Category: Independent News
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Middletown awarded for excellence in technology
MIDDLETOWN — Middletown’s success with new technology projects has been recognized with two awards from the 2005 New Jersey Excellence in Technology Award Program. The projects were aimed at improving emergency response times and worker productivity. The township’s Information Technology Department received a “Most Innovative Use of Technology” award for using the Internet to link…
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O’Grady, Parkinson finish committee careers
BY KAREN E. BOWES Staff Writer BY KAREN E. BOWESStaff Writer MIDDLETOWN — Committeemen Raymond O’Grady and Patrick Parkinson attended their last township meeting as elected officials on Dec. 19. O’Grady, who has been asked to step down repeatedly by his fellow committee members ever since his Feb. 22 arrest on federal bribery and extortion…
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Committee approves affordable housing plan
BY KAREN E. BOWES Staff Writer BY KAREN E. BOWESStaff Writer MIDDLETOWN — Committeeman Gerard Scharfenberger likened the state’s mandatory affordable housing requirements to “forced urbanism” during the Dec. 19 Township Committee meeting. Resident Phil Nicolaus, a regular attendee, called the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) a “bureaucratic monster that feeds upon itself.” “And it…
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Vote through Jan. 1 for NJ’s new slogan
TRENTON — Acting Gov. Richard J. Codey revealed the top five entries for New Jersey’s tourism slogan last week and asked state residents to vote for the best tagline. “As residents, we already know New Jersey is a great place to work, live and play,” Codey said. “We have everything here — except a catch…
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Powers chairs final meeting as a freeholder
Tom Powers FREEHOLD — After 24 years serving as a Monmouth County freeholder, Director Thomas J. Powers chaired his last public freeholder meeting on Dec. 22. “I want to thank the people of Monmouth County who have allowed me to serve them for the last 24 years,” Powers said. “Along with my colleagues, I have…
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Gifts accumulate like RAINE in Hazlet
Nonprofit collects enough toys to help 62 area families BY DAN NEWMAN Staff Writer BY DAN NEWMANStaff Writer MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Maria Wintjen helps Matt Dickens with his final preparations to play Santa Claus, so that he can deliver toys to local kids in Hazlet, as part of RAINE’s efforts during the holiday season. HAZLET…
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Holocaust Center to honor student anthology winners
The Center for Holocaust Studies at Brookdale Community College invites the community to join in launching the publication of “Flowers From the Ashes,” the third and most recent volume of student anthology selections interpreting aspects of the Holocaust and genocide. A Jan. 23 press conference featuring the student authors, artists and their teachers will begin…
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Getting poems out of notebooks and onto paper
Northwind Press chapbooks give local poets a venue BY KATHY HALL Correspondent BY KATHY HALLCorrespondent CHRIS KELLY staff Poet Frank Valentino founded Northwind Press to give other poets a venue. The small press publishes chapbooks (inset) for which his wife designs the covers. Frank Valentino likes to let his poems speak for him. Through his…
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Ice skating rink opens by the sea
Developer expects rink to draw public to Pier Village BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer BY CHRISTINE VARNOStaff Writer PHOTOSBY CHRIS KELLY staff Young skaters try out the synthetic ice at a new ice skating rink that opened Dec. 17 at Festival Plaza in Pier Village, Long Branch. An outdoor ice skating rink opened at Pier…
