Bernards Township Committee Election 2024: Adam N. Subervi

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Bernards Township's general election on Nov. 5 has four candidates running for two open seats for the Township Committee.

Democrat Adam N. Subervi is running along with Elizabeth Graner against incumbent Republicans Jennifer Asay and Andrew McNally.

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Adam N. Subervi

• Age: 50
• Town of residence: Bernards Township
• Position sought: Bernards Township Committee
• Party Affiliation: Democrat
• Family: My wife Alicia (a career educator and school administrator) and I have been married for 23 years. I am the proud father of 4 sons (one adult son, two college students and a 7th grader at WAMS). My son Gabriel was very active in the Ridge Drama Club and received several accolades (including a Paper Mill Rising Star Award and a Montclair State University Theatre Award (FOXY) for his role in bringing back-to-back “state championships” to Ridge (I am often simply referred to as “Gabe’s dad” by the folks in town who are familiar with his work). Our family has a long history of service to our nation. My father (Navy), and both of his brothers (Marine Corps and Air Force) served during and after the Vietnam War. My paternal grandfather served in the Merchant Marine during WWII, and his brother (my great uncle) served in the U.S. Army, and participated in both the African Campaign and invasion of Sicily before being captured by the Germans following the battle of Anzio (he spent the remainder of the war in a German POW camp). On my mother’s side, both my grandfather (Army) and great-grandfather (Army, WWI veteran) also served.
• Education: I earned my Juris Doctor from Rutgers School of Law, and Bachelor of Arts from Seton Hall University.
• Occupation: I have been licensed to practice law for 24 years. I currently serve as Chief Compliance Officer for a pharmaceuticals manufacturer and as a Sr. Trial Judge in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, where I hold the rank of Colonel. Prior to entering my corporate role, I served as a federal and state prosecutor, as an associate at a major law firm, and on Active Duty as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. My 27-year military career has included deployments to Iraq, South America and Japan among other locations.
• Previous elected/appointed office: This is my first campaign for elected office.
• Campaign website: btdems.org/granersubervi

Why are you seeking election for Township Committee?

I have been in continuous service (either as a military officer, or as a federal or state prosecutor) for nearly my entire adult life. It pains me greatly to see the division in our country, which has extended even to the state and local level (and which has been perpetuated by self-interested parties). When originally approached regarding my interest in serving our Township, I hesitated (like many others, I was more focused on raising and providing for my family). However, after putting additional thought into it over several years, and conversing with my family, I feel an obligation to provide my experience and skillset to our community — and perhaps more importantly, I feel strongly that our community would greatly benefit from having diversity of thought among its leadership (which has been overwhelmingly lopsided for decades), that is genuinely focused on bringing our community closer together, improving the day to day lives of our residents (by advocating for much needed improvements like sidewalks, running paths and bike lanes), working with our law enforcement partners to ensure that our community stays safe, and effectively planning for affordable housing obligations while consciously avoiding overdevelopment.

There has been an increase in home and vehicle burglaries in the township, do you think enough has been done to combat this? What else would you propose to address this issue?

Short answer - No. There is still lots of work to be done. While our noble law enforcement partners have been doing the best with the funding and equipment they are provided, we need to make sure they are adequately equipped and manned for the future. Having spent years prosecuting crime at nearly all levels (from carjackings to gang shootings to drug trafficking to fraud and nearly everything in between) I firmly believe that our law enforcement partners need to be given the resources they need to do their job effectively and efficiently. Providing them with adequate manpower and technology such as license-plate readers should not take several years to accomplish. We need to stay ahead of those who would do harm to our community. This is not the time to be pennywise but pound foolish. Technology in particular is a force multiplier that we need to leverage in order to keep our community safe and stop crime before it happens.

Manufacturing and/or warehouse applications are still cropping up. How do you feel about these applications and their impact on the township?

