From L-R: Independent Valory Bardinas; Democrat Lois Fein; Independent Manuel Jimenez; Democrat Dale Ludwig

The Edgewater Beacon, Edgewater’s newspaper online, is pleased to bring you our first annual “Meet the Candidates” feature, spotlighting the candidates for Edgewater Borough Council. This year’s election sees two Council seats up for grabs, with four candidates vying for those positions. The candidates and their respective political affiliations are:

• Councilwoman Valory Bardinas (Independent Coalition for a Better Edgewater)
• Lois Fein (Democrat)
• Manuel Jimenez (Independent Coalition for a Better Edgewater)
• Dale Ludwig (Democrat)

Each candidate was requested by the Beacon to submit written answers to four questions. Each candidate had the option of submitting up to 300 words for each response, for a total of 1200 words. Their answers, in their entirety, were as follows:

EDGEWATER BEACON:
Please give a brief description of your background, experience, and qualifications to represent the people of Edgewater.

BARDINAS (ICBE): In 1999 I was elected by the people of Edgewater to serve as our first Independent councilwoman. Since then I have worked hard for the people of this town to make our government more accountable, to limit our high-density growth, and to acquire open space. I fought for and won the appointment of new Board of Adjustment members who believe in our master plan. I’ve fought for and won the defeat of a two-tower highrise building in the middle of town. I’ve fought for and won the acquisition of a $2 million open space grant. I’ve owned and operated my own business here, since 1982. I’m an active member of the Holy Rosary Church, where I teach catechism.

FEIN (DEMOCRAT): I have lived in Edgewater at Admiral’s Walk since 1984. I moved here with my son, Greg, who is about to graduate from Rutgers School of Law. I’ve been married to John Schwartz for the past ten years.
  I was born in The Bronx and raised in Bayside, Queens. I have a BA degree in Elementary Education from Queens College where I also did graduate work. After teaching in the South Bronx, I entered the computer technology field and held various positions with large international financial institutions including Chase, Citibank and Salomon. During that time, Prentice Hall published my technical IT book, Datatran.
  Last year, John and I opened a new company in Edgewater - Abstract Impressions - publishing and selling fine art and photography.
  My commitment to Edgewater is demonstrated by my volunteer activities over the past 10 years:

• Planning Board Member (past 9 years); currently Vice Chairwoman
• Housing Commissioner since January 1997
• Founder, Edgewater Beautification Committee in May 1994
• President of AHOME (Affordable Housing of Metropolitan Edgewater)
• President of Admiral’s Walk Condo Association (87-90)

  I believe I am uniquely qualified to be a Councilwoman and would be honored to represent all the wonderful citizens of Edgewater.

JIMENEZ (ICBE): I moved to Edgewater in October of 2000. I come from Los Angeles, California and served there with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. I graduated from Fordham Law School where I concentrated on public interest law and ethics. I served as an assistant District Attorney in Queens County, New York, and am now working in the private sector, overseeing cases of legal malpractice. Last fall, I was appointed to Edgewater’s board of adjustment.

LUDWIG (DEMOCRAT): I am a newcomer to politics with a strong professional background. I am running for council to bring the people of Edgewater together and stop the silly squabbling that dominates local government today. I am a former Vice President of a major Connecticut based insurance company, and now work as an independent management consultant primarily in the financial services area as President of a small company with its technology center run by my son, Jason, on Cape Cod. My wife, Christine, and I also have a daughter, Jessica, who is a nurse practitioner working in Connecticut. We moved to Edgewater over five years ago and, other than a year assignment in Ireland, quickly became involved in our community. I am now President of the Independence Harbor Board of Directors and am an outspoken leader in the fight against over-development and traffic problems. In addition to being the author of published fiction, I have BA in Behavioral Science as well as a number of courses toward an MBA.

BEACON:
If elected, what specific programs and initiatives would you introduce?

