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Jan. 27 to Feb. 2
Changing Candidate Petitions
Only in New Jersey would the state Legislature change the requirements of a race after it was already underway. A bill that would more than double the signatures needed to run for various state and local offices passed this week and has been signed by Gov. Phil Murphy.
The controversial bill made its way through the legislative process on a party line vote, with Democrats pushing it forward.
The bill raises the number of signatures needed to get on the ballot by 150% for just about every elected office in the state. Initially the bill was to go into effect next year, but that was changed, making the new requirements effective for this year’s June primaries. It comes after forms were already released and candidates for the primary ballot were actively seeking signatures.
If you go to to New Jersey’s Voter Information Portal and download a nominating petition to run for the state Assembly, you’ll find space on the petition form for 100 signatures needed to be on the June 4 ballot. But now the number of signatures necessary would be 250, so candidates would need to grab new forms and get back out there.
In the First Legislative District, which includes Cape May County, Democratic candidates Brandon Saffold and Carolyn Rush spoke out against the bill. In a statement Saffold said, “It is no coincidence that this comes after the county party line was abolished.” The bill, A5117, was the creation of state Democrats and is seen by those in opposition as an attempt to protect incumbents in an election cycle in 2025 when all 80 seats in the Assembly are up for grabs.
Supporters of the bill say that it is meant to weed out “unserious and frivolous” candidates “that lack support from their community.” So what is the urgency that compels this change in 2025 after the race for signatures has already begun?
Opponents say it is the political machines once again moving to protect themselves in new ways. If they can no longer position their candidates on the ballot where they are most likely to succeed, using New Jersey’s unique county line ballot format, they might as well make it 150% harder for newcomers without the machine’s endorsement to get on the ballot at all. That is the argument those opposed to the bill are making.
Offshore Wind in Serious Trouble
This is a bad time for New Jersey’s offshore wind industry. Once again a major player in the industry has gathered up its belongings and gone home, reminding us of Orsted’s 2023 exit from the field.
This week Shell pulled out of its partnership with the French concern EDF Renewables for constructing the Atlantic Shores wind farms. Shell chose to take a $1 billion write-off instead.
This came 10 days after President Donald Trump issued an executive order pausing federal permitting for offshore wind activities and ordering a review of environmental and economic impacts of wind farms.
Wind industry groups have issued statements about persisting in their efforts to bring renewable energy to the state, which they say will result in large-scale economic benefits. Yet the offshore wind industry has lost its supporter in the White House and soon may lose one in the governor’s mansion. No doubt offshore wind and the entire Garden State green energy transformation will be a part of the campaign to replace Phil Murphy in the November elections.
It is 33 years since the first offshore wind farm was built off Denmark’s coast. In that time the United States has built four wind farms that today generate 242 megawatts of power. Despite its being touted as a valuable clean energy source, offshore wind has been slow to gain a foothold in America. A variety of issues running from supply chain problems to inflation have plagued its development. Public opposition in many areas, including the New Jersey coastal communities, has slowed progress and even contributed to companies’ withdrawing from projects.
In New Jersey, 2025 is going to tell us if offshore wind leaves the hospice and resumes a place in the state’s energy future.
County Continues to Age
The latest census figures show Cape May County continuing to age. With a median age now calculated to be 52.7 years, the county is far and away the oldest in the state. The state median age is 40.4 years, and for the country as a whole the number is 39.4.
Housing prices and the cyclical nature of the county’s economy have long been issues of concern as elected officials see young couples leaving the county, where many of them can no longer afford to live. Only 16% of the county population is under the age of 18, while 31% is over the age of 65. It is becoming a place for grandparents rather than parents.
The cost of housing is a major factor driving young families to look outside the county. The census figures show that more than 50% of the almost 100,000 housing units in the county are vacant much of the year. This is second-home country. The buying of second homes even on the mainland has driven home prices beyond the reach of the one-third of our permanent population that has median earned household income under $50,000. The median value of owner-occupied housing in the county is $474,800, with less than 22% of that housing valued at below $300,000.
