Cindy Burnham was the top vote winner in this years 2-seat council race. She will replace Sharon Lee on council. It seems the voters are now seeing the problems you face when a town is run like a monopoly for many years. Click Here to see the video of Ed McKenna and Sharon Lee at their 1/2 victory celebration. Sharon Lee speaks of dirty politics, this after press releases were sent to all of the major NJ newspapers about Sean Di Somma’s out of state traffic ticket to question is character.
Many individuals seek public office with the genuine intent of trying to effectuate positive change. Although only a small percentage of elected officials ever engage in actual criminal behavior, it is imperative that all officials remain aware of precisely what constitutes criminal conduct to ensure that they never cross over the line.
The New Jersey Criminal Code (N.J.S.A 2C:1-1 et seq.) contains a number of offenses which are specifically directed at public officials and/or employees. Although this article is not intended as an exhaustive treatment of all state law on this subject, it will hopefully provide a working knowledge of the major acts or omissions which may give rise to criminal culpability.
Official Misconduct (N.J.S.A. 2C:30-2) A public servant commits official misconduct if with a purpose to obtain a benefit for himself or herself or another (or to injure or deprive another of a benefit) he or she knowingly commits an act relating to his or her office constituting an unauthorized exercise of official functions: or knowingly refrains from performing a duty which is imposed by law and is clearly inherent in the nature of the office. The “benefit” obtained may be of minimal value. Investigation Into Hamilton T.P. Board of Education 205 N.J. Super. 248 (App. Div.1985). This also includes benefits not received by the public official but rather by a third party. State v. Schenkolewski 301 N.J.Super.115 (App. Div.), cert. den.151 N.J. Super. (1977). To violate this section, the individual must be a public servant and the act must relate to the office. State v. Bullock 136 N.J. 149 (1994). Unlawful Business Transaction Where Interest Is Involved (N.J.S.A. 2C:27-9) A public servant violates this law if, while performing his or her official functions on behalf of a governmental entity, he or she knowingly transacts any business with him or herself, a member of his or her immediate family, or a business organization in which the public servant or an immediate family member has an interest. The term “business organization” shall not include aggregate familial ownership or control of one percent or less of an interest in the capital or equity of the business organization. Further, it is not a violation if the public servant’s performance of official functions would not affect him or her, his or her family or business organization differently than such performance would affect the public generally.
Acceptance or Receipt of Unlawful Benefit by Public Servant for Official Behavior (N.J.S.A . 2C:27-10) If under color of office and in connection with any official act performed or to be performed, a public servant directly or indirectly knowingly solicits, accepts or agrees to accept any benefit for himself or another person to influence the performance of any official duty, a violation occurs. Further, the term “benefit” includes any benefit from or by reason of a contract or agreement for goods, property or services awarded by the public entity employing the public servant. There are three exceptions in the statute as to conduct not constituting a violation: (1) fees or any other benefit prescribed by law to be received by the public servant to which he or she is otherwise legally entitled and if said fees or benefits are received in the manner legally prescribed and not bartered for another benefit to influence his or her official duties; (2) gifts or other benefits conferred on account of kinship or other personal, professional or business relationship independent of the official status of the recipient if same are not bartered for another benefit to influence the performance of an official duty; (3) trivial benefits which involve no risk that the public servant would perform official duties in a biased or partial manner. For grading purposes, this section is a crime of the second degree unless the benefit solicited or accepted is of a value of $200 or less, in which case it is a crime of the third degree. Hence, an occasional lunch or even perhaps a round of golf may not be problematic; however, using a vendor’s condo in Florida on a regular basis may certainly raise problematic issues under this section
In sum, there is little room for error in terms of conduct which falls within any of the above categories. While the official may not be aware that such acts may constitute a criminal act, ignorance of the law continues to be no excuse, nor should it be. If an official has the slightest question as to whether a proposed action or course of conduct is illegal, appropriate advice from either the local public entity attorney or in appropriate cases, the County Prosecutor should be sought prior to acting. The career you save may be your own.
Edward J. Kologi, Esq. has represented public entities for 25 years and currently serves as Linden’s Municipal Attorney and as Associate Counsel to the New Jersey State League of Municipalities.
After reading the above report you start to question whether the 51 Monmouth St (Old Red Bank Police Station) and the Cedar Crossings development were handled properly. The 51 Monmouth St property was gifted to Mayor Ed McKenna’s Kid’s Bridge Charity which then borrowed over 1 million dollars from Amboy Bank for possible renovations. Kid’s Bridge Charity was taken over by the Red Bank YMCA about a year after the town gifted the property. Eventually the property was sold for over 1 million dollars while the Borough of Red Bank received no money thus costing the taxpayers of Red Bank over 1 million dollars. A judge as noted by the plaintiff pre-wrote her decision which also happened to me involving the Courtyards at Monmouth project and led me to create this site. The decision appears to allow the sale to go through between the YMCA and Red Bank Catholic but does not address an allegation that it was not disclosed that Ed McKenna’s charity would be the organization that received the property for $1. This transfer occurred while Ed McKenna was Mayor of Red Bank. Another situation involving Mayor Ed McKenna was that in August 2006 he pushed for the Red Bank Council to acquired land at above the appraised value using State Grant Money designated for the creation of affordable housing. At the time Ed McKenna never indicated that he would be creating a non-profit development corporation known as Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp in which he was designated Vice President. This corporation was created in the Spring of 2007 just months after Ed McKenna stepped down as Mayor of Red Bank. Here is information from the Decotiis lawfirm on the creation of Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp.
