Elwell co-defendant pleads guilty
Ron Manzo, a Bayonne businessman and longtime associate of former Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District court to conspiring with Elwell and former Jersey City Housing Authority Commissioner Ed Cheatam to obtain a corrupt cash payment of $10,000 in exchange for Mayor Elwell’s alleged help with a real estate deal in Secaucus.
Cheatam pleaded guilty in September 2009. Elwell has pleaded not guilty of the charges and has maintained his innocence. Elwell and Manzo were scheduled to go on trial together next month.
The charge to which Manzo pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 7.
In exchange for his plea, two other charges against Manzo, 67, were dropped.
Elwell and Manzo were among 46 public officials and religious leaders in New Jersey and New York who were arrested in a massive public corruption sting operation in 2009.
Elwell stands accused of allegedly taking a $10,000 cash bribe from Solomon Dwek, a cooperating government witness who posed as a developer and who claimed he wanted to build a hotel in Secaucus. The hotel project was invented by the government, along with other phony development projects throughout Hudson County, as part of a statewide sting operation to catch public officials who may have been tempted to take cash bribes in the months leading up to the 2009 election season.
According to government prosecutors, Elwell and his alleged co-conspirators, Manzo and Cheatam, allegedly planned to extort $20,000 from Dwek in exchange for expediting permits needed for the hotel.
Guilty pleas from Elwell’s two co-defendants could have major implications for the former mayor’s upcoming trial.
Failed school budget revised; public hearing Wednesday
The town is tentatively scheduled to hold a public hearing on the revised budget for the Secaucus Public School District on Wednesday, May 18 at noon.
Last month during the Board of Education elections, voters rejected the proposed $33.1 million budget that was drafted by Schools Superintendent Cynthia Randina and school trustees. The 2011-2012 school year budget had called for a 3.3 percent tax increase. Since then, in accordance with state law, members of the Town Council and other town officials have been working to cut spending from the plan.
The committee includes Town Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Margaret Barkala; Acting Tax Collector Nick Goldsack (who is also a CFO); Town Administrator David Drumeler; Deputy Mayor John Bueckner; Councilman Robert Costantino; and Mayor Michael Gonnelli. The committee has also received input from Acting School Board Business Administrator Ron Smith, Town Attorney Anthony D’Elia, and the town auditors.
Much of the budget trimming has been done by the members of this committee, although Randina and a few board members have also been involved in the process.
By law, the rejected school budget must be submitted to the county school superintendent by May 19, the day after Wednesday’s public hearing.
Since the hearing will likely begin during the day, when most residents are at work, Mayor Gonnelli said Tuesday that the meeting will be taped and aired on the local public access channel.
County budget introduced with tax increase
County Executive Tom De DeGise introduced a $480 million 2011 fiscal year budget at Wednesday’s freeholder caucus meeting, saying that the tax levy will rise by 4.57 percent to $281.65 million. This is an increase of approximately $12.3 million over 2010.
“The tax rate will rise from $4.10 to $4.64 per $1000 of equalized value. But this is only our third tax rate increase in eight years,” DeGise noted.
Property owners in Hudson County pay an overall tax rate that comes from adding the county tax rate, municipal taxes, and school taxes. The school and city tax rates are approved by those entities.
“Hudson County continues to endure aftershocks from the financial earthquake of 2008-2009,” DeGise said. This has caused the equalized valuation of all properties within the county’s 12 municipalities to significantly decline again this year. The total amount of decline was $4.75 billion, a loss of more than 7 percent.
Revenues that were derived from a once-robust property market continue to fall. DeGise also said that fees from the Register’s Office continue to decline, as do returns from our interest on investments.
Communities divide up the increase based on assessed values in each community. It is uncertain yet which towns will feel the greatest impact. Last year, which saw a similar increase, impacted Jersey City and Hoboken the most.
A public hearing on the budget will be held on Friday, June 24, in the Hudson County Annex Building at 6 p.m.
Help for homeowners facing foreclosure
The state’s Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency has announced the New Jersey HomeKeeper program, a federally-funded effort to help homeowners who are in danger of foreclosure due to a layoff or underemployment. Through the program homeowners can receive two-year loans in the amount of $48,000 or less. Loans are in the form of second mortgage loans. Proceeds from the loans may be used to cover overdue mortgage payments, property taxes, property insurance, or mortgage insurance.
The HomeKeeper initiative is funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Hardest Hit Fund.
For more information, visit www.njhomekeeper.gov. Residents can also call the mayor’s office at (201) 330-2005.
Circus to benefit animal shelter
On Sunday, June 12 the Kelly Miller Circus will perform two shows in town to benefit the Secaucus Animal Shelter.
This popular circus will set up a big tent in Harmon Meadow that can accommodate up to 1,500 audience members.
Residents are invited to see the North Starlets, clowns, trapeze artists, a juggling act, and a “fire manipulator,” in addition to many animals, including camels, tigers, and elephants.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for children.
The Secaucus Animal Shelter will get 20 percent of the proceeds from the first 200 adult ticket sales, and 40 percent of adult ticket sales after that. In addition, the shelter will receive 25 percent of the proceeds from all children’s tickets sold.
Show times will be at 2 and 5 p.m.
For more information, call Susan Pirro at (201) 362-4435.