Dennis Elwell officially began his second term as mayor at a reorganization meeting held Tuesday night at Town Hall.
Three other council members were also sworn in: Deputy Mayor and 3rd Ward Councilman John Reilly, 2nd Ward Councilman John Bueckner, and 1st Ward Councilman Richard Kane. All were re-elected to their seats in November.
The special meeting drew nearly 50 supporters and family members.
“I would especially like to thank my father [Howie Elwell], who turned 92 in September, for encouraging me and having me along in his own career in government,” said Mayor Elwell.
Dennis Elwell officially began his second term as mayor at a reorganization meeting held Tuesday night at Town Hall.
Three other council members were also sworn in: Deputy Mayor and 3rd Ward Councilman John Reilly, 2nd Ward Councilman John Bueckner, and 1st Ward Councilman Richard Kane. All were re-elected to their seats in November.
The special meeting drew nearly 50 supporters and family members.
“I would especially like to thank my father [Howie Elwell], who turned 92 in September, for encouraging me and having me along in his own career in government,” said Mayor Elwell.Not an easy job
The ceremony began and ended with a prayer by Father James Reilly, Councilman Reilly’s brother.
In their speeches, the three council members thanked wives, friends, residents and other Town Council members. Councilman Reilly talked about the difficulties in running a municipality.
“It’s not easy to run a town,” he said. “We’re not perfect. We’ve had some bad moments, and been called a lot of names, but we’re trying to give residents a better life. At first, residents are shocked by the [housing] development in Secaucus, but when they see their taxes staying down, they are more appreciative of what we’ve done.”
Independent mayoral candidate Frank MacCormack had run cartoons in local newspapers months prior to the election in November complaining that Secaucus municipal government was allowing “carpetbaggers” in to develop, and complaining about the loss of “small town values and position.”
Team Elwell, which counts as allies all six Town Council members except Independent John Bueckner, used the Town Council’s past record as their platform. That included keeping municipal taxes stable for the last seven years, promoting controlled development, and continuing to improve traffic and flooding issues.
“I wanted to speak out against all this [the name calling], but they [my fellow council members] grabbed me by the coattails and said that we were running on our past performance,” said Reilly.
Maintaining the status quo
“We have an accomplished record, and we aim to keep the quality of life for our citizens consistent,” said Elwell in his speech. “I would like to work with anyone who has the Town of Secaucus’ best interests at heart.”
Elwell said that he would do his best to keep Secaucus affordable, but that 2006 could present some challenges. “Some costs are rising beyond our control,” he said. He said the budget for fuel for town employees has exceeded the 2005 budget by $100,000 because of the price of gasoline. Since January of last year, gasoline prices have nearly doubled.
“Anthony [Iacono – the town administrator] is looking into ways department heads can reduce fuel consumption and cut back on the use of town vehicles to keep costs in check,” Elwell said.
Elwell said the administration “will continue to fight in Trenton” to make sure Secaucus residents are treated fairly.
“We lobbied and won hotel room fees on out-of-town guests in 2004 [3 percent in 2005] who use our many hotels,” said Elwell. “We will lobby for additional aid as well as fair treatment from agencies who interact with the town, and [watch] how that revenue is distributed.”
Over the past two years, Secaucus has received $17.4 million in grants, aid, and services from the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission.
Of all the 14 towns in the Meadowlands District, Secaucus has the highest portion of its land under the zoning authority of the NJMC – 3,752 of the town’s 4,196 acres. Secaucus has the most acres in the district, and largest percentage of total acres.
NJMC receives funds from Secaucus for a “tax sharing” fund to which all 14 municipalities of the Meadowlands District contribute. Council members feel the town pays too much into the fund without enough revenue coming back into the town from the Commission.
New order?
Elwell said in the next few months, the council will restructure some of the town’s departments. “To keep costs contained, we need to constantly re-evaluate how we operate,” Elwell said. “We want to get the most efficient services possible for the taxpayer.”
Rumors say that one of the departments reorganized may well be the Department of Public Works. DPW department head Mike Gonnell has been involved in a political game of ping-pong with municipal government over issues such as his retirement package, his voting as a member of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, and his volunteerism in the Fire Department.
Gonnelli and his wife Linda filed a lawsuit against the town in late 2005. The suit makes allegations of retaliations against Gonnelli, include restricting some of his DPW superintendent duties.