Monroe At stake: Four-year mayoral term and two four-year, at-large Township Council terms Leslie Koppel-Egierd* (D) Seeking council term Koppel-Egierd, 41, has a husband, Michael, and three children, ages 12, 9 and 3. A Monroe Township native, she is employed as a designer and sales associate with The Closet Doctor. She is a graduate, summa cum laude, of Hunter College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology. She was appointed to the present Township Council seat in September 2006. Her hobbies include running, horseback riding and reading. Where they stand: What is the greatest challenge facing Monroe and how should it be addressed? Leslie Koppel-Egierd* (D) The greatest challenge facing Monroe Township, as with most municipal governments, will be maintaining premier municipal services while controlling property taxes. Until the New Jersey property tax system is fundamentally reformed, this will be the biggest challenge of all local government officials. Controlled government spending, shared services, and good financial management practices are fundamental tools in addressing this challenge. Carlos S. Lopez (R) Seeking council term Lopez, 54, has a wife, Barbara, and three children, ages 18, 15 and 9. A resident of Monroe Township for 13 years, Lopez is employed as a financial analyst. He is president of the Monroe Township Republican Club and has served as a member of an ad hoc committee to get the high school built, and as a member of Kids 1st. He is a Republican county committeeman for Monroe Township Ward 3, and a representative for Assemblyman Bill Baroni on the Middlesex County Transportation Committee. Carlos S. Lopez (R) Monroe's greatest challenge is to build a new facility for our children. What I'm referring to of course is a new high school. The current administration has lost sight of the needs of our community. In allowing the overbuilding that has taken place over the past few years, our roads are overly congested, our drinking water is not meeting EPA standards, and our schools are all overcrowded. Over the last four years we have gone from six trailers to well over 80 trailers at all the school facilities. Yet they keep right on building and looking the other way when the citizens demand they address these problems. Irwin Nalitt* (D) Seeking council term Nalitt, 89, is a widower and has two daughters, three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. He has lived in Monroe Township for over 25 years. He retired in 1981 as an executive with a Forbes 500 company. Nalitt has been a councilman in Monroe since 1988. His hobbies include golf and bowling. * denotes incumbent Irwin Nalitt* (D) A great challenge facing Monroe Township will be the completion of several important municipal improvement projects, as we continue to provide essential services and manage our normal operations. Over 1,000 patrons use the public library daily, and hundreds use our Community Center, yet both of these facilities will be undergoing additions and renovations over the next two years. Numerous athletic field improvements will also be under way, adding both soccer and baseball fields. Lastly, a muchneeded Senior Center is under design and planned for next year. Thomas Nothstein (R) Monroe is a rapidly growing community, and because of that the mayor and council need to ensure that the infrastructure of our town keeps pace. Unfortunately, that has not happened. Our roads are congested, our schools are overcrowded, areas are flooding that never flooded before, and we lack radon-free water and sufficient water pressure in parts of the community. We can correct these deficiencies, though, by making Monroe less builder-friendly and listening and responding to the concerns of the citizens of Monroe. Thomas Nothstein (R) Seeking mayoral term Nothstein, 50, has a wife, Lynn, and two children, ages 19 and 20. A resident of Monroe Township for 22 years, he is employed as a sales engineer. He is chairman of the Monroe Township Republican Committee and a county Republican committeeman, and previously served as president of the Monroe Township Republican Club. He also served as a soccer coach, a Girl Scout cookie manager, and in the high school marching band pit crew. Richard Pucci* (D) The greatest challenge facing Monroe Township will be the continued utilization of available local, county and state funding to expand our open space acquisition and farmland preservation initiatives to counter growth and development. Under my administration, we have secured over 2,000 acres of open space. In addition, over 1,100 acres of farmland have been placed in the Farmland Preservation Program. As mayor, I will continue our efforts to acquire over 2,000 additional acres over the next four years, to reach our ultimate goal of 50 percent of all land area staying undeveloped in Monroe Township. Richard Pucci* (D) Seeking mayoral term Pucci, 60, has a wife, Kathleen, two daughters and four grandchildren. A Monroe Township resident for over 32 years, Pucci has been employed as executive director of the Middlesex County Improvement Authority since 1991. