mayor, council posts
Saraceno to seek
mayor, council posts
By jeanette M. eng
Staff Writer
MARLBORO — Democratic mayoral candidate Steven Glickman believes that overdevelopment and the loss of open space are crippling situations to a town.
"Controlled development and preserving open space affects the level of services offered, infrastructure, the level of education, taxes and the quality of life," he said.
This year’s Democratic Party ticket will include Glickman and Township Council candidates T. Grover Burrows and Lucretia Saraceno.
The mayor’s term and the council terms are all for four years.
Glickman, 54, credits one of his main motivations for running as the preservation of open space. The 22-year resident of Marlboro believes that getting control of whatever open space remains will improve the town’s quality of life and tax situation.
"If the town purchases a property and keeps it as open space, there is no impact on the taxes," Glickman said. "But if a developer purchases it and builds homes on it, we will see the taxes."
Glickman is also aware of the affects of continuing residential development on schools. Over the last three or four years, he said, he has seen school taxes "skyrocket" for the wrong reasons.
"We’re not spending money on increasing the level of education," Glickman said. "We’re treading water; we’re spending on additional facilities and teachers to accommodate" all of the new students.
Although Glickman calls himself a new face to politics, he is confident in his qualifications and is not intimidated by the prospect of running for office.
"We have a message to put out there about what the town needs and we feel that we have the better ability to do that. Our message is the same; our ability to achieve our goals is the same," Glickman said, adding that this is not affected by who else is or is not in the race.
Glickman is a labor and employment attorney with the firm of Ruderman and Glickman. He resides in Marlboro with his wife and four children.
Council candidate Burrows, an environmental activist, has concerns similar to those of his running mate.
Burrows, 47, is currently in his third year on the Zoning Board of Adjustment. His community involvement originally began on a grassroots level with environmental efforts such as the Morganville Environmental Protectors (MEP).
The citizens group was formed to fight Mountain Ridge, a proposed residential development which would have replaced open land and trees, Burrows said. The residents’ efforts to fight the proposal included a placard-carrying protest at town hall and on the development site itself.
"We were able to stop the application and the goal of our group was accomplished," he said.
The 14-year Marlboro resident has since become involved with the zoning board and the Democratic Party. He currently serves as the Democratic Club president.
Although continuing residential development is one of Burrows’ primary concerns as a council candidate, he emphasized that he is not against development in every instance. Most important is how development is handled, he said. Burrows said he plans to focus on ensuring such good development and on environmental issues.
"I’ve come to realize that involvement is the key to getting anything done," Burrows said, "and I believe that I can further my contribution with a seat on the council."
Burrows works as a programmer analyst for St. Barnabas Health Care Systems and resides in Marlboro with his wife and 14-year-old daughter.
Council candidate Saraceno is not coming into the race with any specific agenda or issues she plans to address. Her plan is simple — to do a job.
"I want to help the residents and do what I am asked to the best of my ability," she said. "If what I’m doing will help change things I’m here for them."
Saraceno, 70, has been living in Marlboro for 11 years. A retired dance teacher, she keeps busy through service to the town. Saraceno is serving her fifth year as a commissioner on the Marlboro Township Municipal Utilities Authority (MTMUA).
She has been a part of the MTMUA’s involvement with the National Police Defense Foundation’s Operation Kids and its annual "Wonder of Water" essay contest for all pupils in grades four through eight in Marlboro’s schools.
Helping children and seniors is a natural extension of Saraceno’s personality which she plans to bring with her to the political level.
"Because I am a senior citizen, I am very interested in helping the seniors in Marlboro," she said. "I also worked with children as a dance teacher in Brooklyn and we always got involved with the community in a lot of cultural performances."
Saraceno says Marlboro has been wonderful to her and her husband and she hopes to give something back to the residents and share with them her desires.
Saraceno resides in Marlboro with her husband. They have a daughter and a grandchild.