Council candidates confront issues facing Hightstown

By Vic Monaco, Managing Editor
   HIGHTSTOWN — One has held fast to the largely unpopular belief that this small borough needs to wholly merge with East Windsor in order to survive.
   Another, the first’s running mate, says she wouldn’t approve of police consolidation between the two towns unless a “kajillion dollars” could be saved.
   Yet another sees no real usefulness for political parties in a town the size of Hightstown.
   And a fourth has what many see as heavy baggage — in the form of past comments seen as homophobic — which she refuses to talk about anymore.
   So goes the candidates’ cross-section at Hightstown’s financial crossroads as four residents, two from each party, seek two seats being vacated on the all-Democratic Borough Council.
   On the Republican side is Mike Theokas, the former owner of Theo’s Lakeside Tavern who is trying for a second time in two years to be seated, and Ashley Hutchinson, a municipal prosecutor and chairwoman of the local GOP Committee. For the Democrats, it’s political newcomer Isabel McGinty, a criminal defense attorney, and former school board member Janice Mastriano.
   The Herald recently interviewed the candidates separately and asked each about issues facing the financially strapped “one square mile of paradise.”
   • What is your position on East Windsor possibly taking over police coverage in the borough, and the total merger of the towns?
   All four candidates indicated they are anxious to read the final report of a consultant looking at the police question.
   Ms. Mastriano, 72, of Leshin Lane, said borough leaders “have to be open to everything.”
   Ms. McGinty, 53, of Broad Street, said shared services must be talked about, especially given the nationwide financial crisis. But she added, “We have very good police coverage and I’m not looking to cut back on that at all.”
   Ms. Hutchinson, 36, of Hagemount Avenue, who serves as a municipal prosecutor in Ewing Township and Trenton, sounded least likely to support township police taking over borough coverage. “Public safety is the most important service a government provides to its people, and I’m not willing to sacrifice an iota of public safety unless we can save a kajillion dollars.”
   However, she offered that “It might make sense to have partial coverage from East Windsor at times when our service levels are low.”
   Her running mate, Mr. Theokas, 35, of Mill Run East, said: “The combination of the two police forces, regardless of how that turns out, would be beneficial economically. More importantly it would give us better resources and more resources to police our community.”
   That answer is not surprising as Mr. Theokas, along with Borough Council President Walter Sikorski, has been a relatively solitary proponent of consolidation of the two towns. Has that caused problems between Mr. Theokas and political mentor Republican Mayor Bob Patten?
   ”We’ve had many conversations, certainly some animated conversations,” acknowledged Mr. Theokas. “I understand a lot of people, especially longtime Hightstonians, may be a little wary of that but I think that as I speak to more and more people, especially new residents, they look at it more objectively and think that it really makes sense, especially from a financial perspective.”
   Ms. Mastriano said a merger of the towns would “probably” work “if we have an equal amount of people on the (governing) council … and a mayor alternating from each town.”
   Ms. McGinty called total merger a “drastic” step, yet worthy of discussion.
   Ms. Hutchinson said she doesn’t think East Windsor would go along with a merger, and that revamping the state’s taxation system is the main way to solve the borough’s financial woes.
   • What, specifically, would you do to try to stem the tide of skyrocketing municipal taxes?
   Mr. Theokas believes consolidation tops the list. He and Ms. Hutchinson point to the “smart development” of the rug mill and Minute Maid properties. And all but Ms. McGinty stressed the need to revamp the state’s taxation system.
   ”We need to do something about funding for school districts. That’s where the majority of taxes is going,” said Ms. Mastriano. “That can only be done at the state level, and I would like to get involved in that.”
   Mr. Theokas expressed a similar sentiment and said his slate has a head start.
   ”Ashley has a lot of connections at the county and state levels,” he said. “We need to make our voices heard on that topic.”
   Ms. Hutchinson said the borough provides services to other towns, such as churches, and that should be recognized. “Maybe there could be some tax credit for schools and churches,” she said. “The way the system is now we’re gonna die.”