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Miami and a master's degree in public administration from Rider College. He has been mayor of Monroe since 1988. His hobbies include golf and collecting sports memorabilia. Karen Scarpa (R) There are many issues. Mayoral term limits is one of the most important. There is a reason the president of the United States and the mayor of New York City, to name a few, have term limits. We would have a referendum to institute a mayoral term limit. The opposition says it should be left up to the voters to determine. But when an incumbent has so much money and power, the campaign process becomes one-sided. Overdevelopment has stretched the Monroe infrastructure to breaking. Ethics reforms are a must. Karen Scarpa (R) Seeking council term Scarpa, 49, has a husband, Michael, and four children, ages 25, 22, 20 and 17. A resident of Monroe Township for 26 years, she is employed as a Realtor. She has served as a member of the Mill Lake and Woodland PTA/PTO and is a prior executive board member with the Applegarth School PTO. She has served as a member of the Monroe Township High School Booster Club and is a former Girl Scout leader and "benchwarmer mom" for her children's sports leagues. What are your views on the work of the mayor and council in recent years? Leslie Koppel-Egierd* (D) Although I am the newest council member, I recognize the many achievements of this mayor and council. The township has maintained low municipal taxes, a low crime rate and had much success in pursing considerable open space acquisitions and farmland preservation projects over the years. I believe this mayor and council have laid a good foundation for the future and have earned the trust of the electorate. Carlos S. Lopez (R) This mayor and council have lost touch with the growing pains that they have created by allowing the builders to circumvent our building codes. They were forced to look inward due to the mayor's connections to former Sen. John Lynch, but in implementing the new ethics code, they decided that it be run by one of their own, the business administrator. It's the old saying: Let the wolf be in charge of the chickens in the pen. What nonsense - if they were really serious, they would have chosen someone outside of town and empowered that person to bring persons to judgment if they broke any of the new ethics laws. Irwin Nalitt* (D) I am proud of the accomplishments that I have been a part of during the last 20 years. We have maintained low municipal taxes, a low crime rate and pursued considerable open space acquisitions over the years. In recent years, I am particularly proud of securing federal funding and initiating our new Freehold and Princeton shuttle bus programs, and helping expand our medical appointment bus service. Thomas Nothstein (R) I wouldn't be running if I were satisfied with the job they are doing. With that said, I was glad to see them form an ethics panel and adopt a comprehensive ethics reform ordinance. Typical of this reactionary council, though, it took a major ethics issue between the mayor and former Sen. John Lynch to bring it about. I plan on expanding these reforms by forming a permanent nonpartisan ethics panel with full investigatory power. The current ordinance makes the business administrator the ethics officer. I will appoint someone from outside of Monroe, such as a municipal judge, instead. Richard Pucci* (D) am proud of the accomplishments that we have realized over the last two decades. Monroe Township's municipal portion of the tax rate is the same as it was in the year 2000, $0.56 per $100 of assessed valuation. In our most recent municipal bond sale, Standard & Poor's and Moody's improved our bond rating and recognized our strong reserve levels, increasing financial margins and a modest debt position." Controlled municipal spending, effective management of our operating departments and well-defined schedule of capital improvements have been keys to our success in maintaining excellent services and low taxes. Karen Scarpa (R) When the mayor first took office, he started out caring about the citizens he represents. In recent years he seems to care more about being re-elected and having power than the good of the town. Mr. Nalitt is almost 90 years old, he has served his township, and it is past time for him to retire and enjoy life. Ms. Koppel-Egierd was appointed to the council in 2006 and just follows the lead of the mayor. It is time for a change. What are some of the goals that you would like to see the governing body accomplish over the next four years? Leslie Koppel-Egierd* (D) We need to continue our open space and farmland preservation programs. If elected to the council, I will work hard to maintain a low municipal tax rate, while providing superior municipal services to our residents. Carlos S. Lopez (R) One of the first things I would like to see done is to rid the town of all pay-to-play participants - though they say this practice is no longer used in Monroe. I