Connecting the dots at Cedar Crossing Red Bank NJ

I never could quite understand all of the outside connections to the Cedar Crossing property nor the timing of it. It all began in 2006 when a group of investors were trying to get approvals on a former contaminated industrial site on the Westside of Red Bank. I had traced some of the investors to North Jersey and Woodbridge NJ even though they had been referred to as people from Shrewsbury. Some of the people had offices in Shrewsbury as did John Lynch at the time. This site is also located about a block away from another affordable housing site which was involved in the John Lynch investigation related to Pennrose which owns and developed the former River Street School property. While this investment group was in the process of obtaining approvals for 36 units, that even T and M Associates the borough engineer, felt was too intense for the site, Mayor McKenna began to say this was a great opportunity for the town to provide affordable housing. In August of 2006, Mayor Ed McKenna started to push for the town to purchase the property at above appraised value and without the final approvals using free state grant money. John Curley who is currently a Monmouth County Freeholder, was at the time a council person who opposed the purchase and even made statements that the FBI should investigate the situation. In 2007 the property was acquired by the town using the state grant money and around the same time a corporation known as Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation was created. Again it was a strange mix of people. You had the Reverend of the Pilgrim Baptist Church in Red Bank, Ed McKenna former mayor of Red Bank, another Red Bank Attorney that had provided the Monmouth County Bar Association with a racist skit (when that was revealed he seemed to no longer be involved with the project), William Katchen from Bergen County, and Frank Borin from the DeCotiis Law Firm in Bergen County. For details and links related to the Cedar Crossings development you can read my other posts. This is basically a summary that has taken me several years to put together. I only recently discovered that the Lynch PAC New Directions for Responsible Leadership was co-run by Alfred DeCotiis of the the DeCotiis Law Firm. Now the Bergen County and Middlesex County connections to a small piece of land in Red Bank NJ all makes sense. It seems to have been orchestrated from the very beginning using more or less no-name people from out of the area to present the subdivision, have the mayor of the town push for the town to overpay for the land using free money and have several connected Democratic Party members profit by overseeing the construction and sale of the units. William Katchen, the CPA for Red Bank Affordable Housing Corporation has crossed paths with Joseph Ferriero and Dennis Oury who owned Government Grants Consulting and may very well have assisted in obtaining the NJ grants for this project because the DeCotiis Firm acknowledges that they worked with consultants to obtain the approvals and funding for this project. William Katchen along with Dennis Oury were involved in an investigation related to missing affordable housing funds in Paramus NJ. Again the timing also calls into question about what transpired. John Lynch pled guilty to various charges in September 2006 and would not have been able to have worked on this project. This was just one month after Mayor McKenna pushed for the town to acquire the property. John Lynch was also known to be friends with Ed McKenna and his PAC provided funds to the Red Bank Democratic Party and Ed McKenna’s Law Firm donated to Lynch’s PAC New Directions for Responsible Leadership. So if I were to connect the dots it would be Lynch to no-name developers to McKenna/Red Bank Borough to Baptist Church/Katchen/DeCotiis/McKenna with most likely consultants like Oury/Ferriero/Spatz helping to obtain 100% financing for the project that should yield several hundred thousand dollars in profit if and when they ever sell the remaining 14 units of the 36 unit development.
North South Brunswick Sentinel
October 5, 2006 Edition
GOP: Lynch funds should be returned
Corruption charges against ex-senator become campaign issue in N.B.
BY JENNIFER AMATO Staff Writer
BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer
The North Brunswick Republican Organization is calling on the Democratic Township Council candidates to return any contributions they received from former state Senate President John Lynch and a political action committee he founded.
Lynch pleaded guilty Sept. 15 to federal charges of tax evasion and mail fraud after investigators determined he accepted bribes to lobby for the approval of projects proposed by a South Brunswick sand mining company. Through Lynch’s political action committee New Directions for Responsible Leadership, over $20,000 has been given to the Democratic political and social organizations since 2002, with direct assistance given to the previous campaigns of Mayor Francis “Mac” Womack, Carlo Socio and Rhonda Lyles, according to state election records.
Although Womack does not deny that the money was received, he said, “Certainly at the time, John was neither under indictment or pled guilty to anything, and those contributions never came with any strings attached in any way.”
Socio, who is running for re-election in November, said that to the best of his knowledge, no money has been received from Lynch or his PAC for this year’s campaign.
“I wish I could say that I was surprised by [Republican Chairman] Pete Maimone once again attempting to turn the voters’ attention away from the issues which really matter, the residents’ quality of life in our township,” he said.

“Just look at the accomplishments, which we have instituted since taking office, like pursuing and winning $6.7 million in business tax appeals, conducting a complete reconstruction of our pocket parks, banning trucks on Adams Lane, fighting to open government by televising planning and zoning meetings, securing over $1 million in new grant money, and topping all of that passing a pay-to-play ordinance and the first limits ever on campaign contributions in North Brunswick,” Socio said.