   Ms. Hutchinson and Ms. McGinty said they believe the borough could save money by increasing volunteerism. Specifically, Ms. McGinty said the borough needs to hold recruitment drives for all sorts of potential volunteers including EMTs and those who could provide literary services. “Presentations could be done at Borough Council meetings,” she added. “If they come, they might stay.”
   Ms. McGinty says the borough needs to communicate with the regional school district in an effort to save money while learning well before school budget time the district’s needs and trends.
   • What is your opinion of the $212,000 annual payment the borough is making to Robbinsville for two EMTs providing 24-hour coverage — a payment that came under some criticism at this year’s budget sessions?
   ”It wouldn’t be an issue if we had more volunteers,” said Ms. McGinty. “It’s a needed service but I’d certainly be looking to reduce it.”
   Ms. Hutchinson, who worked in the past as Robbinsville’s prosecutor, called their EMTs “absolute professionals” and said the level of service must be maintained. But she said, “If we can do it cheaper, we should.”
   Mr. Theokas said maybe such a savings could be found by working with East Windsor, while Ms. Mastriano said the deal with Robbinsville may need to be renegotiated.
   • The Peddie School has been criticized for not doing enough for the borough when it comes to financial contributions, and also for the tax-exempt status of some of its properties that may not be primarily educational in nature. What is your feeling on this?
   Ms. McGinty said Peddie has been generous, and its tax-exempt status is protected by law so it is not a “fruitful topic of discussion. And it’s one that potentially generates bad feelings between Peddie, which is within its rights, and the borough, which certainly does need the money.” On the other hand, she said, it might be wise to try to negotiate with Peddie over the fact that some faculty who get their housing in town don’t have to pay the same taxes as other residents.
   Ms. Mastriano said Peddie should make contributions to the regional school district to cover the cost of educating the children of Peddie faculty members. Ms. Hutchinson said the school could possibly allow more community use of its recreational facilities.
   Mr. Theokas, on the other hand, is a staunch defender of the private boarding school.
   ”You have to look at … what they do for the local economy, what they bring us as a status symbol,” he said. “The amount of people they bring to the borough, you can’t put a price tag on that.”
   • Mayor Patten has been criticized for his national publicity of the borough’s no-questions-asked policy when it comes to undocumented residents. What is your feeling on this and the immigration-related debate in the borough?
   ”What’s done is done,” Ms. McGinty said in a reference to the mayor’s actions.
   ”We need to take a step back and move away from the immigration issue and toward the economic issue. And there, the conversation typically moves to rental overcrowding.”
   Ms. McGinty said there’s no doubt in her mind that the borough’s demographics are changing and some of the results can’t be ignored.
   ”I see more and more people going to the Laundromat. That’s a hidden population and I have no idea where they live,” she said. “As we make this transformation toward rentals, we need to look very seriously at issues like fire safety.”
   Ms. Hutchinson, on the other hand, doesn’t see a big change.
   ”It’s a perception issue,” she said. “The number of Latinos are not that different from any other town.”
   But she too said borough ordinances could be improved “to make Hightstown a cleaner and safer place for everybody, everybody.”
   Mr. Theokas indicated Mayor Patten may have let the publicity of the policy get out of hand.
   ”I can understand people’s frustration with that but if they look at the guts of it, it wasn’t an invitation for anybody and everybody to come to Hightstown,” he said.
   ”I don’t think he intended it to be as big as it became but, hey, the (Bill) O’Reilly show is national and people all over the county read The Washington Post.”
   Ms. Mastriano said of Mayor Patten’s very public stance, “He’s doing what he thinks is best for Hightstown.” She added, “I have no problem with the Hispanic community. They tend to work very hard and they try to assimilate. I’m first-generation and my parents had to learn English.”