would ensure that business is open to all and not just to a very few. Second are mayoral term limits. I feel very strongly that if you want to end the corruption that has infested the state, you curb it at the local level. End these 20 to 24 years of service by the same person. When you allow that position that wields so much power to one individual for that amount of time, you are asking for trouble. Irwin Nalitt* (D) We need to continue to work closely with state and county officials to expand our open space and farmland preservation efforts. If re-elected to the council, I will work to maintain one of the lowest municipal tax rates and lowest crime rates in Middlesex County. As a member of the governing body, library board of trustees and the Commission on Aging, I will continue my efforts to complete our library and Community Center additions, numerous ongoing park and recreation improvements, and our new Senior Center. Thomas Nothstein (R) The first goal I would accomplish is to implement a referendum for mayoral term limits. I voted for Mayor Richard Pucci way back in 1987 because I felt it was time for a change. He was the right choice back then and he accomplished some positive changes for Monroe. Unfortunately, he stayed too long and built up a strong political machine in the process. Between his job as director of the Middlesex County Improvement Authority and the mayor of Monroe, he is a very powerful participant of this machine. We need to break political machines in New Jersey, and term limits will accomplish that. Richard Pucci* (D) We need to continue to expand our open space and farmland preservation efforts, working closely with state and county officials. As mayor, I will continue to be focused on maintaining one of the lowest municipal tax rates and lowest crime rates in Middlesex County. Furthermore, much work remains to be done over the next few years to complete our library and Community Center additions, numerous ongoing park and recreation improvements, and a new Senior Center. Karen Scarpa (R) We would like an open government. Council meetings should be televised, as the citizens that we represent should know what we are doing. We need a real ethics panel that is not formed after ethics violations. We need to control development until the infrastructure can catch up. We need a mayoral term limit. And we need to represent all the citizens. Why should residents vote for you on Nov. 6? Leslie Koppel-Egierd* (D) I believe that my background as a council member for over a year, former president of Barclay Brook/Brookside School PTA, member of the League of Women Voters and founding member of Kids 1st qualifies me for voter consideration. As a lifelong resident, I can truly appreciate Monroe Township's rich history, exciting present and promising future. I would be honored to continue serving the residents of Monroe Township as one of their councilwomen. Carlos S. Lopez (R) The time has come to take back Monroe from this administration and all of its connections to special interest groups. My running mates and I are not politicians. Our livelihood is not dependent on taking public monies to earn a living. We are just trying to take back Monroe for Monrovians, and not the special friends of the current mayor. We are persons who are involved at all levels of the town, and feel that by bringing our business expertise, we can make Monroe a better place to live, without destroying its character or potential to represent all its citizenry. Irwin Nalitt* (D) I believe that I have proven myself to be a contributing, accessible and trustworthy public official. As a retiree, I have been able to devote my time to the citizens of Monroe Township on a full-time basis. The knowledge and experience I have gained as a long-term councilman is a major asset I can offer our residents as we meet their needs in the future. Thomas Nothstein (R) One reason is because I am not a politician. I bring a nonpolitical perspective to the table that we have not seen in Monroe for a very long time. I attend virtually all council and Board of Education meetings, so I have a firm grasp on the issues facing Monroe. I don't represent just one political party, as the current administration does. I plan on representing all Monroe citizens and assuring that all mayoral appointments to the various boards are based on qualifications for the position and not just party loyalty. It is time for a change. Richard Pucci* (D) The challenges that lie ahead will demand experienced and responsible leadership, especially in the areas of financial management, the acquisition of open space, and the expansion of capitol projects. My record as mayor has been one of delivering outstanding services while maintaining one of the lowest property tax rates in the county. During the next four years, I will be totally committed to keeping Monroe Township a great place to live, raise a family and retire. Karen Scarpa (R) It is time for a change, for all of the reasons I have mentioned. It is time for a change for all the citizens of Monroe.