MARLBORO – The new year in local government will begin at 7 p.m. Jan. 4 when the Marlboro Township Council holds its 2018 reorganization meeting.
The reorganization meeting is the date each year when election winners take the oath of office, professionals such as attorneys and engineers are hired, and residents who have volunteered to serve the community are appointed to municipal boards and commissions.
Officials may take the opportunity to lay out their agenda for the upcoming 12 months. All residents are invited to attend the reorganization meeting at Town Hall, 1979 Township Drive.
In Marlboro, Democrats Jeff Cantor, Carol Mazzola and Scott Metzger will be sworn in to begin serving new four-year terms on the council after being re-elected on Nov. 7. They will rejoin Democrats Randi Marder and Michael Scalea on the governing body.
“We hope 2018 will be a good year for all of our residents and may it be better than 2017 for everyone,” said Cantor, who served as council president during 2017. “There are a number of things we will focus on in 2018.
“We need to do a better job keeping our streets safe and curbing the speeding epidemic that is going on not only in our town, but all of New Jersey. We need to better prioritize streets in need of pothole repair and paving, and use our capital budget to take those on.
“We need to address our growing affordable housing requirements mandated by the state and figure a way forward that is fair and equitable for all residents,” he said.
“We need to make progress on building a downtown area in Marlboro as that is a quality of life issue that is missing in our town. We need to bring a robust farmers market to town so our residents can really cook farm to table food.
“I am concerned about the new federal tax plan that will affect the majority of our residents as a (property tax deduction) cap of $10,000 will have a significant impact on most of us. We are looking forward to a great 2018 for all of our residents and we pledge to bring continued good governance to all,” Cantor said.