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Jan. 2-8:
Reorganizations
The annual reorganization meeting in most municipalities is largely a housekeeping event. It is a time for swearing in new members of the governing body, making committee and commission appointments, setting meetings dates, and passing routine resolutions that will enable local government to function in the coming year. There can be the occasional surprise at these meetings.
This year, in Upper Township, reorganization brought with it a new mayor. Jay Newman was selected by vote of the council as mayor for 2023, ousting Curtis Corson. In Stone Harbor, Bernadette “Bunny” Parzych challenged outgoing Council President Reese Moore for the position of council’s representative to the Planning Board, making known her belief that she had the best credentials for the job, but also that the borough’s land use board needed a better understanding of its role.
In Cape May, reorganization brought with it the annual state of the city address by Mayor Zack Mullock, who listed an impressive array of achievements in 2022 and spoke of coming challenges, including the need to find funding for the replacement of the city’s desalination plant.
In Middle Township, the meeting saw a change in the position of municipal solicitor and the confirmation of a four-year contract for the municipality’s new chief financial officer.
In Lower Township, three members of the governing body were sworn in following victories in November. Included was Thomas Conrad, who is beginning his fifth consecutive term as First Ward councilman. Wildwood Crest held a routine reorganization and one in which the mayor was authorized to move ahead on an electric vehicle charging station in the borough.
At the county level, Sea Isle City Mayor Leonard Desiderio was chosen to replace retiring Gerald Thornton as county commissioner director, with Commissioner E. Marie Hayes being named vice-director.
ESSER Spending Slow
School boards across the county are faced with a need to respond to lower than expected assessment scores in both federal and state tests. The interruption of face-to-face learning during the pandemic appears to have left many students with a need to catch up on basic proficiencies.
Federal dollars have poured into the state to aid school districts in addressing problems stemming from the pandemic. A new analysis by Future-ED, a Georgetown University education think-tank, shows that New Jersey is 44th among the 50 states in the actual use of the funding.
Among the various forms of funding awarded to New Jersey districts, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds (ESSER) came to $4.3 billion for K-12 support. The analysis by Future-Ed shows that as we exit the pandemic years, only 26.6% of those funds have been spent.
It is a difficult time to be serving on a school board with curriculum issues animating fierce public debate. Yet, the recent round of test scores, including an analysis of ACT testing at secondary school levels, shows the learning loss during the pandemic was all too real. Now, the question is how to use anhistoric level of federal funding to address it before the deadlines that would return the money to the federal treasury.
North Wildwood v. DEP
The ongoing struggle between the City of North Wildwood and the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is taking on even more energy, much like a storm tracking over a warm ocean. The DEP has taken the city to court, asking that the city be required to stop the construction of a new bulkhead, which the municipality says is necessary to protect city property from damage. Now, the city has counter claims requesting $20 million in damages from the DEP for that agency’s failure to provide meaningful shore protection to the town.
While there have been areas of controversy between various county municipalities and the DEP, none have been as hostile as those between the agency and North Wildwood.
“Our answer and motion for a counterclaim is a damning indictment of the incredible lack of professionalism and scientific integrity at the NJDEP,” said Mayor Patrick Rosenello.
The city’s counterclaim is supported by certifications from Stockton University’s Dr. Stewart Farrell, a leading expert on New Jersey coastal erosion. Farrell is retiring as Director of the Coastal Resources Center at Stockton.
Happenings
Police have arrested an individual in the Upper Township hit and run death of a county resident. The death Dec. 29 brought the number of crash fatalities in the county to 15 for 2022 compared with 12 the previous year. What is striking is that more than half of those fatalities were pedestrians.
Margaret Mace School, in North Wildwood, says that claims of bullying at the school are “unsubstantiated” despite pressure from a student’s parents, who say their daughter has no reason to lie.
A raptor banding project sponsored by the Cape May Point Science Center is resulting in new insight into the migratory behavior of raptors who spend at least part of their time in the Cape.
Lower Township continues to prepare for possible cannabis sales in the municipality as it defines appropriate areas for such businesses. Lower, Middle and West Cape May have all indicated a willingness to accept cannabis recreation sales and/or manufacturing and cultivation businesses.
Capital investment plans were under consideration in both Wildwood Crest and Sea Isle City, as towns prepare for the 2023 budget cycle.
The saga of the escaped Upper Township cow appears to have ended with the animal’s demise. The animal’s sightings have been a subject of local discussion since the summer.
A reported pit bull attack on a Shih Tzu and its owner has led to some controversy over why the attacking dogs were simply returned to their owner.
Cape May County Democrats will need a new leader as the current Democratic Committee Chair Daniel Kurkowski accepts appointment to the New Jersey Superior Court.
Covid cases are rising again and with them the threat to the elderly as a vulnerable population. A rising number of hospitalizations includes a spike in in-patient Covid cases reported at Cape Regional Medical Center.
The virus is still with us and making its winter presence known as health officials predicted. Although not at levels seen in the county in 2021, the increase in Covid infections has led to advice that vulnerable populations take precautions. Other influenza-like illnesses are also on the rise at the same time.
Spout Off of the Week
Fishing Creek - Damar Hamlin has brought more people together than any political leader that I can recall. It shows that despite all of our differences we are a just and caring people. Quite possibly Damar was not destined to just be a football player, but a force to help us all heal!
Read more spouts at spoutoff.capemaycountyherald.com.
