BY TOM CAIAZZA
Staff Writer
“I intend to continue to work hard this year and to earn the respect and support of the voters.” – Larry Fink HOLMDEL – Larry Fink has announced his bid for re-election to the Township Committee on the Democratic ticket this fall.
Fink is in his sixth year on the committee and served as mayor for three years through December 2005. He has been endorsed by the Holmdel Democratic County Committee and will seek his third term against GOP candidate Donald Lemma.
Fink served nine years on the Holmdel Environmental Commission prior to achieving elected office, and sat as the chairman of the Open Space Advisory Council.
He has focused on curtailing overdevelopment while serving on the Holmdel Planning Board and has advocated the preservation of open space and the creation of accessible parks and recreation services for all residents.
Fink said he is hoping the upcoming campaign will focus on the main issues of keeping taxes down, preserving open space and quality of life, and ensuring parks and recreation facilities are well maintained and available to all ages.
“I have a strong commitment to keeping Holmdel the wonderful town it is,” Fink said.
In his 15 years of public service, Fink said he has initiated projects ranging from the development and expansion of parks, open space preservation, and preventing overdevelopment.
“I intend to continue to work hard this year and to earn the respect and support of the voters,” Fink said.
Fink, a former employee at Bell Labs, said that he will continue to preserve both the beauty of the site and the economic potential in the wake of the announcement that Lucent Technologies, the town’s largest tax ratable, is selling the property to a Pennsylvania redevelopment firm.
“Lucent is the town’s biggest tax ratable and one of the least heavily developed and largest tracts of land,” Fink said. “The challenge here will be to preserve its history, beauty and open space, and ensuring that future commercial use of the site protects it while bringing in a healthy amount of tax revenue.”
The results of November’s election left Fink as the lone Democrat on a Republican-controlled committee, a situation that he said he can continue thrive in.
“I hope the voters would see the value in having bi-partisan leadership in the town,” Fink said. “I’ve served both in the minority and in the majority, and in both situations I felt I could be an effective voice for the community.”
Among Fink’s major concerns is the potential tax increase this year.
“I am concerned about the very large increase in the town’s budget, and I would like to see more focus on expense reduction and bringing in more grant revenue to minimize tax increases,” Fink said.
In his two previous campaigns, Fink said, he accepted no contributions from township professionals and those seeking contracts with the town, and he continues to work to eliminate those contributions altogether. The current law dictates that current or prospective township professionals are limited to a $250 contribution per candidate per year.
“I am absolutely committed to cleaning up campaign financing,” Fink said. “Regardless of the legal limit, I refuse to solicit or accept any contribution from firms who do business or seek to do business with the township, as I have done in the past.”
Fink reiterated his resolve.
“I’ve taken that pledge before, and I’ll make it again,” Fink said.