Consolidation Study Commission Gets Off the Ground

The Fanwood-Scotch Plains Consolidation Study Commission – a volunteer body charged with analyzing the potential merits of a consolidation between the two communities – held its first organizational meeting on Wednesday and began its efforts toward funding a merger study.

Commissioner Fred Lange explained the group's task at hand.

"We are first meeting to decide if we want to have study, and then it's funding and finding someone to do the study," said Lange. "Then if the commission decides they like the results of study and would like to step forward, then there will be many meetings in Fanwood and Scotch Plains to discuss the merits of that study. Once we feel that we have informed everyone, we would use resources in Union County and call a special election. If the election result is positive, we would then have one city or town. If rejected by voters, that’s the end of it. And it has to be the majority of voters in both towns to implement the results of the study."

In the meantime, Scotch Plains and Fanwood mayors and councils have already begun discussions about merging their two police departments, though that process is wholly separate from the commission and their study.

The Commission selected its 10th and final member from Fanwood from two candidates – Matthew Juckes and Don Rosenberg – choosing Juckes. Members were then sworn in by NJ Department of Community Affairs Assistant Division Director Christopher Vaz.

At the meeting, the commission also elected a chairman, Don Parisi, and vice chairman, Anthony DiBattista. They adopted a meeting schedule, deciding to meet every second Wednesday of the month, and discussed bylaws.

"We've got a great group here," said Parisi. "And no one here is predisposed one way or the other at the beginning of this. We want to have as thoughtful of a discussion as possible."

At the commission's next meeting, they will further discuss the biggest task ahead, which is fundraising for the study. Parisi said during the meeting that they expect the study to cost between $50,000 to $75,000.

Commission members have been appointed by the Scotch Plains Township Council, the Fanwood Borough Council and Courage to Reconnect Scotch Plains and Fanwood, a local citizens group that petitioned the state for permission to organize the municipal consolidation commission. The process is being overseen by the state Department of Community Affairs under the guidance of the state’s Municipal Consolidation Act of 2007.

Lange began the merger investigation after hearing a talk by a statewide consolidation consultant. Realizing that Scotch Plains and Fanwood already share a school district, Lange wondered what else the two could share. After collecting approximately 1,200 signatures from the two towns, Courage to Reconnect brought an application to form the commission to the state local finance board and received approval after two hearings at the end of last year.

The five commissioners from Scotch Plains include: Don Parisi, Fred Lange, Phillip Wiener, John Thompson, and Sarah Dreikorn. The five commissioners from Fanwood include: Daniel McCarey, Ann Saltzman, Jack Molenaar, Anthony DiBattista and Matthew Juckes.

Learn more at http://spfreconnect.wordpress.com