The Democrats countered by citing the receipt of funds by the Republican Organization from various developers, specifically Halpern, the largest developer in the township, which completed the Renaissance development on Route 130.

“It is an important point in my mind, simply, that we were reformers in North Brunswick and we worked hard to make that change, and we do not take any money from developers, which is a sharp contrast to the Republicans,” Womack said.

Yet Maimone said that the difference in their receipt of $8,000 in contributions is that “developers received no benefits and received no promises of return.”

In addition, the Republicans claim that over $35,000 came from Lynch’s partner in founding New Directions, Alfred DeCotiis, a chief counsel to former Gov. James McGreevey, and that his law firm of DeCotiis, Fitzpatrick, Cole and Wisler was subsequently hired to handle all North Brunswick Township legal business. Also, CME Engineering, another longtime Lynch ally, serves as the primary engineer within the township.

Although 2006 Republican candidates Tom O’Neill and Matthew “Skip” House acknowledge that award of no-bid professional service contracts is legal, they question whether the contributions are “dirty money.”

“As an organization, the NBRO looks forward to returning integrity, honesty, and balance to our local government,” Maimone said.

However, Socio said that DeCotiis was hired after a member of the council used the firm for a personal issue and respected their work, and that CME was in place before the 2003 election.

The Republicans are suggesting that any contributions received should be returned either as contributions to charities or to nonpartisan government watchdog groups. The Republicans say that if the Democrats are serious about “doing the right thing,” they “wouldn’t think twice about acting on this call.”

Womack said that because Lynch is now considered a guilty party, he would reconsider accepting any funds from the PAC next year.

“I would have to look into it,” he said.
This is from the Hudson Reporter showing that John Lynch and Joseph Ferriero were friendly and working together as Democratic Party Power Brokers.
Lynch, a power broker from Middlesex, rose to the height of power in 2001 after he allied himself with South Jersey’s Norcross and Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joe Ferriero.
http://bayonnecommunitynews.com/view/full_story/2400183/matchbin
Don’t discount the golf connection to the original investors. Here is an article related to John Lynch golfing with a Bergen County Political person named Alan Marcus. Golf has always been know for connecting people and business.
Republican lobbyist Alan Marcus recalled the day in 2000 when he played golf with Lynch and Lynch told him he would not run for re-election, at the same time McGreevey appeared on the verge of being elected governor.

“He said it was time to go. He wanted to spend more time with Matthew. I told him, “You will rue the day and so will McGreevey.’ The minute you’re out, you’re out,” Marcus said. Click Here for the full article from the Asbury Park Press.

For one thing, Marcus said, it removed Lynch’s label. Rather than call him senator, the handy way to describe him became “boss.”
Kathleen Anderson and her husband donated to Rider University’s golf program. Kathleen Anderson also originally had her company in Woodbridge a strong hold for Lynch in Middlesex County.
Click Here for an article from Rider about their donation to the golf center.
Anderson, who has been elected to join the Rider Board of Trustees beginning on July 1, has proven to be a passionate member of the University family. He and his wife, Kathy, donated the lead gift for the golf facility in the Maurer Center, and together, are the lead donor for the Athletics Strength and Conditioning Center. The Andersons have also opened their home in Florida to Rider’s golf team during its spring break trips and served as host for an Athletics Campaign Preview event at the Rainbow Room in New York.
Click Here for the full interview of Ed McKenna speaking about his 5 golf club memberships
I hear you’re a golfer.
Oh, yeah. Big. It’s my passion. I started when I was 36, I think. I actually belong to five golf clubs, three in Ireland. I go to Ireland three times a year to play golf. Click Here to see Ed McKenna donating a round of Golf at Due Process Golf Course in Colts Neck NJ>

And Finally to bring this full circle. We have Ed McKenna who was friends with John Lynch. John Lynch was friends with Joseph Ferriero which now explains the Middlesex County and Bergen County connection to a small development of affordable housing in Red Bank as well as possibly the use of C3 holdings the Borough of Red Bank’s website provider and accused of paying kickback’s to Joseph Ferriero as per the Federal Indictment filed against Ferriero in September 2013.

T&M Engineering Questionable Donations in Hamilton NJ

The Star Ledger as part of an on-going investigation into the Birdsall Engineering illegal campaign donations has discovered that two other engineering firms who did business in Hamilton, NJ may have violated pay to play laws in that town. If a company donates more than $300 they must declare that and are barred from doing business in the town for the next 12 months. T & M paid the Hamilton Republican Party $600 for an ad journal that was never reported. This money then made it’s may to the Mayor of Hamilton’s Campaign Fund. The following year T & M received nearly $75,000 in business from the town. Here is part of the article: Like Birdsall, the two firms — T&M Associates and Remington, Vernick & Arango — made contributions in the form of advertisements in the programs handed out to attendees of former Mayor John Bencivengo’s annual Mayor’s Ball galas. They went on to receive tens of thousands of dollars in township contracts soon after, in apparent violation of Hamilton’s rules.

