Station Place Development formerly known as the Courtyards

The Station Place Development formerly known as the Courtyards@Monmouth Project was sold to Brenda McIntyre of Station Place LLC. The property was sold for 4 Million according to tax records and they received 9.6 million in loans from the seller, Amboy Bank. for the 45 market units. The building according to the application is 60,556 sq ft. Roger Mumford went before the Red Bank Zoning Board at a special meeting on December 13, 2012 to revise previously agreed to plans. He received those approvals at this meeting and then Brenda McIntyre signed the deeds on December 19, 2012.
From the Borough of Red Bank Agenda list for a Special Zoning Board Hearing held on Dec 13, 2012.

Station Place @Red Bank, LLC, Monmouth and West Streets, Block 42, Lots
1,2,2.01,3,4,19,20,21 Z 10411
Seeking relief from conditions of a prior Zoning Board approval and amendment to the
application including revised elevations, elimination of solar canopies and roof –top
easement, elimination of on-site car share use, and changes to the parking and grading
plans to permit the construction of a 60,556 square foot multi –family building consisting
of 45 units and a 12,822 square foot building consisting of 12 units. BR-1 Zone and BR-2
Zone.From the Asbury Park Press dated 12/28/12
What had been hailed as a forward thinking condominium project, with solar panels, car-share parking and a rain garden has given way to economic reality.
Revised plans for the former Courtyards at Monmouth project, now dubbed Station Place, were approved by Red Bank’s Zoning Board of Adjustment on Dec. 13, by a 7-0 vote.
The site has seen several previous plans, none of which ever were constructed.
Developer Roger Mumford said the changes were necessary so Station Place will not just be a pipe dream on paper.
The design calls for building a 45-unit, four-story upscale rental building on Monmouth and West streets and a smaller building of 12 affordable units at West and Oakland streets.
The original development proposed by GS Realty Corp., which is part of Amboy Bank, proposed a car canopy over the 67 spaces in a parking lot, to be covered with solar panels, a rain garden to filter rain water and proposals to include parking for car-sharing companies, such as Zipcar, which could eliminate the need some residents have for a first or second car.
The revisions scuttled some of those features, which some said gave the project a visionary aspect. Even the buildings’ appearance with faux brownstone individual entrances and stairs, has given way to a traditional single entrance and lobby.
“I didn’t think they were very appealing. The spirit of the (new) building (facade) is captured from the Count Basie theater,” Mumford said during a hearing on the application. “I wanted more classic architecture that would look great 20 years from now.”
The overall size of the buildings are the same with aesthetic changes and reconfiguring the internal lay-outs.
While he proposed to eliminate the solar, Mumford cited his environmental credibility for building other energy efficient developments, including a group of new homes at Bridge Avenue and Bergen Place.
“Our environmental policy recognizes energy efficiency, conserves natural resources and indoor air quality,” Mumford said. “It may not be technically LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, but it will be one of the greenest buildings in Red Bank.”
The solar aspect of the original plans would only provide 10 to 15 percent of the buildings’ electricity, Mumford said.
Gary Weisman, president of the New Jersey Solar Coalition, said the market has dropped out of the solar energy market, since the original approval. He said the solar component of the project was “made for a project, that if your look at it on an economic basis, is no longer viable,” considering the current health of the solar energy market.
“There is no way I could find an investor for the solar component of this project,” Weisman said, adding it would take at least 15 years under the current economic climate to recoup that investment.
Mumford called solar “one spoke on the environmental wheel” and ticked off a list of environmentally friendly features such as cabinetry certified not to contain formaldehyde, “engineered” lumber made of recycled wood chips, recycled concrete chips in the parking lot, a white plastic “cool” roof covering to reflect energy and energy efficient insulation.
The “L” shaped corner property has a tortured history of proposals, which never saw reality.
Prior to interest by Amboy Bank and its real estate arm, G.S. Realty, the last development approved on that site in May 2008 was never built, and borough officials said the bank took possession of the property.
Those plans, proposed by RB Monmouth LLC, would have built three, four-story buildings with stores on the first floor and apartments on the upper floors for a total of 20 units.
RB Monmouth bought the property and different plans from Building Land Technology, which filed an application in 2003 and got approval to build a total of 35 condo and townhouse units in three buildings on the site.
That approval was challenged in 2004, by seven borough residents who sued, contending there was a conflict of interest between a board member and a law firm, which previously represented the land owner.
In 2006, three state Appellate Division judges ruled that board member shouldn’t have heard the BLT application and reversed the approval.

