LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

From the issue of Dec. 15, 2005.

Former mayor not with local Republicans
To the editor:
   Having been exposed in the columns of this newspaper, and in other fora, to his self-serving and egocentric diatribes over the past several years, what we say here should already be clear to Beacon readers — Glenn van Lier is not a Hillsborough Republican, no matter how often or how stridently he may represent himself to be.
   Mr. van Lier did run for local office in the 1990s as a Republican.
   As incumbent mayor, he was soundly defeated, by over 800 votes, in his Township Committee re-election bid in November 1999. He subsequently voluntarily dropped out from all participation in local Republican activities.
   He resurfaced in the fall of 2002 to write a couple of unsolicited letters for that year’s local Republican candidates, and then, after their victory, demanded as his reward to be named chairman of the Planning Board, stating arrogantly to Republican officials that he was the only person qualified for the job.
   When he was not named to the Planning Board, Mr. van Lier turned into a vocal supporter of the local Democratic Party and its causes, and by the fall of 2003 he was writing letters and campaigning for Hillsborough Democratic candidates and issues, as he has been doing ever since.
   He shares no core Republican philosophical beliefs, and has stated that he does not vote for Republican candidates, although he’d consider doing so on occasion at the federal level.
   In short, though Mr. van Lier may register to vote as a Republican (since any citizen can register to vote under any party affiliation they wish), he is not a Hillsborough Republican.
   No matter what he calls himself, his words, philosophies, and actions clearly identify him as a Hillsborough Democrat, and he should be considered as such by the readers of this paper, and all the residents of our township.
Michael Merdinger

Chairman,

Hillsborough Republican Party

Fred Quick

Chairman Emeritus,

Hillsborough Republican Party

Calling snow days an unenviable task
To the editor:
   Last week, the area was hit with several snow events.
   With these storms arises the need to close or delay school. Karen Lake, superintendent of Hillsborough Townships Public Schools made the call to delay the schools opening time on Monday.
   Although I have not seen anything official, there has been quite a bit of grumbling among people in town.
   On Tuesday morning, the roads were icy from the previous day’s storm and there were rumored to have been at least 23 accidents with people trying to get to the high school. There were also two school bus accidents.
   If this proves to be true, it is very unfortunate this occurred but, Ms. Lake is not personally responsible.
   Ms. Lake has been criticized by parents for the delay on Monday, and the lack of one on Tuesday. Her predecessor also came under criticism for his calls on weather related closings.
   The superintendent does not randomly pick when school should be closed or delayed. They base their decisions on facts they are given.
   Weather is far from an exact science. It’s more of an educated guess based on weather models, predictions. There is no way to know exactly what a storms potential holds until it actually strikes.
   The decision to not delay on Tuesday was an unfortunate. Weather related closings are a tricky decision.
   We can’t close school every time a snowflake is forecast. We have a very long snow season ahead and we need to stand behind the decisions of our schools.
   Ms. Lake’s job is just one of those "damned if you do, damned if you don’t," situations and there is no way to make everyone happy.
Jim Quirico

Amwell Road

Ferrera, Nisivoccia will follow through
To the editor:
   We want to express our thanks to the people of Hillsborough for the support and confidence you have shown in us by electing us to Township Committee.
   We also want to thank you for rejecting the change of our government to a ward-based system and allowing the Township Committee to adopt the charter study ordinance, which, if approved next November, will allow you, the residents, an opportunity to examine all available forms of government.
   In return, we are committed to serving you honestly and to the best of our abilities, and fulfilling our promises to provide a responsive and fiscally responsible government that operates in the best interests of all township residents.
   We met many of you this fall in our walking campaign, and we have heard your concerns.
   We will continue the progress that has been made toward bringing sewers to neighborhoods with failing septic systems, establishing quiet zones along our railroads, establishing business growth under a new Master Plan, improving Route 206, putting reasonable limits on activities at the former VA Depot, and acquiring the Belle Mead GSA Depot.
   We will continue our constructive contact with Congressman Mike Ferguson, to keep the pressure on the federal government to remove the mercury from the DLA Depot. We will work with our state and county legislators to bring in grants for open space/farmland preservation, and for other worthy projects to benefit our township.
   We will interact with interested non-profit organizations and sponsors to establish a Teen Center for our youth.
   And, we will continue to hold the line for fiscal responsibility, as we work with our Republican colleagues on Township Committee to bring forth in 2006 a no-tax-increase municipal budget for the second time in three years.
   To do all this we need your help. So, we ask all the people of Hillsborough to come together for the good of our township, and to follow up your vote with constructive interest and participation in township affairs, to help us make Hillsborough a better place for us all.
Anthony Ferrera

Lisa Nisivoccia
The writers were elected to the Township Committee in the November election.