Thirty-six units of affordable housing already in development
DeCotiis, FitzPatrick & Cole, LLP, in its role as Counsel to the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp., recently helped lead the successful development of Cedar Crossing at Red Bank, a 36-unit, for sale, affordable housing project in the Borough of Red Bank, New Jersey.
This project is being constructed on a site that was acquired by the Borough using Municipal Land Acquisition Funds obtained from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. As part of this project, DeCotiis worked with other project consultants to secure necessary state, county and local funding and approvals. DeCotiis attorneys also worked to organize and incorporate the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp., the nonprofit developer created exclusively for the charitable purpose of promoting, developing, constructing, operating and selling affordable housing in the Borough.
“We are proud to have played a role in the development of this very important project,” said Frank Borin, a Partner at DeCotiis and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. “I hope we can replicate this project elsewhere in order to bring new affordable housing options to the State’s residents. The leadership of the Borough and of the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp. should be commended for their commitment to this project and their tireless efforts to see the project through.”
The project consists entirely of two and three bedroom units to be constructed in two phases. All of the units will be owner-occupied by affordable households, as defined by the Fair Housing Act and the COAH regulations. The first phase of the project should be ready for occupancy in the Spring of 2011, with the second phase being completed shortly thereafter.
Please join DeCotiis, FitzPatrick & Cole in congratulating Frank Borin, Maurice Stone and Amy Shotmeyer for their exemplary work with the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation.
When the Decotiis law firm speaks of working with consultants to obtain government grant money you have to wonder who they worked with. What I do know is that the Decotiis firm has crossed paths with the people involved in the following article and that they had not been arrested at the time Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp was established. This article also mentions an investigation into the Paramus Affordable Housing Corp in which William Katchen is involved as well as being involved in the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp. Chances are that this explains why Bergen County Democrats were involved in the creation and operation of the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp.
Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman Joseph Ferriero indicted
Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman Joseph Ferriero Feds say Ferriero bragged of influence
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Federal authorities indicted Bergen County Democratic Organization Chairman Joseph Ferriero and the party’s chief counsel, Dennis Oury, today.
A federal grand jury returned an eight-count indictment accusing Ferriero and Oury, who was fired as the Bergenfield borough attorney in January, of conspiracy to commit fraud against the borough and mail fraud.
“I am done being surprised in this job,” U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie said. “We’ve had these conversations before about others we’ve prosecuted … for some reason, greed and power seem to corrupt them and overcome what otherwise might be good sense and good decision-making.”
The indictment charges that in December 2001, Ferriero and Oury conceived of a plan to form a company called Government Grants Consulting LLC that would be paid by Bergen County towns to assist them in obtaining state and local grant monies. According to the indictment, Ferriero indicated that Government Grants would be successful because he could use his “influence” to help the municipalities “get a better result.”
Federal investigators began issuing subpoenas for records related to Oury, Ferriero and Governmental Grants Consulting in May. Since then, they have executed more than 30 subpoenas in North Jersey, and in August, conducted searches of both Oury and Ferriero’s respective law offices.
Ferriero’s troubles were compounded last week following allegations of sexual misconduct. According to a law enforcement source close to the case, a formal charge has not been filed against Ferriero and he has not been taken into custody.
A clerk in the criminal records division of Bergen County Superior Court said that a docket number had been created and that “a sexual charge” was pending against Ferriero. The case has been transferred to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office from Bergen County.
Since the allegation became public last week, Ferriero has announced that he would be taking leaves of absence from three different posts: as chairman of the county’s Democratic Party, in his role as a lawyer at Scarinci Hollenbeck and as chief counsel for the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners.
Ferriero and Oury both provided start-up money for Governmental Grants Consulting, according to David Spatz, the president of the now-defunct firm. Leonard Kaiser, the chairman of the Bergen County Utilities Authority, also had a financial interest in the firm.
According to the indictment, Oury was appointed to serve as the borough attorney at a January 1, 2002, Bergenfield borough council reorganization meeting. While GGC was still in the planning stages and had yet to be formally organized, Bergenfield retained it to serve as its grants consultant and agreed to pay a $6,000 retainer fee, plus an additional fee calculated as a percentage of any grants or loans received. Oury never disclosed his ownership interest in GGC, according to the indictment. Despite this, Oury went on to exercise his official power to further a grant-aided real estate purchase – all as Oury and Ferriero stood to gain personally from their ownership interests in GGC.
Ferriero is widely credited with injecting new life into the Bergen County Democratic Party and making it the dominant force it is today. He became the party chairman in 1998 after Oury dropped out of contention. Since then, his talent for fundraising has made him one of the state’s most powerful Democrats.
