Thirty steps and close to 2,000 total votes separated the winners and losers of Fanwood's mayoral and council elections Tuesday night. At Fabio's Bistro on South Avenue, Mayor Colleen Mahr, Councilman Russell Huegel, and Councilman-Elect Kevin Boris, surrounded by dozens of local supporters, celebrated a Democratic sweep of borough ballot boxes. Across the street in Club West, Republican mayoral candidate Joe Britt took in his defeat, alongside council candidates Jason Benedict and Nicole Cole. "The important thing was we gave the people a choice," Britt said. "We ran a good campaign. We're …
It's Election Day 2011 on Tuesday, and both Scotch Plains and Fanwood voters have good reasons to head to the polls. In Fanwood, two council seats and the mayorship are up for election. Mayor Colleen Mahr, a Democrat, is seeking her third term at the helm. She is joined by running mates Russell Huegel, an incumbent councilman, and Kevin Boris, the chairman of the Fanwood Planning Board. Fanwood Republican Committee Chairman Joe Britt is seeking to unseat the mayor. He's joined on the ticket by council candidates Jason Benedict and Nicole Cole. The six candidates have focused their campaigns …
Fanwood's two candidates for mayor took part in a debate Thursday night hosted by The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times. Mayor Colleen Mahr, a Democrat, is seeking her third term in office. Fanwood Republican Committee Chairman Joe Brit is seeking to unseat her. The debate was moderated by Times assignment editor Paul Peyton. 1. Peyton opened the debate by asking each candidate to describe the management style he or she would bring to the mayor's office, if elected.Mahr said she aims to "serve by example," such as by taking "my concerns to the county building or right to the halls of Trenton." She …
Letter to the Editor: As a resident of Fanwood for more than 50 years and a four-term councilwoman in the borough, I am writing in support of Mayor Colleen Mahr, Councilman Russell Huegel and Planning Board Chariman Kevin Boris for election. In all those years I have yet to witness such extraordinary leadership as has been demonstrated by the mayor and our council candidates. In just the last four years alone, Fanwood has seen a development boom, which amounts to increased ratables and tax relief for our more than 7,000 residents. Her hands-on efforts during Hurricane Irene is a model for …
Fanwood's candidates for mayor and council took to the dais of Borough Hall on Thursday night for the first and only debate of the borough's 2011 election season. The debate was hosted by The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times, with assignment editor Paul Peyton serving as moderator, and reporter Fred Rossi serving as timekeeper. This year, the mayorship and two seats on the Fanwood Borough Council are up for election. Mayor Colleen Mahr, a Democrat, is seeking her third term. Joining her on the Democratic ticket are Councilman Russell Huegel, seeking his second term, and Planning Board Chairman …
The Nov. 8 election is fast approaching, and Fanwood residents must choose between the candidates running for mayor and two council seats. The Democratic ticket features Mayor Colleen Mahr and Councilman Russell Huegel, plus Planning Board Chairman Kevin Boris, who was appointed to the position in January after an unsuccessful bid for the Borough Council in 2010. Fanwood Republican Committee Chairman Joe Britt is seeking to unseat Mahr. Jason Benedict, who ran for council in 2010, and Nicole Cole, who sought election to the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders in 2009, are campaigning for…
Letter to the Editor: I read with great interest the recent interview conducted by the Leader/Times with the Fanwood Republican mayoral and council candidates, Joe Britt, Jason Benedict and Nicole Cole. As a former councilwoman, I had hoped to find real suggestions and solutions on how to better control taxes and reduce spending as part of their campaign strategy. I instead learned that they wished to not only further delay real change through the pursuit of shared services and downtown redevelopment, but advocated to spend even more money on additional studies. Additionally, it was …
Fanwood Republican candidates for mayor and council Joe Britt, Jason Benedict and Nicole Cole worked behind the counters of some of the borough's most popular businesses Sunday, part of a fundraiser for the runningmates' election campaign. They filled orders, collected donations and mingled with voters at Fanwood Bagels and Deli, Martine Avenue Pizza and Deli and Double Dipper Cafe. Britt, Chairman of the Fanwood Republican Committee, is seeking to unseat Mayor Colleen Mahr. Benedict and Cole are angling to defeat Councilman Russell Huegel and Planning Board Chairman Kevin Boris.
Support the Fanwood Republican candidates – Joe Britt for Mayor and Jason Benedict and Nicole Cole for Borough Council – as they support the shops on Martine Avenue on Sunday. Fanwood Bagels, 12 to 1 p.m., serving bagels and spreads Martine Avenue Pizza and Deli, 1 to 3 p.m., serving pizza, salad and beverages Double Dipper Cafe, 3 to 4 p.m., serving ice cream and Italian ices. Come downtown at your convenience – or at the time of your favorite treat. There is plenty of parking in the lot behind the shops. Please stop into the Martine Avenue Deli first for your ticket. We’ll be there to …
Ricky Abichandani, second from left, accepts a check from Fanwood Democratic Candidates Mayor Colleen Mahr, Councilman Russell Huegel and Council Candidate Kevin Boris toward his Eagle Scout Project. Abichandani, a member of Fanwood Troop 33, has selected to design and build a “Welcome to Fanwood” sign. The donation provided by the Committee to Elect Mahr, Huegel and Boris has provided the final dollars to move forward with his project with completion slated for spring 2012.