   A segment of the community that Ms. Mastriano still has a problem with to some degree are gays and supporters of gay rights. In 2000, Ms. Mastriano linked gays to pedophiles immediately after a school board discussion of whether the Boy Scouts should be allowed to use district facilities. She has said her comments were misrepresented. But the self-described “conservative Christian Democrat” did nothing to calm critics when soon after and again this June she spoke of her “normal” heterosexual life.
   Her comments prompted borough Democratic Club President Chris Moraitis to push an unsuccessful 11th-hour substitute primary-election candidate, and Democratic Councilman Ryan Rosenberg to say he could not support Ms. Mastriano. While Ms. Mastriano said earlier this year that she would like to speak to her critics “one-on-one,” this week she took a different stance.
   ”That issue is closed,” she said. “I’m not going to answer any more questions about that.”
   • What is your position on the mayoral recall effort?
   The Republican candidates recently said they believe the recall effort is grounded in anti-Hispanic sentiment, even though its leader, J.P. Gibbons, says that is not the case. They did not repeat that in their interviews.
   Nonetheless, as a member of the mayor’s defense committee, Ms. Hutchinson has strong feelings. “I think a recall is for somebody dishonest or engaging in malfeasance,” she said. “Love him or hate him, Bob Patten lives Hightstown every day of his life.”
   Ms. Theokas fervently agrees, and added that the recall effort “sets a bad example for those who may want to become public servants.”
   Ms. Mastriano: “Unless someone is totally inept and not able to handle their position, I think they should be allowed to finish their term. And he’s doing a good job. … But I commend them (those pushing the recall) for doing something they think they have to do.”
   Ms. McGinty: “I fully support the right of any citizen to lawfully petition the government for redress but … I’m concerned that there are so many other pressing issues for the borough, and it seems the discussion at council meetings frequently becomes how nice, personally, our mayor is and how great the town is looking. Both may be true but it’s not the business of council. Could we talk about economic pressures, taxes? We’re talking about whether you like Bob Patten or not and then it quickly degenerates into whether people are racially biased.”
   ”And the mayor, by jumping in so early (to defend himself) added to the distraction.”
   • What is your position on the amended ordinance to redevelop the rug mill, and what would you like to see on the property?
   Mr. Theokas stood alone at a recent council meeting in support of the ordinance that would allow the landowner to make a payment in lieu of previously required refurbishment or construction of nearby municipal office space. In his candidate interview he said the ordinance was the “logical and proper step” and “changed the game a little bit; I think we’re steering it now. … It’s time for him (landowner John Wolfington) to do something.”
   Ms. Hutchinson is a member of the local Planning Board that suggested the amended ordinance and called it “well-thought-out and well-grounded.” Nonetheless, she said she’d like to see more commercial and office space as opposed to the 130 residential unit allowed under the ordinance, and she added that the borough still has the power to ask for less than 130.
   Ms. McGinty says she can’t understand, especially given the terrible economy, why the borough would still allow 130 units.
   ”How can you go ahead with a proposal when you know it is wholly futile?” she asked.
   Ms. Mastriano said the council had little choice but to approve the ordinance. “Something had to be done. … I don’t want to spend another year on this.” She added that she believes the borough needs some low-income housing at that site.
   • What is your position on the controversial payment-in-lieu-of-taxes program the borough may offer the rug mill developer? If approved, should the borough still give some of that money to the school district and, if so, how would you like to see that amount determined?
   None of the candidates is sold.
   ”I’m greatly concerned about the PILOT, and the expenses at borough hall (for new or improved municipal space) would far exceed that revenue,” said Ms. McGinty, while adding she sees it as only as fair to share some of the money with the school district.
   Ms. Hutchinson: “The PILOT has it benefits but I don’t know if it will work for Hightstown and East Windsor. We share a school district. On paper a PILOT looks really good but you would have to (give money to the district).”
   Mr. Theokas said, “I’m not sold on PILOT program,” but added that he doesn’t see the planned development, primarily comprising condominiums, placing an additional burden on schools. “It does not lend itself to a lot of school-aged children,” he said. “But some kind of compensation seems plausible.”