Oury also wields a great deal of power in North Jersey Democratic circles. He is counsel for the Bergen County Improvement Authority and has held jobs in several towns, including Ridgefield and Bergenfield, both of which employed Governmental Grants Consulting.
January 2003 billing records from Bergenfield show that Oury charged the borough $135 for a telephone conference involving Spatz. If accurate, Oury was billing the borough for dealing with a firm in which he had an undisclosed financial interest.
Oury’s financial disclosure forms submitted to Bergenfield, New Milford, Paramus, Edgewater, Fort Lee and the Fairview Board of Education never mentioned his financial stake in the firm. And officials from Garfield and Ridgefield said Oury never filed disclosure forms, despite working in those towns.
In Bergen County, Oury’s public work generated $760,000 to $1.1 million in annual income for his law firm in each of the three previous calendar years.
Oury has given at least $105,000 to Democratic candidates since 1999, most of it going to the Bergen County Democratic Organization.
Bergen County municipalities paid the firm 10 percent of the first $1 million in grant money it obtained for them, plus a retainer in some cases, according to contracts obtained by The Record.
Ferriero, Oury and GGC are not the only ones to attract interest at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In recent months, Christie has also issued subpoenas seeking information about the Paramus Affordable Housing Corporation and SVC Consulting, a company established by Ferriero.
State Sen. Loretta Weinberg, D-Teaneck, has been one of Ferriero’s most vocal critics. She described news of the indictment as a hardship for the Democratic Party.
“This is not a happy day for the Bergen Democrats,” she said. “My goal is to make sure we remain united &hellip we can’t let this interfere with that.”
Bergenfield Mayor Timothy Driscoll was instrumental in having Oury ousted in January.
“It’s been a long time coming,” he said Driscoll.
Here is an article that explains that Red Bank Housing Authority would oversee the construction which was not true. The Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation was the developer. Here is an article whereby Mayor Ed McKenna states that acquiring the Cedar Crossings property is a “Sterling Opportunity”. He never disclosed that he would create an affordable housing corporation only months after pushing to acquire the land. After the town received the NJ Grant money for acquiring the land, the town then gifted the land to Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp. The gift was in the neighborhood of 2.5 million. Red Bank Affordable Housing Corp will eventually earn hundred’s of thousands of dollars when the project is finished.
In New Jersey, public officials who exercise their official influence over matters in which they have a conflict of interest commit a crime when they do so with a purpose to benefit themselves or others.
The OSC investigation confirmed that Durr used his official influence and unique position as a government official to gain benefit from the land use program he helped implement in Chesterfield, known as a Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program. That program, which balances farmland preservation with controlled development, won national recognition and paved the way for legislation authorizing TDR programs statewide. It is vital for the future credibility of TDR as a land use strategy that those responsible for its administration not use their privileged position for personal advantage.
Here are some regulations related to government officials in NJ as well as the code of ethics.
5 II. GENERAL STANDARDS OF CONDUCT
It is essential that the conduct of public officials and employees shall hold the respect and confidence of the people. Public officials must, therefore, avoid conduct that is in violation of their public trust or that creates a justifiable impression among the public that such trust is being violated. Accordingly, State officers and employees and special State officers and employees shall conform their conduct to the following standards.
1. No State officer or employee or special State officer or employee should have any interest, financial or otherwise, direct or indirect, or engage in any business or transaction or professional activity, which is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of his/her duties in the public interest.
2. No State officer or employee or special State officer or employee should engage in any particular business, profession, trade or occupation which is subject to licensing or regulation by a specific agency of State Government without promptly filing notice of such activity with the Commission.
3. No State officer or employee or special State officer or employee should act in his/her official capacity in any matter wherein he/she has a direct or indirect personal financial interest that might reasonably be expected to impair his/her objectivity or independence of judgment.
4. No State officer or employee or special State officer or employee should knowingly act in any way that might reasonably be expected to create an impression or suspicion among the public having knowledge of his/her acts that he/she may be engaged in conduct violative of his trust as a State officer or employee or special State officer or employee.
It would seem to me that at the very least Mayor Ed McKenna should have disclosed his relationships to the non-profits receiving million dollar plus properties owned by the Borough of Red Bank. I would also think in all fairness to other charities and non-profits that other organizations should have had an opportunity to bid or demonstrate their ability to operate the projects. Both of Ed McKenna’s organizations were start ups and in the case of the Kid’s Bridge organization had to close shortly after being formed due to a lack of funding. Maybe one day someone will decide whether these transactions met the criteria of public trust or not.
Penalties for violating the public’s trust
No state officer, employee, or member of the Legislature shall:-Representation, appearance or negotiation, directly or indirectly, for acquisition or sale of property by state-Representation of state agency in transaction involving pecuniary interest-Disclosure or use for personal gain of information not available to public-Solicitation, receipt or agreement to receive thing of value for service related to official duties
$500 – $10,000; suspension from office for 1 year; if decided to be willful and continuous disregard of the code of ethics, may be removed from office and may further bar from holding any public office in the State for a 5 year period
Ed McKenna, former Red Bank Mayor and current Cedar Crossings Developer,recently had his third publicized car accident. Unlike previous incidents, this one resulted in an arrest with a court date scheduled in June. Ironically, he was arrested by State Troopers from Holmdel who many years ago tried unsuccessfully to interview him regarding a possible hit and run accident that occurred on the Parkway. The recent accident accuses him of drunk driving as well as driving in the wrong direction on the Parkway.
