HAZLET — If you asked the real Democratic candidate in the township to stand up, two would jump.
Those two are the candidates vying for party support in the Democratic Township Committee primary election: Kevin Lavan and James Brady. Both are Democrats. Both have a different perspective of what makes that so. Neither is backing down from the June 4 primary.
The winner will face Republican newcomer Tracey Maffiore in November for one three-year Township Committee seat. Incumbent Republican Committeeman Paul Coughlin is not seeking re-election. The committee is currently split 3-2 with Democrats in control.
Lavan is endorsed by what is known as the Hazlet Democratic Club and is its president. He is also endorsed by the county Democratic organization and an organization dubbed The Regular Democrats of Hazlet Inc., which has "established a campaign committee to assist their candidate, Kevin Lavan," a press release read. Brady is endorsed by Hazlet Democratic Club Inc., the officially incorporated older of the two groups, which he has called "the old-time one."
Brady will tell you that this club is the real Democrats’ club in that it had incorporated status long before there was any other Democratic club. On the other hand, Mayor Christopher Cullen will tell you that the real Democratic club is the other, without the incorporated status, because that’s the organization which endorses Lavan. The other side says the Democratic club that endorses Lavan is just a social club with no political clout, nothing more.
Lavan supporters will tell you that he has the full support of the Monmouth County Democratic Executive Committee, which "will also be fielding and enthusiastically coordinating the efforts of a full slate of 34 candidates for Monmouth County Democratic Executive Committee seats from each of Hazlet’s 17 municipal districts," a released statement on the Lavan campaign read.
It went on to say that "these individuals serve as liaisons between the voters of their municipal districts and the members of the Township Committee. In order to present a united and confident tone, the committee has adopted the slogans ‘Lavan for Hazlet 2002’ along with ‘The Pallone Team’ and has begun development of Mr. Lavan’s campaign platform." The slogans alone, Mayor Christopher Cullen says, tell that Lavan is the true Democrat in that he’s being grouped with longtime Congressman Frank Pallone (D-6). Brady’s team will tell you a slogan is mere words.
After not succeeding in getting the party’s nomination last year, Brady ran on an independent party slate. This year, the 63-year-old longtime resident of 42 Bayshore Manor and owner of Brownstone Cleaners in Red Bank is running as a Democrat only.
And Brady has what he sees as his own take on Democratic issues. As with last year, he wants to see more open discussion of township-wide issues and easier access to public records that he says are intended to educate the public on its own tax-dollar spending. Brady also wants to see a more pro-active township role in helping its seniors and children.
Saying he wants to give the government back to the people, Brady talked about a "too little too late" attitude that he said looms over the governing body right now with respect to several issues, among them building maintenance and the budget.
"We shouldn’t wait until the last minute," he said in a previous interview. "The governing body should anticipate problems and go over them so that they’ll be prepared. For instance, town hall is in such a mess right now, and it didn’t happen overnight, either."
He also says to avoid budget shocks, there should be better financial planning, because in the end the budget affects the taxpayer.
Another thing that Brady thinks has been overlooked is the proper protocol in the construction code office. He says permits are indiscriminately issued in some cases, and it appears that they’re just doled out without a care in others.
A member of the Monmouth County Hazlet Democratic Executive Committee, Brady is also president of the Hazlet Mobile Home Association.
Lavan, 57, resides at 7 Carlisle Lane and works as a hiring agent for NYSA ILA, or the International Longshoremen’s Association.
Lavan’s campaign platform is as follows:
• stabilization of the township’s tax rate through the promotion of the establishment of a municipal chamber of commerce that would be designed to actively solicit tenants for unoccupied retail spaces.
• coordinating a final site plan regarding the location of a new municipal complex that reflects the best interests of the township.
• striking a balance between open space preservation and bringing in clean tax ratables with future development abiding by the township’s proposed master plan.
• pursuit of a municipal ballot referendum for the preservation and maintenance of open space.