Republican Councilman Joshua Ward, seated on council in January, have scrutinized the township’s finances at numerous governing body sessions. Ward, on April 5, said he “did the math” and it “looks like $400,000 for two trash trucks” and assuming an “over 20-year life expectancy,” it amounts to $20,000. “And we currently rent trash trucks (for leaf collection) for 7 to 8 weeks,” pointed out Ward, asking the business administrator a series of questions to bring out that by renting them, the township is not responsible for repairs and maintenance on the rentals, but fuel, unlike what would be the case if the township buys trash trucks of its own. Tompkins, however, had pointed out that “we are not looking at them just for fall leaf cleanup,” but that “we are going to be using them for leaf cleanup at other periods of the year” as well as “using them for stormwater management.” “So, it is not that we are going to be using them for one little thing,” Tompkins
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Democratic Incumbent Schwartz and GOP Challenger Buzby-Cope Discuss Achievements, Qualifications in County Clerk Race Q&A By Bill Bonvie
of Bass River Township. Both contenders have responded to some queries put to each of them by the Pine MOUNT HOLLY—In the final days Barrens Tribune. leading up to the 2023 General Election, Schwartz was asked if there were any specific one of the most competitive off-year things she has accomplished during her tenure contests in Burlington County is the one that she wished to point to or improvements for the Office of County Clerk, with the she planned to make if re-elected. Democratic incumbent, Joanne Schwartz, “As a candidate for the position of being challenged for the job by Republican Burlington County clerk,” she responded, “my Deborah Buzby-Cope, the long-time mayor main goal is and will continue to be to not only get out the vote but to make voting easy, fair and free from any and all irregularities. “As county clerk, I pushed hard and will continue to do so, to make voting by mail a reality and a right. I removed the previous clerk’s requirement to pay for return postage. All vote-by-mail returns are (now) postage-free at no cost to the voter.” She then listed the following specific accomplishments while in office: • Instituted a property fraud program that allows participants to quickly and with no cost to them, be notified if any outside person or organization tries to alter or change their property deed; • Increased my department’s wedding ceremonies each week as a free service to our county residents, including same-sex couples whom other officials may refuse to marry; • Hired a bilingual staff person Photo Provided Burlington County Democratic Clerk Joanne Schwartz. to bring more diversity to our office, while most importantly, Staff Writer
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helping our customers whose first language might not be English; • Streamlined election night reporting and posting of election results; • Hired a staff person whose main responsibility is election cyber security; • Made Manumission (release from slavery) records available to the public; • Brought back the Gold Star Parents Program for those who have lost a family member in combat, and; • Put in place an active outreach program to bring our services to the public in their neighborhoods, places of worship and at community events, with part of that effort currently focused on working with county veterans’ groups to encourage vets to register their discharge (DD214’s) papers with the clerk’s office to assure their safety and accessibility, especially in times of crisis such as burials. Photo Provided “W he n r e - el e c t e d , I w i l l Bass River Republican Mayor Deborah Buzby-Cope, vying continue all of the above, but will to become clerk of Burlington County. especially continue to assure that our community members are able nothing less than the best possible service.” to exercise their most important right to vote,” Schwartz emphasized. Buzby-Cope was then asked what she would Schwartz, according to an online biography do to avoid the kinds of glitches that have on the Burlington County Democratic plagued the mailing out of sample ballots and Committee website, is a semi-retired voting materials in the past few years. healthcare administrator, experienced in She replied, “Proofreading. Proofreading. compliance, turnarounds and transitions. Proofreading. Her work experience, it is noted, has spanned “The consistent flow of errors made by Clerk all aspects of the healthcare continuum, Schwartz’s office over the past five years are including hospitals, nursing homes, assisted unacceptable and erode trust in the elections living facilities and independent housing. process,” Buzby-Cope declared. “From She is also a former probation officer and errors on ballots to disseminating wrong has been an adjunct faculty member in the information, she failed Burlington County Rowan University system, where she taught voters in practically every election since she courses in sociology and criminal justice. She took office.” is also a life member and former president of Schwartz did not reply to a question about both the Mount Laurel and Hampton Lakes whether she wished to respond to criticism of Emergency Squads, having been an emergency her for occasional errors in the distribution medical technician for almost 20 years. In 2018, Schwartz was elected county clerk. of sample ballots or other election material Buzby-Cope, when queried as to what if coming out of the clerk’s office. any changes she would make should voters Buzby-Cope was then asked to provide a give her the job and how she would reform brief summary of her political experience, the procedures or policies of the clerk’s office education, professional background, going forward, replied, “To begin, I would set and anything else that she believes might expectations for turnaround time for records. enhance her qualifications for the job. “As Bass River mayor, I have seen title “As mayor of Bass River Township and a documents processed months late,” she successful small business owner, I know what maintained. “Our residents deserve more it takes to maximize government efficiency timely responses from their elected officials.” and provide better services to residents,” When next asked “What is it that makes she answered, noting that she has “served you feel you’re more qualified for this position in leadership roles with the American than the incumbent?” she responded, “As a Veterinary Chiropractic Association, practicing chiropractor I understand the National Foundation of Women Legislators, importance of providing quality care and the League of Municipalities, and the New excellent customer service. The taxpayers are the customers of the Clerk’s office and deserve Jersey Conference of Mayors.”
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Chatsworth Elementary School Parent Says He Now Has ‘Severe Trust Issue’ Following Purported Call About Special Ed Teacher Facing Sex Assault Charges Board President Responds District Is Not Privy to Prosecutor’s Office Information and Is Not an Investigative Body, Claims ‘There Are Many Layers of Victims Here’
By Douglas D. M elegari Staff Writer
WOODLAND—A father of a student at Chatsworth Elementary School told the Woodland Township Board of Education during its October meeting – the first since Vincent Root, a special education teacher at the school was arrested for allegedly sexually touching seven students while they were enrolled there, crimes that authorities have said they have determined occurred during a multi-year period – that he “now has a severe trust issue regarding way these alleged abuses are handled by this school district.” That is because, in part, according to the parent, John Nelson, just hours before an Oct. 12 announcement by the school of Root’s arrest that day, he received a phone call from a high-level school employee “wanting to discuss the local rumor mill.” The call was placed to him late in the morning, and he returned it early in the afternoon. According to Nelson, in an interview with this newspaper that followed the board meeting, apparently the person who contacted him had somehow learned that he was aware of the allegations brought against Root, though he maintained he doesn’t know how that employee found out about what he came to learn. “W hat we discussed, then a ‘mere
rumor,’ was announced later on, on all the news channels as a fact of arrest, and a ban from school grounds,” he told the school board on Oct. 23. “This was an alleged serial child predator.” He said of the phone call with the school employee that he has “never been spoken to in such a horrible, demeaning way in my entire life” and contended an apology is “due to me.” Nelson maintained of the phone call that he felt “this turned out to be a very thinlyveiled threat to keep me silent.” “I will not remain silent,” he declared to the school board. “… Maybe we should worry more about who we are in charge of, and the welfare of our children.” Nelson later told this newspaper that the call from the school employee was placed to him around 10:45 a.m. on Oct. 12., and he returned the call that day at around 1:30 p.m. Then, “within an hour or two, the school district sent out a massive email saying one of its educators had been arrested.” It was the first time, he maintained, there was an “official statement,” maintaining that “prior to that, he had very, very insightful information.” The Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office disseminated a press release about Root’s Oct. 12 arrest on the afternoon of Oct. 13. William Dirkin, president of the local
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John Nelson, a parent of a Chatsworth Elementary School student, proclaims he “was heartbroken and outraged to hear on Oct. 12 that an educator at my son’s school had been arrested.”
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Saturday, November 4, 2023
school board, responded to Nelson on Oct. 23 that due to the “nature” of “what is going on,” it is “not something that is up to us” to “determine what does get announced.” “We are not fu l ly aware as wel l,” Dirkin contended. “While I understand frustrations, we are not privy to extra information by the prosecutor’s office, or anything like that as well. In this situation – it is a ver y delicate one, obviously. I understand the emotions on it; it is frustrating because we don’t hear everything you hear as well. We are not an investigative body. We don’t have information to disseminate.” Nelson, during the Oct. 23 board meeting, claimed “it was about a month ago that these newest criminal acts were allegedly committed” and that “after I was informed of these alleged abuses, I waited and waited – I waited a month before the school district announced these alleged criminal acts were occurring in the classroom.” As previously reported by this newspaper, during a proceeding Sept. 25 school board meeting, the public body approved of an employee to be “placed on administrative leave” effective Sept. 18, though the employee placed on leave is only identified by an identification number. Also during the Sept. 25 board meeting, the district hired an individual as a “leave replacement,” who has since been listed on the school website as a special education/ pre-school teacher, public records indicate. Root’s name and position has since been removed from the school’s staff directory. According to the prosecutor’s office press release, an investigation commenced i n Septemb er “after a student came forward and accused Root of touching him inappropriately during previous school years.” As the i nvestigation conti nued, it “revealed that the victims, all of whom are male, were touched in classrooms inside the school building.” The investigation, it was noted in the press release, “further revealed that the abuse occurred over a multi-year period.” Authorities, as previously reported by this newspaper, are asking that anyone with information concerning Root that “might be helpful to investigators” email tips@co.burlington.nj.us or call 609-2655035 and ask to speak to a detective in the Special Victims Unit. The New Jersey State Police, responsible for law enforcement activities in Woodland, is said to be assisting in the investigation. Root, of Philadelphia, so far has been charged with seven counts of second-degree sexual assault and seven counts of seconddegree endangering the welfare of a child. “I was heartbroken and outraged to hear on Oct. 12 that an educator at my son’s school had been arrested for committing seven counts of sexual assault and seven
counts of endangering the welfare of a child – allegedly,” said Nelson in addressing the school board on Oct. 23 about what has so far been released publicly. “Children are our most precious commodity. Children – we all have a duty to protect.” According to New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) records, as of the 202223 school year, Chatsworth Elementary, the only school in the Woodland Township School District, has the smallest enrollment of any school in Burlington County, with 103 pupils. Several school parents have told this newspaper that the class sizes at the school are very small. The district employs five special education teachers, according to its website, four of whom are assigned solely special education duties. The total school staff roster includes about 24 personnel. “A crime of this nature does not occur in a vacuum,” charged Nelson during the Oct. 23 board session. “Who knew, or should have known that these crimes were occurring against our children? They were not in a safe and protective learning environment, allegedly. “This type of crime does not occur in a vacuum. This type of criminal does not wake up and say, ‘I am going to be a child predator today.’ Who ignored, or worse, covered for this individual over the years? I am sure that the answers to these questions and more will come to light sooner or later. I am sure more victims will, and are coming forward even now.” Misty Weiss, superintendent of schools for the Woodland district, has yet to confirm with this newspaper, as of press time, Root’s length of service to the district. However, Root, according to a public record database known as DATAUNIVERSE, has been enrolled with the township school system since October 1997, and as of 2021, had accumulated 289 “pension months.” His last reported salary was $82,761. “The Woodland Township School District has already demonstrated an extreme lack of transparency to me,” Nelson told the board on Oct. 23. “My concern is we, as parents, need to know what goes on in this school district, so we, as responsible parents, can make informed decisions regarding what is in our children’s best interests.” Dirkin told the parent that “throughout this process, my concern is that this does not define the children involved, that this does not define the staff here, and that this does not define our community.” “There are many layers of victims here, from those most directly involved to the children, and we have staff who are victims as well,” he added. He noted that the situation is even “hard” for those entrusted with the care of the students, but they are “working here to support our kids” and “to give kids the stability they need as we are going through See ASSAULT/ Page 7
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Head-on Collision Kills Two on County Route 563 in Washington Township WASHINGTON—Two people are dead after a fatal head-on collision on County Route 563 in Washington Township. The crash occurred near mile post 30 at around 5:15 p.m. on Nov. 1, according to Det. Jeffrey Lebron, a spokesman for the New Jersey State Police. “Based on a preliminary investigation, a Jeep Grand Cherokee was traveling north on County Route 563, and an Acura RDX was traveling south on County Route 563,”
Photo By Douglas D. Melegari
Members of the Woodland Township Board of Education, as well as the administration of the Woodland Township School District (with School Board President William Dirkin and Superintendent Misty Weiss in the center), listen to a parent speaking out about transparency issues involving a teacher arrest.
