More on Lakewood election

To make an informed decision read-

A.P.P. :

...The GOP chances hang on Steve Langert and Sean D. Gertner. The Democratic incumbents are Mayor Charles Cunliffe and Committeeman Raymond G. Coles. The foursome — competing for two three-year seats — agrees the No. 1 issue in the fast-growing township is taxes.
Gertner and Langert say spending is unbridled because of poorly managed resources and a reliance on a reduced surplus to keep the tax rate low.
Gertner — emphasizing the tax rate has risen the past two years — said he would have department heads make public presentations on their budgets...
The Republicans, in a flurry of campaign literature, have also questioned the wisdom of spending what township officials have said is $23 million on a new public works complex and more than $4 million on the new athletic complex off Oak Street.
Cunliffe and Coles defended their actions and emphasized that they've been able to lower the municipal tax rate for seven out of the last nine years and provide more municipal services to residents.
"The tax rate now is still lower than it was 11 years ago," Cunliffe said. "It was 96 cents (per $100 of property value) when I got elected. It's 82.8 now. That's not a bad record for nine years."
Coles said the sports complex is needed for a growing youth population, and the public works complex — currently at the end of Ninth Street and surrounded by housing — needs to be moved for safety and to meet current environmental regulations....

As previously I wrote:
The election is futile. The winners and losers will be decided by a Vaad, how well meaning they may be, that have great conflicts of interest (money & land distribution; tax exemptions etc.). What directly benefits them, at times conflicts with the interest of the broader community.
One day there will be sensible change. For now just pay your property tax on time.