From a letter to the editor on the Hub Newspaper dated 9/28/06
Pay-to-play changing landscape
Now that former state Sen. John Lynch and his business partner John Westlake have pleaded guilty to corruption charges and tax evasion, it is important for my fellow residents of the Jersey Shore to understand the nexus between John Lynch and our local politicians, developers and their professionals. Just as importantly, we need to understand the impact of these relationships and how it has affected the quality of life in our shore communities.
In the movie, “All the President’s Men,” actor Hal Holbrook portrays the Washington insider Deep Throat who continually states “follow the money.” If we follow that lead, it takes us to two political action committees which have had a tremendous influence over our politicians, some who are already guilty of corruption. “New Directions Through Responsible Leadership,” a Lynch PAC – co-chaired by Westlake and John Hoffman of the Wilentz, Goldman, and Spitzer law firm – has raised millions of dollars since 2000. The bulk of those dollars have come from people or companies doing redevelopment projects throughout the state and in our hometowns.
Developers like K Hovnanian, the Gale Co., Mack-Cali, PRC, Jack Morris, Applied Development, Matzel and Mumford, and others have contributed significantly to this PAC, and it is no coincidence they are all doing major development projects in towns like Long Branch, Matawan, Asbury Park, Keyport, West Long Branch, Belmar and my hometown of Red Bank.
In addition, engineering firms such as Maser Consulting, Birdsall Engineering, Schoor DePalma, T&M Associates, and Najarian Associates are among the local firms who have been major contributors for years. Again, it is of no surprise these firms are either employed by our towns or are working on behalf of the developers.
The other PAC called the Monmouth County Council of Democratic Leaders – formed in 1999 and co-chaired by the respective law partners of Mayor Ed McKenna of Red Bank and Mayor Ken Pringle of Belmar – has been in sync with the Lynch PAC for many years. Not only has this PAC received contributions from the same developers and professionals, but it has also received direct monies from New Directions by way of “wheeling.” Also, the McKenna/Pringle PAC has wheeled money upwards to the Lynch PAC for many years.
Where has the money flowed to? In Monmouth County, the biggest recipient of campaign contributions from New Directions has been the Red Bank Democrats and their campaign accounts, each year chaired by Mayor McKenna. In fact, Mayor McKenna received $5,000 in 2000 in his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic county chairmanship. Again, it is of no coincidence that currently there are 19 development projects proposed or under construction in Red Bank.
Another major recipient of campaign monies was Mayor Adam Schneider in Long Branch, who in addition received campaign staff help from John Lynch in his re-election campaign this past May. These staffers were formerly on the payroll of Lynch’s New Directions.
Mayor Schneider and his use of eminent domain on good citizens has been fueled by these developers and professionals. Is it again a coincidence Joseph Barry of Applied Development, Charles Kushner of Westminster Properties, and Phil Konvitz – all guilty of corruption – were doing waterfront development? Mayor Schneider also represented developer Jack Morris in the Walgreens project in West Long Branch, where a bribe was passed to a Democratic councilman.
I could certainly continue to write about how far and how deep this goes, but then it would become a book. I only wish to inspire those of you out there who are not happy with the overdevelopment of your hometowns. There is a direct link as to why it is happening, and it’s not called smart growth. It is pay-to-play and corruption, and it has changed the Jersey Shore landscape.
For those facing eminent domain this holiday season, my heart goes out to all of you, for it truly is the “Lynch” who stole Christmas.