According to the 2011 990 tax filing required by non-profit organizations, the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation has retained a profit of over $416,000 from phase 1 of the Cedar Crossing Development. Upon the completion of phase 2 the project should generate a total profit of approximately $800,000. The project was started with the purchase using “free” taxpayer money to aquire the land. Ed McKenna while Mayor of Red Bank pushed the Borough Council to approve this purchase using tax money from the State of NJ. Since non-profit organizations cannot make a profit, it would be a nice gesture on the part of Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation to donate all profits on the project to the Borough of Red Bank and it would help reduce the property taxes for everyone in the town.
According to a post on the Monmouth County Republican blog, early in Ed McKenna’s career he was not a Democrat and was not happy to have John Curley switch Parties as well.
Ed McKenna, as Mayor, yelled at Jennifer Beck when she gave residents an opportunity to raise issues they had with the zoning board during the BLT hearings.
Here is an article from the Asbury Park Press covering the controversy of the Cedar Crossings development
Red Bank council holds off on $2.4 million land deal Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 10/2/06 BY LARRY HIGGS COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU
RED BANK — The borough’s proposal to explore buying a nearly 2-acre tract to use for affordable housing has been put off — for now — amid questions over its price, possible conflicts of interest and other issues.
Borough Attorney Kenneth Pringle is to examine the issues raised by residents and some council members after the Borough Council delayed a vote to authorize experts to begin the purchase process of the 1.93-acre Cedar Crossings site between Cedar and Catherine streets. The council was to have voted at its Sept. 25 meeting.
“I know it’s a tough time to make a decision with the politics in town,” said Ben Forest of Locust Avenue, referring to the upcoming mayoral election. “But it’s too important a decision to let that contaminate the process.”
Forest told the council last week that he favored waiting two weeks for Pringle’s advice on conflict of interest.
“Let’s make sure it’s done right, and it will turn out terrific,” said Forest, who also is a borough Board of Education member.
Questions about the site have focused on the cost, environmental issues, its viability and whether Councilman Robert J. Bifani has a conflict of interest on the project. Bifani abstained from last week’s vote to delay authorizing the land purchase.
“I’m not crazy about sticking affordable housing in a light-industrial area,” said Steven Fitzpatrick of Chestnut Street.
Fitzpatrick, who’s been dubbed “the ethics police” by some officials, regularly researches contributions make by developers, land owners and their professionals to local campaigns and political action committees. In researching the Cedar Crossings tract, he determined that Bifani, a vice president of Mid-State Solar Distributors, has a conflict because the company is next door to the tract and its value could rise if Cedar Crossings is built.
APPLICATION ON HOLD
The Cedar Crossings site lies behind three residential streets and has a railroad line and industrial and commercial properties nearby. The current owners’ application calls for a 36-unit townhouse development and is before the borough Zoning Board of Adjustment. However, it’s been put on hold by the applicant, Cedar Crossings at Red Bank LLC, pending negotiations to sell the site to the borough.
Borough officials have applied for a $2.4 million state grant to buy the property, and if that grant is approved, the land would be turned over to the Red Bank Housing Authority for construction. The purchase would include not only the land but the townhouse design work and blueprints.
Mayor Edward J. McKenna Jr. said the proposal represents a rare chance to buy one of the town’s few vacant pieces of land with state funds and build affordable housing, which could satisfy about half of the 74 units the state says the borough is obligated to provide.
“This is effectively a gift of $2.4 million to develop affordable housing,” McKenna said at last week’s council meeting. “It would be unwise to take a pass on this property.”
Bifani declined to comment on the conflict of interest and land ownership issue, on the advice of his attorney.
“My attorney said I shouldn’t talk about it,” Bifani said in an interview Tuesday. “I abstained from voting on it.”
The Cedar Crossings tract was assembled through the purchase of four pieces of vacant land, including one owned by Mid-State Solar. That parcel was bought for $52,500 in January 2002, according to an appraisal done for the borough by Gagliano Appraisal LLC of Shrewsbury in June.
A 2ND TOWNHOUSE PLAN
Fitzpatrick pointed out that the attorney representing Cedar Crossings, Martin A. McGann Jr. of Middletown, also represents another nearby development application by Matrix LLC on Bridge Avenue. In that application, Matrix proposes to buy the Mid-State building and build townhouses.
The zoning board put off the Matrix application last week to sort out a conflict-of-interest issue between McGann and Board Attorney Kevin Kennedy, who is McGann’s tenant.
“If they approve the affordable housing property, it will affect the value of Bifani’s property,” Fitzpatrick said.
At the council meeting, McKenna was dismissive of Fitzpatrick’s findings that contributions were made to county political action committees by principals of Cedar Crossings at Red Bank LLC. The principals are Robert L. Nicholson of Shrewsbury, Joseph A. Campanella Jr. of Little Falls, and Riverside Capital Management LLC, which is made up of Peter Shapiro, Kathleen Anderson and Ted A. Smith, all of Shrewsbury, according to zoning board files.