ASSAULT
(Continued from Page 6) this as a community “ “As we learn more, and more things come out, we will learn them together,” Dirkin said. “The only thing I do ask is for us to be civil, which we have been. And for us to support our kids, because even those not directly affected are affected by what happened, obviously. I just ask again that we do maintain our civility, support our kids, and support what is going on in this building, as people are genuinely going through a lot, and we are here to support our kids as well.” There were about 26 people in attendance at the school board session, a crowd comprising of parents and teachers, as well as a State Trooper providing security, with Nelson the
only parent to publicly speak out. Beside Dirkin, the other four school board members did not address the issue, nor did Weiss or other members of the school administration. Weiss, when approached for comment by this reporter after the board meeting concluded, proclaimed, “I’m not speaking to anyone today – have a good night.” After the latest board meeting concluded, Nelson was asked by this reporter if he was satisfied with the response he received, replying, “No, I was not satisfied.” “I would have liked to hear a lot more about the concern for the safety of the children, and how this could not have been addressed, and wasn’t supervised,” he added. “I just really feel passionately that somebody knew something, and think it is going to come out later in a civil action.”
Lebron told this newspaper. “In the area of milepost 30, the vehicles were involved in a head-on collision.” As a result of the crash, the driver of the Jeep, Maureen Hanna, 22, of Pleasantville, and the driver of the Acura, Latoya Sotomayor, 36, of Egg Harbor Township, died, Lebron reported. The crash, according to Lebron, “remains under investigation and there is no additional information available at the moment.”
Man Arrested After Repeatedly Trying to Enter Medford BCIT Building; Police Evacuate School, But Find 'No Threat' Inside Building or His Van Suspect Charged for Possessing Knife, ‘Intentions’ Said Under Investigation
MEDFORD—A man who reportedly attempted to enter the Medford campus of Burlington County Institute of Technology (BCIT), repeatedly, on Oct. 30, around 3:59 p.m., after allegedly having contact with school staff, is now facing several charges, including being charged with having possession of a weapon. Ac c ord i ng to i n for m at ion p ost e d online by the Medford Township Police Department, Gregory T. Nicholas, 34, of Medford, drove to the school in a white van. At one point, a township explosives detection K9 “provided a positive indication to the presence of potential explosive material within the vehicle, resulting in the school being evacuated.” A report given to police is that “a subject” was “attempting to enter the building via multiple doors after having contact with school staff.” The New Jersey State Police Bomb Unit
then subsequently responded to the school, authorities said, while it was evacuated. However, after other entities reportedly joined with the bomb unit to provide assistance, it was “later confirmed there was no threat within the school or within the vehicle.” Authorities have not yet said what may have led to the “positive indication.” Nicholas, however, was still charged – including with possession of a weapon on school property, with police maintaining he had a knife in his possession during the incident. He is also facing charges of creating a false public alarm, trespassing, and hindering his own apprehension. As of the evening of the incident, “the investigation regarding Nocholas’ intentions at the school is ongoing by members of the Medford Township Criminal Investigations Bu re au and the Bu rl i ng ton Cou nt y Prosecutor’s Office,” police said.
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Reps from State’s Human Services and Environmental Protection Agencies Tour Rec Area in Pinelands to Spotlight ‘Making Nature Accessible to All’ Impact of Inclusive Healthy Communities Program Grantee Highlighted
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A scene from the tour given to representatives of the New Jersey Department of Human Services and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection of the Atsion Recreation Area, highlighting initiatives to “make nature accessible to all.” For the Pine Barrens Tribune
SHAMONG—New Jersey Department of Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), on Oct. 27, highlighted the implementation of Inclusive Healthy Communities (IHC) grant funding through a tour and hike at the Atsion Recreation Area, which is part of Wharton State Forest in the heart of the Pinelands National Reserve.
A d e l m a n a n d NJ DE P A s s i s t a n t Commissioner of State Parks, Forests and Historic Sites John Cecil were accompanied by advocates for individuals with disabilities and organizations granted funding through IHC, including the Pinelands Preservation Alliance (PPA). The PPA is a nonprofit organization in Southern Jersey that works to make nature more accessible for individuals See TOUR/ Page 20
Democratic County Commissioners Singh, Pullion Seeking Re-election in Face of Challenge from Moorestown Attorney, Medford Eye Doctor
Incumbents Cite Elimination of Debt, ‘Holding the Line on Taxes’ for County Residents, While GOP Novices Call for Fiscal Transparency, Restoration of Ban on ‘Double-Dipping’
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MOUNT HOLLY—Two Republican newcomers, a Moorestown-based trial lawyer and a Medford eye doctor, are challenging incumbents Balvir Singh and Tom Pullion for two open three-year seats on the currently allDemocratic Burlington County Commission (formerly known as the Board of Freeholders). The two incumbents are being opposed by Alfonso Gambone, a trial lawyer with a practice on Main Street in Moorestown, and Dr. Larry Vernamonti, a lifelong South Jersey resident who specializes in optometry and has maintained a practice in Medford for four decades. All four contenders agreed to answer a series of questions emailed to them in the past week by the Pine Barrens Tribune in regard to their positions on issues affecting county residents, with Singh preferring to answer them via a phone interview with this newspaper. Singh emphasized that after taking over control of the board, he and his fellow Democrats were faced with an approximately $253 million dollar debt left after 40 years of Republican rule, which they managed to bring down to $161 million by 2022, along with achieving “the lowest tax rate of any county in the state,” as he maintained had been reported by the state Department of Consumer Affairs. (When asked for a response, Burlington County Republican Committee Executive Director Josh Zoppina contended that after “40 years of excellent Republican fiscal See CHALLENGE/ Page 10
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Democrat County Commissioner Balvir Singh.
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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES
WELLNESS
(Continued from Page 1) mixture of opinions expressed by residents prior to the decision, with those for it appearing to outnumber those against it, though there was some bitter opposition voiced, making for a lively debate. If all goes as planned, Far & Dotter, the “inclusive cannabis dispensary franchise model” from Curio Wellness, will rehab a vacant building on the parcel that was once a restaurant and bar known as The Hornets Nest, and also, before that, according to Democratic Councilman Paul Detrick, served as the Pemberton library. It was back in August 2022 that Far & Dotter, with current operations in Maryland, announced the signing of its first franchise agreements “with the goal to expand into two new states once licenses are secured,” Mississippi and New Jersey. Dr. Haider Rizvi, according to a press release, was named among two individuals serving as part of the “inaugural class of franchisees,” and announced as the New Jersey owner and operator, with his being awarded the chance to open a Far & Dotter location remarkable in that “since the 2021 announcement of the Far & Dotter franchise
CHALLENGE (Continued from Page 8)
management and control of the Burlington County board,” the GOP had “gift-wrapped the lowest tax rate in the state and served it up on a silver platter for the Democrats. Commissioner Singh could just say, ‘Thank you.’”) “We have reduced the county debt by almost $100 million over my tenure on the board,” said Singh, who claimed to have visited all 40 county municipalities back in 2018, “directly engaging with residents and local officials about their unique needs.”
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM model, the company has received nearly 800 applications from potential franchisees.” Each candidate, the release noted, “participated in an extensive, mutual ve t t i ng p ro c e s s a n d d e m o n s t r at e d their drive, community leadership and commitment to wellness.” “We are thrilled to officially announce our first licensing agreements with these very deserving entrepreneurs – a highly anticipated milestone that we have been working on,” said Greg Miller, president of Far & Dotter, back in 2022. “In a complex industry that is fast-moving and constantly evolving, we have solidified ourselves as a highly sought-after partner for those looking to bring a unique dispensary and wellness center model to their community. These individuals represent a highly motivated class of entrepreneurs that will pave the way for national expansion of the brand.” Rizvi, who attended the Oct. 25 council session to give a presentation with his team on his plans for the former restaurant and bar, maintained he choose Pemberton for his location because he “found a good property” as well as found that the township government has a “receptive staff” with the municipality being a “welcoming community.” “Because Dr. Rizvi has decided to engage with Far & Dotter, and make this the New That and achieving what Singh termed “the second lowest unemployment rate in our county’s history” by both “holding the line on taxes,” with resultant economic growth, and offering opportunities for small businesses to start up and expand “all through the pandemic and afterward” were among the accomplishments he enumerated to this newspaper, which he said had brought about “improvements in the lives of residents on multiple fronts.” Yet another reform he has helped achieve has been coming to the aid of businesses owned by some of the county’s more than 30,000 veterans by providing up to $310,000
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Republican challengers for County Commission, Alfonso Gambone (L), a trial lawyer with a practice on Main Street in Moorestown, and Dr. Larry Vernamonti (R), a lifelong South Jersey resident who specializes in optometry.
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A concept plan for a Far & Dotter cannabis dispensary planned in Pemberton Township. .