Councilman Russ Huegel, Mayor Colleen Mahr and Council Candidate Kevin Boris recently stopped for some nourishment while out on the campaign trail at one of Fanwood’s newest businesses, Club West . Located on South Avenue, across from the Fanwood Train Station , Club West offers a nutritious menu of healthy foods and beverages and a weight loss program. The candidates sampled some drinks while discussing how this new business was doing. For more information on their campaign go to www.fanwooddems.com.
Recently the Fanwood Democrats gathered at Mayor Mahr's home to discuss the upcoming local election but also to collect some much needed supplies for our community food pantry. While elections matter, what matters more to us is that not one Fanwoodian should ever go hungry. We felt strongly that our event was an opportunity to shed some much needed attention on the fact that we do have a food pantry, which we share with Scotch Plains. While many of us have much to be thankful for, we shouldn't forget those who, many times, are struggling in silence. That night we collected many items such as …
With a little over 40 days to go to the Nov. 8 general election, some may call this the silly season of politics. However, as I see it, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to going to the polls to vote for Fanwood's mayor and two council seats that are on this year's ballot. I am seeking re-election to the Office of Mayor along with my two running mates, current Councilman Russell Huegel and Fanwood's Planning Board Chair Kevin Boris. What is at stake for every resident is the future direction of our town and the leadership that is necessary to guide those decisions in good …
U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone joined Fanwood's Democrats in formally launching their 2011 election campaigns at a barbecue hosted by Mayor Colleen Mahr at her North Avenue home on Monday. Mahr and Councilman Russell Huegel are running for re-election Nov. 8. Kevin Boris – defeated in his 2010 council bid by Democratic incumbents Katherine Mitchell (D) and Anthony Parenti (R), and subsequently appointed chairman of the Planning Board in January – is seeking to join Huegel on the Borough Council. About 150 people attended the event, which was catered by Flannery's Pub on South Avenue. Organizers also…
The political parties and the locations are different, but the circumstances that brought about two candidacies in one family are similar. Both candidates are facing incumbents in their communities where there was no opposition for that office in the last election. Both candidates were asked by their political committees to make the run when others were reluctant to engage in a campaign. And both candidates are committed to giving the voters a choice in the election this year. Joe Britt is the Republican candidate for mayor in the Borough of Fanwood in Union County and his nephew, Tom …
Fanwood Democratic Candidates, Mayor Colleen Mahr, Councilman Russell Huegel and Council Candidate Kevin Boris have added short videos to the Fanwood Democrats website at www.fanwooddems.com as one additional way for Fanwood voters to get to know the local candidates. Residents will be able to hear from the candidates first hand on a variety of topics ranging from property tax issues, shared services, downtown redevelopment, and such quality of life issues as public safety, recreation and our cultural arts programs. “Using the technology of the internet and video’s allows us to speak to the …
United States Senator Frank Lautenberg will be the featured guest at a dinner to kick off the re-election campaign of Fanwood Democratic Mayor Colleen Mahr, and Fanwood Democratic Candidates, Councilman Russell Huegel and Council Candidate Kevin Boris. This family-friendly event will be hosted at Mayor Mahr’s home on Monday, Sept. 26, starting at 6 p.m. Fanwood families are invited to join the Senator at the Mayor’s home to discuss their local, state and federal concerns, meet the local candidates and enjoy the opportunity to meet all Fanwoodians who share similar concerns. Families and …
We are fortunate in the Borough of Fanwood that, for many of our residents, things are mostly back to normal. This is a good time to take a moment to look back and thank all of our borough employees, as well as our residents, for their responsiveness, cooperation and patience in the wake of hurricane Irene. I also want to thank Union County personnel for sharing their equipment and manpower in picking up brush on our streets, which allowed our Public Works Department to turn their attention to other, more urgent tasks. And finally, to all who participated in the borough's one-time bulk waste …
To the Editor: Recently the 2011-2012 tax bill arrived in my home and yours. As a Fanwood resident and candidate for the Fanwood Municipal Council, I am pleased by the leadership of Fanwood Mayor Colleen Mahr and her continued effort to keep Fanwood a “Great Place to Put Down Roots” by approving a budget that was well below the state mandated 2-percent cap, despite the overall increase of just $9 per household. I have had the privilege of working with the Mayor for the past three years, first as a volunteer member and now the current chair, on the Fanwood Planning and Zoning Board. I …
Last week, The Scotch Plains-Fanwood Times published a photo on the front page telling all our residents about the $100,000 of taxpayer dollars that the Fanwood governing body got to refurbish a 60-year-old caboose that currently resides rusted, rotting, graffiti covered and half hidden in our borough's recycling center. What the short blurb doesn't tell you is that the caboose will cost much more then $100,000 to rehabilitate. In fact, the last estimates I heard at the Borough Council meetings were approximately three times that. What the current team in Borough Hall will tell you is that …