Fitzpatrick got the information, which he read at last week’s meeting, by researching reports filed with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission. A review of information on that Web site showed that Integrated Development Concepts LLC, which was later renamed Cedar Crossings, donated $250 to the Monmouth County Council of Democratic Leaders in 2003. It also showed a $500 donation from Robert Nicholson to the same group.
But Councilman Arthur Murphy III said during the meeting that there is no way to tell if that money was earmarked for Red Bank candidates or not.
“You think that because someone gave someone 500 bucks, that’s going to influence anyone up here?” McKenna asked Fitzpatrick at the meeting.
OTHER CONCERNS RAISED
The property’s environmental issues may be wrapped up pending one more soil and water test. Meanwhile, the borough engineer’s review of the plans raised design concerns.
Depending on what is found, the price could vary from the $2.45 million, which some officials said is too high.
“I’d like to see a delay so we can get more information, and we can see that this is a clean, honest deal benefiting those who need affordable housing and . . . not a rip-off of the taxpayers who provide money for the grants,” said Councilman John P. Curley, a Republican candidate for mayor.
If it passes muster, Curley said he might vote for the plan.
His Democratic opponent, council President Pasquale “Pat” Menna, supports the project and said it will anchor the area, the way converting the old River Street School into affordable housing helped 15 years ago. That was also accomplished with state funds
“That area does need continued stabilization. If we go forward, that (borough project) will be a second anchor and a boon to the community,” Menna said at the council meeting. “We should have that long-term perspective and be proactive.”
Fitzpatrick and Curley questioned the $2.4 million appraisal for the land. McKenna said the borough would also pay $50,000 for all of the developer’s engineering and design work.
“That’s a damn expensive set of blueprints,” Curley said in an interview. “We shouldn’t pay $2.45 million for a piece of ground.”
“There are a series of checks (and balances) in it (the process),” McKenna said. “The DCA has to accept the (appraisal) number. The appraiser is highly respected, and I feel confident on it.”
The property is one test away from being given a clean bill of health by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Those soil and monitoring well tests are scheduled to be done in a week, said Chris Dwyer, case manager for the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Site contamination includes metals, which had been buried on the property, and volatile organic chemicals, which leaked from a gasoline storage tank. Both the tank and contaminated soil have been removed, Dwyer said.
“They have one clean round of testing from the groundwater monitoring well by the gas tank (location),” Dwyer said. “We’re waiting for a report with post-excavation (test results) and another round of clean ground water (from a monitoring well).
If those tests are clean, the DEP will issue a “no future action required” letter, he said.
ENGINEER RAISES CONCERNS
Borough Engineer Richard Kosenski, in a report to the zoning board, questioned designs for the one-, two- and three- bedroom townhouses, noting the application would need seven variances because it doesn’t meet borough zoning standards.
Among his concerns were that the ground-floor units were smaller than the minimum 700 square feet of habitable floor area required, and that 88 percent of the units were three-bedroom units, while zoning says that number can’t exceed 50 percent.
Kosenski noted buffer areas provided between the proposed townhouses and the railroad and neighboring commercial and industrial properties are “not adequate for this site.” He pointed out the plans call for no buffer zone between industrial properties and the proposed townhouses.
The plans also call for allowing nearby industries, which use the site to gain access to loading zones, to continue that practice.
“Industrial traffic mixing with residential-use traffic is not acceptable inside the proposed development,” Kosenski wrote.
The developer would also need a density variance from the zoning board because the application calls for building more units than the 10 per acre permitted by zoning.
McKenna said the borough would build fewer than 36 townhouses on the property.
The property also would have to be examined by experts from Red Bank and the state Department of Community Affairs before a deal is finalized.
“We know the site has issues, and the contract will have contingencies. It must be environmentally clean,” McKenna said. “We will have our own engineer look it over to make sure it is fit for what we want to do.”
Red Bank’s application is under review by the Council on Affordable Housing, and the site has not been evaluated yet, said Chris Donnelly, Department of Community Affairs spokesman.
COAH doesn’t have minimum size standards for affordable units but defers to municipal building codes, Donnelly said. There are no regulations about the proximity of affordable housing sites to railroad or industrial property, but the distance and compatibility will be evaluated as part of the overall site suitability study, he said.
