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Yeah, really. People generally don't like my suggestion: MUNICIPAL CONSOLIDATION
That is something that needs serious consideration....take for example Morris County, not sure of how many school districts and mind you some of them are small......they each don't need a six figure school superintendent..divide Morris into East & West and 1 super each....yes some police depts can be consolidated as well but working out the worms on that will be problematic as some are civil service some aren't ...start with the schools and work outward.
Yeah, really. People generally don't like my suggestion: MUNICIPAL CONSOLIDATION
Yup - but too many special interests to make it happen. It's like trying to push the proverbial boulder uphill. I was shocked to read that my town is now providing police to the town next to here - small steps!
The root cause of all the worlds problems and not just NJ is overpopulation. To all you selfish people out there with more than 2 kids. It's partly your fault.
When those bozo's who run this country stop listening to the church maybe they will come up with a plan to help reduce or at the very least stabilize our population.
Those of us who were around when only 100M populated the US, nobody complained about crowded schools, crowded highways, long checkout lines in every store.
OK. So one answer you think is to consolidate. Maplewood and South Orange have shared school districts for at least 40 years (probably more but that's how long ago my personal experience goes back) and yet, these two towns in Essex County have some extremely high taxes. My mother's home was purchased in the 1950's for 17K. When we sold it last year the taxes were 9K and the house was due for re-assessment. At 75 years old she was working full time so she could afford to stay in her home and pay the property taxes. Her monthly expenses for home/utilities were $1500 per month. If she had wanted to sell and still stay in the area she was familiar with she would have paid $1400 for a 1 bedroom apt. and she would have had to carry her laundry to facilities outside.
My point, we can vote in new politicians hoping they will change things but where has that gotten us? Combine services...well, it hasn't worked in South Orange/Maplewood. Don't get me wrong. I live in Toms River and commute to Elizabeth every day. I hate that. But I love NJ so where am I going to go? I'm a teacher and can't find an opening within 30 minutes of my home. BTW, I can not possibly pay my mortgage and expenses with what I earn. I am currently supplementing my income with an inheritance (which I had hoped would be used to pay for my child's college). It saddens me everytime I think of this so if someone in PA or NJ or any other state has a good idea and can tell me what to do about fixing NJ I'm all ears.
The root cause of all the worlds problems and not just NJ is overpopulation. To all you selfish people out there with more than 2 kids. It's partly your fault.
When those bozo's who run this country stop listening to the church maybe they will come up with a plan to help reduce or at the very least stabilize our population.
Those of us who were around when only 100M populated the US, nobody complained about crowded schools, crowded highways, long checkout lines in every store.
It's overpopulation people, plain and simple.
I agree with you about NJ, but given the sized land area of the US we're actually not very populated at all.
-NJ, on the other hand, is the densest (of course). It's isn't easy, but we really need to improve upon our transportation infrastructure. Stop suburban sprawl which just packs more and more persons in the already packed Garden State
-You'd think we were fighting to keep our title as the densest
-Someone pointed out that we must consolidate. Yes...we must.
OK. So one answer you think is to consolidate. Maplewood and South Orange have shared school districts for at least 40 years (probably more but that's how long ago my personal experience goes back) and yet, these two towns in Essex County have some extremely high taxes.
Ok, combining schools is where the drop meets the bucket. Talk about combining police departments, fire departments, mayors, planning departments, public works departments, traffic and parking departments, etc etc etc. Get rid of the municipal boundary between Maplewood and South Orange, and Millburn, and West Orange too. Get rid of all that administrative weight for each little neighborhood. Think of municipalities like retail. Corner stores have much higher overhead than Wal-Mart.
Ok, combining schools is where the drop meets the bucket. Talk about combining police departments, fire departments, mayors, planning departments, public works departments, traffic and parking departments, etc etc etc. Get rid of the municipal boundary between Maplewood and South Orange, and Millburn, and West Orange too. Get rid of all that administrative weight for each little neighborhood. Think of municipalities like retail. Corner stores have much higher overhead than Wal-Mart.
Good point. I'm not saying these towns separate are excess fat, but imagine the money that could be saved if a lot of towns in NJ followed this. But in this state, the likelihood is slim
Ok, combining schools is where the drop meets the bucket. Talk about combining police departments, fire departments, mayors, planning departments, public works departments, traffic and parking departments, etc etc etc. Get rid of the municipal boundary between Maplewood and South Orange, and Millburn, and West Orange too. Get rid of all that administrative weight for each little neighborhood. Think of municipalities like retail. Corner stores have much higher overhead than Wal-Mart.
Yes but you need a starting point and considering a huge bite of our taxes are for schools we should start there IMO...BUT..we all know NJEA isn't going to allow that with out a huge fight.
I agree with you about NJ, but given the sized land area of the US we're actually not very populated at all.
-NJ, on the other hand, is the densest (of course). It's isn't easy, but we really need to improve upon our transportation infrastructure. Stop suburban sprawl which just packs more and more persons in the already packed Garden State
-You'd think we were fighting to keep our title as the densest
-Someone pointed out that we must consolidate. Yes...we must.
I don't think it's that we have too many people here or coming. It's just the way in which we grow. It's inefficient. We sprawl, spreading suburban mess across the entire state. The land becomes single-use, uses spread far apart, only curvy lanes and cul-de-sacs to almost-sorta connect them. Transit doesn't work there, there are usually not many sidewalks or bike lanes, so you have to drive to do ANYTHING or get ANYWHERE. It increases number of miles you drive, and when everyone's driving more (surprise) traffic sucks more. People wonder how a state like Connecticut (not really growing) has worse and worse traffic all the time. It's because the people who are there drive more and more and more.
Good point. I'm not saying these towns separate are excess fat, but imagine the money that could be saved if a lot of towns in NJ followed this. But in this state, the likelihood is slim
Unfortunately I know you're right. To consolidate municipalities, or even just a few select services (which I agree with njkate that schools are the easiest to start with), is encroaching on the territory/jobs of a lot of people, many of whom are quite influential in this state.
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