Garwood Needs Leaders Who Think Before They Act

I can’t help but notice how a lot of our time is wasted on nonsense in Garwood Council Meetings and I have a perfect example to share with you.

At the August 28th Garwood Council meeting, Councilwoman Ileen Cuccaro suddenly proposed ending the shared service agreement with Fanwood and having someone within the department take on that role full-time. Councilwoman Bianco, quickly seconded that motion, but later withdrew it after Council discussion exposed the short-sightedness of the proposal.

Neither Councilwoman did their due diligence to understand the current situation and process for their proposal. If they did, they would have learned that this ultimately would cost taxpayers more money as the other Council members explained. Also it would put Garwood without a Certified Public Works Manager, which is required by the State, for several years while this individual was getting certified.

Councilwoman Cuccaro opened her report by falsely stating there are currently “two open spots on the DPW”. Earlier in the year she actually voted yes to the two most recent hires to fill the position of retiring workers, but during this council meeting she said “I guess I thought there was two other positions that were going to be open.”

When asked if she would prefer a staff of 7 or 8 full-time laborers to work under a full-time superintendent, she said “I didn’t think it through that much” despite adamantly opposing a staff of 8 in 2016 before later flip-flopping and voting to approve hires that maintained a staff of 8.

Furthermore, when Ileen proposed a full-time superintendent and stipulated they be from "within," she responded “I really didn’t think it through that far” when asked if she would be open to hiring someone from another town.

In 2015, she ran for Council saying she would bring back a full-time superintendent, but now only a couple months before this 2018 election, she hasn’t even done enough homework to understand the basic details or ramifications of what she was proposing.

Simply put, the shared service agreement works for Garwood. Personally, I notice that my garbage has continued to be picked up, streets are plowed, and our DPW remains in Garwood. I suspect that is why no councilperson has sought to change it over the last three years including Cuccaro’s running mate, Councilwoman Bianco, who voted in July to renew the shared service agreement for the next three years.

We need elected officials to do the research and think about the consequences of their actions—not ones that simply act impulsively. Impulsive decision-making could have serious consequences on our town.

That's why I'm voting for the Democrats for Garwood ticket on November 6th. Sara Todisco’s proven track record is a result of doing the leg work, valuing facts, and respecting the time and energy of Garwood’s employees and volunteers. Likewise, her running mates Michael Ince and Sean Benoit have had successful professional records in law enforcement and legal services because they exhibit the same work ethic.

I encourage all to join me in voting for Sara Todisco for Mayor and Michael Ince and Sean Benoit for Council on November 6th. They will not put our town and our taxpayers at risk with uninformed proposals like the one I just witnessed.