CRANBURY: Winthrop Cody elected mayor

By David Kilby, Staff Writer
   CRANBURY — Winthrop Cody was elected mayor at the Township Committee’s reorganization meeting Monday.
   New Committeeman Glenn Johnson and new Committeeman Dan Mulligan also were sworn into office to three-year terms.
   Mr. Johnson and Mr. Mulligan replaced Richard Stannard and David Stout, who stepped down from the council this year. The two new committeemen defeated Art Hasselbach in the committee election last November.
   The committee elected Mayor Cody in a 4-1 vote. Committeeman Johnson voted against him, but later said his misunderstanding of Robert’s Rules of Order was the only reason Mr. Cody’s appointment was not a unanimous decision.
   Mr. Johnson, a Democrat, made a motion to elect fellow Democratic Committeeman David Cook as mayor because he assumed both names would be called, and everyone would get a chance to vote on one or the other.
   Mr. Johnson said later that neither he nor Mr. Cook thought the motion to nominate Mr. Cook would be seconded, but it was — by Republican Committeeman James Taylor.
   So Mr. Johnson voted against electing Mayor Cody because he thought he would get a chance to vote for Mr. Cook, he said.
   ”When the first name voted on (Mayor Cody) attracts a majority of the votes, he is declared the winner, and the second name placed in nomination (Committeeman Cook) is not called up for a vote,” Committeeman Johnson later said in a letter to The Cranbury Press. “In short, my lack of knowledge of Robert’s Rules of Order left me unable to extricate myself from an unfamiliar situation, and I flubbed my only chance to make Win’s election as mayor unanimous.”
   But Mayor Cody was not daunted and felt the spirit of cooperation was evident.
   ”Everyone working together makes Cranbury a special place,” Mayor Cody said after being elected.
   He said he believes the committee and the town can work together to get through tough financial times.
   ”He’s great with budgeting, interested in helping the town,” said Linda Cody, Mayor Cody’s wife, to The Cranbury Press at the meeting. “He has a great heart for volunteering. He’s good at delegating. He’s a good fit.”
   Mr. Cody’s first decision as mayor was to move the first committee meeting of February from Feb. 14 to Feb. 7, making next month’s meetings Feb. 7 and 28.
   He said he didn’t think Feb. 14 (Valentine’s Day) was a good date for a meeting while glancing at his wife in the audience. After February, the committee will continue to hold its meetings the second and fourth Mondays of the month.
   Mayor Cody begins his office as mayor as Cranbury faces drafting a budget that caps spending at 2 percent like all municipalities and school districts in New Jersey.
   ”I’ve worked with legislators in Trenton who have helped identify unneeded expenses (in the municipal budget),” he said.
   He mentioned newly elected Sen. Linda Greenstein of the 14th legislative district was present at the meeting. Sen. Greenstein, a Democrat, was elected in November, defeating Republican Tom Goodwin.
   Senator Greenstein congratulated the newly appointed members of the committee, boards and commissions.
   ”We have a good bipartisan group in Cranbury,” Sen. Greenstein said. “They work well together. That’s why it’s such a beautiful town. I want to give my best wishes to all of them (new committee and board members).”
   One of the main tasks of the new committeemen, Planning Board and zoning board members will be implementing the revised Master Plan.
   The new members of the Planning Board are Mr. Hasselbach and Jason Stewart. The new members of the zoning board are Brian Schilling and John Hoffman.
   ”Brian Schilling brings a wealth of knowledge from around the state,” Committeeman Mulligan said. “John Hoffman brings a great deal of legal background in zoning and planning.”
   Mr. Schilling is a professor of agriculture at Rutgers University who specializes in agricultural policy and resource economics. Mr. Hoffman is a lawyer for the Wilentz, Goldman and Spitzer law firm, who specializes in redevelopment, strategic business, construction industry and government affairs.
   Mayor Cody said he supports the revisions in the township Master Plan.
   ”We need to implement the Master Plan,” Mayor Cody said. “We need to work hard to ensure a vital downtown since it is the heart of the community.”
