Why Scott Reddin Is Running for Mayor
May 17, 2009 Filed in: Politics
I am running for Mayor because Englewood needs a
mayor who is responsive to, and serves the needs of,
the people. I have served the residents of Englewood
with diligence and honesty, especially the residents
of the Third Ward, whom I have been proud to
represent in the City Council for the past seven
years. I intend to provide the same type of service
to the entire City as Mayor. I am very proud of
the fact that I have been elected three times to
serve as Councilman of the Third Ward, each time by a
very large margin, which shows how enthusiastic my
constituents have been about my representation.
We need a Mayor who is for Englewood. I am from Englewood and for Englewood. I have been very involved with the community serving on many boards and have volunteered thousands of hours to make this a better City. In addition, I am the only candidate with the experience of working on municipal budgets, which I have done on the Council for seven years. As a member of the board of many different non-profit agencies, I have experience working on their budgets, which in many cases are in the millions of dollars.
I am proud of my fiscal work on the Council. For the last four years, starting when I became Council President in 2006, we have had very low increases in our taxes, especially compared to other towns in Bergen County. According to the Star Ledger, Englewood had the fourth LOWEST tax increase in 2007/2008. In 2007, my fellow Council members and I were able to cut $1,000,000 from the budget without major impact to the City. This year, the increase in the budget is less than 3%, which is very good considering that we are required by the State to pay increased pension costs and had a four percent raise for the police department forced on us by binding arbitration, a system which I have been (presciently) lobbying to reform for many years.
For more than three years, I have warned other municipalities about the dangers of negotiating municipal contracts through binding arbitration, which in the past few years has been overly weighted in favor of the employees, at the expense of the taxpayers. Only recently has the League of Municipalities endorsed my suggestion to overhaul this system, recognizing the costs it imposes on taxpayers.
While I was on the Council we saved the taxpayers of Englewood an additional $2,000,000 by forcing a politically connected developer to give back money that it received in a sweetheart deal from a Planning Board packed with the Mayor's campaign contributors. I promise that you will never see such politically motivated deals in a Reddin administration.
Recently, I was able to help procure $500,000 from the federal government for sewer upgrades, money that would have otherwise come from the taxpayers of Englewood.
These are but a few examples that show how I have served the people of Englewood the past seven years. No other candidate can match my experience, or the results I have gotten for the people of Englewood. At a time of fiscal crisis, Englewood needs a Mayor who not only has the relevant experience on day one, but who will be willing to put in the time to understand and deal with Englewood's budget and economy. While I attended all seven public hearings for this year's budget, neither of my opponents bothered to show up to a single hearing. It is easy to criticize from afar, but when taxpayers are suffering and watching their bottom line very closely, the City needs a Mayor who will do the same.
Englewood has seen a history of broken promises and self-serving interests in the position of Mayor for many years. I'm afraid Frank Huttle will be more of the same. Frank is employed by one of the largest pay to play law firms in Bergen County, if not the whole state of New Jersey. While I have publicly supported Englewood Hospital, Frank has raised money for Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC), and his law firm has supported HUMC, at a time when the number of excess hospital beds in the region threatened Englewood Hospital's financial viability. Frank's law firm has also been involved in the Encap and Xanadu debacles, which have been major financial disasters for local taxpayers. In addition, Frank served on the board of HUMC while his law firm received paid work from the hospital. This practice was banned by every hospital in the area many years ago. According to a quote from a nationally recognized hospital official in a recent article in The Record, Frank's actions did not "pass the smell test.” After the last six years of an administration that put its own concerns above those of the people of Englewood, is Frank Huttle really the change we need?
Scott Reddin is the only candidate for Mayor with a history of fighting for the people of Englewood, and with the experience to bring about the change we so desperately need. Vote Scott Reddin for Mayor on June 2, 2009.
We need a Mayor who is for Englewood. I am from Englewood and for Englewood. I have been very involved with the community serving on many boards and have volunteered thousands of hours to make this a better City. In addition, I am the only candidate with the experience of working on municipal budgets, which I have done on the Council for seven years. As a member of the board of many different non-profit agencies, I have experience working on their budgets, which in many cases are in the millions of dollars.
I am proud of my fiscal work on the Council. For the last four years, starting when I became Council President in 2006, we have had very low increases in our taxes, especially compared to other towns in Bergen County. According to the Star Ledger, Englewood had the fourth LOWEST tax increase in 2007/2008. In 2007, my fellow Council members and I were able to cut $1,000,000 from the budget without major impact to the City. This year, the increase in the budget is less than 3%, which is very good considering that we are required by the State to pay increased pension costs and had a four percent raise for the police department forced on us by binding arbitration, a system which I have been (presciently) lobbying to reform for many years.
For more than three years, I have warned other municipalities about the dangers of negotiating municipal contracts through binding arbitration, which in the past few years has been overly weighted in favor of the employees, at the expense of the taxpayers. Only recently has the League of Municipalities endorsed my suggestion to overhaul this system, recognizing the costs it imposes on taxpayers.
While I was on the Council we saved the taxpayers of Englewood an additional $2,000,000 by forcing a politically connected developer to give back money that it received in a sweetheart deal from a Planning Board packed with the Mayor's campaign contributors. I promise that you will never see such politically motivated deals in a Reddin administration.
Recently, I was able to help procure $500,000 from the federal government for sewer upgrades, money that would have otherwise come from the taxpayers of Englewood.
These are but a few examples that show how I have served the people of Englewood the past seven years. No other candidate can match my experience, or the results I have gotten for the people of Englewood. At a time of fiscal crisis, Englewood needs a Mayor who not only has the relevant experience on day one, but who will be willing to put in the time to understand and deal with Englewood's budget and economy. While I attended all seven public hearings for this year's budget, neither of my opponents bothered to show up to a single hearing. It is easy to criticize from afar, but when taxpayers are suffering and watching their bottom line very closely, the City needs a Mayor who will do the same.
Englewood has seen a history of broken promises and self-serving interests in the position of Mayor for many years. I'm afraid Frank Huttle will be more of the same. Frank is employed by one of the largest pay to play law firms in Bergen County, if not the whole state of New Jersey. While I have publicly supported Englewood Hospital, Frank has raised money for Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC), and his law firm has supported HUMC, at a time when the number of excess hospital beds in the region threatened Englewood Hospital's financial viability. Frank's law firm has also been involved in the Encap and Xanadu debacles, which have been major financial disasters for local taxpayers. In addition, Frank served on the board of HUMC while his law firm received paid work from the hospital. This practice was banned by every hospital in the area many years ago. According to a quote from a nationally recognized hospital official in a recent article in The Record, Frank's actions did not "pass the smell test.” After the last six years of an administration that put its own concerns above those of the people of Englewood, is Frank Huttle really the change we need?
Scott Reddin is the only candidate for Mayor with a history of fighting for the people of Englewood, and with the experience to bring about the change we so desperately need. Vote Scott Reddin for Mayor on June 2, 2009.
