Category: Independent Opinion
-

Don’t let Middletown’s children down April 16
As a resident taxpayer of Middletown and elected state public official, I strongly urge the voters of Middletown to vote yes on the Middletown school budget April 16. Middletown can no longer afford to neglect the township’s public educational system. A report issued by the court-appointed schools mediator, Ronald J. Riccio, revealed that Middletown’s education…
-

Five vying for one-year school board vacancy
Staff Writer By alison granito MIDDLETOWN — Five candidates are seeking the lone one-year, unexpired term at the annual school elections on April 16. The vacancy was created when sitting board member Judi Arendt passed away after complications from pneumonia and a short struggle with cancer earlier this year. In addition to the one-year term,…
-

Obituaries
Greater Media Newspapers prints obituaries as a free community service, at no charge to the families of the deceased or to the funeral homes that provide the information. JAMES CANTRELLA, 87, of Hazlet died March 31 at home. Born in Newark, he lived there until moving to Hazlet in 1955. He was a third-generation barber…
-

Do the equation before voting on school budget At the last Matawan/ Aberdeen school board meeting in March, the superintendent announced the number of students in the district was expected to increase by 1.7 percent in the new school year that starts J
Do the equation before voting on school budget At the last Matawan/ Aberdeen school board meeting in March, the superintendent announced the number of students in the district was expected to increase by 1.7 percent in the new school year that starts July 1. At the same meeting, Matawan and Aberdeen school board members approved…
-

Holmdel needs leaders like board candidate Liz Allocco
This year’s Board of Education election is a key element in determining the direction of Holmdel as a community. In a rapidly growing district, the Holmdel Board of Education is faced with the challenge of maintaining the high quality of education while balancing the needs of an ever growing, culturally diverse student population. Board members…
-

Food and Zoning Board hearings are a bad mix
Food and Zoning Board hearings are a bad mix I t might seem like a nice idea to some, but we think it’s a silly and a bad idea to let an applicant serve food at a board hearing. The Middletown town square application is certainly a huge drawing card, but what kind of precedent…
-

Guest Column Grace Scher Senior attempts to clear air over center’s dilemma
Guest Column Grace Scher Senior attempts to clear air over center’s dilemma I am writing in answer to the guest column by Steven Grossman. Everyone has a right to voice his or her opinion; however, his or her opinion should make good sense so the people of our township can understand the whole truth. Naturally,…
-

Guest Column Jerry Drennan Criticism of Matawan-Aberdeen school board, PTOs misguided
Guest Column Jerry Drennan Criticism of Matawan-Aberdeen school board, PTOs misguided At first I thought that the Independent had come to my way of thinking. I saw in bold print "What is wrong with the Matawan and Aberdeen school district?" Below that, again in bold print, I saw the name Joseph McAleer. Question asked, question…
-

Don’t try to make township into something it’s not with town square
The proponents of the town center in Middletown would like us to believe that this development will somehow bring our community closer together. They seem to believe that Middletown lacks a defining character and the town center will be the solution. Nothing could be further from the truth. The town center has been labeled as…
