Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner attended the League of Municipalities convention in Atlantic City for the 28th straight year last week and came away with the same feeling. That the journey south is excellent in terms of positive networking – especially in the weeks after a new governor has been elected.
"Every time there’s a transition in Trenton, the League of Municipalities convention becomes more important," Turner said in a phone interview from Atlantic City. "It’s important to get to meet the new members of the Governor-Elect’s [Jim McGreevey’s] administration and get a feel of who will run the certain departments. It’s a critical time in the state, especially for the municipalities, to get to know who they have to contact in terms of needs."
Added Turner, "The convention represents the first chance to see the formation of the new administration. The governor-elect was here to lay out his agenda to the respective mayors and to talk about the problems in the cities and towns."
Turner said that the convention also serves the purpose in getting to understand the agenda of other municipalities as well.
"You gain a lot of valuable up-to-date information," Turner said. "A lot of what has been focused on down here this year has been emergency situations, in light of what happened Sept. 11. We’ve had a lot of discussions how to deal with daily situations in terms of emergency services."
Another hot topic of conversation at the convention has been property tax relief.
"It’s a constant," Turner said. "This is the 28th year I’ve been to the convention. I started coming here before there were even casinos. And every year, the theme is the same. It’s New Jersey’s ongoing struggle, how the municipalities deal with property taxes and how the state can assist the municipalities deal with the problems. There are various levels of state assistance. Progress has been made and more assistance has been made available. It’s always on the agenda here."
Turner said that the convention was important to get in touch and in tune with the new administration, headed by McGreevey, that will take office in January.
"The first priority that he will have as governor is dealing with the state deficit," said Turner of the $1.3 billion deficit McGreevey will find on his plate when he takes over New Year’s Day. "So his first item will be to deal with the deficit, then help with municipal property taxes. That is what he promised throughout the whole campaign."
Turner said that he attended conferences that dealt with suburban sprawl and the development of brownfields. Brownfields are sites that need environmental cleanup.
"There were a lot of discussions dealing with the rebuilding of the state’s cities," Turner said. "I was also interested to learn more about affordable housing."
Turner said that the convention allows him to break away from the daily grind.
"It gives you a couple of days to focus on things that you don’t normally get a chance to do," Turner said. "Usually, I have no quiet time, juggling my schedule [as township administrator of West New York and mayor of Weehawken]. Daily events prevent me from doing such."
Added Turner, "At the League, there are so many personal contacts to be made. All the state officials are there. You have the chance to have one-on-one contacts and it’s important when something you need to have done comes across the table. Take the Department of Transportation, for example. We have been very successful in getting substantial road aid and it started from coming down here and making contacts. When the applications go in to receive aid, they know who you are."
Turner said that the personal meetings help to get Weehawken’s needs recognized.
"It helps these officials realize that we have needs that go beyond the size of our community," Turner said. "We have greater needs because of the Lincoln Tunnel. We’ve also been successful in getting Green Acres Funds, because of our ability to sit down here and take the time to express how much help we need, how many people come and use our parks. We’ve been successful because we make the League meetings a priority."
Added Turner, "You can’t underestimate the contacts that are made down here. They’re very powerful. Every dime of money we get is beneficial, because without it, then the bills go back to the taxpayer. The networking done here is valuable and goes a long way. It was a very valuable trip, especially in a year of transition."