“Putting People First”
Alexander Mirabella, Chairman
Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders
January 8, 2012
Reverend Clergy, Judge Cassidy and members of the judiciary members of the Freeholder Board, elected officials, friends, family and citizens of Union County: I would like to thank you for joining us as we welcome another New Year.
I would like to begin by thanking a few people:
First, my love and my partner, Phyllis. I couldn’t do what I do without your love and support.
My children Alex and Micayla, for giving up a lot to be the children of an elected official. They literally grew up in politics – Phyllis was holding Alex as a 1 year old while being pregnant with Micayla when I was first sworn in.
I want to thank Father Hummel and Pastor Porter for making time to be with us today. I know Sundays are busy for both of you. I really appreciate our friendship.
I would like to also thank Charlotte DeFilippo for her leadership as our Democratic Party Chairman.
I’d like to thank Senator Lesniak for his outstanding leadership in the State of New Jersey and for taking the time to again swear me in today. The Senator is very brave, not only in the positions he takes in the State Senate, but also when he taunted Jesse Holley about the Cowboys at the swearing in of his brother the new mayor of Roselle, Jamel Holley.
I appreciate the work of our County manager, Al Faella, all the Directors and all the County employees. They are truly a team of dedicated public servants.
I’m thankful for the work of our previous County Manager, George Devanney who served 8 years as our County Managers and many years of service to our residents.
I also want to thank Nicole Dirado for her efforts as our Clerk of the Freeholder Board. She is creative and hard working. My thanks as well to the Freeholder staff who provide support for the Freeholders and constituent service to our residents.
My personal thanks to Wayne Avery and Barry Geller who were my legislative Aides in 2011. I appreciate all the effort of Seb D’Elia.
I would like to also congratulate our new Vice Chairman, Linda Carter, who in just two short years has impressed us with her leadership skills.
To my colleagues being sworn in today, I wish you the best of success and congratulations.
To Vernell Wright, our newest freeholder, I welcome you to our County family. I’m looking forward to your contributions.
Congratulations to Chris Hudak, who begins his first full term. He’s quickly established himself as an excellent Freeholder and public servant.
Last, but not least, we welcome back one of our hardest working Freeholders, Freeholder Angel Estrada, who is my dear friend and long time colleague.
I also want to thank former Freeholder Nancy Ward for her work on behalf of the residents of Union County for the past 7 years.
In 2011, globally, it was a year of turmoil and great change. We had an earthquake, Hurricane Irene, and the Ice Storm — generational events, all in one year.
In the end, while the storms wreaked havoc with our lives, they also brought out something more remarkable — our resolve to get it through it all.
Union County residents were out helping their neighbors and strangers were helping strangers. Our public safety and emergency management workers braved the storms to make dramatic rescues. Our public works employees worked around the clock, clearing roads and parks. We coordinated all kinds of assistance and notifications through our government. It was a remarkable effort, and I want to thank all our county employees who participated.
Through it all, Freeholder Deborah Scanlon maintained the highest standards of leadership, guiding us through these events and our meetings. I would like to thank you for your fine efforts as our Chairman in 2011.
We begin another New Year with many goals.
Even among the shadow of a persistent economic hardship, and a decade of war that has transformed America, there is a new sun rising today, bringing rays of hope and renewal.
In recent weeks, we’ve begun to catch a glimpse: the war in Iraq, after ten painful years, has ended. The stock market has rebounded strongly among better housing and financial reports. And while many Americans still remain out of work, the economy is beginning to grow once again.
Yet this sense of new hope is tempered by the reality that we still have a long way to go during these difficult times. We must continue to put the people of Union County first in all we do.
My set of initiatives for the New Year, entitled “Putting People First,” does just that.
We will assist businesses in their efforts to hire and retrain residents. We will put people first by adding new services for the disabled, and by providing new educational opportunities for our young folks. We will work to reach out and recognize our veterans and assist our active service men and women. We will also continue with green practices that save tax dollars.
My first initiative, entitled “Union County Means Business,” speaks to what is on the minds of many Union County residents. If you have a job, you want to make sure you can keep it; if you don’t, you want an opportunity to obtain a new job. We will take the lead in a strategy of job retention and job creation. Over the past several years, Union County has worked hard in this direction to:
- Plan ahead;
- Jump-start economic development;
- Help existing businesses such as Wakefern retain their labor force here and expand to create more jobs.
We’ve also helped employees upgrade their skills to be more competitive, and retrained our workers for industries that are hiring.
We also recently welcomed a delegation from China who approached us with an interest in investment and development opportunities here. The Wenzhou Government has agreed to finance the opening of a new campus of Kean University in Wenzhou, China.
There will be more to come.