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Jersey location, you can rest assured this group has all the resources and knowledge to be successful from day one,” declared Stephen Pemberton, an attorney of the legal firm Vicente LLP, representing Far
& Dotter Wellness, which is the Far & Dotter franchise location planned for Pemberton Township. “And on top of that,
in grant funding to businesses they own to offset the impact of pandemic-related loss or hardship”— an example of what he referred to as “understanding our constituency and knowing our residents’ needs.” All those, however, were things he helped create as part of a group effort, maintaining that he didn’t “want to devalue the work we did as a commission by taking individual credit.” “In politics you listen to people, you take advice from experts, and work as a team to effectuate change,” he added. And bringing back one or two Republicans on the board, in his opinion, “would definitely lessen the effectiveness of the current team.” “I don’t see what they would do any differently this time,” he said. “They had 40 years and we’ve seen the results.” Singh’s qualifications for the job, however, are something he didn’t mind talking about. Having been a high-school math teacher for 11 years and now serving as a math department supervisor, he asserted, has helped him comprehend the complexities he faced during his two terms on the board, since “when you’re dealing with a budget, you have to have a mathematical mindset.” So has his involvement in community causes and having had to raise a family on a fixed income, factors that have influenced every decision he has made and given him an understanding of county residents’ lives and needs. In response to another question, Singh also indicated he would “definitely” be in favor of having commission meetings videotaped for
the benefit of those who can’t attend and to allow the media to report on them without having to be present. Pullion, in a relatively brief email response to this newspaper’s questions, noted he has served as both the commission’s director and twice as its deputy director (including currently) during his nearly six years as a member. He also has had extensive political experience as an official of Edgewater Park Township, where he is currently township administrator, having previously served as its mayor twice and deputy mayor five times, and “on literally every committee, including economic development, administration, and finance, creating both school and township budgets, as well as serving on the sewage authority, zoning and planning boards, a police department safety committee and participating in “dozens of projects” that included “interaction with federal, state and county entities.” He included among his achievements so far having helped hold the line on tax increases, having “enhanced our recycling program, passing along over $3.7 million in cost savings to towns in reductions in tipping fees,” facilitating infrastructure improvements and providing free COVID inoculations to residents. “I want to continue to reduce the cost to our residents and do whatever possible to improve their quality of life,” he said when asked what he hoped to do if re-elected. On the Republican side, Gambone, who serves as an adjunct instructor of criminal and
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(Continued from Page 1) with the statement, “How did marijuana get a bad rap? The answer is simple: racism.” Gardner’s playing of the video that some attendees later contended amounted to “propaganda,” as well as the remarks the council president made after it ended, has even drawn flak from a fellow Democrat, Councilwoman Elisabeth McCartney, who in pointing to what transpired, maintained she “really wouldn’t say this is a fantastic meeting” and who ultimately acknowledged she was actually left “very disturbed.” What unfolded, she said, also left her a “little shaky.” Gardner, however, stood by his comments to the very end of the council session, with Democratic Councilman Paul Detrick standing by the council president, claiming he “didn’t read” into the comments the way others did, though he acknowledged that he had not paid full attention to the shown clip, given he had heard it before, and if the remarks were meant to be what some thought they had insinuated, he would be “strongly against such a statement,” with the councilman trying to tie the apparent incendiary remarks to the video itself, and not the council president. The council president, since the session concluded, when asked by this newspaper if he has any regret for the comments, responded, in part, “my comment after the video is being taken out of context and is being sensationalized since it was not directed at anyone, in particular, or (at a) group.” The recording, played for the audience and councilmembers that had gathered to hear a proposal for a cannabis dispensary in the Browns Mills section of Pemberton (see separate story), featured statements such as, “In the early 1900s, an influx of Mexican immigrants came to the U.S. fleeing political unrest in their home country” and “the Spanish word” for marijuana, or marihuana, “started to be used more often” and became associated with “sensational headlines”; “In 1936, a propaganda film, ‘Reefer Madness’ was released” and portrayed “teenagers smoking weed for the first time” and thereby led to scenes of hallucinations, attempted rape and murder; the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was passed based on “fearmongering”; and Harry J. Anslinger, former commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics, became a “huge instigator of marijuana fearmongering” and “this is when racism and xenophobia really kicked in.” The video continued that Anslinger “took the scientifically unsupported idea of marijuana as a violence-inducing drug and connected it to black and Hispanic people and created a perfect package of terror to sell to the American media and public, by emphasizing the Spanish word, ‘marihuana,’ instead of ‘cannabis,’” and that Anslinger allegedly also created a “strong association between the drug and the newly-arrived Mexican immigrants.”
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM It was also maintained in the piece that three years after passage of the tax law, it was found that “black people are three times more likely to be arrested for violating narcotic drug laws than whites” and “Mexicans are nine times more likely to be convicted.” After pointing out that the tax law was ultimately repealed through the Controlled Substance Act of 1970, the piece highlighted that marijuana, however, has since been deemed a “Schedule 1 Drug” by the federal government, claiming it has been lumped in with ecstasy and LSD, or those that are “considered to have high potential for abuse and addiction with no medical use,” simply based on the “racist rhetoric.” A nd “c r i m i nal i z ation,” the v ideo maintained, “still disproportionately effects minority groups in the U.S.” in which “black people are four times more likely to be arrested than white people, even though those groups consume marijuana at about the same rate.” Before coming to an end, the video also featured remarks made by Jeff Sessions, while he was still attorney general under the President Donald J. Trump administration, with Sessions stating that “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” before charging the former U.S. Senator turned Republican attorney general was “hell-bent on enforcing the rules” or the “racist rhetoric of the Anslinger era.” With the piece maintaining we are “still seeing a lot of anti-immigration sentiment,” it also cut to a clip of Trump, with the former GOP president having declared of Mexican immigrants crossing the U.S. border illegally, “They are bringing drugs; they are bringing crime; they are rapists.” The piece then concluded with a claim “some politicians” are “sticking with fearmongering and the racist playbook.” Gardner maintained, after the video ended, “there is another video” available that states “Harry Anslinger’s primary purpose to make it illegal” was over his “fearing that white women would smoke it to have sex with black men.” “So, if you … support … or don’t want marijuana or cannabis, this is what you are supporting,” Gardner declared. Perry Doyle, Jr., who recently retired from the Pemberton police force, and is also an alternate member of the township Planning Board, maintained Gardner’s remarks suggested “anyone who speaks up” against the cannabis proposal or “is against it, or heaven forbid, votes against it” is “in support of racism.” “That was completely unnecessary, unprofessional and unethical on the part of the township, in my opinion,” Doyle asserted. “… And as someone who tried to fight so hard against that (racism) for 20 years, as a member of law enforcement in this town, I can honestly tell you with almost 100 percent certainty that the biggest example of racism that happened in my 20 years, happened in this room tonight. That should have never been done! There is no place, in a township as culturally diverse as Pemberton, for racism to ever come into a
public meeting, and for people to be told that if you step up here and speak your mind against this application, you are considered a supporter of racism – as a resident, I am embarrassed by that! And I should not be the only one!” The video, while being played, drew no protest from Gardner’s four council colleagues, two Democrats and two Republicans, and Gardner’s remarks were also not immediately challenged by the governing body members. Doyle, i n re cog n i z i ng the si lenc e, maintained that he “can’t believe nobody else had a word to say about that” and “no statements were made by a councilmember” challenging the playing of the video, or what the council president had to say afterwards. “I am assuming everyone has the same right to speak up like Mr. Gardner did, and yet no one did,” said Doyle in excoriating the governing body. “Now, anyone who speaks up negatively has already been labeled a supporter of racism. … So, if you say anything against it (the proposal of the cannabis enterprise), you are in support of those statements.” Doyle emphasized he was concerned that in light of Gardner’s actions, it could impact what should be an impartial vote on the application. “Now, if you vote ‘no,’ you will have 50 people here looking at you – because you vote ‘no’ to something you don’t believe in for this town, because (you are branded) a supporter of racism,” Doyle quipped. Some of the principles of the cannabis firm seeking approvals expressed concern they were being associated with implying those opposing their application had been motivated by racism, but Doyle assured them that “everybody in this room knows” that isn’t the case. Rather, “I am here to tell you,” Doyle declared, the video “didn’t need to be put up here by the president of council to show he may be in support of your application.” “He can simply vote ‘yes’ at the end, and that didn’t need to be done,” Doyle maintained. Detrick, a retired attorney, said “by way of response – because he is kind of accusing the rest of council of making that statement – I didn’t interpret that film he put up as saying anything near what you were saying.” “He worded it at the end that if you say ‘no’ to this … or you are against this … this is what you support,” Doyle shot back. “That is what the man said!” Detrick, however, maintained that the council president was merely presenting something that is “informative of the history.” “The problem is when people come here, they just talk about ‘drugs,’ ‘drugs,’ ‘drugs,’” Detrick asserted. “And they just heap cannabis in with heroin, speed and all the other nasty drugs out there and that is not fair and scientifically accurate. People die from drugs. But I don’t think I have heard of anyone dying from an overdose of cannabis. “I don’t know! Maybe it has happened. They say it is a gateway drug. Well, I am going to bet anyone who did hard drugs also has had alcohol and smoked cigarettes. Nobody
Saturday, November 4, 2023
File Photo
Democratic Pemberton Township Council President Donovan Gardner.
has ever said they are gateway drugs. But they all smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol, right? What are the gateway drugs?” Detrick continued that “alcohol causes way more problems for our youth and citizenry,” but that when council hears liquor license renewal applications, the public “never says a thing,” but meanwhile, the cannabis principles had just given a presentation about “security” and “how they are going to treat people” well in the community, including by providing job opportunities and donations. “What I thought the purpose of that film was – and maybe it made some statements that weren’t right and I didn’t pick up on them because I didn’t pay attention to the whole thing, as I heard it before, to tell you the truth – or what I understood it to be, is that cannabis is joined in with heroin, and all the nasty drugs … and the history of how it got to be that way.” “There are a lot of nasty drugs out there, and these people are not proposing to sell them,” Detrick said. “We don’t require what they told us about – having security, ID checks, and multiple levels of other stuff – for liquor establishments. And that doesn’t make sense to me as people are dying from alcohol-related illnesses every day.” “To the extent that film … the interpretation … ‘you are against it, you are a racist,’ I didn’t read that in that light, maybe that is what it said … but I would be strongly against any such statement. If I didn’t speak up … maybe I missed it.” Doyle, however, responded, “a video for a history lesson – OK, maybe,” but “when the video went off, for him to point at the video and say, ‘If you are against this, that is what you support’ … maybe you want to replay it (the council meeting audio), but that is the comment that was made.” G a r d n e r, l i k e D e t r i c k , a s t h e condemnation mounted, tried to suggest it was the contents of the video being at issue, maintaining the “video is for information” and the “video says, ‘If you are against this, See BACKLASH/ Page 18
Saturday, November 4, 2023
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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES ♦ Page 13
Medford-Vincentown Rotary Halloween Parade 2023 The Medford-Vincentown Rotary Club held its 76th Medford Halloween Parade on Oct. 28 in Medford Township on Main Street. 79 various businesses sponsored this year’s parade. It is estimated that approximately 30,000 people were in attendance.