   Ms. Mastriano, the former school board member, was unequivocal.
   ”I don’t like PILOT programs,” she said. “They’re not fair to the children coming into these residences and it winds up hitting all the taxpayers.” She added that the school district would deserve the $11,000 to $12,000 it costs annually to educate each additional student.
   • What do you want seen done with the Minute Maid property?
   ”We need businesses. Businesses don’t have children,” Ms. McGinty said while adding that planning with East Windsor, which is home to a part of the property, is important.
   Ms. Hutchinson said she’s glad her colleagues on the Planning Board, who are working with township planners, have suggested eliminating the industrial zoning of the property. “We have enough issues with traffic and trucks,” she said. “I’d like to see some retail and light office there. Does there have to be residential? Maybe, maybe not. If so, we need to decide what we can take and stick to it!”
   Mr. Theokas also is glad that the industrial permitted use will soon be a thing of the past. “I wouldn’t be averse to anything except for industrial,” he said. “We can get benefits without having 18-wheelers rolling in and out of there.”
   Ms. Mastriano first said, “I would love more industrial to come in. Industry brings in more taxes and there’s no burden for the school district.” Told of the Planning Board’s recommendation, she said she meant she favors commercial development.
   • Hightstown has increasingly become the site of anti-Semitic and other hate graffiti. What do you think is the cause and what can be done to address this?
   All the candidates say they support the meetings and rally that have been held in response. Mr. Theokas said he knows two of the three young men charged with some of the incidents, as one worked for him at Theo’s.
   ”I don’t want to make light of it but I think it was a bunch of kids being stupid,” he said. “I think it’s a joke to them, and it’s not a joke. Kids they learn about it (the meaning behind swastikas) but I think it’s over their heads.
   ”There has to be something more for the kids to do,” he added, while pointing to a proposed skateboard park as an example.
   But Ms. McGinty said, “I don’t want to hear that they don’t understand what it meant.” And pointing to a recent entry in a Southern Poverty Law Center publication, she added, “This is how we’re presented to the world. We have to speak out about this. … There can’t be anything trivial about a swastika.”
   Ms. Hutchinson expressed similar sentiments: “It’s a couple hateful people but it’s a stain on all of us.”
   • Are there any other issues you want to discuss, and would you like to tell voters why they should cast their ballot for you?
   Ms. McGinty: “I’m running as an independent Democrat … in a town where it seems that Republican and Democratic parties suffer from extreme polarization and your party affiliation seems to matter so much. I cannot understand this. … Party loyalty can impede the ability to think and act on your own.”
   She added that she’s not seeking campaign contributions because she doesn’t want to owe anyone a vote and she has posted no political signs because “they’re turfing up the town.”
   She said people should vote for her because she is a longtime borough resident (29 years) and can bring a new perspective as a first-time politico. She also pointed out that she has run her own law practice for several years, which has given her insight into budgeting issues.
   Ms. Hutchinson also points to her time as a borough resident (nine years) and the fact that she chose to raise her daughter here. She said her job as a municipal prosecutor makes her keenly aware of code enforcement and police issues. Her past position in the Mercer County counsel’s office, she said, helped give her a clear understanding of contract issues.
   ”I’m a really, really good fit, and I really want to do it,” she said.
   Mr. Theokas, a regular attendee at Borough Council meetings and a new member of the Economic Development Committee, said: “Ashley and I have proven over last several years that we’re really dedicated to the borough and really want this position because we think we can make a positive difference.”
   Ms. Mastriano said her nine years on the school board, which included time on the negotiating committee, helped her “know how businesses run” and provides an example of her ability to work with people. “Experience, knowledge and integrity is my motto,” she added.
   The candidates are expected to take part in a debate at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Hightstown High School. The event, which is open to the public, will be broadcast on Comcast Channel 27 and Verizon Channel 38 at noon, 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Oct. 25, 26, 28 and Nov. 1 and 2.