This is a tough environment for young families. A recently released report by the Department of Community Affairs estimates that the county lacks 992 needed affordable housing units. Those calculations are done with Housing and Urban Development parameters and don’t take into account many in the county who would not qualify for federally defined affordable housing but who still cannot fulfill the desire for home ownership here.
Since the 2010 census the county has moved from a median age of 47 to nearly 53. It has seen its under-18-years-old population decline from 19% to 16% and its over-65-years-old population move from 22% to 31%.
Happenings
*Joan Koeck, right, of Town Bank holds the record in the Girl Scouts of Central and Southern New Jersey as the member with the longest tenure as an active Girl Scout. She was in the Scout program for 10 years before becoming a Lifetime Girl Scout who engaged in volunteering for an additional 60 years. She notified the Scouts this month of her retirement as a part-time treasurer.
*Moran’s Dockside, the bait, tackle and hoagie shop that has been a fixture in Avalon at the 14th Street Sport Fishing Center, has won the bid competition for another five-year period, during which Jim Moran and family can continue to do what they have been doing since 1988.
*A representative of the Fraternal Order of Police, the police officers union, has urged Stone Harbor to pay attention to a building problem in its Police Department: The officers have now gone 13 months without a contract.
*County Commissioner Director Leonard Desiderio and Commissioner Will Morey are in a dispute over the way the members of the board of commissioners should be assigned duties.
*The Cape May City Council has introduced an ordinance to better control plastic dust and contaminants at contractor worksites. The council acted on the same day Avalon successfully introduced a similar ordinance.
*A week and a day after President Trump’s inauguration, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the drones spotted over New Jersey were approved by the Federal Aviation Administration and were not of foreign origin.
*The Cape May-Lewes Ferry’s Cape Henlopen vessel is powered by engines so old that its maintenance team has to scrounge eBay, scrapyards and 100-year-old sawmills to find replacement parts. Scheduled to take its place is a smaller, more aerodynamic ferry whose design makes for a more reliable, efficient and ultimately more adaptable vessel.
*Wildwood police officers said they had to tase a man who claimed to have a gun and threw a shovel at them on Friday, Jan. 24.
*An Avalon couple who violated dune protection ordinances by removing existing vegetation and installing a lawn at their high dunes property in 2023 have been fined $2,000 under a plea agreement they reached with the borough.
*West Cape May Mayor Carol Sabo used the January meeting of the Cape Island Democratic Club to make her case for a planned run as a candidate for the state Assembly.
*The driver who rear-ended a car carrying five members of a Villas family, leading to the subsequent death of one of them, is now facing up to 10 years in state prison after being charged with vehicular homicide.
*A resolution before the county commissioners on Jan. 28 to develop bid specifications seeking an operator for Cape May Airport prompted a discussion about whether county officials should make another attempt at negotiating with the Delaware River and Bay Authority, the airport’s current operator, over the DRBA’s lease of the property.
*The Cape May County Herald has launched reader polls, a new feature designed to give readers a direct voice on the stories the Herald covers. Select news articles will include interactive polls giving readers the chance to share their opinions on the important issues in the county and state.
*Among law enforcement well-wishers present in Wildwood for the swearing-in Thursday, Jan. 30, of Cape May County Sheriff Bob Nolan as the president of the New Jersey Sheriff’s Association were members of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That was enough to panic members of the city’s large Hispanic community.
*The Upper Township Committee has removed Business Administrator Gary DeMarzo from that post and is taking steps to remove him as personnel director as well.
Spout Off of the Week
Sea Isle City – I wonder if there is a way for Sea Isle zoning code to encourage or incentivize more homeowners and developers to plant grass in their yards instead of stones. There are a few blocks in town where several adjacent neighbors have grass and it really makes their entire block look very attractive.