Photos By Andrew King
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WELLNESS
(Continued from Page 10) the property will benefit from beautification and revitalization to turn it into something that is beneficial for every single resident.” A man, who at times disputed any opposition voiced to the proposal during the Oct. 25 proceedings, was that of Thomas Inge, a former Republican township councilman from 2007 to 2010. Public records show the current owner of record for 348 Lakehurst Road is “Thomas R. Inge Enterprises.” The PowerPoint presentation shown to attendees and the council on Oct. 25 provided more detailed information about how Rizvi, a doctor of physical therapy and adjunct professor of physical therapy at Seton Hall University, arrived at the decision to pick Pemberton for the next Far & Dotter location, first noting that “there is substantial community support for cannabis legalization from Pemberton Township residents and businesses,” in having apparently reviewed the results from a 2020 election when Pemberton voters decided a cannabis legalization question on the ballot. Another reason given for selecting Pemberton is that there is the “potential for growth and significant tax revenue for the township” that “will ultimately benefit all residents and people who travel through the township.” “This is a group that will immediately contribute to this township through a twopercent tax on all transactions, which can be very, very significant,” said Attorney Pemberton. “We will be hiring local residents, community outreach is already starting and there will be just peace of mind that this will be a really tightly-run ship for regulatory compliance and close communication with the township.” The last bullet points on the slide of “Why Pemberton?” were that “our proposed property is conveniently located” and “Far & Dotter looks forward to a successful, longlasting relationship with the Pemberton Township Council and community.” Rizvi explained that he currently manages a private orthopedic practice and has decided to follow suit with other “burnt-out, frontline” healthcare workers following the Coronavirus pandemic, choosing to “leave entirely,” and the “reason I decided to get into the industry” for cannabis is he saw “medicinal value” in it once it was legalized, including that it is a “natural alternative to a lot of pharmaceutical meds that our patients have been taking,” including for conditions such as depression, anxiety, insomnia, chronic pain, and cancer-related post-chemo therapy pain, in addition to a “myriad of neurological issues.” The PowerPoint noted that Rizvi is an “advocate for cannabis as a form of alternative treatment to harmful opioids and other pharmaceuticals.” Rizvi, during his public comments, also said that by the township allowing for the cannabis industry, it is “choosing to make sure the illegal market is no longer flourishing.” Anthony Darby, vice president of brand development and interim president of retail at Far & Dotter, maintained that “folks like Haider want to be independent operators” and “bring a wellness tool to the community.” The retail brand, Darby maintained, is “rooted in science” and has the involvement of the “top scientists in the world,” including physicians from Israel. It is noted in the PowerPoint that Far & Dotter’s parent company, Curio Wellness, is “the top producer of cannabis-based products in Maryland and led by a scientific advisory board of medical experts.” At one point, the principles were asked what products they would be selling. Darby responded, “We will definitely have a multitude of what we call administration methods.” “Many folks that come through our doors, do not smoke and are not looking for smokeable items,” Darby continued. “They are
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM actually looking for either a topical, tablets, or sublinguals that go under the tongue, and we have a lot of therapeutic products that have THC in them, the active ingredient in cannabis, but are not smokable products.” Attorney Pemberton, in pointing out that 348 Lakehurst Road is in Pemberton’s General Commercial Light Industrial Zone (GCLI), said that the building there has been “vacant for several years and could use beautification.” “The use of this property is certainly better than a vacant property,” the attorney declared. “It will be bringing a lot of tax revenue to the town and will be heavily regulated, and also be better than bar and restaurant use, as there won’t be people leaving late at night and the egress like a bar has. There will be different peak hours. The salesfloor will be really set up to ensure adequate customer flow, and that the people visiting there will stay for the shortest time as possible and be in and out.” Included among several bullet points in the PowerPoint is that “Far & Dotter’s proposed use of the subject property is a superior alternative to the previous bar and restaurant use, which required more parking with longer stays, more concentrated peak hours, and later hours.” As for specific details about the proposed setup, it was noted in the PowerPoint that the “flow of the open concept salesfloor is set up to ensure customers can move quickly through the process, while those who may need assistance will have ample ability to speak to our Patient Care Advisors at a station, or private consultation space.” “There will be multiple ID check points,” it was maintained in the PowerPoint, purportedly designed to “ensure only authorized individuals can enter and purchase products, and loitering outside will be strictly prohibited.” It was emphasized in the PowerPoint that the proposed setup is in stark contrast to the preexisting use, or “tavern style establishments, which often have patrons leaving late at night, in a loud and disruptive manner.” “We close much earlier and there is no consumption onsite,” it was maintained in the PowerPoint. Another PowerPoint slide contained a commitment from the firm that “Far & Dotter will comply with the days and hours of operation for a Class 5 cannabis retailer, which are limited to: Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. through 9 p.m.; and Sunday, 12 noon through 7 p.m.” “There will be plenty of ID checkpoints, more than for a bar,” maintained Attorney Pemberton, contending that patrons will be checked at the door, and again before being served. The lawyer also pointed out that the proposed location “is not anywhere near a school or house of worship,” declaring it is “sufficiently far from any sensitive place.” It was attested to in the PowerPoint that the proposed Far & Dotter location “is not located within 500 feet of any public or private school, state-licensed childcare center, house of worship, or state-licensed addiction recovery facility.” It was also stated in the PowerPoint that “on-site sales of alcohol or tobacco products are prohibited” as well as “on-site consumption of food, alcohol, tobacco, or cannabis products by patrons,” something to be “strictly enforced by security.” “The amount of security involved is intense,” Attorney Pemberton attested. “Beside the other retailer (Alchemy Botanics, previously given council support to open a location at another former restaurant and bar in town, Jamison’s Bar and Grill, at 6 Fort Dix Road), it is the most secure building in Pemberton Township.” A security overlay for the interior, revealed by Attorney Pemberton, showed the facility’s security system is proposed to include ten readers, five aiphones (intercom and video See WELLNESS/ Page 15
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(Continued from Page 14) telecommunication devices), 14 panic alarms, and 15 motion devices with 360-degree range, as well as some dozen cameras. The recordings, the PowerPoint stated, will be kept on file for 40 days and shared with the Pemberton Township Police Department “immediately upon request.” “There will always be a security guard on site,” maintained Attorney Pemberton, with the PowerPoint stating Far & Dotter will provide at least one privately-licensed security guard stationed during operations, and when the facility is open to the public, as well as install and use an alarm system that is monitored by a company that is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Republican Mayor Jack Tompkins, in pointing out that the firm is committed to proh ibit i ng loit er i ng out side t he establishment, inquired about how that policy would be enforced. Attorney Pemberton responded that the firm’s operating procedures call for security to go around the parking lot, as well as there being “patrolling with cameras.” The mayor also inquired whether the security personnel would be “armed or unarmed,” with the enterprise’s counsel responding, “armed is the ideal,” but noting the principles are “willing to take input.” When Democratic Council President Donovan Gardner asked how Far & Dotter planned to manage “security both inside and outside,” Darby answered that the firm “will staff as many security guards as we need to keep the premises secure.” After maintaining “there are certainly system s i n plac e” as wel l as “SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures),” Darby asserted that “the last line of defense is armed security guards.” “Some stores have two to three, others have one,” the principle answered. “It depends on risk, and the traffic that comes through.” Currently, Far & Dotter, according to its website, has two active locations in Maryland. As for a sense of how much traffic will come through the location, the PowerPoint notes that so far this year, “Far & Dotter stores have served 28,000 customers who made over 100,000 transactions.” In addition to security, a major source of questioning by the council was Far & Dotter’s plan for parking at its proposed Pemberton location. Gardner maintained that in doing in a Google search, it looked as though there are currently 19 parking spots at 348 Lakehurst Road. Tompkins recalled that in “the few times I did go to that building,” he remembered “the parking was really cramped.” And Detrick, in recounting that the facility “was a township library many years ago – going back a little bit,” asserted,” I am concerned about the amount of parking spaces you have, and ingress and egress.” “My recollection is it is tough to have inand-out traffic, side-by-side, with the space you got,” Detrick continued. “I could be wrong; it may have been cleaned up so that it is widened out now. But the concern is that it is real narrow, and people will be going out opposite ways.” When Tompkins asked if Far & Dotter is “looking to redesign, or do anything to make more parking available,” Attorney Pemberton replied, “I would defer to the Land Use stage where we can max out parking to the extent allowed by the township, that is still within the bounds of the zoning.” After Gardner asked if the 19 parking spaces seen on Google is going to be sufficient, Attorney Pemberton responded, “Yes, totally possible.” If the parking spaces are “getting full,” the attorney added it would simply “require modification of the operations plan,”
AD HOTLINE: (609) 801-2392 including “telling incoming people to preorder or come back later.” “It is something many dispensaries do,” the lawyer maintained. And after Detrick had recounted his parking experience for the facility when it was a library, Attorney Pemberton noted that the concept plans are not “post-Land Use process” and will likely “look entirely different after it.” “It could involve extensive construction, or reconfiguration,” the enterprise’s legal counsel responded. “But we are absolutely committed to making sure it works for everybody.” A nother quer y from Gardner was, “What happens if you have an overage of customers?” and does the plan address any possible “parking on the side of the road.” Darby called it a “good question” adding, “we are going to work with engineers, etc.” “There will be varying levels (of traffic) coming through our dispensaries,” Darby continued. “In higher traffic environments, we will make use of virtual queues (explaining that customers will be able to purchase goods from their mobile device, using an app). There are several different ways of managing traffic so that folks aren’t sitting there.” Darby maintained the “average wait time” for customers at Far & Dotter is “under seven minutes,” and advised the council “you are looking at 7 to 10 minutes” for each transaction. Rizvi maintained that one of the things he did is “visited a lot of the neighbors in the area” of 348 Lakehurst Road, to get a sense of how they would feel about him opening there. “The one question I was asked by the pizza shop, and the bagel shop is, ‘Are you going to bring more business to my business?’” Rizvi said. “The answer is ‘yes.’ I can confidently say the business community is supportive of our location at this time.” Also during the presentation, Rizvi maintained “I do plan on hiring locally,” planning to provide salaries for some positions of $65,000 to $80,000, with any hourly positions compensated between $18 and $21 an hour. “I plan to invest $1 million in the local economy, in developing the site and boosting economic activity here,” the proprietor added. The press release announcing that Rizvi had been selected as a New Jersey franchisee of Far & Dotter noted it is the “brand’s mission” to bring “best-in-class products and holistic health services to patients across the country,” with the local team’s plan, as detailed on Oct. 25, to bring a “wellness tool” to the community where patients “should be treated with respect and care.” And “since we are healthcare focused,” Rizvi declared, “any customer has free access to a doctor, or pharmacist.” Rizvi, after being asked by Tompkins whether he could aid locals with their selection of Medicare and Medicaid, with the mayor noting that sometimes the “process can be overwhelming,” replied, “Yes, actually I have a lot of experience with Medicare and Medicaid.” When it came time for public comment, Dr. Peter Van Deerlin, who described himself as a medical doctor since 1997 and has been a practicing physician at the South Jersey Fertility Center since then, according to an online biography, declared he is “very much in favor of having this firm come to this property.” Van Deerlin is also the owner of Villa Chapman Apartments at 350 Lakehurst Road, next door to the proposed site. “There are many advantages to the tow nsh ip,” Van D e erl i n c onti nue d. “Obviously, jobs; improving the property, and health benefits, which I recognize as a doctor. I like that he emphasizes the health aspects.” A question Van Deerlin put to the principles: “How soon could you get going in prepping the building and stuff?” “Obviously, it is our intention to move it along as quickly as possible,” Darby answered. See WELLNESS/ Page 19