FEIN & LUDWIG (DEMOCRATS) (joint response): There is no question that providing ferry service to the Borough of Edgewater is our campaign’s top priority. There is no issue that we feel more strongly about. We believe ferry service will improve traffic problems on River Road and bring a valuable new amenity and service to every resident. Quick and easy access to New York via the river will be a tremendous boon to our entire community and will significantly increase the value of every home in town - both east and west of River Road. We envision a not so distant future where ferries move people North and South as well as East and West along the Hudson.
  The ferry issue also presents a clear choice between us, the Democratic council candidates and our Independent Coalition opponents who now control a majority of votes on the council. Councilwoman Bardinas personally introduced a resolution banning ferry service at the Grand Cove Marina just four months ago.
  One month later, she officially voted to ban ferry service ANYWHERE in the borough. And just last month, Valory and the council majority blocked a non-binding public referendum on ferry service by boycotting a council meeting, causing it to be cancelled for lack of a quorum. Councilwoman Bardinas has since written a letter to a local newspaper (on August 29) stating that, “no one is against ferry service” (source: The Record). Her lack of candor is staggering.
  In fact, “no one” has done more to block ferry service in Edgewater than she. Pro-ferry voters should ignore what she now says and remember her official actions over the past four months. Her attempted flip-flop is just one more reason why politicians lack credibility with the public today.
  Need more proof? Councilwoman Bardinas and her council allies are so opposed to the ferry concept that they would even reject a $9 million federal grant! In a recent Bergen News article, Independent Coalition Councilman Gallagher is quoted opposing the grant because it would make the “rich get richer on the backs of everyone else.” This is a nonsensical statement in light of the fact that Washington is offering these funds as part of a national defense strategy to help evacuate Manhattan in the event of another 9/11 disaster!
  To sum up: If you support the ferry, support Democrats Lois Fein and Dale Ludwig. If not, support our opponents. It’s as simple as that.

JIMENEZ (ICBE): I would first of all initiate resolutions calling for campaign finance reform. Our borough government should not be taking campaign contributions from people who do business with the town. I’d ensure the safety and security of the people of Edgewater by modernizing and supporting the Volunteer Fire Department, Police Department and First Aid Squad. I would work to require the town to adhere to its Master Plan and stop allowing high-density development. I would meet regularly with the Federal EPA and the state DEP to make sure they continue to address Edgewater’s several polluted sites and environmentally sensitive areas. Finally, as a daily commuter on the #158 bus, I would continue to work on improving public transportation in Edgewater.

BARDINAS (ICBE): If I am re-elected, I will initiate campaign finance reform, and the first step in that regard will be to require people coming before any board to disclose any and all campaign contributions he or she has made. I will also propose a resolution calling for comprehensive traffic, socioeconomic, and environmental impact studies to be conducted here before any further development not called for in our master plan takes place. This would include ferry service. I will continue, and expand, the discussions that Councilman Gallagher and I began with New Jersey Transit to improve mass transportation. I will take every opportunity to call for ethical behavior by our government officials, and will speak out against conflicts of interests.

BEACON:
What are the top three issues facing Edgewater over the next three years, and what is your position on those issues?

JIMENEZ (ICBE): The top three issues in Edgewater are overdevelopment, open and ethical government, and our special environmental problems.
  Our town has grown too fast for its infrastructure. As we rush to provide services for this poorly planned overdevelopment, our costs go up, and so do our municipal taxes. This year our taxes are going up yet again, even though our present mayor has promised repeatedly that they will go down. We have to control our growth and plan our town’s future. We can’t continue to give developers carte blanche and keep building denser and denser projects. Another consequence of this poor planning is the terrible traffic plaguing River Road. Any new development, including a ferry, has to be carefully planned so that our citizens traveling on our only road do not suffer ever more than they do now.
  Our government must work for the people of Edgewater, and our public officials must conduct business in an open manner that includes their constituents. I want to see campaign finance reform, and I want to see our government respond to the special interests of the citizens of Edgewater, not the developers of the region.
  Edgewater has unique and fragile envoronmental issues. First and foremost, we have the Hudson River, which we have historically abused by filling it in, dumping poisons into it, and using it as a sewer. Second, we have the New Jersey Palisades, a unique and beautiful rock formation that we have resolutely blasted and undermined for years. Third, we have a superfund site and at least two other dangerously polluted properties here, which have not been cleaned up. We must respect the river, protect the palisades, and clean up our poisoned properties.

