Courage to Connect's Statewide Municipal Consolidation Forum

Merchantville Citizens to Appear on March 28 Panel to Discuss Efforts to Consolidate with Cherry Hill

MERCHANTVILLE, NJ – March 13, 2012 – Three Merchantville residents will join a panel at a statewide municipal consolidation workshop in East Brunswick on Wednesday, March 28 to discuss ongoing efforts to merge Merchantville and Cherry Hill.

The program, sponsored by Courage to Connect New Jersey, will feature Merchantville Councilman Anthony Perno, as well as Bob Stocker and Greg LaVardera, both of whom are citizen co-chairs of “Merchantville Connecting for the Future,” which is spearheading the consolidation process.

The one-hour panel, focusing on the petition and resolution process of forming a municipal consolidation commission, will also include Dan Keashen, chief of staff to former Cherry Hill Mayor Bernie Platt.

The forum, at the Days Inn and Conference Center in East Brunswick from 7:45 a.m. to noon, is open to all residents and government leaders interested in learning more about the municipal consolidation process.

“This forum brings together people from all over the state of New Jersey who are committed to finding solutions to escalating property taxes and the reduction of municipal services,” said Gina Genovese, executive director of Courage to Connect New Jersey, a non-profit, non-partisan organization that educates citizens about the benefits of municipal consolidation.

To learn more or to register for the forum, visit www.CouragetoConnectNJ.org