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(Continued from Page 2) Hornickel retorted that he “kindly hasn’t seen” the piece that Ward is referring to, but what he can say is that funding from the UEZ authority is used to “help downtown businesses,” including with “inventory and improvements.” One local funeral home, he maintained, “borrowed $25,000” from the program to “rehabilitate their building.” “And on top of that, when our residents shop at UEZ businesses, they pay half the state sales tax,” Hornickel pointed out. “They save 3.3 percent! So, there is a benefit for our residents, too, especially if they buy something worth a lot of money.” Wa rd , however, p er sist e d t hat he “would like to hold off” on approving the resolution. McCartney persisted as well that she would “like to do that too,” explaining the reason she had some questions about how the program is actually benefiting the township is because the municipality “lost a lot of businesses over the years.” “Is that something a business owner would be attracted to?” she asked of the program. This newspaper’s review of the situation found that the program’s incentives appear to not be advertised in a visible way by the township, impacting what could be a major economic draw for local businesses – a major sales tax break on purchased goods that you can’t find elsewhere in the local area. Rather, the benefits of the program are listed on a webpage found under a secondary tab for the municipal Office of Com munity Development website: h t t p s : / / w w w. p e m b e r t o n - t w p . c o m / departments/community_development/ urban_enterprise_zone.php . There it says that “any business interested in becoming a member of the Pemberton Township Urban Enterprise Zone should contact the Department of Community Development.” “Pemberton Township was designated as an Urban Enterprise Zone in May 23, 1996,” the webpage explains. “The designation, prompted by the New Jersey Urban Enterprise Act of 1983, authorized the provision of tax incentives and other benefits to businesses targeted in distressed urban areas throughout the State of New Jersey. The intended impact of the Urban Enterprise Zone legislation was the revitalization of the state’s distressed urban communities through the creation of private sector jobs and investment in targeted urban areas. “In Pemberton Township, since the Urban Enterprise Zone’s inception, 184 private sector employers have participated in the program, investing $29,243,948 in the participating businesses. “T he Pemb er ton Tow nsh ip Urban Enterprise Zone Program is administered
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM under the auspices of the Department of Community Development, and can be reached at 609-894-3306.” The benefits as described by the township webpage, include: • “SA LE S A N D USE TA X EXEMPTIONS: Participating Urban Enterprise Businesses are exempt from paying the state sales tax on certain products and ser v ic e s. A fter b ei ng approved by the state Urban Enterprise Zone Offic e, the business re c eives a combined Urban Enter pr ise Exempt Purchase Permit and Exempt Qualifying Bu s i n e s s Pe r m it d i r e c t ly f ro m t h e New Jersey Division of Taxation. The business also receives a Contractor’s Exempt Purchase Certificate. These certificates must be presented when taxexempt purchases are made. Each year the business receives updated permits and certificates after it re-certifies into the program. • R E DUC E D SA LE S TA X: Participating retailers are eligible to charge a reduced sales tax (3.125 percent rather than 6.625 percent) on merchandise. Before any retail business can collect the reduced sales tax, it must complete a New Jersey Division of Taxation UZ-1 form. The Division of Taxation will send the business a Sales Tax Certificate of Authority for reduced sales collections. • E M P L OY E E TA X C R E D I T: Participating businesses that are not warehousing or retail-sales oriented, may be eligible for the Employee Tax Credit. It is available to corporations subject to the Corporate Business Tax which hire certain new employees at the zone location after they have been certified into the program. The corporation may claim either a $1,500 or $500 credit for each new employee, provided certain employment criteria are met. • UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE AWARD: Participating businesses that h i re new e mploye e s me eti ng one or more of the following criteria, and who a lso have a p osit ive u ne mploy me nt insurance rate, are eligible to apply for an Unemployment Insurance Award. The employees must earn less than $4,500 per quarter. Every March, the Department of Labor will send an application to all businesses that report hiring employees meeting the necessary criteria.” Republican Mayor Jack Tompkins, in answering the question McCartney posed about whether businesses would be interested in the UEZ program’s offerings, asserted, “Low- or no-interest loans would interest me.” “Especially with interest rates around 8 percent right now,” the mayor added. But McCartney pointed out to the mayor that even with the program existing, “a lot of our businesses have not stayed.”
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Tompkins said that in talking with Tow n s h i p D i r e c t o r of C o m mu n it y Development Rosemary Flaherty (who recently took over from Dave Benedetti), what the township intends to do moving forward is “use some of these low interest loans” to “fix-up the faces of buildings” and that even if the businesses occupying those storefronts go out of business, “those buildings are still going to be there for the next business to carry on.” It is “also an investment in our town,” the mayor argued. But with the hesitancy to move forward apparent, at one point the mayor quipped, “I don’t know what are we supposed to do.” Ward answered he “doesn’t want to go there” with a “negative argument.” However, “$29 million over the course of 27 years: that is $1 million per business, or $586 per year to 284 businesses,” with the councilman contending it costs an average of $3,500 to train just one employee, suggesting the $586 is not merely enough, especially considering there are 1.9 employees per business. “So, I prefer … I’d like to table,” Ward maintained. “I understand the deadline, and I am sorry, but I would like to speak with Com munity Development, faceto-face, to explore the benefits, and also ask the big question, ‘Why is our entire township encompassed in UEZ?’” Ward called it “kind of strange” that Pemberton is the “only municipality in New Jersey” that is an UEZ “from end-to-end.” (It was ultimately pointed out to Hornickel that the UEZ does not encompass the entire township, but rather most of it.) Gardner, in recognizing there was a danger that the resolution would not pass, asked the business administrator, “What is the consequence?” “The consequence is we pay out of pocket to do a five-year plan,” responded Hornickel in pointing out the township would lose out on the opportunity to receive $250,000 from the state. With the UEZ authority meeting once a month, the business administrator said the township would “not realistically” hear from the entity until the New Year, should Pemberton want to seek some sort of relief from the deadline. The council president stressed that the resolution at issue for the evening is “just a request” to “develop a five-year plan” and doesn’t commit to approving one. Dewey, who has recently made some remarks critical of the township Public Works Department and has called for better management of township finances, wanted to know why the municipality “needs a pickup” for UEZ. Hornickel answered that the “prior UEZ law enabled us to use some of the money to maintain downtown” and that the 1999 Ford F-250 he believed the councilman was referencing “still runs.”
“I didn’t understand why we needed three vehicles,” Dewey quipped. The business administrator, who has been with the township for about four years now, responded that the purchases were before his time, but that “at one point they picked up trash” with them. D e we y a n d Hor n i c ke l , who h ave recently got into some terse exchanges in the public eye, got into yet another when the councilman declared that he “thinks it would be a benefit if we did away” with the UEZ. “I do not believe so!” retorted the business administrator. “Our goal is to spend as little as possible, on township issues, and to tr y to get as much of the funds in the hands of businesses downtown, who need it.” Hornickel, in also making a “clarification for Ward” in pointing out that he doesn’t believe the UEZ, for instance, “covers the Fort Dix installation component of Pemberton,” said “he and I agree” that the UEZ doesn’t need to cover the entire town. “We used to have a business district on Magnolia Road, and that kind has dried up, and that is in UEZ,” said the business administrator of the area outlined for the benefits of the current plan. Dewey said the bottom-line is that he would “like to know how many businesses in Pemberton, and how many people, signed up for the UEZ,” calling it a “very important question” that he would like to “find out” an answer to. Hornickel answered that he “can certainly try to get that report.” “I think if you are going to try to improve the town, then I think you have to go in a different direction,” Dewey declared. “We need to lift our heads up and get the job done! And just for 3.3 percent – it just tells you are a ‘depressed community.’ We should hold our heads up.” Also sensing that the resolution might not pass to simply seek proposals for the development of a five-year plan, Township Solicitor Andrew “Andy” Bayer reiterated what Gardner had emphasized, that the item is “just authorizing an issuance of proposals – to receive them.” There was still evident reluctance as indicated by some per iods of silence during the voting process, but the item u lt i m at ely s que e z e d by a long par t y lines, with Dewey and Ward voting in opposition. McCartney, the key pivotal vote, ultimately was the one who reversed course in her initial thinking, recognizing, “we have time” and that the creation of a plan “is just a proposal.” The plan development process, “gives us time to ask questions,” she concluded.
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(Continued from Page 3) maintained. “We are going to be using them all year long. So, when we lease the vehicles, we lease for 7 or 8 weeks. So, there is a big difference in usage with what we have been using them for in the past, and with what we will be using them for in the future.” Ward responded that “he would agree with that,” and so it “concerns me even more” because as it “gets used even more,” there is a “repair and maintenance bill on that” and that “$20,000 a year goes up over 20 years, not down.” “So, it is concerning,” Ward declared. “We seem to be spending a lot of money all at once.” But even in the event that the township was still just looking to only rent trash trucks for 7 or 8 weeks, Hornickel indicated it was no longer financially feasible to do so. “When we first started renting these garbage trucks three years ago, we paid $32,000, now it is up to $40,000,” he said. “So, it has gone up $8,000 in three years. So, if you take $40,000 and accelerate that over 20 years, it is not going to be $800,000 in rental fees, it will be well over $1 million in rental fees, and again, that is just for renting them for 7 or 8 weeks in a year.” At the time, however, Tompkins and Hornickel stopped short of mentioning any possibility that the administration was considering bringing trash pickup back in-house. Gardner, on April 5, asked for a motion on the resolution, but there was dead silence, leading Democratic Councilman Paul Detrick to assert, “Maybe it needs a little bit more discussion.” When Township Solicitor Andrew “Andy” Bayer pointed out that if there is no motion made by the governing body, the resolution “just dies,” Ward asked if council could “postpone” the item. “What are we looking for to help us out?” asked Democratic Councilwoman Elisabeth McCartney, who has become a pivotal swing vote in recently not always voting with her party, but instead, at times, joining with Dewey and Ward in decisions. “What do we need to know?” Gardner replied, “Let’s just table this and have them come back to us again,” and in answering the councilwoman’s question, said that the council would be waiting for “Mr. Hornickel to give us a little more information, so we are clear on what we are voting for.” McCartney noted that it “might be helpful to see how we are going to save money.” Gardner then formally announced the item was tabled “to a later date,” though no roll call vote was taken. “The Board of Education is going to jack (up) taxes,” said Detrick in trying to offer an explanation at the time for council’s inaction. “So, we are looking at our expenses harder.”
