Wildwood Candidates Back Consolidation

WILDWOOD – Candidates for city commission agree on one thing: consolidation.
At a forum sponsored by the Greater Wildwood Chamber of Commerce Thur., April 21, it was the one thing the group unanimously said was needed.
“Realistically, the whole town could be one town,” said Peter Byron, one of three candidates running on the “It’s Time…Our Future is Now” platform along with Anthony Leonetti and former mayor, Ernie Troiano Jr.
Byron was the first to tackle a question on favoring consolidation with other Five Mile Beach towns. Questions were submitted to the chamber and picked randomly for candidates to answer. The group was divided into two tables of four and seated, also, in random order in an effort to break up platform blocks. While some candidates that are running together wound up seated next to each other, like incumbent Commissioner Edward “Chip” E. Harshaw Sr. and newcomer Dara Baltuskonis, others, like incumbent Mayor Gary DeMarzo and ex-mayor Troiano were placed side by side.
Who answered what question when was also determined by the luck of the draw.
Byron got the ball rolling on consolidation and it quickly spread throughout the panel. He said if it was economically feasible, he didn’t see a downside to it and named police, fire and recreation as specific areas where it could be viable.
Harshaw agreed the entire island, all four municipalities, needed to come together.
“No question about it,” he said. “There are too many employees for this. If we do it, all the communities will see a savings.”
His running mate, Baltuskonis, agreed, adding it would reduce the tax burden overall. Both are running on the “Progress Made, Promises Kept” platform with DeMarzo.
Incumbent Commissioner Al Brannen said he never thought he’d live to see consolidation on the island but agreed the time was now for it to happen. Brannen is running on his own “A Voice for the People” platform.
“It’s workable,” he said of joining the towns. “We need to share the services but keep the identities.”
As an example, he said, Wildwood Crest should remain a dry town, where no liquor is served or sold.
The four other candidates took on the consolidation question as a way to potentially reduce taxes with one island government. Presently, there are four, each with their own mayor and a council or commission.
Sandra Richardson, running independently on her “Proud Again, A Better Wildwood” platform, said consolidation of government was the logical way to reduce taxes.
Leonetti said it was something that, if elected, he was going to try to make happen.
“Maybe we all agree on something,” he remarked, anticipating the last two candidates questioned, DeMarzo and Troiano, would also favor linking the towns.
“Either we consolidate or we ask you for it,” DeMarzo said, referencing taxpayer money needed to pay for services like fire, police and public works. “Consolidate is my answer.”
Presently, the city is planning to layoff personnel in all three of those areas, part of a plan, officials said, that enabled local government to stem off a tax increase on residents.
“We need to reorganize police, fire and public works,” DeMarzo said. “It’s inevitable. The money is drying up.”
He also said there was too much “territoriality” on the island.
Troiano said he’d move to consolidate “in a heartbeat,” but he also pointed out that the city needed to clean up before that happened.
“We have to clean our own house,” Troiano said. “Those residents in the other towns, they don’t want nothing to do with us. We have problems.”
He said Wildwood needed to prove itself to the taxpayers in other communities before consolidation would be accepted island-wide.
Other questions tasked candidates to find solutions to the problems residents see in Wildwood.
Most agreed the streets were in dire need of improvement, along with aging water pipes and sewer lines. Grants were the common denominator amongst candidates as a solution for fixing the problem.
A planned back-bay solar park was supported by DeMarzo, who helped bring the project to the table, but it was rejected by members of the ex-mayor’s team. Richardson said she liked the design of the project but was concerned about its business plan. She said she was not in favor of plans that “give away city land.”
Leonetti said he failed to see what the solar park would do for the city in the long run. Troiano said he was concerned with maintaining the public park proposed with the solar project. He suggested looking at other plans for that type of construction that, he suggested, would “work better.”
Candidates agreed they’d like to see more business in town, creating ratables that would help to lower the tax burden. However, they also agreed the city was a tough sell to get new businesses in the door. Byron and Baltuskonis said tax incentives and tax abatements might be a way to lure them.
The city’s Hispanic population was also addressed by candidates that were asked about how they plan to appeal to that growing sector. All said the group should be recognized and more accepted in the community.
Richardson, in closing, said in her job as a Realtor, “everyone wants to be in North Wildwood and The Crest.” She urged Wildwood pride and pushed to curb bad publicity. Leonetti agreed that bad publicity was hurting the city’s image.
DeMarzo said the city was moving forward and believed the last 16 months had been very successful.
“The state is listening to us and making it more viable for us to do more,” he said. “People are noticing.”
He praised the proposed solar project as a “nationally recognized” endeavor. He said he and Harshaw vowed to lower taxes and did. Harshaw added they would continue to lower them even more.
Troiano dismissed claims, mostly from DeMarzo, that he did nothing during his tenure as mayor.
“To say we did nothing from the last 10 years is ridiculous,” he said.
He also said city officials “looking at each other with venom” didn’t work and instead they should air grievances privately.
“Don’t fight in the hall,” he said, “fight in the closet.”
The election is May 10 with all districts voting at the Wildwoods Convention Center. Each seat on the three-member city commission is up for grabs with DeMarzo, Harshaw and Brannen seeking re-election. The mayor of Wildwood is voted on by commissioners, not residents.