Posted on 08/27/2019 5:13:36 PM PDT by Trump.Deplorable
Three members of Jackson Township boards dealing with development have tendered their resignations, following the release of recordings of their attendance at a meeting aimed at stopping the construction of a housing project geared towards Orthodox Jews.
Controversy began after an anonymous leak to local officials and media surfaced that Richard Egan, who was a member of Jackson’s Planning Board, and Sheldon Hofstein and Joseph Sullivan who served on its Zoning Board, were present at what was labeled as the town’s inaugural CUPON meeting. CUPON (Citizens United to Protect Our Neighborhoods) has been active in New York’s Rockland County for some time, largely focusing on efforts to oppose the growth of the Orthodox community there.
The meeting was held two weeks ago at Jackson’s Miller Road Fire House and was reportedly attended by some 28 residents. Included on its written agenda was discussion of an upcoming Planning Board application for Jackson Trails, a development for more than 460 homes and a shul in an area of the town near the border with Manchester Township, far from the area of Jackson that borders Lakewood, and which is already home to several hundred Orthodox families.
Very brief clips of a recording of the meeting, released through the Lakewood Scoop, feature the three men acknowledging that their presence at the gathering must be kept secret.
“We’re not supposed to be here,” Mr. Hofstein said. “Nobody saw us.”
“We didn’t sign in, we’re neutral like invisible,” said Mr. Egan.
“We weren’t here,” said Mr. Sullivan.
A source who has listened to the entire audio recording but requested anonymity, told Hamodia that all three took an active part in conversations strategizing to block Jackson Trails’ application.
The planning meeting held four days later was attended by some 175 residents. Just before it commenced, Gregory McGuckin, who serves as an attorney for Jackson as well as being its assemblyman, approached Mr. Egan and asked that he recuse himself from taking part in the meeting.
Presumably under pressure from town officials that their continued participation would throw a further pall over the town’s zoning and planning decisions, Mr. Egan and Mr. Sullivan submitted their resignations this past Friday, and Mr. Hofstein added his on Monday.
Robert Nixon, who serves as president of Jackson’s Town Council told Hamodia that he welcomed the resignations.
“Council was surprised and disappointed at the allegations made recently against members of our Planning and Zoning Boards and we support their decision to step down,” he said. “The focus of the Zoning and Planning Boards have always been, and must only be, on the law governing land use and Jackson’s Master Plan.”
Zoning Board appointments are made by the town council, and those to the Planning Board are made by the town’s Mayor, Michael Reina.
Jackson has struggled to keep its town boards staffed in recent years, following a series of scandals. Robert Burrows, a former Zoning Board member, has been the author of several online anti-Semitic tirades. In 2017, Larry Schuster was forced to resign after anti-Semitic and other offensive comments he made online were discovered, only weeks after Anthony Marano was forced from the board over an arrest for possession of illicit materials (Child Pornography) and resisting arrest.
At the time, members of the council called for more rigorous background checks to be made before admitting applicants to serve on town boards.
The recent resignations could complicate Jackson’s ongoing legal woes as well. In 2017, the town was sued by the Agudath Israel of America, which claimed that ordinances that banned the construction of new schools and eruvin were motivated by bias against the Orthodox community.
Officials had entered into arbitration, but negotiations stalled and a trove of emails revealed by a FOIL request between the mayor and council members seemed to reveal that talks were little more than a stalling tactic. The cases are currently moving forward.
Prior to the Agudah’s action, Jackson had been sued by Oros Bais Yaakov over the township’s denial of its application to build.
While Mr. Egan and Mr. Sullivan were appointed over the last year and a half, Mr. Hofstein has served for 11 years and was one of those who voted down the application.
Rabbi Avi Schnall, Agudath Israel’s New Jersey Director told Hamodia that the recent revelations are yet another step in strengthening accusations of a concerted effort to block Orthodox growth in Jackson.
“These incidents are further proof of the nefarious intentions of those sitting in the government of Jackson,” he said. “It shows a deep rooted problem that they are pursuing plans to keep Jews out and to have zoning and planning board members at a meeting on how to prevent a Jewish development from being built speaks volumes. Remember also, that these are positions appointed by the mayor and council to steer their agendas.”
at least two issues,
1. the apparent bigotry involved and
2. the apparent illegality and/or corruption of some local officials
none of these things would be surprising, and it is not surprising they’d go together... as immoral people often exhibit multiple evil/wrong/illegal kinds of behaviors
i am not there to evaluate who has done what...
so i draw no conclusions as to any individuals but
it sure does sound like that little town has some bigtime problems to clean up
“We’re not supposed to be here,” Mr. Hofstein said. “Nobody saw us.”
“We didn’t sign in, we’re neutral like invisible,” said Mr. Egan.
“We weren’t here,” said Mr. Sullivan.
STFU!!!! :)
Boy, these guys would definitely not be good with Omerta.
Orthodox Jews helped put Giuliani over the top way back when.