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A few minutes after Hornickel slammed council on Oct. 18, Dewey, during his council comments, declared, “Let’s go back to the garbage trucks!” “When you first proposed it, you wanted two garbage trucks to haul leaves, and then when it was getting close (to council having to make a decision), I had private meeting with you, in your office, about the garbage trucks, and I said, ‘Are you going to put plows on them?’ You said, ‘Oh, no.’ Then it came to the board, and I asked the same question, and you said, ‘Of course, we are going to put plows.’ That is why I voted no! Because you will be spending all that money to destroy them, because we don’t have any facility here to take care of the trucks! Do you remember that?!” As Hornickel attempted to answer Dewey, the councilman quipped, “You said one thing in your office, and then you came out here and said something else!” When there was an announcement in August that the township was adjusting the trash collection schedule in certain areas to remove Saturdays, a resident had come forward to express it was inefficient, reporting that as a result of the change, her pick up is now We d ne sd ays and Fridays. It was described that not much trash is put out on a Friday because it had just been collected. As the resident maintained “one day a week is adequate,” Detrick acknowledged it “sounds like twice the work” is being done. Tompkins, who also was seated in January, to the mayoral post, replied at the time that he “really doesn’t have a good answer for you” as to why it was decided to have trash collection two days a week. (Most area towns have pickup once weekly.) “With the trash, are we considering one day a week?” asked Dewey in the wake of Hornickel’s Oct. 18 pair of revelations. “Well, the primary haulers now use onearm bandits, and for us to do one day a week, we would have to incur the cost of giving everybody trash cans, which amounts to several hundreds of thousands of dollars to do 95-gallon cans (apparently, by cutting back to one day a week, there is a concern there would be more weight in the trash cans for any individuals throwing the garbage in the back of a truck, hence the need for onearm bandits),” Hornickel replied. But Hornickel said for council to “tell me how you want it” and he will place it in the “bid specs.” When it came time for McCartney’s Oct. 18 council comments, Hornickel reiterated that he had “hoped to bring it in house,” or the trash collection, as he was “confident he could have saved money.” It led McCartney to ask if the purchase of the two, new trash trucks is “something we can revisit.” “The difficulty with that is nobody is going to bid on a contract for not less than
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three years,” the business administrator said, believing that council would not be able to procure and obtain the trucks in time for March 2024. “There are supply chain issues. We would not be able to get them for 18 months to two years.” He maintained that when he had “planned to use the garbage trucks to do leaf pickup,” he at that time asked neighboring towns if they had garbage trucks to spare or lend, “but unfortunately, they are doing the same thing!” “We could conceivably use wheel loaders and dump bodies, but the problem is with wheel loaders, you have to dump all the leaves, and they only hold a third (of what a garbage truck does),” Hornickel declared. “You are making triple the work, and double, if not triple the effort by using the existing equipment because it is not made for that! “And at this point, it is so late in the year ….” The “heavy lift” work is something Hornickel decried as being “unnecessary.” Hor n i ckel’s r evelat ion a nd sh a r p comments drew the ire of Ward, believing the business administrator’s fire was aimed at him and Dewey for having questioned the need for the expenditure back in April. “I don’t appreciate the cheap shots, and am really getting tired of it! Alright! The trash trucks were approved in December of 2022 in a bond ordinance, Daniel, and I was here for that meeting. So, don’t shake your head no! I was here for that!” The “bond ordinance passed,” the business administrator retorted, “but (council) didn’t approve purchase of the trash trucks!” Ward strongly refuted the blame being put on “us.” By the following Monday, Hornickel, after being asked questions about the situation, replied to this newspaper in part, that “I would like to clarify something for the record that was recently brought to my attention.” “Council didn’t vote down the purchase of the garbage trucks; rather, it appears that at a meeting, I had requested to remove the item from council’s agenda,” he wrote. “So, I owe the council (and the public) an apology because I was wrong about what I stated with regard to that topic.” The public apology came at the end of the special Oct. 25 session. “After the meeting, it was brought to my attention, that I erred in my comments about the garbage trucks,” said Hornickel in issuing the apology. “It was brought to my attention that it wasn’t just council that didn’t approve the purchase, rather I had asked it be pulled from the agenda. At the time, I thought it was disapproved, and was wrong. I have no problem admitting when I am wrong, and would like to apologize to Mr. Ward and all of council in regard to that.” Ward accepted the apology, but it was not discussed on Oct. 25 what, if anything council plans to do to resolve the situation.
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McCartney, on Oct. 18, after Hornickel’s revelations about leaf collection and trash pick-up, declared, “I’d like to recommend br i ng i ng it back,” or the resolution authorizing the purchase of the two, new trash trucks, with Bayer providing counsel to the governing body that “you can ask the council president to relist it.” But now, in a revelation to this newspaper by Hornickel, two trash trucks may not even be enough for the township to adequately make collections. It was made in response to this newspaper asking him, “How many trash trucks would you need at this point to do trash pick-up in-house? Is this completely off the table? For leaves: Can you get a leaf vacuum from Medford Lakes (which recently acquired one)?” “We would need to purchase at least three trucks to bring garbage collection in-house,” he responded to this newspaper. “Theoretically, we could start with two, but would need the third quickly if either of the other two are out of service. “We did ask around to other towns. The problem with the leaf vacuum is that (for whatever reason) some residents comingle rubble, cinder or blocks with their leaves, which damages the vacuum. If the vacuum gets damaged from use, the township has to pay the cost to repair or replace. Additionally, curbside pickup of unbagged leaves has stricter time requirements for removal.” All of these developments led this newspaper to ask Hornickel point blank, “At this point, with the trash situation, is it believed a significant tax hike is likely in 2024?” “We are looking at all of our options,” he answered. “Councilman Dewey questioned whether we’re looking at changing service from two days a week to one day a week. His observation is prescient; we need to consider one day per week service if that can constrain what will be a significant rate hike (we bill Solid Waste separately) for the current arrangement.” And in light of Hornickel’s discovery that the trash truck item was “pulled” and not voted down, this newspaper asked the business administrator, “What happens now, for the benefit of council, to try and resolve the situation without the added expense of continuing with a private contractor?” and can, for example, the township look to lease equipment from another county in the state. “We’re looking at bidding alternatives,” he answered. “We can’t go out of county or out of state because Burlington County has a flow control ordinance that compels all municipalities to deposit residential waste at the Burlington County landfill.” When pressed on the possibility of seeking the equipment out of county, he responded, “there will have to be a followup conversation with council.” “I don’t have a timetable for that yet,” he added.
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LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES
BACKLASH
(Continued from Page 12) that is what you are supporting.’” “I didn’t say ‘you’ or ‘you,’ … I said if, ‘You are (not in) support of cannabis, this is what you are supporting – the racism behind legalization of cannabis,” said Gardner, seemingly undercutting what Detrick had just tried to maintain, as well as his own initial response of trying to claim the remarks were that of what was featured on film. It led Detrick to maintain “just for the record, I don’t think any councilmember thinks that a person who comes up here and speaks out against it, is doing that because they are a racist.” “I don’t think anybody up here is of that opinion,” Detrick added. A 69-year resident, named Harry, who noted he was “really impressed with the presentation” of the cannabis proprietors heard on Oct. 25, though he still had a number of concerns as a retired law enforcement officer, made a point to “echo Mr. Doyle,” though he quipped, “I actually enjoyed the one-sided propaganda film.” “I think it was informative,” the man declared. “But I think the remark was uncalled for and unnecessary. And I think a lot of times people use the words ‘racist, racism’ when they have nothing else to offer. And for the people in this room to be told ‘you might be a racist, you might have a problem with people of other ethnic backgrounds’ – it wasn’t me.” (The man was making a point that in voicing concerns with cannabis during the meeting, he is not a racist.) Resident Michelle Forman, who has repeatedly gone on the record with her opposition to allowing the cannabis in town, and repeated during this session she is “100 percent against cannabis,” upon coming before the dais, “thanked the person who talked about the racism thing.”
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM “Because I have heard this numerous times from you before!” declared Forman in pointing to Gardner. “I don’t appreciate it at all, as a white woman! And as to your other comment, I don’t need to smoke marijuana to be with a black man! I hate to talk about this stuff at a meeting!” Gardner responded, “those are not my words, but what I said,” and tried several times to cut Forman short, but the resident continued to castigate him. “Secondly, the last time you talked about all this – you said, ‘Black men had to smoke marijuana to be with white men,’” Forman maintained. “That is what you said! And I can find it!” As Gardner “challenged” Forman to “find those words,” declaring, “I want you to find those words!”, the resident asserted his comments about race “really isn’t appropriate at council meetings” and they are to the point of being so offensive that “I don’t even want to repeat it.” “In saying that, my first husband was white, and my second husband was black, and I have biracial children,” Forman said. “And as far as being a racist, it is ridiculous! I went to Shawnee High School in Medford and graduated in 1979. My best friends were out there smoking every day, who were white! There were like five black people in my school. It had nothing to do with black people! They were all smoking it out there!” Doyle later contacted this newspaper, m a i n t a i n i n g G a r d n e r ’s c o m m e n t s immediately following the video were “absolutely disgusting.” In response to Doyle’s outrage also comprising that other officials in the room didn’t immediately challenge Gardner, Republican Mayor Jack Tompkins offered to “explain my position in case anyone has forgotten.” “I am not a big fan of cannabis,” he said. “I am retired military, 20 years. You could not use it. It was illegal. I was an NCO (noncommissioned officer) and had top secret clearance. If I used it, and got busted, I would
have probably gone to prison, and life was over. … It is considered a Class I narcotic by the federal government and is still federally illegal. “But I also got elected as mayor of the town. I stood over there, took an oath to obey the constitution of the state, and the laws of the state. This state said it is legal. And if I have something come before us, I have to look at what is legal and not legal, not what my personal viewpoints are. I am not a fan, and I won’t support it unless I absolutely, positively have to by law, and then, I don’t have a choice.” Tompkins pointed out he has “friends who are military veterans, who have a hard time sleeping” and “quite a few of them smoke it at night to get a good night sleep,” before maintaining, “What you do in the privacy of your home is none of my damn business – that is your business, not mine.” “I still believe it is federally illegal, (however),” the mayor maintained. “You can’t put a deposit in the bank and say you got (the money) from selling cannabis. I have a bit of an issue with that to be honest.” And given “it is federally illegal,” the Republican mayor maintained he “thinks it trumps everything else.” “If you have cannabis in your pocket and drive on the base, you are going to jail and it is only a mile away, and still in the State of New Jersey,” Tompkins asserted. “That is my two cents!” Gardner, however, retorted that “yes, you can,” appearing to dispute that one cannot deposit cannabis sale money in a bank, before pointing out he “too spent 22 years in the military” and was given “secret clearance,” maintaining he has “been around cannabis my entire life” even though “I never smoked it, rolled it, or grew it.” “I don’t want anyone to think I enjoy it, or love it,” Gardner quipped. “No! I am just not afraid of it!” When it came time for council to vote on a letter of support for the cannabis enterprise,
