Palladino seeks county seat

A West Amwell councilwoman is running for a seat on the Hunterdon County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

By: Concetta Benuzzi Volpe
   WEST AMWELL — Committeewoman Nance Palladino is running for a seat on the Hunterdon County Board of Chosen Freeholders for the first time in her political career.
   A Republican candidate, Ms. Palladino is running at-large in the June 3 primary, hoping to garner the nomination necessary to place her name on the Nov. 4 ballot.
   Should Ms. Palladino win and prevail in the general election, an historic precedent could be set for the first West Amwell resident to hold a seat on the board in more than 100 years.
   There are four candidates running for two open seats on the five-member board; one is an incumbent running for re-election. They are incumbent Marcia A. Karrow, Republican; Shaun Van Doren, Republican; Erik C. Peterson, Republican; and Thomas A. Leonardis Jr., Democrat as well as Ms. Palladino.
   As a four-term member of the West Amwell’s Township Committee and as a 23-year resident of Hunterdon County, Ms. Palladino said she has the skills, ideas, willingness to work hard and the desire to help fellow county residents in resolving the pressing issues of the day.
   "I still believe the government belongs to the people," Ms. Palladino said.
   She said she will be guided as she has been throughout her public service career by a single standard to serve the best interests of the people she represents.
   The candidate said she hopes to use the position as freeholder to assist county government in becoming more responsive to the people.
   In particular, Ms. Palladino said she intends to zero in on issues such as taxes, sprawl and overdevelopment, the ever-expanding county budget, indiscriminate bonding and the pursuit of grants as a possible revenue stream.
   Ms. Palladino, currently serving her 10th year on West Amwell’s Township Committee, was re-elected to a fourth term in 2002.
   She has served as secretary of the Hunterdon County Republican Committee, as a member of the County Advisory Committee and committeewoman and municipal chairwoman to the County Committee for the last 12 years.
   Ms. Palladino maintains she never structured her life or politics to aspire to a higher office.
   When asked what prompted her run for a county seat, she replied, "I’ve been very content trying to help my community in the capacity of an elected official but when the county seat became available, I thought it was time."
   Having spent the last 10 years with the League of Municipalities, the candidate has served on three statewide committees including Gross Receipts and Franchise Tax, the Task Force of Trucking and Taxes and the Education Reform Committee.
   According to Ms. Palladino, the last six years were spent on the league’s Taxation and Finance Committee reviewing fiscal impact legislation on all towns before the legislation becomes law and on the Hunterdon County Planning Board, serving the last three years as vice chairwoman.
   Ms. Palladino said overdevelopment is the driving force behind the county’s rising tax rate.
   "Taxes are making it unaffordable to live in Hunterdon County," she said, "Although, as a freeholder, I can’t control taxes, I can be responsive to the people who elected me to office. The people own the government, and, in my opinion, a number of things have shifted the office of chosen freeholder away from the people who really should have more say in the decision making process."
   She added, "That being said, in my mind, the freeholders board is a budgeting body, for the county and the essence of the position comes down to creating a county budget in the most cost-effective way possible."
   With regard to the budget, Ms. Palladino characterized it as huge.
   "In my opinion, the budget requires re-examination as do many of the 30-plus agencies it supervises and funds," she said. "If I were elected, I would like to understand each department thoroughly and whether or not each department is a burden to the taxpayers or if it is better to have the municipality serve it."
   Sprawl is the big issue throughout the state and across the county, according to Ms. Palladino.
   "Overdevelopment is driving the tax rate off the scales in every town," she said. "It’s driving the tax rate up because of the increased demand for municipal services and schools. There is no doubt that we are losing beautiful countryside as well as increasing taxes. New housing is coming in without any commercial ratables to balance them."
   When asked what she hoped to see change in the county, without hesitation she replied, "Bonding issues."
   According to Ms. Palladino, large expenditure questions belong on a ballot where the people can decide.
   "Bonding puts us in future debt," she said. "When government on any level talks about bonding, without letting the people speak or make decisions, it gives me pause. We really need to become more selective in what we bond for."
   Ms. Palladino said government does not seem to have a problem bonding future without getting public input.
   "I would like to see most bonding issues require voter approval," she said, "or else it will keep going if we don’t stop it."
   She also said, if elected, she plans to encourage and support the municipalities in their ability to retain their rural character.
   "I would like the county to take a more active role is assisting local planning boards in trying to retain each community’s rural character," she said. "I don’t believe the freeholders support turning away inappropriate development because it threatens our natural resources."
   Ms. Palladino spoke briefly about her plans to encourage efforts to seek outside additional revenues at the county level.
   "We have an open space tax in the county, and even though no other county gives back money, Hunterdon County gives back 10 percent," she said. "I would like to see the give-back on the open space tax money be reconfigured. I would like to reconfigure that amount. How much to ask for, I’m not quite sure, but I suspect that 25 percent would not be unreasonable."
   She explained further, "If we put $100,000 into county open space, we only get back 10 percent or $10,000. That means we give away 90 percent of our purchase power, and I think each town has a better sense of how to spend that money to purchase and preserve open space in their towns more than the county does."
   Seeking grants as an additional revenue stream also would be top priority on the candidates to do list.
   According to Ms. Palladino, grants are paid for by the people, flowing directly from the state and federal government.
   "I would like to see as much money as possible flow back into the county to support the things we need to do," she said.