Letters to mayors were ignored by them

Arthur G. Mattei, Lawrenceville
To the editor:
In the latter part of last year and earlier this year I had the occasion to write to the mayor of Lawrence Township. Because there was a change in the mayor’s position on New Year’s, I wrote separately to Mayor Jim Kownacki late last year, and to Mayor Cathleen Lewis this year.
   The subject of my letters is not really of consequence here. Suffice to say it was a carefully composed and typewritten letter about an item the township was supposed to have acted upon quite some time ago. Each letter was sent to each mayor’s residence address as well as to the municipal building to make certain it was received. In my letter to Mayor Lewis I even commented that from her background, especially in public information and communications, I was confident she would finally address my concerns.
   Bottom line, both letters were totally ignored. Not even a phone call or a handwritten note! This kind of makes me wonder how these elected officials view the residents who are paying the bill for town hall, its people and its activities, and what they are doing that is so important they can blithely ignore a constituent’s letter.
   As a retired public administrator myself, I implemented a strict policy regarding the importance of answering all correspondence within a timely manner. There is nothing that makes an individual or an organization appear more inept than ignoring inquiries. It is also offensive and insulting to the person inquiring.
   I wonder if we are suffering from the one-party-syndrome at town hall. Every marketplace functions best where there is competition — even township government!
Arthur G. Mattei
Lawrenceville 