In 2012, we are adding a new initiative that will bring together the leaders of all of Union County’s business and government to talk about economic growth and jobs.
The first of a series of “Union County Means Business” networking breakfasts will be held on February 1st at Kean University.
This “economic summit” is made possible through a partnership with the County’s Economic Development Division, our Human Services Department, the Union County Alliance, area colleges and various chambers of commerce.
I’m happy to see Dr. McMeniman, the President of Union County College is here today. I appreciate our partnership.
Finally, we wouldn’t launch this initiative without planning ahead. We’ve worked closely with Rutgers University to help analyze and track our economy. In the next few weeks, the nationally-recognized Rutgers Heldrich Center will finish their “Union County Competitiveness Study.” This effort will lead to an action plan for keeping Union County’s economy healthy, and for assuring our economy remains competitive at the state and region, and global level.
Union County does indeed, mean business.
In addressing my second initiative, Union County continues to be a state leader in providing programming to the disabled through our Parks Department.
This year we will witness the introduction and re-introduction of several innovative programs:
- Working through the Union County Performing Arts Center, the County is working to develop an Autism Theatre Initiative, to make plays accessible to children and teenagers on the autism spectrum. The goal is to provide a series of theatrical performances at a nominal fee.
- We will re-introduce the “Horticulture for Children with Special Needs” program. This will be done in partnership with the Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County Master Gardeners program.
- We have planned several other new offerings for the disabled including a soccer instructional program, a barn dance in the Watchung Reservation, and a spring social.
As my third initiative, we plan on building on our legacy of success through our highly regarded Vocational Technical schools.
We are adding, without any additional cost, an exciting new educational offering called the “Union County Tech School of Design.” This will follow the same career academy format as the other Vo-Tech Magnet schools. It will function as a “school within a school.”
This initiative will provide the initial group of twenty 9th grade students an opportunity to study digital media and computer aided design. It will give them access to the latest multimedia design hardware and software to learn to visually express their ideas by merging creativity and technology.
Through an agreement with Kean University, students will have the opportunity to earn up to 30 college credits while attending this school.
I want to recognize Dr. Tom Bistocchi, the Superintendent of our Vocational Schools. His leadership and vision are outstanding.
During my last turn as chairman several years ago, I was proud to introduce a set of “green initiatives.” They included the announcement of a $2.5 million federal grant encouraging energy efficiency and alternative energy.
As my fourth initiative, I am pleased to announce that most, if not all, of these efforts will be completed during the New Year. A total of more than 25 county facilities have already or will soon receive energy efficient upgrades.
The funds have been used to jumpstart the creation of four different solar panel projects at the follow:
- Trailside in Mountainside;
- The Juvenile Detention Center in Linden;
- Runnells Specialized Hospital in Berkeley Heights;
- And the Ruotolo Building in Elizabeth.
The energy savings will begin in the spring for three projects. In addition, the Union County Improvement Authority’s Renewable Energy Program has begun with the installation of more than two dozen solar projects with 16 local government entities around our County.
We will continue to apply green standards to the County’s construction and renovation projects. This included the public safety building, and will include the Galloping Hill Clubhouse and office facility.
My fifth and final initiative acknowledges the sacrifices our active military service men and women make. Beginning the first week in March, we will be offering a card for complimentary services in our parks system in 2012.
This will enable active service people who are County residents, and their families, to enjoy recreational and sporting opportunities for one free usage in our parks system during 2012. The list will include our most popular services: golf, pools, skating and more.
For all Union County veterans, we plan on adding a “Veterans Appreciation” concert in our parks system during the summer, where we will honor them. Throughout the year we will also work to enhance outreach to our veterans through Union County’s Office of Veterans Affairs.
I would like to call up Lt. Colonel Ed Crystal, Commander of the Westfield Armory to accept this first ceremonial replica of the card we’ll distribute to the Families of our Active Military personnel.
I also want to acknowledge Lt. Col Crystal’s wife Georgette who is also very involved in the community. She works together with my wife on a Leadership Training program for middle school students. Thank you for your service as well.
Many of my new initiatives will come at little or no cost, while others are continuations that were previously funded. It’s important to note as we face another tough budget as we look ahead.
We will continue to take innovative measures to spark revenues as we did with the announcement for the extended lease for the Union County Resource Recovery Facility, which will bring in $100 million in tax relief. We will also continue to build on the success of our shared services initiative and seek cost savings with our municipal partners.
Finally, I would like to close out with something I said several years ago to this same chamber: We are an army of many, but we are one team, striving toward a common goal to succeed. This sentiment has remained constant.
I call upon you all to join with our County team and recharge your efforts for the New Year ahead.
I wish you a very Happy and Safe New Year. May God bless you all and may he bless Union County. Thank you for coming today.
