Hopefuls bid for spots on
county freeholder board
By dick metzgar
Staff Writer
As usual, the incumbent Republicans running for two open three-year seats on the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders said they will stand on their record in the Nov. 5 general election.
As usual, the challenging Democrat and Libertarian candidates said the two incumbents have been on the board much too long, and that new blood is needed on the county governing body to revitalize county government.
All but one of the freeholder candidates participated in the Monmouth County candidates’ form held at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters, Manalapan, on Oct. 16, sponsored and coordinated by the League of Women Voters of Monmouth County.
Libertarian candidate Jennifer Carter, of Upper Freehold Township, was absent.
Approximately 50 people attended the forum.
Harry Larrison Jr., 76, of Ocean Grove, the longest-serving freeholder in the state, is seeking his 13th consecutive term on the board. At the completion of his current term at the end of the year, Larrison will have served 36 years on the board, joining it in February 1966.
Thomas J. Powers, 67, of Wall Township, is serving his seventh consecutive three-year term on the board. He took office at the beginning of 1982.
Democratic challengers John P. Szeliga, 49, of Belmar, and Jeffrey Pringle, 33, of Tinton Falls, are newcomers to the freeholders race.
Libertarian Joseph T. Conklin, of Middletown, is also seeking one of the open seats.
Among the issues addressed by the candidates were development, traffic congestion and taxes.
Larrison and Powers said the county is virtually powerless to control development in municipalities that establish their own parameters for residential and commercial growth.
"We have absolutely no control on overdevelopment," Larrison said. "That is entirely up to local governments, who create their own zoning laws."
Pringle said he would not accept that approach.
"We can’t just raise our hands and surrender to the developers," Pringle said. "We must work with the local governments to control development."
All of the candidates agreed that the rapid pace of development in Monmouth County — recognized as one of the fastest growing regions in New Jersey — has led to traffic congestion.
Powers said one way the county has addressed the issue is with the Kozloski Road extension, which is nearly completed. Constructed in Freehold Township, the new road extends from Route 537 across Dutch Lane Road to the intersection of Route 79 and East Freehold Road.
"That should alleviate traffic in the Freehold area," Powers said. "We bought that property 15 years ago when it was much cheaper than it would be today."
Larrison said local government again bears much of the responsibility.
"There is no question that traffic is a big problem," Larrison said. "But, again, you have to start with local government giving out subdivisions that we have no control over."
The challengers for the board said the county can do more.
"We can have better planning of our infrastructures," Conklin said. "We can help create work-from-home programs to get more motorists off the roads. We must encourage people to use mass transit more."
"The freeholders, the county planning board and the engineering department must be involved," Pringle said. "We’ve allowed local overdevelopment. Now we need to take a good look at regional issues."
"Many people in Monmouth County work in New York," Szeliga said. "We must lobby for things at higher levels. We need to push for a passenger rail line and improve mass transit."
The challengers said the county must reduce its budget by cutting spending. All claimed that considerable fat can be cut from the county’s $376 million 2002 budget, which is many times higher than when Larrison, and later Powers, took office.
Pringle said Monmouth County has too many people on the payroll.
Although the Monmouth County tax rate has dropped or remained stable over the years, the actual amount property owners pay in county taxes is considerably larger than what it was years ago, they claimed.
The tax rate is based on the true value of property in the county, which has escalated astronomically over the years.
The incumbents said they have guided Monmouth County through its greatest period of growth.
According to the 2000 census, there were 615,301 residents in the 472-square-mile county.
"The county has grown tremendously since I joined the board," Larrison said. "There have been many changes during the years I’ve been on the board. When I took office, the county’s population was 252,000, and now it is 640,000. We have had to do many things in many different areas of service in order to absorb this population."
Conklin said that if he was elected, he would work to eliminate the freeholders’ annual salary of $30,000. That figure includes a 20 percent raise the freeholders approved last year.
"This was the first raise we’ve had in 17 years," Larrison said, "and we get no expense money to help us do the necessary travel we are obligated to do."
"The last raise we had was when the Democrats were in control of the board," Powers said.
In addition to Larrison and Powers, the other members of the county board of freeholders are Republicans Ted Narozanick, Amy Handlin and Ed Stominski.
According to the 2002 Monmouth County Directory, the freeholders oversee the five mandatory functions of county government delegated to it by the state. They are: Administration and Special Services; Public Works and Engineering; Human Services and Health; Finance; and Administration of Justice and Parks.
In total, the board is responsible for supervising more than 70 county departments.