
Local mayors put spotlight on high-density housing
As you know, for nearly nine years on NJ 101.5 and seven years as the host of Chasing News, I've been an advocate for local government leaders.
New Jersey and our country are only as strong as the local communities where we all live. Unfortunately, the often selfish agenda of the elite political class in Trenton and Washington often put burdens on our local communities that impact our cost of living, quality of life, and safety.
This week, as I've been doing for years on the air and in person, I was honored to be the moderator of an event hosted by my good friend, Mayor Jamie Barberio from Parsippany. Joining us on the panel of mayors were, Mayor Joseph Pannullo from East Hanover, Mayor Michael Stanzilis from Mount Arlington, Mayor Mark Taylor from Florham Park, and Mayor Ace Gallagher from Hanover.
The event was designed to help educate the public on how "high density", called "affordable housing", by the agenda-driven politicians and judges.
Also included in the discussion were the PILOT programs which is a tool used by several towns to bring in new business. That program, "Payment In Lieu Of Taxes" provides an opportunity for a town to get cash, create jobs, and potentially cut down on the burdensome high-density housing requirements.
More than 150 residents packed the room at the Sheraton in Parsippany to hear from the local leaders.
There are plenty of things that need to be fixed in New Jersey, including reforming the DEP so towns can do the dredging and de-snagging needed to mitigate flooding. The high-density housing issue needs to be addressed.
If we are truly going to create "affordable" housing, we need to move those requirements to places where it's practical to build up, like Newark, Trenton, and Camden. Of course, to do that we must first make those cities safer by adding more cops, eliminating bail reform, and enforcing federal detainer orders.
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Then we need to cut business taxes to create opportunities and incentives for job creators to come back to the Garden State. All is possible with the right leadership in Trenton.
Our mayors need support from the Trenton politicians. We need to change the mindset that pits state government against local leaders. We need to change from an adversarial to a collaborative mindset and implement practical, common-sense solutions that will create jobs, raise revenue, lower taxes, empower parents and communities, and make our neighborhoods safer.
All possible. But you gotta vote.
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Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5
The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.
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