The money went to the Hamilton Township Republican Committee and was transferred to Bencivengo’s own campaign accounts, committee chairman Michael Chianese said.

Under the township’s pay-to-play rules, first adopted in 2003, if a company makes more than $300 in donations to the campaign of any elected official, candidate municipal party or committee, the firm is barred from receiving contracts for 12 months.

Business Administrator John Ricci said neither firm reported any donations on their disclosure forms, as required when applying for a township contract, and passed pay-to-play examinations by the legal and purchasing departments. He said he did not know why the contributions were not reported. T&M Engineering has always been one of the largest donors to politicians in New Jersey. This is from an Asbury Park Press article and the full article can be read at Red Bank Green. The biggest donor, as it has been in all five years the reports have been compiled, was the Middletown-based engineering firm T&M Associates. It made 184 political contributions totaling $435,110 last year, and was paid $30.3 million from government contracts, up 2.3 percent from a year earlier.

Company spokesman Tom Wilson said the firm doesn’t feel pressure from politicians to make campaign donations, and receives contracts after going through competitive processes that show it’s often the best candidate for the work.

“The reality is it’s one of, if not the, largest professional engineering firms in the state,” Wilson said. “They do work all over the state. They have lots of folks who solicit them for support, charitable, political and otherwise. I don’t think it should be terribly surprising their being at the top of the list.”

T&M Associates did work last year for 17 of the state’s 21 counties or their authorities, including contracts totaling more than $1 million each from Gloucester, Middlesex and Monmouth. It also held local contracts in more than 100 municipalities, including nearly $1.4 million in Union Township in Union County, and $1 million each in Middletown and Red Bank.
T&M Engineering had questionable donations made in Jersey City a few years ago. Here is an article from the Jersey Journal/Star Ledger on how it was resolved Here was an earlier article where T & M Engineering denied making the donation and ultimately the Councilman was told to change the form dates to reflect receiving donations prior to the pay to play laws taking effect. QUESTIONS VEGA REPORT
Firm with city contract denies giving him $$$
Friday, November 13, 2009
By MELISSA HAYES
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Jersey City Councilman Mariano Vega’s campaign finance reports have come under fire.

Resident John Seborowski Sr. cited the reports during Tuesday’s City Council meeting, saying an engineering firm may have broken the city’s pay-to-play law. But the firm contends the reports are erroneous.

This is not the only issue with Vega’s reports.

As The Jersey Journal reported yesterday, Vega last month updated his ELEC filings to include $10,000 that was previously not reported. The funds are linked to $30,000 Vega allegedly took from a federal informant cooperating in a federal corruption sting. Vega was one of 44 people the U.S. attorney charged in July.

According to Vega’s May Election Law Enforcement Commission reports, T&M Associates contributed $600 to Vega’s re-election campaign and Dominic Carrino, the vice president of the Middletown-based firm, donated $400. There was no date for the contributions on the report.

Those contributions would appear to violate the city’s pay-to-play law, adopted last year, which prohibits donations over $300 from people and firms doing business with the city.

But T&M spokesman Pete McDonough, a partner at Winning Strategies Pubic Relations, said the donations were never made and noted that the company’s address on the contribution attributed to Carrino is incorrect.

“They checked with the employee and they checked the bank records, and no donations were made,” he said.

Reached by telephone yesterday, Vega said the money had to come from someone.

“If I put it in there, I must have gotten something from somebody,” said Vega, who serves as the treasurer for his account. “I’ll probably look into it.”

T&M is vying for a $125,000 contract for design and construction of Marion Greenway Park at the former PJP Landfill in Jersey City. The council was set to vote on the contract, but the resolution was tabled.

According to the city’s pay-to-play law, a business or individual employee cannot donate more than $300 to any candidate, $500 to any joint candidate committee or $300 to a political committee or political party in Jersey City within one year of receiving a contract with the city.

T&M has an ongoing contract with the city for work it has already done at the PJP tract.

The law also places a $500 cap on donations to Hudson County political committees and political party committees and to any political action committees (PACs) that “regularly” donate to local candidates.

Companies found in violation of the law can be banned from city work for four years.

Jeffrey Brindle, executive director of the Election Law Enforcement Commission, said he couldn’t comment on a specific case, but spoke generally.

“It could possibly be something that is accidental or a mistake. In that case we would work with the filer of the report to amend the report and correct the mistake,” he said.

“On the other hand if it’s an intentional misrepresentation of the source of the contribution we would probably turn it over to the attorney general.”

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 … l_front_and_back_609.html