Stephen M. Fitzpatrick

Red Bank
Ed McKenna who endorsed the GS Realty/Amboy Bank approvals that were acquired by Brenda McIntyre also became a member of the Red Bank Rivercenter just prior to Amboy Bank/GS Realty making application for the approvals and numerous variances. This project failed to meet the guidelines on the Rivercenter organization. In addition the township rezoned the property for greater density on the parcels that were identified as in foreclosure from the former Coffenberg approval after the town argued that the Coffenberg approval was creating a much higher density than permitted in the zone which was never true and proven during the Coffenberg approval process.
Here is the deed for Station Place’s Purchase from GS Realty which is Amboy Bank.
deed station place
Here is the tax record for the Station Place purchase and mortgage from Amboy Bank.

The data within this report is compiled by CoreLogic from public and private sources.
Generated on 11/06/2013
153 Monmouth St, Red Bank, NJ 07701, Monmouth County
Beds
N/A
MLS Sq Ft
60,000
Lot Sq Ft
15,002
Sale Price
$4,000,000
Baths
N/A
Yr Built
N/A
Type
N/A
Sale Date
12/19/2012
Expired Listing
Owner Information
Owner Name: Station Place At Red Bank LLC Tax Billing Zip: 07739
Tax Billing Address: 52 Paag Cir Tax Billing Zip+4: 1739
Tax Billing City & State: Little Silver, NJ Owner Occupied: No
Location Information
Township: Red Bank Boro Carrier Route: C004
Zoning: MU-08 Block #: 42
Census Tract: 8036.00 Lot #: 1
Tax Information
Tax ID: 39-00042-0000-00001 Lot Number: 1
Tax Appraisal Area: 39 Block ID: 42
Legal Description: ALSO LOT 2 NIT 1A
Assessment & Tax
Assessment Year 2012 2011 2010
Assessed Value – Total $737,000 $914,400 $914,400
Assessed Value – Land $737,000 $737,000 $737,000
Assessed Value – Improved $177,400 $177,400
YOY Assessed Change (%) -19.4% 0%
YOY Assessed Change ($) -$177,400 $0
Tax Year Total Tax YOY Tax Change ($) YOY Tax Change (%)
2010 $16,221
2011 $16,523 $302 1.86%
2012 $13,657 -$2,867 -17.35%
Characteristics
Estimated Lots Acres: 0.3444 Estimated Building Square
Feet:
Tax: 1,862 MLS: 60,000
Estimated Lot Area: 15,002 Exterior: Concrete Block

Property Detail
Page 2 of 3
The data within this report is compiled by CoreLogic from public and private sources.
Generated on 11/06/2013
Last Market Sale & Sales History
Recording Date: 12/28/2012 Deed Type: Bargain & Sale Deed
Settle Date: 12/19/2012 Owner Name: Station Place At Red Bank LLC
Sale Price: $4,000,000 Seller: Gs Realty Corp
Document Number: 8988-5283
Recording Date 12/28/2012 09/13/2012 05/21/2009 12/06/2006 07/09/2004
Sale Price $4,000,000 $955,000
Nominal Y Y Y
Buyer Name Station Place At Red Bank LLC
Balacco Property Mgmt
LLC Gs Realty Corp R B Monmouth LLC Palatial Homes At Red
Bank LLC
Seller Name Gs Realty Corp Gs Realty Corp Rb Monmouth LLC R B Monmouth LLC Torra Frank M &
Alexandra
Document Number 8988-5283 8970-6379 8774-6828 8613-680 8379-7961
Document Type Bargain & Sale Deed Deed (Reg) Rerecorded Deed Deed (Reg) Deed (Reg)
Recording Date
Sale Price $40,000
Nominal
Buyer Name Torra Frank
Seller Name Methot June
Document Number 4161-84
Document Type Deed (Reg)
Mortgage History
Mortgage Date 12/28/2012 07/27/2007 05/11/2007 07/09/2004
Mortgage Amount $9,600,000 $500,000 $4,500,000 $1,886,880
Mortgage Lender Amboy Bk Amboy Nat’l Bk Amboy Nat’l Bk Amboy Nat’l Bk
Mortgage Type Resale Construction Construction Resale
Foreclosure History
Document Type Release Of Lis Pendens/Notice Lis Pendens
Foreclosure Filing Date 09/22/2008
Recording Date 01/20/2012 10/07/2008
Document Number 6806 107013
Original Doc Date 03/31/2010 05/11/2007
Original Document Number 27909
Original Book Page 8825009634 8651001071

Lie with Dogs, Get Fleas

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 $175,479 Secaucus Bergen Vocational Schools internal auditor / Cliffside Park Housing Authority accountant / Edgewater Borough MUA director / Edgewater Housing Authority fee accountant / Englewood Housing Authority accountant / Garfield Housing Authority accountant

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 Development  Ansell 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 page in 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.