I’ll say this... the pending Allen Road project has been nothing short of a "flaming dumpster fire" that will result in increased traffic and congestion, and strain to our public services, not to mention having a negative environmental impact on our town. I hate to sound partisan, but the Republican Majority on the Town Committee, and its loyalist subcommittees have backed themselves into a corner in this area due to a lack of planning, which has made the town vulnerable to lawsuits brought by developers. This is an example of the old adage: "failing to plan is planning to fail." The Town Committee and its subcommittees have to be mindful of the impact their decisions have on current and future residents of the town.

Affordable housing. How do you feel about this state mandate and its impact on Bernards Township?

Additional Affordable Housing obligations are on tap for Bernards Twp. We know it’s coming, and the Town Committee needs to adequately plan for it. For one, impact studies need to be done — in a TIMELY FASHION — that will assess what the additional strain on public services (like sewage for example) will be when a certain number of units are added. Will it require an update to the sewage treatment facility (an expensive undertaking likely to affect every resident in town)? What about the effect on traffic? Also, is there an opportunity to obtain funding from builders for offsite improvements, such as bike paths, sidewalks or updates to facilities? These questions, and many others should have been addressed well in advance… not at the 11th hour.

What other issues do you feel need to be tackled in the township?

In addition to the most pressing issues affecting the town (namely public safety, affordable housing and curtailing overdevelopment), which I have addressed above, we need to focus on bringing our community closer together. Despite the many positive attributes of Bernards Twp, in many ways, our Town feels more like a loose union comprised of several different communities (Downtown, the Hills, Liberty Corner, the Cedars, etc.) that suffer from typical suburban sprawl.

We need to focus on bringing these communities closer together, making the town more commutable for teenagers and elderly alike, who may not have access to a car, but who need to get outside and socialize. My running mate Liz Graner and I intend to establish a cycling and pedestrian commission that will focus on solutions such as adding sorely needed bike lanes and additional running/walking paths.

What sets you apart from the challenging candidates?

For one, I am not part of the establishment. I am committed (as I have been throughout my entire career of public service) to performing a service that is in the best interests of the residents of our town, without regard to political affiliation or ideology. I am committed to appointing members of subcommittees based on their merit and ability to do the job… NOT on their political affiliation. Time and time again have I heard from highly qualified people who have applied for positions on town subcommittees only to be denied and have other less qualified applicants appointed because they are affiliated with the Republican Party. It may surprise some to learn that nearly every subcommittee member (which includes dozens of people in charge of committees overseeing functions such as Planning, Parks and Recreation, and Public Safety) is Republican. This statistic just doesn’t sit right with me for a town that is comprised of approximately 33 percent registered democrats, 33 percent registered republicans and 33 percent independents. Our Town leadership should be a fair representation of the people that reside in the Town… These positions should be filled with the most qualified people. They don’t exist to serve as an incubator or place for patronage appointments for ANY political party.

Secondly, while this is my first run at elected office, I have more experience in public service (over 30 years in total) than every single incumbent member of the Town Committee, while simultaneously having served in private industry with experience balancing budgets and planning ahead — skills that will well-serve the people of our community.

Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself or your campaign?

Simply stated — I love our town. When our family decided to move here over 10 years ago, it was in large part due to the excellent school system and the safety of the community, and I refuse to let anyone place either of those attributes in jeopardy (either intentionally or by their lack of adequate planning). I take great pride in noting that over the course of those 10+ years, we have forged lifelong friendships and partnerships across the scope of many cultures, religions, lifestyles and the breadth of the political spectrum. As a close friend recently noted, it’s our obligation as residents and custodians of the Town to make sure that what Bernards Twp has in education and beauty isn’t lost in its sense of community. This town has grown immensely over the last 20-30 years, in population, in diversity and in influence. We need to make sure the leadership grows along with it — and that the composition of our Town Committee reflects the ideals of its ever growing population, and addresses the needs of an ever-evolving community. I chose to run simply because I want to do what’s in the best interests of our town. My goals are simple: keep our town safe, bring our community closer together, avoid overdevelopment, effectively plan for the future of Bernards Twp, and ensure that our leadership fairly and adequately represents the residents of our town.