Dear Editor:
On a local level, we must choose the community invested in the party and candidates that truly have the community in mind. Michael Soriano’s administration has clearly demonstrated this for example; Parsippany is now in the process of Regional Conformance under the NJ Highlands Water Protection and Land Use Act. The Mayor has brought out from the community a Green Team of highly qualified and talented citizens of Parsippany to assist and guide us into an environmentally improved, sustainable, responsible, and cost-effective future. These two main hopeful accomplishments show a sense of community where it’s possible for an economy to serve the people and curtail over-development.
Parsippany has been a victim of republican political fiascos from Forge Pond to Waterview that betrayed community, destroyed or degraded sensitive landscapes, injuring our aquifer water sources, and neighborhood character, and a sense of home in favor of unneeded, unwanted corporate developments. Public Housing was also used as a threat to aid these proposals. Council members during these times performed no due diligence in these matters; ones that did were ignored. Developers were given carte blanche by our former attorney; a developer’s lawyer.
The Waterview promise of open space betrayed after promising Hundreds of citizens that no rezoning was to be after a hard-fought grassroots effort should never be forgotten. A Certain other quid pro quo involving Forge Pond a promised 130-acre wetland, protected by the 1987 Wetlands Protection Act; was used as an exchange for 700 Mountain Way, another sensitive landscape, of steep slopes, trees, adjacent wetlands, and a known groundwater recharge area, allowed to be developed with a few affordable units as a ploy. All during this time, the COAH housing issue was suspended; no need to develop anything, until this responsibility was known, should have been the position of the town.
One official stands out during that time that ran for council opposing Waterview only to change his position when elected; this trashing of the public trust, saying one thing and doing another now wishes to be Mayor?
Parsippany Focus Oct. 2015: During the simultaneous Waterview/Forge Pond fiascos. “I thought the town was in the process of acquiring this land for open space. This tract of land was a bonus for the town, to prevent over-development, which puts a strain on the Township, this issue has to be discussed in great detail, at the next council meeting”.
One must ask what happened to cause such a sudden change of mind? Mr. Valori ran for council on his promise or premise of supporting the citizens against the Waterview rezone, only to change and become hand in glove with the developer, under the guiding light of the then John Inglesino. This betrayal costs Parsippany taxpayers over $7M dollars for a buffer zone called open space, which should have been zoned as a ‘non-structural stormwater component to the project. The Rutgers Troy Brook Stormwater study was already in place but ignored in favor of the RD developers at the determent of the community, and possible ethical or criminal acts, not looked into under the then Christie Administration and his close friend at the time Attorney Inglesino.(How much money did Inglesino make off Parsippany?)
Finally, with Highlands Experts in land-use science and a Green Team, we will not be rudderless and abused by those who do not hold the public trust, but self-serving opportunity in the interest of their partisan political paymasters. A vote for Soriano, Hernandez, and Herbig is a vote in the best interest of all.
Nick Homyak
Lake Hiawatha