At another Council Meeting regarding the Cedar Crossing Project, Ed McKenna got into an argument with Councilman John Curley when questions were raised about the town overpaying for a development property in Red Bank. The people John Curley refers to as “middlemen” are affiliated with Progress Realty Advisors in Shrewsbury. They are involved in funding large development projects through out NJ and beyond. One of the people involved in the beginning is involved in municipal bonds. Another person now works at a company involved with government financing as well. It seems most of the people in the original cedar crossing llc company had involvement in government work. The company was originally known as Allied Commercial Capital based in Woodbridge, NJ. BLUE BELL, Pa., Oct. 17 /PRNewswire/ — Progress Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: PFNC) through its commercial mortgage banking subsidiary, Progress Realty Advisors, Inc., announced today that it has acquired Allied Commercial Capital, L.L.C. and Allied Asset Management, Inc. Both companies, which are based in Woodbridge, New Jersey, specialize in originating, underwriting and closing real estate financing for multi-family and commercial properties, as well as residential development financing in New Jersey and New York. Kathleen M. Anderson and Peter M. Shapiro, the principals of Allied, will be responsible for managing Progress Realty Advisors Northern Division, based in Allied’s former offices in Woodbridge Another company based out of the same office as Progress Realty Advisors is Riverside Capital Management. One of the clients of Progress Realty Advisors is River Developers who was named the redeveloper of Pleasantville. The cedar crossing property would eventually be purchased for 2.4 million using grant money for affordable housing from the State of NJ. While Mayor of the town McKenna pushed for the zoning change and purchase only to create the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation in early 2007 which developed the property. When it was discussed that the town should buy the property it was revealed that the Red Bank Housing Authority would develop the property which turned out not to be true. The Red Bank Housing Authority will manage the association upon completion. McKenna’s Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation was given the property from the Borough of Red Bank for $1. Another property owned by the town, 51 Monmouth Street which is the former police station, was sold to Ed McKenna’s Kids Bridge charity for $1 and is now being sold for over 1 million dollars. After allowing the former Mayor to create Non-Profits to acquire township land, they are now complaining there are too many non-profits not paying real estate taxes.
The Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation has some interesting partners. William Katchen, a CPA from North Jersey had been suspended 1990 by the Federal Government regarding working with housing authorities. In 2008, he was also involved with the Paramus Affordable Housing Corporation which was subject to an FBI investigation. In 2006, Katchen held the follow public jobs and the income generated
William Katchen is also involved in the Affordable Housing of Metropolitan Edgwater Inc located at 300 Undercliff Avenue in Cliffside Park, NJ He is also involved in the Neighborhood Friendship Affordable Housing Corp in Cliffside Park and appears to have charged nearly $9,000 for accounting work.
Frank Borin of the Decotiis Law Firm in North Jersey is also a member of the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation. Why would the headquarters of Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation be in Cliffside Park NJ and why would these people be involved in the project? rb 10-101resolution[1]
Ed McKenna’s law firm has worked for many towns including Tinton Falls. According to an Asbury Park Press story regarding the CECOM DevelopmentAnsell said the borough’s top administrators — including former Borough Attorney Edward J. McKenna Jr., who also is the mayor of Red Bank — knew about Abrams’ involvement with Leser. McKenna denied it. “Absolutely not. I knew nothing about that. I was the borough attorney, not redevelopment counsel. That was separate,” McKenna said. “I had no knowledge of his (Abrams) involvement.” McKenna added if he’d known about Abrams’ involvement, “I would have told him to step down.” Ultimately it resulted in a lengthy legal case.
Ed McKenna ran for the Chairman of the Monmouth County Democrats in 2000 but lost to Victor Scudiery. From Congressman Pallone’s wiki pagein 2000, Pallone endorsed and strongly supported incumbent Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Victor V. Scudiery over then Red Bank Mayor Edward McKenna, who had the support of Middlesex County Powerbroker/Pallone enemy John Lynch and South Jersey Powerbroker George Norcross. Scudiery was re-elected county chairman by a 2 to 1 margin.John Lynch plead guilty to fraud in 2006 due to an FBI investigation which involved Red Bank. The investigation also involved River Street Commons an adult affordable housing project located just down the street from the Cedar Crossings Project. John Lynch and Alfred Decotiis of the Decotiis Law Firm created a political action committee known as New Directions for Responsible Leadership. John Lynch and Jack Westlake a business partner from Red Bank were helping Cherokee in a development project as well as other developers. OENJ Cherokee is a related corporation to the Encap project that the Decotiis Law Firm represented at the meadowlands. Frank Borin of the Decotiis Law Firm would become a member of Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation and charge fees to the non-profit organization. John Lynch had created a web of corporations in the City of New Brunswick where he was once mayor (1979-1990) and then his cousin James Cahill became mayor of the town for at least 6 terms. A lot of people came together as a result of Governor McGreevey. McGreevey was from Woodbridge and was endorsed originally by John Lynch for Governor. Michael Decotiis was chief counsel in his administration and George Norcross also endorsed McGreevey. Lynch and Norcross then wanted McGreevey out during his scandal. The Decotiis and Lynch friendship goes back decades. It has also led to additional employment in Middlesex County for the Decotiis firm. Their paths along with Lynch’s friend Jack Morris would cross again in Edison where a questionable appraisal resulted in milions of dollars in profit for Morris. Robert Decotiis was the head of Lynch’s New Directions in Leadership PAC at the time Lynch was under investigation. Red Bank Borough officials have also crossed paths with the Decotiis firm at the NJ Turnpike Authority. In a rather odd event in Sayreville, the Decotiis Law firm was being replaced by the McKenna firm while mayor Menna’s firm was also bidding on the job. Sayreville’s Mayor called Michael Dupont’s appointment politically motivated. Click Here to understand the various connections made during the McGreevey administration to understand how complicated the NJ political system is including John Lynch and George Norcross involvement with Commerce Bank and the Decotiis law firm. George Norcross is involved in the NJ Democratic Party in South Jersey. and was recorded making various threats.
