Middle Dem Dirt Machine vs The Truth

As sure as the leaves will fall, late October inevitably brings out the worst in the good old boys who still control the Middle Township Democrat Party. Bereft of any solid vision for a positive path forward in Middle Township, they only seek to secure their power and clear a path back to the taxpayers’ pockets. For six years, Tim Donohue has fought to block that path. Therefore he must be driven from office by any means – the dirtier the better.
Longtime Democrat henchman Mike McNulty’s sad and sordid Letter to the Editor in the Oct. 25 edition of the Herald is a prime example of these desperate and dirty tactics.
McNulty titles his letter “Vote Toth for Good Government,” but never mentions Toth or the Democrat candidate’s ideas to foster that good government. Instead, the letter is nothing but a series of distortions and outright lies. Not only has McNulty missed the boat on the many positive proposals made for our future by Tim Donohue in this campaign; but he also obviously hasn’t followed the six years of solid accomplishments fostered by Tim Donohue during his two terms on Committee.
Let’s break it down: 
THE LIE – On Affordable Housing, the Democrats claim Tim Donohue conjured up the Conifer Development out of thin air and then gave away the store to get them built. That’s a LIE.
THE TRUTH – On Affordable Housing, it is public record that Middle Township placed the Conifer Developments as the cornerstone of the Fair Share Housing Plan the town submitted to the State of New Jersey in 2009. That was three years before Donohue was even on Committee. In 2012, when the Republicans took the majority on Committee, the township was already being sued by Conifer and the judge had ordered the township to honor their previous commitments to Conifer. The state had declared a July 2012 deadline for Middle Township to commit its nearly one million dollars in COAH Trust Funds, or the state would seize those funds. The can that Middle Democrats kicked down the road for two decades could be kicked no more.
Tim Donohue, along with Mayor Dan Lockwood and the full support of Democrat Committeewoman Susan Delanzo, negotiated the best deal possible, with the poor hand dealt them by the Steve Barry Democrats. The PILOT was a REQUIRED element in the Federal Funding Formula used to finance these developments. Township Committee negotiated the highest PILOT percentage allowed by law. Conifer will pay the township close to four million dollars over the 30-year life of the PILOT. Conifer picks up its own trash and plows its own streets. They pay for sewer and water, just like any other customer. More than 60 percent of the folks residing in the Conifer developments were already Middle Township residents before they moved in. Bottom line, we are talking about adding about 200 new residents to a town of nearly 19,000 people. McNulty’s claim that the Conifer developments have forced an increase in property taxes is without merit and not based in any way on the facts. Read the TRUTH here:
www.capemaycountyherald.com/news/government/article_58f5b982-ed47-58c0-8ce7-29d3b8b6e4a2.html
THE LIE – On property taxes, the Dem Dirt Machine claims Tim Donohue didn’t keep his promise to halt never-ending, Democrat tax increases. That’s a LIE X five years.
THE TRUTH – On property taxes, McNulty’s argument is nearly laughable, considering the Middle Township Democrats decade-long taxing spree from 2001 to 2011. Taxes were raised on average more than 12 percent per year. The levy doubled in just seven years. Had those same increases continued for the past six years, the levy would now be over $23 million. Instead, the levy stands at just over $13 million. The TRUTH is that under Tim Donohue’s leadership, the municipal levy was kept under the all-time high set in 2011, for five consecutive years.
THE LIE – On the American Legion Home, McNulty claims Donohue only gave lip service to helping our veterans. That’s a LIE.
THE TRUTH – On the American Legion Home, Tim Donohue took the initiative in 2014 to meet with the Legion members and try to help them find a way to get out from under mounting debt, and improve the property and building. Donohue, who established Middle Township’s Veterans Advisory Board, brought Board Chair Maureen Lozier, Middle Township Economic Development Coordinator Anne Garrison and Cape May County Open Space Fund Board Chairman Peter Lomax to the table and developed a plan for the county to purchase the Legion property, build a new Legion Post and Veteran’s Resource Center, and convert the grounds to a Veterans Memorial Park. Ultimately, the Legion members did not approve the plan because they did not want to give up ownership of the property. The Legion Post has since signed a long term lease with a local church that is helping to pay their ongoing expenses. A positive byproduct of these efforts is that Maureen Lozier is now the Post Commander, and the Post has become more active and recruited new members.
