Meet Matawan's Mayoral Candidates

In recent weeks, political signs have been popping up on neighbor's lawns, in shop windows and along busy streets. Other than red or blue font and a series of names, they offer little insight into the candidates' goals if elected for the coming term. Here you will find out about Paul Buccellato, the republican incumbent, and Adele Sammarco, the democratic challenger.

Candidate for Mayor: Paul Buccellato (R)

Paul Buccellato served on the council for seven years before serving as mayor for the past four years. He works as an architect at Henshell & Buccellato, Consulting Architects in Shrewsbury.

Over the last four years, Buccellato said he is most proud of working with the council to balance a budget that had over a $400,000 deficit. According to Buccellato, they passed the budget with a surplus that was credited back to residents as property tax relief.

Buccellato also said that about a year and a half ago, the council worked to streamline the application process for new businesses in the area by removing some steps allowed by law during the review process. That should start to impact the community more and more, he said, as time goes on.

From working on the council, Buccellato said he has learned that completing projects in government requires patience and diligence, which can be frustrating at times when trying to implement an initiative in a timely manner.

Moving forward, he plans to focus on tackling the financial issues facing all municipalities in the area through a variety of approaches, including shared services where appropriate, such as the regional court system currently proposed between Matawan, Keyport and Hazlet.

"Residents may not be aware that we do participate in them and some of them, if not all of them, are saving us thousands of dollars. The DPW (Department of Works) and the Fire Department are utilizing the county's truck repair facilities and that has been a large cost savings for both departments," Buccellato said.

He also intends to move forward with the transit village project now that it is no longer tied up in litigation, assuming that the economy is strong enough to support that, he said.

Candidate for Mayor: Adele Sammarco (D)

Adele Sammarco began her career in journalism after graduation from NYU at New York 1 News (NY1) in the early 1990s, where she covered stories across the five burroughs. After years of reporting stories such as the criminal trials of John Gotti Sr. and Jr. and the TWA Flight 800 crash on Long Island, Sammarco moved on to careers in public relations and marketing and is currently a licensed real estate professional in Monmouth and Ocean County.

After receiving a letter mailed to all registered democrats in Matawan that encouraged people who may be interested in running for local office to seek more information, Sammarco contacted Jim Shea, the treasurer of the Matawan Democratic Party. She was surprised to find out that there were no democratic challengers for the race.

"I felt strongly, as a resident, that all residents of Matawan needed representation," she said. "I believe in an open line of communication for everyone, not just a select few."

Sammarco, a resident of Matawan for five years, said she wants to put an end to "skyrocketing property taxes and shriveling businesses on Main Street," by offering tax incentives to small businesses and cutting the budget. She also intends to press forward with the dam project at Ravine Drive, the redevelopment of the C-Town property and the transit village project.

"As a licensed real estate agent, using my experience, I understand the need of working on developing ratables in commercial leasing and attracting new tenants to get retail in and to help business owners set up shop here," Sammarco said. She explained that residents should not feel they have to leave Matawan for a night out, whether they are going out for dinner, catching a play or just want to walk around.

"If Red Bank, Marlboro and Freehold re-developed their downtown, there is no reason why Matawan can not do the same."

Sammarco also advocates purchasing a ladder truck for the fire deparment, saying the lack of a functioning ladder truck is a safety issue for residents.

Editor's Note: Check back soon for a similar article on each member running for council.