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Saturday, November 4, 2023 which will next be taken to the state for a license approval process, Republican Councilman Dan Dewey, in casting his vote, declared, “For the record, I am not a racist – ‘no!’” Dewey later maintained his vote is based on having to follow federal law for his business, while GOP Councilman Joshua Ward joined with Dewey in casting a vote of opposition, maintaining his vote had to do with concerns of there being a “race to the door” given a limit on the number of dispensaries allowed in town (see separate story). The Democratic members, however, put the item over the finish line in what became a 3-2 vote along party lines. During council comments, Ward said he wanted to “address some things,” and read a quote aloud, ‘“Most people do not listen with the intent to understand, they listen with the intent to reply.”’ “The first time Donovan brought up Harry Anslinger a while back, I too was offended at first,” Ward said. “I went home, and I was mad; really mad, asking, ‘How could someone say this to me?’ … And then it got brought up again. It is kind of why I probably was immune to it at this point in time.” In pointing out he “loves to read,” Ward suggested he has since come to the understanding that the council president is “not directly calling someone a racist” by “showing a movie or periodical.” “Quite honestly, I got into reading (about this), and it opened up a whole new world to me,” Ward said. “I thought it was interesting how this man (Anslinger) went around and did these things. Then I read an op-ed, from Harvard Law, with another different view. I charge anyone to go online and read it. Google it; it is interesting to say the least.” Ward – who previously was far more vocal in his opposition to cannabis use – maintained of his current position that “quite honestly, I don’t care what you do in your See BACKLASH/ Page 23
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(Continued from Page 15) “Depending on Land Use approvals, construction takes 120 to 160 days. I estimate a year for us being open and operating, and being potentially a few months early, depending on how kind the Land Use process goes.” Also lending their support were two union representatives, Hugh Giordano, of UFCW Local 360 and A.F.L.-C.I.O., and Michell Marinnie, also of UFCW Local 360. Giordano, as a representative of the “official labor union that represents cannabis workers from seed to sale,” declared he was appearing in council chambers to “speak in favor of Far & Dotter” as a firm that signed a “labor peace agreement” to commit to “economic and social justice” as well as allowing their employees to “form and join a union” without intimidation, “which means” allowing workers access to a “livable wage, healthcare, etc.” Having Far & Dotter in Pemberton, Giordano proclaimed, “will add economic equality amongst Pemberton,” with “these workers usually university graduates” from Rutgers, Stockton and Rowan universities with the “vast majority highly educated” in chemistry-related fields. And retail outlets like Far & Dotter “makes me proud,” Giordano further declared, because they resemble the “medical environment … as if I walk into Rite Aid or CVS.” The final reason Giordano gave for his endorsement of Far & Dotter’s plan is that “there has been a study that shows housing prices go up” and there are also economic benefits beyond taxation, including that towns with dispensaries have “seen declined usage in prescription drugs,” with patients turning to cannabis to treat their conditions. Marinnie, in following up on the points of “my director,” maintained simply “it will allow union jobs to come into town” where “maybe working for a dispensary could be a career.” While there were a number of individuals who spoke in favor of Far & Dotter’s application, there was at least some opposition, as has been the case with past cannabis measures, including some people who are vocally opposed to such firms. That included local farmer Valerie Roohr. “I said from the very beginning, I am against drugs in this township,” she declared. “I am against anyone who walks in here and thinks it is OK to bring drugs in our township! I will never be OK with you bringing drugs into our township!” Contrary to a video Gardner had played at the beginning of the meeting (see separate story), Roohr maintained “marijuana is the gateway drug.” “You can say it is not, but it is!” declared Roohr, maintaining Pemberton Township is headed towards becoming a “drug-infested” place that will simply be a “pit hole.” “I have never been so ashamed of Pemberton
LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES ♦ Page 19
AD HOTLINE: (609) 801-2392 Township as I am today!” Roohr added. When the Far & Dotter representatives were asked if they could share projections for how much sales they plan to make each year, one of them replied that he did not know if he wanted to speak to that, but that the firm is “not anticipating any slowdown.” It was added that a capital investment of $1.5 million is being made “so we are serious about what we are looking to do.” After Roohr quipped, “We don’t know how much money …,” she declared, “Maybe if you weren’t doing the drugs you might know!” “You can go back where you came from!” she sharply told the principles. America Phillips, a regular meeting attendee, asked if bringing a cannabis dispensary to town is the only thing the town is capable of attracting, asserting, “I think we can do better!” She maintained there is already an existing connotation associated with Pemberton of “marijuana and drugs.” “And they (cannabis applicants) are coming to you like vultures,” Phillips maintained. “Oh, ‘We are getting money, money, money.’ Are you money hungry? Let them go somewhere else and make a living! Don’t take advantage of the residents! I hope this township says no and they go find another place!” Roohr contended “don’t tell me it helps everybody, because it doesn’t,” citing an argument made during the session that cannabis can help those with certain medical conditions. She claimed her sister found marijuana of no use for treating the effects brought about by cancer. “What it does is it winds up getting you addicted to it, so you end up using it for fun,” Roohr maintained. “And what they do is, they get in a car, drive down my road at 90 mph and everybody in the car is stoned! That is what happens!” That brought about a rebuke from Detrick, who in maintaining “alcohol causes way more problems to our youth, our citizenry and our health than cannabis has ever been shown to cause,” contended that “driving down the road at 90 mph” happens “a lot more” with “people on alcohol than on cannabis.” “Most of the people I have seen high and smoked it, are driving going 10 mph under the speed limit,” Detrick said. “The problem is you put everything in a big pile and call them ‘drugs.’ And there are different drugs. Some aren’t so bad.” Resident Desiree King also strongly refuted the argument considering marijuana a harmful drug, declaring, “true drug addiction is not from marijuana, but from the pharmacies providing you drugs!” She urged those opposing the cannabis dispensary to watch a program on Netflix that highlights how addiction is not caused by marijuana, but rather “from pills.” She received applause when revealing she used marijuana in the past, as a cancer survivor, and is “not addicted.”
Local Christine Ferrara backed up that claim, maintaining she used marijuana in her teenage years, and she is “perfectly fine” today, currently “a great mom and wife.” “I never, ever have been addicted,” Ferrara maintained. Daniel Jensen, named director of security for the planned Far & Dotter location, and also the CEO of Calm in Chaos, as well as an outreach organization, also responded to the criticism, by telling his story that led him to activism, describing that he “never touched cannabis in any way, shape, or form” until he was 27. The 12-year career medic recounted that it “wasn’t until I started going in a new direction due to the stress from being in EMS” that he transitioned to security, a new field which “brought me into different things.” He was 350 pounds, he said, at age 27, and had suffered from an “Ambien addiction” for nine years “when somebody
gave me some products” to try. “From that day on, I never touched another pill again – and refuse to,” declared Jensen, maintaining that with proper use and education on cannabis, it has taken his career to a “whole new level.” Another woman, by the name of Ann, said she can understand “what people are saying about drugs,” but the “dispensary is regulated,” unlike the marijuana sold on the street. “Here it is regulated, so you know what you are getting,” she said. Concurring with that point was another woman named Tracy, who described that one of her friends bought marijuana from what is known as a “dark room” in the 1970s and came out with a “nickel bag” and since then has been in a psychiatric hospital because it was “laced with something.” “Mr. Detrick touched on alcohol versus See WELLNESS/ Page 21
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CHALLENGE (Continued from Page 10)
business law, has authored numerous articles and several books on legal topics, including “What You Need to Know About Guns, Drugs and Drunk Driving in New Jersey.” He was also the lead military prosecutor for the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division’s Light Infantry First Brigade Combat Team in Baghdad’s Western District. When asked what he believes qualifies him to help lead Burlington County in the next three years, he replied, “Service is in my blood. Not only am I prepared to serve my community as a county commissioner, I am also looking forward to using my experience as a trial lawyer to hold the Democratic commissioners’ feet to the fire and have them answer the tough questions of how, where, and why they have been misspending our tax dollars since they took control of county government.” In response to how he would change the direction of county government, Gambone declared, “We need to end the Democrats’
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(Continued from Page 8) with disabilities. Since 2021, they have been awarded $280,000 in IHC grant funding. “It is wonderful to see public and private organizations partner to create equitable access to natural areas for New Jerseyans with disabilities, as we witnessed at the Atsion Recreation Area,” Adelman said. “Our goal is always to help our communities become more fully accessible to the wide array of individuals who we serve, and this is the latest example of those efforts. We
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practice of patronage hires of politically connected individuals in county government.” “It is time to put experienced and knowledgeable professionals at the reins, making decisions that affect Burlington County residents and the services they receive,” he added. On the question of what reforms he thinks are most needed on a county level, Gambone contended, “When Democrats took control of county government in 2019, they scrapped a double-dipping ban that Republicans put in place to stop elected officials and employees from getting two bites at the apple by collecting both a pension payment and a paycheck.” “I will push to bring back the doubledipping ban,” he declared. Asked whether he thinks Burlington County voters are ready for a change in the political make-up of the board, and if so, why, he replied, “Voters know government works best when there are checks and balances” and that “having Democrat one-party rule in every county office leads to dysfunction.” Vernamonti is a former president of the Medford Masonic Lodge, a founding member of the American Optometric Society, and past board member and committee chair of the
New Jersey Society of Optometric Physicians. In regard to what his qualifications are to help lead Burlington County over the next three years, he responded, “As an active community volunteer and small business owner, I understand our local families are concerned with affordability.” “I know how to manage a budget, manage staff, and deliver real results and efficiencies for Burlington County,” Vernamonti declared. As for how he would change the direction of county government Vernamonti said that one of his top priorities will be “ensuring that we institute an open and transparent process for the awarding of all county contracts.” “We saw during the pandem ic the Occupational Training Center, which provides jobs to special needs individuals, lose a cleaning contract in favor of a politically connected company from North Jersey,” he said. “That was just disgraceful.” Asked what reforms he thinks are most needed on a county level, Vernamonti replied, “I will fight to put an end to incompetent leadership that leads to costly mistakes and wasted tax dollars.” “We’ve seen a trend of county departments not handling basic duties,” he continued.