THE LIE – On recreation, the Dirt Machine claims Tim Donohue accomplished nothing with the Recreation Department and took credit for the work of others. That’s a LIE, the exact opposite is true.
THE TRUTH – On recreation, here is a brief list of Tim Donohue’s accomplishments when he had oversight of recreation. Most of these improvements and programs were put in place before Mike Clark or Jeff Devico were even in office.
Donohue oversaw the creation of Middle Township’s Recreation and Open Space Plan, which is based on a survey of Middle Township’s residents that was done in 2013.
Tim Donohue held the first ever employee meetings for all recreation employees. He instituted cross-training, so employees would be trained to work at both the MLK Center and the Goshen Complex. Before Tim Donohue got involved, rec employees were offered zero opportunities for training. Donohue had the supervisors join Recreation Associations and attend training paid for by the township.
Tim Donohue helped develop the vision for the now completed Robert “Ockie” Wisting Recreation Complex. He worked to make Cape Express a viable partner in the plan, and personally made the presentation for funding to the County Open Space Board before Mike Clark or Jeff Devico were ever in office.
Tim Donohue has lead on the completion of our bike path and envisioned the plan to take the bike path north to Dennis Township.
Looking to the future, Donohue has put forth a bold and innovative plan to improve and modernize Middle Township’s Recreation Department. Read the TRUTH here:
www.capemaycountyherald.com/community/article_e3883776-a54d-11e7-9f96-cf346312c4a2.html
and here:
www.capemaycountyherald.com/community/article_912aac7e-b507-11e7-acc3-abda0328df50.html
The LIE – On Del Haven water, the Democrats, who ran the town for seven decades and never addressed this problem, claim Donohue is only raising the issue in 2017. That’s a LIE. Tim Donohue has been working hard, seeking bold and innovative solutions to this problem for three years.
THE TRUTH – On Del Haven water, Tim Donohue brought NJ American Water to the table in 2015 to conduct a survey of potential Del Haven customers and develop a budget for bringing water to Del Haven. When those estimates came back too high, Donohue sought other solutions. In 2016, he proposed bringing water from Lower Township into Del Haven and met with LTMUA officials to discuss the viability of his proposal. In 2017, Wildwood Water Co. was approached and costs are being developed for a proposal to bring water up Route 47 to Del Haven. All three plans are still on the table, as the township tries to develop a proposal that will bring clean water at affordable costs. This is all public record. Read the TRUTH here:
www.shorenewstoday.com/middle_township/water-for-del-haven-discussed-in-rio-grande/article_5ed0dcba-621d-11e5-8ef5-df9e6cdeb9dd.html
THE LIE – On the opioid crisis, McNulty and the Dem Dirt Machine claim Tim Donohue is just now realizing there is a drug problem. Once again, this is a LIE.
THE TRUTH – On the opioid crisis, in 2015 Tim Donohue put forth an impassioned plea for all the players involved to come together to fight the opioid problem, and the ripple effects of hopelessness and crime that surround this crisis. This letter was shared nearly 1,000 times on Facebook. You can read it here:
www.capemaycountyherald.com/news/government/article_2da828d4-a802-11e5-b423-5f6786e21284.html
In his three years as Public Safety Director, Tim Donohue supported the remaking of the Middle Township Police Department into a proactive crime-fighting force. The number of officers has risen from 44 to 53, and the township has spent the funds required to equip our officers with the most up-to-date radios and technology. Working with Chief Leusner and his command staff, Donohue help to implement a three-prong strategy to combat the opioid crisis: enforcement, intervention and education. You can read the TRUTH here:
www.capemaycountyherald.com/community/article_0647895e-aad2-11e7-bc7d-770770ed3a6c.html
One might think that Mr. McNulty is the modern day, Middle Township, Rip Van Winkle. He seems to have slept through a ton of good work and positive change in Middle Township under Tim Donohue’s leadership.
Thankfully, the majority of Middle Township voters are well aware of Tim Donohue’s record. Many of them have joined Mr. Donohue in coming together to do this good work. The voters have gone to the polls twice to affirm their belief in Tim Donohue. In six years, Donohue has done nothing to betray that trust. For the next three years, he will continue to build on this solid foundation of good government.
On Nov. 7, make sure the truth prevails. Put the politics of the past in the rearview mirror once and for all. Re-elect Tim Donohue to Middle Township Committee.
Ordered and paid for by Donohue for Committee, 21 Acorn Ln., Cape May Court House, NJ 08210