   The revised Master Plan would protect the village, or downtown section of Cranbury, by discouraging the construction of small shops and restaurants along Route 130 — that would be competition for the downtown — and suggesting a new parking lot at the end of Park Place and diagonal parking spaces along Main Street to increase greatly-needed parking downtown.
   The new Master Plan also allows for more development along Route 130. To help monitor the growth along the highway, the committee appointed Mr. Hasselbach, of Route 130, to the Planning Board since he is a businessman, and the committee wanted some input from property owners struggling on Route 130.
   ”I know how hard it is to earn money,” Mr. Hasselbach said after the meeting. “I think twice before I spend.”
   He said he will work with the committee and Planning Board to try and keep ratables down.
   ”Times are tough,” Mr. Hasselbach said. “We need to do as good as we can to help people and benefit the town.”
   Committeeman Johnson, after the meeting, also said monetary shortfalls will be a serious issue for the town over the next few years.
   ”We need to exercise the same caution as other towns,” he said. “Taxes are getting to be a real problem. I will keep that in mind.”
   The reorganization meeting was adjourned after the mayor and committee announced their appointments.
   The mayor’s appointments are as follows:
   Mayor Cody, Mr. Hasselbach and Jason Stewart replace David Stout, Michael Dulin and Richard Stannard as Planning Board members.
   Thomas Harvey was re-appointed as a member. Mayor Cody will serve on the board until Dec. 31. The others will serve until Dec. 31, 2013.
   James Gallagher was re-appointed as chairman and Paul Mullen as a member of the Environmental Commission. Mr. Gallagher’s term ends Dec. 31, and Mr. Mullen’s term ends Dec. 31, 2013.
   Debbie Driscoll was appointed as second alternate and Wayne Girardet as a member of the Historic Preservation Commission. Ms. Driscoll’s term ends Dec. 31, 2012, and Mr. Girardet’s term ends Dec. 31, 2014.
   Kathleen Cunningham replaces Christine Smeltzer as the mayor’s representative on the Housing and Community Development Commission. Her term ends Dec. 31.
   Betty Conover and Marie Perrine were re-appointed as members of the Human Service Board. Ms. Conover’s term ends Dec. 31, 2013. Ms. Perrine’s term ends Dec. 31, 2015. There are still three vacancies on this board.
   On the library board of trustees, David Mauger replaced Pamela Parseghian as the mayor’s representative, and Kirstie Venanzi was re-appointed as a member. Mr. Mauger’s term ends Dec. 31, and Ms. Venanzi’s term ends Dec. 31, 2015.
   On the Parks Commission, Patricia Scott was re-appointed as an alternate member, and Thomas Weidner, Beth Veghte, and Bill Schraudenbach were re-appointed as members. Ms. Scott’s term ends Dec. 31. Mr. Weidner’s, Ms. Veghte’s and Mr. Schraudenbach’s terms end Dec. 31, 2013.
   There is still a vacancy on the Shade Tree Commission for a term that ends Dec. 31, 2015.
   The Township Committee’s appointments this year are as follows:
   Sudipta Roychowdhury was appointed as member of the Board of Health with a term ending Dec. 31, 2013. George Smith was appointed with a term ending Dec. 31, 2012.
   On the Clock Winding Committee, which winds and maintains the tower clock in town hall, George Arpajian, Richard Kallan, William Kanawyer, Sara Kleinman, Rob McMahon, Timothy Norland, Anita O’Meara, Robert O’Meara, Robert Rogers, Craig Steir, Donna Steir and Paul Venanzi were re-appointed to one-year terms.
   Audrey Smith replaces Betty Wagner on the culture and heritage commission and as township historian for a one-year term ending Dec. 31.
   Greg Farrington was re-appointed as a member of the Housing and Community Development Committee for a one-year term.
   On the Municipal Alliance Commission, Daniel Black and Renee Welch were appointed to one-year terms as alternate members, and police Chief Rickey Varga and Melanie Johnson were re-appointed as members for three-year terms.
   On the zoning board, Mr. Schilling and Mr. Hoffman replaced Mr. Hasselbach and Marilee Meacock as alternate members for one-year terms, and Marilee Meacock, James Gerberich and Frank Shea were appointed as members for four-year terms.