BY ELAINE VAN DEVELDE
Staff Writer
Things will never be the same in Tinton Falls. And that’s a good thing, as Mayor-elect Peter Maclearie sees it.
Maclearie is not fearful of the changes that will come with his swearing-in tomorrow at 5 p.m. at town hall, he’s welcoming them
After he takes the oath of office as the town’s top administrator, Maclearie plans to confront the changes that come with a major administrative switch immediately.
And with the ousting of 16-year Mayor Ann McNamara, there will be many changes that Maclearie has dubbed a “borough housecleaning” of sorts.
Some he can divulge, because they will take effect under his authority immediately. Others he cannot, because they will come with Borough Council’s approval.
“I can tell you that as soon as I take my oath, I will be appointing new Planning Board members because that is something the mayor has the authority to do without a council vote,” Maclearie said. “Council has to vote on department heads, directors and professional services contracts, but the Planning Board is all the mayor’s.”
And there are five seats up for grabs on the nine-member board, including alternates. In filling those five seats, the majority of the board will be changed.
Maclearie is calling that change one that he would like to think will transform the board into a more “Tinton Falls/resident-friendly” board, rather than developer-friendly or anti-development.
“With the new people on the board, I am pretty confident that each case will be carefully evaluated,” the mayor-elect said. “I think with that care to take Tinton Falls’ welfare into consideration first and weigh heavily residents’ concerns, we should get to the right land use place in the end.”
Planning Board members are appointed on staggered terms. Right off the bat, with McNamara’s and Council President Jerome Donlon’s losses in the May election, those two seats on the board are automatically vacated.
The mayor always has a seat on the board, so Maclearie will take McNamara’s. And one council member takes a seat on the board. So, with Donlon off council as of July 1, a council member is expected to take his place. Council does vote on the member, but Maclearie said that Councilman-elect Paul Ford has expressed a strong desire to take that seat.
In addition to the mayor and council member’s seats on the board, one borough employee can be appointed to what is referred to as a Class II seat, which was, until now, occupied by Police Chief Gerald Turning.
Maclearie said that Turning “has not expressed an interest in returning to that role,” so he will put Planning Board member John Pocaro in that seat. Pocaro’s seat is up for grabs along with another.
So while Pocaro takes Turning’s vacated seat, someone new will be appointed to his and two other seats.
The people appointed to those seats will be: Joel Davies, a Riveredge Road resident who is a former Zoning Board vice chair, Open Space Committee member and Board of Education member; Kim Barrett, of Riverdale Avenue West, who was on the Open Space Committee with Maclearie and ran on his ticket for a council seat and lost; and Paul Oliveria, a resident of Blueberry Lane, who helped the school board gauge what space was needed when they expanded by compiling a borough demographics report.
“He was the wild card,” Maclearie said. “I actually got to talking to him while campaigning. He had expressed a strong desire to get involved, and I thought he was very intelligent and did a great job on the schools report, so I took him up on it.”
Of Davies’ appointment, Maclearie said he represents the “trifecta of boards” because he has so much experience.
“Joel has such a significant history in town,” he said. “He has seen changes take effect and helped effect a lot of positive change. He has an excellent knowledge of our master plan and knows all the land use ordinances and codes on the books. He will be an invaluable asset.
The choice of Kim Barrett, he said, was also an easy one.
“Kim has always had a tremendous interest in planning and zoning,” Maclearie said. “She is very committed to land conservation and preservation, but has always been a resident who is extremely well researched on issues and conveys her points very diplomatically and intelligently.”
As far as other appointments are concerned, Maclearie has been wading through résumés to find suitable personnel for various township positions from which some are retiring after McNamara vacates her office. Terms are up on other annually renewed contracts, and personnel switches will also take hold.
“With respect to those, I make recommendations to council and they can either accept or reject my recommendations,” Maclearie said. “Ultimately, though, council has to approve them. I have decided on one official personnel move which I do have the authority to make right now.”
That move is officially appointing an acting borough administrator to take the reins from longtime Administrator Anthony Muscillo, who is retiring effective June 30, today.
“Until I appoint someone as new administrator, I am appointing John Bucciero, who is the head of the Department of Public Works as the acting administrator,” Maclearie said. “He has been essentially doing the job while Tony [Muscillo] has been on leave and vacation this year anyway. He’s done a good job and should have the official acting title.”
Someone in the Department of Public Works will take over Bucciero’s spot as the department supervisor temporarily while he is acting administrator. But, Bucciero will return to public works after Maclearie finds a suitable new administrator.
Who that will be is anyone’s guess right now, he said, because “I don’t have anyone in line at this point who I am comfortable with and feel can get us to where we need to be.”
Maclearie only said he does have résumés for director of law, a position being vacated by Edward McKenna Jr. after many years of annual professional contract renewal.
“I have no desire to stay on,” McKenna said previously. “I was doing it, basically, as a favor to Ann [McNamara]. But the job really isn’t well compensated for the amount of work that has to be done, and there is just so much in Tinton Falls. Good luck to Pete; he’ll need it.”
And while there is a “director” spot that could be filled in the Department of Building and Development, he said he will not put someone in that spot.
Though he does not have the director title, until now, Sal Massaro has had a leadership spot in that department. He has resigned effective July 6.
Massaro is retiring Administrator Anthony Muscillo’s son-in-law.
But some things won’t change. The Department of Audit, Accounts and Control will still be headed by Steve Pfeffer, Maclearie said.
“He does a great job and wants to stay,” he added. “As for the rest, there will be professional services contract changes that will bring in some new planners, engineers and attorneys to the boards. The positions and people who want to fill them will have to be looked at and evaluated. Think of it as an ongoing revitalization. It’s exhausting, but energizing at the same time. This really sets the stage for a new day in Tinton Falls — not that the old days were so bad.”