BARDINAS (ICBE): Number one: Development. How much and what kind is good for us. I believe that further high-density residential developments are bad for the town because they put a strain on services, raise taxes, and reduce our quality of life.
  Number two: Traffic and mass transit. We need to reduce traffic and improve mass transit, and we need to start by looking at light rail, better bus service, and the possibility of ferry service.
  Number three: Ethics in government, including campaign finance reform. I will continue my efforts to achive ethical, open town government and to end conflicts of interest.

FEIN & LUDWIG (DEMOCRATS) (joint response): I. The Ferry. Enough said.
  II. Protecting and Enhancing our Quality of Life. As New Democratic candidates, we believe that controlling and managing development issues properly and sensibly is the number one quality of life issue facing the borough. We are independent local businesspeople who make up our own minds after carefully considering all points of view. We think our community has a wonderful future, but we know that the time has come to protect that future from over-development.
  We would work cooperatively to limit building heights and density and fight traffic and noise problems. We are pro-environment and would work to reduce traffic wherever possible. One good example would be the establishment of a shuttle bus service to and from the ferry stop as opposed to the creation of large parking lots. Vote Fein and Ludwig. Pro-Ferry Democrats.
  III. Protecting Taxpayers. The Edgewater Borough Council just introduced a budget that raises municipal taxes by a very large 18% in just one year. This $2 million tax hike is for local government only, and does not include school or county taxes that are not controlled by the council. And the council majority has structured the process so that the final vote on the budget will not take place until AFTER election day. Yes, the same council majority that refuses to allow a vote on ferry service also won’t vote on the proposed tax increase until after election day. That’s not leadership.
  We are local businesspeople - and have never served on the council before. (Lois now co-owns Abstract Impressions in Edgewater after a successful NYC career in information technology and Dale is a management consultant and former Connecticut insurance company vice president). Right now Edgewater taxpayers are being asked to finance over $15 million for the marina, a school expansion and a public safety building.
  In addition, our opponents are now proposing to create two new full time borough jobs called “advocates.” However well meaning this may sound, simply proposing to create unnecessary new payroll positions while at the same time increasing property taxes by 18% shows how far out of touch they are with average taxpayers. And, this makes opposing the $9 million federal ferry grant even more ludicrous.
  Clearly, the council needs new representation that will stand up for the property taxpayer. That’s us. Democrats Fein and Ludwig. Pro-Ferry. Pro-Taxpayer.

BEACON:
As Edgewater continues to grow, what must borough government do to meet the challenges of the 21st century?

FEIN & LUDWIG (DEMOCRATS) (joint response): You have already read how strongly we feel about establishing ferry service, fighting traffic and over-development, and stabilizing property taxes.
  We also believe that there are many potential opportunities to create public/private partnerships to tap the unique and diverse life and business experiences of our residents. From looking at ways to make local government leaner and more efficient, deliver services more effectively, improve and expand recreation programs, protect and enhance our environment, and fostering a greater appreciation of the arts and sciences - these and many other topic areas could yield effective partnerships. One good example is AHOME, a non-profit agency promoting affordable home ownership (Lois serves as President). We both strongly support such efforts.
  We also believe that the time has come to bring a more professional approach to borough government. The silly squabbling that dominates council meetings today is no longer tolerable. It is completely inappropriate for a community like ours. As your new council representatives, we will work cooperatively and professionally with any resident or businessperson regardless of political party affiliation. We will put partisan politics aside and work together in the best interests of our community.

BARDINAS (ICBE): Planned growth is the key to Edgewater’s future. Our town is the fastest growing town in Bergen County. We must have solid information to make the right decisions so that the town of Edgewater retains its integrity and its quality of life. All future developments must be carefully planned. What types of housing, businesses, and transportation alternatives will be in our interests, will allow our services to keep pace with our growth, and will reduce, not increase our municipal taxes. I love my town, and I think it deserves the best of care.

JIMENEZ (ICBE): Borough government must provide security and fiscal responsibility. The people who lead us must be ethical and honest. We must plan our future growth for our citizens. We can’t let others make these decisions for us.

Monday, 9/23/02