Along with us Staten Islanders :)
ML/NJ
There is some tension between the Orthodox community and locals ( including non Orthodox Jews). I know a couple people in and around Lakewood and some of the problems seem to be related by perceived attempts by some Members of the Orthodox community to depress property values and then buy up the land. Don’t know how true it is but from people I’ve talked to, that definitely is what they believe is happening.
Boy, these guys would definitely not be good with Omerta.
I laughed when I read those comments. They are definitely not the brain trust
At least Orthodox neighborhoods are not high crime areas; you can walk through them safely at midnight and still find your parked car with its hubcaps on...
ROFL!
This would make a great mafia skit on Mad TV :)
“I’m not telling you cops that i shot Louie the Finger five times”
“Or that I killed those two guys at fifth and Main last week”
“And that dismembered body found last week isn’t my work.”
“So go ahead, ask all you want, I’m telling you nothin!”
:)
On another thread we’re talking about the Three Stooges.
On this one we’ve got dialog straight out of a Marx Brothers movie! LOL
LOL
I could picture them saying this stuff in a skit!
But unless Zeppo was there, groucho would have to take two of the lines since Harpo doesn’t talk :)
They can only depress values if the seller allows them to...
Problem is Orthodox Jewish Family buys one house at retail/fair value, then another family buys one, and another, and before you know it everyone on the block/development is fire selling their houses to get away from the Jews. Is that more bigotry then Real Estate depression?
Its just supply vs demand, except supply favors the buyers then the sellers.
I have seen it happen here, and personal bigotry fuels it. No different then what happened inner cities in the 60’s/70’s and 80’s. People fire sold their homes to get away from the blacks, again personal bigotry.
It's really that simple. The "Orthodox Jewish" element to it is a secondary issue, to the extent that it plays a role at all.
I love it
Thanks for the laugh
The problem is these zoning boards make building to meet demands impossible so the state comes in, buys land and develops “affordable housing units” at 250K per unit that costs the tax payer even more if the land was just sold at market and built at market.
Our taxes are high because of two factors “affordable housing” and school funding. Remove those two factors and our property taxes would be normal like everywhere else.
Quality of life is NOT guaranteed by the Constitution but property rights are. A builder wanting to develop, cause that is what builders do, has their rights taken away by these boards who want to give rights to their properties to others because their developments will “decrease quality of life”.
1. A developer making an application for a zoning board approval is seeking a variance for a proposed project ... which means the project has one or more features that are not in compliance with the local zoning code. These variances are granted for any number of reasons, but a refusal on the part of a zoning board to grant a variance should not -- on its face -- be seen as some kind of violation of someone's "property rights."
2. I don't think your description of the "affordable housing" process is accurate. I've been involved with a number of municipal approval processes over the years for various different land uses, and I've never dealt with one where the state was involved in buying the property and developing it. In New Jersey, the process typically involves the developer being held to some kind of requirement to dedicate a certain number of "affordable" housing units in a residential development. It is generally NOT considered good land use policy to have affordable housing units segregated in their own developments.
Good point about the public education expenses, though. I have said for years that public schools have no place in a free society.
I know someone from there and find it amusing that folks here are making perfectly logical assumptions about what’s going on, most of which are simply inaccurate.
I don’t live there and have no dog in that fight. The fascinating thing is what’s happening is very similar to what you would imagine if fundamentalist muslims took over an area.
It’s not anti semitism, it’s a reaction to the orthodox in particular and that reaction is shared by non orthodox Jews.
There was massive corruption ripping off the school system and social services. Rabbis preside at legal transactions and instruct the parties what to do, regardless of any laws or contracts.
Apparently there are orthodox “security patrols” driving around adjacent neighborhoods, as a warning to homeowners that they are interested in buying up there next. This is NOT a high crime area whatsoever.
And they don’t bust a block by paying fair market value for one house, they pay double the asking price in cash. But that home might then house a LOT of people.
I’m just reporting. I’d like to sell my house for double, and of course you can’t plot to keep a religious group out. But the towns are becoming areas run by a religious hierarchy. (Like Sharia?)
Yeah but we both screwed up who whacked Fredo so who are we to laugh. :)
Those 3 guys sound like the 3 Stooges all right. Better off without them. That having been said, is it not illegal to intentionally suppress a certain group from purchasing real estate? And, would those haughty people prefer a bunch of muzzies, drug dealers, or ghetto scum move in?
“The “Orthodox Jewish” element to it is a secondary issue, “
No its THE issue.
Men dont work, they’re students in school. Big families, no income means all on food stamps, medicaid pay no taxes. They block vote to get the state to pay for everything. Separate public facilities for men and women. And YOU arent allowed.
Look for the boundary around their ghetto. Sometimes, in places ts an actual wire.
They are anti-american separatists.
Go ahead, dispute my facts.
As bad as the moose-limbs.
Were not talking plain vanilla jews.
No issue there.
This is diffetent. Even Israel has big issues with the Haredi lifstyle.
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