Dennis Pipala has launched his campaign as the Republican mayoral candidate on the steps of the Edison Municipal Complex. He claims that Edison is in a financial mess and he highlights the taxes as the main reason.
Let’s look at Mr. Pipala’s accomplishments: He was president of the Edison school board in 1991. During his tenure, our citizens were given a large tax increase due to his leadership. During the 1980s, the school population dropped between 15 and 18 percent. In fact, then-Mayor Anthony Yelencsics closed three schools: Clara Barton, Oak Tree and Piscatawaytown. Yet, with this large decrease in enrollment, Dennis Pipala gave us a large increase in our school taxes.
In 2005 he served with Don Hanson as co-campaign chairmen for the present mayor. He also chaired the mayor’s transition team. During this mayoral term in office, we have had our greatest tax increases. This impact by Dennis Pipala has cost so much in new taxes that the council has just changed, by ordinance, our budget from a fiscal year to a calendar year to get us out of this mess.
He was also given the appointment by the present mayor to head his Edison Project and also his Edison Task Force for Education. Since these appointments several years ago, he has not had any meetings.
If this is the way Dennis Pipala is going to run our town if elected, then we will be in deep trouble. He tries to put on a good act, like a Wall Street big shot who wears a fancy suit, but if you look close, has a lot of dirt under his fingernails.
Suzanne O’Neil
Edison