BY JOHN DUNPHY
Staff Writer
SAYREVILLE — A resident who made the news recently after refusing to take down a large sign that called for the removal of two borough officials says he is ready to bury the hatchet.
Sort of.
“I took the sign down to make an alteration,” Michael Mastorio said of the handmade 4-by-4-foot sign he has prominently displayed in front of his home at Pulaski Avenue and Washington Road. The sign says residents should “take back our town,” due to alleged “corruption,” “strong-arm tactics” and “lies” on the part of officials. It specifically called for the removal of Councilman Thomas Pollando and Mayor Kennedy O’Brien, until recently.
Mastorio, after having a change of heart, painted over any mention of Pollando, leaving only O’Brien’s name.
“Pollando has made a considerable effort to come forth and talk to me about issues at my house,” Mastorio said. “As mayor, [O’Brien] has yet to come forward and make an attempt to initiate any kind of conversation.”
The situation first surfaced when, early last year, Mastorio, a frequent attendee at Borough Council meetings, said he went to the council regarding an issue with a neighbor.
Mastorio addressed the council during the public portion of a meeting regarding the neighbor. Pollando, who was running the meeting, has previously said that Mastorio was allowed to speak for almost 20 minutes. Pollando had said he was advised by Borough Business Administrator Jeffry Bertrand to limit Mastorio’s time to only 5 more minutes, which Mastorio claimed was a violation of his freedom of speech.
In addition, borough officials have stated that Mastorio has been verbally abusive to borough employees who have gone to his property to address various issues.
Borough Zoning Officer Frank Toth sent Mastorio a notice in December indicating the sign was prohibited under a borough ordinance that prohibits frontyard, free-standing signs of certain sizes in residential zones, stating that the sign must be taken down within two hours.
Mastorio did not remove the sign, but a court hearing, which had been scheduled for Jan. 20 in Sayreville Municipal Court, has been tabled indefinitely.
O’Brien said this week that Mastorio may not agree with the borough’s response to various issues on his property, such as his complaints of garbage left on his property, but the town has done what it could.
“We have expended a great deal of borough resources. Mr. Mastorio disagrees with the results,” O’Brien said. “Everything that could have been done within the law has been done.”
Mastorio, who had also called for the resignations of both Pollando and O’Brien through a petition, said he has removed Pollando’s name from that list as well.
“In fact, I would support [Pollando] now,” he said. “Because he’s trying to do what’s right for the people of Sayreville. He has come forward through himself and other people to try to solve problems I have been experiencing.”
Mastorio said the mayor has not returned his repeated calls and e-mails.
“If he did [call me], I apologize,” O’Brien said. “Usually, I either call the person back or have someone on staff call him back.”
Because the position of mayor is part time, he said he isn’t always able to respond right away, as he also works a separate full-time job.
“I’m not asking for any special treatment. I’m just asking for the same treatment as everyone else,” Mastorio said. “The borough has said I could keep my sign. It’s been altered but the sign is still up.”
With regard to being singled out by Mastorio, the mayor said he didn’t mind.
“It’s certainly Mastorio’s right as an American to express his point of view,” he said. “At my father’s knee, he taught me this lesson in life: ‘If everybody likes you, you’re doing something wrong.’ ”