Congresswoman spends double on rent compared to other lawmakers

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman squanders twice as much taxpayer money to lease office space in her district as the combined total a neighboring Congressman spends for rent at three locations serving his constituents.

Watson Coleman's rent at 850 Bear Tavern Road, in Ewing, is $5132.37 per month, according to records released by the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives.
The building is owned by Joseph Jingoli & Son, Inc., one of the biggest construction companies in the state.

Rep. Chris Smith spends $600 per month on rent for 4573 South Broad Street, in Hamilton, plus another $1653.75 per month for the lease on his Monmouth County constituent services center located in Raintree Shopping Center at 112 Village Center Drive, in Freehold. Smith also spends $200 per month on rent for an Ocean County Office at 405 Pinehurst Road in Plumstead, which is open by appointment only.

The $2453 Smith spends on his three New Jersey offices is less than half of Coleman's $5132.37 monthly rent expenditure, a part of her taxpayer funded congressional budget.
Lisa McCormick, the progressive Democrat who is challenging the Congresswoman in the upcoming primary election, accused the lawmaker of being cavalier about wasting taxpayer money.

"The looting of America has been going on for over 40 years—and the culprits are the ultra-rich. When a member of Congress wastes money, it sends a message the she does not care about working class Americans who are struggling to keep their heads above water," said McCormick. "Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman squanders on office space leased to her by a longtime political contributor twice as much money as the average Trenton resident makes in a year."

"At the same time, there is an abundance of space that would be more convenience to the people she is supposed to represent," said McCormick. "To get from Trenton to Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman's office would take an hour and a half, two buses making a total 38 stops and a long walk in between."

"A constituent from Plainfield would need nearly three and a half hours to make the hour-long train ride and connecting with three buses making 95 stops along the way," said McCormick. "I intend to make sure my district offices are accessible to the people who elect me, although I am sure the incumbent impresses the affluent folks who fund her campaign with the fancy digs at an exclusive office park owned by one of her earliest and most generous contributors."

Another nearby lawmaker, Rep. Tom Malinowski, spends $3,689 on rent for his Somerville Office located at 75-77 N Bridge Street in Somerville, which is only about 70 percent as much as Watson Coleman's rent.

Watson Coleman's landlord, Jingoli, partnered with two other firms to file applications for a $245 million tax-credit to build an office tower in Camden. One of those was a company controlled by South Jersey political boss George Norcross.

Jingoli is also involved in the ownership of many properties, including the Hard Rock in Atlantic City, and he is represented on numerous state economic development boards.

A search on the name 'Jingoli' turned up 708 political contributions to state, county or local candidates between 1981 and 2017, with a total value in excess of $1.8 million plus another 37 federal campaign donations worth more than $47,000 that were made between 2004 and 2009.

Joseph Jingoli contributed more than $8000 to Bonnie Watson Coleman's state level campaigns but he did not appear to make any direct donations to her federal election funds, making the landlord almost conspicuous by his absence.