VOTE TO SAVE NEW MILFORD

This year New Milford has a defining issue to use in determining how to vote. This is not a year for voting either Republican or Democratic, but a year to vote depending on your vision for the future of New Milford. Do you see a mega-ShopRite next door to New Milford High School or do you see the possibility of recreational and open space there? 

Mr. Colucci and Mr. Robalino have made it clear that they still want ShopRite in that location. They still want to rezone the United Water property to commercial to allow for that development. They continue to bait the voters in New Milford with the promise of a field there, too, but they never say how that could be accomplished since a flood storage basin is required on that property. The only part of the development they want to get rid of is the 24 apartments.

Mr. Grotsky and Ms. Sirocchi-Hurley are against rezoning the UW property. They insist that this is the wrong type of development for that location. They want to see Inserra rebuild ShopRite in its current location where the approvals have been granted. They want to see the land adjacent to NMHS used to satisfy the serious lack of open and recreational space in New Milford. Mr. Grotsky and Ms. Sirocchi-Hurley don't want to see heritage trees cut down and River Road widened. There is even the possibility that the streets leading to the intersection  of Madison Ave and River Rd would need widening. This is the kind of development that will have a domino effect on our entire community. They realize the implications for our future.

Ultimately, the decision will most likely be in the hands of a Bergen County judge. Objectors to this overdevelopment believe that a judge will clearly see through the developer's smokescreen of using the housing component to declare the entire project "inherently beneficial." Objectors have clearly shown just how much this type of development will negatively impact our town: Higher taxes, increased traffic, unsafe conditions for our students, and more flooding are just a few of the consequences we can expect if ShopRite is allowed to build next to our high school.

What scares me more than the thought of a judge making this decision, is the thought that if Mr. Robalino and Mr. Colucci get reelected, they will continue to try to bypass this process. They have declared if they are reelected that they will still try to rezone this property to commercial. They don't seem to understand that it's the ShopRite that is the worst part of this application.

Please, my New Milford neighbors, ignore Republican or Democratic labels and vote for the 2 candidates who want to save the last open space in New Milford. Vote for Mr. Grotsky and Ms. Sirocchi-Hurley to save our town and our quality of life.