“Democrat county commissioners went an entire year without paving one mile of roadway. The Clerk’s office has had to pay for corrected mailings to fix mistakes in nearly every single election. Enough with the incompetence. Burlington County voters deserve better.” Both Republican candidates also said that if elected, they will vote to have County Commission meetings videotaped and made available to the public and media. “Absolutely,” Gambone declared. “When Democrats took control of Burlington County, they stopped posting videos on YouTube. That decision was such a disservice to county residents who can’t always make the trip to Mount Holly and deserve to know what is happening at these meetings.” Ver na monti adde d that “we ne e d t r a n s p a r e n c y t o h ave a n e f fe c t ive government” and “Burlington County is the largest county in the state (in area) and our residents in the furthest corners need an option to stay informed on decisions that affect their lives.” “Remov ing v ideo recordings from commissioner meetings leads to one question: What are the Democrats trying to hide?” Vernamonti concluded.
thank the NJDEP for their partnership and commitment to help us break down barriers to ensure individuals with disabilities can access the natural wonders of our state.” Ac c e s sibi l it y i mprove me nt s m a de possible by the IHC fu nd i ng at the Atsion Recreation Area include: beach wheelchairs; trail-adapted wheelchairs; guided hikes suitable for individuals with or without disabilities on the accessible trails of Wharton State Forest, including the Red Trail at Atsion Recreation Area; and staff training for the Pinelands Adventures program. The wheelchairs are available at no cost
and are available at the park. “The NJDEP is committed to expanding accessible and inclusive outdoor recreation opportunities that support the health and well-being of communities throughout New Jers ey,” NJDEP Com m issioner Shawn M. LaTourette said. “The State Park Service this past summer proudly unveiled its first inclusive playgrounds for each region of the state park system and announced upgrades for other playgrounds. At Atsion Recreation Area, we installed an inclusive playground, and used input from the Pinelands Preservation Alliance’s Access Nature Forum to make accessibility
improvements to the Red Trail and received their donation of beach wheelchairs so that everyone, regardless of ability, can experience the rejuvenating effects of being in nature.” As part of a partnership between DEP’s Coastal Management Program and Human Services’ Division of Disability Services’ IHC Grant Program, the PPA was among three grantees that received an extra $30,000 in funding to help communities implement initiatives that increase inclusive recreational access to coastal resources for See TOUR/ Page 21
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(Continued from Page 19) marijuana,” she said. “I was a partyer till 1996, and I can tell you I’d rather drive along someone high, than drunk. A drunk person has no control at all. I am all for it being legal.” When it came time for council to pass a resolution titled, “Supports the Location and Operation of a Class 5 Retail Cannabis Dispensary Operated by Far & Dotter Wellness, LLC,” the measure passed 3-2, along party lines, with Republican Councilmen Dan Dewey and Joshua Ward casting the opposing votes. Gardner, in defending his vote, pointed to results from a 2020 referendum asking if voters approve amending the state Constitution to legalize a controlled form of cannabis. The council president maintained 17,274 people are registered to vote in town, and when the question came up, more than 11,000 people voted with a 68 percent turnout. The question passed, he pointed out, 8,343 to 2,847. “So, wh e n you a r e a sk i ng , ‘W hy Pemberton?’ This is why Pemberton! The state put it out there and this is what residents wanted. … If I flipped to ‘no,’ I wouldn’t be here. This is what people want!” He further asserted “this town needs revenue” and there is simply “nothing else coming in here to produce that much revenue for the town,” quipping “15 pizza stores in this town cannot match that!” In providing a delayed rebuttal to Phillips, Gardner declared, it is indeed “all
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(Continued from Page 20) individuals with disabilities. The Family Resource Network and Allies in Caring also received additional funds to increase recreational opportunities for persons with disabilities in the state’s coastal locations. “The Inclusive Healthy Communities initiative woke us up to the fact that our outdoor recreation programs and all our communications about recreation in the Pinelands excluded people with disabilities,” Pinelands Preser vation Alliance Executive Director Carleton Montgom e r y s a id. “Now we a r e collaborating with a diverse network of partners to make sure people can enjoy the
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about the money.” “Yes, it is about money coming in and what you got to pay in the form of taxes,” the council president maintained. “We are trying to remediate it.” He also declared that “personally, I’d rather be in a room of cannabis smokers, than drunks, because a fight is going to break out any minute when drinking, and I am not about fighting.” “The only bad thing about cannabis is they kill it with philosophy,” the council president quipped. “That is how it is that they kill it – with philosophy. They get wisdom!” The council president maintained the township tried to control cannabis by legalizing the industry in town, which enabled the municipality to put a cap on the number of licenses that can be awarded for each class. (The council, however, did have the option of ‘opting out,’ or disallowing the industry in town beside delivery services, something Roohr called Gardner out on during the session.) But Ward said his contention was in regard to the very cap that had been placed. “We are trying to control the ‘where,’ ‘how,’ and, ‘when’ by utilizing the economic system we are in, and it seems like a race to the door,” Ward maintained. “Whoever gets to the door is the winner.” The Republican councilman said he “agrees” it is “good for the economy and good for tax revenue,” calling it a “valid point,” but added, “I just hope the township is giving a fair handshake to those in the market hoping to open up a business like this.” Gardner disputed the notion it is a “‘race to the door’”, maintaining a license is available
to “whatever organization or business meets the criteria.” But Ward shot back, “when you have two of each license, and you’re at the end, there can’t be anymore,” with Gardner retorting, “Exactly, I don’t want it all over town – my thing is control it, control it.” Dewey, who also appeared to somewhat soften a prior stance, maintained he is “not against marijuana and not against anybody getting into the business,” but that “the problem is, I have a CDL license, and own a trucking firm, and I have to follow federal regulations.” “That is just the way it is with me,” Dewey said. “I understand the state approved it, but I can’t follow those rules with my company.” (Tompkins explains that marijuana is still federally illegal, see separate story.) Jensen said that “any town open to this idea is doing an amazing job and is very forward thinking, and is also being open minded.” “From one ‘Pemberton’ to another, I am here to tell you tonight this is by far the
best group that you can have in Pemberton Township … that is objectively true,” Attorney Pemberton declared. “… Because Dr. Rizvi has decided to engage with Far & Dotter, and make this the New Jersey location, you can rest assured that this group has all the resources and knowledge to be successful from day one, and on top of that, the property will benefit from the beautification and revitalization to turn it into something that is beneficial for every single resident.” Inge, in a brief statement, noted that the township is currently “paying a lot of money for a building just sitting there” or for a “delinquent building,” and is “paying for a building not being used.” His daughter, Maria, who identified on Oct. 25 as a biology student from Rowan, asserted “this town lacks revenue and lacks a lot of other things,” and she is “not proud to say she is from Pemberton” with all the empty storefronts. But in light of council’s vote, Detrick declared, “Maria, I hope we can attract you back to Pemberton.”
natural places they help protect, regardless of disability status. For us and our partners, Inclusive Healthy Communities sparked a fundamental change in our thinking and our practices, which we believe is making New Jersey a better and a fairer place to live and explore.” First launched in January 2021, the IHC grant program works to support communities and ensure that the voices and needs of people with disabilities are included in healthy community planning. “The prog ress made at the Atsion Recreation Area is the beg inning of substantial and sustainable change,” Division of Disability Services Executive Director Peri Nearon said. “Making nature more accessible and inclusive is a systems change, and well worth the effort for all residents of New Jersey. The changes
being made ensure that spaces in nature are more accessible for everyone. The IHC program is making changes like this possible throughout our state.” The IHC program, administered in partnership with the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy of Rutgers University, aims to promote change at the local level by addressing pre-existing physical, environmental, social and economic challenges that prevent individuals with disabilities from having full access to community life that support health and well-being. “The mission of the Bloustein School is to c re at e ju st, so c ial ly i nclu sive, environmentally sustainable, and healthy local, national and global communities. S u p p o r t i n g t h e I n c l u s i v e H e a l t hy Communities and collaborating with our
partners to expand access to nature and the outdoors for people with disabilities is a pressing opportunity to advance disability justice in New Jersey and the Bloustein School is excited to be part of this effort,” Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School Environmental Analysis and Communications Group Executive Director Jeanne Herb said. Deputy Commissioner for Aging and Disabi l ity Ser v ic es Kayle e McGuire concluded that “having access to nature is a fundamental component of a healthy and happy life, and individuals with disabilities deserve equitable access to these benefits.” “The accessibility improvements made at the Atsion Recreation Area ensure that individuals with disabilities can also enjoy the many physical, mental and emotional benefits that nature offers,” she added.
Send resume to: LeisureTowne Association 102 S. Plymouth Ct., Southampton, NJ 08088 or email caa@leisuretowne.org
Association, Inc. 102 S. Plymouth Ct., Southampton, NJ 08088
Page 22 ♦
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own home; I am here to represent the townsfolk, and I am here to help people out, where I can,” adding, “If I sat up here and spouted my own personal opinion from the dais, that would not be good for anybody.” McCartney, before picking up on where Ward left off, let out a huge sigh. “I really wouldn’t say this is a fantastic meeting,” she declared. “I like your comment about listening, and how we listen, and if we are listening for understanding, or getting ready to kind of respond – it kind of summarizes where I am coming from about it not being a fantastic meeting tonight.” The Democratic councilwoman, then, i n mai nt ai n i ng “th is me eti ng real ly has reminded me of my role as a town councilmember,” asserted, “I am a little … I was very disturbed, actually.” “I know Mr. Perry was concerned I didn’t say any words, but sometimes saying no words can get a message across too,” McCartney declared. Then, in pointing to her being a high school teacher and frequently passing out materials to her students for their understanding, she asserted, “We as council should not be putting things in a public arena to influence people.”
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NJ Lic. 13VH06395500 councilperson. This was a reminder of why I am here and what I am doing.” Gardner, however, who had the last word of the session, maintained, “at this point, we do our public comments,” or during council reports, and “it does influence the audience.” “We talk about what is on our mind,” retorted the council president. “The video some people call propaganda – it is for information only. When I am in the classroom teaching something (Gardner has also worked for the local school district), and give information, … if you agree with it, then you believe it; if you don’t agree with it; it is not you.” He then asked why people would get “upset with something you are not,” and maintained that when “people call me
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names, I don’t answer to them because … that is not what I am.” Gardner, in later maintaining to this newspaper that “my comment after the video is being taken out of context and is being sensationalized since it was not directed at anyone, in particular, or (at a) group,” added “the circumstance in which I said it, is not correctly reported, so it seems like I have ill-will behind my comment.” “Cannabis is a touchy subject matter to some, especially when one is not aware of its origin in American legal system,” the council president added. “My comment was and is not meant to prevent anyone from speaking or voting on any cannabis topics. If anyone got their feelings hurt, that was not my intent.”
Page 24 ♦
LOCAL NEWS / FEATURES
WWW.PINEBARRENSTRIBUNE.COM
Saturday, November 4, 2023
FREE UPCOMING HEALTH EDUCATION EVENTS Register by calling 609.394.4153 or register online at capitalhealth.org/events and be sure to include your email address. Please register early. Zoom meeting details will be provided via email 2 – 3 days before the program date. Registration ends 24 hours before the program date.
Coping with School Shootings: Taking Care of Yourself and Your Child Thursday, November 16, 2023 | 6 p.m. Location: Zoom Meeting School shootings have become a tragic fact of life, and the impact of these events often extends beyond the victims and their families to the larger community. Join Dr. Kristina McGuire and licensed clinical social worker Sarah Contor from Capital Health – Behavioral Health Specialists to learn about the far-reaching psychological impact of school shootings and support and coping strategies for children and families.
Small Step Strategies for Prediabetes Monday, November 20, 2023 | 6 p.m. Location: Zoom Meeting Prediabetes puts you at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. The good news is that by making lifestyle changes, it is possible to prevent type 2 diabetes and even reverse prediabetes. Join Mindy Komosinsky, registered dietitian/nutritionist and certified diabetes care and education specialist, to learn more about prediabetes and how small steps can make a big difference in preventing type 2 diabetes.
ADDITIONAL UPCOMING HEALTH EDUCATION EVENTS: OVERCOMING LONELINESS AND SOCIAL ISOLATION Thursday, November 30, 2023 | 6 p.m. Zoom Meeting
THE KNEE: A TO Z Wednesday, December 6, 2023 | 6 p.m. Zoom Meeting
ACHIEVE MORE WITH A HEALTHY PELVIC FLOOR Thursday, December 7, 2023 | 6 p.m. Zoom Meeting