On February 16, 2012 Amboy Bank will seek approvals to subdivide their Courtyards Project on the corner of Monmouth/West/Oakland Streets. It was approved about 1 year ago for 57 condos. 45 of the condos would be market priced in one building and a second building would consist of 12 affordable units. On February 8th, 2012 Amboy Bank officials met with the Red Bank Borough Council in a closed session to discuss the development of the property and financing. Mayor Pat Menna was not present for this meeting. According to NJ open meeting laws there are only 9 reasons that a government can have a closed meeting. One such reason would be to discuss using public funds to acquire property. According to Amboy Bank representatives they need to subdivide the property in order to obtain financing and they also plan to develop the 2 subdivided pieces themselves.
Previously Red Bank purchased private property know as the Cedar Crossings with 2.4 million dollars of state grant money. This property was then sold to Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation to build 36 affordable housing units and seems to have generated several hundred thousand dollars in surplus funds. This Corporation has members that include former Mayor Ed McKenna, William Katchen a CPA who has been banned in the past by the Federal Government related to public housing funds, and Frank Borin a lawyer with the Decotiis law firm who has taken several thousand dollars in fees from Red Bank Affordable Housing Corportation for his law firm. Ed McKenna has been at several approval meetings supporting the Amboy approvals and is also a representative of the Red Bank Rivercenter. Amboy Bank was able to obtain approvals in contrast to the vision of Red Bank Rivercenter’s plan to create street level retail along Monmouth Street between the train station and Broad Street.
There is an interesting group of people involved with the Red Bank Affordable Housing. The members are Reverend Porter of the Pilgrim Baptist Church in Red Bank which would seem to make sense. A church located on Shrewsbury Avenue in Red Bank trying to create low-income housing and allow lower-income people to remain in the town. Other members are William Katchen from Cliffside Park in Bergen County NJ and Frank Borin of the Decotiis Law Firm in Bergen County NJ as well. There is also former Red Bank Mayor Ed McKenna as Vice President. William Katchen was suspended in the 1990 for 1 year by the Federal Government from participating in public housing due to the misappropriation of approximately 1.7 million dollars in public housing funds. The Decotiis Law Firm is a very politically connected law firm with direct access to many of New Jersey’s past governors. They also represented Encap, the largest waste of taxpayer dollars in the history of the state. Why would a local church group be involved with politically connected accountants and lawyers from North Jersey? If this was done solely for charity why would the Decotiis law firm charge the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation fees when they were also members of the corporation? Why did Ed McKenna as Mayor of Red Bank push for the town to acquire the property for more than fair market value as well as zoning changes only to become one of the developers? Why did Mayor Menna and Mayor McKenna claim that the Red Bank Housing Authority would develop the property when it was actually the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation that received the property for $1 and is a separate corporation from the town and the authority. The state taxpayers paid 2.45 million and the rationale was that the local taxpayers did not pay for it, so even if the property was over valued, it did not matter because this was “free money.” Here is an article outlining very similar parallels between Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation and the Paramus Affordable Housing Corporation:
Another subpoena for mayor’s non-profit Friday, August 22, 2008 Last updated: Friday August 22, 2008, EDT 10:41 PM BY MICHAEL GARTLAND Staff Writer PARAMUS – A borough affordable housing corporation has received a subpoena from federal agents, municipal spokesman Keith Furlong confirmed today.
The subpoena, which was served Thursday, is the second in two months regarding the Paramus Affordable Housing Corp., a non-profit for which Mayor James Tedesco serves as president.
Dennis Oury, who served as the borough attorney from 2001 to 2007, is listed as the non-profit’s agent, according to state records. He also serves as counsel for the Bergen County Democratic Organization.
Federal agents served search warrants at his law offices Thursday, along with those of Joseph Ferriero, the BCDO chief. The agents seized at least 18 boxes of documents and computer hard drives.
Attorneys for both men confirmed that agents searched the offices for information about Governmental Grants Consulting, a firm in which Ferriero and Oury were partners with two other men – David Spatz, its president, and Leonard Kaiser, who also serves as Bergen County Utilities Authority Chairman.
Sean Quinn, a spokesman for the FBI, would not confirm today whether the subpoena and the search warrants were connected.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office served the borough with a subpoena in July, seeking records about Paramus Affordable Housing Corp.
According to 2007 tax records, Paramus Affordable Housing Corp. has assets worth about $2.4 million, although property tax records put the total at $3 million.
Tedesco, who has been mayor since 2003, and the non-profit’s accountant, William Katchen, have not responded to repeated requests for comment since the first subpoena was received.
Katchen, who once served as director of the Edgewater Municipal Utility Authority, also has worked for the housing authorities of Garfield, Cliffside Park, Edgewater, Englewood and the city of Passaic.
In 1990, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development slapped him with a one-year suspension after the Passaic Housing Authority misspent $1.7 million in taxpayer money. Katchen was the housing authority’s accountant.