Crossing Paths in Red Bank Approvals

The Federal Election Commission fined Amboy Bank and its CEO George Scharpf in 2003 for campaign donation violations. George Scharpf and Amboy Bank had a very close relationship with former Governor McGreevey and former NJ State Senator John Lynch.  Lynch was sent to jail for fraud along with Red Bank resident Jack Westlake. Here is an excerpt from the book The Jersey Sting related to Amboy Bank. John Lynch was a major supporter of former Red Bank Mayor Ed McKenna. Here is an excerpt from an article in the bayshore courier news from a few years ago. Also, a 2000 race for the Monmouth County Democratic chairmanship pitted Red Bank Mayor Ed McKenna against Scudiery. McKenna received $5,000 from the New Directions PAC for the ultimately unsuccessful attempt. Lynch’s PAC has continued to support McKenna’s role as a Democratic leader in Monmouth County, contributing $9,700 to the Red Bank Democratic Party and $2,500 to the Monmouth County Council of Democrat Leaders PAC, a committee McKenna is affiliated with, since 2002. Below is a link to  a campaign donation list for John Lynch’s New Directions PAC from 2002. The list is very lengthy and includes an executive with Amboy Bank and the McKenna Law Firm.

new directions pac 2002

 Is this possible Lynch connection more than a coincidence and could the idea of a Red Bank Transit Village come from Lynch.  Ed McKenna has been supporting Amboy Bank to obtain higher than allowed density at the property located at Monmouth/West/Oakland Streets in Red Bank. Next week Amboy Bank goes before the zoning board to subdivide the affordable housing from the market units. Ed McKenna has a non-profit affordable housing corporation and is just finishing the cedar crossings project.  The zoning was changed while Amboy Bank was in the process of foreclosing on the property formerly owned by George Coffenberg. Arguments by the borough engineer against the Coffenberg development was that it was too dense even though it followed the existing zoning laws. If they did not like 16 units per acre why would they change the zoning to 35 units per acre a year later? If you look at the original Coffenberg Courtyard approval process and compare what happened after Coffenberg gave the property back to Amboy Bank you will notice different treatments of the same property.  Ed McKenna was appointed to the Red Bank Rivercenter at the same time that an approval by the zoning board was received to allow Amboy Bank to not follow the required special district zoning promoting street level retail from the train station to Broad Street.  Amboy Bank also funded around $1 million in repairs to the 51 Monmouth Street Red Bank property which was the former Red Bank Police Station sold to Ed McKenna’s Kid’s Bridge charity for $1. Amboy Bank located at 36 Monmouth Street was listed as the address to make donations on behalf of the charity. The former police station building was transferred a year later to the Red Bank YMCA and now the Red Bank YMCA is selling the property to Red Bank Catholic for over $1 million. Interestingly enough is that George Scharpf CEO of Amboy Bank was in charge of the planned capital campaign to fund a new YMCA in Old Bridge which would be under the control of the Red Bank YMCA.   Red Bank’s borough engineer, T & M of Middletown, was also the engineer for the YMCA project in Old Bridge. Even though Ed McKenna is no longer the Mayor of Red Bank he seems to have a lot of involvement in the way the town is run. Here he is celebrating last November’s election

After he wrote the last figures from the local districts on a running tally board, former Mayor Ed McKenna, who frequently taunts his opponents, jabbed his middle finger into the air. In a surprise move a week before the hearing to subdivide the affordable housing units from the market units, the Red Bank Council without the Mayor met in closed session to create a developers agreement for the affordable housing so that GS Realty which is part of Amboy bank can subdivide the land and obtain easier financing. It would seem a bank that owns all of the land would not need to subdivide the land nor find financing.