Lucretia Saraceno
seek Marlboro seats
Dems: Residential building
needs to be watched closely
Grover Burrows,
Lucretia Saraceno
seek Marlboro seats
BY LARRY RAMER
Staff Writer
MARLBORO — Grover Burrows and Lucretia Saraceno, the Democrats running for two seats on the Township Council, say they would like to control, but not completely curtail residential development.
Burrows cited open space as an important additional concern, while Saraceno said property taxes and traffic issues are high on her list of priorities.
Burrows, a computer programmer/analyst, has lived in Marlboro since 1987. He has served on the Zoning Board of Adjustment for almost four years.
Burrows said he initially became involved in local issues about seven years ago when he helped organize a group of residents to oppose a housing development called Mountain Ridge. After hiring a lawyer and organizing protests over the course of three years, the group triumphed, as the development plan was defeated, Burrows said.
"Fighting overdevelopment is very important to me, but I’m not against development in and of itself," he said, explaining that he is opposed to "bad development." Burrows pointed out that controlling residential development would help the school system and keep property taxes stable.
He said bad development would include the construction of homes in environmentally sensitive areas and development that results in the clear-cutting of forests or the creation of steep slopes that result in run-off and mud slides.
Burrows added that he is opposed to "density (in housing developments) for the sake of density," but would be more likely to approve developments if the builder donated open space to the township.
As a member of the zoning board, Burrows was criticized by some people for abstaining on the board’s approval of a 35-home development called Tennent Estates. Earlier in the year, Burrows had voted against developer Dan Werbler’s request for a use variance to build Tennent Estates on land that is zoned for commercial use.
The reason he abstained on the vote for final approval of the development was that the final vote related primarily to technical matters, Burrows explained.
"The application was divided into two distinct hearings – the second part dealt more with technical issues, such as bulk issues, the site plan and trees. I felt the builder was working with us on these matters, so I didn’t want to penalize him," Burrows said.
He said one of his priorities as a councilman would be to work to preserve as much open space as possible in the town.
Saraceno has lived in Marlboro for almost 12 years and is a commissioner on the Marlboro Township Municipal Utilities Authority.
Saraceno said the MTMUA efficiently serves 38,000 customers and provides water at lower prices than most other water authorities and companies.
Saraceno offered a more general overview than Burrows of the issues that concern her.
"The most important issues are schools and property taxes. Everybody feels strongly about these issues and I’m listening and paying attention to people’s concerns," Saraceno said. "We cannot stop development, but we can try to control it."
The candidate added that she would like to hold meetings with citizens so that she can become aware of their concerns and help address their needs in areas such as quality of life and traffic.
Burrows and Saraceno are running against Republicans Joseph Pernice and Patti Morelli for two four-year terms on the Township Council.
The terms will run from Jan. 1, 2004 through Dec. 31, 2007.