Tedesco and Katchen’s aren’t the only names that appear on the non-profit’s tax forms.
Former Paramus Councilman Richard Lambert was listed as the non-profit’s secretary on its 2004 tax form, but Lambert said he ended his ties with the group after stepping down as a councilman in 2000.
“That’s crazy,” he said. “My name shouldn’t be there. I didn’t go to any meetings after I left.”
John Tashjian was listed as a trustee in 2004, but said he never attended any of the non-profit’s meetings.
Louis Romano appears on the form next to the designation of vice president. Romano, who has served on the borough’s Planning Board and Board of Adjustment, said he, too, was surprised his name appeared on the 2004 tax document.
“The mayor appointed me in ’05,” he said. “I was there a couple of months, and I resigned. It just wasn’t my bag.”
U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie has executed more than 30 subpoenas in North Jersey since May. Many of those have sought information related to Oury and Governmental Grants Consulting.
Federal authorities appear to be looking into how that firm’s principals used their political influence to obtain business for it.
Oury, who also is counsel for the Bergen County Improvement Authority, has held jobs in several towns, including Ridgefield and Bergenfield, both of which employed Governmental Grants Consulting.
In Bergen County, his public work generated $760,000 to $1.1 million in annual income for his law firm in each of the three previous calendar years. Oury has given at least $105,000 to Democratic candidates since 1999, most of it going to the BCDO.
Bergenfield fired Oury as its borough attorney in January, and Paramus reassigned him to a labor attorney position
It seems that William Katchen and the Decotiis Law Firm like to work on projects together:
The breakdown of sums paid to contractors for the Edgewater ferry/marina/park project through Jan. 16. In addition, the borough paid $6.1 million for the land, which was acquired through eminent domain.
Here are a list of articles, ordinances and resolutions pertaining to the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation and their development project known as Cedar Crossings. The town purchased the property for around 2.4 million using a NJ grant. John Curley a Republican Councilman at the time and a current Monmouth County Freeholder questioned the purchase as well as Red Bank being brought up during the Operation Bid Rig FBI investigation. At last night’s Borough Council meeting, Republican John Curley brought up the Press story, and said he had “contacted the FBI to request a full investigation of these comments.”Curley then immediately segued into a reference to the borough’s $2.45 million purchase last February of property on which the Cedar Crossings affordable housing project is to be built. Curley said he had asked the FBI to investigate that as well.“I do not believe that deal was legal,” Curley said with rising anger.
The town then sold the property to Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporationfor $1 and leading the public to believe the Red Bank Housing Authority would develop the property. From Red Bank GreenRed Bank was the first town to apply for and obtain funds under the DCA’s Municipal Acquisition and Construction Program. Next: the Red Bank Housing Authority will kick into gear to oversee the construction, Menna said. he expects the agency to work with the federal Housing and Urban Development bureaucracy and others to pay for construction.
. Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation then obtained Grant money as well as loans from Investors Savings, the NJ Mortgage and Finance Agency and the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York The loans and grants totaled $5 million to build (36) 1150sqft (on avg) townhomes to be sold at an average price of $115,000. This would have generated approximately $4.2 million in sales. The estimated cost to build was $4.4 million which would be more than $100 per square foot and this was modular construction which usually costs less than $100 sqft to build. In either case there would be somewhere between $600,000 and $800,000 extra dollars then was needed to build the affordable housing units. I know that in 2006 when the property was agreed to be purchased, we were at the top of the market, but the market in Red Bank did not drop by approximately 50% over the past 5 years. The purchase was around 2.4 million for the land and now they are assessed for $30k per unit for the land which makes the land value $1,080,000. Here are the tax records for the units.Each of the 36 units were assessed the same. Non-Profit Corporations take money out in the form of fees. Here is a copy of the DeCotiis Law Firm charging the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation nearly $3,000 for legal work. in 2010. During 2009 the Decotiis firm charged nearly $5,000 to Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation. Frank Borin of the DeCotiis Law Firm is a member of the Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation.
No State officer or employee or special State officer or employee, subsequent to the termination of his office or em-ployment in any State agency, shall represent, appear for, negotiate on behalf of, or provide information not generally available to members of the public or services to, or agree to represent, appear for, negotiate on behalf of, or provide information not generally available to members of the public or services to, whether by himself or through any partner-ship, firm or corporation in which he has an interest or through any partner, officer or employee thereof, any person or party other than the State in connection with any cause, proceeding, application or other matter with respect to which such State officer or employee or special State officer or employee shall have made any investigation, rendered any ruling, given any opinion, or been otherwise substantially and directly involved at any time during the course of his of-fice or employment. Any person who willfully violates the provisions of this section is a disorderly person, and shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $ 1,000 or imprisonment not to exceed six months, or both. In addition, for violations occurring after the effective date of P.L.2005, c.382, any former State officer or em-ployee or former special State officer or employee of a State agency in the Executive Branch found by the State Ethics Commission to have violated any of the provisions of this section shall be assessed a civil penalty of not less than $ 500 nor more than $ 10,000, which penalty may be collected in a summary proceeding pursuant to the “Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999,” P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.)
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